Ouch - Blogabond

It is raining when we wake up, it rains through breakfast, and it is raining as we finally start out on our bicycles. We wind out of town behind Bram, most of us on 7 speed upright bicycles of a rather classical Dutch style, the kids on 3 speed models, and the youngest on a 1 speeder. Bram has his own racing bike, a model doubtlessly bursting with gear options, but in truth it is not necessary: we are in flat country with the wind at our backs.

The Ijsselmeer is gray and flecked with whitecaps, the sky is grey and flecked with white clouds, and the land is an intense green: we follow the coast north.

Modern wind turbines stake both the land and the water here and there. We travel in a loose line, the teenagers eager to stay in the lead, the youngsters happy to chat and putter along, the adults chatting among themselves or with the kids or enjoying some solitude. It rains, it stops, it rains again.

The wind helps us when we turn due north, and challenges us otherwise. We are pilgrims under a capricious sky.

In early afternoon Polly finds a house she wants me to photograph, chases after me at full speed, and flips here bike on the edge of the pavement. She lands hard on her head, scraping ankle, thigh, elbow, shoulder and face as well. We are aghast at the damage, and loathe to show it. Nic goes for ice from a nearby farmhouse and Wil pulls out antibiotics and bandages, keeping Polly warm and low against shock. She does not lose consciousness. A tremendous lump grows beneath the wound on her head, incredibly half as large as a baseball within minutes, but the ice from the farmhouse begins to reduce the swelling.

We are less than 10 km. out of Enkhuizen. There is no traffic or ready transport, so when Polly says after some time that she wants to continue we are inclined to let her. She keeps up a steady pace, she and I continuing ahead when the rest of the group is stalled by other bicycle problems. The boat should be waiting for us: we focus on that.

written by

roel krabbendam on May 30, 2007 from Hoorn, Netherlands

from the travel blog: Heaven

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