Day 208 – EU – Greece [Rest Day in Transit]

17/09/20

 Travel from Athens (Greece, Europe) to Thessaloniki (Greece, Europe)

Wrapping up the two days break and heading back to Thessaloniki to restart the run where I left it – and towards Bulgaria

This 2-days break has been very beneficial on many levels. Not having to wake up at 5am for two mornings in a row felt like total laziness and it was good. Enjoying home cooked meals, having a go at cooking too, and sharing these meals in good company. Celebrating and saying goodbye to friends in Greece before heading to Central Europe. Playing with Lisa’s very spoilt cats, Reginald and Kiki Ugly Bug.

I also worked on my revised plan for the crossing of Europe. I worked on the assumption that I will be able to head to the next continent in March 2021. Therefore I re-routed the European itinerary to include an additional 5,000km. The new route will see me run through: Sofia (Bulgaria), Belgrade (Serbia), Zagreb (Croatia), Ljubljana (Slovenia), Graz & Vienna (Austria), Bratislava (Slovakia), Prague (Czechia), Leipzig, Hannover, Berlin, Dresden (Germany), Krakow (Poland), Lviv (Ukraine), Bucharest (Romania), Istanbul (Turkey).

It’s quite frankly an amazing program and I am thrilled at the thought of running through (and visiting) all these wonderful European cities and capitals. I also know winters are cold in Central Europe and I am gearing up for freezing temperatures in the coming months!

[*PS: the situation in Europe currently is that Hungary is not crossable (only “”essential travels”” are allowed) hence why I do not plan to run through Budapest. It may change by the time I get close to the country. I also am very aware that other European countries may go into a second wave of lockdown. I read the news every morning and will adapt as needs be…]