Kategoriarkiv: Förberedelser

and washing of all that dust

Don’t forget to take a look at the end credits of all those helpful minds who pushed me on – Here

Publicerat av Oskar i Förberedelser

280 days, a handfull euros spread along the way, hundreds of thousand steps – over mountains, through valleys, in forests, crossing fields, tramping cityscapes; jumping rivers, fences, walls, rail tracks; running along highways, from orange farmers, apple growers, pear, corn, all other veg. grower. Sleeping in a bag, facing a starfilled universe, under trees, beneath stormy skies; next to oceans, lakes, rivers, castles, churches, women… and men.

Meeting friends, all those old, new, lost and loved; brothers, sisters, family, acquaintances, beloved and bewildered. Seeing all those countries – Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, France, Spain… and such. Eating more food than my stomach can hold, walking with a gaping hole i my belly no food seemed able to fill.

Every place of every step

Having moments
every second and every day.
All those moments.
Now passed.

Sitting here at the end of my journey
Looking at the harbour of Tangier
over a Kaf and pancake
I can’t, won’t feel anything else than satisfaction
and thankfulness for 
my restless mind,
my high threshold for pain,
and that time I met you…

… all of you

Publicerat av Oskar i Förberedelser

Did I just write closure is an integral part of life? Haha, well, I’m not very good at it at all apparently. But here goes some sort of wrap-up. Three hundred and sixty-eight days ago, I set out on a long walk. The reasons for it are not clear. Not clear at all.

There was this build-up scenario which I sometimes tell people. One of me jumping between European cities – not knowing where to go – then arriving in an apartment in a late-winter Oslo, feeling sorry for myself. Then there is that whole ”I’m just a poor a lonesome cowboy” – idea – me looking for freedom. Poor impulse-control. stubbornness. Lack of better things to do.

A very anarchistic personality and a tiredness stemming from this way too delusional world we live in.

… not feeling a part of anywhere or anyone

The list goes on and on and on with the reasons to why I took that first step.

Then there’s all the reasons for taking the next and the next and the next one.

But let’s just say that after one – taking one more is just a frame of mind.

It doesn’t get any easier – but it doesn’t get much harder either.

Therefore continuing wasn’t all too hard.

And meeting all you wonderful people down the road just made the whole thing more and more exciting and whenever I felt a bit down n’ out, or tired, I always met someone or saw something that boosted me and gave me a push for another step. It would be hard to incorporate all of you in one message. But hopefully you still remember me.

To officially close this!

After Pelayo we slowly walked through the hard rain and misty clouds, down the mountain, for the first time seeing the end of my walk. Tarifa.

unfortunately we thought that green area on the maps mean off-road forest walking. Apparently at the outskirts of Europe it means militarized zone and very angry border patrols.

But with some smiling and looking confused we just got turned around and had to walk down the highway those last kilometres that day. At dusk we put up camp just at the townborder of Tarifa and went to bed hoping there would be no more rain that day.

… a foolish wish

At dawn the sun came up about the same time as we did. We were still half-soaked but a few hours in the spanish spring-sun left most of us fairly dry.

 Breakfast was bread. Bread, butter and cheese.  Just as it had been for the past 280 days.

We continued in to town, where I played harmonica for a few well needed coins, and took the boat over the Gibraltar strait. On a boat engulfed in wind and rain.

Publicerat av Oskar i Förberedelser

What is the most amount of time you’ve not showered? I peek at six weeks. Can’t really say it bothered me much.  The body adapts. Your natural cleaning functions works. As long as you keep you hands, face and feet in somewhat shape…

But sooner or later anyone would hit a point where you start to question your own senses, and you tell yourself you’re just not very sanitary anymore… if ever

When that thought hits your head there just isn’t very much to do except go crazy,  since you can’t really leave your own body,  how vile it may make you feel.

Or I guess you could have a shower…

Though I surely dragged on it til the last minute

First shower since Paris!

http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/oskar-walks-to-africa

Publicerat av Oskar i Förberedelser

I took a few wrong turns, I met some roaming Americans and a few winepicking Italians who had lingered on, after season. But then it was there,  the sea…. and what a sea it is.

The Mediterranean stretched out in front of me

It looked cold and damp that day. But it was there. And it gave me a glimpse of what the end will look like.

For miles I walked with the sea on my left side and the canal Midi on my right, balanced on small tongues of land just to not walk to far from the coast.

At night I slept next to it

And at light,  I climbed the cliffs around it

Until,  finally,  I sat there.

At the border between France and Spain high on on of the most southern tops of the Pyrenee mountains.

And the exhaustion danced a beautiful waltz together with my excitement of entering the last country on the walk.

Publicerat av Oskar i Förberedelser

It wasn’t easy,  it wasn’t easy at all! All around me were high peaks and deep valleys.  Up and Down,  up and down into infinity. Torture for my legs, and a big great laugh for the universe i bet.

Sometime you stumbled up on a plateau

For a second you can relax your muscles and enjoy the fresh air and flat landscape- for the moment at least

Because pretty soon you will have to start that strenuous climbing once again.

Publicerat av Oskar i Förberedelser

It started on day 128, but it all ended a week later,  I’ve stayed on the road for a good few months, walked thousands of kilometres, then as it happened Lille invited me to stay the night. So I did. And who could blame me – the hospitality of the city almost trapped me. But that one night turned into another…

First I tramped the streets in my usual observing manner

I passed underexposed plazas

Rounded a museum or two

Tried to find a place to call home

Just like any ol’ hobo

Went down wet streets,  next to jolly houses of laughter

But nothing was for me. Either the atmosphere was wrong or the doors closed, or guarded by money,  so I decided to give up my vain quest for a place and decided to just get a quick drink, then put up camp somewhere and continue my rampaging through France.

But I never got that far because the place were I found myself standing,  the Drugstore, adopted me,  told me to put down my heavy load and rest my tired bones.

– Tell us a story and we’ll show you our city, they said

I did as I was told, gave in to good hearts, had a look around, saw all those good faces – all smiles – all those beaten smiles I cherish so

And from where I was standing it looked like I’d found the place

… or maybe the place found me.

Publicerat av Oskar i Förberedelser

I Hamburg vankades det av och an. Jag visste inte riktigt vart jag skulle ta vägen. Staden erbjuder så mycket att jag blir snurrig av allt. Och när magkänslan gör sig hörd säger den att det egentligen ganska lite jag behöver.

Jag snurrade några extra varv i staden.

Men Hamburg en kall och gråmulen septemberdag kunde inte annat än att ge korta glimtar av guld och bad mig istället komma tillbaka en annan dag då vi båda hade mer tid för varandra.

Jag tog mig till Buxehude.  Sov mellan staden och naturen.

Stod upp tidigt nästa morgon och kastade mig upp på tunga ben.

Bablefish says :
There wasn’t much to do in Hamburg for half a day. I strolled around, saw the exterior of many inviting places,  and wondered how it would be to live life in that city – but the answer for that would have to wait til I have time to actually do that.

As I was leaving for the road yet again.

Publicerat av Oskar i Förberedelser