Belfast, Northern Ireland, April, 2019
To have some time to pick up the bike properly, I rented a room in a woman’s house nearby the owner’s. We bonded quite a bit and she enjoyed having me, and encouraged me to come back. The pickup was a really beautiful experience with it’s former owner Thomas, who showed me how to ride it and wished me a good trip. From picking it up I went back to the house of the woman I was staying with and prepared to continue my journey.
Once I left, with two heavy, proper metal suitcases on either side, I started to drive to my next destination. and then, being Ireland, it started to downpour. The rain started slow enough at first that I could make it, since it was only about 25 minutes away. Within 5 minutes I realized no. I pulled into a parking lot thinking what to do, and did the only thing that came to mind in this moment of panic, and went back to the previous apartment. Horrible ride, I remember crying. It was also late. The woman was not happy to see me. When I showed up, I was soaked and crying and asked her if I could stay one more night, she pointed to the sofa and went back upstairs to sleep.