Bumps ahead.

Waking up with a bit of a thick head, I quickly found the continental buffet breakfast, with the coffee pot being the first port of call.
Headed out about 10am as only 250 km to do today.

Traffic congestion !

Didn't realise the route over the river was a ferry, and not a bridge... typically, the ferry was the other side..

10.30am now ... OK looks like its a 30 minute wait.

Here she comes.

Plenty of room

Was getting bored ... I know, take a pic.

Was about an hour behind schedule, but no problem,... will just have to get a spurt on ...  or NOT.
The roads were in a terrible state, so I really had to watch the speed.

Bumps ahead ... you are not kidding.

Finally some better tarmac ....

... and with that comes more traffic.

Stopped at a familiar place to pick up some phone charger leads & headphones.

Easy peasy .... the electronic check-out spoke English !

Stopped for a late lunch in Szarvas.

Pretty city.

Then the diuretic effects of the coffee kicked in 30 mins later.

Tonight I was Couch-surfing again, and had been offered a night in Bekes.  My host, Eva, had very thoughtfully gone to the trouble to find GPS co-ordinates for her house .... and if that wasn't enough, even hung a welcome sign on the gate for me.

"Showering".... well that was an outside affair.

Eva had prepared a nice meal too - Goulash, of course

And after a tour round Bekes, a few drinks in some local bars, it was time for the shots !

..... and that's all I can remember !

So flat

Leaving Austria, entering Hungary, the one thing that will stick in my mind is the change in scenery.  It's flat ... very flat.   With roads that are straight, very straight.

And after the mirror smooth roads of Germany & Austria, the roads here are akin to Thailand ... rough and rutted.

Easing into the days riding

Roadside stall .... spoilt for choice !

First stop was at a place recommended by my friends last night - The Esterhazy Palace.  Yeah, pretty .... I'm not a culture buff, so should be able to knock this waypoint out in 5 mins !  

If you want to know lots about it ... then click here.

Poser

The synopsis

Must be a pain cutting the grass

Moving on, its just more of the flat stuff.

Typical road & countryside combination

Typical village

Got to my destination, Velence, where I had pre-booked a Pension (guest house).  Took ages to find as the GPS co-ordinates on their website put it just 100 mts out, but on the wrong side of a main road.  I mean, you would not put a wrong digit in your phone number .... so why not care a bit more care on the bloody GPS co-ordinates !!

This place was close to a large inland lake so I figured something would be going on somewhere.  So after a shower, took a nosey around, and lo & behold... well like an inland Blackpool appeared.

Parked the bike ... next time u see a pic like this, I'll be in Chiang Mai.

Not much space on the beach.

Panoramic shot

7pm at night

 As noted on my Facebook post, its seemed strange to be at the seaside, but without seeing waves!

Well earned drink .... the first of many that night.

And as a postscript to the last pic, Hungary has a Zero percent blood alcohol limit ... well that works, doesn't it ?   Oh, I'm bad !  

Oil & water !

I had been noticing the Old Trannie's temperature gauge had been a little higher than usual, which mean that the fan was coming on with a much greater frequency than in the UK.  This was a tad worrying as although she wasn't boiling, clearly the problem was not getting better.... and the outside temperatures weren't getting any lower.

So a quick word with my hosts and they found me a bowl to drain the anti-freeze into, and it was time to rip the thermostat out.....never easy on a modern prissy super-styled click together bike.  You can see it, but the laborious job of  removing those plastic panels is where the time goes.

I'm sure the designers never have to work on these machines.... and whatever happened to simple nuts and bolts.  OK rant over, job done, and I'm on the road by 10.30 ... much later than I planned and with 500km still to cover.

So, managed to waypoint a few Honda Motorbike shops on the way, with a view to getting a replacement thermostat.

Tried 2 places, and neither had, but then a mechanic came out and in broken English tried to explain "but eez normal to run zis hot, eez OK"

I'm not convinced, but without a stat, its not going to hurt, so I worried no more .... now I got some serious time to make up.

Pretty village

 Tried "quickest route" on the GPS, and within seconds I was on some bloody Autobahn, with slow trucks, fast trucks, and idiots in supercars tailgating you.... pulled over for petrol, went for a pee that cost just under a Euro (70 cents), and that was the last straw.  Off at the next exit and back onto the country roads.

Tonight's stop was "Couch-surfing" again, and my host had sent a last minute message saying she had to work late, so any time after 7pm would be better .... that suited me perfectly.

The roads were a beautiful mix of forest and rolling hills, ... The Hills are alive with the Sound of Music paints the picture.... but with Motorhead blasting through my headphones.

Just over the Austrian border, I stopped for lunch in a little place called Scharding... quaint cobbled streets and coffee & cake shops.  Hottest part of the day now, so chucked the jacket over the handlebars and had a Apfelstrudle & Latte.

Half an hour later about to leave, and wondered, where did that oil slick come from .... my heavy jacket had activated the chain lube valve, and dumped the lot on the floor !  Whoops, time to leave.

A good part of the afternoon's ride followed the Danube river for 100km or so.  Excellent riding which made up for the mornings calamities.

Arrived at my hosts apartments at 7.30pm and was warmly welcomed ... tonight I really did have a couch (sofa) to sleep on, but it was very comfy.  Zoltan & Eszter made me most welcome, but as late as it was, pizza was the easiest eating option.

Goodnight.