Gone Fishin'!
A day of frustrations, yet of things kind of sort of working out. A purge day.
Woke up, checked the bike. Nope, previous patching didn't hold. Spent a frustrating morning working with remaining bits of patch to get something rolling. Finally, concerned about getting stuck without a working bike at all (the screw on the front wheel was losing its shape, becoming stuck on the bike with a broken tube), managed to get an old tube to hold. No air though, so I walked with the bike on a flat front tire.
After so much time on the bike, I no longer had the morning before the hot sun. So, walking in the open sun, burning hot, taking way longer than expected. Did find a small coconut with some water, and a guava. Not much, but so thirsty and hungry that it felt satisfying. Refreshed, I carried on.
Made it to the highway. Didn't see any shops, just some highway signs. Turned left, kept walking.
After a while, got to town. Stopped in at a colmado (corner store). No bike stuff, as these stores sometimes do have, but at least picked up some snacks and drinks. Walked down the side street. A ghetto. No bike parts, but picked up a few more snacks and drinks.
Went back to the highway. After going over a bridge, found a bike repair stand. Basically, a guy sitting outside with a few bike parts. Yeah! But, he didn't have parts for my bike. Worse, he pointed out that my tire (not just the tube) was "fea" (ugly, i.e. broken).
The bike mechanic rode his motorcycle into town to pick up another tire. I waited. After a while, he returned, but it didn't look like he had a tire. Nope.
Running out of possibilities, I suggested that he take the tire off a bike locked up against the fence. "That's my bike," he explained. "How about if you take that off now, then get another tire later?" I asked. He ok'ed the idea, taking off not just the tire, but the whole wheel.
After that, he charged me a fair bit, not leaving much cash for food through the weekend. At least I had a working bike!
Kept going. Got to a comedor, an eatery. Had a late lunch, but felt sick. Threw up. Then some more. An ambulance arrived. They ushered me in, contrary to my desires. I'd been through this before, knew it was just some type of food poisoning that would pass after vomiting.
They checked my blood pressure, asked me some questions. As they were getting ready to prick my finger, I insisted that I just wanted to go. "No tengo derechos?" I asked. (Don't I have rights?) They finally let me sign a form and go. On the way out, the national police had arrived, and were speaking with the paramedics. I picked up my stuff and left.
Found a shady area, it's still extremely hot. Threw up some more. Now writing this, still haven't found wifi. Some annoying dogs are barking. Getting late.
Maybe it was some of the tomato? I ate and drank too many of my culprits to be sure.
Some tomato came up, along with a large amount of liquid.
Maybe unwashed tomato, maybe dairy, maybe cola, maybe fruit, maybe prepared food, maybe something else.
Last night this replacement computer also failed to load. After rebooting, it does work again.
Now in this small corridor. Too hot to ride much. Not too much to do here. Maybe spend a while at the beach. Then a day or two in the next settlement?
Still extremely thirsty!
After a while in the mountains, made it back to the coast!
Went into town to fix my flat tube. Wound up buying an entire wheel, including the rim and tire!
Went down to the beach. Beautiful scenery. Decided to spend the night.
The next day, Sunday, I still felt tired. Decided to spend another day at the beach.
Each day, woke up feeling tired, having sore legs. Kept extending my beach stay.
After a few days, some locals came by. The fishing community took care of me.
They brought me some food and water and other items.
Also, they built a beach shack for me!
Afterwards, somebody stole my phone.
After a week at the beach, some concerned locals came by. I was getting ready to leave anyways. I spent one night at the house of a local couple. Learned to make locrio, a Caribbean dish.
The next day, Monday, we did some repairs of my equipment together. Then, I rode off!
Travel is unpredictable. You have to adapt a ton more. Also, you're more vulnerable, yet more likely to receive assistance.
I didn't expect to stay so long in the area. Yet, I had a chance to try some foods I'd wanted to (e.g. castaño, a fruit that tastes like potato).
Also, I met some interesting people, and had an opportunity to see a different way of doing things.
Overall, I'm thankful for having spent the week at the beach!
Next, some more riding, getting back into the swing of things as far as that plus working, phone, bank, etc.!
A day without a phone shows some signs of addiction withdrawal. Also, some Dominicans (as Americans, etc. do) seem to grab for phones like addicts. At least the withdrawal is somewhat short.
[Editing this, I'm now going through another cycle of comparable problems/opportunities. Seems like you have to deal with certain of these challenges for this type of travel, much of it acquiring things like food, water, wifi, etc. Tons of cool events along the way!]