"How long did it take? Only five days?"
Henk sometimes had spent more than
ten hours on the bike a day, completely
trembling and so hungry and sleepy, it got
dangerous. With dark circles under his
eyes, he had arrived at the motocross track
in the village Maggiore near Arona in Italy,
where Boet camped in his van. "The first day
I got as far as the Ardennes. But in Germany
I got on really well. Although, it was dangerous.
Very speedy cars overtaking slow trucks on
narrow roads. I almost kicked the bucket.
I've slept in so-called Naturfreundehäuser
(friends of nature hostels), and even ate
Rettichknödel (radish dumplings)." " From
Switzerland to Italy you took the Simplon
Pass?" "Yeah, but first I had to cross
the Grimsel Pass, that was way steeper."
"And you want to stay here?" "Well I could
go looking for a job." "Fat chance over here,
perhaps near one of the lakes or on the coast.
I'll ask around." "You know, I have dad's old tent.
Can I set it up over here ... for the time being?"
"All right, but we are only seven weeks in Italy.
The last four in Faenza and then we head off to Spain."
Through the American motocrosser Lew Archer, whose
camper was parked next to Boet, Henk found a job
as a disc jockey and cleaner in a gay bar in Faenza.
And Boet was already quite a while in Spain, when
Henk had a job as dishwasher in Forte dei Marmi.
