December 18, 2008 I flew from Portland, Oregon to Genova, Italy. I cycled towards Cinque Terre and hiked the costal trail to the 5 fishing villages of Cinque Terre. Then I cycled south and took a train into Rome. I spent a day in Rome and then took a train out of the city limits and continued biking south. I cycled through Napoli and the scenic Sorrento Peninsula to Salerno. I took a train from Salerno to Paola and cycled to Vita S. Giovanni where I took a ferry to the island of Sicilia. Then I cycled around the southern park of Sicilia and up the west coast to Palermo. I finished my trip by taking a ferry and train to Rome. On this trip I cycled 1208.4 miles throughout Italy in 21 days. From Rome I flew back to Portland, Oregon.
December 18, 2010 I flew from Portland, Oregon to Panama City, Panama. My bike was damaged on the plane and I only had one gear for the entire trip. I spent 2 days in Panama City looking for the Panama Canal. Then I took a bus to David and taxied to the town of Boquete. I climbed to the top of the highest point in Panama, the peak of Volcano Buro. I also tried zip lining and went on a coffee tour before leaving Boquete. At that point I started cycling with my damages bike. Most of the journey was flat and I followed the Pacific cost of Costa Rica. I pushed my bike up all the hills and when I arrived near Liberia I rented a car. The rest of the trip was spent driving place to place, hiking and biking from the car. On this trip I ended up cycling 575.11 miles through Panama and Costa Rica in 15 days.
