SAN VITO – Drop everything and go around the world. A thought that pops into the minds of many people, at least once in their lives. Alex Battiston he’s really doing it, riding his bike. Born in 1985, the traveler is originally from Sesto al Reghena. He then moved from the village to nearby San Vito, but for about ten years his life has been in Finland. His degree thesis focused on automation brought him to Northern Europe. Alex is a mechatronics engineer and with his studies he had earned an excellent job position in Helsinki. A position that has given him much satisfaction over the years, and which he did not leave lightly. A few weeks ago, the scene was almost like a movie. The meeting with the boss to communicate «I quit and hit the road». «It was a difficult choice, says Alex, but I had had this dream for many years and I didn’t want to wait any longer. The nice thing is that I was not only understood, but also supported. They all understood the value this experience has for me.” 150 thousand kilometers to travel on what has always been his favorite vehicle, discovering different cultures, natural beauty, flavors and aromas from every part of the globe. A tour that will take more than three years. And above all a radical change of habits, from the “traditional” daily life of working in a company, to the new and sometimes unpredictable one of adventure.
THE STAGES
But like a good engineer, Alex is organised: tent, mattress, camping gas stove, small tools for the bike, telephone and PC, and the bare essentials to travel safely. The journey began a few days ago from Finland, with a ferry to get to Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, and start cycling “through forests – explains Alex -, small towns and almost unknown gems that deserve to be seen”. In these days the journey continues in a south-west direction, which will touch, in addition to the Baltic countries, Poland, Slovakia, Austria and Slovenia. In Italy there will be a stop in Friuli Venezia Giulia, to say goodbye to the family, and then off to France, Andorra and Spain. Once the European part of the tour is over, it will be Africa’s turn, a moment much awaited by the engineer, who thinks of the Sahara desert, and the colors and shadows of tropical forests. He will cycle along the entire western coast of the black continent and then go back east and arrive in Ethiopia. This will be followed by stays in some Middle Eastern countries, India, Bangladesh, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. And down to Australia. «A “must” – comments Alex for those who love deserts like me». The cyclist will then reach South America and move towards the Northern Hemisphere. Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Peru and Colombia. And again Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, Mexico, ending with the United States, to be covered from west to east.
ON HIS SITE
Alex’s itinerary is public, you can read all the stops on his website, World On Bicycle. On the portal, as well as on his social channels, the engineer shares photos and videos of his adventure. He writes and speaks in English, so as to make his contents accessible to the widest possible audience. Alex doesn’t hide the fact that he has another dream: to transform his passion into a job, thanks to the help of social media. A passion that his grandfather Felice passed on to him, «which inspires me – he explains – every time I conquer a climb», and which has grown over time. The desire to face increasingly difficult challenges by bike was also fueled by the world of the web, dear to the engineer. «I made my first trips to Ireland, Scotland, Iceland and Tuscany – he concludes – driven by some videos seen on YouTube. Now I too would like to motivate other people, inspire them to chase their dreams. Everything can be done, you just need to want it.”
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