Experiences and conclusions, so far

A few things that have gone through my mind, during many hours on the bike. If anyone should find something useful, I'm only happy to share what little I know!

• On a bike, never ever dip your headlights during daytime!
  Many car drivers, especially in France and Spain, seems to look for the light rather than the bike. Keeping the headlight on full beam assures you've done your best to be seen.
  No one will get blinded during daytime by this and also no one I've met seems to have been annoyed by it. In fact most bike drivers run like this throughout Europe
  
• In Germany, navigate by road numbers. The signs are very good and knowing the number of the road you want to go will always work
  
• Not so in France. The road number will not work until you are on that actual road. Instead, here the navigation goes by name of next village down that road. Most often a village that is too small to turn up on large scale maps...
  
• In Spain, as in England, whichever of the strategies above work, as they show both road number and (in Spain) next big town on that road
  
• In France you get one, and only one, sign pointing you in the direction of wherever you want to go. As long as there are no other signs, you are supposed to just stay on the same road. Next sign will show up only next time you are supposed to turn, change road etc. There can be quite some time and a lot in between, before this happens. Also, the longer it is in between these signs, the smaller the second sign seems to be...
  
• France is big
  
• Spain is big
  
• Check you bike daily for leaks, odd noises, everything being tightly fit, oil level and also grease the chain every night before getting to bed. This way the grease gets a chance to set a bit overnight and things doesn't get quite as messy as they otherwise would
  
• Don't set out from home with an annoying fault on the bike hoping it will sort out. It never does, but rather only gets worse (in my case a glitch in the 12V/USB charging converter)
  
• Plan for time, not for distance. It is the time that takes it's toll and when your hours have gone, you will have gotten as far as you get and that's it
  
• Derived from the above, if you are camping and don't have pre-booked arrangements, start looking for a campsite already a couple of hours ahead of deadline for the day. You might end up going shorter than you had hoped for, but the alternative is not having somewhere to stay over night (which to me at least is worse)
  
• Remember to check for hostels as well. It might actually be cheaper getting a bed overnight than pitching a tent, as most campsites charge by number of persons and rent for tent space
  
• On ferrys, stay and oversee that your bike gets strapped down correctly. The crew have an interest in your bike not falling over and creating a mess, not in your bike being whole when the journey is over...

There will probably be more popping into mind over the next days or so, in which case I will add to this list. So, if interrested, stay tuned!