TWIKE 560's adventures

WELCOME! The TWIKE, an electric three-wheeler designed in Switzerland. We’re currently driving from Switzerland via France and Spain to southern Portugal and back – dodging all C-19 quarantine hot-spots – read about our trip on this blog TWIKE? Three wheeler designed in Switzerland in 1985 Name is short for “TWI“n-bi”KE“ This TWIKE is number 560, […]

During TDP2021 I noticed that the front friction brake was not working correctly – only the rear brakes…and those were also really bad. Since there is near to no information about TWIKE brakes and the different variants, I thought it would make sense to write about this vital part of the vehicle in a short […]

A few days after arriving back from TDP2021, I brought TW560 to Andi from Ksenotek for some post-TDP2021 TLC. I know that there are some things that need urgent attention, such as the breaking system, the tyres and the main axle on the right hand side. Plus, whatever else Portugal’s cobblestone streets haven’t broken yet… […]

The ferry arrives on-time in Genova. With the help of a tugboat, we find our way into the port like an oversized log.   This process takes a while and whilst everybody else is on the upper deck watching our arrival in Genova, I, having seen this process last time, I stay in the bar […]

I splurged on my last hotel on this trip – complete with all the trappings and a rooftop swimming pool. Today’s breakfast, however, was quite muted and did not live up to the expectations. This didn’t have anything to do with the hotel, though – local health regulations reduced the offering dramatically. I’ve definitely had […]

My last full-day drive in Spain has begun. Yesterday evening I researched a little as to which kind of options I had to get to Barcelona as I wasn’t keen on 150km of main road driving – today I’ll take some smaller roads to Tarragona, visit the city and then take the road along the […]

Waking up early is a blessing and curse of being at a certain age. In my case, today, I was very happy to be wide awake and refreshed whilst having the luck to see the sun rise over the hills and illuminate my room in a warm orange glow.   After enjoying a last few […]

What a change to the last few weeks this night was: Cold 10°C air was filtering into my room during the night and I slept very well. Felt a little bit like Switzerland. Refreshed, I go to the breakfast room and am greeted by the Refugio’s owner lady with a friendly smile. There isn’t much […]

Today is the day of reckoning: Will I be able drive to Switzerland with my TWIKE or will TW560 travel on its own whilst I have to find another way? Before beginning anything today, I want to savour my last Portuguese breakfast – and a blast of carbs!   Our strategy today is to be […]

Saturday morning…7 am Martim and I are ready to explore the town of Castelo Branco and the fields surrounding the town on foot…running. He’s a triathlete, 10 years younger than me – his pace for the first 10km was at a brisk ~5min/km.   I really liked the early morning temperature. My runs in Lisbon […]

Early morning I load all my stuff into the TWIKE, clear my apartment and hand back the keys and remote control for the garage before driving to the Airport to work from the lounge until my flight leaves later that afternoon. All is good until I have to slam the breaks due to a distracted […]

Another week as a digital nomad starts – I can reach my office by TWIKE in about 12-14 minutes and I really like trying to discover a new way to get to the office every morning.   The only thing I don’t like about Lisbon (and many parts of Portugal) is TWIKE-related: Cobblestones. Lots of […]

As mentioned in the last entry, my trip generated quite some interest in the Interwebs. Specifically, this tweet, which motivated Leonardo Rodrigues, a journalist from a Lisbon-based digital-only publication, amensagem.pt to reach out to me and ask me if I were interested in a creating a piece in his publication. TW560 is no stranger to […]

Another place without any noise except for the ever-present wind blowing from the Atlantic. I slept very well and woke early morning. My host was also awake – offering me breakfast with fresh fruit, yogurt and fresh fruit. With a full day of doing nothing ahead, I decide to drive along the same road I […]

With my vacation over, I start living and working from Lisbon for the next 3 weeks. I’m really happy that my work setup allows me to work from anywhere, as long as I’ve got high-speed internet with a latency below around 75 ms. From my apartment, my commute to the office takes only 14 minutes. […]

Much too soon, it’s time to leave this paradise of quiet and friendliness. I’ll be back for sure. If you feel like visiting this place, you can reach Dorris and Ed here. I strongly recommend you to visit them if you can. Ed was adamant to not let me leave without a sandwich and prepared […]

After yesterday’s trip and a grand welcome at the eco-lodge, I wake up in my room at around 7 am as the sun starts to rise. No noise except for the wind is to be heard. Everything here encourages deceleration. The room has a brilliant view of the surrounding Compo and the lack of any […]

I get up at 4am to see off my family. They are heading back to Switzerland, whilst I get to spend another full month in Portugal. With still a few days to go, I’m really looking forward to staying at the eco-resort I’ve booked for the next few days. Later that morning, I wake up […]

As ever so often during a longer trip, this isn’t a TWIKE-trip-related entry. It’s rather an entry to keep the day count in the title consistent and to let you know that there is – believe it or not – a life that doesn’t include driving a TWIKE for days on end somewhere out there… […]

Whilst our kids sleep in, my wife and I start bright and early on our trip to southern Portugal. Today we will push the southernmost point TW560 has been in Europe from 38°19’52.4″N to 37°00’05.4″N. (Fun fact: The closest TW560 has been to the equator was: 11°23’41.9″N during WAVE2011’s transfer to India) We’re planning on […]

Just a quick – non-TWIKE-related – entry for Lisbon. I’ve been to Lisbon many times, as has my wife – so no extensive description of the town this time. Our kids and haven’t been to Lisbon yet and given that one didn’t feel like doing the hard-core discovery with me and my wife was more […]

Far too quickly our few days in Porto have gone by and it’s time to leave for Lisbon. As in Lisbon any check-in (and during week-ends also to enter restaurants) has to be either by recently tested or vaccinated persons, my family had to find a place and slot get a test done in Lisbon […]

This entry is not TWIKE-travel related. It serves as a teaser to anyone who hasn’t been to Porto yet to visit ASAP. My first visit to Porto was 1991 – a very long time ago and I was curious as to how the city had changed. (spoiler alert: a lot) But before we start with […]

Another sunny day greets us. We slept very well since our Hotel was far from any road or any other source of noise and the night’s temperatures allowed us to sleep with an open window and enjoy a cool breeze. We’re really looking forward to our drive to Porto today – we’re just 30km from […]

We get up bright an early, unlike our kids, who will sleep another 2 hours. They will drive to Porto directly whilst we have chosen to stay at a very small village a few kilometres from the Portuguese border tonight. As always, I timed the overnight charge to complete around the time we’re leaving and […]

Yet another night of full sleep and no distractions sees me wake up like a freshly born baby. Ahh! My day starts around 0830 – heading out to the square just a few steps away from my hotel I sit at a small bar and order the usual set everybody else around me is also […]