Kindness One: Beating Murphy’s Law in Montenegro

“A little thought and a little kindness are often worth more than a great deal of money.”

-- John Ruskin

Murphy’s Law states that when something can go wrong, it will. However, what Murphy didn’t bargain for was a Montenegrin farmer coming to save the day. Let me explain:

As part of my Kindness One adventure -- in which I am traveling the world by motorcycle, funded by strangers I meet as I go -- I had entered the hilly and beautiful terrain of Montenegro.

The small mountain road I was on was suggested to me by a young couple in the capital, Podgorica. There were sheer drops all over and I had misjudged the gas left in the tank. The fact that I was going up and down hills didn’t help the gas-consumption situation. The bike started sputtering and I switched it to reserve, barely making it into a mountain village.

As I was preparing to spend the night sleeping on the motorcycle, I was approached by a young chap who had seen me speaking with the locals asking for help. None of them spoke English, but this guy did. I told him of my plight and he invited me back to his farm for a place to stay and some gas. I had been saved.

What he didn’t mention was that I had to work for my blessings -- I milked the family’s cow, fed the goats and tended to the tobacco crop. In return, I got a place to rest my head and some gas for Kindness One. And Murphy lost the chance to rule the roost once more.

Click on a point to read more about Logothetis’ journey. View larger map on latimes.comTwitter: @latimestravel

Like us on Facebook