These logs outline the major stages of projects led by the Coop. We share our successes, our failures, and our questions—and today, a shift in perspective. This entry looks back at Jeanne’s journey to the European Learning Summit 2026, organized by Commonland and the Bioregional Weaving Labs Collective in late April. It’s a story about alignment and changing one's outlook. We’ll dive into the event itself and its richness in a future post (coming in the next few weeks). Enjoy the read! 😊
Introduction and Context
Hello everyone! I'm Jeanne. At La Coop des Territoires, I’m part of the team working on Colina, the Bioregional Weaving Lab (BWL) Colina.
What is a Bioregional Weaving Lab? It is a geographically anchored community of action that works and learns collectively to regenerate its own bioregion. A BWL takes shape through a multi-stakeholder partnership process led by a "Weaving Team." This team builds bridges between residents, the land, and local projects so that the community is organized to drive coherent systemic change.
And what is the BWL Collective? It is a growing European network of locally anchored BWLs operating across distinct bioregions (one of them being Colina).
Why am I telling you about this today? Because we were lucky enough to be invited to the European Learning Summit 2026 organized by Commonland and the Bioregional Weaving Labs Collective late last April. Both organizations invited members from their various teams across Europe to spend time together. It was an opportunity to connect and celebrate the cooperation achieved in our respective territories over the past few years, to reflect on our common knowledge and experiences, and to exchange challenges, resources, and best practices. After discussing it with the team, we decided I’d go. Quite a chance to be one of the 80 people invited to Romania!
Choosing the Bus: Values and Logistics
To align my actions with our values at Colina—especially for an event like this—I decided to go by bus.
Taking the bus to Romania meant avoiding 517 kg of CO2 (according to ADEME's Agirpourlatransition website).
It also meant traveling 2,600 km.
Ça représente 40 heures de bus (juste pour l’aller), dans un bus lambda — pas un bus couchette — donc avec une inclinaison des sièges plutôt relative.
That represents 40 hours of travel (one way) in a standard bus—not a comfy sleeper bus—so with a limited reclining seat.
It also meant crossing multiple countries at the rhythm of gas station stops for food and restrooms, without much room to stretch my legs.
I’ll admit I had my doubts and moments of weakness. I was almost ready to book a flight at one point, before I hit on a great idea: I called a friend who is a staunch environmentalist and told her to "order" me to take the bus. Result: I booked my Flixbus tickets!
Still, as the departure grew closer, I worried it would feel endless, thinking, "I’m still going to spend 80 hours total on a bus 😅."
Details of the adventure!
The Departure Mishap: The Missed Train
In hindsight, the hardest part wasn't the bus itself, but getting from Normandy to Paris. After an intense week, I arrived at Briouze station to catch my train, cutting it very close. I saw the train at the platform, I ran, I pressed the button and waited… in vain. The doors wouldn't open, the train started moving, and I watched it leave from the platform... Off to a great start!
What’s next? After lying on the asphalt of the Briouze platform for two minutes, staring at the sky and thinking it was a total "fail," I started an action plan to reach Paris and catch my bus to Romania, scheduled for 7:30 AM the next morning from Paris-Bercy station. What were my options?
- A late train to Paris nearby? None of the last trains from Caen, Argentan, Flers, or Alençon would get me there in time.
- The next Paris-Bucharest bus? The extra cost was over €150: out of the question.
- A carpool leaving right now? It was 8:00 PM; the odds were slim, but worth a shot.
A light in the dark: I found a BlaBlaCar. Someone was passing through Alençon at 10:00 PM. I drove for an hour, waited at the station, hopped in, and fell asleep from exhaustion.
I was lucky enough to be dropped off at Versailles Chantiers at 1:50 AM. From there, I hopped into a Heetch (ride-share) to reach the capital. After 40 minutes of marveling at the lights of Paris and the people in the streets (and my luck at having made it!), I arrived safely and fell asleep at 3:00 AM, ready for a 6:00 AM wake-up call to head toward Eastern Europe.
The 40-Hour Journey
No issues waking up at 6:00 AM on Saturday. The previous day's adventure kept me alert, and I caught my bus easily.
Once inside, everything went smoothly. I had my packed lunches, and my bag was organized to perfection ^^.
A Change of Perspective
A text from my neighbor, a landscaper and poet, invited me to observe the color of the Danube and the Carpathians, which shifted my view of the trip. Besides being more attentive to the landscapes, terrain, habitats, and vegetation, I took the opportunity to:
- Sleep a lot
- Watch videos by Thomas d’Ansembourg and Olivier Hamant (and discover the "Les Lueurs" podcast)
- Listen to music (here’s a small selection of songs that traveled with me: Fever Dream by Alex Warren, The First Time by Damiano David, and Meri Zindagi Hai Tu by Asim Azhar & Sabri Sisters)
Travel Immersion
As the hours passed, the passengers became mostly Romanian, and I found myself with no common language with my non-French/non-English-speaking direct neighbors. Everyone spoke Romanian. My inability to converse was actually pleasant: I found myself truly traveling, observing without understanding, watching with curiosity, making guesses about what was happening around me, and realizing that my ignorance is still infinite. For those reminders of humility alone, I’d say a 40-hour bus ride is worth it. Gratitude.
I was intrigued by the chips and cake aisles at gas stations.
I was touched by my neighbor, Nostela, who took me under her wing, using signs to translate the drivers' instructions and telling me to follow her during bus changes. We shared peppermint essential oil for headaches and a banana.
Despite sleep being interrupted every two hours by stops, I was ultimately happy with the experience.
The view from my window
Arrival in Bucharest
Arrival in Bucharest
After 40 hours, I finally arrived in Bucharest. I jumped off the bus and finally got to use my legs after 40 hours of limited movement: pure joy to walk, to take my time, and to observe the city this way, getting a quick feel for it while heading to my place for the night.
The Bucharest Arch of Triumph
Final Conclusion:
Crossing Europe by bus: it’s a bit long, but totally doable, and the journey is an experience in itself!
My pro tips 🤓:
- Pay the extra €5 to choose your seat at the front of the bus.
- Have a phone plan with data access across all of Europe.
- Pack a lunch bag with good, healthy food so you aren't just eating chips.
- Choose comfortable clothes that work for different temperatures.
And this summit was well worth the 80 hours on a bus. More in the next episode to find out why: stay tuned !
Greetings from Munich
Another view from my window
Written by : Jeanne Allard
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