Author Archive
For the first time ever after installing WordPress I am going to leave the default example post title “Hello World” and roll with it – as a travel blog I thought it very fitting 
I imagine if you are reading this you know what’s going on – I am going to go off to travel around Europe (possibly beyond) and thought I should set up a site to organise the whole thing and to inform others of what I’m up to.
You can sign up if you are interested in commenting, discussing and issuing content (got any pics of us together in foreign lands?). There is also a page called Where I Am which has my calendar on it. This calendar should show you where I am and when. Am I coming to visit you? Are you coming to visit me? It should say so on that page in the calendar.
I hope you enjoy the experience of reading about my travels – I know I’ll enjoy doing it and writing about them.
I complete on my house on the 9th of August and set off traveling roughly 4 weeks later.
Watch this space!
Hello readers,
Thanks for stopping by as I go off on another blog post about my travel agenda…
I am hoping to start booking the first of the journeys I’ll be making very soon and (all going well) I will set off on the 10/10/10 – just cos I like daft things like that.
This post is just to question, publically, what I may be able to do through the course of my journey to raise a little money for a good cause.
I haven’t decided the cause and I haven’t decided the method but as I am taking a bike maybe a penny-a-mile for multiple people would help me get fit (desperately needed) and raise some money while I’m doing so.
I am open to suggestions of whether this is a bad idea (especially if you have a better one) and also who I should raise the money for.
As previously stated I will be putting a map on this site that shows where I have been and by which mode of transport (bike or train) and so you will be able to see both my progress and how many miles I accrue through each method – and therefore how much you owe if we go down that route.
Keep popping back to keep up with info.
AFD
Well that was fun!
I’ve just been here, there and everywhere (within the UK) visiting friends and family to say au revoir before jumping on the Eurostar and zipping off to gay Paris.
I’ve not always seen family members regularly and we’ve been pretty widely spread so it was nice to do a quick sweep of the UK’s south before I went away – espeically considering I’m not 100% on when I’m coming back!
So, from the house in Sheffield (RIP Ranby Road) I went to Exeter to my mother’s. From there I swung by Bristol on my way to London to visit a friend, Chloe, who has opened up a green grocers – Dig In. Check her out if you’re round that way – and tell her who sent you 
In London I was visiting my sister who lives on an awesome boat – Kaipaa – on the Thames in the district of Chelsea-darling (apparently you have to say it like that – not that it’s posh or anything ) Tam, my sister, also kindly let me turn her boat in to a floating file server for my digital life while I am away. That and DynDns combined for a great solution to my whittling down of physical goods while allowing me to maintain access to all my files etc. Thanks Tam!
From London I headed to Newmarket where my Grandad lives. Visting here was the best decision I have made in recent preperation for my trip. Not only did my Grandad give me yet another bike (he’s bought me all but one I have ever owned) but we sat and caught up after far too long. A great experience, for me if not for him
My uncle and auntie live just down the road in Bury St Edmunds so I’ve just spent the last 3 days there. This was also great as we rarely saw each other for more than a day at a time and I got to rummage through old photo albums – which I’m desperately asking them to get scanned. I looked so cute as a baby I can’t have those pics go to waste being seen only by them and their more regular visitors. I will try to create a greater online photo-store when I have more pictures to put together and figured out a decent method of collaboration that is more feature full than Facebook’s offerings.
So… now back to London and Tam, Al (husband), Sophie (the dog) and Kaipaa (the boat) before hopping on the Eurostar on Sunday (10/10/10) and off to Paris.
I’ll try to get a final “me and my kit” post done before I set off so you can see what I’ve got to keep me going and you can all laugh at how poorly prepared I am and how I will surely freeze/starve/die before getting to the Alps.
For now though, thanks everyone for the trip so far.
All packed and ready to go
1st day. Set off from the Kaipaa on the cadgoen pier. The bike gets me to the station but feels like I’m riding a tandem with a lazy passenger since adding the bags 
Also when I arrive at St Pancras I realise the rack had broken. Seems like it wasn’t made for all that weight. Hmm… I’ll have to fix that in Paris.
Garance met me at the station and offered to let me stay at her apartment (win). She helps carry my paniers as we walk towards the metro station.
We get on really well. Lots of laughing and joking.
We get to the apartment and there’s no room for the bike in the lobby. Garance says we should take it upstairs to the 7th floor. I laugh. She doesn’t laugh. I park it outside and lock it.
We get in to the smallest lift *ever* (with 3 big bags as well). Very intimate moment. More jokes.
Garance in the smallest lift ever
Gerance mentions the apartment has wifi 
we sit and use our laptops for half an hour while I look through her website, chairs and paintings. We talk about David Lynch and her art. I say they are quite similar. This goes down very well.
It is 7 oclock and I am told Paris will not wait for us. We set off on our night tour!
We walk through an antique street market. My reaction is that we are definitely in Paris. I must have expected exactly that. Instantly I realise that Paris consists mainly of coffee shops. 10 per person in Paris at least. As we walk everyone else rushes ahead to make them all look busy for us.
We’re both very hungry so stop for crepes. I am living the cliche right now and happy about it. I can’t read the menu but that is what my guide/bag carrier/translator is there for. We settle for “the classic” egg, cheese and ham (crepes sousette) I point out that the crepes guy must be good because he has a neon flashing crepes sign – as do all gormet chefs.
Garance mentions these are not proper crepes (they are like English pancakes) an that her family is from Brittany and they make proper crepes. I mention it sounds like she’s saying “craps” and that her fmaily make the best ones. More laughing…
We find the Beaubourg Museum. Strange looking at first, so industrial but also simple and stylish. Very different from the small streets all with their coffee shops we have seen so far. I am told that the Parisians act disgusted whenever something new is created. 5-10 years later everyone loves it.
Beaubourg Art Museum
Beaubourg Art Museum (from behind)
We continue walking and see more great sights. Even though it’s dark the city is lit up and looks great. Every street, building, statue and sculpture is proudly illuminated. As it should be.
We talk about dreams (Garance’s inspirations for her art work) and lucid dreaming.
This sculpture is outside one of the many churches. We try to figure out what it is all about I tell Garance I think it is like the feeling of perception changing and the universe feeling too close. I am told to stand back a bit (funny fucker).
Apparently this was the Louvre. 2 minutes go by. Apparently this is no longer the Louvre. Also we are possibly a bit lost. This starts a trend for the evening. Later in the night I start giving directions. These also don’t find us where we hope we would be but I prove to be as good a tour guide as Garance.
Not the Louve
Notre Dame Cathedral Paris
"One does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making darkness concious"
I ask Garance – as a master of the arts – if she knows why the use of light and dark wording is given positive and negative connotations. She is not sure but starts to recite Jung. My tour guide is perfect. Even if we do get a bit lost.
From here we head errr… East? It doesn’t matter.
We go in search of the set of Amelie. We find it and it is reeeaaally busy. There seems to be some kind of street party happening too but we can’t tell why or what it’s all about. just lots of bottles all over the street.
The view from the lookout point is amasing. Paris is looking magical. Just as we start wandering towards another side road I spot the Eiffel Tower through some railings. Pretty stunning.
As we wander through the side streets in what feels like Paris’ oldest district we see a vinyard – in the city?! I am told the wine doesn’t taste that good but the tourists seem to buy it anyway.
We both concede to bed. It has been a long day and neither of us had slept much the night before, so it’s the metro and home.
