Day #5: Gisors

Progress text from Dad to Mum:
"Good day, 110km and all in the right direction. At Gisors. Have a room -€21.00. Feeling Good
xx"

Dad - Progress Report #1

This will probably be short because it has taken me about 10 minutes to sign in. The French do not use a QUERTY key board.

Anyway, progress:

Day 1: Hamilton to Rosyth: Hamilton-Motherwell-Carfin-Newarthill-Newhouse-Salsburgh-Harthill-Whitburn-Bathgate-Broxburn-Forth Bridge-Rosyth.-65km. Uneventful, but, no disrespect, towns that are nice to ride away from.

Day 2: Zeebrugge-Ostende-Diksmuide. Beautiful, flat Belgian roads. Beautiful weather. Beautiful towns. 70 Km.

Day 3: Diksmuede-St Pol. Lovely cycle path in the morning busy French Road in the afternoon. 107 Km.

Day 4: St Pol-Amiens. Got lost in the morning on rural 3m wide roads and had to retrace my way 3 times (like Sevilla, Ev). Ended up on the trunk road where, at least the road signs helped. 80 Km (although only 57 if I had stayed on the trunk road from the beginning).

So that is up to date. Amiens is beautiful, but very big. Not good for the bike. The weather has been great and, so far no hiccoughs - not even a pumpcher, Agnes. The biggest problem I have had so far is getting a mouthful of flying insects (large, like bluebottles). I managed to spit one out immediately but spent a few hundred metres gagging and spitting all over my shirt before I drank some water and swallowed the rest - it is all protein, I suppose. Oh, I also got shat upon by a bird, cleaned it off with a "Wet Wipe", put the "Wet Wipe" back in my bag to avoid littering the countryside, then later, I scratched my hand and cleaned it with the same "Wet Wipe" Arggh! Between the flies and the bird shit, I will probably get some dreadful disease.

Did you all think that you were going to get culture?

Tonight I am in a cheap hotel, but with a bath. I spent an hour soaking and listening to Bob Dylan - Chronicles. The previous 2 nights B and B. Both very good. All have been cheap, so that suits a cheapskate like myself.

The camera man has been following me all the way, so far. I have lost him a few times but we have met up again. It is not too bad. He is muy simpatico and now that I am used to the camera and microphone in my face I can ignore it.

I think that is all for now. I do not know when I will send a new update. It took me ages finding this Internet cafe and I have not seen another one on my travels.

Love, Michael xx

Regards, Mike ( for the non family members).

Day #4: Amiens

Dad sent progress report to my mum:
"Got lost but now in Amiens. - only 57km south since yesterday, although cycled over 80km. Relaxing in bath - sheer bliss. Everything going well
xx"

Day #3: Saint-Pol-sur-Ternoise

Text from my Dad:
In Saint-Pol-sur-Ternoise. Currently on schedule - 107km today, 240km in total. Bum still holding out!!

Day #2: Diksmuide

Text from my Dad:
In Diksmuide

Day #1: Leaving Pictures

Good Luck Tio Michael

I received an email from Christina this morning before I left - I thought I would let you all read it.

Dear Tio Michael,

everything seems to be very exiting, you are filling us with louds and louds of proud !!! Well done !!! I wish I was there at you party .... never got a an invitation!?? I'll have a word with Eve .. ja ja Its a shame that Javier's driver never went but ... in the other side you are saved because you are a " poliglota- multilingual tio" so you could of chat with him either Spanish, japanish or even kualalumpes!! I'm sure that by the time you arrive at Spain you have learnt another langue!!

I'm writting to you from Els Poblets branch ... YES I finally got moved over here, this is the branch I just to work as a second manager. I'm very happy and finally my live has arrived to the point I wanted. I don't thing I'll be moving again !! NOw live is very easy, it only takes me 10 minutes to arrive at my work, great!

Well I better get of, please be carefull and don't wother how long it takes you, we will be waiting here for you and remember to enjoy the trip, that's the most important thing.

Bye bye tio !!!!

BUEN CAMINO !!!

XXX

Dad - Leaving Day (Almost)

This will be quick and it will be the last report from Scotland - I hope, anyway.

I finished up work on Friday for 2 months, yippee! Some of us went for a Chinese meal at lunch time and I was not allowed to pay for my meal. Thank you, I appreciated that. I also got a phone call from my boss, who said he would sponsor me if I wore the Markon logo. So I've doctored a couple of HiVis vests to wear over my cycling top. Thank you Markon.

I was tidying up the garden on Saturday afternoon when I got a phone call from the film maker, Javier. It was about 3:30 pm and he was at the Avon Bridge hotel in Hamilton. Ev and I went down after hastily calling my son, Michael, to also attend. Javier's English is about as good as my Spanish. Luckily Michael was available to translate. There will be some interesting conversations between me and Javier on the trip - you know: politics; religion; philosophy, etc! Anyway, we had a good meeting. He has a problem because his driver broke his ribs just before they were due to leave for Scotland so he was on his own. He has a large estate car loaded to the gunnels with high tech equipment (Andrew, you would be in your element) Michael went out with him on Sunday morning to film the sights of Hamilton (we don't need any jokes about that, Scott!). Then they came up to the house where we were having a "Going Away" party. Thankfully the weather was great and we all managed to drink too much in the garden, rather than in the house. Javier was very good, he mingled in a relaxed way filming groups of people and chatting. We will see how it all turns out.

He says he has the month free. He is returning on the same ferry as me and I understand that he'll generally follow me, go in front and wait for me, etc. I'm glad to say he has told me to totally ignore him, he will do his own thing. We will see how it goes. He is certainly a very affable guy, so I think it should work out.

This morning, I am going for a haircut - a number 1 - He is coming to film that! Then he is coming to film me packing the panniers and cleaning and oiling the bike. At 4 pm Michael is meeting him at the Avonbridge hotel and he will drive for him to allow him to film me on the move, supposedly en route. He is having to do that because he has no driver and will not be able to film from the moving vehicle by himself. He showed me the small camera, which he will attach to the bike some days (mair weight!) preferably on wet miserable suffering days - he wants to see pain - it makes for a better movie. No doubt I'll be able to accommodate him with a few crashes and I'm sure that there will be days when I'm greetin ma eyes oot. He also has a headset for me to wear with a "hands free" mike so that I can keep in touch on such days. However, I think that most of the time I will not know that he is there.

Thanks to all the family, friends and neighbours who came to the house yesterday. What a great day I had. I have to admit that I was not looking forward to it but I really loved it. Thanks Ev for organising it. Thank you too for all the good wishes and small presents. Most of the presents were bottles of wine - great. However, I was particularly pleased with the wee prayer cards that I got from my mum and from Yvonne. I'll attach them to my bike and I will become an invulnerable super hero (hopefully with Lance Armstrong legs!).

I didn't sleep very well last night. Maybe too much booze, but, I think, more likely, I'm getting keyed up for the off. Remember when the exams were coming up you reached a point where you just wanted them to start, regardless of the result? Well I think I'm at that stage.

Hopefully, the next time you hear from me I'll be somewhere in darkest Europe. In the meantime don't all be working too hard.

Hasta luego,

Mike.