London - Corsica Aug 09

Have safe roads guys...




1.20 mins later @ Folkstone




In the eurotunnel with Anthony from Australia. Heading back to France to join wife and son.




Lille day and night. As the Chinese say Yin and Yang.




Outside Reims cathedral looking for the labyrinth.




Reims cathedral from inside.




Launching the summer collection. The dress above named "Tomato" is expected to become very popular among badly equipped bike rides.




Rue Sala & Rue Victor Hugo, Lyon




Lyon, the old city




A nice restaurant at the edge of the old town.




8:00 am 8th of Aug leaving Lyon




With Michiel from NL. It took him only 10 days to ride his pushbike 2,600 khm from Utrecht to Marseilles.




Marseilles 20:45 9th of Aug 09




Lily the navy girl.




Bastia at 7 am




I was afraid for swine flu. The doctor later said it's normal all the baby needs is some rest.




Whatever the situation try to see the bright side. Isn't that a great scenery to die?




The island is not short of fish, fish restaurants or fish markets.




With Marika and Alesandro from Torin @ Plage de Lodo. The guys on a monthly long visit to the island, with a car having a tent attached on the roof.




Last evening in Corsica 12th of Aug 09




As you can imagine we had to leave quickly after causing such a damage.




Ship outside Genoa's Aquarium (tasteless) The sloppy roads in Genoa though have a strong Mediterranean taste.




With a cell phone camera the greenest view can look grey. Mont Blanc (excuse my bad accent)

London - Corsica aller retour August 2009

Trip Report

Trip Duration: 9 days
Departure Date: 7th Aug 09
Number in Group: 2 (1 bike)
Distance Covered: 1,966 miles

Best Day: Road trip in the Corsican mountains
Worst Day: Dijon (the ghost town)
Favorite Place: From Evisa to N193
Biggest Headache: We left them all back to London
Biggest Mistake: Not having done it earlier
Pleasant Surprise: Corsican cuisine
Any Illness: None
Cost of Trip: aprox 1,500 EUR
Others Trips Planned: You want the in alphabetical order?

Bike Model: Yamaha Fazer 600
Age, Mileage: 4 years, 19,000 miles
Modifications: None
Wish you'd done: None
Tyres used: Bridgestone, the round black model
Punctures: None
Type of Baggage: A box at the back

Bike's Weak Points: No autopilot for the straight highways in France
Strong Points: Didn't overheat, coped fine. Going for a check up soon.
Bike Problems: None. I thought it was overheating when in Southern France but everything was fine. I always worry too much for those I love.
Accidents: None
Same Bike again: Sure, even though I am not monogamous when it comes to bikes.
Any Advice: Tell those that are trying to put you off, you'll take some nice pictures to share when you are back.

Are pigeons vain?

Probably not, but then let's think for a second of Piazza San Marco "The drawing room of Europe". For years now, pigeons expect tourists to extend their arms so that they sit on them and be photographed*. So can they be vain?

I think not. However can they adjust to the environment? For sure. San Marco such a touristic attraction as it has been for years, encouraged the birds to develop this habit. The compensation of course is what else but...

crumbs :-)



*My grandmother and two of her daughters have been taken pictures with pigeons sitting on them over their honeymoon.




The Pigeon Poem

The Pigeon is taking food away from her mate today,
or he is taking food away from his mate today.
She is taking food to put on fat for winter time,
or he is taking food from her to dine.
Pigeons are like people cause people are like that.
feeding Pigeons in the park is fine,
old people have the time, to dine with pigeons;
Time i have today:
the time i play away
thinking of (?)
the pigeons as I dine.
I am fine.
She is putting on her fat.
He is just out to dine.
People are like pigeons.
people are like that.

Charles Hice

Noodles or Pasta?

Pasta-noodles please. And here comes a small bowl of finger-thick, brown-spotted mushy pasta. Where else could this happen but in the mecca of pasta, Italy. And who could order such a dish but an Asian. The dish was delicious. Grazie Mille.


PS: The restaurant is on Calle de la Madona very close to Ponte di Rialto. On that alley you can find two fantastic restaurants. The one is called Diavolo, the other Madona (which I guess it's fine as long as the two do not meet).

How high should you go to get a bird's eye view of the city?

Did I say city? Then I don't feel like going one step up. Cities are the living proof of human's existence. Constructed slowly from ground level up. All the action remains on the ground. Independent of how many stories our houses have and at what floor are office is we always arrive and depart from on the ground floor. That's where we belong. That's what I like to sense when I visit a city. Notice what are the habits of the locals, look into their eyes are try to understand what "taste" their look leaves behind.

Think for a second how many people suffer from vertigo...* Ever heard of someone afraid of walking on the ground?

The picture was taken half way up the Towers of Bologna.


*please refrain from looking it up on Wikipedia as the author of the article was probably sitting somewhere "high up"

If you cannot get lost in Venice why go?

The center of the city "San Marco" is very small. By the time you take two wrong turns, you will probably be back at the starting point or even better where you were initially planing to go. If so, then what's the big deal about the capital of Veneto?

The night

Around 22:00 the city gets deserted and it's then that the city puts on its seductive dress. The dress code requires you put on a white linen shirt, a pair of loose trousers and some sexy leather shoes. Did I mention your favorite perfume? No maps, no cameras please. Walk slowly and hear the echo from you steps as you wander through the wonderland called Venice.