The Next Adventure

It is past midnight, the check-in for my flight opens in three hours, and an all-nighter (and a wee bottle of sloe gin) will see me over until I next lay-down my head in Istanbul tomorrow.

It’s time to go wandering.

All the posts on this pseudo photo-blog up until now have been back-dated, just to see if this works as a concept. From now on, I’ll see if I can make it work for real, out on the road.

I’m not yet sure where that road will take me, but it will end in Kenya. En route, I should pass through Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Sudan (visa depending) & Ethiopia, with possible detours into Lebanon & the West Bank.

If I do manage to keep it updated, I’ll also post more photos on my flickr stream. We’ll see.

P.S. The gin just ran out.

Leaving France

After having called Paris my home for the last three years, a Eurostar, two ferries and over 1200km of driving brought this chapter of my life to a close.

A brief spell in England will tide me over to the next, which will hopefully be written with a Swahili twang.

Merci à tous, merci pour tous.

(Photo whilst waiting for the ferry at Dunkerque.)

Randonneurs

We woke to rain hammering on the terrasse of Sophie’s chalet. Our normal view of the mountains on the other side of the valley was obscured by a wall of cloud, and the sunny hikes of the previous days would not repeat themselves on this, the last day of the trip.

The French contingent decided to sacrifice the final hike. This is their doorstep and they can save it for another day.

Dan and I, living-up to our reputation of vous English were not going to let a little moisture spoil our fun; we said we’d go out & wave from the top.

Yves decided to join us nevertheless, and after driving accross the valley to our starting point, he was glad he did. The clouds parted, and we did the whole route without so much as a drop. Looking over the cloud rising out of the mountain is a wonderful sensation.

Perseverance reaps its rewards.

And I must admit, I was a little disappointed not to battle against the elements…

Massif Bornes Aravis

I’m never sure if I prefer the mountains in the winter, or the summer.

This was a climbing day in French Haute Savoie.

Summer won this round.

Haute Savoie

Ça fait du bien de respirer, loin de tout.

French Alps.