The joy of travel.

Today started well and on plan, we got to Waterloo on time after a quick diversion to view the location of Hugaumont Farm. The Waterloo experience was good, most of the museum/experience was filling in the background to the rise of Napoleon and the lead up to the battle but the 4d film was good and the panorama painted in 1912 was excellent for giving a perspective of the view both commanders had of the battle it was also good preparation for the view from the top of the Lion Mound. The route to the top of the Lion Mound is straight up 226 steps. I am pleased to say that the British won again despite the two Frenchmen in front of me, they gave up and let me pass at about the halfway mark. I didn't let them see how knackered I was at the top. From Waterloo I drove to my "hotel" in Luxenbourg city. Honestly I thought I had gone through a time warp right back to my first stay in Monmartre I n Paris in 1971, the bed was the same, the carpet was the same and 'though the shower was not in a tin enclosure it still had the droopy head that some previous occupant had remedied with a piece of string attached to the extractor vent, just have to see if breakfast is delivered to my room without any warning! Keira and Kay took me out for a meal last week and when the waitress delivered our second round of drinks she lost her balance with the tray and left me wearing a full pint of Lowenbrau, the staff swiftly rallied around and mopped up and we got on with the evening. Tonight in a local restaurant a lady knocked over her wine glass, the waiter sprinted over and collected the broken glass and reported the matter to the head waiter who then went to get the little old lady out of the cupboard to mop up the health and safety risk, in the meantime the waiter disposed of the broken glass and reappeared with a clean tablecloth. Wonderful to watch, but by that time I had thoroughly confused the waiter by mostly speaking Spanish, (I knew what I had wanted to say but the French words would not appear on my tongue), he got his own back on me by speaking to me in Italian so a really memorable day. Tomorrow is a long long drive down to Lake Como.

Wallowing in the ambiance.

Today's cultural experience was at the 'in Flanders Field Museaum' and the Ieper Municipal Museum where I discovered the pastel drawing brilliance of Louise De Hem, being a total Philistine I have never bothered to look at pastels before, I was amazed at the definition and also the ability of pastels to show details of fine fabrics, if I hadn't been better edumacated I would say I was blown away or even gobsmacked by this artist's skill but I hate both of those expressions so I won't use them. After lunch I went over to Tyne Cot Cemetery, 9000+ graves and the names of over 30,000 soldiers who lie in unmarked graves, again a moving experience but still very hard for me to comprehend the scale of death that occurred in such a small portion of the front. My thoughts go out to all the families of the soldiers in unmarked graves, they have no place to go to say goodbye and have no hope of closure. Lunch today was a brootjie, at least that is how I think it is spelt, basically half a French stick filled with whatever you fancy. After all my excursions I went back to the square I visited yesterday for dinner and it was pleasant to sit in the sun sampling Belgian beers whilst reading my new book. Tomorrow is Waterloo and then Luxembourg.

Belgium.

My first impression of Belgium was my God this place is flat, it would have been a horrible place to hide from snipers, no wonder the trench system was established so quickly during the First World War. I had always thought that the majority of WWl was fought in France imagine how chagrined I felt to discover that a great part of the territory contested by the British and Commonwealth troops was actually in Belgium. I have been exploring and the sheer number of military graves here plus the knowledge that there are nearly 100,000 men whose graves are not known shocked me. I have seen the cemeteries on films and the news, but to stand in the actual cemetery just brings it all home, that and the ceremony at the Menin Gate tonight was what I will remember about my first day in Ypres. I always feel sad when I hear the Last Post played especially when I remember former comrades who are no longer here but to hear it played in that place after having visited a number of cemeteries today memories of Pete Reford, Stan Lewis, Neil Sheldon and Chris Lawson all came flooding back to me and I don't mind admitting tears were rolling down my cheeks, in fact I am filling up again while writing this.

The adventure begins.

A great start, up before the alarm and on the road at 05:30, no delays on the M25 and we were in Dover 4 hours early so We got a place on the 08:00 ferry at no extra charge. Seeing all the girls was great but I feel that getting wasted every time I see Keira and Kay is not really setting the example I should as their father. I missed Taylor because he was working, he is a night auditor and receptionist in a Heathrow hotel, well done mate and good luck. We should dock at 11am local time in Dunkirk and tonight we are staying for the next two nights in Ypres in Belgium giving me the opportunity to visit the Menin gate evening ceremony and WWl cemeterys and museums.........

Transport issues.

I bought Edith two and a half years ago in a rush for my first European road trip and she fulfilled her role admirably, coasting through Spain, Portugal and France without a hitch but lately she has been showing hints of her Gallic ancestry by occasional displays of petulance, she is also slowing down but that could be her age. I could not trust her on another extended road trip so I have found a new girl for my next trip, her name is Magda and she is a younger Teutonic model which fits well with my itinerary of traveling through German speaking countries on my way to and from Italy and Greece. The adventure begins on Monday when I catch the ferry from Dover to Dieppe at midday.

The holiday is over

I did my last serious walk on Saturday, a circumnavigation of the Larnaca salt lake. Last time I completed the walk anti clockwise in two hours and calculated that it was six miles, this time I decided to go clockwise and after taking a number of wrong turns I eventually got back to the car two and a half hours later so nearer seven and a half miles but it is all good for the legs. Saturday was of course wall to wall rugby and although England had won the championship - courtesy of Scotland's win against France as one Scottish friend told me - they wanted to go for the Grand Slam and when the French started playing I thought Oh No they have actually turned up this time but even though it was a tense game for England supporters I think it was a great match to watch. The hire car went back this morning and I had another haircut in Larnaca so final panic tanning today then pack up and fly back tomorrow. It is funny now I am not thinking of buying or renting a property in Cyprus I like the place better, as Arnie says, I'll be back.

Gorgeous

The rain held off on Wednesday and I walked the Avkas Gorge. Walk is actually a misnomer for the activity rather it was a walk, scramble, paddle, boulder, really canyoning without a wetsuit, an enjoyable adventure which at three hours was at least an hour longer than I expected. I had my final walk with the Polygon Hash last night, the guest RA was a hoot, it turned into a singing and joke fest, we rounded off with a very sociable visit to a local taverna which was new to me. Besides the heat and sunshine that is what I will miss when I leave Cyprus, every day can be a social occasion. I use a desk in the hotel foyer when I am juggling my electronic devices and yesterday just as I was about to blog I was approached by a guy who wanted to book a trip to Nicosia, he thought I was a tour organiser, anyway he got talking and I was still listening to him nearly two hours later when I made the excuse that I had to got to the Hash just to get away Well a day off today, I haven't decided what to do but I have learned that I cannot just doss around for long before I get fidgety maybe I should take relax lessons from Billy Boy or just carry on, in fact I do have some future trips to plan, now what are the dates for the Lions Tour next year?