Travelodge Sunderland Central

Countries: 1
Miles travelled by Car: 1121
Miles Travelled by bike: Do trips to the supermarket count?
Fond Farewells: Numerous
Declarations of Jealousy: More numerous (because it includes a lot of people I don't even know)
Accusations of insanity: Even more numerous (because many people made more than one)
Bricks Shat: 53
Tasks left incomplete at time of departure: 2
Tasks able to be completed via internet: 2

... and it was all excitement again.

I said my farewells and looked back to wave as I passed through passport control, and then I was on my own.

Another short wait outside the 'King' and then it was on with the packs. Locked up the bike and found my way to my cabin with only one false start (went down to deck 6 - but on the starboard rather than the port side and there was no connecting corridor). I then donned my wind proof and ...

Woke up this morning in Shefield & guess what? it was raining again, just for a change!! After a leisurely breakfast, Stuart turned up & we set off on the short trip to Weston park Hospital in Sheffield for a quick photo & then on to Leeds. Here we met another one of Colin's friends, Dominic & Viv on a very impressive BMW GS1200 Adventure.
After stopping to ...

Well this is day one.

Left Haverhill at 10am this morning and was in Newcastle at the Angel of the North by 15:00. Not bad going for an old thing (the car not me!!!) lol. Stopped at the Angel of the North and took a few pictures, just need some wi-fi so that I can upload a few. Then off to my first stop over, Newcastle YHA. Checked in, handed over £20 and and went up to my room with a packet ...

... Red Dwarf.

So I have three months to.....

1) Not find myself, I often never know where I actually am and have become quite accostomed to the setup so will make the resolution that if such an unfortunate event occurs to quickly lose myself again.

2) Learn to firedance, it is crazy and beautiful and dangerous and utterly pointless. Then if I ever lose all my money in an opium den or similar haunt I will have a better way to make money that the ...

... out people had a double AND a single bed so not too happy. So anyways, we did some washing, watched some TV and went down to dinner at 7pm.
Dinner was quicker than last night, we had mushroom soup and a buffet for mains of chicken and veges. Dessert was chocolate and cheescake..and fruit. So that was dinner, we went back upstairs downloaded some photos off the camera and watched some tv and had a shower as it's up time 6.45am tomorrow.

... of the usual 10 minutes! In the afternoon I went to the Metrocentre with Donna to do a bit of shopping, mainly looking for accessories for my outfit for Marie's wedding in October. Just before we left we went via Millie's Cookies to buy a celebration cookie for Graham, as he doesn't like cake. After having a cup of tea and some cookie, it was time to get ready to go out for a meal and some drinks. We ...

... some often-hilly, sometimes stark terrain, dotted with picture-postcard scenic towns and villages. It's possible to ride the whole 140 miles in one or two days, if you have more interest in finishing than you do in actually seeing any of the countryside. I did it in four and a half days, taking time out on numerous occasions to sample whatever ale was on tap at the many pubs along the way. Seemed like the thing to do at the time. The journey began at San Francisco ...

I don't think I can adequately put into words the feeling of waking up at Ratho Hall. But, since this is my travelogue and I don't have an editor, I'm going to give it a shot. The first sensation pulling one out of a slumber is a warm glow that fills the room. The glow comes from the light of the sunrise as it penetrates the cracks of the wood shutter that cover the windows. Accompanying the light is the faint smell of bacon and sausage being fried in the kitchen down the ...