The pedalling begins; our bodies are revolting…
Blog posted by bex on Mar 9th, 2009
By any normal cyclist’s standards, we’re hardly cycling at all. Aiming to reach an ordinary humanoid level of fitness in about a month’s time, we’ve started slowly, clocking up a total of 135 kilometres in four days.
Even at this pace though, our bodies are revolting (you can take that in any way you like). Our legs feel like lead. We’re sleeping 10 – 12 hours a night. Our bodies seem to have remembered what a metabolism is; we are permanently hungry.
But the pace of travel is a brilliant relief from the frenetic running around of our last weeks in the UK. Apart from the 17% gradient outside our front door, our first two days of pedalling in England were distinctly relaxed. With two friends taking control of the route so Huw and I could concentrate on persuading our legs to work (thanks Daf and Chris!), we meandered along seafront promenades and farm lanes towards Portsmouth, where Huw’s parents met us and treated us to a farewell meal.
Here in Brittany, we’re stopping to take long breaks in sunny fields (cabbage, mostly, and British breeds of sheep). We’re sipping coffee in every sleepy village cafe. It’s rained most nights and mornings, giving us an almost valid excuse to stay curled up in our sleeping bags until around 10am. Hardcore – no, happy – yes.
So far, I’m liking the way of life in Brittany (I’ve never been before although Huw has, several times). Sundays are proper Sundays; everything is closed. All the roads – even the big ones you end up on accidentally – have cycle lanes. Cafes seem to take a pragmatic approach to the smoking ban; smokers organise themselves into a separate section of the cafe puffing away over their beers, while the bartender and no smoking signs look placidly on.
Right now, I’m drinking chocolat outside a smart hotel (with wifi) in Dinan, a medieval town full of stone houses, viaducts and bridges on the banks of the River Rance, which we’re following for both aesthetic and terrain-related reasons (it’s flat). Huw has gone to hunt and gather baguettes, cheese and cold meats. All in all, life is good. We’re getting a feel for the bikes, starting to know where everything lives in our panniers and, very slowly, we’re getting a little bit closer to Africa.
sounds like you are starting out at a very sensible pace rather than beating on and burning out.
Please post pictures of your bikes!!
bon voyage
Mike
Cheers, guys. Keep the rubber side down & enjoy the WiFi and cycle lanes while they last. Looking forward to updates as your journey gets into full swing.
You’re always welcome in Cameroon, BTW.
Bill
Sounds idyllic already
Tim
bex and a beer. nice picture huw
xx
Have been to that part of Brittany so can picture though it was summer time with all the geraniums. Sounds like you are having fun!! Jocelyn
Sounds fantastic. I have a sudden urge to pump up my bike tires and grease the chain…Probably wont go much further than that though. MMMM baguettes from france are one of the worlds most impressive foods, how can flour taste so good?
Thanks for all the comments all – it’s lovely to read them every time we catch up with internet!
Mike: There’s a small pic of the bikes on the home page, but we’ll take a decent one (complete with the dangling baguettes, bags of tomatoes etc) and post it next time we have net access, I promise! Thanks.
Bill: Cheers, and yep, we’re making the most of them :0) And brilliant, thank you – hope to meet you in Cameroon when we get there! (By the way, to anyone interested in Cameroon or technology in Africa, I recommend checking out Bill’s excellent blog, 27 months).
Tim: Aye, but I’ve been leaving out the bad bits about feeling all faint and moany :0)
Daf: Huw says: “Thanks, haven’t managed to take a picture of Bex without a beer yet.” (Cheeky sod.)
Jocelyn: Definitely fun – and actually, on the good days, it’s been feeling a bit like summer…
Chris: Go on, pump up those tyres! And thanks for the pics of England – we’ll do something with them soon. Baguettes – it’s true. I was amazed reading the blurb on a baguette wrapper the other day – four paragraphs about the grain selection, processing, baking and ideal eating conditions. Mmmm.
Cheers all, off to pedal over a seven kilometre bridge that looks a bit like a helter skelter now…
Bex
Why would you want a picture without a beer in hand?
Richard
I love and miss you. Have fun! xox
Dear Rebecca,
a little bit of Portuguese so that you will never forget it. Estou adorando ler tudo o que você escreve. Quero ser uma das primeiras a receber uma cópia do livro fantástico que você vai escrever.
Um abraço carinhoso para você e Huw.
Maria Helena
Richard: So good to hear from someone who understands :)
Rochelle: you too! Are you back in the UK?
Maria Helena: Ja esqueci como escrever Portuges, mas vou tentar! Muito obrigada Maria Helena – nao sei si vai ser um livro, mas espero que sim, este vez! Um grande abraco para voce tambem.