tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-94300812011-04-22T02:43:18.603Zken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.comBlogger261100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1128039782574672492005-09-29T23:18:00.000Z2005-09-30T10:12:52.876Z

I've been back home for a couple of weeks now, so I thought I should post a brief message to round this off. I wasn't sure how it would work, but several people have told me they enjoyed reading the blog. Thanks very much to everyone who had a look and thanks also for the comments that were posted.The trip wasn't a life changing experience, and I haven't come out of it with any deep personal

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1126559520624048282005-09-12T21:10:00.000Z2005-09-12T21:12:00.633Z

Back in the UK, swapping artisan boulangeries for Greggs the Bakers, the right of the road for the left (mostly) and balmy Continental weather for gale force winds, rain and a landslide. It was a pleasant run up the coast to Cherbourg, despite catching a local racer and becoming embroiled in a “Duo Normand” two up time trial for about 30km. I had a day to kill before catching the ferry to Poole,

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1125742752835176862005-09-03T10:03:00.000Z2005-09-03T10:19:12.840Z

I'm on the Normandy coach at Utah Beach, where 836 000 Allied troops came ashore in the D-Day landings, and making a special effort to type legibly today.It has been an enjoyable run across Normandy under blue skies on quiet roads through a rolling landscape of low hills covered in fields and forest. The hedgerows are groaning with brambles, which have provided a tasty dessert for the last couple

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1125494111618726842005-08-31T13:14:00.000Z2005-08-31T13:58:28.756Z

Qpologies for the typing: In q fit of culturql independence; the French hqve shuffled qll the keys qround on their keyboqrds; qnd it tqkes forever if I hqve to go bqck qnd correct my touch typing every fez keystrokes; so I'm just going to touch type qnd be dqmned:Since my lqst post I hqve trqvelled deeper into the heqrt of Frqnce through q fqscinqting rqnge of chqnging scenery:Descending out of

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1124911160211187882005-08-24T18:58:00.000Z2005-08-24T19:43:40.216Z

I feel a bit like someone gave me the luxury assortment box of mountain passes for Christmas, I scoffed the lot at one go and now I feel a bit queasy and all I'm good for is lying on the couch and watching the Great Escape. No let up in the hills since my last post - they've just got bigger and tougher.From Livigno, I climbed over the Forcula and Bernina, taking a brief detour into Switzerland

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1124220306659223032005-08-16T18:48:00.000Z2005-08-16T19:25:06.696Z

Today's headlines:Slovenia, Slovenia, the wettest place I've ever been, yeah.Italy - one damn pass after another.I had a nice run from Ljubljana to the Bohinj valley, with the sun shining, and a lovely wee pass through the hills with fine views of the Sava valley. The route passed through Bled, which looks like it was designed by Walt Disney, with a dinky castle perched above a lake on a jutting

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1123603502354361252005-08-09T15:49:00.000Z2005-08-09T16:33:32.120Z

The comments about the fantastic Orikaso folding cup got me thinking that I´ve been missing a trick with this blog; product placement. So if any manufacturers of the products I mention want to bung me some freebies or sponsorship, that would be lovely. Obviously product placement has to be done subtly, or this blog could just become a tawdry commercial website.The torrential rain that started on

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1123360773294306882005-08-06T19:46:00.000Z2005-08-06T21:04:34.906Z

Back in the E.U.S.R...I´m now in (rainy) Ljubljana, the city that spawned the melodic sound of everyone´s favourite industrial musicians, Laibach. But lets go back to the sunny islands of the southern Adriatic first...I caught the 5:30 am ferry from Stari Grad to Split, and had a lovely cruise through the calm waters of the Adriatic, with the sun rising over the coastal mountains and the island

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1122910810259285612005-08-01T15:05:00.000Z2005-08-01T15:43:24.276Z

The last week has turned into the undersea world of Ken Rousseau, as I´ve spent more time swimming than cycling.I was naively looking forward to a gentle run along the Adriatic coast, but the road turned out to be quite hilly, and things got even worse as I turned off the main road to ride along a peninsula to the ferry port of Orebic. The heat was tremendous, and the road climbed over an

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1122487377255151432005-07-27T16:44:00.000Z2005-07-27T18:06:14.050Z

Yesterday provided the biggest contrast of the trip so far, as I woke up in a mountain meadow surrounded by pine trees, and by lunchtime was cycling past palm trees and lines of permatanned holidaymakers in swimming gear, next to the blue waters of the Adriatic sea.While in Zabljak, I met Gotthold, a German cyclist who proved to be a mine of useful information about Montenegro and Croatia. The

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1122142201800842872005-07-23T17:10:00.000Z2005-07-23T18:11:34.506Z

No apostrophes or right parentheses in this post, because I cant work out how to produce them with a Serbian keyboard.I have just spent a day up in the mountains of Montenegro, staying in the Durmitor National Park at Zabljak. If they ever allow proper names in Scrabble, make sure you dont try taking on any Serbians.The journey out of Albania was fairly uneventful - a long, hot run across the

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1121927478800050272005-07-21T06:29:00.000Z2005-07-21T07:06:10.830Z

map:750,520,I'm now in the mountain town of Kruje in Albania, which was once the capital of Skanderberg, the Albanian leader who successfully repelled 13 Turkish invasions.The weather seems to be getting hotter all the time, and it was a long, thirsty ride from Ohrid yesterday. I skirted round the north end of Lake Ohrid before riding a long climb up to the Albanian border. The first striking

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1121763864937975352005-07-19T09:04:00.000Z2005-07-19T10:46:41.433Z

map:800,490,Since my last post I've left the stormy rains of Bulgaria behind and I'm currently baking in the Macedonian heat on the shores of beautiful Lake Ohrid.My last night in Sofia featured another spectacular thunder storm, with one thunderclap that was loud enough to wake me and half the dogs in the neighbourhood, and set off a series of car alarms. Next day dawned bright and sunny,

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1121094268233214072005-07-11T15:03:00.000Z2005-07-11T16:06:03.500Z

map:860,430,Until recently, all I knew about Bulgaria was that he was the oldest and wisest womble, and poisoned umbrellas. I've learnt a bit more now, but more of that later.My penultimate day in Romania dawned bright and sunny, and I got a fairly early start after fighting off an elderly tour group who were intent on clearing out the hotel breakfast buffet. The route headed over a couple of

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1120678554625260882005-07-06T19:34:00.000Z2005-07-06T20:33:15.526Z

map:880,300,Some tough riding in Romania, but it's been an interesting journey. The route from Vatra Dornei involved a big climb over the Tihuta pass. This was made even harder by the state of the road, which was constructed from concrete slabs with a tarmac skin on top. As a result, the surface fissures between the slabs, delivering a jarring double thump every 3 metres as the bike wheels cross

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1120327175398728502005-07-02T17:57:00.000Z2005-07-02T18:56:53.403Z

map:850,230,Since my last post, there has been more incendiary light entertainment, lapsed teetotalism in the Carpathians, bed and breakfast with the Ukrainian army, and a new country.(By the way, apologies for the bug which is only showing the last 7 entries on my blog map. A support request has been raised...)Before leaving Lviv, I took a trip on the tram to visit the Lychakiv cemetery. This is

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1119903458107978442005-06-27T20:05:00.000Z2005-06-27T21:30:40.493Z

map:820,140,I'm not in love,So don't forget it...In fact I'm in Lviv. This is just about the eastern limit of my planned route, so I'm hauling on the brakes and starting to pull the handlebars round to the right to begin executing a long turn towards home. I'm in Ukraine thanks to the Eurovision dividend. As all avid Eurovision fans will know, Ukraine were this year's hosts, and Viktor Yuschenko

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1119625504325743302005-06-24T15:04:00.000Z2005-06-24T15:40:14.446Z

map:750,180,Back on the wackz kezboards, so bear with me folks.First off, to everzone at Tesco Personal Finance, I did mz dutz and visited the Krakow Tesco hzpermarket. I can confirm that is sells a wide varietz of qualitz goods at reasonable prices. It also has rollerblading shop assistants. This is a fine innovation, which I think should be extended to customers.On mz last night in Krakow, I

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1119444310253262182005-06-22T12:44:00.000Z2005-06-22T13:39:56.856Z

map:700,140,Since my last post, I spent a day at the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum in Oswiecim. I think this is the most powerful and effective museum I have ever visited. Any restoration is very unobstrusive, and many of the buildings are simply presented as they were left in 1945, reinforcing the fact that this is relatively recent history. I found it difficult to connect with the sheer

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1119113951578256892005-06-18T16:58:00.000Z2005-06-22T12:49:48.826Z

map:640,140,Not in such a rush tonight, so I'll add a wee bit more detail about my journey since Prague.The State Opera ballet in Prague was excellent. It was entitled Time of Pain, and featured a dramatic rotating stage with the cast knocking seven bells out of of oil drums with big sticks, when they weren't juggling flaming torches or climbing the set. The finale featured one cast member having

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1119024869392139912005-06-17T16:09:00.000Z2005-06-22T12:50:01.923Z

map:650,120,Very quick post here, as I've just managed to get a few minutes on the internet in the local library.Since my last post, summer arrived with a bang. The first day out of Prague, every time I took a swig from the bottle there was a faint hissing sound as the water turned to steam before it reached my stomach. The land to the east of Prague was very flat, and more intensively farmed in

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1118670004319983332005-06-13T12:57:00.000Z2005-06-13T13:41:20.363Z

map:550,160,Prague, possibly the worst city I have ever cycled in. Mad traffic, a confusing road system, cobbles, wheel-trapping drains and lethal tramlines everywhere. Apart from that, lovely.The journey from Karlovy Vary to Prague was very pleasant, following minor back roads through wee villages and towns to the south of the main KV-Prague highway. The colours of the Czech rural villages are

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1118429944658294352005-06-10T18:57:00.000Z2005-06-10T19:14:16.310Z

map:520,140,Excuse anz strange tzpos and lack of punctuation, but I can§t get to grips with this Cyech kezboard, so I!ve just decided to touch tzpe as if it was a UK one (was just getting the hang of German ones).Short daz to Karlovz Varz todaz, as I was feeling a bit tired and rough, and it!s a bit far to trz and get to Prague in one daz. Karlovz is a big spa town, with lots of verz elegant and

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1118346215273377982005-06-09T19:42:00.000Z2005-06-09T20:13:33.986Z

map:500,160,Crossed into the Czech Republic today, after some hard cycling across central Germany.I had planned to camp at Nurburg my first evening in Germany. However, as I approached the Nurburgring, I saw what appeared to be a man standing on top of a car with his trousers round his ankles. This was the first warning that I had landed in the middle of the "Rock Am Ring" festival. For the next

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1117974901758207712005-06-05T12:09:00.000Z2005-06-05T12:44:02.076Z

map:350,150,Just crossed the border into Germany this morning, after a couple of days trundling across Belgium (bigger than it looks on the map). Zeebrugge was hot and hazy, making the beach look tempting, but things soon deteriorated into heavy clouds and intermittent showers for the rest of the journey to the German border. I'm not the world's greatest cycle path fan, but the Belgians have a

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9430081.post-1117752285756703212005-06-02T22:27:00.000Z2005-06-27T21:36:13.766Z

map:250,25,This entry is brought to you courtesy of the ultimate wireless networking accessory - the Superfast IX Rosyth to Zeebrugge ferry. It's very smooth, smart and shiny. As we cruised down the Forth, a woman wearing only a towel and flip flops emerged from the 10th floor sauna to take in the view. You don't get that sort of thing on Caledonian MacBrayne.Now I am finally underway I've

ken_russellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18244979593696218883noreply@blogger.com7