to many stories to tell and no computer to tell them on

Limping on

 Over two weeks i rested my foot. Frustrated and full of energy i got fat on Italian ice cream. Dana flew home to scottland for a few days but called me to say see would not be flying back.
 I waited a few extra days to be sure my foot was ready before heading off on my own with my bag.
I tested it with some light days and all okay, but two days dancing with the rucsack and the injury starts coming back, made even more depressing that i'm getting soaked in my little tent.
 Not completely beaten i walk on a few days with a slight limp towards Assisi and march up that hill to complete the next stage of the pilgrimage. But Assisi was not the spiritual place i had expected, more a comercial tourist town. For the first time a cafe ownwer would not let me use the bathroom and sent me to the public toilets. There was a fee! I had no cash so jumped the turnstyle in my kit in front of the security camera, giving a wave.
 Feeling gutted i have no time for the proper rest my foot needs and dance back for the olympics in time, i decide to cycle home. A new adventure, faster, but still in my Morris kit with my top hat on and my beels jingling strapped on my bag as the bike rattles along. Siena and Turin in my sights

Starting to smile

  We headed on up the coast through the smaller towns and villiges, but now we started to get better reactions, peopled cheered and waved as I danced through the streets. Italy started to smile.
  But tension started to build up between dana and I and we both got angry one night camped out by the sea. I decided to throw the lining of my tent away to save spoace and keep the wieght down. This means i am now at one with the bugs and animals. One night something crawled into my mouth and bit me leaving me with a swollen lip for the day but overall its been okay. Though the more weight i get rid of, the more dana seems to add, getting rid of the main part of my tent has seemed to make room for an umbrella and hair conditioner rather than make us lighter.
  Weve camped on the beach many nights. Dana doesnt seem to like me so its a srange atmosphere and i recieve cowardly messages from her boyfriend. But we dance in the sun and all is well. The police stop me and ask for documents most days, I dont carry my passport while i'm dancing and manage to talk my way out of it.
  We reach Mounte Gargano and I dance up the mountin to the town of Monte San Angelo. The road twists and turns up and up but i keep on going, just as i sit at the top Dana pulls up in a car with the bike in the back and gets out. We visit the sactuary of St Michael the archangel, the oldest shrine in europe dedicated to him and the first significant point on the pilgrimage part of our route. Inside i follow the steps down into a cave and the hairs on my neck stand on end, but its packed with tourists and there a stange purpetual catholic service going on. Bussus ferry the tourists up and down that hill.
  We buy huge bread and eat, i took a power nap by the tower.
  More hills for a few days, and couchsurfers. Dana sews up my falling apart kit.
  A man stops on the road and gives me an easter egg. a strange italian farmer trys to get me to sleep with his wife. I only asked for directions.
  I put alot of miles in. some days dancing twelve or more hours without only a half hour break.
 One night i danced down a main road in the pitch black.
 We reach Pescare and stay with Peter and his girlfriend Nora, like a pair of angels the find us camping gas a laundrette and feed us well. Ready for the next strech further up the coast and then on towards Assisi.

one night we camped at a monastary (i think) on the pilgrim trail and i took this pic from my tent

Bari?

 I left Francescas on the train into Bari hoping to meet Dana and dance out of of the city. Bari is the biggest city in the south and reminded me a little bit of Liverpool or Manchester. The people are renown for being friendly but thats not exactly our experience though we did meet some lovely locals.
 I stepped of the train and recieved a message from Dana that she was in trouble, being stalked by a pimp.
There had been prostitutes out sitting on the road and the pimp must of thought Dana was encroaching his terratorry. It took me ages to find somewhere to leave all the gear and collect her from the fuel station shed taken refuge in. The police did not seem to fussed about helping me but a kind old man did help.
  Crissis over Dana went to see some couchsurfers in a Bari and i went back out to dance the dodgy stetch. I got of the train in a village that looked more like a prison, with high secutity gates and fences. Eventualy i found the road down on the coast. I saw the postitute sat under the bridge and tipped my hat as i skipped past. I followed that coast into the city under the grey clouds as the waves beat in and the puzzled drivers passed by. A youg man with greesed hair stuck his fingers up as he jogged passed. Not getting a good reaction i jumped for joy defiantly and tears of i dont know what trickled down my face. Aproaching the city the atmosphere improved and i was enjoying myself. It was almost a party as i reached our hosts Guisepe and Tonya. Dana had enjoyed a fair dose of the local wine after her trauma.
  It was slow going leaving Bari. The roads diddnt make sense. We got lost. Some off duty police officers out jogging got us back on track but progress was slow in the burning heat. Once again the houses had huge security fences and even huger dogs. I tried to power skip out of there but it was like treading water.
We had an argument finding a place to camp and let rip at each other. Eventualy we camped out by the sea. I threw away the lining of my tent to shed weight.
  (pic and videos will follow on these posts) (one day)

Day off

It was time for a day off. I danced for 11 hours and cycled for a further 2 the previous day. So I let Dana make headway and had a bit of a rest. I handwashed my whites and our lovely couchsurfing host Francesca showed me round monopoli. She told me all obout Pisica and Taranta the famous dances from southern Italy. I made a poor attempt to dance with her in her flat which was great fun and that evening she kindly invited us to join a yoga class she was attendeding, I went along and left Dana who was soaked through from being caught in the rain to have some time alone.
The yoga class was just what I needed and I left Francescas rested, with whitish kit and a sense of peace in my heart.
I was going to need it...

Italy begins

Here in Barletta waiting for Dana to fetch the stove she left behind yesterday morning. I am tired, have a sprained foot and in need of a decent meal. A bit frustrated that I've done at least 80% of the dancing if not more.
Plenty of adventures in Italy but its hard to remember, let alone type on this damn phone.
  After the ferry arrived we stayed with a Jess and friends, couchsurfers in Brindisi before heading off up the coast.

Meanwhile, in a galaxy far, far away...

Birth is given to a new community food growing project in the stirring town of Brackley.

Yesterday saw the first tentative steps being taken towards creating a garden for growers and green fingered folk to come together to share their experience and knowledge and to inspire anyone considering the idea of growing their own. The site is located behind Jennys Cafe, on the High Street. We started small and the meet was to get a better feel for the site and come up with some methods so that the community may use the garden at times they are available. With these ideas in place will looking for more of the community to get involved.

The day consisted of a little litter picking, a little mulching and the transplantation of some plant babies, kindly donated by Ever After, the florists next door. Cheers Franchesca!

Next job is a composting facility and a real big push to make the town aware of what is going on in their back yard.....So to speak.

More as it develops!

If anyone reading this would like to know more about how they can get involved with or support this project then please contact russgoodger@yahoo.co.uk or adampbacon@yahoo.co.nz.

 

Setting off (without permission)

  Arriving at Olympia we are told strictly no dancing, and strictly no costumes. Even priests cannot wear their robes on site. After questioning a few people I am taken through corridors and up lifts to an office in an office and a lady behind a desk who tells me theres no way i can dance in or around the archaeological Olympic site and i should not be dancing in Greece at all without permission from the ministry.
 Eager to dance on I left Dana to have fun and games trying to sneak round Olympia while i danced on. But not before stopping at Kotinos gift shop where Nikolaos Karyoyis gave me one Greek flag and one Olympic flag to wave instead of my white hankies. The authorities may not be very friendly but the local people certainly are.
 All in all i fell in love with Greece more than i expected.
 I got lost of course, trying to dance my way and ended up dancing up a drainage channel and on to the main road. That afternoon i danced up and up and up the mountain with a backpack on my back and all of a sudden theres a man with a hint of red in his beard dancing behind me, and then his girlfriend drives past with Dana and the bike in the back. We reach the top of the mountain and Dana dance a while before we make camp and night falls. Some locals came to nose at us in the night but i didnt hear them.
 The dogs bark in Greece. through the night, and especially at my bells as i dance past.
 The second day i struggle as much as the bike under the weight of our bags going up and down the hills on the road as Dana dances a shortcut over the river. It turns out not to be much of a shortcut and i'm waiting for three hours for her to appear. Eventually I get to do some dancing through villages where those who see me call the rest of the family to come outside but nobody actually has the gutts to speak to me accept a man named Danos with incredible eyes.
  That evening we make camp with short fuses, sick of the weight were carrying I try using just the cover sheet of my tent to sleep under and it doesnt seem to bad.
 Were way behind, and i end up dancing 55K to make it to the ferry to Italy. We had to make it as there was not another ferry for three days. I got there just in time, with seconds to spare!

Hot springs

  It turned out our hosts live just bellow Panas cave on Mt Parnitha, which wasnt so surprising to me and i was eager for a look. John takes us for a trip out to Thermopolis to the hot springs to soak our bones before the big trip. It was amazing sitting in the forty degrees water while the rain drizzled in the cold atmosphere of a miserable day. We are instructed to only stay in the water for twenty minutes and unbelievably it's snowing on the way home over the mountains.
  My body is ready, the only problem is a toothache banging away at my head. We experiment with the best ways to pack our kit but give up and enjoy another fabulous meal courtesy of Jo.
 I never did get to look round pans cave but amazingly the morning we left we could see a patch of light shining on the cave entrance though the murky sky. I will be back...
 Dana drops me in Patras with small shopping list and takes Jamie to the air port. I scramble round the city as everything falls into place and i'm starting to fall in love with Greece. My tooth is still banging my head. We ride the bus down to Olympia and camp out before we begin proper.

 

Michael becomes Apollo

  I left my house, locking up for the last time and handing the keys over, with five pounds in my pocket. Ali Akas picked me up and took me to see some friends before we drove to the airport. Abi and Craig both kindly donated 10pounds each towards my trip.
  Time for a brief sleep before heading down to Stanstead at 3am and saying goodbye to Ali. Panic at the check in, my bike is supposed to be boxed for the fight, so i hurriedly try to disassemble it with the few tools i have. But Ryan Air want twenty pounds for the box i have to cram it in to. Thank god for those donations!
  At the other end Patras airport ins actually an old military base in the middle of nowhere. I Step of the plain in the heat still wearing my thermals and whites and many layers to keep the weight of my hand luggage down. I struggle to assemble the bike in front of the other dispersing passengers.
  Eventually i manage it by the time the staff lock up the airport and i'm dripping with sweat and have already got oil all over my whites. Word from Dana and Jamie comes that they wont be there to join me until the morning so i head off looking for a place to camp. I take a turn and follow the road past a ruined fort on top of a hill, then along the side of a huge lake where i found a little old chapel that looked like something out of a spaghetti western. I pitch my tent by the chapel.
  That night i try to walk up to a cave i could see in the overhanging cliff. The rocks have faces, everywhere i look i see the wise men of stone assembled here. I didn't make it to the cave and it was quickly becoming dark and couldn't be sure how exactly to get there. I did make it to a precipice near the top as night fell. I could see the lonely chapel where my tent was and the huge lake next to it and further away street lights indicating civilisation. The hills behind me meant i was looking out in the same direction as all those faces and i could see the sea opposite the orange glows of the towns.
  Orion was rising in front of me, Venus and Jupiter above the sea to the west and a red star or planet twinkled intensely above the eastern horizon. Slowly the clouds parted to reveal a huge full moon low in the east too. I headed back down the track in the dark with the help of glow worms and went to sleep in my little tent.
  Next morning i cycled back to the airport to meet Dana and Jamie and pick up a hire car that would take us to Delphi for a few days. Strange to find the airport closed apart from a few lonely workers. We chained the bike to a fence and headed off.
  Two hours drive till we arrived at the Castalian spring to find it fenced off. There was at least a font where i could wash my feet and head and fill bottles. The temple of Apollo was closed by the time we got to the entrance but i did manage to consume about six litres from the spring as we wandered round the temple of Athena, the oldest part of the sight. I felt the urge to step over the rope and stand in the centre of the circular temple. I was shouted at by the stone faced attendant hiding behind dark sunglasses but still managed a brief moment stood there in barefoot.
 Back in the car it was a short drive to meet our hosts Jo and John who provided us with delicious food as we chatted into the night.

Gulp!

  A few wasted opportunities over the winter but now spring has sprung and it's time to spring into action. In a week I fly to Greece where Dana and I shall attempt to dance home from the original Olympic site in Greece and arrive in London for the Olympic games opening ceremony.
  With one bike between us and a couple of tents we shall take it in turns to dance and ride. After getting the ferry across to Italy we'll pick up the Apollo axis, an alignment of sacred sites, churches and shrines dedicated to St Michael that will take us through into France.
  We have little money, i'm not as super fit as i could be, but.. who knows... where theres a will