Knock-On Effects

by | September 30, 2020 | E-Bike Blog | 0 Comments

Most of the time, people ignore my efforts, especially family. I don't think this is an unusual situation, and it is one that I have become quite used to; nowadays I actually quite enjoy being an unseen and unsung force for the common good, whether it's doing the...
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Packing Plans

by | September 6, 2020 | E-Bike Blog | 0 Comments

6th: I have been trying to think through what one would need to make a journey of two months by bike. Obviously the amount of clothing would depend on the season; a change of underwear, a warm sleeping bag, pillow, some form of mat to lay on, and a tent or hammock...
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Route planning

by | September 5, 2020 | E-Bike Blog | 0 Comments

5th: I have been making plans for my first road trips. Claudio Magris’ Danubio and Defoe’s A Journey through the Whole Island of Great Britain have somehow caught my imagination. The trip along the Danube would be around 2,500 km (1,800 miles) and assuming that I...
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Back in Blighty

by | September 3, 2020 | E-Bike Blog | 0 Comments

3rd: Back to UK. For some reason, I arrive in the UK with the soundtrack from the Beatles song Back in the USSR ringing in my ears. The ferry journey has been unusually pleasant, with fewer than usual passengers, most of those on the boat being truck drivers from all...
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Driving Back

by | September 2, 2020 | E-Bike Blog | 0 Comments

We drive back via Rouen, stopping on the way at Monet’s garden at Giverny, and then reaching our gite at St Martin de S. at around 7 pm. It has been a long day’s driving, and the glass of Estabel red wine tastes particularly delicious as the sun goes down. The car is...
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The Road Less Travelled

by | August 31, 2020 | E-Bike Blog | 0 Comments

31st: Trip down to Gourgas with Luke. Luke is up for the round trip to St Etienne de Gourgas, but at Grandpa’s recommendation we decide to do the side-leg to Gourgas as well. We set off without too much fuss, and we negotiate the steep hill down to the D25 without...
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Under the Stars

by | August 29, 2020 | E-Bike Blog | 0 Comments

21st to 29th: We drove down to Montpellier to see Emily off at the airport on the 20th, and then collected Luke about two hours later. He had done the journey from Gatwick and seemed typically unphased. As usual, I buy a copy of La Recherche magazine at the airport....
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If at first you don’t succeed

by | August 19, 2020 | E-Bike Blog | 0 Comments

19th: The next day, Jenny has recovered and we set off to do the circuit from Soubes to St Etienne and then back along the other side of the river to Soubes. I admire Jenny for her perseverance, and although the initial leg to St Etienne is a struggle, we manage...
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Keeping fit

by | August 18, 2020 | E-Bike Blog | 0 Comments

18th: Now Jenny has decided to “get on the bike”. She has been cycling a few times in Canada and on holidays in the UK, but my impression is that these trips have been at a fairly gentle pace. We decide to take things step-by-step, so our initial effort is to cycle...
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First outing

by | August 17, 2020 | E-Bike Blog | 0 Comments

17th: Emily and I select our preferred cycle helmets from the three in the store room. She has chosen the metallic blue model, and I have selected a worn out matt gold helmet. Neither fits very well, but they will keep us safe in the unlikely event of an accident. We...
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Travel is Electric

The sky’s the limit. More and more people are turning to electric transport in all its diversity. The days when electric cars were simply too expensive to afford are a thing of the past. A fall in the price of EVs combined with innovative financing schemes mean that electric mobility is as affordable as traditional gasoline and diesel-fuelled vehicles.

E-Bikes

Electric bikes are a great option for those who either cannot drive a car, or can’t afford to “go electric” at this stage. A good electric bike opens up new horizons in travel, and if a new bike is beyond your budget, there are now viable ways to add a battery to your existing road bike. It’s also possible to buy good second-hand and reconditioned e-bicycles.

Electric Vehicles

Electric vehicles nowadays cover the full spectrum from e-bicycles and scooters to fully-electric passenger cars and some heavier duty vehicles including electric vans are also now on the market. The next decade looks likely to see a much wider shift away from vehicles powered by the Internal Combustion Engine to lighter weight and mechanically-simpler EVs.

Grounded!

by | Mar 30, 2022 |

I've been wanting to get away for months. First Covid put a spanner in the works. Now I'm grounded by a chest problem that I've been struggling with. Time to make plans. My plan had been to be on the road by April, but that's now looking like a long shot. The best...

Rejigging the website

by | Mar 29, 2022 |

Just to let people know that I'll be rejigging the website over the next few days. My most recent update was on the trip I did to Macon in late January and early February, since then not much has been 'wheeling' but there has been plenty going on the food and wine...

Some Common Indian Food Words

by | Feb 14, 2022 | ,

This short list of Indian words used in cooking was compiled with the help of the Google Translate language App पालक paalak = spinach साग saag = greens पनीर paneer = a kind of cheese मुर्ग murga = chicken दाल daal = pulse बासमती चावल = baasamatee chaaval = basmati...

Indian Takeaway with Style

by | Feb 14, 2022 | ,

Indian Takeaway The food of India, not just Indian foodIndian Takeaway for Valentine's Day Down with a chest infection, I really couldn’t face the walk into Waitrose on a chilly Sunday afternoon in February. But it was Valentine's Day, and I also couldn't face a night...

Our Allotment

by | Jan 31, 2022 | , ,

We have been doing our allotment for the last five years. Over time, we have moved on from the basic plantings of salad and potatoes that we started with, and have been trying all sorts of more exotic produce: tomatoes, beetroot, brassicas, carrots, chard, onions, and...

Moulin-a-Vent on the N7

by | Jan 25, 2022 | , ,

After my brief visit to Beaune, I drove on to deliver the hire car that had replaced my broken down Skoda, which was still en panne in a garage somewhere outside Orleans. I have described its rather tragic last moments earlier in my blog, and gradually it was becoming...

A Glimpse of the Cote Chalonnais

by | Jan 24, 2022 | ,

Côte Chalonnaise Our brief visit to the Côte Chalonnais provided a tantalising glimpse of the wine wonders of the region, rather than the full experience. This was partly because it was January, and partly because it was a Sunday, not a good combination for...

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