The Dubrovnik Festival 2013: Romeo And Juliet
The finest performance of Prokofiev’s Romeo & Juliet I’ve ever seen… It was a nice modern touch to include the theme music to The Apprentice as well. [Shut up & go to bed!]
Rest Day 4: The Sights And Sounds Of Dubrovnik
It’s easy to get quite snooty about the tourist crowd. I’ve already taken a few side swipes at the cruise parties that I seem to be bumping into (often literally) on a far too regular basis – and they are certainly here en masse in Dubrovnik – but […]
A Message For My Tutor Group…
The children at Gillotts School where I work had their final day of the academic year today. Here’s a message that I recorded for them this morning which they were shown during their tutor time. Apparently they appreciated it (although not the jokes…)
Rest Day 4: Dubrovnik Preview
These previews could catch on… Here are three photos from my morning. Full commentary & higher quality photos later.
Cycling Day 15: Tivat To Dubrovnik
If proof were needed (and can I say that it isn’t) that this was just one long mad dash from A (the Temple of Poseidon in Greece) to B (Cape St. Vincent in Portugal) then today was that evidence. Which isn’t needed. [Get on with it, please…] I […]
Cycling Day 15: Preview!
Haven’t had one of these before but I’ve cycled through some stunning places today… Here’s a couple of pictures to whet your appetite. Full update later in the evening.
Cycling Day 14: Ulcinj To Tivat
I wasn’t in the greatest of moods this morning when I woke. I had slept relatively well (who wouldn’t after most of a bottle of Montenegrin Chardonnay?) but was still narked that I had been taken in by the wide boy who had turned the patch of land […]
The End Of Albania…The Start Of Montenegro
Cycling Day 13: Tirana To Ulcinj
I can highly recommend this type of holiday if you want to delve into the variety of accommodation on offer within Europe. Last night I was having a shower in a wet room and then donning a white bath robe in a boutique hotel in was of Europe’s […]
Planning From Tirana To Dubrovnik
So… The next couple of countries are coming up fast; Montenegro & Croatia. Today is Monday 15th and the plan is: Tuesday 16th – Tirana to Ulcinj (Montenegro) This might be a long day in the saddle but I have just had a decent rest here in Tirana. […]
Rest Day 3: The People & Colours Of Tirana
Religious Harmony In Tirana, Albania
Cycling Day 12: Durres To Tirana
There isn’t a great deal to tell about today’s cycling (well shut up then!) but for the sake of completeness, here goes (at which point everyone has found something more interesting to do. Anyone still there? I could say anything! It’s all a lie! I’m really sitting at […]
Views Over Tirana, Albania
While you’ve been watching the cycling or cricket or just tanning yourself in the UK sun, I’ve been hard at work on the terrace of the Hotel Vila Alba here in Tirana. This is my view over the rooftops…
Cycling Day 11: The Llogoroja Pass To Durres
So, here it is, the tale of an epic day in the saddle, all 172km of it. In fact I’ll start by reeling off the statistics. When I cycled to Italy in 2010 I gave the statistics at the end of each day on the blog. (One reader […]
Tirana, Albania: First Impressions
Despite the very best efforts of the combined armed forces of Albania (the drivers & the roads), Reggie and I have arrived in the Albanian capital, Tirana. We are just about in one piece after the ordeal of the last few days and are going to be taking […]
An Englishman Walks Into An Albanian Bar…
…and they don’t serve food. It’s the bar under the hotel where I am staying for a ridiculous 15โฌ (I would happily have paid triple that; last night I paid double and had mice thrown in for free!). I sighed but they were very apologetic. I smiled, they […]
Thoughts On Albania
Like many probably most others I came to Albania with a number of preconceptions. In the main they have so far turned out to be false or certainly outdated. What I’ve discovered is a country that appears to be heading in the right direction from closed communist to […]
Heading North From The Llogoraja Pass
This is simply a stunning country…
Cycling Day 10: Saranda To The Llogoroja Pass
Where does one start on a day like today? The beginning I suppose. Waking up in the hotel room in Saranda and pulling back the curtains was akin to taking part in a nuclear test in the 1950s but forgetting to have turned around. The sun was beaming […]
The Panoramic View From The Bar Restaurant ‘Nivica’, Albania
I’ve been sitting here for far too long… but I don’t care. The view is breathtaking (as was the cycle to get to get here…).
Cycling Day 9: Ioannina To Saranda
If I had any real worries about cycling into Albania (they weren’t for dramatic effect, surely?) they have certainly been dispelled by today’s events. Waking up at the campsite in Ioannina was a delight. Looking out over the lake and across to the mountains is the kind of […]
Camping Limnopoula, Ioannina: The Kind Of Campsite I Love!
Put your tent up where you want, great view in the morning, green, friendly neighbours… (let’s just give the guy on reception the benefit of the doubt that he was having a bad day…)
An Evening In Ioannina
This really is another side of Greece. Isolated in the mountains as it is, the town is frequented mainly by locals and a few hardy tourists but if Ryan Air opened up a boat plane service between the Thames Estuary & the lake here, people would flock! It’s […]
Cycling Day 8: Kanali To Ioannina
Sitting here in a cafรฉ sipping coffee on a rainy afternoon in the mountains is very reminiscent of summer 2010. Over the last couple of hours my mind has been cast back three years on many occasions due to the wet weather since I arrived in town… Today […]
Albanian Thoughts… & Shadow Cycling In Greece
Cycling Day 7: Mitikas To Kanali
It was indeed a shorter day in the end and nothing untoward happened. Following coffee in Mitikas it was a relatively short cycle to the much nicer Paleros where I had planned to meet Ed Cox. Ed is cycling from Bristol to Brisbane and he had contacted me […]
Camping Ionian, Mitikas: Not My Kind Of Campsite
From boutique hotel in Nafpaktos to this. Scruffy campsite, dodgy clientele, questionable facilities, somewhat derelict camping shower… The ironic thing is that I actually slept quite well. A shorter cycling day in prospect today. I’m meeting another cyclist called Ed Cox at 11am just 30km up the road […]
Cycling Day 6: Nafpaktos to Mitikas
I’m in Mitikas. Didn’t arrive until about 8pm but more of that in a moment. I eventually dragged myself away from the cafรฉ in Nafpaktos and headed back in the direction of the bridge. It’s a very photogenic thing and I spent a bit if time snapping photos […]
Early Morning In Nafpaktos
So, from the jaws of potential disaster comes another pleasant surprise. In this case it is the small coastal town of Nafpaktos. It’s quite bustling on this Monday morning as the residents wake up to another week at work, play or (let’s face it for most of the […]
Cycling Day 5: Olympia To Nafpaktos
There are some days which, however simple you think they might be, end up being anything but. Today was one of them. Lets roll the clock back to last night. I do get frustrated on those ‘rest days’ when I’ve done the resting bit or in the case […]
Rest Day 2: Olympia, Greece
The reason for trekking all that way across the Peloponnese was, of course, to visit the ancient ruins of Olympia. I don’t want to make this to be too big of a thing but if you read my book about cycling to Italy you may remember that I […]
Olympia: The Original Olympic Stadium
It pays to be up early at these places; I have the Olympic Stadium all to myself…
Cycling Day 4: Levidi To Olympia
I’m not sure why I ever thought that I’d be able to cycle all the way from Corinth to Olympia in one day and then have time to have a look around the ruins here before setting off the following day for Patras. It was never going to […]
Route Profile: Corinth To Olympia Via Levidi
This really is a tale of two very different days. The full story later but the two graphs below show the route profiles of the two days. The first one is yesterday’s ride to Levidi, the second from Levidi to Olympia. I’m celebrating the crossing of the Peloponnese […]
Cycling Day 3: Corinth To Levidi
If cycling day 1 had been a little bit of a shakedown for Reggie, today has been a shakedown for his rider! I set off early this morning from the campsite in Corinth with high hopes of settling into another campsite in Olympia later in the day. I […]
The Peloponnese: A Stunning Start To Cycling Day 3
Evening On The Edge Of The Peloponnese
Cycling Day 2: Athens to Corinth
It took me an age to pack last night in the hotel. As per usual I had emptied all the panniers as soon as I had arrived on Sunday in order to find things which obviously necessitated replacing them before I left. If only I had a memory […]
The Plan For Cycling Day 2
Slight change of plan for tomorrow. The original one had been to cycle from Athens all the way to visit a WarmShowers contact in the eastern Peloponnese near a town called Astros. Before setting off at the weekend I plugged a few of my initial cycling routes into […]
Rest Day 1: The Acropolis & The Parthenon
‘Hang on!’ I hear you cry… OK, I’ve only done one cycling day so far but I couldn’t very well pass through what is arguably the birthplace of modern western civilisation and not pause for a look around. The Parthenon is the main attraction in these parts and […]
A Green Evening In Athens
This whole trip is fairly green in an environmental sense but last night is was physically bathed in green in a wonderful rooftop terrace bar that I was taken to by local journalist & cycling blogger Manos & his girlfriend Katerina. A great evening and a fantastic introduction […]
Cycling Day 1: The Temple Of Poseidon To Athens
I suppose it should be ‘back’ to Athens but… Before I start just a couple if quick admin points. Firstly, fear not those who did not read the blog posts back in 2010 but subsequently read the book ‘Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie’. The book was […]
Video: Parting Thoughts At The Temple Of Poseidon
First time I’ve tried to do this at distance… Lights, camera… and action:ย
The 10 Point Plan For Cycling (Hopefully) Day 1
I’m not a list person but here goes… 1. Finish coffee in this great little local cafรฉ just up the street from the hotel. 2. Go to the bike shop I have been recommended (just 300 metres away apparently – it looks promising from the evidence of the […]
Cycling Day Zero, Athens, Greece
After writing the post last night I lay on the sofa back in the flat in Reading but didn’t sleep a wink. By the time my colleague Stรฉphane arrived to pick me up at 4am I had moved all my things into the street including of course a […]
Here We Go Again: Cycling The Eurovelo 8
The day has arrived. It’s now past midnight and we are into Sunday 30th June 2013. My flight leaves Heathrow Terminal 5 in under seven hours. And yes, I’m nervous. Not that I have had a great deal of time to think about suchย trivialitiesย as nerves today as I […]
Andrew & Reggie: The Official Pre-Trip Photograph!
Courtesy of keen cyclist & colleague at Gillotts School, David Wall, here is the official pre-Eurovelo 8 photograph of me and Reggie. I’m even smiling… (3 working days to go!)
The Guide Books… Finished!
Not very waterproof but we are hoping for dry, sunny weather…
The Rough Guide To The Eurovelo 8 (Minus Albania, Montenegro & Bosnia…)
It has yet to be rebound and may be better as two volumes but here it is, hot off the chopping board… The Rough Guide to the Eurovelo 8; Greece, Croatia, Slovenia, Italy, France, Spain & Portugal (or at least the bits I’ll be cycling through). I have […]
Equipment For A Cycling Tour: The Thoughts Of Billy Romp
Occasionally, readers of this website put such time & effort into writing a comment that it is worthy of elevation to an entire blog post of its own. The wonderfully-named Billy Romp (he joins Otto Sentieri & Lester Knibb as characters in my future novel, whatever it may […]
The Equipment Needed To Cross Europe (Again) On A Bike Called Reggie
Here is a picture of most of the equipment I’ll be taking with me when I set off from the south-eastern corner of Greece in exactly two-weeks’ time. There is a full list of everything below the image. If you think I’ve missed anything, please do let me […]
The Knowns And Unknowns Of The Cycling World
Three weeks to go… Still so much to do in terms of planning and I am beginning to feel the same way as I did back in 2010 before I set off for the south of Italy; a mixture of excitement and anxiety. Excitement is the easy emotion […]
Provenรงal Luxury Meets The Tour De France & Mont Ventoux
Last weekend when I was staying at my brother’s house in Yorkshire, my niece happened to be browsing through the travel section of The Sunday Times. She pointed out an article about ‘cycling-friendly‘ hotels, the first of which was in Provence, France and my ears pricked up. The […]
Dispatch From The Eurovelo 8 Frontline
Those of you who are paying attention (no? not you?) will remember that Monica Piercy is also cycling from Greece to Portugal but that she is about two months ahead of me. On a purely selfish basis, this is extremely useful indeed as she can feed me withย tantalisingย snippets […]
Eurovelo 8 & The Giro D’Italia 2013
There does seem to be quite an overlap between my route from east to west along the Eurovelo 8 & some of the stages of this year’s Giro d’Italia which kicks off tomorrow. There is a good breakdown of each of the stages on the BBC website and […]
The Temple Of Poseidon, Greece: The Start Of The Journey?
The Temple Of Poseidon is to be found in the very south-eastern corner of Greece. Very handy, no? It would make a fantastic symbolic start point to my journey along the Mediterranean to Portugal, no?
Camping The Eurovelo 8
It is by far my preferred type of accommodation. Usually. OK, when in a city centre, I am more often than not seduced by the attractions of a hotel but anywhere which is remotely green (and even not-so-remotely green), give me a camp-site any day. When I cycled […]
The Eurovelo 8 In Maps
When I cycled the Eurovelo 5 to Italy, all my maps were Michelin 1:200,000 scale maps and there were ten of them in total – see the overview map of Europe here (I didn’t take the Belgian ones by the way as I cut off Belgium from my […]
Cycling The Eurovelo 8: The 10-Week-To-Go List
It’s 7:10am on April 21st. In exactly 10 weeks (to the minute, hopefully), my cycling expedition across Europe starts as my flight from London Heathrow to Athens takes to the air. OK, if you want to quibble, there is much room to do so. I start the cycling […]
“A Great, Inspiring And Funny Read” 5*
“This was a thoroughly enjoyable read from the moment you pick up the book. From the ride planning, apprehension and excitement, plus the doubting friends and colleagues, you can understand exactly how the author felt in starting this epic journey. All of the days cycling are covered in […]
Coming Full Circle: CyclingEurope.org Meets Eurovelo.com
It’s getting on for five years since I first came up with the idea of cycling to Italy during my long summer holiday from work as a teacher. At the time, in those initial weeks and months of frankly secret planning (I was never even sure myself whether […]
Eurovelo 8: Athens To Lisbon With Monica Piercy
If you can’t wait for my own little adventure along the Eurovelo 8 from Greece to Portugal, take a few moments to visit Monica Piercy’s website. She is going, as it says below, from Athens to Lisbon and she’s started! Monica is also on Twitter @mcpiercy. Good luck […]
Slovakia: Day 4 In Words & Pictures
The reason I’ve been blogging about visiting France last week and being in Slovakia this week is three-fold. Firstly it gets me back into the travel writing mode and I’ll need to be be in that mode as from the 1st July for this summer’s big cycle along […]
Slovakia: Day 3 In Words & Pictures
A significant amount of climbing was involved in today’s mountain exploring but fortunately it was courtesy of cable cars rather than our own efforts. More of that in a moment. Last week I was contacted by a guy called Julian from the European Cyclists’ Federation (ECF). He is […]
“La Route Du Sud A Vรฉlo De Menton A Bรฉziers”
A couple of publications have come myย way in the last few days. The first is a cycling touring guide for the French portion of the Eurovelo 8 route in the south of France. The guide’s author, cyclist & teacher (sounds familiar) Daniel Jamrozik emailed me about its existence […]
Albania: Gav McDonald’s Story
Albania remains the mysterious part of my trip along the Eurovelo 8 from Greece to Portugal and I am fascinated by the stories of those who have cycled through the country. I met a chap called Gav McDonald recently at the London Bike Show. On his company website […]
Cycle Tramps… From Calderdale
Iย receivedย a message this week on the Facebook page from Neola Kay Wilby; “I’ve just been looking at your route for the summer. My boyfriend and I will be cycling from northern Spain to Croatia then to Romania, cross through Germany, Amsterdam and back home! We’re doing it over […]
European Adventures With Teenagers, Bears & Avalanches
Regular readers of this blog will no doubt be aware that on the 1st July I set off from Greece in the direction of Portugal on my bike. My mission is two-fold. Firstly because I want to. Secondly because I will write my second book about the trip. […]
The New ‘New Europe’: The Balkans
I’ll be cycling through Albania, Montenegro and Bosnia next summer along the route of the Eurovelo 8. I was sent in the direction of this video by an extremely helpful employee of the Montenegro tourist board. It really does make you think again…ย
Welcome To 2013 & The Eurovelo 8
In exactly 6 months’ time I will be in Athens, or somewhere near Athens. My bike will have been reassembled after its flight from London, my panniers packed with equipment, clothes & supplies & my mind no doubt full of excitement and anxiety as to what the subsequent […]
Thank-you!
You did it! Just after midnight last night I sent ยฃ202 to BBC Children In Need thanks to all the people who downloaded the Kindle version of ‘Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie‘ in the first two weeks of November. Thanks if you were one of them. […]
Eurovelo 8: Italy Into France
‘Pieman Pete’ has a few suggestions; “I was looking at the Italia routes you mention… I have climbed Tende (on the south route) and it is a relatively gentle climb until the last 10km. I have been up it a few times (see Flickr photo) and is definitely […]
The Eurovelo 8 In Italy
I’ve received an email from Giulia of the Italian national cycling organisation, FIAB. I had emailed her asking about possible contact that may be of use when I cross the north of Italy from Slovenia in the east to France in the west. More on that at a […]
Eurovelo 8: Preparation Gets Serious!
(There doesn’t appear to be a Rough Guide to Albania)
Cycling Through Albania: Tim’s Story
A couple of weeks’ ago I posted some comments from Tim about cycling through Albania. I asked him for more details on his own cycle through this lesser-known European country and he has kindly obliged: The main reason I wanted to get in contact was because I was […]
Albania & Montenegro: ‘The Path Less Travelled’
When I first tried to put a little meat on the bone that is the Eurovelo 8 (next year’s trip), I made the following comments on the Eurovelo 8 section of the website about travelling through Albania & Montenegro; “I could avoid Albania & Montenegro altogether! How? Well, […]
Weighty Matters
Over the next few months, I will drone on endlessly on this website, on Twitter & on Facebook about this piece of cycling equipment or that. I will debate the merits of widget A over that of widget B to the extent that when I do finally make […]
Good Vibrations: “I Want More” 5*
“As my title suggests I can’t wait for the next tale of travel by bike in Europe, I finished it so quickly as I enjoyed it so much. I am assured the next book is due after summer 2013 on Eurovelo 8 Athens to Cadiz. I thoroughly enjoyed […]
European Roaming… In Reading, Berkshire
Cast your minds back to September 2010. I had just returned to the UK from my cycle to Italy and I tentatively checked my online mobile phone account with Orange. I’d planned ahead and made sure that I had a quota of data available for use each day […]
Eurovelo 8: The Google Map
UPDATE 2018: It looks as though the Google Map referred to here has now been deleted… There are still some valid comments below however so I’ll leave this post online; just don’t expect to find the map it refers to… You may also want to visit this page […]
Eurovelo 8: The Maps
Digital mapping moves on apace. Only this week I was emailed by a guy from the German website Cycle Routes & Tours pointing out that some of the Eurovelo routes have been mapped on his site. I’ve added the links he gave to the relevant route sections in […]
In Praise Of… Spending A Day Offline
Yesterday I did something that I probably haven’t done in the last ten years; I spent my day offline; no mobile phone, no computer, no iPad, no Twitter, no Facebook, no Instagram, no blogging, no Internet searching… Nothing! Now, fear not; I didn’t do this because I think […]
Finally, someone has written about cycling the eastern part of the Eurovelo 8 from Greece, through Albania, Montenegro and Croatia. Thanks Ali!
Matt Krog & The Eurovelo 6: Day 15
Friday 27th July Montbรฉliard to Basel: 4 hours 42 minutes, 90km “So today I made it across France. My first country on European mainland had been crossed. Just want to shout out to everyone reading and following my trip! Thanks for all your comments, I am getting and […]
Dear Lord Sugar…
… I’ve just finished watching another series of The Apprentice; it was, once again, very entertaining. Congratulations. It’s fun watching the ‘best young business brains in Britain‘ (as the narration sometimes reminds us) trying to persuade you to hand your ยฃ250,000 over to them. The only person who […]
Warmshowers: Updated!
As you can see, I’ve given up not using exclamation marks. Sorry Isobel. I will however continue to use them carefully and only when needed. I’m not sure one was actually needed in the title to this post but there you go… So, to Warmshowers, the site that […]
Kate The Goat-Herd… & Cyclist
I received an email on Friday from someone called Kate, a travelling cyclist who was planning on making Reading a stopover en route from London to Oxford. She’d found my contact details on WarmShowers, the social network for cyclists looking for and offering accommodation. I used the site […]
Eurovelo 8: A Much Needed Update
I have received an email from Monica. Hi Andrew Next year starting 29th March I will be cycling from Lisbon to Athens using the Eurovelo Route 8, raising money for Camfed. I am organising the trip myself and spotted your website. All advice, large or small gratefully received.ย […]
Koga Trekking Bike Pornography
Facebook friend and ex-Emmerdale Farm (it will always be a farm to me, despite its modern-day aspirations; Seth Armstrong would never have approved the change) actor Richard Mooreย has just contacted me asking about new bikes. It got me dreaming again and I headed off to the Kogaย website to […]
Dallaglio Flintoff 2012 Cycle Slam
Lawrence Dallaglio is back on his bike again and this time he is cycling the Eurovelos 5 & 8, kind of… The cycling challenge is called “The Dallaglio Flintoff Cycle Slam” and the official website describes the endeavor as follows; “Between April 23rd and May 18th next yearย […]
On Hannibalโs Trail (Again)
I first wrote something about this documentary – On Hannibal’s Trail – back in October 2010 when it was shown on the BBC HD channel. At the time, Middle-Age Cyclist Darrell (that’s his website by the way, not me being presumptuous) commented as follows; It is a great […]
Top 10s At CyclingEurope.org in 2011
I always find these lists fascinating. It’s the mathematician in me I think. Others may find them less riveting so if that’s you, you may like to move on… They cover what is now, most of 2011 (only around 40 hours to go). The top page is fairly […]
European Matters
I mentioned a couple of weeks ago about how the European Cyclists’ Federation (ECF) had revamped its websites – http://www.ecf.com, the Eurovelo ‘planning’ website http://www.eurovelo.org & http://www.eurovelo.com, aimed at punters like you and me. Now this latter website has yet to get off the ground (I remain hopeful), […]
French / Spanish Lessons In Venezuela
Great video. Makes me feel very jealous as I sit here in dreary Reading in the south of England. What an adventure! Here’s their website. It’s a good work out for your French (and Spanish). Might show the kids at school next week… Interestingly, their route does what […]
Tandem For The EV8?
‘bikes4two’ has written some nice comments about the book on the CTC forum called ‘Eurovelo 5 information‘; Hi Andrew, Just bought the e-book as I’m in the early stages of planning a trip for me and Mrs bikes4two on our tandem. I’m in trouble already in that I […]
Eurovelo 8; Remember That?
Owen’s email below is well-timed. It being the 1st September today, the summer is over if you consider the season to be the three monthsย from June to August. It’s also more or less over if you are a teacher as most of us go back to work […]
Matters On My Mind
As mentioned yesterday I have started reading Mark Beaumont’s new book about how he cycled from Alaska to the southern tip of Argentina in 2009/10 while at the same time scaling the highest mountains in North & South America. Well, not quite at the same time but I’m […]
The Exclusively Cycling News
This blog has become a little more generalist of late with me discussing a varied range of topics from trips to France with groups of school children to how the re-decoration of my flat over the last couple of weeks has been progressing. I need to get things […]
Monaco To Croatia Along The EV8
Writing the book about my journey along the Eurovelo 5 has taken over the posts of this blog in recent times (I am still at the red pen correcting stage by the way and haven’t made much progress in the last couple of weeks) butย the time is approaching […]
