Tag Archives: bike

Are we nearly there yet? (Rousse)

Posted on April 24, 2012 by Dreamaticus

We were delayed on the return leg of the journey home from our cycling holiday in Cornwall. I spent a happy hour browsing through the books in the children’s section of the public library. My favourite tome was a compilation … Continue reading →

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European cyclist cheats (Rousse)

Posted on April 14, 2012 by Dreamaticus

We were cycling across Europe from Istanbul by tandem. The others on the trandem were cheats. All their “pedal” power was generated by a motor hidden under the third saddle at the back of their ridiculous bike.

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Isle of Lewis camper van rescue (Rousse)

Posted on April 3, 2012 by Dreamaticus

The weather turned vile and we wondered how our friends N and S were coping in the howling wind and torrential rain on the west coast of the Isle of Lewis. They couldn’t possibly be out in the open cycling, … Continue reading →

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Hostage taken at the White House: Rousse to the rescue

Posted on February 29, 2012 by Dreamaticus

I could hear my iPhone ringing out, but where was I, and what time of night was this? I pulled myself up in bed to peer into the dark. I was back at the White House in my childhood bedroom. … Continue reading →

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Library rules for tandems (Rousse)

Posted on February 16, 2012 by Dreamaticus

TPR wheeled the tandem into the bookshop. So far, so good – nobody stopped us. However, further into the main body of the shop a member of staff told us that this was, in fact, a library, tandems were banned, … Continue reading →

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Time-travelling Rupert Grint (as Ron Weasley) greets Rousse in the Kingdom of Fife

Posted on January 29, 2012 by Dreamaticus

This was one of the most interesting research seminars that I had ever attended: it was just like a circus performance. My favourite act was the set of extremely flexible women gymnasts. They all started off in crab position, tightly … Continue reading →

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Become a personal trainer – but not on this course (Rousse)

Posted on December 5, 2011 by Dreamaticus

Completely fed up with work, I decided to ditch academia to train as a fitness instructor, and joined the same course as FM. The pace of the classes was incredibly slow, largely because the tutor took a 15 minute break … Continue reading →

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Traffic terror on the A1 and a reunion with the Spice Girls (Rousse)

Posted on October 13, 2011 by Dreamaticus

The traffic on the A1 north of Newcastle was blocked solid. The only way you could now join the carriageway was to first reverse up the ramp, then continue along the hard shoulder backwards until you found a suitable spot … Continue reading →

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Debbie Harry impersonator stars at isolated Yorkshire guest house (Rousse)

Posted on September 1, 2011 by Dreamaticus

The isolated guest house on the North Yorkshire moors was well-known for its strict graduate-only entry policy. I travelled there by car with Belle and a stranger. We couldn’t compete with his credentials as a UCL-based Jane Austen expert with … Continue reading →

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Scandinavian packing essentials (Rousse)

Posted on July 30, 2011 by Dreamaticus

I made it to Finland with only one packing mistake: no gloves. My hosts assumed that we knew that gloves were essential all year round in Scandinavia. For this reason they had not warned us that they were a necessity, … Continue reading →

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