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| 24th August |
| Hello from Rainy Rotterdam 10/9/03 Just a quick update to let everyone know that Lou and I have just made our way down to Rotterdam in the South of the Netherlands, after spending the past 4 days in Amsterdam. We have had an awesome time so far but unfortunately it's bucketing down with rain at the moment so I think we will be confined to visiting a museum this afternoon. I have a lot of new photos but because I'm having difficulty connecting my camera to the Internet cafe computers I won't probably get around to uploading them until this Sunday so come back and have a look early next week. Big Sis is engaged! Congratulations to my sister Georgie and her boyfriend of 3 years, Gary, on their recent engagement. This fantastic news gives me an excuse to return back to Aus for a few weeks for the wedding, likely to be in in Sydney, and to catch up with everyone in Adelaide. Dates are still being finalised but it is likeley to be within the next 6 to 12 months. As soon as a know definite dates I'll put more details up on the web site. Lou & Ned's (kind of) epic camping adventure (part 1) Ahh, the great outdoors, the smell of the pine trees, the chirping of the birds, the sound of a metal bike peddle scrapping against Lou�s shin, the subsequent sound of Lou screaming out a stream of profanities� what a way to spend a weekend. In anticipation of our 8 day cycling and camping tour of the Netherlands next month we decided to have a little test run over the weekend through the forests and villages that lie just beyond the outskirts of Augsburg. |
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| The tent test run. |
| Me about to launch into outerspace. |
| What was that about "when in Rome..."? |
| Oh, the carnage! |
| After picking up an awesome little Aussie made tent in the local camping store for � 90 (AUD 155) on Saturday morning we first returned to the apartment to have a practice run at putting up the tent. Lou was struggling to contain her excitement and soon had the little hut set up in the living room-come bedroom-come dining room (let�s just call it the �all purpose� room). Packing it up again wasn�t quite as straightforward but before long we had it all back in it�s tiny little bag. At the camping store we also managed to pick up a couple of sleeping mats for � 10 each and after packing up all our gear I strapped the sleeping mats onto each side of my backpack making me look like something from the set of E.T as I rode along. |
| Judging by the amount of looks we later got people must have thought we were from another planet, I just wanted to explain to them that we were Australians. Before we could leave the apartment to embark on our journey Lou had to do her standard Spanish Inquisition (Have you got the phone? Who�s got the keys? Have you got all the water? What about the sunscreen?). I tried to explain to Lou that we would be gone for less than 24 hours and after some further persuasion we were finally out the door. We headed out through the suburbs of Augsburg and were soon riding through the forests, crossing little rivers over old, roofed bridges with detailed woodwork on the entrances. After a couple of hours of winding along the edges of thick forests and passing through paddocks we ended up in a little village |
| and took a seat in an old restaurant (again attracting much attention). Thinking along the lines of the old adage �when in Rome�� I opted for a Schnitzel and a cold beer but it turned out the restaurant offered first-rate Indian cuisine which got Lou�s nose running. With only half an hour of light left we headed off to the woods to find a suitable camping spot. Now pitching a tent anywhere you like isn�t exactly kosher in Germany so we had to be fairly careful in going about this. We came upon what appeared to be a national forest and after tripping over bushes in the dark we eventually found a concealed enough spot to pitch our tent. I was happy enough with the location but Lou was frightened silly with the thought of having a park |
| ranger come and tell us off so Lou ordered lights out in the tent after half an hour of setting up (you can�t be too careful with those infra-red enabled park ranger helicopters!). The next morning I was awoken by a wide eyed and still worried Lou who was keen to pack up and get going before the park ranger came after us with his tranquilizer gun. Getting up early had the benefit of catching the early morning sun and seeing the fog lifting from the countryside. The remainder of the morning was pretty gruelling as we rolled up and down hills through the forests in the vain hope of finding an open bakery (being a Sunday NOTHING is open in the villages). Lou�s sugar deficiency turned critical and just before she imploded we discovered an open bakery offering fresh hot coffee and suger rich donuts. We returned to Augsburg slightly battered and sore but ready to face the next epic camping adventure. |
To see all of the photos from Lou and Ned�s (kind of) epic camping adventure (Part 1) click here. We�re not sure when Part 2 will occur, possibly next weekend, but the really big camping adventure is set to commence on September the 6th, involving 8 days of travelling from Amsterdam down into the Delta region in the South West corner of the Netherlands (O.K, we�re going to use the train a bit to get around but it will be epic none the less). �Till next time Ned & Lou. P.S. Lou says she�ll write her update when she�s recovered enough to put down the new Michael Moore book & crawl out of bed. |