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Day 1: London Hyde Park to Leatherhead
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| Leaving
Hyde Park |
The
ride finally gets under way. Every1 is soo nervous but anxious about
the 6 week epic bike ride ahead of us. It was so amazing to witness
many faces from all parts of the world all cycling together through
London
united in their voice in calling for justice and peace in Palestine/Israel.
After an interesting ride to Dorking, we finally stop for the night.
Day
2: Leatherhead (UK) to Dieppe (FR)
Five am, crack of dawn and we are up for an early start. Seven am
we leave and cycle to Newhaven port. We arrive there at one pm,
where we board the cruise and nod off for two and a half hours.
We arrive in Dieppe late afternoon and are surprisingly welcomed
by a huge torrential downpour. French Press are awaiting us, then
interview us and then we leave the port and head for our hostel
for the night. (10km away). It feels so strange to be cycling on
the other side of the road.
Day
3: Dieppe to Vernon
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| Arriving
in Rouen |
A very
quiet cycle through the Normandy countryside. We stop for lunch
in Rouen town centre where we are welcomed for a POSH NOSH French
lunch. After that, we head for Vernon for the night.
The
group has become soo close over the first few days, and has devloped
such a great spirit, regardless of the fact that we consist of people
from all walks of life ranging from the age of 12 to 63.
Day
4: Vernon to Paris
We cycled a short distance and then were forced to take a 20 km
train journey into the centre of paris (due to security risks).
We are told that the surburbs of Paris are too dangerous to cycle
through. We arrive in paris that afternoon and are welcomed in Bastille
sqaure for a rally, and live music. Was amazing to meet such variety
of people all sharing the same belief and working towards establishing
justice and peace in the holy lands.
Day
5: Paris to Auxerre
We leave in the morning and as soon as we hit the countryside, we
are rudly disturbed and shaken by a very violent thunderstorm. Some
of us were nearly thrown off our bikes due to the powerful winds.
Day:
Auxerre to Avelon
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| Countryside
at Avelon |
A beautiful
ride through the valleys and countryside was in store for us as
we decided to take the country roads instead of a very busy main
road. We arrive in Avelon, the weather was superb and we get time
for a picnic in the sun in a beautiful valley along a river.
Day:
Avelon to Dijon
A long ride today with very unpredictable weather. We eventually
arrive to be greeted by the mayor and then head for our hostel for
tea then go to bed. We are all quite exhausted today, especially
because of the weather.
Day
8: Dijon to Poligny
The ride starts off through some complete flat plains. Eventually,
we reach the start of a mountain range and begin to worry. We managed
to get up them eventually. We attend an event in the eve.
Day
9: Poligny to Geneve
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| A
warm welcome in Geneve |
Today
was by far the best day ever. The most picturesqre views of the
trip so far. Some very steep climbs at times. The weather was absolutely
amazing. Our Arrival in Geneva was soo warm and amazingly welcoming.
It was truly an amazing feeling to finally reach an important milestone
in our journey.
We
were cordially invited to a reception at a restaurant along the
port in Geneva, with live latino music and fantastic food and drink.
We have all been staying with local families involved in campagining
for peace and justice in Palestine/Israel. They have been so fantastic
and generous to house us for two nights, feed us and even do our
washing.
Day
10: REST in Geneve
Mustafa's
diary part 2 - Geneve to Firenze
Mustafa
will be sending back regular diaries - keep checking back for updates
of how he is progressing.
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