‘The art of living is more like wrestling than dancing.’                                                                                  Marcus Aurelius The time has come to say goodbye to naturism and hello to clothes and convention. It’s ten o’clock in the morning, and I’m standing at the gate leading from La Jenny to the familiar painted green cycle path of La Velodysée. My …

Continue reading "Me and Michel Chapter Eighteen"

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‘The only journey is the one within.’ Rainer Maria Rilke On my last day here among the Lotus Eaters at La Jenny, I’ve taken myself to the beach. I have a makeshift picnic with me, leftovers and some bread, and a bottle of wine. It’s good to breath the sea air and today the weather …

Continue reading "Me and Michel Chapter Seventeen"

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‘A day without laughter is a day wasted.’ Charlie Chaplin   There is a German woman staying in the chalet just across the way from mine. We waved to each other in a cheery way as I moved in. She is alone it turns out, and we chatted briefly as I unloaded the bike, both …

Continue reading "Me and Michel Chapter Sixteen"

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‘Neither should a ship rely on one small anchor, nor should life rest on a single hope.’ Epictetus The very lovely people at reception give me a map. With 756 chalets on site, I’m sure I would struggle to find my new home without it. The setting is quite beautiful. After the flatlands of my …

Continue reading "Me and Michel Chapter Fifteen"

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‘The past is never dead. It’s not even past.’                                                      William Faulkner, Requiem for a Nun   I’m standing on the jetty at Arcachon, waiting for the ferry that will take me and the bike and a dozen other passengers across to Cap Ferret. Today, putting all other thoughts behind me, I begin the journey again, …

Continue reading "Me and Michel Chapter Fourteen"

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No one saves us but ourselves. We ourselves must walk the path.”   Buddha The sky is copper-bronze, and the sun a burnished shield of cadmium orange. Streaks of thin black cirrus clouds are black silhouettes, as if painted on a Greek vase. Homer, it seems, can be addictive. I am atop the Dune du Pilat, …

Continue reading "Me and Michel Chapter Thirteen"

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be the dawn and dusk of a world in constant flux – embrace becoming!                         Haiku I said my goodbyes to Landes almost as soon as I set off this morning, and though only a dotted line on the map, a new département makes it feel like I’m making progress. I’ve been riding parallel with …

Continue reading "Me and Michel Chapter Twelve"

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‘The only way to have a friend is to be one.’ Ralph Waldo Emerson I am on my way to see one of the natural wonders of Europe, it’s biggest sand dune, and a jewel in the crown of the Gironde region; Grande Dune du Pilat, sixty million cubic metres of sand, five hundred metres …

Continue reading "Me and Michel Chapter Eleven"

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‘In walking, just walk. In sitting, just sit. Above all, don’t wobble.’ Yun-men, 9th century Chinese Chan master   There is no doubt any longer. As I ride, the smell of smoke is quite distinct in the air, the result of the recent fires, particularly around Hostens, an area only fifty kilometres east of where …

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‘What cannot be cured, must be endured. Robert Burton, The Anatomy of Melancholy My nightly ablutions always involve a walk in my PJs past my fellow campers, bearing wash kit and towel, to a communal concrete building that is generally uninviting. The wash blocks are all the same and all different in a way that …

Continue reading "Me and Michel Chapter Nine"

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