John Williams_Europe 2010

Sunday, 06 May 2012

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/175177952

Tuesday, 24 August 2010

Location: Brisbane, Australia

Hello to everyone who have followed my European adventure.

Well, I arrived home on Saturday and although it's now Tuesday I am still getting used to the idea of being back in Brisbane.

Anyhow, que sera sera [whatever will be will be] and over the next week or so I will move ahead with whatever will be my life for the future.

Thank you for your messages, and interest in my notes, and who knows what the future might hold.

Ciao and Biscous [kisses] to all, John W

Friday, 20 August 2010

Location: Paris / Hong Kong, France

I am writing this in transit some part high over Russia, and the final part in the Qantas lounge at Chep Lap Kok, Hong Kong. It seems most appropriate to me that I finish this travel log before I land back in Australia.
I wrote recently that I had not found a conclusive and incisive way to describe this “time away from the everyday”, but I feel now the closest description is “[that] I’ve given myself permission to enjoy some freedom of spirit”.
Phil Collin’s song in this link expresses some of my feelings as I am writing this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2J5ZLjY31dw&feat...
I hope that I continue to allow myself “freedom of spirit”, to love and be loved, to be a good person, and to be kind and gentle to myself, my family, my friends and others.
But this time has been “all about me”, and I want to thank my family, Jane, Amelia and Danielle, for giving me the space to go away by myself. Perhaps it was selfish, or perhaps it was something that I needed to do.
My appreciation also goes to my friends who have endured listening to my endless plans over the past year, to my Bikestyle cycling friends on the Tour de France during July ... Le Tour with them was exhilarating, to “our other family” the Swiss family Barresi in Lugano, Switzerland, to Pietro in Cernobbio [for your friendship, kindred spirit and wonderful sense of fun], to my Italian lakes cycling friends ... who made the Italian experience just so much fun, and to Rosemary in Paris for a lovely lunch conversation under the trees in the Jardin des Tuileries.
I’ve learnt some interesting things over the past two (2) months; in France the two most used words are “non” and “ferme” [closed], the most used word in Italy is “prego” [you’re welcome], the French really cannot make coffee [ as I like it], to be a good cyclist you need to be able to climb, the French TGV is excellent and leaves exactly on time ... to the second, in Italy you can park your car anywhere without fear of a traffic ticket as long as you put the hazard warning lights on, in Holland beware of the motor scooters and “old persons gofers” on the bikepaths, in Italy it can rain for days in the summer, in France the French sit out in the sun without sunscreen and just bake themselves, in France during Le Tour don’t try to beat a French grandmother to the items thrown from the caravane ... they will easily push you aside, in Italy it can take half an hour or so to order dinner once Pietro and Naomi go through the whole menu explaining each dish to us in English, the Italians love wine and pasta, and also the difference between “heaven and hell”
In heaven; the French are the cooks, the British are the policemen, the Germans make the cars, the Italians are the lovers, and the Swiss organise everything.
In hell: the British are the cooks, the Germans are the policemen, the French make the cars, the Swiss are the lovers, and the Italians organise everything.
... and finally, that being in the company of happy and fun loving people is where I love to be.
I’ve also been fortunate to have had many wonderful and fun conversations, but one conversations stands out from all. It was a conversation about acknowledging our “safe place”, and with that goes a song that we talked about http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7NFKwPWIJc
So, I am going to end this narrative now, and to sum up my “freedom of spirit”, there is one song that says it all http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khrx-zrG460
A bientot, john w

Thursday, 19 August 2010

Location: Paris, France

Today is my last day in Paris, and there was still much I wanted to do, particularly walk the length of the Champs Elysees, and that’s what I did.
So as I walked along that famous tree lined avenue, and enjoyed the view of the
Grande Arche at La Defense at one end, the Arc de Triomphe in the middle and the Place de la Concorde at the other end, it brought together the elegance and style of France for me. What a beautiful country this is, with its depth of history, culture, architecture both old and new, elegance and style.
It was a beautiful clear blue sky today just perfect to view Paris from the terrace top of the Arc de Triomphe, and then to walk through the Jardon de Tuileries.
The Champs Elysees was lined with all the French brands we all know, Cartier, Yves St Laurent, Mont Blanc, luggage shops, clothing shops, watch shops, shoe shops [with impossibly high heels which Amelia and Danielle would love], sidewalk cafes with red shades and white cane chairs lined up in a row, Parisians going about their business, tourists by the hundred peering into shop windows at E25,000 luggage sets and E15,000 watches, taking photographs beside the famous stores where security guards keep the tourist out, and ... beggars kneeling bowed down on the street with hands outstretched and a tin cup.
What an irony this presented, as everyone went about their day unconcerned about anyone else.
But there is so much beauty in the world, and I’ve had the opportunity to see some small part of it. So with my new found “metro mastering” skills and the things I’ve enjoyed, I now turn my attention to home. How much easier things might be if mastering our lives and our futures were laid out like the Paris metro. If we only needed to read the map to know which line to take, which side of the platform to stand to take the metro in the right direction, or which “sortie” [exit] to take to end up on the correct street. It’s just not that easy in real life, and like the metro, sometimes you need to get lost first to have confidence that you can find your way back.
Climbing the Arc de Triomphe was one of my goals, and I did that today. It was an errie feeling climbing those 234 stairs inside a building which was initiated by Napoleon in 1803 and finished in 1836. The Arc de Triomphe represents so much about France and its conquests, and I wonder how it is viewed by the French today. Does it represent times past, or is it a representation of the present and future of France? Whatever is the French perception, it does show the skill of the artisan and the horror of conflict.
But enough of that, I continued walking west along the Champs Elysees to the Jardin des Tuilleries, and brought myself what was to be my last “French sandwich”, or baguette and ham, and a “Coca light” and found myself a chair to sit under the trees ... just like a Parisian.
Anyhow it was time, and so back on the metro, shower and pack my bags and back to the airport.
... and so started my long trip home, “Air France 188 is ready for boarding”.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U70exffxR54&feat...

Tuesday, 17 August 2010

Location: Paris, France

Tuesday, 17 August
I slept in today until 10 am, and how nice was that!
I had some big plans for these few days in Paris, things to see and do. But my biggest goal was to “master the metro” and to those who know me well understand that I might take that as a challenge ... and that’s how I approached it.
First stop today was to be the Musee de l’Air et de l’Espace, or “boys heaven” to me. This is a link to the web site www.museedelair.org . This museum was simply fascinating and exciting showing French aviation from the earliest days to the space age. I was certainly in “boys heaven” for a few hours, and of course experienced a reawakening of my long held dream to get my pilots licence.
To get to the museum though required a metro, a RER and then a bus trip to Le Bourget. I made it OK, but what happened was that I felt confronted by another side of Paris, far removed from the Louvre, Champs Elysees, rue de Honorie, but a Paris where the less fortunate live in shabby and run down areas. That certainly was confronting.
But that did not dampen my spirits, so I just enjoyed the day for what it was.
Back into Paris by bus, RER and metro and I stopped off at the Tuilleries for a walk through the garden and along the Seine, before dinner in a sidewalk ristorante, then on the metro and back to the hotel.
I made it ... I had gained a new skill ... I’d mastered the Paris metro.

Monday, 16 August 2010

Location: Cernobbio to Paris, France

I was ready to go when Pietro arrived at the hotel. I’d been up early and packed “Miss Bianchi” [my beautiful and elegant Italian lady], wrapping her carefully for the long flight home.
I’ve been fortunate to meet so many lovely people on this trip and as we head off down to Milano, I cannot help thinking about each person who I came to know particularly on this Italian section of my holiday. In particular I feel I was fortunate to meet with Pietro, since in so many ways he has been a key part of my time in Italy, and we have developed a friendship far beyond simply a client and supplier relationship.
So Pietro, if you happen to read this someday, I know that you know how I valued my time in Cernobbio before we started the cycle trip to Lago di Garda, and particularly the things we talked and laughed about ... and of course the afternoon under the trees at the front of the Centrale. Please take care of yourself my friend.
I was a little anxious about EasyJet, but I need not have worried, it all went smoothly and I easily found my way from Paris CDG, through the RER B, to the Metro B5 at Gare du Nord, and to the Mecure, Place d’Italie.
When I checked into my room, I had an overwhelming feeling of tiredness, maybe after being away for so long I just wanted to get back to Australia. But if I am being really honest, I think I felt a sense of loneliness, that sometimes haunts me ... I was by myself again.
So a shower, a walk down a local ristorante for a light dinner sitting out in the Paris evening light, and then back to the hotel for bed. As I drifted off to sleep to the sounds of Eva Cassidy in my earphones, I started to think about what this time out has meant to me.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2J5ZLjY31dw&feat...

Sunday, 15 August 2010

Location: Lago di Garda to Cernobbio, Italy

So brings to an end my Italian lakes cycling holiday, and today we all leave for home.
We left Lago di Garda at 6 am this morning to take Uzi and Menachem to Milano Malpensa aeroporte, and then to return to Cernobbio for one more night.
I leave tomorrow, Monday from Milano Malpensa airport for an EasyJet flight to Paris. I’m in Paris until Thursday evening, then arriving home in Brisbane on Saturday morning.
This meant that I’ve had some time in Cernobbio today to update my travel page, and to think back over my time in Europe, the places I’ve seen, the people I’ve met, the things I’ve done and the lessons [I think] I’ve learnt.
It would be good to have some insightful comment about this time away, but I don’t have that right now. I know there are many things I’ve thought about, but a conclusive and incisive point is yet to come to mind. Perhaps I am just tired and need to go home, perhaps I feel lost now that this event which I’ve planned for so long is coming to an end, or perhaps it is none or perhaps it is all of those things.
I remember how lost I felt after Kokoda 2004, and I have the same feeling now. Kokoda 2004 was a driving force in my life for the two years prior and it was the catalyst for so much in the following years. My focus on Kokoda and all things associated with it gradually dropped away, and as that realisation evolved the feeling of loss became even more noticeable to me. At one of my talks on Kokoda someone asked me, “Did you get lost in the jungle?” I thought about that before I answered by saying “No, I got found”. Yet was that really true, did I get found, or did I get found and then get lost again?
Is it just me that feels like this sometimes, or do others continue to search for a rational purpose in the ebb and flow of life? Perhaps there is no answer, no plan waiting to be revealed in the fullness of time. Perhaps life is largely chance, opportunity and circumstance.
I do know one thing with certainty, and that is that I want my life to be fulfilling, to love and be loved, to add some value to my life and others, and to know and experience the sense of fulfilment that happiness brings.
... and so http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DY9qvfu9m7Q&feat...

Saturday, 14 August 2010

Location: Lago di Garda, Italy

Today started out as sunny day with threat of rain, a plan for an easy day with a “few bumps” turned out to be a little more than bumps, after the hard day yesterday. The cycle along the Valli Guidcarie was lovely, but I found the going a bit tougher on the long gradual climbs. When it started to rain, I felt the cold and the tiredness seep back through my body and my legs which seemed to be drained of energy.
As the rain started and stopped I became cold and then hot, then cold again, and on it went. We started to climb out of one village and as the rain had stopped, I started to get hot with my rain jacket on, so pulled to the side to take the jacket off ... and then it happened!
Over I went onto the road, crashing onto Barry’s back wheel and bringing him down heavily.
At least that’s how it was described as neither of us remembers much about it at all. I do remember laying on the road just stunned, but not thinking, just seeing myself there, and Barry beside me kicking at his bicycle to get it off him. Fortunately I was not hurt other than a bruised left elbow, but Barry gashed his left elbow badly, and had cuts from his chain ring on his inner right thigh. Uzi, who is a doctor and medical professor, treated Barry’s elbow and recommended that he go to the hospital for more effective treatment and more thorough check.
How did it happen ... my right foot came out of the cleat, and I over-balanced. As I think back over it now, it was a sign that I was more tired than I realised.
The rain continued and became even heavier, and soon I was wet through and very cold.
Massimo stayed with me as I worked hard to keep going on the long but gentle climb, and eventually we were at the pass. The rest of the group had arrived ahead of me and were in the ristorante discussing whether to descend in the rain or to go down in the support van. Five of us decided on waiting for the support van and the others descended. I was already totally saturated and cold, and would have made myself even sicker with this flu / cold I’ve had since arriving in Europe in late June. So we sat there, drinking coffee to keep warm, but it was a long few hours in my wet cycling gear, and I had to walk around to try to keep warm.
Pietro arrived to pick us up, and although soaking wet himself loaded the bicycles on top of the van and then drove us down the mountain. The rain was falling heavily, there was fog, and we did not see anything of Lago di Garda really as we came down the mountain.
So you might imagine how wonderful it was to see that my hotel room had a bathtub. I filled it up, and just sat there for half an hour.
The rain continued to fall heavily, but the hotel had an umbrella, so I took that and went for a walk around the town centre. From what I could see through the rain Lago di Garda and the surrounding mountains are beautiful, the city centre, lanes and squares are surrounded by shops and ristorantes ... this will be a beautiful place to come to in the sunshine!
It was a little sad that it rained during the last three days of the trip, as this did lead to everyone feeling more tired, than if it had been bright sunny days.
A wonderful trip, through a beautiful environment, a chance to experience some small view of Italia and its people, culture, art, and history, some challenging and rewarding cycling, and the company of nice happy people ... everything I wished for and more.
So, this brings to an end another stage ... so that the next can begin.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OP_ddcempbk&feat...