Counting down the weeks, then days, over christmas and new year was beginning to drag. I had packed and re-packed my bags a number of times. Trying to decide what to take, what to leave behind, and where it should go on the bike takes some planning. Do I keep all my clothes together in one place? What do I bury at the bottom and what do I keep at or near the top ? I'm sure that no matter what order I load things in a new system will develop as experience is gained on the road.
Even when I thought I had got it sorted I then had to rearrange everything for the flight. There are certain things that I would carry in my camelbak that would not be allowed within hand luggage. I also wanted to carry heavier items onto the plane with me to lessen the weight of the boxed bike and potentially incurring a weight penalty charge.
With just 48 hours left til I head to the airport I have finally decided on what is coming and what is staying.
The bike is being boxed and friends are being visited for the last time til I return. It's the first day of the new year and the sun is shining outside. A good omen considering the amount of rain that has been falling the last few months.
Reading the blogs of other riders and looking at their pictures is giving me an idea of what to expect, but it still feels surreal to think that in a few days I will have gone from 5 degrees to 35 degrees with levels of humidity that I have never encountered before. Instead of coming home to dinner and sitting in front of my computer I shall be finding a new home nearly every day without the comforts that we come to expect. It's both daunting and exciting.
Even when I thought I had got it sorted I then had to rearrange everything for the flight. There are certain things that I would carry in my camelbak that would not be allowed within hand luggage. I also wanted to carry heavier items onto the plane with me to lessen the weight of the boxed bike and potentially incurring a weight penalty charge.
With just 48 hours left til I head to the airport I have finally decided on what is coming and what is staying.
The bike is being boxed and friends are being visited for the last time til I return. It's the first day of the new year and the sun is shining outside. A good omen considering the amount of rain that has been falling the last few months.
Reading the blogs of other riders and looking at their pictures is giving me an idea of what to expect, but it still feels surreal to think that in a few days I will have gone from 5 degrees to 35 degrees with levels of humidity that I have never encountered before. Instead of coming home to dinner and sitting in front of my computer I shall be finding a new home nearly every day without the comforts that we come to expect. It's both daunting and exciting.
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