Barbs's Big Bike RIde

This year I have decided to stay and enjoy an English Spring. It has been a long time coming but at last it is here and I am off to explore my own back yard. Well actually travelling up the UK mainland as far north as possible before 21st June and see how close I can get to the Midnight Sun.


After my travels along the Camino de Santiago across northern Spain last September on my trusty old iron donkey, I have bought a lighter bike in the hope that I can get up a few more hills and by going from Lands End to John o Groats (LEJOG) I can avoid the killing headwinds of the Spanish meseta.


So here she is, we had a jolly naming ceremony on Saturday and hopefully the good friends, food and weather I enjoyed will carry me through to the farthest northern climes. Thank you all for a great send off, admirably topped off with one too many pints The Village Bike listening to Mojo Triangle.


And she is called Eleanor, isn't she beautiful, I hope I still have such tender feelings after 6 hours in the saddle, but probably only in the nether regions I fear.


The map link on the right will show a rough itinerary and route and I will try try to update with my actual route, if I can work out how and where I am as I go along, you know there will be little correlation but I will get there or somewhere in the end!


If you want an email update, submit your address in the box also on right and hopefully it will find its way through the ether to you.

Thursday, 26 January 2012

Visit to Laha Datu


We were to set off early to LD but Africa time has extended to Borneo and we eventually got off one and a half hours later and having to be towed and then change vehicles, We were off to the Humana main office to collect some books for the schools,
Tabin Venning founder of Humana took us to a bay side seafood restaurant in the hope of spotting some crocodiles as well as good food, we certainly got the latter although there weren't any visible crocs due to the high tide We did see a snake swim away from us .

Tabin explained that Human is funded by the plantations, a very little from UNHCR and Unesco but more latterly from EU under their promotion on Human Rights, for child and family life but with a probable sub motive for keeping immigration from EU borders.

Humana's latest intitiative is with the sea gypsies around Lahad Datu and Semporna. These are stateless people living on the waters betwen Sabah indonesia and Phillipines are are viewed in a very similar fashion to European gypies and as they have no papers they do not exist for any of these governments and so have no access to schools,health care and one assumes justice. The Human Planet series on peoples of the sea features these people and was filmed off LD.


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