After purse dramas in
Holland that morning (I had left it on my coach the night before - it had my passport in it, without it I wasn't going anywhere!), I caught the ferry to Dover with some
colleagues, where Mike met me with the van, bed made up in the back,
all ready to go.
We made our way to
London and caught up with our friend John on the Friday and Saturday
nights. Mike and John came to my end-of-season work party Saturday
night. Mike was mobbed by half the Topdeck crew who had been sailing
the last few months. John and I watched and laughed as they bought
him drinks and demanded that he stay for a few more. We couldn't
stay, we caught the last tube back to the hotel, which resulted in a
bus half way, for about an hour (or forever, according to Mike).
Sunday saw us heading
to an outdoor equipment store in Piccadilly Circus, recommended by a
colleague (Thanks, Jamie!) to see what we could get in the way of
cookers. One thing we didn't want was to be reliant on restaurants
every day or dreaming up new filling combinations in sandwiches for
dinner. I could remember my high-school supplying us all with
single-burner stoves for hiking camps. They were compact and
lightweight enough to carry in a backpack. These 'Trangi' stoves only
had one pot from memory, but we were keen to see what was on offer at
Trek and Field.
For £50 we picked up a
larger version of the Trangia, still a single burner but the stand,
burner, 2 pots, kettle and frypan all pack into one pot. And it burns
metho, cheap as chips. Perfect!
Sunday afternoon we
immersed ourselves in Camden. Indian takeaway was eaten on cool
half-moped stools, and we lost ourselves in the massive crazy-busy
markets.
Monday morning was the
start of our “Big Trip” and saw us making our way back to Dover.
We stopped in Ashford on the way for our first supply shop. Funny. We
had to find all the items legally required by all vehicles in
continental Europe...hazard triangle, fluoro vest, 1st aid
kit, headlight conversion stickers and a (giant) 'GB' sticker (which
Mike hates and is determined will get 'lost' very soon). We also
nixed on the extra washing up and went with disposable plates and
utensils (I know....but we'll save the environment some other way!)
and a few one-pot meals.
And so our Big Trip had
begun!
