Today was all excitement. We had a glass of tea at the tea garden then headed for the bike to discover we had a flat front tyre. There was a wedding last night and we guess it was some kind of high jinx. The empty panniers were also opened. Some men came by with a hand pump and the tyre has stayed inflated. The first part of the road was as hairy on the way back as it was on the way out. Then we got a smooth run. After stopping at Behramkale / Assos for a quick take in of [View Full Entry]

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I'm not really sure about all the fuss over Troy. Helen and all that, plus the links to the creation of Rome. But anyway, it is virtually on the highway south out of Canakkale. It is interesting in some ways and I got a picture of the important bit, the palace walls of Troy VI and Hilary, So I guess that is Hilary of Troy. After Troy we left the highway to take some rather more interesting roads out to Babakale. Some through tiny villages with chickens in the street, and on one occasion an untethered foal which was a bit [View Full Entry]

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It has been an eventful day. Firstly, on leaving Alexandropolis, someone had obviously checked out the saddlebags. Nothing was taken because there was nothing in them. It happened on the past trip as well, in Ancona so maybe it is something about street parking in port cities. We loaded up the bike and after coffee set off for the Turkish border. It all went smooth until we got to the border. Exiting Greece was easy enough. Then Turkey, entry with a vehicle is a multi stage process. Got through the first bit where details of the bike were taken. Then after [View Full Entry]

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Rules of the Road More about Italy and France later, and maybe Turkey. For now Greece. The Greeks drive fast. On any highway there is only one accelerator position - floored. Advisory speed limits for roadworks and bends only apply to others. 130kmph is advisory. Greek traffic cops see very little. Greeks will make maneuver into tiny spaces at speed, or when pulling out. Scary! OK, the positive. Nobody will attempt to pass on the inside. On urban roads they do not lane split or try to pass unless there is a passing lane (or invited to pass), and they stop [View Full Entry]

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Vergina to Alexandropolis we rode 250 miles or so along the Odos Egnatia and stopped 45 miles from the border. We are staying in a cheap portside hotel which seems clean enough. It has good air conditioning and our room is quiet. It did have at least one mosquito but Ashley killed it. It was a long, hot ride with no real breaks though the scenery was dramatic in parts. We passed a town called Drama but didn't stop to take photos. Ashley did very well riding into town and getting his head around the chaos driving here. This town is [View Full Entry]

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From Ancona to Vergina. We managed to upload some entries from the ferry though the connection was very slow. We didn't sleep well though I usually sleep very well on boats. The room smelled funny, the beds were uncomfortable and very far apart and I was worried that I would oversleep and we would miss Igoumenitsa. We got a cup of coffee before disembarking, proving we were no longer in Italy. I don't really understand why it's not possible to get proper expresso outside Italy as, in Italy, everywhere seems able to make it. We met up with Mick (a biker [View Full Entry]

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So far everything has worked to plan which means that Monday evening we are sat on a ferry from Ancona to Greece. Looking back we have been amazingly lucky with the weather, we missed the storms in Northern Italy, saw some in the distance, and caught a torrent of rain when sat in a bar in Pontremoli. So all in all, a few spots of rain and some nasty spray in the UK, and a few spots on the last leg yesterday, south from Bologna to Cattolica. Today the short hop from Cattolica to Ancona was uneventful, beyond anything one might [View Full Entry]

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Not Rimini, but Cattolica is not in the database. I, Hilary, have done two stupid things already. Well, 2 stupid things of note. Last night, after eating in the excellent restaurant Norina (where we ate last time we were in Pontremoli) we took a glass bottle of water in the bag with us. We also had the Eee PC in there. I put the bag down in a bar and broke the bottle but Ashley had wrapped the Eee well so my stupidity did no real damage. There was lots of water in the square as it poured and poured with [View Full Entry]

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ess than 32 hours after leaving Northolt (NW London) we are in Pontremoli, Tuscany, Italy, this is the real benefit of the French Motorail, overnight Calais to Frejus, I rained on us in showers on the way to the tunnel, nothing the waterproofs couldn't deal with but it took the shine from the chrome and replaced it with roadspray and left us feeling cold. The tunnel was as swift and painless as ever and the motorail terminal was not hard to find. They wanted to load the bike early - it was checked over like a hire car to agree any [View Full Entry]

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I know a few of you wanted to see these.... Yes, wedding photos. Tomorrow we start the honeymoon: [View Full Entry]

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