In the beginning....

I've always rejected the idea of having a blog, so I'm starting off small... unwilling even, and see how I get on. Don't expect massive enchanting novels, for that you can point the finger of blame at my time spent at Kris Akabusi High School in West London.

Unsurprisingly, the foremost of thoughts at present are pretty much in getting everything in place to tackle the Rickshaw Run 2008. With less then two weeks before we hit India and start racing the length of the country in the equivalent of a lawn mower, things are slowly coming together.

So far its a case of:
Nepalese Visa, tick.
International Drivers Permit, tick.
Indian (and now Nepalese) flag bought on ebay for 96 pence, tick.
Map from Waterstones, tick.
Extra batteries and memory cards, tick.

I'm slowly working my way through the 6 hours of the highly recommended DVD "The Story of India" by Michael Wood. You may have seen the series on BBC2 a few months back, if not you can pick it up on Amazon. It throws up potential places of interest to pass through that even we haven't thought of. Watching it only makes you realise that you could spend years backpacking/travelling India and still only scratch the surface.

All this does is further ignite the desire to spend a few years in the Indian Sub-Continent to do it justice. With its size, clamour, sensual overload and diversity, India is the most intriging, facinating country on earth, where you quickly develop an abiding passion for it.

Lots on the agenda before Christmas. I eagerly await the delivery of a new (bloody expensive) camera lens, yet another day of pushing and shoving at the Indian embassy and trying to gain a bit more sponsorship.

Posted 16th December 2007