Dover

Dover.

Dover was very exiting to go through, well perhaps not the town, but the ferry boarding and the jacket potato seem worth mentioning! After cycling for what seemed like an eternity, we finally reached Dover via a beautiful down hill cycle all the way to the port. We decided to stop of at Dickens corner cafe where the staff were so hospitable and the food was wolfed down in one. We then took a gentle cycle down the beach front, going slow enough to admire the vast harbour and the glittering sea - it was a sunny day and we were excited to board the ship! 

Getting on to the ship was smooth rollings. We were the first to board and the last to get off, it was quite funny because our little bikes were secured on to the ship with huge rusty chains, over shadowed by rows upon rows of big industrious lorries. After that fun, we wandered upstairs and took a seat by the window and left the dock just in time to see the sun set over England.

'It looked like you were having a nice sleep' I said to the smiley young woman in the corner.

'Yeah, I got straight on the ship and knew I had two hours until France, so made the most of it; I've just come back from Dubai' her accent was English but had a subtle hint of French, her name was Naomi and she was the first friend we'd made on out travels

By this point Naomi had taken a seat next to me and Sam and the conversation started to flow.

'I've just knocked back two espressos, think that should be enough to hold me through the hour drive to Lille'

'Lille?' I asked.

'It's a beautiful French city, that gets missed by most people. It's actually near the Belgium boarder, here is my number and if you want to make a detour that way, I will put you up for the night'.

That's one of the negatives of booking your accommodation in advance; on the one hand it gives you the security of somewhere to stay, yet on the other it prevents total freedom when traveling. Catch 22? Anyway, we never did get to meet up with Naomi again, and if you read on, you'll find out why!