Reflection

Last modified 2022/09/07 13:26

I have now been in Weymouth for a few days and have had time to recover and reflect a little bit on my journey. My bum still hurts.

As usual the experience was challenging and enlightening. I’ve greatly expanded my knowledge of Ireland, and notably how welcoming and friendly the Irish people are.

Strangers in towns will smile, say hello and start a conversation with you. The longer you stay in Ireland the more sociable you become, as the default is to at least greet people. Coming back to Weymouth it’s far more common for us stare ahead with steely determination to not acknowledge each other’s existence.

The weather was extremely sunny and hot for almost the entirety of the three weeks I was in Ireland, with only one day being undeniably wet. This was absolutely not normal for Ireland.

Northern Ireland and the Republic seemed different - most obviously in the fact that the Republic uses kilometers and you pay in euros (although they still drive on the left), it was also not unusual to see large public pictures of the Queen in Northern Ireland, more instances than I’ve seen in the rest of the United Kingdom.

Some statistics:

  • 2,734 kilometers cycled.
  • Stayed in 6 hostels, 16 campsites, 2 Air B&Bs and 1 wild camping.
  • 1 Puncture.
  • 1 Broken gear cable.
  • 1 rainy day.
  • 0 new languages learnt.
  • 29 blog posts written

Awards: