ah its sweet to be home.

i finally arrived back here just before midnight on sunday (41 hours after leaving my hotel) and it was ace! was in the office this morning and it really was nice to see everyone again.

anyway il do this in order! any mention i make of time might sound strange but there is a time difference of course, so-

washington dc, saturday, early morning (pre flight)- i was taking the car back to the rental place first thing, en route i was sitting at a red light when i heard a noise that sounded suspisciously like a car skidding, i glanced in my mirror just in time to see a very large 4x4 pickup smash into the back of my car!! i knew it was going to be one of those days.

after swapping details i took the car back where the company proclaimed "no damage" (thank google!) and then gave me ride back to my hotel. i spent the remainder of the morning packing and by checkout time (noon) i was ready to go.

washington dc, saturday, midday- after some arguing over money at the front desk (i managed to knock 20 dollars off the bill!) i set out with suitcase in tow to grab some food and get a taxi, a quick visit to johnny rockets and a loud whistle later i was in a cab, i swung past the rental shop to drop something off then stopped at a shop to replace the smokes i had lost then settled in for the ride.

at the airport i checked in my luggage and spent a while shopping (i had arrived well ahead of time so as not to risk being late)and finally boarded the plane.

charles de gaule, sunday, early morning- 6:45 saw me landing in paris, after a very long time wandering the corridors (charles de gaul aeroporte has 240 kilometers of road and runway, to give you an idea of the size, all the signs are also in french of which i speak 11 words or so) i finally found a car rental place and hired a motor (the most rubbish slow piece o crap ever!!) and i hit the road.

for those of you who have not driven in france i say only this, dont. to those of you who have driven in france, try to work through the flashbacks. the roads there are insane! the roundabouts have no lanes, every biker is like a kamakaze, and the drivers are like wrestlers on horse steriods, it is incredibly scary.

paris, midday- i had eventually found breakfast a little while previous and somehow found my way out of paris alive, now i was parked at the side of a densly fogged country road in some of the flattest terrain i have ever seen, and despite the numerous cans of red bull i badly needed some sleep.

somewhere, early afternoon- i woke up feeling sick and dissorientated, where was i?!? a few seconds of confused looking around me later i realised i was lost, in france, in the most rubbishest car on earth (well, bottom 10 at least!) and that i had only a few hours untill my flight.

i hit the road and started heading in the direction that i thought the airport lay, i was still half asleep but 1 near miss at a roundabout (i looked right instead of left) later, i was fully awake! i found the airport quickly but then it took me 2 hours of head scratching and 1 way sytems to return the stupid car to the stupid airport!

cherles de gaule, sunday, early evening- i had finally managed to return the car and after a few hours of eating, shopping, reading, watching a movie, and smoking in this weird plastic box thing i was finally on my way, yup i was on the plane, next stop, HOME BABY!!

edinburgh, sunday, late evening- OMG the feeling as i left the plane and took my first breath, it was truly exquisite and i was so so happy i almost had tears in my eyes! after grabbing my baggage i took the bus to the car park, after some hunting i found the beast (my car) and i had to actually kiss her (on the bonnet, nothing funny) and when i started her up and got rolling it was every bit the experience i had imagined, only better! as i drove off in 1st gear and my head snapped back i remembered just how fast she truly is, amazing!

my house, monday,12:01 am- as you can imagine, i had thoroughly enjoyed the drive home, i switched on the heating and was sorting couple of things for bed, when i had my keiran moment. the gas ran out! luckily it was just warm enough to have a comfortable sleep.

and thats that! i went, i saw, i conquered! and now im back baby!!

if anyone is interested i will be giving a presentation of my journey in the office, details in a seperate post.

signing off,

keiran the intreped explorer

X

Glad you seemed to have a worthwhile adventure! Maybe manage to hear your stories on Wed....would be a welcomed study break!How boring are exams by the way people! Stuff being a doctor - im on the next plane somewhere hot! xxx

lol but we do need them so hang in there chum! ye wpold be cool if you could make it, the more the merryer peeps!!

K