Category: Creative Projects
-
Return To The UK — New Projects On The Horizon
In the last four years I’ve made three visits back home — once by overland transport, once by hitch-hiking, and finally by bicycle. Last week I arrived back without any plans to leave again — the idea being that Tenny and I will now (at least attempt to) settle here. I always have mixed feelings when I touch down on British soil, but first amongst them is that I really don’t know anything about this country. Like so many, I’d taken the world I’d known and inhabited — the little drop of experience I’d gleaned during 23 years in small-town… Continue reading →
-
Arctic Cycle Video Goes To The Festival
The short movie from my winter cycling trip in Sweden and Norway was selected for presentation at the ‘One Shot’ International Short Film Festival in Yerevan, Armenia. In the unlikely event that you’re in Yerevan on Saturday, do pop down to the ACCEA at 15:00 to watch it on the big screen. The festival opens today and will run until the 24th of May. Judging by Vimeo’s ‘likes’ and ‘plays’ statistics, lots of people seem to have enjoyed this video, although a few sharp-eyed viewers noticed the missing stamp! Whoops! If you didn’t see the 90-second film the first time around, here… Continue reading →
-
How This Bizarre Video Came First At An Adventure Film Festival
A few weeks back there was a light-hearted event in London called The Adventurists Film Festival — in their own words, “fighting to make the world less boring”. The overall winner of the open competition came from a bunch of misfits known as the Vagabondz, who drove a clapped-out old van from England to Georgia. I challenge you to watch this 20-minute film in full: [vimeo]http://vimeo.com/20368014[/vimeo] Why did this film win? Continue reading →
-
An Excellent New Resource For Cycling The U.S. West Coast And Central America
If you’re planning a ride from Alaska to Panama, or anywhere in between, you could do a lot worse than to check out John Benson’s website, johnbensontravels.com. John has just wrapped up a ten-month odyssey from Prudhoe Bay to the Panama Canal, passing through Canada, the western States, Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Costa Rica on the way. I’ve just put the finishing touches to this redesign of his travel blog. John has approached the documenting of his trip in a completely different way to how I’ve always approached it. While I was banging on endlessly about my… Continue reading →
-
The DIY Beer Can Stove Is The Best Camping Stove You’ll Never Buy
Jetboil? Trangia? Primus? I laugh in your faces! The lightest, cleverest and most practical camping stove I’ve ever seen can be made by hand from a single empty drinks can. Continue reading →
-
Writer’s Blog: Searching In The Dark (Or, What Was It About Again?)
I’m making great progress, on the face of it. I’ve written 31,000 words — almost half the word-count of the average novel, according to some. I feel that I have made headway into the meat of the process — the ‘middle’ of the story, as it were. Continue reading →
-
Forget Middle Eastern Politics — It’s All About Food
While the media is hollering madly about civil unrest and revolutions, it’s time to remind ourselves that pretty much everyone in the region (and the world) is still going to work, drinking tea, and — of course — sharing meals with close family and friends. My parents-in-law and many of their extended family live in Tehran, and I’ve shared countless delicious Persian meals in their company. Iranian is possibly my favourite cuisine of all. Two bicycle adventurers in the UK are touring the world’s cuisines without ever leaving London. Here’s their short video from Iran. I’m salivating already… [vimeo]http://vimeo.com/21649290[/vimeo] If you… Continue reading →
-
Writer’s Blog: What’s On A Long-Distance Cyclist’s Bookshelf?
You generate a lot of free time on the road. To observe, to create images, to think. Often it’s nice to simply empty your head entirely and think of nothing at all. But I have been able to do a ton of reading in my tent at night, during lazy lunch-breaks, while waiting for friends to finish packing. Continue reading →
-
Revisiting Sudan As The South Prepares For Independence
Sudan has recently held a referendum on the issue of the independence of southern Sudan, a geographically and ethnically distinct region of the country which, in 1956, was — thanks once again to the good old British Empire — lumped in with the northern tribes to form a single independent nation. Civil war has been the de facto lifestyle ever since. I was happy to hear, then, that 98.83% of votes were in favour of independence. Anyone who knows something of the history of Sudan’s civil conflicts and of the acts that the current government has committed will be unsurprised at… Continue reading →
-
Writer’s Blog: With All The Enthusiasm Of A Beginner
I sat down a few days ago and began to write. I wrote and wrote and wrote. The words flew from my mind faster than I could get them down. Before I knew what had happened I’d committed six thousand words to manuscript. And I was happy with all of them. Continue reading →