Thu, 19 Nov 1998
Thursday: Game over… time to head home // at 00:00
Today: 0km
Trip: 3442.8km
Two months, three countries, 3442.8 kilometres, but it has come to an end.
Where?
ReadingSun, 15 Nov 1998
Sunday: Bramham to Reading // at 00:00
Today: 0km
Trip: 3442.6km
John cooked us a big fry-up breakfast before we headed off to Warwick to catch up with Amy. We got there around noon, but she still hadn't got home from her party in Oxford the night before. Such is the life of a first-year university student. She was stuck at the station waiting for a friend and eventually turned up around 2:30, then the seven of us went out for a late lunch at a pub in a nearby village, three pretty 19 year-old girls, Toby, John, Lynn and myself.
Afterwards, Bev and Heidi gave Toby and myself a lift into Oxford to catch the train, Heidi back to Southampton, Toby and I to Reading.
I tried to call Jo from the station but she'd gone out, I was thinking of heading in to London to visit if she'd been in. Turns out a good thing I hadn't suggested it because just after we got on the train there was an enormous bang, all the lights went out, and everyone ended up lying on the floor. Another train had run into the back of ours as we sat at the station platform!
We stood on the train for about 45 minutes, occasionally hearing messages stating <q>There has been a delay, thank you for your cooperation</q>. Nobody knew anything, no one had any idea of what was going on. Some ambulance officers came and treated a few concussions and other injuries, but no one asked if people were ok or anyone was hurt, I guess you were meant to grab them if you needed them.
All the while, more and more people were turning up for other trains and asking whether ours was for Reading, or London, or Bristol...
Eventually there was an announcement that a three carriage train would leave for Reading from Platform 2, on the other side of the tracks, so everyone trooped over the bridge and crowded as close to the platform edge as possible. Since only a quarter of us would fit, everyone wanted to be the ones to get onto the train. I was convinced that someone would end up falling onto the tracks.
An amazing number of people crammed on board and we spent the half hour trip to Reading standing up like sardines. In order to leave the station we had to back up and cross over onto another track, giving us all a good view of the two crashed trains, still stuck together.
Toby and I finally got to Reading at about 9:00pm and went straight to the pub for a much-needed pint, and talked about a whole range of things. It was while sitting there that I realised how sore my left shoulder was from where it had bashed into the train, and that three fingers of my left hand were half numb with pins and needles for about an hour, in addition to sore muscles all down my neck from whacking my head into the carriage wall!
Finally got home just before 11 and fell straight into bed, quite an event-filled day!
Where?
Bramham, Warwick, Oxford, ReadingSat, 14 Nov 1998
Fri, 13 Nov 1998
Friday: Bramham (and Leeds) // at 00:00
Today: 0km
Trip: 3442.6km
A strange coincidence — yesterday afternoon as I was walking through Leeds I passed a shop called “Teenage Kicks” and started singing the song of the same name.... This morning Lyn left the TV on at breakfast and there was a brief interview with Fergal Sharkey, ex singer of The Undertones and now on the Radio Licensing board.
They opened the interview with a twenty year-old video clip of the Undertones playing their most famous song — “Teenage Kicks”.
Where?
Bramham, LeedsThu, 12 Nov 1998
Wed, 11 Nov 1998
Tue, 10 Nov 1998
Tuesday: Reading to Matlock (the hard way) // at 00:00
Today: 0km
Trip: 3442.6km
Slept most of the way to Derby in the bus, being exhausted from staying awake reading until 2am, and from all the running around with bus stupidities. It was noticably cooler at Derby than down south, my breath fogging, everyone wearing thick jackets. I asked someone for directions to the train station and they were of the “up there, keep left, right at the pub... you can't miss it” variety — I thought I didn't have a chance, but luckily quite quickly ran into signs pointing the right way. By now it was five to nine, there was a train waiting to go to Matlock. Phew! Lucky, since the next (and final) train wasn't for another two hours at eleven p.m. or so!
Finally I arrive at Matlock at around 21:30 and Gina came and picked me up from the station, she had my cousin Ben with her, and in the four years since I last saw him he looks as though he's doubled in height and stayed the same weight — seems quite human now! We decided to drop in on Kay — Ben's older sister — and surprise here, and wow, what a surprise! She didn't recognize me at first and then completely freeked out and ran around like crazy!
Ended up back at Gina and Simon's house talking till long after midnight. Unrolled my sleeping bag — finally — and slept on the floor since both bedrooms are full.
Where?
Reading, MatlockSun, 08 Nov 1998
Sat, 07 Nov 1998
Fri, 06 Nov 1998
Thu, 05 Nov 1998
Wed, 04 Nov 1998
Tue, 03 Nov 1998
