Leaving London via Harwich

David:
We haven't been able to post much lately, because we left London (where we had easy access to a computer) and now have only intermittent access at Internet Cafes.
I'll start by recapping the last few days.
We left London about a week ago now. After one last night at the local pub with Jodie's friend Sara (who generously let us stay at her place), we took the train out to Harwich, on the coast. Taking the train is a bit of a hassle, because we have to stuff our bikes where-ever they'll fit on a regular commuter train, and with four bags and a sleeping bag on each one, they take up quite a bit of space. But we made it to Harwich with plenty of time to spare before the ferry left for Hoek van Holland, on the coast of the Netherlands.

Since Harwich was where my grandmother was born, we spent a bit of time riding around the town and exploring. It is an interesting little port town, with some nicely restored historical light-houses and forts. Pictured at left is a very old lighthouse which I think dates back to the time of the Mayflower (which was docked at Harwich for some time) Grandma - care to add any details or corrections in the comments? There is also a nice boardwalk along the water where we sat and watched the locals fishing for a while. A couple of young kids on BMX bikes were very impressed by our bikes and the amount of gear we had. In turn, we were impressed by their wheelies and tricks.

There was also a very pretty church, which you can see pictured at left.


And finally, a very nice old bookstore.

After exploring the town we moved on to the ferry terminal.