Rained out
Trip Start
Sep 19, 2006
1
14
36
Trip End
Dec 19, 2007
Cambridge, United Kingdom
Saturday, November 25, 2006
So I have an excuse to cosy up in my house, do some French study in anticipation for our Christmas trip, and be slothful. The weather here is so unpredictable that yesterday afternoon when I was looking at going to the match today BBC forecast sunny, clear skies. Even this morning Ian and I cycled to the market, and though it was overcast there was no sign of rain... now two hours later trying to cycle would be messy because most of the bike lanes are flooded.
He's at his field hockey game... equally messy... I'm glad volleyball works as well indoors as out! I had been training with Cambridge's big clubs... including the university team, because apparently I can play for them even though I'm not a student (just like everything else here... town residents can even go to lectures if we want), but I'm not willing to commit every weekend to sport and, lets face it, I don't know if I'll be arsed cycling in the rain to trainings during the week in winter.
So I had been skiving volleyball generally for a couple of weeks and feeling guilty about it, while Ian has been off playing hockey for the uni and college, getting fitter by the minute. Then I came across another club which trains just around the corner from our house, and has my attitude - that is, train hard when you feel like it and have fun, and just let us know if you can be arsed playing this weekend. So my fitness is back on track!
We've booked our non-Christmas trip... and it seems a pity to be ignoring Christmas because if we weren't it would be my first ever white Christmas! After the dismal conditions on our Falls Creek snow trip just before we left Australia, we're going to La Plagne in the Northern French Alps for Christmas! Stansted to Chambery airports and then a two hour shuttle up, up and up into the mountains...we're staying at Belle Plagne, which is one of the higher resorts.
I still haven't got a bike helmet because it's not the done thing here and I still haven't tracked down a medium sized one that isn't ludicrously expensive (by Aussie standards... if I let myself drift into thinking in pounds as I'm starting to it would seem fine). I was thinking though of getting a helmet that I can use both for snowboarding and bike riding... there are a couple of skate shops around I could buy one from. Then I can snowboard this Christmas instead of skiing, because skiing is cheaper so I tend to do that
unless conditions are really good for boarding... without the cost of hiring a helmet they start to balance out.
Do you remember how I mentioned there is a tennis court in the park directly opposite our house, which I can see right now from our living room window? Ian and I went to the sports store and bought the cheapest, dodgiest rackets and balls we could find... Dunlop of course, and last weekend spent an hour or so playing. It's great having a court right outside my window, amongst the trees... very motivating. Right now though it's filling up with water.
I'm sounding pretty athletic for someone who's opted to have a slothful day hiding from the rain. But even the kids that usually spend Saturday morning riding their tricycles up and down our lane have disappeared inside... we're officially heading for English winter now.
