THE WHITE NIGHT RIDES!!
August 28,2011


More news on Dawn’s injuries. Most of her bumps and bruises are gone. She did go to a sports doctor (Dawn considers falling off a Segway a sport) two weeks ago and was told she has a partially torn upper back muscle for which she was given the appropriate drugs. No bike riding for her until fully healed which could be three to four months. But she is of course her usual happy self…NOT!!! Her double-fisted imbibing during a five hour lunch with friends Daniel and Jojo last week didn’t help!

So how’s The White Night you ask? Very well, thanks. He’s now done, ready to take us on our next adventures. Comfy bed, insulated walls, fresh paint, fridge, power, butane hook-up, stove, shelving, inside storage for the three bikes…it’s all there. But for Dawn the best is her flaming new seat. It rotates 180 degrees, tilts back, tilts forward, is super comfy and …looks dam good!! Best of all, it comes out of a gendarmes’ van. I am truly jealous!! The owner of the scrap-yard where we found it is a friend of our landlords…who received a well-deserved bottle of whiskey…his favourite drink, for such a find. And at $75, the seat was a real steal. The only down-side is that some poor gendarme may be on foot. Oh well.



Van Before:





















Van During:


















Van After:












You may have noticed the necessary markings on the two water jugs above the grey fridge. One says (in French) “White Wine” while the other says “Red Wine”. One of my observant aunts asked where, then, would we keep our water? Alrightee.


And about the name…”The White Night”. What about “Snow White”? But that may be taken. Or “Snow White Night”. Help us out here. E-mail us your suggestion and the winner will receive an all-expenses paid trip to…wait for it…their home exactly where he or she lives for one full day!! (Monte from New Zealand is not permitted to enter after sending a two sentence long, unspaced name.)


And of course, there had to be the eventual “see-ya-later” party. We threw one for friends who had helped us to no-end to put the van together, provide help, lend tools, give a helping hand, and generally encourage us along the way. The meal and more than a few bottles of wine were thoroughly enjoyed by all. The local fire-water called “eau de vie” (literal translation is ‘water of life’ though in fact it should be ‘water of death’) was thrown in at the end when human defences were lowered with the previous alcohol consumption. Four-and-a-half hours later and goodbyes all around. They gave us a nice gift of three wines for the trip…that should last us through Day 1. Departure is slated for 9 am, Monday, August 29.