It's February already..........

So,  wow January whizzed by!

Eileen has been up near Luton airport for a month now under the tender loving care of the highly recommended Matthew.

The parts I bought from BrickWerks have all been fitted,  upgraded shocks and springs and I'm told she's riding much higher and evenly.  This work has been done to improve how she drives,  it's been a very wallowing ride to date, and also to provide a bit more stability when we are parked up.

I'm sincerely hoping cooking dinner whilst feeling as tho I'm on a bouncy castle is a thing of past!

Bad news came in the form of the cost of a new fridge,  I had to sit down quickly for that one.  As quickly as the bloody drained from my face the money drained from my wallet!  Good news countered however,  the new heater I'd budgeted for came in as only needing a new part so heaps less than I had allowed.  The savings on the heater hurried across to the fridge budget and we evened out in the end.

The GAS IT system has also been fitted and Matthew has thrown in a bunch of European adaptors so that's a real kindness.

Finally I've asked him to fit some safety door locks on the habitation door and I've been learning about how to run chains across the cab doors to prevent anyone trying to access the vehicle whilst we are parked up.  I will also be getting some window alarms as well.

So,  plenty of stuff going on for Eileen and I am getting very excited about getting back into some spring camping.

I haven't been idle during this time either,  the paid job has been a little bonkers and it isn't likely to tail off any time soon.  So my evenings and weekends have been spent slaving over my laptop researching all things Norway.

Route planning,  making contact with Norwegian camping clubs,  researching all the things we mustn't miss.  My eyes are swimming with images of incredible glaciers,  stunning fjords, works of art littering the tourist routes and fishing villages with colourful wooden houses.

 I dream of crazy switch back roads like Trollstigen (Troll's Path  http://www.dangerousroads.org/europe/norway/53-trollstigen-norway.html) and a blacktop that sweeps and soars over, sometimes, raging waters treating pockets of land like stepping stones - The Atlantic Road of course (http://www.theatlanticroad.com/).

The peace and beauty and tranquility of The Lofoten Islands draws me ever north as I plan and dream our Norwegian odyssey.

Working in the central London office I couldn't resist the lure of Foyles bookshop where I treated myself to some maps and guidebooks to continue to feed the fires of adventure!

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​In the meantime I've booked a cheeky week in Marrakech for half term - we need a little R&R and some sun!

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