UK service

This country has more problems than Brexit.
Nothing gets maintained. No one listens. There is no service.
Example.
I stayed at a small Pub called the Jack and Jill in Clayton in Sussex
It caters for walkers on the South Downs Way.
Do you have a washer for walking clothes. No.
After some cajoling the Chef said  he would do it. And dry it.
Half way through the wash the machine broke down apparently. The dryer was not working either. So on the point of departure I was handed a bag of wet clothes soaking in detergent. (Smelt like acid).
I expressed my disappointment but apparently the Chef who got a bit prickly was overruled by his boss. The boss is the large person sitting in the dining area doing the books and glowering at people.
So I tried to make up for my let down by booking into a "flash " pub in Winchester with a Spa and I requested a massage and pedicure (after 100 miles of  trails) I needed one.
The check in took half an hour. Can't take cash cards only accept credit cards so you cannot run a tab.
Travel warning Cash cards have been a negative experience.
And the Spa ! Well nothing at all available for two weeks. What a bloody joke.
Oh at this showpiece, and England the home of beer does not have a local beer on a pump. It's all pressure kegs with Major brand fizzy beer mostly made who knows where.
And while on Beer some local small breweries still make excellent beer. But they actually still  sell Fosters on tap.
So what's good. Some beer. Some pubs but not the caccommodation Pubs they are all run down.  And are they expensive OH yes beer food bed, all expensive.
So what's the option Air BnB well that's a disgrace as well. No sensible pricing, no standards, no supervision. However I did have some delightful stays oddly for a reasonable price. Really good people. So my complaint is with the system really it sucks.
Country lanes are magic. Walk them or ride them just brilliant apart of course from the horse shit in abundance and the mud from those bloody farmers that give not a toss and make biking hazardous !
Hooroo.

Wednesday 23 rd at Clayton

If anyone thinks Air BnB is without risk think again.
I instant booked because English hosts regard this as a hobby. I will get back when I can so waiting a day to be told sorry I told Air Bnb to blank that out is maddening.
So I instant booked.
I was uneasy when I arrived, something was a bit odd, but who is perfect and what's the worst that could happen ?
I was in the attic and in the middle of the night a door slammed.
I went down the skinny steep stairs ( how they get consent is beyond me) to attend to the nocturnal pee only to find someone had left a jobbie on the floor in front of the toilet.
That was scary. Very scary.
Air BnB are the pits actually.  Did you know you cannot contact them ? They are unreachable. Office in London money laundered in Ireland.
Sadly most of the time the system works. I still use it and the billionaire owners get richer every time.
There are huge protests in Europe about Air BnB and yet no one is making a better mousetrap and there is lots of room to improve. 
Would someone please create a better system. 
So having moved I spent two days walking the South Down Way, again.
It is not all overgrown mud paths although some is. Some even have reasonable signs and once just once I found a sign that said where to !!!   Bloody amazing. A few other walkways give some information not many do. The paranoia of invasion !!
But walking the hills behind Brighton was pretty good.  I could even see the Seven Sisters in the distat haze.....I was walking there three days ago
I continue to meet wonderfully polite interesting people and that is huge fun. Even a lady on an Irish Cob horse named Clodagh. With a delightful rider. I then by coincidence  met a couple at the Pub who also had a part Cob Part Irish hunter. Same story, wonderful horse will aven do dressage if you can imagine a horse with feet the size of tennis racquets you get the image.
I have been rubbing my are since last Sunday when I went to the horse and dog show thinking I had contracted Lyme disease but in fact the stiffness is walking 10 miles a day is causing the stiff joints.
With luck I will get a massage tomorrow at the 'flash hotel' I have booked.
'That is something better to wake up for.
Oh by the way the weather is improving, it rains at night !!

21st Seven Sisters

Had not known that the White Cliffs of Dover went so far.
I had walked from Eastbourne the other daybut fell short of the rather majestic 7 faces of cliff known as the seven sisters.
So I returned to do the last bit today.
As usual met the nicest people French and a couple from Jerusalem who are walking in the Himalayas next and an English couple off to walk the Mont Blanc.
Good people out there doing it.
Meanwhile one jerk is loading up young idiots to go out and kil people.
We really at a FU world !
One idiot.  We have to be able to shoot people like this. It is stupid and being done in the name of Islam and they hate it as much as Christians Jews and agnostics do.
I truly believe the screen games that these kids are exposed to fail to teach them right from wrong.
We do live in a very disturbed and irrational world. The village I am in tonight was a dormitory that fed labour into industry. Now there is no industry. Small town UK is shutting down. The biggest retailer after Tesco is charity shops. Cancer, Red Cross, missions, Churches, Illness charities, health charities,  Churches, and they are falling apart too.
Built up to1000 years ago and the materials are starting to collapse. The few that attend can not keep up the payments.
The UK has more than Brexit to concern them but already I see the mood changing.
I will repeat, there will not be a Brexit there will be a Wesuva. (We screwed up vote again. )
The Pollies will find a way out. They have to. What is interesting is the economic victory they are claiming, production is up exports are up but fail to say the £ is through the floor so wait until the import bills come in and the returns from tourism. The country is full of tourists so the income would be 20% higher on last years exchange rate but pollies will tell you what they want you to believe.
And the Police tactics are the same here. Report an incident and the cars rush toward you to know who you are, where you live, date of birth, bath night, colour of your jockeys, do you drink or smoke oh and have you been to a foreign country recently ........?
Every one is a terrorist.
As the saying goes to a hammer the world is a nail !

Sunday

Today I went 'local' 

The local horse and dog competition at Firle. 

Local yeah about 150 horses as many dogs even a couple of Kiwi girls in the equestrian events. 

Cross Country Showjumping and Dressage. 

Terrific day really. 

And it didn't rain. 

I have not seen as many horse floats the size of a decent apartment. 

The Brit countryside is really special. 

There is nowhere I have been in New Zealand or anywhere else that has the beauty of "English" countryside. 

I did manage to walk the course as well about 3000 metres apparently, not 10 miles but pretty good exercise never the less. 

Better day today

Only rained once
Pitted my wits against the POM that wrote the book of wonderful walks. Again he won. I got lost again. I must walk 50% further by the time I have wandered the countryside looking for the next little disc that indicates a walking path. They are devlishcunning where they hide them.
No chance for an invading army because they only show a direction. Not to where, not how far, in fact very little thats is useful because having seen the general direction it is then a process of deduction as to where it may be and that doetimes involved  walking to both corners of the field.
But it is the way to see incredible wealth. These pathways sometimes go very close to some amazingly expensive properties.
I mentioned the fiftieth or whatever Lord Gage in his stately home. I have no idea who lived at the most georgeous Tudor style mansion with manicured grounds almost a small village of  housing for the "staff" new Bentley, Range Rovet outside the considerable number of garages.
How well some people live amazes me.
It is also s credit to them that they can retain that much property and keep it going but here is the rub.
According to my man Peter who voted retain,  no one has revealed what massive subsidies these 'farmers' get. His idea was it will be good to deal with the commonwealth again and good old NZ lamb for Xmas. I was a little concerned that the lambs we once produced is now milk powder.
However to beat that drum again I am now being listened to when I say a political solution will be 'found'  that allows everyone a victory, yeah right.
So tomorrow I return to the home of Gage to watch an equestrian event. Should be wonderful and if not the Ram Inn is nearby.
So the news is all about M Barrymore being acquitted and Bruce Forsyth passing.
Wow England thought a lot of Brucie.
I like rural England. Lots of old people of course but where stet here not, the usual Asian shopkeeper, yes even here but in the main a very white community.
I wonder for how long ?
The relentless march of Africans is coming through Europe including Spain who are getting what for at the moment. If these people were coming to integrate then perhaps maybe, but according to the times they are similar to Pacific Islanders in that they gone they work and the money goes home.  No doubt I will get a message from Gareth if I am incorrect.
Since I have bought up Politics I see the US pundits are op only saying it is the era of against. Which is my story too.
So what will Kiwi voters be against.
And on the matter of Kiwi I stayed a few nights with a man called Kivi and his partner. What nice people. He is a butcher Carpenter and I reckon capable of anything but from Estonia and I had a wonderful meal BBQ lamb and pork potato salad and fried saurkraut. That was pretty special.

We could do with more people like this. Can't understand why we take the dregs when people like this educated civilised law abiding, want to get out of Europe.

Why I like England

I have had a rather forgettable trip. First I got the Airline flu. What a blighted it really held me down for two weeks. 

Then I decided I needed to walk to recover. It did slowly but it also got my replaced knee that has been a major dissappointment actually moving again. 

So while I experienced the joy of uk rules, you must have insurance, but you can only get it if you live here, but we do recognise insurance purchased in the EU. Is that as daft as Brexit? 

My investigations last year said Brexit will happen. 

My investigations this year suggest a mood change. 

I believed a 'Political' solution will be found. The Brits will claim victory, we got the concessions we wanted and we will stay. The EU will stick the knife in and no one will say boo. 

But I rode into a village called Firle, a feudal village owned by the local Lord whom I understand to be Gage. Long standing family many centuries and whom a local chap said was in charge, the top military man, in the British army that lost the war of independence in the US. Still got his castle though he said !! 

He was sore about the UK ditching the Empire in favour of the EU. Get a lot of that here ! 

As I have said Brexit was about the Law and Immigration. That's about it. 

So Firle village is holding a big equestrian event this weekend so I will attend if I can. 

I say can because last night coming home to my non Air BnB I ran into a pike of mud off a farm machine on dark lane way and ended up sliding into a large mud puddle and needed rescuing. 

Nasty. So I do fall off. Not often I hasten to add. Got very muddy, mud in everything, lost some skin, and some superficial bike harm but should be good to go to the horses on Sunday. 

The weather remains "inclement"

But why I love this place is not the bloody dirty farmers that pollute the waterways as they do, but the walkways the laneways and the little pubs where someone will have a chat and walk down the road and help pick the bike up ! 

AirBnb Air BnB

No matter how it is spelt it means "Frustration". 

For the odd stay maybe OK as long as you know exactly where it is and you have time, lots of time to waste searching. 

You can not contact the host. 

You cannot ring the host. 

You cannot get the host toting you. 

The reason being that Air BnB want to protect their excessive commission. 

The commission that it seems by using an Irish Company is structured to avoid tax. 

Classic American model.   But apart from the feeling of being involved with an immoral entity the system itself is flawed. 

If you know exactly where you will be on a precise date and you are prepared to stay at an unintended location far from where you wanted to be then go for it. 

Half of the hosts do not respond then those that do say "oh I am do sorry I had blanked that out" it's Air BnB's fault. 

So when you find a site that fails to say where it is exactly or even where the nearest bus or train is do not be surprised. I was wanting to walk the South Downs way and the logistical nightmare that caused is unbelievable. 

Near the SDW it says but no mention of how after walking 15 miles how do you get back to the accommodation ? No idea and most of the hosts have no idea either. 

In reality it is a shambles. 

The down side is that Google accommodation is half baked as well. 

The seeming problem is that the Uk is not as internet savvy as one would expect. It is hillage life and the next village is a foreign place so staying here and wanting to go there is a huge issue. 

Oh and should your think you will tell the Air BnB financial gnomes that there are some things that would help improve the system, well don't call us we are counting money. 

WOULD SOME ENTERPRISJNG TECH SAVVY ENTERPRISE REBUILD THEIR MODEL !

This is a great concept but like many other great ideas the people that thought of it believed they could build it. They tried and it does not work as it might have with some better thought for the user. It is a sales model NOT a consumer model and that's the problem it was made to sell beds anyway they could, not to provide an acvommodation service to the modern traveller. 

Glyndebourne

I did not know it was an opera house. I thought it was one of those outdoor music festaival places. Oops wrong. It is Opera at its British best. 

So NZL rolls up to La Traviata on the August the 14th summer. They had one in July that lasted a little longer. Nevertheless NZL 07 is there

Amongst the Bentleys and your good self amongst the

Dinner suits and Champagne in the casual look drinking Pear Cider. 

I can say Placedo Domingo at the Covent Garden was astonishing never to be forgotten. This production is delightful also not to be readily forgotten. 

The Brits do formal casual like no other. 

So I sit in the manicured grounds on a bench while those scattered about sit in camp chairs at picnic tables. This is special. 

It is easy to forget that low life forms  exist in the IRD on NZ but that's life. I guess they came with rabbits possums and gorse.

So intermission is nearly over and my cider consumed so back to the most delightful timber lined

Opera house for some more astonishing Verdi ! 

placedo

14th 

Battle

A place in Kent which mumbled to the sound of invasion in 1066 when the French walked ashore and  gave Harold a walloping in half a day. Poor old Harold and a few of his men having marched from Scotland, good time to invade when the guard is away elsewhere.  However it changed England.
Lots of houses changed hands.
So here I am again for more walking.
I have been off the air. No decent email in most of rural England and certainly not in the small tent I have been camping in.
My walking exercise based in East Mean came to an end. I had walked the best part of 40 miles from the start of the South Downs Way from Winchester in several days of hard slog on pretty bad paths.
So I gave up and resorted to do day walks in Kent.
The walkways were a bit better but just as confusing. The English are preparing for another invasion from the sea. Forgetting that they now come by train truck and air !
So the cunning brits have taken all the reference points off the walkways. Roads still have destinations but not walkways. Some of them have a coloured arrow, some even point the right direction but woe betied the council that actually maintains the muddy overgrown walkways ( but at least I got a good supply of blackberries and plenty of scratches and muddy boots in high summer  by telling the walker the direction or destination !  No just an arrow sometimes with a Local Body proudly inscribed on it, why they own up bemuses me.
However I had another several days of walking. Clocked up a hundred miles plus and happy about that. I learned that the towns that end in ....den as in Biddenden were places when Kent was covered in Oaks on which pigs fed, the clearing into which pigs were driven was yes a "den", well of course it was.
The summer is now apparently autumn. Damn near frost a few days back, but a pleasant day followed.
My exposure to the "weird ways of the Brits" continues. I have to buy insurance but can only buy it in the UK if I live here bearing in mind it is compulsory, so it can be purchased from a motorcycle tour operator in Italy or Germany to enable me to ride legally in the UK. If that is not as silly as not having proper signposts on walkways I remain confused. But they do not have a compulsory ACC which in my experience takes money under false pretences, but that is my experience, may be totally untrue.  Having said tat, those that know I had a knee replaced after it was rammed by a Ram, which was not the problem according to ACC it was "age", well the walking is doing me a world of good, not the physiotherapy which was not part of the replacement, $25,000 can only cover so much !

Back to the present, do not for a moment think the walkways are not good, the good ones are magical, and the good ones have Pubs that are open. Often they are not.

A bonus bit of luck, where I have been camping in my wee tent shivering through the night my host took his family and me, down the road to an outdoor presentation of Hamlet. What great fun. So we sat in camp chairs in a field and celebrated Shakespears wonderful dialogue with cups of cider and a walk home for a home cooked dinner of roast Pork. What great pleasure.

So the Tennis has been, the Grand Prix, the Athletics, Womens cricked, and now the womens rugby, they love their sport here.
One thing is they do have a housing boom not of course caused by immigration, but greedy speculators. Maybe just maybe the councils that used to build houses and allow other people to do so as well, much like another place I know, have played a part.
The other interesting follow up research from last year, is that BREXIT as I  thought I discovered was an ANTI vote.  In their case the imposition of EEC Law, and immigration, most Brits have had enough of the invasion, no jobs no houses and a breakdown in law and order, like acid attacks, to live in the UK one needs 20 acres, high fences and a dog, somewhere in the country.
I was astonished to hear a TV commentator suggest the London housing crisis could be solved by moving people to jobs in other cities ! Yeah right, what jobs. A bit like suggesting Immigrants to Auckland could move to Dargaville.  

Back to the anti vote.....like the one NZ will see. I will leave it to you to determine what most of NZ is sick of, and watch for the backlash. Remember Theresa May, I will go to the people and get a mandate.....well maybe. One thing is apparent that Labour in UK and NZ seem good at selecting unpopular leaders !

So perhaps tomorrow I will walk the vast battlefield where the French prevailed in 1066, since it took half a day it will not take long.
Then it is either more South Downs Way from Eastbourne, or the Pilgrims way to Canterbury, or if the weather breaks make a run for Scotland. Been waiting for a clear patch of weather......and waiting still.
At last a picture.
1. On my walk.
2. After 4 days in the tent a soft bed with a view.  The Battle memorial.

The news here has plenty on the US sites that charge for accommodation and do it poorly. Hardly a surprise.
We are being "monetarised" by the US corporates. We let them take control, and let them exploit us and wash the money to avoid taxation that should be paid in NZ, and maybe just maybe this will be a factor in the election......... the anti election.

Some one has to take control and it's not Donald Duck

Donald would know a quack from a quip.
Turkey arrests 1100 more of those that they provided refuge for. Poor Turkey the country that gave us possibly the worlds greatest General and leader.
And ISIS attacks the Iraqis embassy in Kabul.
But this will really scare you.
Britain summoned the North Korea Ambassador to tell them to "stop its dangerous missile testing".
Kim Jung Sick will be really scared now !
But on a more serious note to those that had their pocket knife confiscated the London City Airport has confiscated more "snow globes" than anything else ! Now what is in them that they want or perhaps just hard commerce to confiscate what sells best !

It is a really odd world.

Couldn't resist this

The illegal immigrants that squat in Calais waiting to illegally enter England and a significant reason why Brexit happened have just heard that the French Courts have determined that the Calais council must provide drinking water, showers, and toilets.
Next it will be meals on wheels and houses paid for by ratepayers. Think how councils would like that to justify more family on the payroll.
And in Papua New Guinea water and power were cut off to to a camp for asylum seekers.
I guess there is a difference. Fewer civil servants in PNG I suspect.
For how many thousand years have the people of the world resisted invasion?   When a boat load of people turned up to walk ashore they were shot.
That is the history of the world that is being rewritten.
Of course you can go wherever you want to, just go. The idiots in charge will feed you clothe you provide for your needs so you can procreate mindlessly because it now their problem.
Good on ya Aussie!
And now there is a drought in the homeland of the sea pirates.
Is it possible that their efforts might have been better applied to self preservation in preference to piracy.
The lord works in strange ways.