Saturday, February 7, 2015

The Long Way Round and Down



I have just finished watching two documentaries with Ewan McGregor and his friend Charley Boorman, about the two of them taking months-long motorcycle trips: Long Way Round (from London east across Europe and Asia, flying to Alaska, then across Canada and the US to New York, 20,000 plus miles) and Long Way Down (from the northern tip of Scotland to Cape Town South Africa, about 15,000 miles). It has been so wonderful to watch them have these great adventures. 

Very inspiring and honestly I was quite sad when they were each over. I hope they do another trip in the future.

Both adventures were turned into TV series in Britain and books and their website is still up and running. They acquired a legion of followers which now include me. Though Round was shot in 2004 and the followup Down took place in 2007, things seemed very current except perhaps various global conflicts such as the situation in Ukraine. 

I couldn’t help thinking that I would have loved to have gone along with them, yes on a motorcycle as well, when I was younger. As I ready myself for an adventure that, while also exciting, can’t quite measure up to theirs, I’m simply grateful that I am able to make mine happen at all. Every part of me screams to spill the beans about the nature of what I’m about to do, but that will have to wait a little while longer. 

In the meantime, I shall bolster myself with thoughts of how Ewan and Charley would approve.