Comments for Travelling Toddler Blog

Comment on Why are there no decent books about travelling with kids?! by Nina

Nina — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 17:20:28 +0000

http://www.amazon.com/Adventuring-Children-Inspirational-Travel-Outdoors/dp/0962756245

This book Adventuring with children, by Nan Jeffrey is highly recommended (we were lucky enough to stumble across it in a charity shop).

Comment on The launch of my cycle to work scheme by Matt

Matt — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 14:28:16 +0000

Thanks for posting this Ruth.

I’d still have taken up the scheme regardless, but this is potentially damning news for the cycle industry! The ‘fair market value’ payable at the end has always been a vague topic, although in my experience it’s simply been a token fee such as £20. (My dad has had a number of bikes through the scheme over the years). This could change that, so it will be interesting to see what happens.

I know my employer will aim to charge the bare minimum, but at the same time they won’t want to lock horns with hmrc. Personally I’m very optimistic though and I think this is scaremongering more than anything else, but let’s hope I’m not forced to eat those words in 12 months time!

Comment on The launch of my cycle to work scheme by Ruth

Ruth — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 09:56:54 +0000

I wandered onto your blog a while back – thought of you again when I saw this article: http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2010/aug/13/cycle-to-work-scheme-bargain-ends
Seems the CTW scheme is not all it’s cracked up to be! Hope you don’t get your fingers burned…
Ruth

Comment on The launch of my cycle to work scheme by ZJV

ZJV — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 15:45:37 +0000

Good for you Matt!! That’s the spirit I agree it’s all about your mindset! Hell yes you can cycle in most weather, particularly in the UK Unfortunately over here our car crapped out a few weeks ago and we are in the process of leasing a brand new Mazda 5 but for the past month Doug has been cycling to work (33k there and back) every day in 40+ degrees (the lovely Ontario humidity always strikes in the summer months) and cos the distances here are so vast, we’ve had no car to do our huge food shops so I’ve been towing the bike trailer to the grocery store and shoving as many bags as I can get in there! It’s actually not that bad not having a car and neither of us miss driving but of course being without a car would be problematic over here when there’s 6 feet of white stuff on the ground! Too bad… however people think we’re crazy managing to survive even more than a week without a car! We beg to differ hehe

Doug took advantage of a similar scheme when he was with the Police in the UK and he worked with young offenders and encouraged them to get into biking by taking them mountain biking around Wales and he managed to get his beloved Specialized S Works for free through the scheme! It’s a terrific idea.

Take it easy,

Zoe

Comment on The launch of my cycle to work scheme by Matt

Matt — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 10:55:57 +0000

Hi James,

I’ll only see around £50/month coming out of my pay. In other words I’ll have paid out £600 over 12 months for a bike and equipment that would have costs me £900, so the point is pretty clear.

I understand your negative view of the British weather, but with the exception of the big freeze this winter I’ve not seen any weather where it hasn’t been possible to cycle. Personally I’ll cycle whether it’s pouring down with rain or otherwise, it’s all about your mindset. I’m organised to my work clothes are always nice and dry in the office and we have hot showers to clean off. Regardless of this, you aren’t expected to use the bike every day anyway.

Thanks,

Matt

Comment on The launch of my cycle to work scheme by james cain

james cain — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 15:12:27 +0000

what’s the point if you have to sacrifice so much of your salary? Cycling is not always possible in bad weather (that the UK has a lot of).

Comment on Walking to the top of Moel Famau by Roy Norry

Roy Norry — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 13:15:55 +0000

What fabulous pictures of Moel famau. Some of the best I've seen. If you plan a return visit, perhaps this one would be of interest. It's a celebration on the 24th of October 2010 to mark the 200th Anniversary of the Moel Fammau Jubilee Tower. The event invites walkers and there is to be a procession on the day. There are more details here.

Comment on How social media and travel can lead to burglary by antonia

antonia — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 11:17:45 +0000

Stories like this just make me thankful I don’t have a permanent home or a lot of stuff! My family’s home was robbed three times when I was a youngster, and I remember the awful feeling of entering our personal space and KNOWING that someone had been creeping about there. Of course this was in the days before Facebook.

Social media definitely makes it easier for thieves to find vulnerable targets. I think it’s probably more common than people realize–it’s not like the thieves leave visiting cards saying “I found you on Twitter”! At the same time, there’s no point in being paranoid. Just take sensible precautions and then enjoy peace of mind.

I wrote a post on this topic a couple of months ago at http://www.anomadslot.com/2010/03/20/protecting-your-privacy-while-working-from-anywhere/.

Good luck on your travels–I’m looking forward to hearing about your adventures!