April and I set off from Tblisi at a leisurely pace, looking forward to the warm and desert-like conditions of Armenia.
Thelma was working well after the clean out of the carb bowls and new fuel filters put in. We headed south trying to find a route into Armenia that doesn't seem to show up on most of the road maps (not that we'd had a map until April went to the Tibs map shop). Jean Yves was curious to hear from us how this route that looked no more than a goat track on his international map would fare - on our Georgian map it looked like a main road.

Eventually reached Tbilisi (Tibs) after a mammoth ride through gale force winds and rain across a mountain range - or at least I think it was mountains as I've managed to arrive in Georgia without a map of the country (long story but basically my own ineptness to blame). Reaching the peak of one, just as I was wistfully thinking of the balmy temperature of the Black Sea, Thelma started spluttering badly- like a smoker's cough whilst back firing at a rapid pace- not good I thought.

 I had a swim in the Black Sea this afternoon, murky but warmer than the Cornish sea- probably both factors due to the radioactive levels and I'm still glowing. I have acquired a temporary room mate - another bike traveller called Gabriel who is at the mercy of my Giardia boosted farts - yes, I manged to catch Giardia on the ferry, and everyone around me is currently suffering while my stomach does battle. I've been to the chemist and got the antibiotics over the counter for a quid - not bad.

Didn't get off to a great start as the ferry docked at 9.00am - maybe I was a bit too optimistic when I presented myself for check out at 9.30- only to be told that I should go back and wait in my cabin for "one or two hours, or maybe three or four"!

It was 1.45pm by the time I got out of the port and then, the car that was showing me the route out of the docks area reversed into me! not a good start.

I was pulled over by the police here in Ukraine yesterday, as usual, I quickly took my helmet off and give them a nice smile. However I can tell I'm not in Latin America on this trip when they actually persisted in trying to get dollars from me. A bit of a shock to the system -police who are more intent on extorting than flirting - sometimes I yearn for the Latino way of things, as I had to stand there for 30 mins acting nice but dumb about the whole question of handing over money- although I did have some virtually worthless Romaian lei in my pocket ready to fob them off with.

I left my friends Greg, Ligia, little Tiffany and Oliver heading eastwards- it was a boling hot day and my route took me through what is affectionately known as "the frying pan of Romania" - there wasn't much affectionate about me as I rode with the sweat pouring off me, and thinking it's only going to get hotter.

After a very fast exit once my shock absorber had eventually arrived I set off in pouring rain yesterday through Southern Germany and across the Alps into Austria - absolutely freezing cold despite the heated jacket and gloves.

Hard to believe I know, but the guy who assured us that the shock was with the delivery company on Tuesday morning has now admitted that he had not sent it all and my bated breath will just have to be a bit more bated, or at least until midday today. Tobi (my host) is applled that a German company is displaying such inefficiency, I think it has dented his national pride.

It´s early morning and I am getting packed up ready to depart in the hope the shock absorber will be delivered today. I think Tobi will be glad to see the back of me as I have created mess in every room of his house. He has also kindly got an Eastern Europe map for me- the only gap I have with maps at the moment is Hungary, I´m sure I can make it across there without too much problem!

I rode (with a bit of a wobble initially) down the driveway and out of Cornwall with a fully loaded bike and a pillion rider. Not to be left out, my boyfriend Ian had volunteered to join me for the first 48 hours into Europe.