Downhill all the Way From La Manche to the Mediterranean by Bike eBook Edward Enfield
Download As PDF : Downhill all the Way From La Manche to the Mediterranean by Bike eBook Edward Enfield 
‘It had been so amazingly hot that I felt myself about to dissolve into a kind of crème brûlée on the road, so I bought some super-power Number 8 suncream. This had the word Bronzante on it, and must have contained some dye or other chemical because my knees stayed brown until February.’
Fed up with questions about what he was going to do when he retired, Edward decided to get on his bicycle and ride from Le Havre to the Mediterranean. He struggled in Normandy to get directions from old men tipsy on Calvados by 9 a.m., passed by prairies of corn and acres of sunflowers, and hit his stride on the towpath of the Burgundy canal. He explored the mystery of what an ouvrier eats for lunch, and was barred from a swimming pool because his trunks were too decent. Through the Rhône and down to Provence and the Camargue, Enfield is witty and informative as always.
Downhill all the Way From La Manche to the Mediterranean by Bike eBook Edward Enfield
This is an enjoyable read but would have really been helpful if the author had included a map of his journey. After reading awhile, everything just ran together. I would have also liked to have seen some photos of his journey which would have helped, especially since he includes at the end lists of what he took and places to stay.The author's droll English sense of humor will go right over the heads of most Americans. His later books read much better but it's always good to get a different viewpoint. This is really a very basic tale of bicycling journey without a lot a frills.
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Downhill all the Way From La Manche to the Mediterranean by Bike eBook Edward Enfield Reviews
Well told story. Lots of humor and self deprecating episodes. A great read.
Very enjoyable read. Armchair cycling is all I can do these days so this was great fun. Well written and filled with humor,
I read this as I am a keen cyclist but cannot be doing with the tortuous travelogues by the kind of cyclist who travels remote areas complaining about how much it hurts.
I am in my mid forties so a witness to the Authors sons ( Harry Enfield) work but I must say the senior is very witty, along the lines of Jerome K Jerome in his observations
The book doubles as a travel guide albeit over 10 years old now - the audio book is worth the additional cost as the actor reading is wonderful.
This book by Edward Enfield is a very nice story about an elderly person (but very young as afar as his behaviour and propably feelings are concerned) who travelled the whole France. He didn't use train, coach or even a thumbing. He cycled the whole way. It's called "Downhill all the way" as it's about a way from Havre to the south, so from Uppland to the coast. It can be also called "Downhill..." as it's the same pleasure to read it as to cycle downhill, without any exhoustion and with a lot of satisfuction. It's also good for people trying to do the same way themself, as it's a kind of guide book. And for all people at "old" age but feeling young, as it shows them how they can made their "automn of life" more interesting then any other parts of it. If you want to try to read Enfield you can find his esseys on ...
I didn't find this as wry or humorous as his six years later adventures in Greece.
France is equivalent to his home Britain and despite good attempts to scene paint and describe the mores of the French nation this trip ultimately fails to excite or wrap itself in the reader's heart and mind with picaresque quaintness. I also detected the usual polite but cold attitude towards the French people as a race or individuals and much less enthusiasm than he had for the Greeks.
After all we cycle through the people as well as the places...don't we? Too many negative comments I thought.
There's the familiar amount of the mundane here, too similar to our own back yard.
However, the author is (I think outside his odd comments on the French) accurate and sharp. "I dawdled the evening away in Avignon, to which city one warms a little but not a lot on a second visit." How true and God forbid a third or fourth visit!
It's a lengthy read - a little compression would have helped. Also the lack of a simple map showing Mr Enfield's route (surely couldn't the editor see the value of a convenient basic sketch map?) to assist the text is such a huge oversight I found it a source of irritation that undermined my enjoyment of the book. The Greek book, by contrast, is well mapped - so they obviously learned something!
France is a large country and distances multiply as compared to Greece. In his final "planning and equipment" section for any would-be French cyclists a daily distance of 30 miles is proposed. At this rate not much of an itinerary in a reasonable amount of time (say a week or even two weeks) can be achieved. Mr Enfield's French trip which achieves a complete north to south traversal takes place over a whole calender month (in September) which is luxurious by any standard and also stretches the limits of any normal person's capacity to find themselves good company within the concept of a "solo" trip. Whatever they say, cycling like this is better done alone. (Unless you and your friends or partners get along like peas in a pod and never argue about anything!) But not that much alone.
The emphasis on camping I found unrealistic. I felt sorry for both the bicycle as well as the cyclist's legs when it emerges Enfield's luggage weighed in at 30lb on rear and (groan!) front carrier racks. (And for ease of cycling - which Enfield makes a great play on in his choice of bike - is really ruined by placing weight over the front forks) Half of this was camping stuff, a tent etc. Clearly, this is an arduous way of going about - better to aim for hostels or budget hotels and leave the campsites to caravans and motorhomes for which these sites are increasingly set up for.
One might feel I am nit picking this interesting book. But I am simply turning the same obsessive eye over these pages as the author possesses. For example, there is another logistic chapter somewhere at the beginning " Getting Organised" and a final chapter "The Beginners Trip" which might be described as a taster to tempt the reader in. Enfield clearly has an idea this book will inspire copy cat adventures.
Not likely! Not following this "plan" which reveals something idiomatically "British" about the author - it's a hotch potch, a jumble, a not very logical way of holidaying in France by bicycle.
Anything but this!!!!
Fly and hire bikes;
put bikes on a car or carry in a motorhome;
take your bike on a plane and do focussed circular routes from a comfortable base.
A final word about hot weather and leisure cyclists in the Enfield age range who might be inspired BE CAREFUL!
August is certainly very hot in the Med and south of France - September can be equally roasting. Skins and brains not used to prolonged exposure can end up severely (arms and legs extended) SUN BURNT which could bring the whole thing to a painful stop - or worse, end up in a fatal lapse of concentration or other accident on the road!
There's a lot to enjoy in this book, but also a lot to to take with a pinch of salt.
I read this one after listening to the audio of the author's other bicycling adventure through Greece. Sorry there aren't more!
Set this one aside for a half-day plane/train trip.
This is an enjoyable read but would have really been helpful if the author had included a map of his journey. After reading awhile, everything just ran together. I would have also liked to have seen some photos of his journey which would have helped, especially since he includes at the end lists of what he took and places to stay.
The author's droll English sense of humor will go right over the heads of most Americans. His later books read much better but it's always good to get a different viewpoint. This is really a very basic tale of bicycling journey without a lot a frills.
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