So, after some careful thought I've decided to join my dad and sister on a bike ride from London to Amsterdam. It's going to be a long, gruelling trip at some points but I think that'll only make it more worth it. Below is a basic plan of the journey which will be updated as it gets more detailed, but first I feel like I should explain about the charity. After visiting Dharamsala in the north of India in 2007 I was able to see some of the work done by the charity Tong Len, which I already knew about from their link with my high school. Set up by exiled Tibetan monk Jamyang, their aim is to support displaced communities in Himachal Pradesh, who have been forced into poverty through a failing economy, agricultural factors and conflict. In particulart they aim to help take children out of the slum settlements and accomodate them in clean housing whilst paying for their education. This is a cause close to my heart as I have visited the children in both the slums and the school and have been able to witness the amazing work done by people in the charity. For more information here is the link to their website
http://www.tong-len.org/.
Here is a brief summary of the route and the lengths of the journeys:
Day 1 - Hyde Park Gate, London to Dover. Approx 80 miles. From Dover we will take a ferry to Dunkirk in France.
Day 2 - Dunkirk to Ghent (via Bruges). Approx. 67 miles
Day 3 - Ghent to Breda (via Antwerp). Approx. 69 miles
Day 4 - Breda to Amsterdam. Approx. 70 miles
So, overall about 286 miles!
