last days in france

Riding through the Alps we have seen some beautiful (and steep!) mountains and visited some inspiring projects. Shooting stars have been more common than internet along the way, so here is a quick update of what we have been doing: tuesday 14 august, the action working group had a meeting and contacted local activists against nuclear energy along our route. At lunch time, Caroline, the mayor of Éourres village, joined us to eat and talk together about community living and how this alternative village was formed. In the afternoon some people joined in with the willow basket weaving and wool…

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five weeks on the road!

sunday 5 august, we held an anti-fracking workshop in Avignon square. While preparing dinner, T. held a Rhythms of Resistance workshop with recycled materials, pots and pans. We then joined up with the Serious Beans Project (a band who will join the tour so long as they can carry their violin, trumpet and doube bass amoungst other instruments on their bikes). They later gave us and the locals a free gig at the nearby campsite. monday 6 august, we cycled south for few hours under light rain, then debated Degrowth and Food over lunch before asking local land owners for…

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another week on our bikes…

thursday 26 july, after the long circle of wednesday, one of the conclusions was the lack of time for resting and organizing workshops, so the group decided to change a bit the plan for the next days and go directly to Montpelier in two days (just one night of wild camping). Some of us stopped in Beziers for internet and most of the day we followed paths near the canals till Agde where we found a field to camp. friday 27 july, yo and me took the train to Montpelier in order for her to hitchhike early and pass on her bike. The others…

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Biketour in poetry form :-)

Ecotopia Degrowth 2012 Follow the arrows and arrive to a buzz of energy, Vines to be weeded and a circle under an olive tree, Friendly faces and warm smiles welcome you to the group, Intrigued, wander about the farmhouse to have a better look. A Degrowth workshop to share information together, Sitting in groups discussing in lovely weather, Name games with which to remember everyone, Sign up for a task on the list – they’re lots of fun. Sleep side by side with strangers on the floor, A commune and family you feel you knew before, Close bonds form and…

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One paragraph per day…

(soon will try to upload some pictures to this post also) sunday  15 july, we said goodbye to our kind hosts of Can Piella in the morning and followed a nice road to San Pol de Mar, Iago arranged us a place to stay, the Poliesportiu municipal, and in the night we met with a orquestra band from the town and some friends of a known poet Perejaume to talk about comunity living and degrowth while we cooked our first dinner on our rocket stoves at the beach. monday 16 july, we continued following the sea, by a beautiful scenic road, and stoped…

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From Can Prim to Can Torres

We woke up in bright sunlight floating the Pyrenees in the background in bright colours. Over night some of our communal items (and some personal shoes) had been attacked and partly eaten by animals – a learning experience… After a breakfast with lots of warm leftover food from the night before, we had a short ride on a flat road leading us to Figueres. Our group was a focus of attention on the market square; several people came up to us, children looking skeptically and bicycle fans telling us about their own trips and admiring the tall bike among us.…

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