I know I am a man!

......It's not the arriving....it's the journey that counts

Last week I headed up to North Wales from London for an annual sojourn playing golf with some mates. The main events were Thursday and Friday tho' some decided to squeeze in a round on Wednesday too. For my part I decided to take a leisurely drive up on the Wednesday with no pressure and with time to relax and enjoy the drive.

As a back drop I should say that for the vast majority of my commuting life, which is almost 30 years, I have not had to rely on a car, but instead used trains, the tube and walked. As a result when I do get a chance to drive I view it as a pleasure. This has pretty much always been the case with me. I am not a petrol head or a speed freak (my first car was a Ford Escort 1100, which was already 7 years old when I bought it), but I have always enjoyed driving.

I am not quite sure what it is that appeals. In part I think it is that I get out and see so much more of this country than I do in my normal life. I do find myself looking around as I drive, spotting buildings and scenery. Another part is that it offers me a time to listen, more particularly to listen to music in the old days and radio more recently; often for a few hours. These were and indeed activities that my normal daily life rarely permits (or is it that I don't make the time?).

Normally at home we listen to LBC which is a London Talk radio and interesting in its own way, but this trip (as with others) I listened to BBC Radio 4 and Radio 2. It is easy to admire the craft of good radio productions; they can do things that no other medium can, mixing content and changing style effortlessly. Additionally for me there is the surprise element as I have no idea what I will end up listening to. In this case the bits that stick in my memory were an interview with Tony Benn about a book he has written of advice to his grandchildren and a Tommy Cooper joke I had not heard before.

For the former I am not sure if/how/when I would otherwise listen to Tony Benn. I may not agree with his politics, but he is an interesting man. For the latter I will let it speak for itself though please do try to read it Tommy Cooper style for the full effect.

      "My wife wanted to know if I was a man or a mouse.

       I know I am a man ............... because my wife is afraid of mice!"

As I crossed the border into Wales I had a Blue Peter moment. Readers of a certain age will recall the phase when they were forever making farmyard and country landscape models from papier mache, sawdust, foam and paint. As a child they never looked any good to me, but as an adult looking on the same hillside and farming scenes they were pretty much spot on, well as good as my memory can tell. It is funny how we see things differently as we grow old (or is that up?).

There was a touch of the bizarre as I passed a herd of grazing bison, but I am sure there is a good reason for that !

I also managed to stop for lunch at a pub overlooking a canal running across an aqueduct. So as well as a pint and something eat I was able to exercise my eyes and my legs. I would always rather stop somewhere like that than a service station or a chain restaurant. Unfortunately the evidence of this trip suggests that it is getting harder to find a good pub on a main road, but I will presist.

As I crossed Snowdonia, from Bala to Harlech, I then had a Top Gear moment. The roads seem much better than I recall and now you can often see a good stretch of deserted road, winding across and around the contours of some beautiful contryside. These are moments when, if flying were possible, you could fly in a car. The next best thing is to put your foot down a bit and just enjoy the exhiliration of driving.

Nearing Harlech the roads narrowed and became more demanding of my attention until upon arrival at my destination I was brought back to reality the modern challenge of finding reasonable parking.

In no way detracting from the enjoyment of subsuquent days this journey was certainly one I enjoyed; arriving was just the end of that episode.