So good to hear of the kindness of strangers! But sorry you are scaring small children when you run, Rob!! I doubt you have the time, inclination or even water and shaving cream to shave the beard though. I'm glad that you and Bertha have come through potholes and 'spying' problems relatively unscathed.Reading your story about the barracks reminded me that the son of a friend of ours was arrested for a short time in London recently as he photographed the exterior of a police station for a book he is writing about architecture (he had even asked permission inside the building first - it was some other policeman who arrested him!) ...what a world! Keep going Rob - we think of you often and relate your adventures to others, who then read your tales of the ride South! Love, Vanessa and Piers