Having gone through Lake District, I took the train to Nottingham for a bit of a rest and some working days. Just like Del’s home was opened for me, the coming nights were spent in the wonderful company of Constance, Neil Studd, Neil Younger, Shey, Mark and Karo.

A new quote for Constance’s fridge

The testers I got to know over the years turn out to be real friends, who open their doors, welcome me with open arms and check up on me and my travels afterwards.
I feel very lucky to have such people in my life and I try to give back as much as I’m given.

Vegan for two days

In Nottingham, with Constance, I was mostly working in coffee shops and following to her Vegan lifestyle. I was worried about energy levels and my bowels adjusting to quality foods for a second, but I’ve enjoyed it thoroughly. By Constance’s tips and guidance, I found incredible cakes, burgers and pizza’s, served in the vibrant scene that is Nottingham. Which seemed to be a bustling city, but not very beautiful…

The road from Nottingham to St. Neots, however, was brightened by godrays.

The South

From there on out, I made my way partly by bike and partly by train, to St. Neots, where I met with Shey and his lovely family. If you had the pleasure to meet Shey before, you know he’s a ball of energy and really connects people at the party. I could now see where all that positive energy comes from. Shey’s wife and kids are so incredibly empowering, active and kind. I absolutely envy Shey for having fostered such a beautiful family. I had felt a similar boost at Del’s though conditions up North were different.

Surprisingly, Neil Studd also lives in St. Neots. We had a lovely evening in the pub where I discovered some local beer and ‘pork scratchings’. Both were… interesting. I finally was able to get rid of my Scottish pounds after charming the 50-year-old barmaid. Apparently, nobody in the South wants currency from Scotland… Which is actually the same currency. No wonder this country is going down the Brexit path.

Spending the next day working with Neil, we went to two coffeeshops and eventually, his homebase, as screaming kids seem to follow us across town. If you want to know what Neil’s home looks like, picture shelves with videos. Shelves with videos. Also quite a nice interior in which the shelves with videos fit nicely. He showed me his bookshelf, which was filled with videos.
Having had an amazing breakfast and lunch at a charming coffee shop where Neil seems to be a regular, I felt strong enough to move onwards to Cambridge, where the next RiskStorming was organised.

Cambridge

After a night at a guest house and another day of work, I found the incredible group of Cambridge testers ready to partake in Pizza-eating, Unicorn-destroying and beer-inhaling… and some RiskStorming too of course!

And then,… the Toothache hit me. Hard.