I WAS UP by 7:30 am as I'd been to bed by 9 pm last night.I looked out to a cloudy morning but I didn't mind too much as it's like this most mornings. I went down for a very decent breakfast and when I went back down to pay the woman said £10 would be fine. Great!

I packed my things then walked to the cycle shop a few doors down. Out front I took off the rear wheel then had them remove the rear sprockets for me. I changed the spoke then cleaned the sprocket and put everything back together. I bought a touch-up kit, and some chain spray then I cycled out of Oxford. For a break I stopped a few miles later to have my rear wheel trued. I moved much smoother once it was done.

I continued through an extremely beautiful forest (owned by the National Trust) which could have been the home of Robin Hood because of the way the trees formed an umbrella overhead. I'd have taken a photo but it was too dark for the camera.

I stopped in Henley-on-Thames at a grocery store to buy lunch. With full intentions of stopping at a park on the river, I cycled on. I missed the turn so I kept on in a roundabout way. I stopped in a small town at a park bench to eat.

Since, for a change, the wind was at my back, I was in no hurry so I just took my time. The sights were beautiful as all is green. Soon I heard jets from Heathrow - I arrived in Windsor. I was worried about finding a B&B. I arrived in town along Clarence Road which is rather posh. I ended up finding a nice home not far from the castle for only £9 so I took it for two nights.

What I found out soon after is that who greeted me at the door was a girl from France who does house chores for the family. She told me she didn't really like it here and at first I couldn't understand why.

The people here are nice, but I think they're all a bit feathery in the head. I don't understand how the hostess could be a a teacher. I think David Copperfield's wife. Dippy. Flighty. Nervous. She's a Kindergarten teacher but also does astrology. I've met some different people on this trip. They are nice, though.

I do understand why Jocelyne wants to go home. I think they look down on her. They 'scolded' her for 'hugging the pillow'. 'A silly habit of hers.' The way they laughed at slaves in 'Roots'. And if she's homesick in the first place... I feel sorry for her in this zoo.

I just sat and watched videos on TV then I washed a few clothes and put them on the line, then had a nice soak in the tub. If I'd have had a good book, I think I'd still be in there!

I walked downtown to eat, but came right back with no sightseeing as I was quite tired. I became a bit disoriented but soon found my way to the house. In the common room I flicked on the TV then noticed some poetry books so I flipped through them. I watched more videos then I was asked if I wanted to play Trivial Pursuit so I did. Though it was the younger edition, it was a bit difficult as the questions were based on the UK so there was no way on earth I'd know a few. As it turned out, Nicholas (son) and I won. That was 11 pm. I put my bike into the garage then went straight to B-E-D. I was absolutely exhausted from about 3:30 pm.

I feel much better now that Bike is in better shape. The spoke has been repaired, the wheel is true and I've touched up a good number of the scratches. I'll do more tomorrow once I've returned from Windsor Castle. I'll just sit in the sun and fix. Of course, it will be sunny; as soon as I got out of Oxford this morning, the sun came out. The rest of the day was great. From now 'til I stop in a few days, if we get rain when I want to cycle, I'll either stay where I am or hop on the train to Hadleigh. As long as Britrail doesn't go on strike, of course!