day 4,leg 2: we arrived!

We knew we'd arrived in Paris proper when the roads became mental and Stuart got a crazed look in his eye and said "let's go round the arc de triomphe."

It was at that point that I turned into my mother: my lips pressed together, and my mouth shifted to the right. I pulled that face.

Peter, Matyas and I didn't make it all the way round the arc, but as we jumped off onto the champs elysees we saw Stuart, Dan and Oli in the centre of the mad roundabout, surrounded by a military parade and being shouted at by the police. 10 minutes later they turned up, and Stuart looked even more crazed. I thought something terrible had happened but actually they were just excited.

After a quick cycle around Paris to take the celebratory photos and we headed off the Gare du Nord to drop off our bikes. It was strange saying goodbye to our bikes, I've always loved my bike. Perhaps a bit too much for just something I commute around London on but after spending 3 days with it we'd grown even closer. I know it wasn't just me that felt like this. Oli enquired after travel insurance, and of course now he'd say he asked because it's an expensive bike, but I'm pretty sure his was real concern was loosing something that had become so intimately acquainted with his padded shorts.