On Sunday morning I leave Melbourne bound for my first European trip as an adult. I say adult because I was actually born in Nurenberg, Germany and I made an overseas trip as an eighteen month old when my migrant parents came to Australia. Naturally, I remember zippo about the trip but I will be remembering everything this time around. On a needle in the haystack scattergun approach I sent over forty letters up and down a street in Furth, Germany based on a letter dated about 1960 looking for an

On Sunday morning I leave Melbourne bound for my first European trip as an adult. I say adult because I was actually born in Nurenberg, Germany and I made an overseas trip as an eighteen month old when my migrant parents came to Australia. Naturally, I remember zippo about the trip but I will be remembering everything this time around. On a needle in the haystack scattergun approach I sent over forty letters up and down a street in Furth, Germany based on a letter dated about 1960 looking for any lost relations. Lo and behold a few weeks ago I received a reply from a guy who is my mothers cousin and on December 11 my children will meet some relations they knew nought about two months ago. How's that for a winner!

Naturally, I will be visiting all the racetracks I can in either Hong Kong, Germany, France, UK, Czechoslovakia, The Netherlands and Switzerland. Sadly, there won't be an actual meeting at most tracks but that won't stop me. Back in 1973 when on one of the Fairstar cruises we stopped in NZ for refueling before our run across the Tasman and the first thing I did was catch a bus to Ellerslie racetrack. It was great strolling around the track, climbing the huge hill the jumpers have to negotiate at the back of the course, walking down the hill to the home turn and then stopping at the winning post. The troops back at the pub were most surprised when I told them there was no meeting on!

Along the way I will collect all the racing magazines I can to add to my collection. I might not be able to understand them all but I still know how to look photos. The one thing I will do if I am at any track that is actually racing and that will be to have one unit on every runner in every race thus allowing me massive bragging rights that I backed the card. Yes, I am a worry but it is all a bit of fun, isn't it.

However, before all of that I will still be blogging and providing a podcast this weekend and if the right Internet cafÚ and the time fits in as well perhaps I can send a blog or two over while overseas. I get back on December 30 and it will be business as usual on January 1 and January 2. I will try and keep up with the results via the Internet and my newsagent is keeping all the Sportsmans and Winning Posts required so it won't take long before normality returns. The normality will include a complete update of my Generic Ratings project: it will be a busy return but as you know I love it all and in some ways can't wait to get back even though I haven't even left yet.