The missing fifth member!

Here is a photograph of our fifth member who lives in Edinburgh. He is Seamus Filor from Northern Ireland who has lived most of his working life in Edinburgh where he lectured Landscape Architecture at Edinburgh University until his recent retirement. Christine, his partner, seemed particularly keen to encourage him to join our party!

We are now in China and will be starting our journey along the Silk Road in a few days time!

Map of the Silk Route

Several people have asked for a map of the Silk Routes, so here is a simple one. Our journey will commence in Chang'an (modern day Xi'an in China) and end in Samarkand and Bhukara in Uzbekistan.

Photograph before we leave

From left to right: John Bedford, Graham Nicholson, John Liley and Graham Barrow

Seamus Filor, who lives in Edinburgh, is the fifth member of the party. The photo was taken in my garden in Bollington, Cheshire on the afternoon of Sunday 26th September where we got together for a briefing and send off tea.

Macclesfield Silk Museum

Macclesfield's Silk Museum preserves a record of the silk industry in the town and lays claim to being the present day western end of the Silk Road that stretches all the way from Xi'an in central China.

The Silk Road in Macclesfield

The Silk Road in Macclesfield, Cheshire was constructed in 1998 and named after the industry that was historically the basis of the town's economy. Here I am standing beside the sign of the Silk Road in Macclesfield with about 3 weeks to go before our journey begins.