You may have read I am going to Biarittz soon for a week of relaxation with Uncle Phil before I see my wife. Biarittz is on the Atlantic coast of France. I have it on good authority that it is like Cannes but with surf. I am very fond of surf. A long time ago when I was at high school me and 5 other surfers went to a surfing competition north of Whangarei. I think we got time off school to attend and we went with the physical education teachers blessing. There was one slight problem….

A storm out to sea had rendered the surf so good it seemed a waste to spend it on a crappy competition. So we spent the whole weekend surfing our little hearts out. We returned to school very happy, it was a shame our teacher did not share our enthusiasm.

You may have thought I was simply invited on this surfing safari by Uncle Phil. I was, but the real reason was this heart felt letter from Uncle Phil’s mum.


Dear Dan,

Love Uncle Phil’s Mum

Naturally I could not turn her down. If I look back over the past couple of years some of my happiest periods have been when I have been writing about new things. Who else would be the ideal person to ingratiate himself in a Swedish Surfing Safari and report back?

I have numerous questions

What goes on, on a Swedish Surfing Safari?

Will we eat meat balls on a stick?

Who are Uncle Phil’s friends?

Does Swedish surfing involve posing with a surf board for long periods of the time?

What does Uncle Phil look like crawling out of a tent at 7 in the morning?

Sound like fun? I am sure it will be.