I'll be speaking at this year's Leigh & Wigan's Words Together festival. For those who have not heard about my travels, it's a good (FREE!) opportunity to see what I get up to when I hit the road.
I get to tell the stories behind the stories from my books African Brew Ha-Ha and The Black Stars of Ghana.
The festival runs from April 1 – 13. My slot is at 2pm on Friday April 5 at Wigan library.
Call 01942 826721 for tickets.
I shall be returning to the Adventure Travel Show this winter. The event at London's Olympia is Britain's top get together for people who love travelling off the beaten track.
January is the perfect time to explore travel options to warmer climates and listen to some great travellers and speakers – including me.
I'll be talking about The Black Stars of Ghana on January 26 2013 at 3pm.
Cheap tickets –Get tickets to The Telegraph Adventure Travel Show for only £6 – saving £4 off the door price! Just quote ‘ALANWHELAN’ when booking online at www.adventureshow.com
I finally held the official launch of The Black Stars of Ghana - A motorcycle adventure in West Africa.
It has been on sale for a couple of months but because I went on another motorcycle adventure - to East Africa - I haven't had time to plan the promotion of Black Stars.
But now it's out of the traps and available in all the usual places. If your local book shop does not have a copy they can order it from their usual distributor.
I have some great events planned over the next couple of months... from Cape Town to Chorley. Can't be bad. Come along if you're in the area.
I'll be at Kalk Bay Books in Cape Town on August 23 for a talk & signing (6 for 6.30pm).
I am organising The Word, a one-day festival for Lancashire writers @ Astley Hall in Chorley. It's all day, and starts at 9.30am. Go here for info
The Lytham St Annes Tangent club will host me on September 25 at the Glendower Hotel, St Annes (7.30)
On Oct 3 I head off to the Bowling Green in Charnock Richard to meet some fellow bikers in the AJS & Matchless club (8.30).
It may sound odd that I was asked to lecture on the Asian leg of the Saga Ruby round-the-world cruise, but there were plenty of people who wanted to know about my African motorcycle trips on the cruise ship. My stories about the kindness of strangers on the road never fail to translate, no matter which continent (or ocean) I'm on.
I picked up the ship in the Maldives and disembarked in Singapore (above), a city that should be on your list of places to see if you have not been. In port, I did not have enough time to rent my own bike but did ride pillion a few times with friendly locals and spent plenty of time in tuk-tuks.
I'd like to thank the crew, fellow lecturers and cruisers for introducing me to the sybaritic delights of cruising. Please call again.
African Brew Ha-Ha takes to the high seas this week when I bring the presentation to the Maldives, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Singapore. Even though I'll be at sea most of the time, I think it still counts as Asia (the third continent on which I've presented).
The crew on the good ship Saga Ruby must have heard how well the presentation went at ADVENTURE TRAVEL LIVE last Saturday so they invited me along to join the round-the-world cruise and present three 'lectures' - relax, it's not that formal.
I join the ship on a private island in the Maldives (apparently it looks like the picture above) and they turf me off 8 days later at Singapore where I shall try and get a bike and do what comes more naturally on terra firma.
I can't wait to combine the book tour with more travel.
Now, I like the book tour and I like travel, but which one is better? There's only one way to find out...
I'll be joining Chris Scott, Benedict Allen and a bevvy of travel talent to give a talk about African Brew Ha-Ha at Adventure Travel Live - the show for serious adventure travellers on January 28/29/30 at the Royal Horticultural Halls in London.
I know that makes it sound like I know them all but actually I'm just thrilled to be asked.
I'll be talking in the Overland & Expeditions Theatre at 1pm on Saturday Jan 29. Come along and ask a difficult question!
Tickets here www.adventuretravellive.com - use the promotional code WHELAN for £4 off the door price.
I was more than a little keen to bring the Brew Ha-Ha show to the place where it all began - Original Tea Bag Designs in Cape Town. They provided the inspiration for the trip and last month they provided the venue for my presentation of stories and pictures from my trans-Africa trip.
Thanks to Jill and the tea bag workers who re-arranged the room for seating and came out on a Monday night for tea and wine.
Lots more events coming up in 2011 for African Brew Ha-Ha.
Three that have just been confirmed range from the Ladies Guild of Blackpool (Jan 25) to the Porsche Owners Club of Great Britain (Feb 16) - and in between I will be presenting at Adventure Travel Live at the Horticultural Halls in Victoria, London (Jan 29). The last of these is an ideal event to attend if you've ever dreamed of heading for the wild blue yonder and other cliches.
You can't say my venues lack variety.
Here is the first event in Cape Town for African Brew Ha-Ha.
You will need a ticket, so please email me on [email protected] or Jill on [email protected] or call Original Tea Bag Designs - 021 790 0887.
Hi, I'm Alan Whelan. You might like my travel books African Brew Ha-Ha, The Black Stars of Ghana and Empire Road, and my first novel Mandela Park. [email protected]
Recent Comments