I passed a primary school in a forgotten-looking estate of identikit tower blocks as I cycled into today’s grid square. The playground was full of joyous shrieks and laughter, and three colourful quotes were dis- played on the wall: 

• ‘Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.’ – Carl Sagan 

• ‘Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.’ – W.B. Yeats 

• ‘The more you read, the more things that you will know. The more you learn, the more places you’ll go.’ – Dr Seuss

These are brilliant quotes for an education built on curiosity not box-ticking, but they also summed up what fascinated me about div- ing into my map.