Sunday 12th May - Kiel Time
During the night the rain started up again, my head became thicker than it already is and my throat a tad more scratchy. The rain isn’t heavy so packing up isn’t too bad. Our destination today is the Baltic port of Kiel which is approximately 220km away. We got going around 10:30am and with a break for lunch we arrived at around 3:00pm.
The camping ground is a small 32 space stellplatz (Wohnmobil-Stellpltz Kiel) with basic camping facilities. The real bonus it is right on the water with views of the water and the lock. The rain has stopped momentarily which gave Alice, Jens and I the opportunity to enjoy our surroundings. There is a small kitchen cum restaurant that sells snacks and drinks. It was doing a brisk business and seemed popular with the locals who come down to watch the boats as they enter and leave the lock. We managed to get a seat with a good view and spent a couple of beers watching the water. Jens who is an old sailor was full of information on the boats and different nationalities sailing through these waters. Alice and I still had some energy so we took a long walk to where the lock is controlled. The lock is quite large and can accommodate large cruise ships, bulk containers as well as pleasure craft. The lock links the Baltic Sea with the North Sea via the Nord-Ostsee Kanal which saves about 450km of travel for ships accessing Baltic ports. It essentially cuts across the land mass and eliminates the need to sail around Denmark.
The restaurant closes early so Alice purchased a couple of meals that we could reheat. The food was good but my health was going down with the sun so it was off to bed.
Monday 13th May – Goodbye Jens
The rain came down all night and this morning we can barely discern the sea due to the cloud and mist. I’m feeling better but it will not be fun packing up and driving today. The reason we are in Kiel is that it is only 60km from Flensburg and Jens will head up there this morning. He is returning to Ordrup two weeks early to see if he can get on top of his health issues. Alice, myself and the GPS are going to head off into the great unknown and try to spend a few days in Berlin.
We did manage to get Jens on the road to Flensburg by 10:30 and subsequent reports had him at home base in Ordrup by 5:00. Alice and I dropped into the local supermarket and replenished supplies as stocks were running low. Loaded up with essentials that included some beers for me we started on the road towards Berlin. The rain was a constant annoyance but the kilometres kept ticking over on the excellent German road network. The scenery was mostly rural but it was somewhat sanitized due to travelling on major roads. Not long after turning onto the A24 which would bring us close to Berlin we pulled over for a lunch break. On the highways it seems like every 35km there is a rest area with toilets (not always clean) and excellent parking areas.
As I was tired from the night before the last hundred kilometres were especially tough. I was yawning every few minutes so we pulled over for a five minute break. It ended up being a 30 minute break as we started up a conversation with a German couple in their early 70’s who were heading back to southern Berlin. They were a Christian couple who spoke English with an American accent. The wife liked Alice so much that she gave us her address and invited her for coffee. It would be nice if we can make it, time will tell.
Around 5:00pm we reached our destination the Reisemobilhafen Stellplatz (16euro) which is located in Spandau and about 15km from the centre. The camping area is a bit rough and ready but it will serve our needs for a couple of nights. After setting up camp Alice and I were ready for a good natter but we had to put it on hold. It seems we are on the flight path for the Berlin’s airport as there is an aircraft landing every five minutes. Luckily for us it did not continue into the night.
Tuesday 14th May – Spandau Ballet
Well here we are in Spandau and I can’t help thinking where are the Russians, the band and the lycra. Oops, that would mean we are staying in Spandex. Okay I am rambling here but have a listen to “True” by Spandau Ballet and google Spandau as it used to be a Russian prison. The manager of the camping ground has been quite helpful and given me the information I need for us to travel into Berlin on public transport, I love it. We ended up catching an articulated bus the M45 down to the Spandau Town Hall where we could catch an underground metro (U7) or the (S5) train. We had no idea on how to purchase a ticket and after a failed attempt with at customer service, “Ich spreche Deutsche” only we ended up at vending machine. With some help from a friendly German we were able to purchase an all day ticket for 7euro. Perfect, so we headed down the steps and jumped on the U7 for I don’t know where. We consulted the map which we picked up from the unhelpful customer service centre and realized that we should have caught the S5 wherever that was. We found a point on the map where both lines intersected and took a punt that we could manage a transfer. After we alighted the U7 it was Alice who potted the “S” symbol in the distance which turned out to be our deliverance. After all this trial and error we eventually arrived at Berlin’s main station at Hauptbahnhof. There is not much in the immediate vicinity but it is the major point for the Hop On, Hop Off buses, trams, trains and the metro. It is also only a couple of kilometres from some of the major tourist sites.
We could not make up our mind what we wanted to do and as half the day was already over we decided to forego the bus option. We walked back into the train station area and took lunch at one of the many eateries. In the end we decided on a Discover Berlin Walking Tour www.berlinwalks.com which departed near the “S” station named Hackescher Markt at 2:00pm. I couldn’t believe it as when we went in for lunch the sun was burning me and when we came out an hour later the rain was pelting down.
Nevertheless we had made up our minds and so we boarded yet another train for two stops. We were early and thought we may be lucky enough to end up with a personal tour. It wasn’t to be as the tour ended up being seven of us. The good news was that the rain decided to stop and we had clear skies for the start of the tour. Our guide Kevin was an Englishman who had a masters in history and has been living in Berlin for over four years. After a short walk we stopped in a park where he had a history lesson with themes of Prussian, Imperial, Nazi, Cold War and 21st Century Berlin. The narrative stretched from Berlin’s swampy origins in medieval times to recent controversies about the design to the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. Kevin was definitely passionate and gave us a good insight to all the sites we visited. Many of the historical buildings for instance are relatively new as 80% of Berlin was destroyed during World War 2. Some of the sites we visited were as follows:
Berlinwalks- The Original English Sightseeing & Walking Tours www.berlinwalks.com
Berlin Walks - the Original English language guided walking tours. Discover the many historic attractions of east and west with one of our experienced travel guides. Sightseeing tours are daily and tickets are available online. Many tours are available and include visits to the infamous Berlin wall, Berlin Dom, The TV tower, the Reichstag, Third Reich sites and many more!
§ Museum Island
§ Hohenzollern City Palace
§ War Memorial (Neue Wache)
§ Berlin Cathedral
§ Bebelplatz, site of Nazi book burning (another controversial modern sculpture)
§ Humboldt University
§ Brandenburg Gate – closed for a European Cup fan walk
§ Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe (Holocaust Memorial)
§ Berlin Wall
§ Site of SS and Gestapo Headquarters (Topography of Terror)
§ Hitler’s Bunker – Only the site as it is buried somewhere beneath a children playground
§ Checkpoint Charlie – The site is just a few sandbags with actors dressed as US military who pose for pictures and a few euro
We finished our tour around 6:00pm in a beautiful square called Gendarmenmarkt. It was good timing as the rain started to fall again. After thanking Kevin for a great tour which we would highly recommend we headed off to catch the S train. We must have it worked out by now as there were no hassles returning to the campground.
Wednesday 15th June – Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp Memorial
Today we are up early as we have booked another walking tour to visit Sachsenhausen where tens of thousands perished at the hands of the Nazis. The weather started off cloudy but by the time we reached the train the rain was tumbling down. We thought that this would be good as who wants to visit a concentration camp in the rain. The answer is plenty as we had about 30 people in our group with a good smattering of Aussies. We took the regional train RE 5 from Hauptbahnhof Station to Oranienburg (two stops) which took about 25 minutes (purchase an all day ticket for ABC zones for 7.60euro). From here there is an 804 bus to the camp but with so many large walking tours you need to take a twenty minute signposted walk to reach the destination. Our guide was able to give us good background information on many aspects of the camp including how the SS used the Station Z execution complex to perpetrate acts of mass murder, killing 10,000 Soviet POW’s in 1941. This camp was not like Auschwitz which was an extermination camp built during the war. It was built in 1936 and was used in the beginning to house political prisoners and undesirables such as homosexuals, Seventh Day Adventists, Gypsies and of course Jews. The complex is well laid out and you can visit the prison within the prison where Stalin’s son was detained. His father would not swap him for a German General as he was only a Lieutenant and eventually committed suicide.
At around 3:15pm we finished the tour (worth doing but with a smaller group) and headed back to the train station which for me is yet another story. I had been to the toilet and Alice started walking. I hadn’t really been specific about where we would meet and as I hadn’t seen her I thought she may have been waiting for me at another location near the camp. I sprinted back to the camp and saw no sign of my queen so with only 12 minutes before the train was due to depart I had to put on my running shoes. The rain had now stopped and the sun was shining. Half way down the street my calf muscle blew out and I was reduced to a crawl. I knew that I had to keep moving if I wanted to catch the train so I did my best Cliffy Young impersonation and shuffled down the street. With my jumper on I was sweating like a pig but there was no time to remove it. The station was in sight and with a last spurt I made it onto the platform with 90 seconds to spare. Alice was there waiting for me and was just about to mount her own search party. Once we were on the train I was able to cool down, relax and massage my calf muscle. I ended up purchasing some Voltaren gel to help ease the pain.
Back in Spandau there was a small market happening so we purchased some fresh white asparagus to have with a pork steak for dinner. A couple of beers and I was ready for bed.
Thursday 16th June – Da Plane Boss, Da Plane
This morning we have a bright sunny day which is perfect for us to do some exploring on our own. With so many planes passing overhead we can’t help thinking about the old sitcom “Fantasy Island” where the butler (can’t remember his name) turns to Ricardo Montablam and says “Plane Boss, Da Plane”. Anyhow we trundled off to the bus stop to catch the M45 which we will take all the way to the terminus. I’m glad that I validated our tickets as just before the metro station the bus was pulled over and about six inspectors checked everybody’s tickets. They were very efficient and managed to catch a couple of fare evaders including the young girl in front of us. They were taken off the bus and looked like they were given fines. They even had police backup. It was all very efficient and done at the maximum load point where it would be most effective. My old colleagues at TransLink could learn a few lessons here.
When we reached the terminus at the Zoological Gardens we transferred to the double-decker 100 bus to see some of Berlin’s most well known sites. Between the 100 and 200 you can visit just about everything in the city centre and with a 10 minute frequency you don’t have long to wait. It is a great substitute for the hop on, hop off bus. We ended up getting off at the Brandenburg Gate which is still closed as Germany is playing Poland tonight. From here it is only a short walk to the Reichstag which is one of Berlin’s most iconic buildings. Built in 1894 it has been burnt, bombed, rebuilt, buttressed by the Berlin Wall, wrapped in fabric and eventually turned into the home of Germany’s parliament, the Bundestag. It’s most distinctive feature, the glittering glass dome, is accessible by lift (reservations necessary, www.bundestag.de) and gives you a great view of the city.
We took a break for lunch at a cheap place which is near the Holocaust Memorial and recommended by our guide from the walking tour. Our next stop was the free subterranean “Ort der Information” at the Holocaust Memorial. The exhibits which cover the Nazi regime period will not leave you untouched. There are reflections on audio and video from survivors which add to the realism of the atrocity. It would be easy to spend a few hours here. We took a short walk from here back to the Wall so we could have a more in depth look at the Topography of Terror. There is an excellent timeline of events from around 1932-1945 with photographs, newspaper cuttings and English text which highlights the activities of the SS. There is also a free museum on the site which provides even more information.
We have had enough of the Nazis and Alice wanted to look at a shoe shop so we wandered past Checkpoint Charlie and caught the Metro to the shoe store. Alice didn’t like the merchandise so we decided to try and get in a river cruise. The Spree River cuts through the heart of Berlin and there are quite a few companies operating one hour cruises. We found one which was leaving in the next few minutes but unfortunately we needed cash. An ATM was the answer and we managed to find one nearby that was able to dispense some much needed cash. It appears that in most establishments in Germany that cash is king. The cruise was cheap enough as I was able to pass Alice off as a senior which brought the price down to 12 euro. A young guy provided a highly entertaining commentary in German and English which was far better than a sterile commentary from inadequate headphones. The cruise itself travelled past many of the historic and modern sites and you do get a different perspective from the river. We really enjoyed the cruise and would recommend it. It was nearly 6:00pm so we headed back to the tracks and caught our “S” train back to Spandau. The journey back was quite entertaining as we had a drunken neo-nazi taking aim at the immigrants. The finger pointing, gesticulations and offensive guttural language endeared him to all of our fellow travelers. He didn’t stop for the entire journey and stayed on board until we reached the terminus.
There are a couple of restaurants near the campground so for a change we decided to eat out. I chose an Italian restaurant that had the European Cup on the television. The waitress spoke a little English and we managed to place our order without too much difficulty. Our beer and wine was promptly delivered and the pasta we ordered was a huge serving and delicious. Neither of us was able to finish our meal. Oh and the football, Northern Ireland defeated Ukraine two nil.
Friday 17th June- Wet Day, No Play
Well it looks like our plans for today will not eventuate as during the night it started to rain again. It is heavy at times but mostly it is just a constant drumming on the camper roof. If we were keen, bright and enthusiastic then we could put on all our wet weather gear and brave the elements but it isn’t worth the effort. There is no point being miserable even to see the Pergamon Museum.
The rain finally eased up around 4:00pm and by then it was too late for any sightseeing. We did however decide to treat ourselves to dinner. There is a small restaurant 100 metres away at the crossroads which seems to do a roaring trade with takeaway German Sausage. Not being interested in takeaway we headed into the Beirgarten of the Rosen Garten restaurant. There was a blackboard menu written in German that we had no chance of deciphering. The waitress tried to help but she ended up getting the owner who introduced herself and explained the menu in detail. When we had made our selections she gave us a sample to ensure that it was to our liking. It was and a few minutes later we had a beer and a wine sitting on the table. The food when it arrived was plentiful and delicious. It was a good end to what was not a perfect day.
Saturday 18th June – Sunshine
We decided yesterday that we would stay in Berlin for an extra day if the weather was fine. The sun is definitely out and we headed off into the city around 10:30. I had spent a bit of time on the internet this morning and managed to secure tickets for a 1:30pm to visit the Dome at the Reichstag. Our first stop however was in the city west area, the Kaiser Wilhelm Gedachtniskirche. This bombed out tower of this church, consecrated in 1895, serves as an antiwar memorial. It stands quiet and dignified amid the roaring traffic. The adjacent octagonal hall of worship, added in 1961, has amazing midnight-blue walls and a giant “floating” Jesus. Our visit was heightened by the beautiful sound of the church choir who happened to be practicing.
After our visit we jumped onto the 100 bus for a short trip to the Victory Monument (Siegessaule). This huge monument used to be in front of the Reichstag but was moved to this location in 1938. It is now at the centre of a huge roundabout and is Berlin’s answer to the Arch di Triomphe. Alice and I are always up for a climb so another 250 plus steps to reach the viewing platform was no problem. The monument was started in 1860 something after the Prussian victory over Denmark. It is adorned with a gilded statue of The Goddess of Victory. The view looking down the avenues was fantastic and well worth the climb.
Back on the 100 again and we alighted at the stop for the Reichstag. We were a little early which gave us time for some lunch and a very ordinary cup of coffee. Just before our appointed time we headed over to the Reichstag for our entry into the Dome. I was glad that we had booked as there was a long queue of people trying to get in for a visit for slots that were available after 6:00pm. It is now the home of Germany’s parliament, the Bundestag and was designed by Lord Norman Foster a British architect. Its most distinctive feature, the glittering glass dome, is accessible by lift and affords fabulous 360 degree views. To reach the platform at the top of the cupola you take a slow walk on the 200 metre spiral ramp. The walk is enhanced with the free audio guide that is provided. The views were great and it is definitely worth the effort to reserve your tickets.
Guess what, we jumped on the 100 bus again and headed off towards Museum Island. Our destination is the Pergamon Museum which is undergoing renovation and hopefully will open a fascinating window to the ancient world. We purchased our 12euro tickets and headed upstairs and were immediately stunned by the grandeur of radiant-blue Ishtar Gate from Babylon. The animal motifs looked like they had only been recently created and not something from 3000 years ago. Other highlights were the Roman Market Gate of Miletus and the wall from the Caliph’s Palace of Mshatta. Unfortunately, the Pergamon Altar is off limits until the renovations are completed in 2019. On the upper floor there is also a very good Islamic collection.
After an hour and a half we called it quits and headed across the river for a quiet drink before heading back to Spandau. Our journey was interrupted when we came across the original Webber barbeque store. We could not resist and went inside to admire all of the Webber equipment and accessories. Alice was particularly taken with one of the units that sported a sky blue lid. In the end we just drooled and did not purchase anything. The beer did not eventuate either as there were no spare tables at the establishment that we wanted to visit. And so it goes!
Sunday 19th June - Towards Flensburg
Alice and I really enjoyed our visit to Berlin. The public transport is easy to use which is great if you want to visit the many historical monuments and sites. Food is reasonably priced and there are a number of free attractions to offset the cost of museum entry fees.
Today we are heading back towards Flensburg where we will try and find a camping spot near the water. The drive today is about 420km and as it is Sunday there will be hardly any big trucks on the road. We were able to get going at 9:00am and apart from the first 13km when leaving Spandau the trip has been on highway. A little boring perhaps but the kilometres sped quickly by. Over lunch we chose a camping park, Schlei-Karschau which is in the Schleswig region. The rest of the drive was fairly relaxed except for one incident on the outskirts of Kiel where I missed the turn off for Flensburg. Fortunately we did not have to travel too far up the highway before we could turn around and get back on course.
We arrived around 3:00pm and Alice soon had us on a nice grassy site. The only issue that we have is the wind which is howling at around 30 knots. Fortunately, there is some protection but the wind chill means that my cheap $10 jacket from Aalborg is getting another wear. Later in the afternoon the wind dropped enough for us to take a walk and admire our surroundings. The camp ground is adjacent to the only fjord on the Baltic Sea and if you are into fishing it would be an ideal place for a visit. There is a boat ramp next to a very small beach and a well grassed area with a couple of seats to enjoy the view. If it wasn’t so windy I would be cracking the top off a bottle of bubbly.
After a late dinner we sat around talking and enjoying the remaining daylight hours. Around 10:00pm we rang Brisbane to wish Jemma a happy 25th birthday. We didn’t talk for long as she was getting ready for work.
Monday 29th June – Happy Birthday Jemma
At the moment the sun is out and the promised rain may not arrive until later in the day. The wind however is very strong and would have no problem in blowing out the candles on a centurion’s birthday cake. Small things do amuse small minds and this morning I was amused by the toilet. It seems that in this neck of the woods that they have reverse toilet pans. That is the “S” bend is at the front of the toilet which means that your business sits on a little ledge. This is probably a good thing for us oldies as you can inspect your business prior to flushing it away. You definitely need a toilet brush for this system!
Just after 9:00am we gave Jemma another call and managed to catch her on the way home from work. Alice and I both miss our girls and it is especially more poignant on occasion such as this. It seems that whenever we travel in Europe I miss celebrating Jem’s birthday with her. That is one of the downsides in travelling to far off places for an extended period.
Just before lunch we decided to brave the elements and explore the region. This area is a bicycle rider’s paradise as there is a huge network of bikeways throughout the region. Everywhere we drove there were septuagenarians astride their two wheeled conveyances exploring the countryside and keeping the blood flowing to their hearts. Our drive took us along the shore of the fjord an eventually we had to cross over via a draw-bridge. We had to wait a few minutes as the bridge was up to allow a few sailing boats to pass through. The bridge itself is one-way only traffic with the rail line taking precedence. After crossing the bridge we were tempted to stop at the pick your own strawberries farm but there were already too many pensioners stooped over the rows. We continued our drive through the countryside and passed through a number of small hamlets which contained neat little German summer houses.
We took a late lunch overlooking the fjord on one side and a farm growing corn on the other. Just below the parking bay which was in the middle of nowhere there was a bicycle path which was doing a brisk business. Walkers and riders were on the move in the deepest part of Schleswig. Alice was keen to have a stroll around the harbor town of Kappelin. Unfortunately that did not eventuate as it appeared all the locals were in town and parking spaces were at a premium. We ended up arriving back at the campground at 2:30pm but when we tried to enter the boom gate would not engage. Eventually, we discovered that you cannot enter the campground between 1:00 and 3:00 which I am sure you can imagine is a bit strange. We found a place to park outside and waited patiently for the requisite time to elapse. Just after 3:00pm we were granted entry back into the park.
Not long after we had set up the predicted rain started to fall. This in turn meant that I had to pack everything away including the annex. Alice and I shared a special bottle of champagne that we had purchased from Georges Baradon in Epernay. It was a great champers, when you held the glass to your ear you could hear the bubbles bursting as they reached the zenith of their ascent. When you sipped the champagne it felt like it was melting inside your mouth. Ooh! With happy hour over Alice then whipped up a hodge podge of our remaining food which needless to say was delicious. It is now 9:00pm and the rain is tumbling down so it is time for bed.
Tuesday 21st June – Flensburg, the End of the Road
The rain tumbled down for most of the night but fortunately it had stopped by the time we got out of bed. This respite which I think is only temporary will give us enough time to tidy up the camper before we return it to IMC. The Camper has been our little sanctuary for the last 9.5 weeks and has been excellent to drive and camp in. We never did use the shower as it was a little cramped and shared the same place as the toilet. Ours was the basic model with no frills but it served us well.
Jens sent us a text that he was departing Ordrup at 9:17am which means he will be in Flensburg a little after midday. We will leave the campsite around 11:00am and with about 50km to travel our road trip through Western Europe will be over. Lots of history, museums, cathedrals and breathtaking scenery have been our bedfellows on this 7,791km road trip.
We headed off to Flensburg just after 11:00am and had a pleasant drive through the countryside. It was just after midday when we arrived at IMC headquarters which meant that Tina was on lunch and the camper could not be returned until she had taken her mandatory respite from the rigors of the workplace. Jens arrived about 10 minutes later so we spent Tina’s lunchtime unloading the camper and moving our goods and chattels to his BMW. The good news was that we had not damaged the camper and our 1000euro deposit was refunded in full. We finally got on our way a little after 2:00pm but we had a planned stop just before the Danish border. Jens is entitled to bring back duty free alcohol from Germany and yes there is a huge store to meet the needs of the thirsty Danes.
Jens loves driving and it is around 300km back to Ordrup so he put the BMW into cruise control and sped back into Denmark. Just before 6:00pm we passed the golf course on the outskirts of Ordrup. We could see some of the hardy gofers teeing up to start a round of 18 holes. The irony is that they will have no problem completing their rounds in broad daylight. Jytte was at home to greet us and she has some cold beers in the refrigerator for us. She has also prepared a delicious spaghetti bolognaise for dinner. Now that is what I call welcome back
Saturday, June 25, 2016
Sunday, June 12, 2016
No mice in Amsterdam
Monday 6th June – Dead Ends in Dinant
The three of us are heading out this morning in search of fine food, culture and scenery. We headed in towards Dinant but ended up in a long queue waiting for a signal change which would allow us to traverse a section of road that was closed in one direction. The queue was moving so slowly that I executed a U-turn and headed out of town. There is a bridge a few kilometres up the road which should allow us to come into Dinant on the opposite side of the river. The plan was good but it did not allow for the Belgian roundabout that they were constructing on the only alternative bridge across the river. To get across we had to travel a further kilometre up the road and do a U-turn which would allow us into the correct lane to cross the bridge. We did this successfully however our endeavours were thwarted as we could not turn left off the bridge without doing another deviation. Up the road we went for another kilometre, did a u-turn and came back and headed down the opposite bank of the river. By this time I thought that I should have stayed in the original queue.
The one consolation was that it was a pleasant drive and after waiting for a few minutes at another roundabout installation we were on the outskirts of Dinant. About one kilometre from Dinant we came to a standstill. Cars and trucks were turning around as the only entrance into Dinant was blocked in both directions by more road works. The only disconcerting thing is that there was no warning of the closure. I can’t imagine how frustrating this would be for the local population. Anyhow we are going back to whence we came, including all the previous deviations. Once we crossed the river again I decided to head up the range towards Purnode in search of a restaurant where we could take lunch. We spotted one that was open and decided it was time to rely on a little pot luck. It turned out to be a good choice as the setting and food were both excellent. Alice settled for a simple salad whilst Jens and I had a piece of grilled veal.
After lunch we continued our pursuit to try and enter Dinant. This involved traveling through the small village of Lisogne and hitting the outskirts of Dinant from a southerly direction. The only good news was that we were able to join the original queue from this morning at the point where the traffic light was. There were no delays this time and at last we entered the guts of the town. I decided to park on the opposite side of the river where the small cruises depart from. There was not much happening in the way of cruises but we managed to snag one that was departing within five minutes. The cruise takes you for a short 45 minute trip on the Meuse River and gives you a different perspective of all the historic buildings that line both sides of the river. Just as we boarded the heavens opened up and we were hit with a short but heavy deluge of rain. I hope that the towels that we left out are not blown way.
After the cruise we decided to head back to the campground and assess the damage. The good news was that some new arrivals covered our chairs and towels with our groundsheet. The bad news was that the groundsheet is not waterproof. This meant that I spent the next 30 minutes ringing out towels and underwear. At least they had a good rinsing. Jens and I then relaxed with a couple of beers but Alice is still suffering the effects of her head cold and rasping cough. After our big lunch it was a light dinner of fish and salad.
Tuesday 7th June - Alice and David Meet Their Waterloo
This morning we are departing Dinant and the Namur region of Belgium and heading north to the Netherlands. We got away around 9:30am which is something of a record for this trip. The scenery is still great but just when we started to move along the dreaded road network caught us out once again. As we approached a small town Jens noticed a sign that indicated vehicles over 3m in height would have trouble getting under a yet to be seen bridge. There was no choice but to turnaround and cross the river quite a few kilometres back. We still enjoyed our drive and about an hour later we were on the busy motorway.
Around 11:30 we arrived at the 1815 monument which is dedicated to the Battle of Waterloo. Napoleon was defeated on the 15th June nearly 201 years ago by the armies of the Duke of Wellington and the Prussian Marshall Bulcher. After a late start due to bad weather the battle raged all day and into the evening. The French were defeated by the superior numbers of the opposing forces and Napoleon subsequently banished from the continent. The museum at the site is well worth a visit and if you listened to the entire audio guide you would need a few hours. The 4D picture which was a reenactment of the battle was the highlight of the museum. Alice who is showing plenty of pluck despite her cold joined me in climbing the 225 steep steps to the top of the monument. From here we had a sweeping panoramic view of the farmland where the battle raged.
A late lunch in the car-park and then we were off down the highway for another 225km to Amsterdam. The highway was full of semi-trailers but we made good time and were on the outskirts of Amsterdam by 4:00pm. Jens was providing information over the two-way to Alice when she was taken by a coughing fit. I couldn’t hear his instructions and had to grab the radio from Alice who was really in a bad way. She continued with this throat wracking cough all the way to our destination. Jens and I checked in while Alice tried to get back to normal. We are staying at Camping Zeeburg, Amsterdam (24euro) which is located on one of the man made islands. There are plenty of young people staying here in tents and judging by the look of a few of them they are taking advantage of the Netherlands relaxed laws on cannabis usage.
Wednesday 8th June – One, Two, Three Red Light
Alice had a bad night as she was taken by numerous coughing fits. She is having a sleep-in and leaving me to my own devices. After lunch I went down to reception and purchased a public transport ticket for 7.5euro which entitles you to unlimited trips for 24 hours. A ten minute walk and I was soon on a number 7 tram heading into Amsterdam. I decided to alight at the Spiegelgracht stop and have a walk around the museum area. The sun was out and so were the crowds. It was a perfect day for sightseeing so I jumped on another tram and headed up to the impressive Central Station for a spot of walking. My destination is in the heart of the old town and has become the largest tourist attraction in the city. The area attracts millions of visitors a year, more than the canal cruises, the Van Gogh museum and Anne Frank house combined. No it is not the Heineken Experience which would normally be ranked quite high on my wish list. The 1910 Fruitgum Company had a hit bubblegum song that sums up this area, “1 2 3 Red Light”. Yes I’m doing a walking tour of the largest open air museum in the Netherlands, The Red Light District. The bustling activities here are 24/7 with approximately 800 ladies working in shifts behind the windows. My route is taking me down some narrow cobblestone streets, along the canals and past two churches, Oude Kerk and Nieuwmarkt. Quite a few of the windows were occupied and ladies of varying size, age, skin colour dressed in g-strings and push-up bras would give me an occasional wink or a wave. I obviously was not tempted by their wares however I could see a few curtains closed which indicated that there were a few souls being parted from their euros. There are quite a few bars and clubs in the area and ones like the Old Sailor and the Bulldog were doing a roaring trade. The area also houses top museums such as the Erotic Museum, Hash and Hemp Museum and the Museum of Prostitution. Shops are selling all sorts of paraphernalia to improve your sex life or ingestion of cannabis. With my walk over I decided to take a more sedate walk along Klaverstraat which has all the big brand stores and is downhill from the Dam. Judging by the number of people clutching shopping bags there must be a sale going on. I think I will have to bring Alice here for some therapy.
The day was getting on and my feet were sore from walking on cobblestone for most of the afternoon so I headed back to Central Station and boarded the number 26 tram. I was near the end of the line when I noticed two passengers board with some barbeque fuel. I reasoned that there must be a supermarket in the vicinity. As we were low on food I decided to take a punt and jumped off to investigate. Murphy’s Law was in action as the first direction I walked in did not bear any fruit. I was about to give up when I spotted some people with shopping bags. Just around the corner there was a large supermarket selling everything that we needed. Loaded up like a packhorse I rejoined the tram line. At the end of the line I was faced with a 15 minute walk and the threat of rain was imminent. I did get hit with a few drops but thankfully the rain did not eventuate.
The purchased goods were well received by Alice and Jens especially the bottle of red wine. A fine barbeque dinner of Texas pork steaks was a good end to the day.
Thursday 9th June – Amsterdam Sightseeing
Alice was coughing all through the night but is reasonably rested so the pair of us will head into the city. The number 14 tram which is about a 10 minute walk from the campground is our mode of travel to reach Anne Frank’s house. The tram ride was excellent as it passed through some interesting areas and open air markets. Anne Frank’s house was easy to find as there were plenty of tourists heading in that direction. Some prior research would have paid dividends as when we arrived we found out that all entries between 10:00 and 3:30 are by pre-booked on line tickets. After 3:30pm you can join a rather long queue and take pot luck on how long a wait you will have. We did get to take a picture of a brass statue of Anne Frank.
Not to be deterred we decided on a little canal walking and came across the Tulip Museum. Alice and her niece Ashleigh just love tulips and this quirky little museum was right up her alley. After the obligatory tulip snapshot we entered the domain of the tulip. One thing I gleaned from our visit is that the tulip originated in the Himalayan region and was then brought to Turkey in the 1500’s where it was prized by the Sultans. The Dutch managed to acquire some and the rest is history. An interesting read would be about the collapse of the tulip market in the 1600’s which was akin to the wall street crash of 1929. Apparently there were many fortunes lost. With our knowledge of tulips enhanced Alice went next door to the cheese museum. She didn’t spend too much time inside but she did get to try a few samples.
We took lunch by the canal and decided to try the local apple pie with a strong coffee. The pie was delicious and had a strong cinnamon flavor. After our refueling exercise we jumped on another tram to Central Station. In this area there are plenty of vendors offering canal sightseeing tours. Most of them are of one hour duration, follow the same route and give a commentary in four languages. We chose one that cost 10euro and waited patiently for the boat to fill. Fifteen minutes after the advertised departure time and a full boat we headed off into the canals. It was a reasonable tour which pointed out some of the history and architecture of the area. The highlight for me was the elderly Indian man and his wife who were one of the last to board. He arrived in a wheelchair and barely made it down the two steps to the front seat that his daughter had chosen for them. The daughter obviously needed a break as she left them to their own devices. We were barely into the cruise when he got out of his seat and by gripping the tops of each row of seats he struggled down the aisle, stopping in front of me. In a very polite voice he asked me if I could take lots of pictures of him and his wife who had dutifully followed him down the aisle. How could I refuse! He then plonked himself down in the seat behind us which at this stage was taken by a lone African American. He then very politely asked him if he would mind vacating his seat so he and his wife could have the window seat which would be nice for his pictures. The American couldn’t believe his ears and he rightfully declined this bold as brass request. I think he would have been better off giving it up as he Indians completely invaded his space. By the way my photographs must not have been any good as he asked another woman to take some more of him and his wife. He spent the entire trip taking well over 100 pictures including a stack of selfies. It was all great entertainment except for the poor American.
After the tour I took Alice on a small walk around the Red Light District. She was a little surprised as she thought it would be very tacky and less discreet. On the outskirts of the area we found a little bar called the Stoombierbrouwerij which made some boutique beers. We tried a sample of four beers and enjoyed two of them called the White Antonia and De Manke Monnik (Crippled Monk). Both had great flavours with a touch of citrus and bitterness. This is one for Jon Black to look up. Refreshed Alice and I headed off to Klaverstraat so she could gaze upon the fine wares being offered for sale. There was plenty on offer but she resisted the temptation to splurge out. We were both done by this time so we headed on back to the campground stopping only once to purchase some supplies.
When we arrived back Jens was basking in the sun and already onto his second beer. He looked very relaxed and without any cajoling I quickly joined him. Another reasonable meal and it was off to bed for some much needed sleep.
Friday 10th June - Van Gogh, Queues and Beer
Alice is nearly back to her normal self, the sun is still shining so it is back into Amsterdam for some culture. You would have thought that we would have had enough of museums by now but we thought some more Van Gogh would be good for us culturally deficient Aussies. The Van Gogh Museum is a modern building and houses over 200 paintings as well as sketches and personal letters. The layout is excellent and showcases his work in an easy to follow timeline until his suicide in 1896. His work output was prolific and in his last year was averaging a painting a day as he thought he was broke. His early painting of the Potato Eaters was a dark somber piece but highlighted his talent. Alice’s favourite was the Yellow House and we now have a coffee cup to prove it. In the other hall there was an exhibition on Virtue and Prostitution with paintings by Degas, Lautrec and Picasso.
After lunch we headed up to Anne Frank’s House for a cup of tea and scones. She wasn’t home but the queue waiting to visit at 3:30pm was longer than any queue we have seen on the trip. Due to the limited numbers that can visit her house the waiting time would have been well over two hours. Should have followed the Lonely Planet advice and booked on line well in advance of our visit. Ah well, stuff happens so we decided to taste a few cheese samples at the nearby Cheese Museum.
Alice gave me a choice of having a Heineken Experience or a visit to the Brouwenij’tij Bar. I chose the latter as the campground had recommended it as a good place to visit. It is basically a micro brewery which specializes in organic beers. I’m not sure if it is always like this but being Friday afternoon the place was packed. Their marketing must be pretty good as the crowd was a mix of old, young and different nationalities. We squeezed in next to a couple who were older than us and speaking Danish. I ordered a sampler tray which came with five beers which I couldn’t pronounce or remember the style. A small plate of cheese and sausage and Alice and I were set. The beers were tasty so we ordered one more each before catching the tram home.
Jens was again basking in the sun but with the wind blowing he took shelter in the lee of our camper. He was ready for a beer so of course I joined him in a quite tipple. I’m starting to feel like that I am coming down with Alice’s malady so after dinner it was off to bed.
Saturday 11th June – On The Road Again
The dreaded cough crept up on me during the night and my throat feels like I swallowed a packet of razor blades. To accompany my disposition the weather has turned and it is overcast with some light drizzle. It is always a joy packing up in these conditions. Despite all of these maladies we did manage to get away by 9:30. The main highway is only a kilometre from the camping ground and being a Saturday the traffic was only light. In no time at all we were in the Dutch countryside and cruising along at a sedate 90kmph. We couldn’t see any tulips but suspect we passed quite a few fields as the flowers are usually removed in April so that the bulbs continue to grow.
Just after 1:00pm we crossed into Germany and found a good parking area to take lunch. I must say that the German facilities are usually first class and are usually bout 30km apart. Today we are headed for Bremen which is about 150km from the border. As we were driving through the town en-route to our camping ground I noticed a large Becks brewery. I always thought Becks was an American beer so now I will have to google it as it appears that is German. We arrived at the Hanse Camping Ground which is situated near the university around 3:15. We are only staying overnight so have elected to camp on the stellplatz (camping outside the park) which means you get a cheaper rate (12euro) but still can use the facilities. The electricity is extra and costs 1 euro for 5 hours which won’t break the bank.
After setting up we inspected our surroundings and were pleasantly surprised. The restaurant overlooks a crystal clear lake and the menu looks reasonably priced. The amenities block was another matter as Alice and I both agree that it appears to be first class and possibly the best one we have seen on the trip or in Australia. A great kitchen, library, super clean showers and toilets as well as a massage chair combine to make it a pleasure to go to the toilet. After a quiet afternoon tipple we decided to take dinner in the restaurant and sample their menu. We managed to snag a table on the patio overlooking the lake. It was twilight time which enhanced the already impressive view of the lake. The only minor complaint was that the bewitching hour also brought out the local contingent of mosquitoes. Fortunately they were not in any hurry to suck on our blood. The house special at the moment is the in season white asparagus which Jens and Alice both ordered with a creamy butter sauce and new potatoes. Alice had pork schnitzel and Jens had two pieces of grilled chicken s as side orders. I was more conservative and had a ham and mushroom pizza. Once again the mountain of food that was on each plate could have served double the people. A cheeky Riesling was the perfect wine to complement what was a very fine meal. Jens has enjoyed himself and is kicking on with another glass of wine whilst the two oldies from Milton head off to the camper for a well earned rest.
The three of us are heading out this morning in search of fine food, culture and scenery. We headed in towards Dinant but ended up in a long queue waiting for a signal change which would allow us to traverse a section of road that was closed in one direction. The queue was moving so slowly that I executed a U-turn and headed out of town. There is a bridge a few kilometres up the road which should allow us to come into Dinant on the opposite side of the river. The plan was good but it did not allow for the Belgian roundabout that they were constructing on the only alternative bridge across the river. To get across we had to travel a further kilometre up the road and do a U-turn which would allow us into the correct lane to cross the bridge. We did this successfully however our endeavours were thwarted as we could not turn left off the bridge without doing another deviation. Up the road we went for another kilometre, did a u-turn and came back and headed down the opposite bank of the river. By this time I thought that I should have stayed in the original queue.
The one consolation was that it was a pleasant drive and after waiting for a few minutes at another roundabout installation we were on the outskirts of Dinant. About one kilometre from Dinant we came to a standstill. Cars and trucks were turning around as the only entrance into Dinant was blocked in both directions by more road works. The only disconcerting thing is that there was no warning of the closure. I can’t imagine how frustrating this would be for the local population. Anyhow we are going back to whence we came, including all the previous deviations. Once we crossed the river again I decided to head up the range towards Purnode in search of a restaurant where we could take lunch. We spotted one that was open and decided it was time to rely on a little pot luck. It turned out to be a good choice as the setting and food were both excellent. Alice settled for a simple salad whilst Jens and I had a piece of grilled veal.
After lunch we continued our pursuit to try and enter Dinant. This involved traveling through the small village of Lisogne and hitting the outskirts of Dinant from a southerly direction. The only good news was that we were able to join the original queue from this morning at the point where the traffic light was. There were no delays this time and at last we entered the guts of the town. I decided to park on the opposite side of the river where the small cruises depart from. There was not much happening in the way of cruises but we managed to snag one that was departing within five minutes. The cruise takes you for a short 45 minute trip on the Meuse River and gives you a different perspective of all the historic buildings that line both sides of the river. Just as we boarded the heavens opened up and we were hit with a short but heavy deluge of rain. I hope that the towels that we left out are not blown way.
After the cruise we decided to head back to the campground and assess the damage. The good news was that some new arrivals covered our chairs and towels with our groundsheet. The bad news was that the groundsheet is not waterproof. This meant that I spent the next 30 minutes ringing out towels and underwear. At least they had a good rinsing. Jens and I then relaxed with a couple of beers but Alice is still suffering the effects of her head cold and rasping cough. After our big lunch it was a light dinner of fish and salad.
Tuesday 7th June - Alice and David Meet Their Waterloo
This morning we are departing Dinant and the Namur region of Belgium and heading north to the Netherlands. We got away around 9:30am which is something of a record for this trip. The scenery is still great but just when we started to move along the dreaded road network caught us out once again. As we approached a small town Jens noticed a sign that indicated vehicles over 3m in height would have trouble getting under a yet to be seen bridge. There was no choice but to turnaround and cross the river quite a few kilometres back. We still enjoyed our drive and about an hour later we were on the busy motorway.
Around 11:30 we arrived at the 1815 monument which is dedicated to the Battle of Waterloo. Napoleon was defeated on the 15th June nearly 201 years ago by the armies of the Duke of Wellington and the Prussian Marshall Bulcher. After a late start due to bad weather the battle raged all day and into the evening. The French were defeated by the superior numbers of the opposing forces and Napoleon subsequently banished from the continent. The museum at the site is well worth a visit and if you listened to the entire audio guide you would need a few hours. The 4D picture which was a reenactment of the battle was the highlight of the museum. Alice who is showing plenty of pluck despite her cold joined me in climbing the 225 steep steps to the top of the monument. From here we had a sweeping panoramic view of the farmland where the battle raged.
A late lunch in the car-park and then we were off down the highway for another 225km to Amsterdam. The highway was full of semi-trailers but we made good time and were on the outskirts of Amsterdam by 4:00pm. Jens was providing information over the two-way to Alice when she was taken by a coughing fit. I couldn’t hear his instructions and had to grab the radio from Alice who was really in a bad way. She continued with this throat wracking cough all the way to our destination. Jens and I checked in while Alice tried to get back to normal. We are staying at Camping Zeeburg, Amsterdam (24euro) which is located on one of the man made islands. There are plenty of young people staying here in tents and judging by the look of a few of them they are taking advantage of the Netherlands relaxed laws on cannabis usage.
Wednesday 8th June – One, Two, Three Red Light
Alice had a bad night as she was taken by numerous coughing fits. She is having a sleep-in and leaving me to my own devices. After lunch I went down to reception and purchased a public transport ticket for 7.5euro which entitles you to unlimited trips for 24 hours. A ten minute walk and I was soon on a number 7 tram heading into Amsterdam. I decided to alight at the Spiegelgracht stop and have a walk around the museum area. The sun was out and so were the crowds. It was a perfect day for sightseeing so I jumped on another tram and headed up to the impressive Central Station for a spot of walking. My destination is in the heart of the old town and has become the largest tourist attraction in the city. The area attracts millions of visitors a year, more than the canal cruises, the Van Gogh museum and Anne Frank house combined. No it is not the Heineken Experience which would normally be ranked quite high on my wish list. The 1910 Fruitgum Company had a hit bubblegum song that sums up this area, “1 2 3 Red Light”. Yes I’m doing a walking tour of the largest open air museum in the Netherlands, The Red Light District. The bustling activities here are 24/7 with approximately 800 ladies working in shifts behind the windows. My route is taking me down some narrow cobblestone streets, along the canals and past two churches, Oude Kerk and Nieuwmarkt. Quite a few of the windows were occupied and ladies of varying size, age, skin colour dressed in g-strings and push-up bras would give me an occasional wink or a wave. I obviously was not tempted by their wares however I could see a few curtains closed which indicated that there were a few souls being parted from their euros. There are quite a few bars and clubs in the area and ones like the Old Sailor and the Bulldog were doing a roaring trade. The area also houses top museums such as the Erotic Museum, Hash and Hemp Museum and the Museum of Prostitution. Shops are selling all sorts of paraphernalia to improve your sex life or ingestion of cannabis. With my walk over I decided to take a more sedate walk along Klaverstraat which has all the big brand stores and is downhill from the Dam. Judging by the number of people clutching shopping bags there must be a sale going on. I think I will have to bring Alice here for some therapy.
The day was getting on and my feet were sore from walking on cobblestone for most of the afternoon so I headed back to Central Station and boarded the number 26 tram. I was near the end of the line when I noticed two passengers board with some barbeque fuel. I reasoned that there must be a supermarket in the vicinity. As we were low on food I decided to take a punt and jumped off to investigate. Murphy’s Law was in action as the first direction I walked in did not bear any fruit. I was about to give up when I spotted some people with shopping bags. Just around the corner there was a large supermarket selling everything that we needed. Loaded up like a packhorse I rejoined the tram line. At the end of the line I was faced with a 15 minute walk and the threat of rain was imminent. I did get hit with a few drops but thankfully the rain did not eventuate.
The purchased goods were well received by Alice and Jens especially the bottle of red wine. A fine barbeque dinner of Texas pork steaks was a good end to the day.
Thursday 9th June – Amsterdam Sightseeing
Alice was coughing all through the night but is reasonably rested so the pair of us will head into the city. The number 14 tram which is about a 10 minute walk from the campground is our mode of travel to reach Anne Frank’s house. The tram ride was excellent as it passed through some interesting areas and open air markets. Anne Frank’s house was easy to find as there were plenty of tourists heading in that direction. Some prior research would have paid dividends as when we arrived we found out that all entries between 10:00 and 3:30 are by pre-booked on line tickets. After 3:30pm you can join a rather long queue and take pot luck on how long a wait you will have. We did get to take a picture of a brass statue of Anne Frank.
Not to be deterred we decided on a little canal walking and came across the Tulip Museum. Alice and her niece Ashleigh just love tulips and this quirky little museum was right up her alley. After the obligatory tulip snapshot we entered the domain of the tulip. One thing I gleaned from our visit is that the tulip originated in the Himalayan region and was then brought to Turkey in the 1500’s where it was prized by the Sultans. The Dutch managed to acquire some and the rest is history. An interesting read would be about the collapse of the tulip market in the 1600’s which was akin to the wall street crash of 1929. Apparently there were many fortunes lost. With our knowledge of tulips enhanced Alice went next door to the cheese museum. She didn’t spend too much time inside but she did get to try a few samples.
We took lunch by the canal and decided to try the local apple pie with a strong coffee. The pie was delicious and had a strong cinnamon flavor. After our refueling exercise we jumped on another tram to Central Station. In this area there are plenty of vendors offering canal sightseeing tours. Most of them are of one hour duration, follow the same route and give a commentary in four languages. We chose one that cost 10euro and waited patiently for the boat to fill. Fifteen minutes after the advertised departure time and a full boat we headed off into the canals. It was a reasonable tour which pointed out some of the history and architecture of the area. The highlight for me was the elderly Indian man and his wife who were one of the last to board. He arrived in a wheelchair and barely made it down the two steps to the front seat that his daughter had chosen for them. The daughter obviously needed a break as she left them to their own devices. We were barely into the cruise when he got out of his seat and by gripping the tops of each row of seats he struggled down the aisle, stopping in front of me. In a very polite voice he asked me if I could take lots of pictures of him and his wife who had dutifully followed him down the aisle. How could I refuse! He then plonked himself down in the seat behind us which at this stage was taken by a lone African American. He then very politely asked him if he would mind vacating his seat so he and his wife could have the window seat which would be nice for his pictures. The American couldn’t believe his ears and he rightfully declined this bold as brass request. I think he would have been better off giving it up as he Indians completely invaded his space. By the way my photographs must not have been any good as he asked another woman to take some more of him and his wife. He spent the entire trip taking well over 100 pictures including a stack of selfies. It was all great entertainment except for the poor American.
After the tour I took Alice on a small walk around the Red Light District. She was a little surprised as she thought it would be very tacky and less discreet. On the outskirts of the area we found a little bar called the Stoombierbrouwerij which made some boutique beers. We tried a sample of four beers and enjoyed two of them called the White Antonia and De Manke Monnik (Crippled Monk). Both had great flavours with a touch of citrus and bitterness. This is one for Jon Black to look up. Refreshed Alice and I headed off to Klaverstraat so she could gaze upon the fine wares being offered for sale. There was plenty on offer but she resisted the temptation to splurge out. We were both done by this time so we headed on back to the campground stopping only once to purchase some supplies.
When we arrived back Jens was basking in the sun and already onto his second beer. He looked very relaxed and without any cajoling I quickly joined him. Another reasonable meal and it was off to bed for some much needed sleep.
Friday 10th June - Van Gogh, Queues and Beer
Alice is nearly back to her normal self, the sun is still shining so it is back into Amsterdam for some culture. You would have thought that we would have had enough of museums by now but we thought some more Van Gogh would be good for us culturally deficient Aussies. The Van Gogh Museum is a modern building and houses over 200 paintings as well as sketches and personal letters. The layout is excellent and showcases his work in an easy to follow timeline until his suicide in 1896. His work output was prolific and in his last year was averaging a painting a day as he thought he was broke. His early painting of the Potato Eaters was a dark somber piece but highlighted his talent. Alice’s favourite was the Yellow House and we now have a coffee cup to prove it. In the other hall there was an exhibition on Virtue and Prostitution with paintings by Degas, Lautrec and Picasso.
After lunch we headed up to Anne Frank’s House for a cup of tea and scones. She wasn’t home but the queue waiting to visit at 3:30pm was longer than any queue we have seen on the trip. Due to the limited numbers that can visit her house the waiting time would have been well over two hours. Should have followed the Lonely Planet advice and booked on line well in advance of our visit. Ah well, stuff happens so we decided to taste a few cheese samples at the nearby Cheese Museum.
Alice gave me a choice of having a Heineken Experience or a visit to the Brouwenij’tij Bar. I chose the latter as the campground had recommended it as a good place to visit. It is basically a micro brewery which specializes in organic beers. I’m not sure if it is always like this but being Friday afternoon the place was packed. Their marketing must be pretty good as the crowd was a mix of old, young and different nationalities. We squeezed in next to a couple who were older than us and speaking Danish. I ordered a sampler tray which came with five beers which I couldn’t pronounce or remember the style. A small plate of cheese and sausage and Alice and I were set. The beers were tasty so we ordered one more each before catching the tram home.
Jens was again basking in the sun but with the wind blowing he took shelter in the lee of our camper. He was ready for a beer so of course I joined him in a quite tipple. I’m starting to feel like that I am coming down with Alice’s malady so after dinner it was off to bed.
Saturday 11th June – On The Road Again
The dreaded cough crept up on me during the night and my throat feels like I swallowed a packet of razor blades. To accompany my disposition the weather has turned and it is overcast with some light drizzle. It is always a joy packing up in these conditions. Despite all of these maladies we did manage to get away by 9:30. The main highway is only a kilometre from the camping ground and being a Saturday the traffic was only light. In no time at all we were in the Dutch countryside and cruising along at a sedate 90kmph. We couldn’t see any tulips but suspect we passed quite a few fields as the flowers are usually removed in April so that the bulbs continue to grow.
Just after 1:00pm we crossed into Germany and found a good parking area to take lunch. I must say that the German facilities are usually first class and are usually bout 30km apart. Today we are headed for Bremen which is about 150km from the border. As we were driving through the town en-route to our camping ground I noticed a large Becks brewery. I always thought Becks was an American beer so now I will have to google it as it appears that is German. We arrived at the Hanse Camping Ground which is situated near the university around 3:15. We are only staying overnight so have elected to camp on the stellplatz (camping outside the park) which means you get a cheaper rate (12euro) but still can use the facilities. The electricity is extra and costs 1 euro for 5 hours which won’t break the bank.
After setting up we inspected our surroundings and were pleasantly surprised. The restaurant overlooks a crystal clear lake and the menu looks reasonably priced. The amenities block was another matter as Alice and I both agree that it appears to be first class and possibly the best one we have seen on the trip or in Australia. A great kitchen, library, super clean showers and toilets as well as a massage chair combine to make it a pleasure to go to the toilet. After a quiet afternoon tipple we decided to take dinner in the restaurant and sample their menu. We managed to snag a table on the patio overlooking the lake. It was twilight time which enhanced the already impressive view of the lake. The only minor complaint was that the bewitching hour also brought out the local contingent of mosquitoes. Fortunately they were not in any hurry to suck on our blood. The house special at the moment is the in season white asparagus which Jens and Alice both ordered with a creamy butter sauce and new potatoes. Alice had pork schnitzel and Jens had two pieces of grilled chicken s as side orders. I was more conservative and had a ham and mushroom pizza. Once again the mountain of food that was on each plate could have served double the people. A cheeky Riesling was the perfect wine to complement what was a very fine meal. Jens has enjoyed himself and is kicking on with another glass of wine whilst the two oldies from Milton head off to the camper for a well earned rest.
Monday, June 6, 2016
Farewell France
Monday 30th May- Happy Birthday, Jens
Well it is not a great day for celebrating your 68th birthday as it has been teeming down all night. The campground is a series of lakes and muddy campsites and there appears to be no respite from the rain. Alice has braved the rain and visited Jens with his present and croissant. Time will tell if we will brave the elements and visit Paris today.
Well we did venture out into the wilds and caught a train at 10:13am. Our first destination was the Delacroix Museum which is where Eugene Delacroix painted his final masterpieces. It was difficult to spot the entrance as there was a large truck parked in the doorway. Turns out they were unloading artwork for a new exhibition and as a result the museum was closed. Ah well, Not to be deterred we jumped back on the metro and headed to the island for a visit to Notre Dame Cathedral. We were going to do a tour of the crypt but guess what, it is closed on Monday. We ended up joining a long but quickly moving queue to visit inside Notre Dame. The rain was coming down steadily and was accompanied by a brisk wind. My umbrella had given up the ghost and hung limply above my head offering only the slightest protection from the rain. My patience was wearing thin but Alice kept me positive. Once inside I gave myself a good shaking just like a Labrador emerging from the water after a good swim. The scale of the building is huge but for me not as beautiful as some of the others we have visited such as Bourges. After completing a slow circuit with a horde of other bedraggled visitors we exited out into the rain.
There are plenty of sites to visit on the island so we headed off to the Conciergerie, minus my umbrella which has been consigned to a French rubbish bin. After an excruciating slow security process where only two people at a time could pass through a door we emerged into the cavernous Hall of Men at Arms. It was also a good opportunity to go to the toilet as there was nothing available around Notre Dame. The Conciergerie has been both a palace and a prison. During the reign of terror Marie Antoinette was imprisoned here and subsequently found guilty of treason. Her cell has been reconstituted on part of the actual site of her dungeon. There are also some other cells that endeavour to give you an idea what conditions the prisoners had to endure in this period. Saint Chapelle is next door however it was closed until 2:00pm.
We decided to walk over to Les Halles for lunch and possibly a spot of retail therapy for Alice. This turned out to be a poor decision as Les Halles is a huge mostly underground shopping mall. In the end we departed with nothing and took lunch at a nearby fast food café. My ham and salad roll was okay but Alice’s Quiche Lorraine was a failure. To top it off the coffee although steaming hot had the strength of a new born baby. By this time we were fed up with the rain and couldn’t bear the thought of lining up outside another museum. We ended up on a train back to Versailles a little after 2:00pm.
When we arrived back at the campground the birthday boy was at the café. We joined him and spent a few hours drinking, eating and catching up on our internet administrative tasks.
Tuesday 31st May – Who’ll Stop The Rain
Well Creedence Clearwater Revival asked the question and so do we – Who’ll Stop The Rain. All through the night the rain tumbled down and this morning it isn’t much better. According to television reports this is the wettest May since 1873. If it eases off a bit then we may travel into Paris after lunch for a final visit.
Just prior to midday we ventured out to the railway station en route to the Eiffel Tower. When we arrived the queues to ascend to the second platform were not that long however we decided not to go up as the view would be tainted by all the cloud cover. Nevertheless we had a poke around and marveled at the audacity of the design. It is easy to see why the Parisians wanted to retain this monument after the world fair of 189x. From here we jumped on the metro and headed up to Charles De Gaulle Etolie. From the metro station it was only a few minutes walk to one of Paris’s most famous landmarks, the Arc de Triomphe. This magnificent 1836 monument to Napoleon’s 1805 victory at Austerlitz, which he commissioned the following year. The intricately sculptured triumphal arch stands sentinel in the centre of the Etolie (star) roundabout. Alice and I decided to join the short queue and tackle the 284 steps to the viewing platform on top of the arch. The climb was definitely worth it as we had great views of the Eifel Tower, Sacre-Coeur, Champs-Elysees and the Twelve Avenues.
When we descended the weather had improved enough for Alice to take a stroll down the Champs-Elysees. This wide avenue is a shopper’s paradise as there are wall to wall designer brand shops which are punctuated by tiny boutique restaurants. We were a tad peckish so we took a seat in a very cheap fast food outlet. The coffee this time met our high standards and the tuna and egg roll was passable. After satisfying our basic needs we continued our leisurely stroll down the avenue. To save some time we jumped back on the metro at Franklin D. Roosevelt and headed back towards the island.
On the island we headed over to Notre Dame and visited the archeological crypt. There was no line up which pleased me no end. This dig is laid out very well as there are great information boards as well as some 3D interactive displays. If you are visiting Paris I think it is a worthwhile visit. It was a little after 4:00pm and the weather was still ordinary so we decided to call it a day.
Back at the campground Jens was busy on the internet so we joined him and spent an hour getting up to date. Alice is in charge of dinner tonight and prepared a great meal of meat and three veggies which she followed up with a fresh strawberry tart. This was Jens’ birthday treat which we bought from the local patisserie and was absolutely delicious.
Wednesday 1st June - Leaving Paris
The rain continues to fall, the Seine continues to rise and so it goes. It is always fun when you have to pack up camp in the rain but eventually we were ready to leave. After settling our account of 255euro for 7 nights we hit the wet ring roads and escaped Paris. The traffic was thick but was moving at a good pace. Our route took us north and then east towards Soissons as we wanted to avoid the dreaded toll.
From Soissons we headed south through the beautiful countryside that comprises the Champagne region. Our destination was the town of Epernay which is in the heart of region with growers such as Moet Chandon. On arrival at the campground Jens kept driving as they had a restriction of 6 metres on campers. Jens van comes in at 7.5m so we had to revert to plan B which was to travel another 40km to the large town of Chalons -en – Champagne. We finally arrived just after 6:00pm and booked into the Municipal Campground for 24.80euros a night. Even though they have had plenty of rain here the sites are in great condition. A firm flat base of gravel, good drainage and plenty of room to setup makes this one of the better prepared sites.
Alice is coming down with a cold and Jens’ breathing is not great so it is an early night for all of us.
Thursday 2nd June – Convalescing in Chalons-en-Champagne
The rain beat a steady tattoo on the camper roof all night and Alice accompanied it by barking out a dry cough from an itchy throat. She has woken up not feeling well so we have decided to stay put for today so she can recuperate. Over at Jens’ we were faced with a different drama. During the night his annex collapsed and tore the arm out of the mounting bracket. At the same time the sharp ends of the arm gouged a small hole in the vinyl roof. On first inspection I did not think that I could reset the arm however between Jens and I we decided to tackle the task. My ladder was a camp chair and my armoury was a small wrench. It isn’t easy standing on the arms of a camp chair undoing bolts and at the same time trying to remember the sequence for putting it back together again.
We did manage to extract the housing attached to the arm and with some gentle prodding was able to get it reset in its track. Next we had to maneuver the arm back into the housing and retighten the bolts. A gentle tap with the hammer and the arm was in position to be bolted back on. Oh how I would have loved a ratchet socket set or a ring spanner to finish the job. I persevered on my perch and eventually had it tightened to a point where we could retract the annex.
With Alice and Jens out of action I took a long walk into the city centre. I did not see much on the way in as I was huddled under my umbrella taking shelter from the rain and wind. There are some beautiful old buildings and a large arch which marks the entrance to the town centre. There is a beautiful cathedral but I’m cathedraled out and gave it a miss. On return we cooked up a roast pork filet with vegetables and relaxed over a glass of wine.
Friday 3rd June – Champagne Road Trip
The rain eased up overnight however there is still plenty of cloud cover so I suspect we are not finished with it yet. Alice had a more comfortable night and may be up for a drive around the region. Jens also is feeling a little better this morning but he may not have enough breath for a champagne visit. David is hunched over the keyboard, sipping coffee and continuing to record our adventures.
Around 11:00 Alice was feeling okay so we hit the road north towards Reims and bisected the champagne trail at a small town by the name of Vaudemange. From here we headed south and travelled through some beautiful countryside. There are a lot of monuments in memory of World War1 as this area was one of the main battle fronts. In every town there are a couple of champagne producers but they are generally not open to the public. After all this rain everything is green and the vines appear to be in flower. There are plenty of workers in the vineyards tending the vines and you have to be vigilant when driving as tractors can appear at the most inopportune moments. The towns have names that I cannot get my tongue around however I didn’t have any trouble with Bouzy. One of the highlights of the drive was the diversion into the hilltop town of Mutigny. The view over the valley and nearby Epernay was fantastic. On the drive down Alice became excited as the vineyards were growing grapes for Moet-Chandon.
It was a little after 1:00pm when we arrived in Epernay. We were lucky enough to find a parking spot not far from the Avenue de Champagne but the only problem with my choice is that it was metered parking. Eventually I managed to decipher the instructions and was able to get a ticket to display on the dashboard. The avenue is about 1500metres long and is lined with Champagne’s most beautiful chateaus built by wine merchants in the 19th century. We decided to pop into Moet-Chandon to have a browse in their boutique store. The merchandise was very up-market and had a price tag to match. I thought about purchasing a bottle of their special 1995 vintage but I thought the asking price of 13,000euro was out of my range. Under the avenue there is about 110km of hidden cellars storing 10’s of millions of champagne. At the end of our walk we tried a tasting at one of the smaller growers.
To finish our road trip we headed south from Epernay towards the small town of Bergeres-les-Vertus. After crisscrossing a number of small villages and on the outskirt of Grauves we headed up a steep hill. There were a number of cyclists on the road and it is quite hard to pass as they are often two and three abreast. At the summit we had a great panoramic view of Avize which seems to be the area where the grapes for Veuve Clicquot are grown. At Vertus we concluded our drive on the champagne trail and I would have to say that it was great. You could easily spend a week in this area if you wanted to drive the entire trail and spend some time exploring some of the vineyards.
Saturday 4th June – Farewell France
There were a couple of heavy downpours during the night and this morning the sky is completely grey. We are in no hurry to pack up as our drive north today is only a couple of hundred kilometres. Eventually we got going and headed out to the D944 and headed north towards Reims. Most of this section was done with the rain constantly falling. The highway detoured around Reims and took us onto the N51 towards a familiar name, Charleville which is near the border with Belgium.
We took lunch at a rest stop which sported of all things, The Big Pig. I reckon it is up there with the Big Banana and Pineapple. When we entered Belgium, the rain had stopped but the hills seem to be shrouded in fog. We had chosen a camping spot on the bank of the Lesse River near Dinant. After navigating our way down a narrow winding road through dense forest we came to the camping ground. It looked fantastic however the authorities had banned the owners from taking campers as a precaution against the river flooding. It was a sensible plan as it was very swollen and was flowing extremely fast. The campground gave us the address of another place which was located on the other side of Dinant. Due to the size of Jens’ camper we had to drive 25km to reach a place that was only 6km away.
The drive however was quite spectacular and as we drove through Dinant we thought it would be a good spot to spend a couple of nights. We ended up at camping ground (21euro) on the outskirts of Dinant which was located on the bank of the Meuse River. The sites are quite generous but you have to watch out for the landmines that have been deposited by the resident goose colony. After setting up we took the chairs down to the riverbank and enjoyed late afternoon beer.
Sunday 5th June – Dinant, Sax in the City
Alice is still not well but she is going to accompany me to one of Dinant’s best museums. We won’t be looking at paintings or sculptures but we will be inside the old Leffe Abbey which is home to the Leffe Beer Museum. Situated on a hill overlooking the town of Dinant and the Meuse River it is the perfect location to learn about the history and techniques used in brewing one of Belgium’s most famous beers. The entry cost is 8euros which also entitles you to a beer and a present at the conclusion of the tour. Most of the displays are interactive and provide detailed information about Leffe and the Norbertine order of monks from the 12th century right through to the present day. One of the more interesting interactive displays is the smell test. Just push a button and you can get a whiff of cinnamon, vanilla, cloves, wood shavings, leather, banana and pineapple just to name a few. At the end of the tour we adjourned to the bar and decided to taste the signature beers blonde, brun, ritual 9 degrees and a leffe royale crystal. After our newfound knowledge and beer tasting skills Alice and I can probably lay claim to being zythologists. Sitting back in my antique chair and sipping a beer made me feel like I was lord of the manor.
The sunlight was streaming through the window so we adjourned to the terrace area to finish our beer consumption. The view was great and we really appreciated the warmth of the sun on our backs after the misery of the past week. I even splurged out and ordered a plate of cheese and sausage. We had a bite to eat in the back of the camper and then made our way down to the City centre. Apart from the views the centre is all about sax, Adolphe Sax that is. Sax was born in Dinant in 1814 and invented the saxophone in 1846. We don’t know why but he died destitute on 7th February 1894 in Paris. There is of course a Big Sax, The Anamorphoses trail, Sax Art which is displayed on the bridge and a Sax water clock. This is all complemented by the La Maison de Monsieur Sax (Mr. Sax’s House) which is a small museum with free entry. As we walked back towards the bridge we were accompanied by a Jazz combo featuring of course the sax. We did also manage to visit the local Notre Dame church whose spire is onion shaped and more like a Russian Orthodox Church.
There was still some daylight hours left so we returned to the campground and loaded Jens into the camper. We followed the river for a few kilometres and then headed inland for the small village of Purnode. There was a reason for this detour as I had heard one of the last traditional Belgian breweries is located here. Sure enough we came upon Brasserie du Bocq which was established in 1858.The company still uses the traditional manufacturing process of top-fermentation beers with secondary fermentation in the bottle. They have a pretty good range so we decided to try a couple of different styles from the Gauloise range. It was a novel experience sipping beer outdoors right next to the brewery. The beers were excellent and the cellar door prices meant that Jens and I walked away with 20 beers. I must have spent too much as they through in a large bottle of Blanche de Namur which won a gold medal for wheat beer at the world championship a couple of years back. After our tasting we headed to the village of Yvoir, bought some supplies and followed the river back to camp.
The rain that was supposed to fall during the day thankfully never occurred. This meant that we could enjoy a couple of hours relaxing by the river. I don’t know if it was the beer or the sun but I nodded off for a few minutes. A nice way to end what was a very good day.
Well it is not a great day for celebrating your 68th birthday as it has been teeming down all night. The campground is a series of lakes and muddy campsites and there appears to be no respite from the rain. Alice has braved the rain and visited Jens with his present and croissant. Time will tell if we will brave the elements and visit Paris today.
Well we did venture out into the wilds and caught a train at 10:13am. Our first destination was the Delacroix Museum which is where Eugene Delacroix painted his final masterpieces. It was difficult to spot the entrance as there was a large truck parked in the doorway. Turns out they were unloading artwork for a new exhibition and as a result the museum was closed. Ah well, Not to be deterred we jumped back on the metro and headed to the island for a visit to Notre Dame Cathedral. We were going to do a tour of the crypt but guess what, it is closed on Monday. We ended up joining a long but quickly moving queue to visit inside Notre Dame. The rain was coming down steadily and was accompanied by a brisk wind. My umbrella had given up the ghost and hung limply above my head offering only the slightest protection from the rain. My patience was wearing thin but Alice kept me positive. Once inside I gave myself a good shaking just like a Labrador emerging from the water after a good swim. The scale of the building is huge but for me not as beautiful as some of the others we have visited such as Bourges. After completing a slow circuit with a horde of other bedraggled visitors we exited out into the rain.
There are plenty of sites to visit on the island so we headed off to the Conciergerie, minus my umbrella which has been consigned to a French rubbish bin. After an excruciating slow security process where only two people at a time could pass through a door we emerged into the cavernous Hall of Men at Arms. It was also a good opportunity to go to the toilet as there was nothing available around Notre Dame. The Conciergerie has been both a palace and a prison. During the reign of terror Marie Antoinette was imprisoned here and subsequently found guilty of treason. Her cell has been reconstituted on part of the actual site of her dungeon. There are also some other cells that endeavour to give you an idea what conditions the prisoners had to endure in this period. Saint Chapelle is next door however it was closed until 2:00pm.
We decided to walk over to Les Halles for lunch and possibly a spot of retail therapy for Alice. This turned out to be a poor decision as Les Halles is a huge mostly underground shopping mall. In the end we departed with nothing and took lunch at a nearby fast food café. My ham and salad roll was okay but Alice’s Quiche Lorraine was a failure. To top it off the coffee although steaming hot had the strength of a new born baby. By this time we were fed up with the rain and couldn’t bear the thought of lining up outside another museum. We ended up on a train back to Versailles a little after 2:00pm.
When we arrived back at the campground the birthday boy was at the café. We joined him and spent a few hours drinking, eating and catching up on our internet administrative tasks.
Tuesday 31st May – Who’ll Stop The Rain
Well Creedence Clearwater Revival asked the question and so do we – Who’ll Stop The Rain. All through the night the rain tumbled down and this morning it isn’t much better. According to television reports this is the wettest May since 1873. If it eases off a bit then we may travel into Paris after lunch for a final visit.
Just prior to midday we ventured out to the railway station en route to the Eiffel Tower. When we arrived the queues to ascend to the second platform were not that long however we decided not to go up as the view would be tainted by all the cloud cover. Nevertheless we had a poke around and marveled at the audacity of the design. It is easy to see why the Parisians wanted to retain this monument after the world fair of 189x. From here we jumped on the metro and headed up to Charles De Gaulle Etolie. From the metro station it was only a few minutes walk to one of Paris’s most famous landmarks, the Arc de Triomphe. This magnificent 1836 monument to Napoleon’s 1805 victory at Austerlitz, which he commissioned the following year. The intricately sculptured triumphal arch stands sentinel in the centre of the Etolie (star) roundabout. Alice and I decided to join the short queue and tackle the 284 steps to the viewing platform on top of the arch. The climb was definitely worth it as we had great views of the Eifel Tower, Sacre-Coeur, Champs-Elysees and the Twelve Avenues.
When we descended the weather had improved enough for Alice to take a stroll down the Champs-Elysees. This wide avenue is a shopper’s paradise as there are wall to wall designer brand shops which are punctuated by tiny boutique restaurants. We were a tad peckish so we took a seat in a very cheap fast food outlet. The coffee this time met our high standards and the tuna and egg roll was passable. After satisfying our basic needs we continued our leisurely stroll down the avenue. To save some time we jumped back on the metro at Franklin D. Roosevelt and headed back towards the island.
On the island we headed over to Notre Dame and visited the archeological crypt. There was no line up which pleased me no end. This dig is laid out very well as there are great information boards as well as some 3D interactive displays. If you are visiting Paris I think it is a worthwhile visit. It was a little after 4:00pm and the weather was still ordinary so we decided to call it a day.
Back at the campground Jens was busy on the internet so we joined him and spent an hour getting up to date. Alice is in charge of dinner tonight and prepared a great meal of meat and three veggies which she followed up with a fresh strawberry tart. This was Jens’ birthday treat which we bought from the local patisserie and was absolutely delicious.
Wednesday 1st June - Leaving Paris
The rain continues to fall, the Seine continues to rise and so it goes. It is always fun when you have to pack up camp in the rain but eventually we were ready to leave. After settling our account of 255euro for 7 nights we hit the wet ring roads and escaped Paris. The traffic was thick but was moving at a good pace. Our route took us north and then east towards Soissons as we wanted to avoid the dreaded toll.
From Soissons we headed south through the beautiful countryside that comprises the Champagne region. Our destination was the town of Epernay which is in the heart of region with growers such as Moet Chandon. On arrival at the campground Jens kept driving as they had a restriction of 6 metres on campers. Jens van comes in at 7.5m so we had to revert to plan B which was to travel another 40km to the large town of Chalons -en – Champagne. We finally arrived just after 6:00pm and booked into the Municipal Campground for 24.80euros a night. Even though they have had plenty of rain here the sites are in great condition. A firm flat base of gravel, good drainage and plenty of room to setup makes this one of the better prepared sites.
Alice is coming down with a cold and Jens’ breathing is not great so it is an early night for all of us.
Thursday 2nd June – Convalescing in Chalons-en-Champagne
The rain beat a steady tattoo on the camper roof all night and Alice accompanied it by barking out a dry cough from an itchy throat. She has woken up not feeling well so we have decided to stay put for today so she can recuperate. Over at Jens’ we were faced with a different drama. During the night his annex collapsed and tore the arm out of the mounting bracket. At the same time the sharp ends of the arm gouged a small hole in the vinyl roof. On first inspection I did not think that I could reset the arm however between Jens and I we decided to tackle the task. My ladder was a camp chair and my armoury was a small wrench. It isn’t easy standing on the arms of a camp chair undoing bolts and at the same time trying to remember the sequence for putting it back together again.
We did manage to extract the housing attached to the arm and with some gentle prodding was able to get it reset in its track. Next we had to maneuver the arm back into the housing and retighten the bolts. A gentle tap with the hammer and the arm was in position to be bolted back on. Oh how I would have loved a ratchet socket set or a ring spanner to finish the job. I persevered on my perch and eventually had it tightened to a point where we could retract the annex.
With Alice and Jens out of action I took a long walk into the city centre. I did not see much on the way in as I was huddled under my umbrella taking shelter from the rain and wind. There are some beautiful old buildings and a large arch which marks the entrance to the town centre. There is a beautiful cathedral but I’m cathedraled out and gave it a miss. On return we cooked up a roast pork filet with vegetables and relaxed over a glass of wine.
Friday 3rd June – Champagne Road Trip
The rain eased up overnight however there is still plenty of cloud cover so I suspect we are not finished with it yet. Alice had a more comfortable night and may be up for a drive around the region. Jens also is feeling a little better this morning but he may not have enough breath for a champagne visit. David is hunched over the keyboard, sipping coffee and continuing to record our adventures.
Around 11:00 Alice was feeling okay so we hit the road north towards Reims and bisected the champagne trail at a small town by the name of Vaudemange. From here we headed south and travelled through some beautiful countryside. There are a lot of monuments in memory of World War1 as this area was one of the main battle fronts. In every town there are a couple of champagne producers but they are generally not open to the public. After all this rain everything is green and the vines appear to be in flower. There are plenty of workers in the vineyards tending the vines and you have to be vigilant when driving as tractors can appear at the most inopportune moments. The towns have names that I cannot get my tongue around however I didn’t have any trouble with Bouzy. One of the highlights of the drive was the diversion into the hilltop town of Mutigny. The view over the valley and nearby Epernay was fantastic. On the drive down Alice became excited as the vineyards were growing grapes for Moet-Chandon.
It was a little after 1:00pm when we arrived in Epernay. We were lucky enough to find a parking spot not far from the Avenue de Champagne but the only problem with my choice is that it was metered parking. Eventually I managed to decipher the instructions and was able to get a ticket to display on the dashboard. The avenue is about 1500metres long and is lined with Champagne’s most beautiful chateaus built by wine merchants in the 19th century. We decided to pop into Moet-Chandon to have a browse in their boutique store. The merchandise was very up-market and had a price tag to match. I thought about purchasing a bottle of their special 1995 vintage but I thought the asking price of 13,000euro was out of my range. Under the avenue there is about 110km of hidden cellars storing 10’s of millions of champagne. At the end of our walk we tried a tasting at one of the smaller growers.
To finish our road trip we headed south from Epernay towards the small town of Bergeres-les-Vertus. After crisscrossing a number of small villages and on the outskirt of Grauves we headed up a steep hill. There were a number of cyclists on the road and it is quite hard to pass as they are often two and three abreast. At the summit we had a great panoramic view of Avize which seems to be the area where the grapes for Veuve Clicquot are grown. At Vertus we concluded our drive on the champagne trail and I would have to say that it was great. You could easily spend a week in this area if you wanted to drive the entire trail and spend some time exploring some of the vineyards.
Saturday 4th June – Farewell France
There were a couple of heavy downpours during the night and this morning the sky is completely grey. We are in no hurry to pack up as our drive north today is only a couple of hundred kilometres. Eventually we got going and headed out to the D944 and headed north towards Reims. Most of this section was done with the rain constantly falling. The highway detoured around Reims and took us onto the N51 towards a familiar name, Charleville which is near the border with Belgium.
We took lunch at a rest stop which sported of all things, The Big Pig. I reckon it is up there with the Big Banana and Pineapple. When we entered Belgium, the rain had stopped but the hills seem to be shrouded in fog. We had chosen a camping spot on the bank of the Lesse River near Dinant. After navigating our way down a narrow winding road through dense forest we came to the camping ground. It looked fantastic however the authorities had banned the owners from taking campers as a precaution against the river flooding. It was a sensible plan as it was very swollen and was flowing extremely fast. The campground gave us the address of another place which was located on the other side of Dinant. Due to the size of Jens’ camper we had to drive 25km to reach a place that was only 6km away.
The drive however was quite spectacular and as we drove through Dinant we thought it would be a good spot to spend a couple of nights. We ended up at camping ground (21euro) on the outskirts of Dinant which was located on the bank of the Meuse River. The sites are quite generous but you have to watch out for the landmines that have been deposited by the resident goose colony. After setting up we took the chairs down to the riverbank and enjoyed late afternoon beer.
Sunday 5th June – Dinant, Sax in the City
Alice is still not well but she is going to accompany me to one of Dinant’s best museums. We won’t be looking at paintings or sculptures but we will be inside the old Leffe Abbey which is home to the Leffe Beer Museum. Situated on a hill overlooking the town of Dinant and the Meuse River it is the perfect location to learn about the history and techniques used in brewing one of Belgium’s most famous beers. The entry cost is 8euros which also entitles you to a beer and a present at the conclusion of the tour. Most of the displays are interactive and provide detailed information about Leffe and the Norbertine order of monks from the 12th century right through to the present day. One of the more interesting interactive displays is the smell test. Just push a button and you can get a whiff of cinnamon, vanilla, cloves, wood shavings, leather, banana and pineapple just to name a few. At the end of the tour we adjourned to the bar and decided to taste the signature beers blonde, brun, ritual 9 degrees and a leffe royale crystal. After our newfound knowledge and beer tasting skills Alice and I can probably lay claim to being zythologists. Sitting back in my antique chair and sipping a beer made me feel like I was lord of the manor.
The sunlight was streaming through the window so we adjourned to the terrace area to finish our beer consumption. The view was great and we really appreciated the warmth of the sun on our backs after the misery of the past week. I even splurged out and ordered a plate of cheese and sausage. We had a bite to eat in the back of the camper and then made our way down to the City centre. Apart from the views the centre is all about sax, Adolphe Sax that is. Sax was born in Dinant in 1814 and invented the saxophone in 1846. We don’t know why but he died destitute on 7th February 1894 in Paris. There is of course a Big Sax, The Anamorphoses trail, Sax Art which is displayed on the bridge and a Sax water clock. This is all complemented by the La Maison de Monsieur Sax (Mr. Sax’s House) which is a small museum with free entry. As we walked back towards the bridge we were accompanied by a Jazz combo featuring of course the sax. We did also manage to visit the local Notre Dame church whose spire is onion shaped and more like a Russian Orthodox Church.
There was still some daylight hours left so we returned to the campground and loaded Jens into the camper. We followed the river for a few kilometres and then headed inland for the small village of Purnode. There was a reason for this detour as I had heard one of the last traditional Belgian breweries is located here. Sure enough we came upon Brasserie du Bocq which was established in 1858.The company still uses the traditional manufacturing process of top-fermentation beers with secondary fermentation in the bottle. They have a pretty good range so we decided to try a couple of different styles from the Gauloise range. It was a novel experience sipping beer outdoors right next to the brewery. The beers were excellent and the cellar door prices meant that Jens and I walked away with 20 beers. I must have spent too much as they through in a large bottle of Blanche de Namur which won a gold medal for wheat beer at the world championship a couple of years back. After our tasting we headed to the village of Yvoir, bought some supplies and followed the river back to camp.
The rain that was supposed to fall during the day thankfully never occurred. This meant that we could enjoy a couple of hours relaxing by the river. I don’t know if it was the beer or the sun but I nodded off for a few minutes. A nice way to end what was a very good day.
Wednesday, June 1, 2016
Ahhh, Paris.
Wednesday
25th May – Fill It Up Jens
Welcome
to my cool world by Mondo Rock could easily describe how cold the
nights have been here at the Chateau. Our stay here has been great and
it has been a fantastic base to explore the region from. The other bonus
is that it cost only 60euro for our four night
stay. One problem that we have to overcome is to fill Jens’ camper with
fuel. There has been a major fuel shortage due to strikes by the union
for refinery workers. This was evidenced by the long queues at those
stations that still have fuel. There have been
reports about fights breaking out as some people are beginning to
panic.
We
decided to push on and attempt to fill up if an opportunity arose.
About 100km down the road there was a service station attached to a
supermarket that was open for business. The queues were not too long so
we pulled in to top up. I already had ¾ of a tank
so I only needed 18.5euro worth of diesel. The irony was that the older
lady who was in front of me topped up with 5euro or about 4 litres.
There was a limit on how much you could purchase and Jens could only put
in 19.5euro. Still it was a start and will
definitely help the cause. Another 50km down the road and the same
chain was selling so Jens bought another 19.50euro. Now he has half a
tank and will probably start singing the old Hollies song, ”Gasoline
Alley”. It was well after lunch and we were looking
for a place to pull over when we spotted the same supermarket servo
open for business. We pulled over in the car-park and prepared lunch
while Jens joined the queue for fuel. He managed to get 30euro worth
this time which gives him ¾ of a tank and a peaceful
mind. While we were having lunch the chain went across the entrance to
the servo as they had run out of fuel.
Over
lunch we decided to push onto Versailles as it was just over 100km
away. During the drive we have been pleasantly surprised by the amount
of land that is turned over for farming and nature. About 40km from
Versailles we found another servo on the highway that
was open for business. We both topped up our tanks and probably have
just enough fuel to reach Belgium if the fuel crisis worsens. There is a
lot more traffic on the road as we are getting closer to Paris and it
is close to 4:00pm.
We have decided to stay
at the Huttopia Versailles which is only 3km from the Palace. The
campground is on the side of a hill adjacent to a forest which means
that the sites are not what you would call level. We managed to get
ourselves set up reasonably well however after the recent
rain the sites are still damp and sticky. Our friends the mosquitoes
are also out in force and over dinner which we took at a camp table
quite a few of them were sent off to meet their maker.
Thursday
26th May – Paris
After
breakfast I took a walk to check out the local train station,
Porchefontaine to try and work out how easy it would be to travel into
Paris. One good thing I discovered was that the ticket machine had an
English function and that it was 3.55euro for a trip
into Paris. Back at the camp Jens has decided that after a bad night he
is not up to a trip to the Palace of Versailles. Alice and I decided to
go into Paris and check out the d’Orsay museum. Luck was with us as
just after we purchased our ticket from the
vending machine we heard a train pulling into the station. We sprinted
up the steps and jumped breathlessly into the first carriage. As we took
our seats I checked to make sure we were on the correct train, we were.
Less than 30 minutes later
we pulled into
the Musee d’Orsay RER station and were in the queue to enter the
museum. After clearing security we thought we would splurge out on a six
day Museum pass. At 74euro each it will be good value if we decide to
visit al the sites that are of interest to us. The
other advantage is that you can queue jump with the pass and come in
and out as many times as you want.
The
museum is the home of France’s national collection from the
impressionist, postimpressionist and art nouveau movements, spanning the
1840’s and 1914. It is housed in the glorious former Gare d’Orsay
railway station, itself an art nouveau showpiece. The display
is like a roll-call of Masters such as Van Gogh, Gaugin, Monet, Lautrec
and Cezzane. For me the highlight was Van Gogh’s, Starry Night and self
portrait. It was enough for me to start singing Don Mclean’s haunting
song, Vincent. The collection is huge and
we had spent a couple of hours inside and still had one more floor to
go. The museum pass came in handy as we went outside for lunch and then
returned to finish our visit.
Time
was marching on but we decided that we could not head back to
Versailles without embarking on a Seine River cruise. We walked up to Du
Pont-Neuf which is near Notre Dame where we boarded a barge (12euro)
for a one hour cruise. The young girl who was providing
the commentary in French and English gave us a good description of all
the sites and added her own comedic anecdotes. The Alexandre 111 bridge
with the Paris coat of arms in the centre and gilded statues is the pick
of all the bridges crossing the Seine. The
barge turned around at the Eiffel Tower and Tassie jumped out of the
bag for a photo opportunity. He really is into selfies! Our tour
finished just after 5:30pm
so we headed off in search of our RER station which thankfully was only
a block away. There were
a few trains leaving our platform that were heading to different
destinations. It took a few minutes to decipher and we managed to choose
the correct train and made it back to Versailles by 6:30pm.
It
was nearly 7:00
when we arrived back at camp. Jens wasn’t worried however he was just
about to make himself some dinner. No need to worry as the trusty Weber
was brought out and soon in action. A couple of beers while I was
cooking the beef and pork skewers
was a nice way to end my first trip to Paris.
Friday
27th May – The Louvre
Jens
does not want to risk his health so Alice and I will travel into Paris
again today. We are going to try and tackle the third largest museum in
the world, The Louvre. Public transport should not be an issue however
there have been indications that the railway
workers may join the strike action. Finally, we got away around 10:30am
and managed to catch the same train as yesterday. We must be experts
now as we did not have to consult the map once for the entire journey.
The
lineup for passing through security at the Louvre is quite long however
we were able to join a shorter queue which took about 10 minutes as we
had the museum pass. Once inside it was a little daunting due to the
huge scale of the museum. Armed with a Louvre
plan we went in search of a toilet and the recommended highlights for
each section and floor. We were a tad confused as we could not even
figure out what floor we were on. In the end we went forth into the
unknown area of the Sully section. I figured out later
that we were on the lower ground floor and that we had been following
the wall of a Medieval moat. In the end we were following the signs that
were directing us to Michaelangelo’s beautiful sculpture of Venus de
Milo. After admiring the perfect lines of Aphrodite
we moved onto another of his masterpieces, Captive (The Dying Slave)
which I thought was more emotive. By this stage I was dying for a p… and
for the life of me I couldn’t find a loo even though they were shown on
the floor plan. After searching in vain for
what seemed ages I finally located a set. They were difficult to spot
as they blended seamlessly into the wall. There is no need to call me
Kenny!
There
are three wings to the Lourve Museum, Denon, Sully and Richelieu and
you just about need a cut lunch to traverse one floor. The museum
curators are a crafty bunch as they have placed major works of art in
each wing on every floor. We now had a purpose and
decided to tick off the major works and along the way enjoy all the
other offerings of the Lourve. We finished off the ground floor with a
look at the statues depicting a Winged Bull that was framed by an
archway. From here we headed up to the first floor
and joined the masses who were trying to get a look at Da Vinci’s
masterpiece, the Mona Lisa. We had a reasonable look but you could not
get close due to the hordes of Chinese who want to take a selfie with
every piece of art. Absolute chaos! On the Daru staircase
the headless statue, The Winged Victory of Samothrace had the place of
honour for another round of selfies. We finished off the first floor
with a slow walk through Napolean 111’s apartments.
Lunch
beckoned so we descended down to the lower ground floor for some
respite. Over lunch we had an amiable conversation with an Indian Couple
who hailed from Chicago. With lunch over we ascended to the second
floor in an effort to see the rest of the highlights.
Along the way we gazed at works from Rembrandt, Renoir, Monet and a
Frenchman who went by the name of David. The major pieces of art on this
floor was Gabrielle d’Estrees and Her Sister which was a little risqué
for the time and The Turkish Bath by Ingres.
By this time I was completely knackered and decided that I had enough
art for one day.
A
little tip if you are visiting the Louvre and want to reduce the
queuing time for the security check you can enter via the underground
shopping centre Carrousel du Louvre. The entrance is just to the right
and left of the Arch which faces the Grand Pyramid.
We
finished our day of with a leisurely stroll through the Tuileries
Gardens. It is a significant green space and the gravel paths lead you
past a number of ponds where you can take a seat and catch a few rays.
It was a bit hot for us so we took the path less
travelled and stuck to the edges of the path where there was some
shade. We ended up at the Place de la Concorde where there is a huge
Ferris Wheel which is flanked by Paris’ oldest monument. You guessed it,
an Egyptian Obelisk dating from who knows when (3000BC)
sits in the middle of the square and as an added bonus it can also tell
the time. This sundial was purloined by Napolean when he ransacked
Egypt. A walk across the bridge and along the left bank brought us back
to the RER line. Within 10 minutes we were on
a train and speeding back to Versailles, happy and tired.
Saturday
28th May – Versailles Conga Line
Well
today we are going to travel 3km down the road for a look at the Palace
of Versailles and the Gardens. The guidebook said to avoid Sunday and Tuesday so at 11:30
we all hopped in the camper for the short trip. I had heard that you
could park the camper in
with the tourist buses and luckily this proved to be true. The 15euro
cost was well worth it considering how close we were to the entrance.
After clearing the first security line I could not believe the length of
the queue waiting to pass through the security
for entrance to the room of the palace. We took a seat near the
entrance and contemplated going back to the campground. I could not
imagine how busy Sunday
would be. As I was bemoaning the length of the line a lady with two
young girls took pity on us. She
said that her husband was in the line and not far from the front and
that we could join in with them. I was reluctant to begin with then
thought what the heck as it was a chance to save us an hour. I thought
that this nice person was French but her family
was on holiday from Hungary. After we entered Alice and I thanked them
profusely and then headed off to climb the first staircase. The only
trouble was that there were hundreds of visitors heading in the same
direction.
Work
on the Chateau commenced in 1661 under the reign of Louis XIV and was
the royal court from 1682 up until the fateful events of 1789. The
revolutionaries massacred the palace guard and dragged Louis XVI and
Marie Antoinette back to Paris, where they were ingloriously
beheaded. That is what I felt like doing to the Chinese tourists that
were blocking everybody’s path whilst they indulged themselves. I had to
settle for photo bombing and physically lifting one lady out of my
path. The grandeur of the rooms is ostentatious:
frescoes, marble, gilt and woodcarvings with themes from Greek and
Roman mythology. The only room where we had any space was the huge
Battle room which is decorated with large paintings depicting victorious
battles. All in all it was a disappointing visit
due to the large number of visitors that are channeled into small
viewing places. As Alice said it felt like we were in a huge conga line.
We
did not visit the Gardens as there was a fountain show on today which
meant another 9.50euro admittance fee. It was tempting however Jens was
waiting outside and we could also see some large ominous grey clouds
scuttling towards us. It turned out to be a good
decision as it started to rain before we arrived back at the
campground. Alice prepared a very late lunch while I secured the camper.
Later in the afternoon we received a large downpour which was
accompanied by a bit of thunder. It did however give us some
time to do some planning for further visits into Paris over the next
three days.
Sunday
29th May – There Is Such a Thing as a Free Lunch
The
French weather has decided to turn nasty. This morning our campground
and most of Paris is shrouded in fog and the threat of rain is imminent.
With our umbrellas in tow we caught a train that had us in Paris just
before 10:00am.
After alighting, it was Shanks’
Pony to the Musee Rodin about twenty minutes away. Rodin donated his
entire collection to the French state in 1908 on the proviso that it
dedicated his former workshop and showroom, the beautiful 1730 Hotel
Biron to displaying his works. They are now not only
installed in the mansion itself but also the rose-clambered garden.
When we walked in the first statue we saw was “The Thinker” and thought
what a place to contemplate his famous work. A great museum which takes
around an hour to visit.
A
short walk past the huge Army Museum which houses Napolean’s mausoleum
brought us to one of the many Paris metro lines. In no time we were on
the right bank and heading off in search of the Musee Picasso. Along the
way we spotted a café doing a brisk business
so we decided to try our luck with an early lunch. I grabbed an inside
table while Alice bought a couple of rolls at the counter. Only problem
was that it was table service however they were gracious enough to let
us eat our purchase there. We ordered two
cups of coffee which would have had my brother Edward scratching his
head in disdain. The coffee itself was great however at $7.60 for a
small lukewarm cup you could say it was a tad overpriced. It wasn’t a
tourist rip off as the majority of customers were
local. When we went to pay it was too difficult for them to work out
how to add our lunch to the bill so they gave it to us for free.
The
Picasso Museum has a collection of drawings, engravings, paintings,
ceramic works and sculptures by the great master, Pablo Picasso. It is
housed in the renovated mid 17th century Hotel Sale. This is
another collection that takes around an hour
to visit. Some of his works I just don’t get and to me could have been
the work of a child. For example some of his metal sculptures would look
at home if they were placed next to one of those country letterboxes
shaped like a cow or a pig.
With
our visit over and a few spots of rain falling from above we headed off
on foot in the direction of the Centre Pompidou. The centre makes a
radical architectural statement and from the outside my immediate
thought was that it was an active construction site.
The museum itself houses the largest collection of modern art in
Europe. Paintings by Igor Stravinsky, Matisee, Warhol and others lined
the gallery walls. Again I just don’t get some of the modern art
exhibitions. In one large room you walked to the centre
on a boardwalk that resembled a jetty where you could watch fluorescent
lights dim from one to another in a prearranged sequence. I have
absolutely no idea what the artist was trying to convey. It is
definitely worth a visit though if not for the paintings
but the great panoramic view.
Alice
thought she had enough energy to visit a couple of shops so I gave her
twenty minutes of freedom and went grocery shopping. We met again
opposite a fanciful fountain that had a heap of water based modern
sculptures. As we walking to our next metro station
I worked out that Les Halles roughly translated was a market place. We
followed the signs and in front of us stood an edifice that should be a
shoppers delight. I weakened and asked Alice if she would like to spend
an hour here. To my everlasting surprise
she said no as she did not have any energy left to shop. We ended up
down in a metro maze and after a long walk found our line and travelled
two stops to the left bank. We could not have timed our run more
perfectly as we boarded our train within 30 seconds
of arrival. On our walk back to the campground the rain started to get
heavier. We no sooner had reached the camper when it came down in bucket
loads.
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