We are up at the crack of dawn and head off towards Limoges where we drop my cousin at the airport for his flight back to the UK and Scott and I continue to drive to Calais in convoy.  The drive is relatively boring as we elect to take the motorway.  However, once we reach Paris the rain starts and our plan unravels fantastically.  We had made lots of plans about stopping etc but we became separated and realised that I didn’t have Scott’s mobile phone number for France and he didn’t have my mobile number for London.  After a few calls back to London we realise that I had overtaken Scott and was now close to Calais and sat at the petrol station waiting for him to arrive.  Also in the best planning we have managed I didn’t even have a jumper etc, so it was a cold wait.  By now it was getting late and dark, but once we catch up we elect to continue the drive to Calais as it was only an hour away.

Vinnie and wind turbines on the road to Calais

On arriving in Calais we grab a pizza and then park at the Aires de camping spot.  It is incredibly windy here; it feels like the van is going to roll over.  We are exhausted so just crash.

8 December 2011 – Earls Colne, Essex, England

Up and finish cleaning and packing up the van.  During the night due to the wind and rain, Vinnie is now covered in sand (we are on the coast), but we decide to head to the P&O Ferry Terminal early and see if we can get an earlier ferry.  On arriving we find that due to the bad weather they have put us on an earlier ferry but it isn’t scheduled to leave until after the one we were on.  However, we get in the queue with everyone else and sit there and then sit there some more.  We eventually board the ferry and the crossing is very rough and also takes an hour longer than normal.

We are having dinner with friends in Essex, so hit the motorway and make great progress until we get to the M25 junction with the A12 and sit there for 45 minutes before electing to continue to another junction.  The traffic is a nightmare along with the road conditions.  We eventually make it to have dinner with Nancy and Marc about four hours late.

9 December 2011 – London, England

We get up early to see Harvey and Mary in their school uniforms which was fantastic.  So annoyed that the travel plans for the day before were so bad.  We pack up Vinnie and then head down to Kent to drop Vinnie off.  Sadly we waved goodbye hoping he finds some good owners and they have as much fun as us.  We are soon on the road to London where we are staying tonight.  The weather is totally different today and there is even some sun.  The roads are clear and we arrive in London by mid-afternoon.

10 December 2011 – York, England

We are still trying to do some sightseeing to head up to York to have a look at the Cathedral and the town.  It is a lovely town with the river currently at a high.  We had no idea it would also be so busy and managed to get a room at a B&B with the help of the local Tourist Office.  We park the car nearby and drop our bags in our room.  Heading out for drinks and dinner we realise it is only 5:30pm.  Considering it gets dark so early plus it is freezing, we are also exhausted; we do a quick walk around the town and have a drink.  We end up eating dinner at 6:30pm and then just crash.

11-16 December 2-11 – Morpeth, England

We are spending the next week visiting family and friends in Morpeth who I haven’t seen for about 25 years, so it is good to catch up with people and Scott is enjoying the hospitality of roast dinners and lots of pints of lager.

13 December 2011 – the weather is getting colder and windier so we decide to head to Hadrian’s Wall and have a walk around one of the Roman forts.  We are the only tourists, but it was a great place to visit and you appreciate how skilled the Romans were at building, especially ones that last.

Scott at Hadrians Wall

14 December 2011 – we hire a car and head up to Edinburgh through the snow and ice for a night in Edinburgh.  The city was all lit up for the Christmas period.

Edinburgh Castle at 4:30PM

15 December 2011 – we drive back from Edinburgh via the coast road visiting Bamburgh Castle, Craster (fantastic lunch at The Jolly Fisherman), pop into Alnwick and then head back to Ashington to visit my Uncle and Aunty.

Scott

17-23 December 2011:  London, England

We catch the train from Morpeth back to London to spend the last few days arranging some boxes to be shipped to Australia and catch up with more friends and family.  We spend the time wandering through some of the places we still haven’t visited and start organising work and travel options for 2012.  We still found places we hadn’t visited before i.e. The British Museum (absolutely fantastic), Tate Gallery (love Turner) and also revisited some favour haunts of the Morpeth Arms and Mildred’s.  In addition Scott did his best to drink as many beers as possible before heading back to Australia where he will miss traditional ales.

We can’t believe our trip has ended, although we are getting excited to see some sun and warm weather.

We drive towards Besancon today with the landscape changing from vineyards to more agricultural lands and the scenery as usual for us recently shrouded in fog.  We avoid the motorways (they can add up in costs here in France) plus you get to see more of the countryside.

On arriving in Besancon we find our Aire de camping which is just on the river with a range of services.  We rug up and head for a walk into town.  Besancon is famous as the birthplace of Victor Huge and the Lumiere Brothers.  It was also a Gallo-Roman city, so we head up to the Citadelle de Besancon getting there just after 4pm.  This is a relatively new building as it was constructed in the late 17^th century and the walk up is considerably more interesting than going into the Citadelle to see an insectariums, aquarium, noctarium and parc zoologique.  On starting the walk up you pass through the Porte Noire which is the old Roman entrance to the city and has some beautiful carvings which are sadly deteriorated at the moment. 

The roman gate

Just up from the Porte Noire is the Cathedrale St-Jean and the Horloge Astronomique which is a small astronomical clock compared to those we have seen in other cities, however the church is simply furnished and very serene.

Inside the Cathedral

Besancon is in full Christmas celebration swing with lots of stalls set up selling traditional Christmas items such as mulled wine etc.  We stop at a local bar for a couple of glasses of wine to wait for the Christmas lights to be turned on and then wander slowly back through the streets to Vinnie.

28 November 2011 – La Bourboule, France

We wake up this morning to find we have been blocked in the service point has been turned off so they can lop some trees – well lopping is an understatement, they are being totally removed to make way for a tramline being implemented in the near future.  So we eventually find the other way out of the Aires de camping and start the long drive to La Bourboule.  We don’t plan on stopping anywhere until we reach La Bourboule which is about 6-7 hour drive, so a relatively boring day in all.

Hmm the scenery isn

On reaching La Bourboule it is a fantastic town, beautifully located in the Auvergne region of central France it is a spa town and a winter ski resort.  Unfortunately we are there just before the ski season.  It is laid out around the river and surrounded by mountains and views.  On the main streets are lots of bars and cafes and the architecture has been preserved.  All in all a lovely stop for the night.

29 November 2011 – Les Eyzies-de-Tayac-Sireuil

Not such a long drive today as our main point is Sarlat-la-Caneda.  However along the way we stop at one of our favourite villages in France – Beaulieu-Sur-Dordogne which we visited in summer.  This town still captures our interest and although the pub we went to last time is closed, we found another restaurant/bar nearby that did gorgeous food as great prices.  Obviously it must be good as it was full of locals.  After a lovely lunch we jumped back in Vinnie and soon arrived in Sarlat-la-Caneda.  The Aires de camping isn’t fantastic and is on a main road and sloping, but we park up and head into the main town.  This is mean to be one of the country’s best-preserved architectural villages, however it just didn’t grab us and we were fairly disappointed as a whole. 

Scott thought this was the best sight in Sarlat

We wandered around the medieval part of town and stopped at the Cathedrale St-Sacerdos and walked through the medieval historic quarter.  There just wasn’t much to keep our interest so we headed back to Vinnie and decided to head towards Les Eyzies-de-Tayac-Sireuil which we visited in summer and wanted to return to anyway.  We arrived there just as it was getting dark and the Aires de camping is in a beautiful spot just down on the river and surrounded by trees and on a nice flat spot.  There is only one other motorhome parked there, so it was also lovely and quiet and we had a great view of the cliffs surrounding the town.  We headed to the local pub for a quick drink to relax after what turned out to be a long day of driving.

All parked up for the night between the river and the mountains

30 November-7 December 2011 – Coutancie, France

We get up for a wander in town and some fresh bread from the bakery before deciding to head to the house at Coutancie where we hope to sort out the sale of Vinnie and get organised for home.  Scary to think it is only three Sundays of holidays to go.

We arrive in Coutancie late afternoon and crash.  Our plans for the next few days are to clean Vinnie from top to bottom and do some day trips around the area, or of course we may just sit around doing nothing and have a little break from driving. 

2 December – We finally arranged the sale of Vinnie and have now booked our ferry journey back to the UK on the 8 December.  We decide to head into Riberac for a glass of wine to celebrate.  Unfortunately it wasn’t a very inspiring place and we had an insipid lunch at one of the only places open.  I hope we get one more good meal in before we leave France.

3 December 2011 – my cousin and his partner arrive from the UK to do some work on the house.  We have a homecooked meal (go Scott and his vegetarian lasagne) and due to my almost migraine I watched the boys get absolutely plastered.

4 December 2011 – the weather has changed and it is windy and misty, and as my headache isn’t that much better we stay in and can’t be bothered to go anywhere.  We do however do the final bits on Vinnie and almost ready to head off for our final drive.

A freezing night as yet again the alarms in the van went off, wish we could turn them off, but figure that may be dangerous it is bloody annoying though and as Scott has developed the ability to not hear anything I have to get up and turn it off.

Today we are driving from Germany through Luxembourg and Belgium to Villers-Bretonneux in France.  Scott still gets excited we can drive through whole countries in less than a morning (four of them to be exact).  Of course at this stage we can hardly see a few metres in from the van due to the fog, so the only sign we know we are going in the right direction is the chance of country signs and the price of fuel going up astronomically.  Luckily we filled up in Luxembourg which should last a few days.  We are finally back in France after what feels like an eternity of travelling and start the drive (not using toll roads) to Villers-Bretonneux. 

Villers-Bretonneux:  The drive here is via several other war memorials, but this one stands out from them by miles.  Strangely enough there is no actual parking next to the memorial so we end up parking right out front, soon copied by several other cars, I wonder what they do when there is special events?  The memorial here was designed by Edward Lutyens and was the last big WWI memorial built.  It was subsequently heavily damaged in WWII and refurbished although the scars are still there which adds to the poignancy.  It is a sad place to think that life is so cheap so many had to die and this isn’t just for Australians there are a substantial amount of graves for Canadians and South Africans and so many to the unknown soldier who’s remains have never been identified.  The grounds are immaculate and with fog hanging over the surrounding valleys you wonder was all this death worth the fight! 

A long way from home

Royes:  We finally found a relatively nearby Aire de Camping Car in a car park in the small city centre and via a huge amount of tiny one way streets we finally got there.  There doesn’t appear to be any parking to go with the service point, so park up near the school and as it is Sunday tomorrow, should be quiet.  What wasn’t quite true however, as there was a group of hooded youths who decided that playing with their soccer ball next to the van would be fun.  As the night progressed they moved away a bit and after the police confiscated their football they decided to beat each other up and look generally like unsavoury characters.  I stayed on guard duty whilst Scott slept! 

20-21 November 2011 – Reims, France

After a crappy night’s sleep for me – I mean who gets up to walk their dogs at 5:30am and then proceed to chat with other people next to a motorhome.  Anyway the morning brightened up, well we aren’t sure if it did as the fog today was even worse than yesterday and to top it off the Aire was broken and we couldn’t top up our water and hence I couldn’t have a hot shower, could this day get any worse.  We are driving through to Reims today which is at the start of the champagne region and also houses a Cathedral and a Basilique. 

Reims:  We arrive at the supposed location of the Aires de Camping Car to find nothing, so have to drive a million miles (no exaggeration) around the block to see if we missed it.  We find the service point so park up Vinnie and go for a walk around the area as the Camperstop book stays there is parking for 8 motorhomes.  We finally find other motorhomes and then locate a Hostel who hands out the passcode for the boom gate, so we top up on free water etc and park Vinnie in a free spot right in the centre for 48 hours free.  There are several other campers here, so we leave Vinnie in the sun hoping it would warm up and walk into Reims.  Reims (pronounced “rahns”), an ancient Roman city, was important when Caesar conquered Gaul. French kings came here to be crowned.

The Cathedral Notre Dame was originally build in 1211 and was famous for hosting the coronation of Charles VII with Joan of Arc in 1429.  It has been seriously damaged in WWI and with the help of the Rockefeller family has been heavily restored; luckily it escaped relatively unharmed during WWII.  Inside the remaining stained glass windows are breathtaking, but I am not as sure about the modern interpretations as they look slightly out of place in the gothic architecture.  Even better as this cathedral is one of the few that are free.  Built on the site of an earlier church that burned down in 1211, the resultant cathedral was intended as a place where French Kings would be anointed.  St-Remi the bishop of Reims baptized the King of the Franks (Clovis) here in AD496.  As such, every French monarch since a.d. 496 was crowned at Reims, including Charles VII who was escorted there by Joan of Arc in 1429.  Now it seems to have a place in the Franco-Germany reconciliation process that has been in place to overcome animosity after the war.  Pope John-Paul II visited the cathedral in 1996 on the 1500^th anniversary of Clovis’s baptism. 

Reims Cathedral

We leave the Cathedral and head towards the main pedestrian mall.  It is Sunday and as such most things are shut so we opt instead to sit in the sun and have some wine and pizza.  As the sun is out most of the restaurants are busy and doing a booming trade, however, they don’t seem very organised and almost disappointed when most customer come and they have to set the table, take orders and deliver food – honestly customers just get in the way don’t they!

Eventually back at Vinnie we have an early night as it is freezing and as usual the alarms go off, getting sick of this and starting to fantasise about a warm holiday destination.

Today we are off to the Basilique St-Remi and maybe some champagne tasting.  We approach the Basilique St-Remi and I find this much more interesting that yesterday’s Cathedral.  It is huge and the Romanesque architecture from the mid-11^th century is just beautiful.  Some Gothic features were added from the 12^th century, but the history here is fantastic.  The church dates from 1007 and holds the tomb of St. Remi.  The Nave is Romanesque which leaves to a beautiful choral area full of flamboyant style.  Paying the EUR2 to turn the lights on was EUR2 well spent as the inside of the Basilique lit up and highlighted the vaulted ceilings.

I have become fascinated by ceilings

Suitably impressed we then decided to visit the Taittinger Champagne House.  There are many champagne cellars to choose from i.e. Pommery, Mumm and Veuve Cliquot, but we elect Taittinger due to the history of its cellars.  So we booked in and headed out for a coffee as we had 40 minutes to kill.

EUR14 secures you a spot on the English speaking tour and we have a small presentation about the history of the home of Taittinger before being led down to the underground cellars and this is where it got interesting.  As well as 19m bottles of Champagne the vaults were originally built in the 4^th century by the Romans who excavated the area for stone.  It was then excavated by the 13^th century Benedictine monks and has today been restored as much as possible for the champagne house.  Many of the champagne cellars of Reims extend for miles through chalky deposits.  During the German siege of 1914 and throughout the war, people lived and even published a daily paper in them.  The caves that are 30m (98 ft.) deep, where the temperature is a constant 50°F (10°C).  Taittinger is a grand marquee of French champagne, one of the few still controlled by members of the family that founded it (in 1930). The tour was informative, interesting and just steeped in history.  We then finished with a glass of the Brut Reserve champagne.  I am definitely a fan of Taittinger for the dry style of champagne, but at EUR110 per bottle, wasn’t keen enough to buy a bottle, however, I kept the tasting glass.

Okay now a fan of vintage champagne

Off to lunch at a local restaurant where the food was a little bit disappointing, but I tried the champagne here and it was totally different, now I understand the processes behind making the different blends, makes and vintages, it starts to fall into place the differences and I am definitely a fan of the vintage style – which as usual is the most expensive, typical.  We have a wander through the streets of Reims before heading back to Vinnie.  As the sun sets so early now it makes the days of sightseeing shorter as well.

22 November 2011 –Villeneuve Renneville Chivigny, France (Champagne Leclere-Massard – France Passions Stop)

We leave Reims and head towards Epernay via the Montage de Reims Champagne Route which links the two towns via the Parc Natural Regional de la Montagne de Reims.  Scott is keen to actually see some vines as so far it has been much industrialised.

Verzenay:  as soon as you head towards Verzenay the acres and acres of vineyards take up all the visible distance.  We stop at the Phare de Verzenay which is a lighthouse on the hilltop at the eastern edge of the village and head to the top (EUR3 per person) for a view of the surrounding area.  There are no leaves on the vines and they are in the process of cutting them back which appears to be a hugely manual process with people still hand-cutting the vines.  Considering how cold the weather is, I don’t understand how they don’t freeze. 

Phare de Verzenay in the background

Verzy:  we head just outside Verzy to the Parc Natural Regional de la Montagne de Reims for the hour round walk to see the mutant beech trees known as Faux de Verzy.  These are interesting and exquisite trees that appear to be all twisted with the branches growing over them like umbrellas.  As there are no leaves you can fully appreciate the gorgeous trunks which are covered in mosses and are gnarled and tortured in appearance.  Interesting that there are signs and the trees are sometimes fenced off, but that of course doesn’t stop some people having to climb over to take a photo!

Looks like my spinal cord after 7 months on a foam mattress

Epernay:  as soon you are approach Epernay you are reminded you are now in the capital of the champagne region and you can instantly start ticking off all the big names i.e. Moet et Chandon, Mercier, Pol Roger etc.  We find the Aires de camping spot but it is full and the other parking has a maximum of one hour, so we leave Vinnie near the bus/motorhome spot and hope nobody complains and head into the town centre.  Although Epernay it only has one-sixth Reims’s population, it produces nearly as much champagne, with an estimated 322km (200 miles) or more of cellars and tunnels.  These caves are vast vaults cut into the chalk rock on which the town is built.  Walking up Epernay’s main boulevards and in particular the avenue de Champagne it radiates wealth, in one driveway there were four Rolls Royce, a Ferrari and several other cars that I am sure Scott would trade me in for.  Invading armies have destroyed or burned Epernay nearly two dozen times and few of its buildings have survived.  We find the huge offices of Moet & Chandon to do a tasting, but the next tasting isn’t until late so we book in for tomorrow instead and walk around the town which has a lot of wine shops (no surprise there) but also a huge amount of landscaping and renovation of the public squares.  We head back to Vinnie after stopping off at Carrefour City for a few snacks and drive the 20 minutes to Champagne Leclere-Massard Winery in Villeneuve Renneville Chivigny (page 321).  We are now using our France Passions book which does not have gps coordinates only a very brief description of how to get places, but luckily this France Passions stop has got up signs etc and we pull into a lovely little Aire with everything you need including picnic tables etc and buy a bottle of champagne to enjoy in the setting sun before it becomes freezing.

23 November 2011 – Cousancelles, France (Les Vergers de Cousancelles – France Passions Stop)

After a fantastic night’s sleep (we have worked out if you turn off the control panel the alarms don’t go off) we head back into Moet et Chandon (EUR15 for the traditionalle tasting and EUR28 for the vintage tasting) for our tour and tasting. 

Scott and the Dom

There isn’t a huge group and we are lead through the history of the Champagne House (started by Jean-Remy Moet) and then head down into the kilometres and kilometres of tunnels which were warmer and definitely more humid than outside.  The tour is interesting and informative about the history of the house, although I think its early success was due to the patronage of school friend to Jean-Remy Moet (Napoleon), without that things may have been a bit different.  At the end of the tour I had elected to do the vintage tasting and Scott was going to do the ordinary tasting and I have to say you can definitely taste the difference with the Vintage being so much smoother and lighter, very similar to Taittinger yesterday.  I wasn’t so keen on the vintage Rose, but that’s only because I was getting a tad picky.  As usual I squirreled away the glass for a keepsake.

These two bottles were mine to taste - great birthday present

We leave Epernay after a final walk around and head to another France Passions stop just outside of St-Dizier (page 328).  This stop is something different and deals with apple products i.e. cider, fruit and an apple champagne.  Unfortunately they were out of cider and their next bottling won’t start until December, so we settle on the Champagne.  The stop isn’t as nice as last night, but we have got a spot to enjoy as much sun as possible and it is quiet.

24-25 November 2011 – Strasbourg, France

We are heading to Strasbourg today as it sounds nice and is on another wine trail.  The drive is fairly monotonous mainly due to the fog and you can’t see far into the distance, however, we seem to have hit on a small area in France that is big on wind farms, not as big as Spain, but nonetheless I am becoming keener on wind farms as our trip progresses.  We arrive in Strasbourg and have a problem with the GPS mainly due to the fact they have dug up most of the roads and changing things around.  There are also huge gypsy camps here that look like rubbish tips and they seem to be parked in any available carpark and I don’t feel very comfortable leaving Vinnie somewhere that isn’t secure.  We originally chose an Aire near the Parc du Rhin and when we get there we top up water, change grey water, clean toilet etc.  There are a couple of other campers but it is a long way from town.  It is next to a youth hostel so I grab a map and we notice another Aire at Elsau near the tram, so we drive there.  The lady at the counter at Elsau gives us all the details and we had noticed that you can only park there during the day but Scott checked and she assures us it is 24 hours.  Just as we had changed into a million layers of warm clothes she comes and apologises to say she was wrong and gives us the address of another place to stay.  We decide to head into Strasbourg on the tram anyway (the parking comes with train tickets i.e. park and ride – concept Perth can’t get the hang of) and instantly love it.  The trams are fantastic and cheap and whisk you into the centre of town.  They also have grasses down the tracks which softens the development of light rail and provides an almost architecture feel to the system.

Strasbourg:  The capital of Alsace and the site of the Council of Europe, Strasbourg is also home to the European Parliament.  In 1871, Strasbourg was absorbed by Germany and made the capital of the territory of Alsace-Lorraine. It reverted to France in 1918.

Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Strasbourg:  The city’s crowning glory is an outstanding example of Gothic architecture, representing a transition from the Romanesque. Construction began in 1176. The pyramidal tower in rose-colored stone was completed in 1439; at 141m (463 ft.), it’s the tallest one from medieval times.  Four large counter forts divide the main facade into three vertical parts and two horizontal galleries. The facade is rich in decoration: On the portal of the south transept, the Coronation and Death of the Virgin in one of the two tympanums is the finest such medieval work. In the north transept, see also the facade of the Chapelle St-Laurence, a stunning achievement of the late Gothic German style.  In the south transept stands the Angel Pillar, illustrating the Last Judgment, with angels lowering their trumpets. Not to be outdone the organ here is one of the most decorated and drop dead wow we have seen anywhere.  The astronomical clock was built between 1547 and 1574. It stopped during the Revolution, and from 1838 to 1842 the mechanism was replaced.

This was the best organ we have seen on our travels

We have a quick wander back through some of the squares where everything has been decorated in Christmas style and as it is now getting extremely cold and dark we head back to Vinnie and move to our new spot at Camping de la Montagne Vert (www.camping-montagne-verte-strasbourg.com) where we check in and try and defrost.

Strasbourg is famous for its christmas decorations

Up earliesh we head back to a nearby tram stop and buy a 24 hour travel as much as you want ticket for EUR4 each.  We head into town getting off near the Barrage Vauban and then going to spend the rest of the day walking through the sights.

Barrage Vauban:  The picture of what this looks like depicts a 17^th century bridge but it is currently under renovation and is shrouded in scaffolding, so without using some good imagination it could look like anything really.

Ponts Couvert:  I read that this is described as a covered bridge, but it isn’t as there is no top to it, so for me I think of it as a bridge with some 13^th century towers at either end which are fairly impressive.

Petite France:  Along the canals and locks is a gorgeous part of Strasbourg that is full of narrow lanes and at the moment lots of Christmas kiosks and decorations.  Originally this area was where tradesman plied their trade in the middle ages – and you can see the paintings on the tanner’s houses with the dates.  This area is full of nice looking Alsation restaurants and even a vegetarian restaurant. 

Our lunch spot

Grand Ile:  steeped in history the lanes are full of vibrant cafes and timbered houses all under the gaze of the cathedral.  Here also is the Maison Kammerzell which is now a restaurant but they have still maintained the ornate carvings and leaded windows.

Palais de Rohan:  This palace south of the cathedral was built from 1732 to 1742 and is meant to be an example of supreme elegance and proportion. Unfortunately it wasn’t open and along with the other tourists we sadly wandered off.

We decide to head up to the Parlement Europeen as I have in my head it is going to be a futuristic glass building etc (similar to the development around the Reichstag in Berlin), unfortunately it was a huge disappointment and the area is littered with rubbish and just feels soulless, but I suppose it is full of politicians.  We head back into the main squares and retake some photos of the cathedral as today it is sunnier and you can actually see the top of the spire unlike yesterday.  Next we venture back to Petite France for Scott to have a feed of local Choucroute (sauerkraut) with pork and sausages.  Suitably refreshed we head to the Musee d’Art Moderne and although it is a Modern Art Museum it would seem most of the art dates from the early 20^th century.  There is a fairly good variety of artists from Picasso to Kadinsky and also an ArtCafe/WineBar on the top floor where we stop for a drink so that Scott can shake himself awake and complain some more about modern art being crap.

26 November 2011 – Pfaffenheim, France (France Passions Stop)

The drive today follows the Route du Vin between Strasbourg and Colmar following the Vosges foothills with plenty of villages and vineyards to break up the monotony of motorway driving.  We arrive in Obernai which is in full Christmas mode with lots of stalls and roads closed off and of course the GPS always wants to go through the tiny villages where we sometimes just don’t fit.  This is a gorgeous town with lots of see and do, but we don’t dally too long as Scott is keen to keep moving.  We drive through Ribeauville, Kaysersberg and Ammerschwihr before arriving in Colmar.  What a disappointment, parking for campervans was just on the edge of the main road with no services, so we had a sandwich and decided to keep going.  As we were driving out of Colmar there is a huge assortment of motorhomes spread through the street parking – wonder why they don’t put in a purpose built aire.  We head to Pfaffenheim where we find a local vineyard that is part of the France Passions (Domaine Walter & Fills pg 370) and stay there for the night.  However, we do walk through town but it is either siesta or everyone has been abducted as nothing seems open or even inhabited.  Scott has arranged with the family to do a wine tasting at 5pm, yum so looking forward to sweet wine.

Vinnie amongst the vineyards

An easy drive again today and into Holland – yeah another country with no borders.  The weather is sunny but still cold, so we aren’t really deviating along the way and hope to get into Amsterdam early afternoon.  We are staying at Camping Het Amsterdamse Bos (www.campingamsterdam.com) in Amstelveen.  We arrive, get our spot and head straight out to find something hot to eat and for Scott to try the local beers. 

The Scott Beer tour continues

We head to a local bar on the advice of the girl at the reception counter and have a nice simple meal with a few beers and wines.  Stuffed, warm and merry we head back towards the campsite but find a supermarket to buy a few bits from, so now with some extra food we get back to Vinnie and do some tidying up.  Scott has a friend here in Amsterdam so he is coming to stay for a couple of nights and once he arrives, we soon head back out for dinner and a few too many drinks at another bar.

Up not so early with a slight hangover for me, we head into Amsterdam for some sightseeing.  We catch a train into Amsterdam but at the station there is no ability to use cash, so we board the train and hope that someone understands our predicament.  At the main station the guard lets us through as it is obviously a known problem and we head into the world of Amsterdam.  We are now in the hands of Geoff as he knows the area much better than us – it has been about 20 years since I have been here.  As soon as we head out of the station we take our life in our own hands with the millions of bikes, trams, cars and pedestrians heading in every direction. 

Multi-story bike park

Like any good tour, we start the day with a walk through the Red Light District, considering the time of day some of these women are very scary, but due to the amount of drunken groups of men around, they probably look fantastic and are kept busy. 

I think I am the third wheel

The architecture of the area and planning is also interesting; with buildings that fill every nook and cranny along the canals and it is one of the oldest parts of the city.  The women sit in windows wearing not very much, except lots of plastic i.e. boobs, lips etc and not always in the best taste, most of them also look just plain bored. 

When in Holland... you sit on a clog

In Dam Square Scott and I bought our tacky souvenir straight away as we found the perfect thing so no point in prevaricating, I mean it is a ceramic windmill in the Delft colours and also has a pair of clogs and some tulips on it, oh and we also take in the view of the Royal Palace, which apparently the royal family only use once a year, maybe they should consider converting it to homeless accommodation as that seems in high demand.  We spend a fair bit of time wandering through the streets and canals enjoying the sights and scenery.  We stop for lunch at a Dutch Pancake Shop and head back out again.  We go past the outside of Anne Frank’s House which I think she would be surprised at today – it is just a huge money spinner and you do doubt what is left of the original building.  We managed to make our way through the piles of tourists, sand (due to roadworks) and cyclists we found a cafe in the sun for a refreshing cuppa.

Canals, canals and more canals

This afternoon we walk through the Vondelpark which was packed and headed towards the Van Gogh Museum (EUR14).  This is on my must do itinerary, but seeing the queue even I faltered, but encouraged by Geoff and Scott we stuck it out (yes I know, usually Scott takes the first hint of my weakness for queues and bolts).  This museum houses approximately 200 of his paintings as well as a huge collection of drawings and also some nice works by his contemporaries, this allows you to see how his work evolved during his extremely short career (approx 10 years).  The exhibition space is stark and contemporary so does not distract from this work.  As the paintings are in chronological order you can see how he is changing and can almost feel his mounting inner pain.

Once we get outside the sun is almost setting, so have a short break back in the park before deciding to have a few drinks, something to eat and head back to Vinnie.  Unfortunately I know I peaked early with my one too many drinks last night and it is coming back to haunt me now, god must be getting old, two late nights in a row and I am knackered, well actually one late night!  We wander back through the Red Light District which is just as busy and the women are just as scary, however, what is more scary is the roadworks which have a vertical drop into the canal, even I nearly walked in – we wondered how many people they have to fish out during the night, of course a bit of tape or some fencing would help!  We stop at a couple of pubs for the boys to have some of the local beers and then settle on a Thai restaurant for dinner, strategically placed next door to a traditional coffee shop, which the boys thought smelt very potty!  According to the tourist guides the drug trade has been restricted, but with the amount of drugs available and the smoking of it everywhere, can’t see how that is being managed. 

The closest we got to a windmill

The most interesting thing is the bicycle culture.  There are reckoned to be anywhere from 600,000 and up bikes in the city and they cover every spare inch of pavement, in fact they are given more road space than cars and it is easy to take your bikes everywhere.  I wish Perth would get more into the swing of things.  Oh and the bikes aren’t the super expensive Tour de France bikes with everyone kitted out in the latest lycra, the most popular bikes are one-speed city bikes with panniers and baskets which some people have really customised with flowers, ribbons etc.  A relatively early night with the boys listening to some music stuff and me reading.

Up not too early and it is as cold as usual.  We are spending the day here at the campsite doing washing and emails etc before we start the migration back towards Dordogne in France.

14 November 2011 – Sint Truiden, Belgium

On the road again.  We leave foggy Amsterdam and drive slowly down through Holland towards Maastricht.  We can’t find any info on motorhome facilities but the town sounds interesting, so we plug it into the TomTom and head off.  The drive is not the most scintillating and we are soon in Maastricht where we find a parking spot and walk into the city centre.  Maastricht was founded in 50bc but I doubt whether there is much left from that period.  We head into the Vrijthof (the city square) which is vast and surrounded on three sides by restaurants etc and on the fourth side by the Romanesque Sint-Servas Church and the Gothic Sint-Jan’s with its soaring red belfry. 

Maastricht square

Maastricht was also the home of the real life d’Artagnan (from Musketeers fame).  We have lunch at a local cafe sitting in the sun under a heater and watching the world go by.  The TIC isn’t far so we head off and get a map and when we ask the assistant about motorhome parking she says there is none, so we give up on the few remaining sights we wanted to see and decide to head to another town instead who seems to have worked out that people with a motorhome have money and want to spend it in the local town.  We arrive in Sint Truiden at the free Aire de camping and walk into the small town centre – it isn’t very big, but there are plenty of bars, restaurants, shops etc.  There is even an Australian Ice-cream shop!

15 November 2011 – Tournai, Belgium

We are leaving Holland and heading down to Napoleon’s last battle site at Waterloo.  The journey is awesome (sarcastically) with almost zero visibility and it is cold and I mean cold.

Waterloo:  Scott and I both thought that Waterloo was in France, so this is a surprise for us, obviously high school geography and history didn’t sink in.  Waterloo is where French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte met final defeat on 18 June 1815 and the battle ground is made up of rolling farmland.  To survey the battlefield, climb the 226 steps to the top of the nearby Butte du Lion (Lion Mound) (EUR6), a conical hill surmounted by a bronze lion—it takes an active imagination to fill the peaceful farmland with slashing cavalry charges, thundering artillery, and 200,000 colourfully uniformed, struggling soldiers.  We visited the 360-degree Panoramic Mural (included in the ticket) after climbing up to the Butte du Lion.  The panoramic features the massed French cavalry charge led by Marshal Ney.  As the weather didn’t look like it was improving we decided to head towards the town of Tournai.

A monument to another French war gone wrong

Tournai:  which is Belgium’s second-oldest town (after Tongeren) and also the first capital of the kingdom of France. The Aire is not bad, all the facilities and close to town – best of all, it is free.  The area is due for an upgrade soon and will include CCTV; the one thing to remember is that drinking water is free but only in non-frost periods.  There are only two other motorhomes here, but it is winter and the number of people travelling has decreased dramatically.  During medieval and Renaissance times, it had a position of prominence as a European ecclesiastical centre. Its importance in earlier centuries was forgotten until 1653, when a workman discovered the tomb of Childeric, king of the Franks, whose son, Clovis, founded the Merovingian dynasty that ruled for nearly 3 centuries. This led to the discovery that Tournai’s predecessor, a Roman settlement known as Tornacum, was the first capital of the Frankish empire. We walked through the town and it must be noted it is a giant building site with works everywhere.  We subsequently found out that Tournai is a Tour de France town for 2012 and wonder if the works are to pretty the town up before then.  The architecture that isn’t covered up in scaffolding is interesting and we wandered down to the Belfry dates from the late 1100s, making it Belgium’s oldest. 

The Belfry

 

Cathédrale Notre-Dame is a magnificent five-towered cathedral which was completed in the late 1100s and is currently closed for a total renovation, although the sign did state it would be finished in 2016.  We stopped in at a little Belgian Beer Bar (Charles Quint) for a beer and wine, but Scott ended up with a Stella Artois, so we moved on to another bar on the way back to the Aire which was lovely and Scott tried another couple of different monastic dark ales, I think he is a convert, although the British ales still are his favourite on this trip.

One of Scott

16 November 2011 – Hans-Sur-Lesse, Belgium

Another rambling drive today going from one side of Belgium to the other.

Namur:  an old riverside town at the confluence of the Meuse and Sambre rivers.  We are coming here to visit the Citadelle which overlooks the town.  A fortification has stood atop this bluff since pre-Roman times.  There is plenty of parking here and you get a great view of the rivers and the city below.  So we sit and have lunch in the sun and enjoy watching the boats ply their trade up and down the canals.

Another great camping spot

Abbaie de Maredsous (Maredsous Abbey):  The twin towers of the neo-Gothic Benedictine abbey stand out clearly above the rugged, forested countryside. It is famed for its own beer, cheese, and bread, but we only bought some of the locally produced beer.  In summer this would be a fantastic place to visit for a picnic and a walk as there are loads of things to see and do. The abbey’s third abbot, Dom Columba Marmion of Dublin, appointed in 1909, was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 2000.

Abbaie de Maredsous

Hans-Sur-Lesse:  This village sited on a scenic stretch of the Lesse River has an Aire which is EUR7.50 which includes water and power, however as nobody was there to pay and nobody came to collect the money it became free.  We parked up and walked into the town centre which looks like it would be a lively place in the summer.  We found a cafe/bar and Scott tried out a variety of beers and we had to partake in the frites which are everywhere and were excellent.  So suitably warmed up and full we head back to Vinnie and watch a movie.

On today

17 November 2011 – Dudelange, Luxembourg

Today we are driving through the Ardennes and along some of the battle fields that were intensely fought in WWII.  The terrain is much wooded and as you approach into La Roche-En-Ardenne you can only imagine what it would have been like in the winter of 1944-1945.  The town itself is quite lovely with lots to see and do.  We don’t stop – today is probably the coldest day we have come across, there is even ice on the ground, so unless we really really really have to get out of Vinnie and the heating I will do my photography from inside. 

Bastogne:  This is the site of Battle of the Bulge where US troops fought to hold the strategic town.  We stopped at the Mardasson Memorial which is a huge tribute to the US from the Belgium people and quite moving.  Currently there are a lot of groundwork’s going on to make the centre more interpretive and informative.  We thought we had parked under a sprinkler but realised it was all the ice melting from the trees above.  We so love European autumn, it is actually getting colder than in Tibet at winter which is saying something.

A huge memorial and so sad

Dudelange, Luxembourg:  We are driving into Luxembourg to spend the night at an Aire in Dudelange which is free and fully serviced.  We know we have arrived in Luxembourg when the price of petrol drops to about EUR1.20 per litre which is about 20-30 cents per litre cheaper than Belgium etc.  On arrival we locked Vinnie and walked into the town centre as we need to find a bank.  Fully cashed up we found a little Italian cafe and had a huge meal before wandering back through town.  It is a nice town, but what surprised us was that you can smoke inside cafes, pubs etc – maybe because it is so cold outside.  Because of that we couldn’t be bothered to sit in a pub and bought some wine to take back to the campsite.  As we were enjoying our wine the Aire started to fill up and soon our side was full with four large motorhomes – so we aren’t the only people travelling, yeah.  Except so far nobody is from the UK and language is a problem.

A great view from Vinnie

18 November 2011 – Trier, Germany

Scott and I both woke up this morning with colds, obviously the weather has got to us and the visibility here where we are is non-existent, so we are heading to Germany for one last visit before hitting our remaining sites in France.  We can’t believe how much the time is flying by and we need to have Vinnie back in the UK and get organised for our flight home.

Trier, Germany:  We find our Aire which is spacious and even has showers, drop Vinnie off as usual.  The good thing with the Aires is that as there are other fancier motorhomes we feel safe and they usually have some form of security etc.  We walk into town which turned out to be further than we thought and considering we aren’t feeling very well it was a long, cold walk.  There is a Roman gate here (Porto Negro) which is meant to be the largest in Europe.  The gate is in good condition and it is huge, guarding one of the entrances to the town.  There is a large faire being set up for Christmas, groan, thought we were bypassing all that nonsense.  We wander around and as we aren’t feeling too flash, decide to get some hot chips and a cake for later and trudge back to Vinnie and spend the afternoon being totally unsociable and reading etc.

The Romans certainly got around Europe

A not too early start to the day and a short drive to Dresden in Germany.   Scott loves the fact that we can just drive between countries, no passports, no checkpoints – nada.  We didn’t even know we have crossed the border (no signs whatsoever) except that the drivers seem to be faster but much more courteous.  And when I say faster, I mean faster, there isn’t even a maximum speed on the GPS.  We have found a parking spot right across the river from the Cathedral etc (EUR14 per night with security) so drop Vinnie off, rug up and head straight out to the TIC as we don’t even have a map, after all Germany wasn’t on our list of countries visit, sometimes being spontaneous can be a bugger.  We have to say that first impressions are fantastic, the city is easily laid out, great transport, lots of places to eat, and a lot of things seem to be free – what more can two unemployed homeless people ask.  So we made an executive decision and are staying an extra day to see some more of the city before heading to Berlin.  The only bizarre thing here is that the memorials to the war dead don’t really mention WWI or WWII, they mention the Nazi war, ignoring that the vast majority of people here in Germany were involved against the Allied forces.  Even here in Dresden, instead of mentioning the bombings that took place in 1945, they say the fire fights.  I suppose it is hard to acknowledge that they started two world wars where millions of people were impacted across the globe.  After the tourist office for maps our first stop is somewhere for a snack and drink and we choose that German of all restaurants – an Argentinean Grill (El Rodizio on Wilsdruffer Str. 22), it was close, they did something vegetarian and we could work out where we wanted to go.  Suitably refreshed with nachos and a couple of huge classes of wine we head back into the town.  Strangely it doesn’t even feel so cold now.

Even the lightposts are exquisitely designed

Zwinger:  Built in the 18^th century this is giant courtyard surrounded by buildings that would resemble a glasshouse with a covered in roof.  The buildings are baroque and extremely ornamental.  It is hard to describe just how big some of these buildings are and how intricate their carvings and designs are.

Semper Opera House and Theaterplatz:  Walking outside the Zwinger you come straight up to the Opera House.  Again designed in the 18^th century but instead of baroque it is in the Italian High Renaissance style.  Yet again I realise I should have probably studied architecture or history or anything else other than sustainability.  The building was totally destroyed in 1945 but reconstructed in 1985 with fantastic attention to detail.  In fact I didn’t realise it had been rebuilt until I read the blurb.

Catholic Hofkirche Church:  This is a strange church; it is all white surfaces with lots of gold edging, no dark gothic art that is normally associated with the Catholic Church.  Designed in the 18^th century it meets the requirements of the Lutheran church (middle nave).  The heart of Augustus the Strong is buried in the church crypt.

a very different church

We stop at a German restaurant (Kutscherschanke on Munzgasse 10) for something more substantial (Scott had sausages and I had a veggie soup) before bracing the cold weather for the walk back to Vinnie.  It may be cold but the sun is shining and loads of people are out in the parks doing a huge variety of sports and just enjoying themselves.

Dresden skyline at night

The next day it is sunny but still freezing, but we are up and about with an aim to finish the sights.  Scott goes for a morning jog (mad if you ask me) and I stay inside nice and warm and reading of course.  Even though I am not working it is hard to keep up with all the reading I want to do and also write up my book reviews (www.ourbookclub.net.au), not enough hours in the day and I wonder how on earth I managed working full-time, studying full-time and reading.

Bruhl Terrace:  This was a set of private gardens for Count Bruhl but is now a promenade which gives you fantastic views of the surrounding buildings.  Just below Bruhl Terrace is the river which has a large selection of paddle steamers and you can take a trip up or down the river – we elect to do a walk instead especially as I hate boats and being stuck on one just doesn’t appeal.

Procession of Princes, Royal Mews:  This is a strange art work.  Along the side of the transport museum you can see a porcelain depiction of all the Saxon rulers.

Dresden skyline

 

 

 

We spend the rest of the day wandering through the streets of the city on both sides of the river having a leisurely lunch back at El Rodizio on Wilsdruffer Str. 22.  As the weather starts to turn to freezing, we finally head back to Vinnie.

7-8 November 2011 – Berlin, Germany

The drive to Berlin was along motorways and we were totally obscured by fog, so didn’t really see too much.  We had picked an Aire in Germany from the Camperstop book but the first one was closed, so we then picked an Aire from the Aires de Camping GPS software and yep, that was closed or didn’t look like it had even existed for ages, so we gave up and looked up an AA Aire and headed towards the Internationale Reisemobilstation which is a short walk from the Brandenburg Gate.  On arrival there was nobody on reception so we headed out for lunch at a local Italian restaurant – loving this Germany food aren’t we.  After a couple of hours we went back and checked in and then headed back out to the supermarket to buy a few staples and Scott bought a mobile phone card for the iPhone, this didn’t work but he had to come back at 5pm when the owner would be there for a refund (we think the guy who gave us the card had cut it wrong).  It is now dark and freezing, so back to Vinnie it is.  At 5pm Scott heads back to the mobile phone shop and gets a new card, but we have to wait a while for it to activate.

Up early and tourist map in hand.  We stop at a Vodafone store as the mobile phone card we bought yesterday still isn’t working to find out that it was someone else’s card, so we bought a new one and it worked instantly – moral of the story don’t buy from a local shop that isn’t the actual provider.

Reichstag (Parliament):  The home to the German government.  Although designed in the 19^th century (it originally opened in 1894) it was almost destroyed in 1933 when a mysterious fire broke out and with the blame placed on the Communists, this gave Hitler the perfect opportunity to declare dictatorial powers and should we say the rest if pretty well documented in history.  It also faced massive bombardments in WWII.  After the reunification of Germany it was rebuild with a recent addition of a large glass dome designed by Sir Norman Foster.

the Reichstag

Brandenburg Gate:  The Acropolis has to be the inspiration for this monument.  Constructed in 1789, there is a fantastic photo of how it looked after WWII and the work to restore it today.  It was the boundary between East and West Berlin and was once integrated into the Berlin Wall.  Around the corner from the Brandenburg Gate is a wonderful memorial to the European Jews, very eerie with large concrete blocks in different heights.

Brandenburg Gate

Potsdamer Platz:  This was once one of the most prestigious areas in Berlin, it was the place where Germany’s first traffic light was installed and where the first electric street lights were installed, however it appears to be a building site at the moment and other than large amounts of roadworks, it is hard to work out what the area is.  Yes I know it was flattened during the war, but in the rebuild they could have put some of the glamour back into the area. 

Berlin Wall:  We walked to an area where this is a section of the Berlin Wall along with some information panels, a large section of below the wall and how things were cut off or destroyed. 

Now and then

Next door is a large photographic pictorial of the War and the rise and fall of the Nazi’s.  There is so much information in here, that it could easily take up several hours and it is interesting to see some of the photos and descriptions.  It is a strange place and I wondered if some elderly people came in here and saw themselves in the photos in their Nazi uniforms etc, or whether they just ignore the whole thing.

Berlin Wall

Stallschreiber Strasse:  This area was known as the “Death Zone” and saw the killing of many people who tried to cross the Wall.  There isn’t much left here, but large boarding’s that have been put up show pictures of what the street and area looked like when the wall still stood.

Corner of Zimmerstrasse and Charlottenstrasse:  This is the sign of the shooting to Peter Fechter as he attempted to climb over the Berlin Wall to escape.  A few months later the Wall was demolished.

Site of Checkpoint Charlie:  This is the spot that everyone knows from the Cold War days.  Created in 1961 and was the only border crossing that all Germans were forbidden to use.  It is now a giant tourist attraction and there is also a museum.  If you want your photo taken there are plenty of people dressed up as US or Russian military.

Checkpoint Charlie

Gendarmenmarkt:  You stumble into this area and it is breathtaking.  The buildings are monumental.  It is also easy to forget it was totally demolished during WWII and rebuilt/restored by the East Germans.  The square’s centrepiece remains the neoclassical theatre (Schauspielhaus) designed by Karl Friedrich Schinkel in 1821. Restoration of the French Cathedral here was completed in 1983, and the property was returned to the French Reformed Church. The Schauspielhaus reopened in 1984 as a concert hall.

Königliche Bibliothek (Royal Library):  This library is part of the Humboldt University, which was completed in 1780 and modelled on the Royal Palace (Hofburg) in Vienna.  The library is remembered as the site of Hitler’s infamous book burnings and through a window set in the pavement, you can look below to a small library lined with empty bookshelves which is very evocative.  How can students, or anyone, burn books, you go to school and university to become educated and learn about the world around you!

An empty library

Unter den Linden:  We take a quick walk along the Unter den Linden on our way to Alexanderplatz.  The street is a wide boulevard with the East Germans restoring many of the buildings.

Alexanderplatz:  This was the centre for activity in the old East Berlin. It is now an area of really rundown shopping centres etc.  However, we found a great Hari Krishna restaurant to fill ourselves up at before hitting the streets again.

Nikolaiviertel:  restored in 1987 this part of town is where Berlin was originally founded.  Many of the medieval and baroque buildings in the neighbourhood were completely and authentically reconstructed after World War II. Subsequently, some of the city’s old flavour has been recaptured here.  The Nikolaikirche is the oldest in Berlin, was originally constructed in the 14th century on the remains of a 13th-century Romanesque church. The restored building now displays the finds of post-war archaeological digs; during the reconstruction, 800-year-old skeletons   Around the corner from the church is an incredibly lifelike statue of St George slaying a dragon.  I also find my perfect tourist souvenir of a small chip of the Berlin Wall and for under our budget I was suitably chuffed even though Scott thinks it is highly unlikely it is from the wall itself.

Berliner Dom:  constructed between 1894 and 1905, in the style of the High Renaissance and the largest Protestant cathedral in Germany.

Hedwigskirche:  the Roman Catholic cathedral of the Berlin diocese. Begun in 1747 by Frederick the Great and was restored between 1952 and 1963.

The New Synagogue:  Originally consecrated on Rosh Hashanah in 1866, and capped with what’s remembered as one of the most spectacular domes in Berlin, this synagogue was vandalized in 1938 during Kristallnacht, torched by Berliners in 1944, blasted by Allied bombs in 1945, and finally, after about a decade of further deterioration, demolished by the Communist East Germans in the 1950s.  It was inspired by the architecture of the Alhambra in Granada, Spain.  It has been partially rebuilt, and capped with a gilded dome that’s visible for many surrounding blocks.

We were totally shattered by the end of today and can’t believe we managed to get to see everything on our list – whew.

9 November 2011 – Eland, Germany

Up early as the weather is diabolical and you can hardly see across the Aire.  We are heading to a hill town called Eland to have a break from cities and to hopefully enjoy some quiet.  Berlin is not the quietest city with sirens going off nearly all night long.  The drive is not interesting until we get into the forests, which originally start out as eerie and then the sun breaks through and it is all blue sky.  On arriving in Eland we even crack out the camp chairs and sit in the sun for a while – awesome is the only words we can use to describe that feeling.  Unfortunately as soon as the sun sets it drops to minus lots and we rug up.

Sun and an awesome spot - perfect

10 November 2011 – Horstel, Germany

The drive today is through beautiful countryside, it is interesting and varied.  We are also on the hunt for a gas bottle as we are getting low and with the cold nights we need to use some gas for heating.  We following many wild goose chases until we chance on a small one man garage selling the exact bottle we need – so between his German and our English we hope we have got a good bottle.  We hit the road again and finally find our Aire in Horstel which is on the edge of a canal.  We spend the time watching the huge canal barges go by and they are so quiet it is a really nice setting.

Up early for a shower and brekkie before heading out of Vienna and onto the road to Prague.  This is exciting as it has been a huge must see for my whole life.  The roads aren’t too bad, except for the fog which makes seeming anything on either side of the road impossible, let alone the cars coming towards you.  We bought a Vignette for the car at the border which we had to veer off the motorway to get – there really aren’t any notices other than a small sign to say you are crossing the country borders these days within the EU.  We continue on and eventually we come over a hill and there is Prague in front of us, we drive through part of the town where you can already see the wonderful architecture (hmm maybe I should go back to Uni) and headed to Triocamp to park the Motorhome.  The camp is managed by Vlastimil Nemec and he speaks wonderful English and provided heaps of information on how to get the tram, buses, trains etc around the town along with a pile of maps.  It is getting cold and dark so we set up the van and sit down with a bottle of wine reading up on our maps etc all ready for tomorrow.

Up early and pick up our bread rolls from the front counter for cheese on toast brekkie.  We then head off to catch the 162 bus which takes us to Kobylisy and then we take the 17 tram which we got off just near the Charles Bridge.  Already we love Prague – there is so much to see our heads are on swivel sticks.  As soon as we get off the tram and see the massive Prague Castle complex on the hill with the Cathedral, we decide to split the sightseeing into two days instead of one, so today we are off into the Old Town area and leaving the Castle etc until tomorrow.

We do however walk most of the way across Charles Bridge which crosses the river Vltava.  This has to be one of the most beautiful structures to come across.  Dating from the 14^th century, Charles Bridge links the castle to the town and although it is now a pedestrian promenade with bands and artists it is also a living art gallery with both sides of the bridge holding about 30 statues.  Of course the beautiful gateways at each end are as much a sculpture as anything else and the Old Town Bridge dates from approximately 1357 (designed for Charles IV) and designed by the same architect who drafted the plans for St. Vitus Cathedral which we are seeing tomorrow.  The statues are all religious in their nature from Madonna, to St Ives, St Dominic, St Thomas Aquinas etc including a statue of St Christopher, although he is apparently a saint no more and another of St Francis of Assisi. 

The Charles Bridge

From here we walk back into the Old Town which is full of weaving streets that following the map is almost impossible.  There are loads of shops and interesting things going on around up and we head towards Havel’s Market to an open air market full of local products and souvenirs (there are lots of souvenirs shops here in Prague, so don’t think you will run out).  It is now getting cold so we stop for a coffee and Scott has a local beer (for the grand price of EUR20, even more than in Florence).  Warmed and recaffinated or rebeered in Scott’s case we head off to Wenceslas Square.  We pass a bookstore on the way which had a terrific section of English books, but none that Scott wanted and he lamented his lack of Czech.  We weren’t sure if we were at Wenceslas Square as it really isn’t a square as such, more a grassed area with a huge statue and groups of kids dancing.  So much for being one of the city’s more historic squares.  The only good thing is that we didn’t do a city break from London and stay here, much better to stay in the Old Town.  We continue walking through the streets to The Globe Bookstore where we hope to browse through some books and have a snack.  In the Frommer’s Guide they recommend this restaurant/bookstore a lot.  We arrived, sat down, waited, waited and waited some more and then got up and rugged back up again, on our way out the waitress said she was sorry but she was too busy running around!!  What a waste of time.  We continued back through the streets, now starving and settle for a pizza restaurant – nothing fancy but at least it was hot and there was good service.  So far everyone here speaks English as well which is fantastic. 

We continue back through the streets reaching the Old Town Square and were just in time to see the astronomical clock ring in the new hour.  This is a beautiful square full of churches and old buildings and you can easily spend a lot of time wandering through the churches.  The Old Town Hall’s Astronomical Clock was built in 1410 and isn’t exactly the most accurate; however the clock at the top of the tower is.  The astronomical Clock is meant to mark the phases of the moon, the equinoxes, the seasons, the days, and numerous Christian holidays.  When the clock strikes the hour you are entertained by a variety of doors opening, statues moving and ringing bells and in addition a trumpeter then finishes off the tune. 

They don

It is now starting to get a bit dark (it is 4pm after all), so we walk back through Josefov which is the home to the Jewish area before boarding our tram and bus back to the campsite.  Josefov was once a home to approximately 118,000 Jews, but after WWII only 30,000 survived and now only 3,000 live in this area. 

Next morning we are up early(ish) and after another filling brekkie of fresh bread rolls we board the bus and tram to go back into Prague.  We walk back across the Charles Bridge and up towards the castle complex. 

I still can

This is a lovely walk with loads of restaurants, shops, churches and a whole swag of historical and beautiful buildings. 

Only a small uphill walk.

According to Frommer’s Europe you have to be very fit to do this walk but they recommend a taxi – anybody could do this walk, just take it slowly and enjoy the scenery.  We take it slow through the Lesser Town district before we finally reach the hill in Hradcany for a few of the city and wander through the Palace grounds.  You don’t have to pay unless you want to go inside, but after seeing the entrance to St. Vitus Cathedral, I quickly go back and buy a ticket. 

St. Vitus Cathedral:  This Cathedral has to be one of the most spectacular we have seen anywhere in the world.  The Cathedral was originally started in 926AD with most of the current construction taking part in the 14^th century.  Even Pope John Paul II came here three times in seven years.  We can understand why – just spend time looking at the stained glass windows, only two of them (I think) were restored after World War II – not bad going.  If they don’t impress you, try the gold mosaics which date from 1370.  Everywhere you look you are surrounded by gorgeous sculptures, architecture and it is difficult to put into words how interesting it all is without using the same words over and over again.  Of course then there is the St. Wenceslas Chapel which is a sight in itself, it is encrusted with Jasper and amethyst and sits atop the gravesite of St Wenceslas.  The royal crypt was closed due to technical issues and didn’t have a re-opening date.  This was worth the entry fee for the Palace complex (250Kz each for the short tour).  We then headed to the Royal Palace

Inside St Vitus Cathedral

Royal Palace:  Since the 9^th century this Palace has been the home to the Bohemians and the Vladislav Hall was used to host coronations.  There aren’t a lot of rooms, but what is open are interesting and well kept and you also get spectacular views of Prague.  It would certainly have been nice to be a royal living here in the day. 

St. George’s Basilica:  This is Prague’s oldest Romanesque structure and dates from the 10^th century.  Inside the church is small but beautifully designed and it is plain in comparison to the more grandiose ideals of the cathedral.  There is also a great carving on the side entrance of St George slaying the dragon.

Golden Lane:  This street is a recreation of the houses that were used up until 1952 by castle workers.  The houses were originally built in the 16^th century and you couldn’t complain about how far you had to roll out of bed to get to your desk. 

We leave the castle complex and find a more traditional pub/restaurant for lunch where Scott enjoys a giant port knuckle with potatoes and cabbage along with a beer (Pilsner Urquell and Staropramen), I settled for an omelette, oh the woes of being vegetarian and standing strong in the face of such weakness. 

We head back across Charles Bridge which is now much busier than earlier and back into Old Town.  Scott is on the hunt for a traditional Pilsner glass so that becomes out mission.  After all Pilsner started here.  Eventually after much walking and almost giving up, we found one, so happily we can head back to Vinnie as it is getting dark and cold.  We can honestly say that Prague is one of the best cities we have visited and gives Istanbul a run for its money.

As we are leaving Italy we have decided to call into Sacile and Palmanova on the way through to Postojna.

Sacile:  Just a short drive from Treviso and we are there by mid morning.  This town is described as the Garden of Serenity.  Well it is lovely and once you can actually find a parking spot for a motorhome (we parked at the local sports stadium) we were able to wander through the willow-lined streets into the main part of town.  The town is well maintained, the road crews were out sweeping out the leaves, which considering it is autumn may be an ongoing job.  The canal runs through town and there is a nice piazza where we were lucky enough to sit in the sun and have a coffee.  This is an expensive looking area but there are lots of nice shops, restaurants and cafes.  It was supposedly bombed heavily in WWII and has obviously been rebuilt in quite a few days.  I wouldn’t say it reminded me of Venice as the guidebook says, but it is a nice spot to chill out for a few hours.

Palmanova:  This is a town that Scott really wanted to visit – described as being shaped like a nine-pointed star and a town built within a fortress, you soon realise that there isn’t much left of the defences and you can’t tell anything about the stars unless you are above and there is no lookout tower etc and as hiring an airplane is a bit out of our price range.  The only part you can really see are the gates into/out of the city which are still in use.  There is a large Piazza Grande in the shape of a hexagon with three of the roads leading to the gates (Udine, Cividale and Aquileia).  We decide as there isn’t much to see we will continue to head towards Slovenia.

The trip into Slovenia was easy and you hardly felt like you were leaving Italy.  We are heading to Postojna to an Aire and for the caves.  Slovenia has been settled since 250,000 BC (evidence has been found in a cave just southwest of Postojna and it sounds an interesting combination of new and old, not only that, it is on the Euro and apparently has a high level of English – fantastic news for us as we are struggling under the mountain of languages.

Postojna:  We arrive there as it is getting dark to find the Aire has a barrier across it, so we park in the car-park across the road.  Soon we are the only people in the whole area – really strange, anyway we can’t work out the timings of the Caves, so eventually give up, rug up in the van as it is freezing and listen to the tonne of leaves dropping on the roof.  There was no option not to park under the trees, so have to make do.  It is kind of eerie being all alone here, but we watch a nearby building change colours during the night. 

29-30 October 2011:  Ljubljana, Slovenia

We get up early to find that magically the other Aire had opened – no idea how that worked, but we find that the Caves don’t open until 10am and it takes about 4 hours to do and we wanted to be in Ljubljana today.  There is still nobody around, so we pay the carpark fee (EUR10 which was cheaper than the Aire at EUR18 anyway).  However if you have time this looks like a great place to spend the day, there are excellent facilities and a castle is only another 9kms up the road.  Apparently Slovenia is just full of subterranean caves, although the most spectacular are at Skocjan which is a Unesco World Heritage site.  Because of this geological feature lakes appear and disappear at random times, which may be why the Partisans were able to stay hidden in the bog areas of Slovenia for so long.  At Postojna there is also the added bonus of seeing an albino creature called the human fish.  This sort of looks like a tadpole.   

The roads so far in Slovenia have been great, easy to navigate and in good condition.  The towns are quite big and the scenery is drop dead gorgeous.  It is autumn so the leaves are a-changing and due to the still dominant forests in this country it is a magnificent sight.  So far everyone we have had to speak to has also spoken great English, better than some people at home.

We arrive in Ljubljana and head to the only motorhome park that seems to be open at this time of year – Ljubljana Resort (www.ljubljanaresort.si ) which is just a short bus-ride from the town centre.  There are quite a few motorhomes in and out of the park, although we do feel like one of the few braving the colder weather and heading north, but c’est la vie.  As it is still only lunchtime, we head into town.  You buy a bus ticket from the reception at the campsite and that is valid for a return journey, you only need to tag on and off – bit like home.  We get off at the Nama Centre which is then a short stroll to the old part of town.  It is now drizzling, just a fine drizzle, but enhances the cold and we are both glad we dragged out the thermal trousers, groan.

Ljubljana was inhabited by the Romans in the 1^st century AD and has since been inhabited by a variety of countries, tribes etc, all leaving their own inherent traits on the city centre.  Although the longest inhabitants were the Habsburgs (Germans I suppose) who inhabited the city from 1335 until after WWI.  There isn’t a lot left prior to 1511 (medieval times) due to a huge earthquake that devastated the city, but we are certainly glad that people rebuilt it.  During WWII it was occupied by both the Italians and the Germans, but today is part of the EU and seems to have found a lot of success in its management into the global markets.  Today it is one of the nicest cities we have visited and it would be an absolute pleasure to come again in warmer months.  Today we are on foot in freezing temperatures, but the city is easy to navigate.  Everything seems to look towards the Ljubljana Castle and the River.

Presernov Trg:  the first square or set of streets you come to culminate in a monument of Preseren (1905) and as well as linking the old and new towns, this leads you towards the Triple Bridge.   This originally started out as one bridge (1842) before being expanded in 1931 by Joze Plecnik (this was one busy man in Ljubljana – his name is everywhere).  The most noticeable monument in the square is the Franciscan Church of the Annunciation which is a huge pink building.  There were services going on when we were there, so we didn’t go inside.  We always feel bad having a sticky beak at mass times. 

Central Market Area:  How lucky, for once we make it to a market.  This may be a small capital city, but the market is certainly thriving and is beautifully laid out.  There is a lovely colonnade walkway along the river and then on your right there are loads and loads of market stalls in the open air along Vodnikov Trg selling everything from local produce to souvenirs and clothes.  At the end of Vodnikov Trg is the famous Dragon Bridge which is a fantastic photo opportunity at any time of day.  The dragon is everywhere here and we thought it must hail from the old days, but alas according to the Lonely Planet it is from the 20^th century and was part of a bridge design to win an award.  Dominating this market area is the Cathedral of St Nicholas which was built in the 18^th century on the site of a 12^th century church. 

Ljubljana Castle:  We are lazy and take the easy option of the funicular up to the castle.  There has been a building on this site from Celtic times, but the current building seems to hail from the 16^th century and has been recently renovated big time.  This sort of renovation would ruin a lot of castles or older style buildings, but in this case it has been done extremely well and it certainly melds the old with the super modern, using glass and steel you can see exactly where the renovated work has been done.  It is also a fantastic venue for any event as you can easily wander the areas and there are several restaurants/bars and a, yes I am going to say it, a good souvenir shop.  We climb the Watchtower to view the castle – supposedly on a nice day you can see nearly a third of Slovenia, today however, we were lucky to see each other.  Still you get the idea.  At the bottom of the Watchtower is the Chapel of St George – now this is definitely worth venturing into and sitting down for a minute to take in all the frescoes and coats of arms – beautiful paintings.  We wander through and along the ramparts and other buildings before ascending the funicular back into town and the thought of something warm.  

After the castle we find a bar to sit down and try out some of the local wines and wow are they good!  Scott also goes into roast chestnut overdrive and buys a large packet to munch on while we are sitting under the outdoor heaters.  We see a restaurant across the river (Pizzicato) and decide to head there for lunch – we hadn’t seen anyone come in or out, but it looked nice.  We crossed the river and opened the door and it was packed, so we managed to get a table and sit down.  This restaurant does both local food and pizza as well as some very nice wine.  I have a large veggie pizza and Scott ventures into the local cuisine of a stew with dumplings.  He doesn’t go for the horse steak (stallion steak) and he can’t eat veal with me as I abhor the practice.  The meal was wonderful and we are suitable stuff when we venture out.  We continue to wander through town taking in the sights and sounds of this lovely place and decide to stay another day and come back in tomorrow.  As such we head back to the campsite via the lovely roman walls (14-15 AD) and ruins as it is getting dark.  Once back at the campsite, we venture into the restaurant which is almost empty – strange, looks nice, does a good variety of food, but we are stuffed from lunch and have a drink whilst doing a few emails.

Next day we head back into town.  It is Sunday so there is no market on today, but we can still wander the streets and the cafes etc are open.  We also realise that the time has changed between here and Italy – yes it has taken a few days and of course it makes sense that people weren’t at the restaurant so early last night.  As it is not raining or drizzling today we wander the streets taking photographs and finding all the places we couldn’t find yesterday.  We head back into the Old town and find the Mestni Trg, Stari Trg and Gornji Trg which house some of the oldest and most interesting architecture that highlight some of the important historical events in Ljubljana’s history.  It is nice to spend the time just wandering and window shopping, stopping for coffee/cake instead of having a list of tourist sites.  There is also an antique market on along the river which we wander through.  The old town is full of tiny narrow streets with some lovely medieval houses and small bridges which linked the different parts of the city.  We are now starving so head to Sokol for an early lunch.  Again we hadn’t seen many people enter it, but once inside it is a huge restaurant over several floors all in the traditional style of vaulted ceilings with a huge selection of Slovenian food.  Luckily they also did a very nice vegetable risotto.  Scott enjoyed his mixed grill of different meats with picked cabbage and turnip and of course the wine was really nice yet again.

Walking past the Opera House (building 1892), we head towards the large Park Tivoli and through an art installation of paintings and sculpture, all set off by autumnal colours.  Back down towards the Serbian Orthodox Church we venture inside to a church full of blue and gold paintings, every surface explodes in colour.  We stop for an afternoon coffee and I have a cake whilst Scott has his container of hot chestnuts.  It has been a great day and we head back to Vinnie happy with everything we have seen and done and just loving the friendly atmosphere of this city.  

31 October 2011 – 1 November 2011:  Vienna, Austria

The drive doesn’t look very far on the map, so we set off early for Vienna.  We finally released it was a public holiday here in Slovenia so the shops were closed, although we did find a LeClercs open so did some shopping and bought some Slovenian wine before heading into Australia.  Our driving therefore was quite easy, with the exception along the way we had to buy a vignette to use the motorways in Slovenia and also had to buy one to use the motorways in Austria.  Not sure what the money goes on, but in Austria it certainly isn’t the roads as they are some of the worst we have travelled on in Europe, with only Republic of Ireland being worst.  We had initially hoped to be at the campsite in Vienna at 3:30pm, however after finding our first two campsite choices closed, we find an Aire, but that didn’t seem the best, so hung our luck on one final campsite (Camping Wien West) which was open, well open, but nobody in reception, so we parked in the carpark and I poured Scott and wine and cooked dinner as he was shattered driving through, in and around Vienna in peak hour.

We got up early and I then stood in the queue at the Reception counter to finally get told by the worlds must unhelpful person that I needed the number of the spot we were in, so I went back and got the number and queued again to find that wasn’t the number, it was meant to be the other number!!!  I gave up and told Scott to deal with him.  Scott came back eventually after checking in (apparently we couldn’t have been in the number Scott gave him, and he had to go and check that yes whoever was there had left).  We got a map and a ticket and headed off into Vienna, only to realise that yes, it is a public holiday here today.  Hmm we hadn’t really had a good vibe so far with Vienna and this means that nothing will be open.  Oh well, we are here now.  We get on the bus and change at the train station at Karlsplatz.  We venture towards the Hofburg area which is where the Habsburg dynasty ruled Austria for six centuries.  The buildings are seriously grandiose and overpowering, certainly no lack of money in those days.  However, they need to be cleaned and the whole area needs to have somebody go through picking up rubbish.  Everything else seems to be under some form of covering or undergoing interminable renovations.  We wander around the outsides of the buildings and through the parks.  It is seriously cold today.  Different sections of the area has been grouped into different museums, galleries etc, but we aren’t in the mood for the galleries and having been to Paris, London Scott is way over art.  Most of the monuments so far all relate to Emperor Franz Joseph I (1848-1916), he certainly liked to see his likeness around the place.  We stop and have a coffee at a small cafe – not cheap are these things and we are served by Mr Grumpy, who must be related to Mr Grumpy at the campsite reception.  So far two out of two people in the service industry have been incredibly miserable and unwilling to help, although they did speak English.

We headed towards the Stephansom (the cathedral) which you can’t see from afar like other cathedrals, instead when you walk around the corner it is literally there.  A huge Viennese Gothic building full of pillars, ribbed vaulted ceilings etc.  Mass is on so you can only stand at the back of the cathedral so we decide to come back later. 

We walk around the corner towards Mozarthaus.  This is the only remaining address for Mozart left in the city and it is certainly a desirable residence.  Obviously things weren’t tough as a composer, although he only lived here from 1784-1787, supposedly his happiest time but the effects of a gambling addiction saw the end to that and he died a pauper 1791.  We didn’t go inside as the house does not have any of his personal possessions and I am not an artistic person and struggle to imagine what it would have been like.  We then start the long walk to the Danube Canal and we go via the Prater which is an old style amusement park.  Being a public holiday you would think this place would be packed, but alas, hardly a sole here which is a real shame as it is a fantastic spot for kids with a huge variety of rides and amusements.  Continuing on, we finally reach the Danube and what a disappointment – it isn’t blue!  It is just a large canal with industrial ship works on the sides, no restaurants etc.  There weren’t even any cruises running.  Oh well we gave up and headed to the underground and back to Stephansplatz where after walking past the Spanish Riding School (Spanische Reitschule) allows you to see the Lipizzaner horses before they perform.  I am not sure if they are different to the Lipazana (or however they spell it) horses in Slovenia? We found a restaurant that was open and served local food.  Again this was staffed by Mr and Mrs Happy and service etc seemed an unexpected requirement.  Eventually we got some food and some wine (awful wine, so glad we stocked up in Italy and Slovenia).  After our fill of food we headed back towards the Stephansom where Mass had finished but as today is a public holiday you can’t see the Catacombs or take the elevator to the north tower, although with the fog or pollution no point in trying to get a city view anyway.  So we saw the bits we could and eventually gave up with the cold and started the trip back to the campsite which was actually very easy and well located.  

It has rained all night, so we eventually pack up and get going.  We are heading to Mantova with the aim of being close enough to re-visit Venice tomorrow if the weather clears at all.  We stick to the motorways and visibility isn’t very good, so no point in doing the scenic drive and are soon in Mantova.  The weather hasn’t improved and we just can’t be bothered to get out, go for a walk in the rain, and get cold.  So we stop and have a sandwich before doing a slow drive through town.  This looked a nice place and if we were coming through this way again would definitely spend more time here.

We have decided to keep moving and head back to the Aire in Soave that we visited last week.  We arrived at the Aire and as it was still raining we called it a day/night and couldn’t be bothered to get rugged up and put on wet weather gear.  There were still a few people there from last time (so much for the 48 hour limit).  We again saw Soave Castle which originally started construction in the 12^th century, the fortress went through many hands and owners as it was conquered.  Finally in 1889 and castle and bought by Giulio Camuzzoni and his family still manage the castle and fortress.  

On the next morning the weather did look a little bit brighter, but not much so we decided to stay another day here, it is free after all and we have electricity etc.  In the late morning the weather eased off enough for us to do a wander through town where I found a hairdresser who could squeeze me in, so I stayed to have my hair deratted and Scott wandered back to the van for some peace and quiet.  In the afternoon we headed back into town where we had a drink at a little bar and then found a pizzeria who we thought was very quiet whereby it turned out to be packed later on, the food was excellent and we consumed a bit more of the local red wine.

27 October 2011:  Treviso, Italy

Yeah it is actually sunny today so we drive into Venice.  We park at the Tronchetta parking spot and take the People Mover (this is a sort of overhead tram) as there is a public transport strike today and we can’t take the ferry.  We arrive in the Piazzale Rome and head straight back into the main part of Venice to retake the photos from the other day.  San Marco Piazza has been underwater with the high tide so this morning getting across is via the footbridges that are quick assembled and as the water recedes are just as quickly stacked away.  It was nice to be out and about in the sun and there are lots of people around, but everyone just seems happier.  We also got to watch a large cruise boat coming into the harbour.  We finally decided to call it a day late in the afternoon as we weren’t going far tonight.  There is a free Aire in Treviso, so we set up camp and download the Lonely Planet chapters on Slovenia as this is a spur of the moment change of plans and we have no idea what we are even going to see there.

Back in London I collected some new books for Europe including the Fattore Amico book which is based on France passions so we decide to give this a go.  It gives you access to local producers who let you stay on their property in your motorhome for free.  So after deciphering the GPS coordinates we finally locate a local property and pull up near the vineyard.  The owners are fantastic and speak more English than we speak Italian and we have a wander around and enjoy some serenity.

19 October 2011:  Venice, Italy

We are heading to Venice today via Imola (used to be an F1 race track) and Maranello.  Imola wasn’t that exciting, and also not open for Vinnie to do a lap, so we continued on to Museo Ferrari at Maranello.  Strangely we thought this would be a quiet town, however as we got nearer the number of cars and tour buses soon let you know the museum is a huge tourist attraction, that and the number of Ferrari dealerships.  We find a spot for Vinnie near the entrance to the Ferrari race track and head into the Museo Ferrari (EUR13 each) where Scott proceeds to spend the next few hours in heaven leaving his drool marks from one end of the museum to another.  Apparently if the choice was between me and a Ferrari I may miss out.    

If only it would fit under the Xmas tree

We then jump on the motorway to Venice.  The first parking spot we find, I totally read the pay instructions wrong and after we realised it was going to cost EUR37 (Parcheggio Al Tronchetto), we moved to another spot a short bus-ride away for EUR10 per day (Parco di San Guiliano).  Parcheggio Al Tronchetto was however at the port and there were some huge cruise boats in (that will make my Dad drool).  Once we park the van at our new spot we head off to the bus and into Venezia.    There is no motorised traffic in Venezia, so the bus drops you at a bus station and you walk from there.  We wander through the streets, bridges over canals etc having to resort to Google maps as the street signs make no sense whatsoever. 

We can’t work out why anybody would build a city that is so   libel to the environment but the engineering feat is impressive.  Venice is built on 117 small islands that are connected via bridges and canals making the only way to navigate Venice on foot or via boat. 

The Grand Canal:   runs from the Piazzale Roma to San Marco and although you can catch a vaporetto or gondola we wandered through the streets passing so many beautiful (and crumbling) palazzos, churches, bridges and various other gorgeous sites it is a impressive city.  Venice starred in four different James Bond films, so it can’t be too bad.

Gondola

Ponte di Rialto:  lets you get fantastic photos of the canals, gondolas and other seafaring boats.  This is a large bridge across the Grand Canal and is lined with boutiques and the obligatory tourists.  Up until the 19^th century it was the only bridge across the Grand Canal, but that has now changed.    

Ponte di Rialto

Ponte dei Sospiri (Bridge of Sighs):  One of my must see items was the Bridge of Sighs which we found out is currently undergoing renovation, restoration or whatever and is totally obscured.  Not happy Jan.  The Bridge of Sighs connects the Ducal Palace with the grim Palazzo delle Prigioni (Prisons). There is mystery around the name of the bridge with some saying it is the prisoners’ final breath of resignation upon viewing the outside world one last time before being locked in their fetid cells alternatively some attribute the name to Casanova, who, following his arrest in 1755 (he was accused of being a Freemason and spreading antireligious propaganda), crossed this very bridge. 

Not the best view of The Bridge of Sighs

By now the weather is closing in and getting dark, so we decide to head back to Vinnie, stopping for a drink along the way at a lovely little bar where the prices were about a quarter of the price of Florence. 

We awoke the next morning to gales and a massive rainstorm, but decided to suck it up and rugged up and headed back into Venice.  This was an awesome choice as we were both soon totally soaked and traipsing through inches of puddles all morning was hilarious.    

Great day for sightseeing

Tragedy soon struck with the demise of Scott’s umbrella but luckily he was wearing his North Face waterproof jacket which only lets water into the pockets.  We re-traced out steps from the previous day and although the weather was horrible, Venice is still a magical city.

The road linking Venice to the mainland

I was keen to buy a present for my sister as I missed her birthday so we trawled the millions of Murano artisans before finally picking a small shop with a lovely shopkeeper and buying two pieces.

Piazza San Marco:  is full of cafes, well it would be on a nice sunny day, today however there aren’t that many customers around.  The square is surrounded by porticos and of course the stunning view of the Basilica di San Marco onion domes (very eastern).  When you step back out into the Piazza you can now see some of the history that surroundings the Basilica.  The 500-year-old Torre dell’Orologio (Clock Tower) stands to your right; to your left is the Campanile (Bell Tower), and beyond, the glistening waters of the open lagoon and Palladio’s Chiesa di San Giorgio on its own island and is a photographer’s dream on any day except today.  We have left the Camapanile again without travelling to the top due to the weather.

I think this leaned more than Pisa

Basilica di San Marco:  The Basilica is free to enter, however each part seemed to cost something, so unsure why they don’t have an overall ticket to cover all the parts of the Basilica.  This is an awesome site; every part of the church seems to be covered in mosaics, from gold ones above to beautiful tiles underneath.  The church’s greatest treasure is the magnificent altarpiece known as the Pala d’Oro (Golden Altarpiece), a Gothic masterpiece encrusted with close to 2,000 precious gems and 255 enamelled panels. It was created as early as the 10th century, and embellished by master Venetian and Byzantine artisans between the 12th and 14th centuries. It is located behind the main altar, whose green marble canopy on alabaster columns covers the tomb of St. Mark.  You can’t take photos inside and even if you wanted to sneak them in, it is so dark they wouldn’t come out without a huge flash which may give you away.

We head back to Vinnie where we change clothes and have something warm to eat in an effort to thaw out and defrost for the drive this afternoon. 

20 October 2011:  Soave, Italy

We didn’t make it far, seeing a castle from the motorway we do a quick detour and find a nice Aire (free including electricity) and walk into the historic town centre which is surrounded by crenulated walls and looks up to a castle via small streets.  Soave is famous for its white wine and Soave town is also the centre for Veneto’s wine consortium so it also deals in Valpolicella.  The town walls are encircled with 24 watchtowers with some being in very good condition.  The Castello itself is a short walk up from town and you enter it through a drawbridge.  The Castello has been resorted but nicely done.  Back at the Aire we met a New Zealand couple travelling through Europe in a massive motorhome that they are also shipping back to NZ to sell and they gave up some tips for Vienna and Prague.

The Castello - well worth a visit

21 October 2011:  Novate Mezzola, Italy

Up relatively early we are heading to Lake Como (and hopefully to see George Clooney) and then if we can make it to an Aire at the top of Lake Como.  We head down the Motorway which turns out to be totally uninspiring and bypass Milan before heading up into the mountains.

Como:  is situated on Lake Como which is ringed by the Alps and is gorgeous with views over the rest of the lake.  This place exudes money and exclusivity.  For those nerds, Lake Como served as a backdrop for the romantic scenes in Star Wars II: Attack of the Clones—one of the very few settings in the film that was not created entirely by CGI computer programs.  We had thought of doing a boat trip, but parking is hard and let’s face it, I hate boat trips at the best of time, so instead we decide to take the scenic drive up to Bellagio. 

No 5 star luxury for us.

Well that turned out to be a fantastic idea initially, except then the road narrowed to being single lane for two lanes of traffic.  This was an exhausting and nerve racking drive and in my defence (it was my idea initially) I did give Scott ample opportunity to turn round, but he kept going forward.  Eventually we pull up into Bellagio.  Now this is by far the most stunning of towns we have seen.  It is picture perfect and is also the spot for catching a ferry.  We had thought about this but had also forgotten to find out whether we could actually get a ferry for the motorhome.  Luck would have it we could and we decided to have a coffee and a walk around before putting Vinnie onto the ferry (Ferry EUR16.30) to Varenna which would save us a considerable drive. 

Not a huge ferry but great views

There were only two vehicles on the small ferry and we soon pushed off for the short ride.  It was a lovely view, although I elected to sit in the motorhome with the seatbelt done up, not sure why and Scott wandered all over the ferry.  On arriving in Varenna, again another beautiful town, we took in our surroundings and hit the road for an Aire in Colico which is right on the edge of Lake Como.  On arriving at the Aire we find that you can’t get access to it until 6pm, so we do some shopping and then head to the Aire at Novate Mezzola. 

Sometimes being in a motorhome is worth it.

This was fantastic, we are right on the edge of the lake, have the place all to ourselves (another motorhome pulls in much later) and we get to sit in the sun and enjoy a sunset with a glass of wine.  I have to say this must be one of the nicest camp spots we have found.

Our view of Lake Como

22 October 2011:  Casale Monferrato, Italy

We caught up with our motorhome neighbour which is currently waiting for his wife to arrive from England.  Dave and his wife are looking for a house in the area and have been here so often know all the ins and outs.  I have to say if I was looking for a place in Italy, this area would have to be near the top of the list.

As we are soon leaving Italy we decide to do a small road trip to the Asti/Alba wine region which is in the Piedmont area and have elected to stop at a Fattore Amico property in San Giorgio Monferrato (Sergio Coppo Vini).  We arrive and score a parking spot at the top of the property and then go down and do some wine tasting and purchase three bottles for EUR10 and they hosts give us a bottle as a gift. 

Another day, another awesome sunset

The family can’t do enough to help us and we also walk away with a pile of pomegranates.  We spend the afternoon watching the hillsides and enjoying the quiet.  This style of accommodation is great as you get to taste local produce, meet local people and see a part of the countryside that is off the beaten track. 

This area is not only famous for its wine (including the Barbera del Monferrato) also produced author Umberto Eco (of Name of the Rose fame).

 23 October 2011:  Cherasco, Italy

I had made a note earlier in the trip about a truffle and wine festival in Alba, so we are heading that way today via Asti.  As the drive progresses we note that considering this area is famous for its wine, there is a distinct lack of grapes. 

Asti:  produces the sparkling white Asti Spumante wine made from white Muscat grapes, while Alba concocts Barolo and Barbaresco, both towns are also famous for their white and black truffles.  There are a huge amount of cars and people in Asti, but we find a parking spot and head into the mainly closed town where only the town centre has a sprinkling of people trawling through an antiques market.  There isn’t much to hold us here, so we decide to continue heading through hoping to find somewhere to park or some scenery to inspire us.

Alba:  is meant to be one of the gastronomic highlights of Italy (it was one of the first towns in the Slow Food movement).  Today we luck in and find a parking spot within walking distance of the annual truffle fair.  The town is an enjoyable walk, helped today with wine and food tasting.  I still can’t see the fascination of spending hundreds of Euros on truffles, but I seem to be amongst the few as there are stall after stall selling this produced.  In the Piazza there is some sort of medieval battle of the bands going on, with drums and banners which we watch for a while.  The narrow streets are lined with boutiques, bars and restaurants and are doing a roaring trade today.

Truffles galore

Cherasco:  Located nearby we decide to end the day at Cherasco which is the home of the lumache (snail).  We park in the local Aire and head back into the town centre which is lovely but very very closed.  It is Sunday after all.  We find a map from the tourist office (smartly leaves tourist maps outside when it is closed) and walk through the old historic centre.  We did find a small bar open for a glass of vino and we also purchased some chocolates which the town is famous for before heading back to the warmth of Vinnie with no snails.  Although Scott did have a fair plate of snails in Marrakech.

The nights are definitely getting very chilly.

24 October 2011:  Tortona, Italy

We are heading through Alessandria and then onto Costa Vescovato to a Coop to spend the night.

Alessandria:  was sort of mid-way to our destination so we thought we would stop there for a walk and also some lunch.  As we arrived it started to rain and was freezing.  It is Monday so we expected the shops to be open, but after finding the town deserted soon realised they didn’t open until 4pm.  Luckily we found a nice little restaurant that served fresh local produce as well as the thickest hot chocolate you can imagine, so we whiled away a few hours here before heading back out into the closed and cold town.

Coop Valli Unite:  This is in the Fattore Amico book so we plug in the coordinates which are wrong (as we soon find out), we try and navigate from the rest of the book and along with some random street signs we find the Coop.  This is a commune where people work producing a range of local products (biological, wine, cheese, salami and has a restaurant).  We meet the owner who shows us where the park and gives us a tour of the compound and we stock up on cheese, wine and bread from the shop after having a lovely cup of Italian coffee in the restaurant.  The ideals of the group are fantastic.  What they don’t produce they barter or swap with other like minded coops in the area.  This style of living really appeals to me and is as far removed from consumeristic lifestyles idealised by those at home it makes a welcome change.  We head back to Vinnie and take a look at a hay bale house under construction (I would love one of these) and soon Scott makes a friend of the local farm cat and they are playing a chasing game until it gets darker and colder. 

If only we could bring him home

Scott comes inside and the poor cat sits outside for a while playing with a piece of string by itself until it gives up.  Of course it is now starting to rain and we can no longer see the views of the valley around up.

Life on a commune - time for a change we thinks

Montepulciano:  is described in the Frommer’s guide as one of the great art cities of Tuscany (Scott is already rolling his eyes as that description), however we didn’t come here for the art but the wine area itself.  Montepulciano may be a medieval town but it is the Vino Nobile that we are after tasting.  The town sits at 605m and has some fantastic views of vineyards.  We parked Vinnie at an Aires which is expensive to stay overnight but took the overnight option and then caught the little bus up to the town centre where we radically jumped off the bus at what we thought was the towncentre to have to walk up even further.  However it gave us a chance to have a look at the Valdichiana countryside.  We walked up the Porta al Prata to Piazza Grande which is at the top (sort of, there is a fortress come art gallery at the top) of the town and you have some beautiful architecture on all sides with the renaissance Palazzo and Gothic town hall.  The clock tower was inspired by the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence.   We wandered through the myriad of wine stores and have to say had a mediocre lunch with the wine and even the wine was a bit mediocre.  It is also overpriced in the town so we picked up some nice wine at the local supermarket for a tenth of the price.  I don’t mind paying a bit more for local produce but hate being ripped off.  We spent a few hours continuing to amble through the cobbled alleyways of the town and slowly making our way back to Vinnie.

Beautiful views from Vinnie

Montalcino:  Montalcino was a last minute choice as we found an Aire in the GPS and read that is was a pretty medieval town and again some awesome red wines (Brunello, although made of Sangiovese grapes).  We made it to the Aire and walked the 1.5kms back into the town centre where we wandered through the fort that guards the entrance (there is a wine shop in the fort – Entoca La Fortezza).  The Fort (14^th century) was used by the Sienese Republic after the final defeat by Florence in 1555.  There isn’t a lot to see except you can walk on the ramparts.  We head to the Piazza del Popola and through some of the wonderful churches in the town before braving one of the stores for a supposed free wine tasting.  It is only free if you buy something otherwise it is EUR1 per tasting.  We did some tasting, but didn’t really feel inspired to buy anything, until we asked some questions about Limoncello which we are struggling to buy.  We really enjoyed our introduction to Limoncello in Buenos Aires, so after some information we bought a small bottle and hence our wine tasting was free.  We then stopped on the way back to Vinnie to sample a glass of some difference wines and also to fortify us for the trek up.

Just a small front door into the fortress

11 October 2011:  Greve in Chianti, Italy

Sienna:  Well Sienna was a bit of a fizzer as we couldn’t get any parking for Vinnie, so we gave up and headed to Greve in Chianti via Castellina in Chianti and Volterra.

Volterra:  In addition to its medieval ramparts, Volterra is famous for Alabaster.  For you Twilight fans, it is also home to the principal vampire coven.  The Etruscans settled Volterra in the 9^th century and made their living from alabaster and alum and these are still thriving (albeit for the tourist trade) industries today.  We park near the Porta all’Arco which is the only remaining ancient gate and all that is left of the Etruscan walls, however this lowly gate lulls you into a false sense of security as you turn the corner and are faced with a myriad of steep steps. 

The Piazza dei Priori is fairly austere with huge old mansions and a lot of crumbling architecture.  The Cathedral on Piazza San Giovanni was built in the 12-13^th centuries and has some lovely frescos.  The plain facade of the Duomo does not even hint at the interior, it is worth going in just to look at the amazingly intricate ceilings.

Greve in Chianti:  We have found a free Aire in Greve so are off to taste some Chianti.  The driving in Tuscany is relatively easy so we arrive in the mid-afternoon and park Vinnie up.  This is a popular aire and shortly it was full with some overflow parking in the field across the road.  Greve is a short walk away and is the centre of the Chianti region.  In the Piazza Matteotti it is one wine shop next to another with some local produce stores inbetween.  Be warned these are targeting the tourist market.  However it was a lovely little town centre and we did stop for a glass of wine to watch all the tourists go by.  We stopped at the small supermarket on the way back to Vinnie to top up our wine and food supplies. 

12-17 October 2011:  Florence, Italy (Tracy in London 13-17 October 2011)

We are heading to Florence as I have a flight booked to meet Natalie (www.ourbookclub.net.au) in London and Scott is holding fort here in Florence.  We have found a campsite as close as possible to Florence (Michelangelo) on the Piazza Michelangelo and head there.  It wasn’t too bad a drive, we missed the turn but managed to turn around and pull into the campsite.  What I didn’t realise was the cost (EUR37.70 per night), so we are only staying the one night.  We find a relatively flat site and quickly depart Vinnie for the sights of Florence.  The Piazza Michelangelo gives you a view of the city where the Cathedral rises above everything else.  It is also a short 10 minute walk down the hillside to the Ponte Vecchio, in fact everything is within walking distance and as the city is flat it is very easy to negotiate (well get around, navigating is a whole other story).  Florence is the home of Michelangelo, the Medici, the tomb of Galileo (don’t ask Scott what Galileo did, as it leads to a very long conversation) and so much art you head just swivels.  Supposedly Florence (or Firenze in Italian) was founded by Julius Caesar in 59BC as it was the link between Rome and France.  To Scott’s excitement there is also Etruscan history from around 200BC here as well (sarcasm).  Lots of duelling families, countries, religions etc have left Florence with some stunning architecture.  It was heavily bombed in WWII (the retreating Germans blew up all the bridges with the exception of the Ponte Vecchio) and then there was the Mafia who detonated a car bomb in 1993 which destroyed part of the Uffizi Gallery.  So although it has a fairly gruesome past, the city still outshines a lot of larger cities in Italy.    

A copy of Michelangelo

We start with a walk along the river towards the Ponte Vecchio and head towards the Piazza della Signoria where you get to see some of the art – there are so many huge statues you don’t know where to look.  So we sat in the Piazza having the world’s most expensive Late (EUR13.60 for two) and watching the tour groups head off whilst staring at the Loggia dei Lanzi where Benvenuto Cellini’s Perseus with the head of Medusa is located in addition to a copy of Michelangelo’s David, the Uffizi, an equestrian statue of Cosimo I by Giambologna, Fontana di Nettuno,  Marzocco and Giuditta e Oloferne by Donatello and the Palazzo Vecchio.  We don’t really have a plan just a few notes of places to go.  We thought we would head to the Uffizi first, unbeknownst to us you need to book a ticket and we couldn’t get a ticket until very late in the day, then queue to actually get in at your time slot.  So we decided to come back after the weekend.

Florence by day

Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore (Duomo) – this is the huge dominating feature of the skyline that you can see from everywhere.  Started in 1296 it took 150 years to finish (it was consecrated in 1436) with the facade being designed in the 19^th century.  The interior of the Duomo is very simple but vast and you can climb up to the Dome.  It should be noted that this was one of the first self supporting domes (designed by Filippo Brunelleschi) and was also one of the inspirations for Sir Christopher Wren in his design of St Paul’s.

Florence

Battistero San Giovanni was also a surprise as it is a relatively simple building next to the Duomo, however the 13^th century golden mosaics that line the inner dome inside are fantastic.  It is one of the oldest buildings in Florence and Dante was dunked in the baptismal font.  The outside bronze doors are meant to be the crowd puller here, but I just didn’t get it as they aren’t the originals and I preferred the interior.

Piazza della Repubblica (originally the site of a Roman forum)

Basilica di Santa Maria Novella was begun in the 13^th century and has a fantastic fresco of Trinity as well as some others by Lippi, Ghirlandaio (and another painting purported to have been worked on by Michelangelo) in addition to a Giotto (Crucifix c 1290).

Basilica di Santa Croce and although the interior is fairly austere there are some slightly famous tombs i.e. Michelangelo, Galileo Machiavelli etc etc etc.  Again Giotto had his hand in some of the murals, but they are in poor condition.  Although there is some renovation work being undergone.  There is also a cowl and belt belonging to St Francis of Assisi.  You can access the cloisters which are serene and give you a beautiful view of the church.  Considering the church was flooded in 1966 (4m of muddy water engulfed the whole Santa Croce area) you can still view some fantastic art and the famous names just keep on coming.

Galileo

We eventually leave Florence walking back along the Ponte Vecchio (Florence’s oldest bridge with the current incarnation dating back to 1345) which although famous is really just a long street of very expensive jewellery shops made for tourists.  We head back up towards the Piazzale Michelangelo where you can view the whole of Florence as well as appreciate one of only two copies of David.  This is a fantastic place to take pictures and so we had back there later in the day to get some night-time shots as well.

Florence by night

The next day we head to Internazionale Firenze (EUR15) which is a short bus ride back to Florence and where I am transiting from.