Well it looked like a short cut!

Thursday 12th September

Précis:- found they had other bread, went on long bike ride by mistake. The end.

Well at last we managed to get a really nice baguette from the shop, they obviously sell the rubbish first. But sadly the Carole & Joseph's Oxfordshire artisan deluxe gooseberry conserve ran out, and unlike Harrod's they don't deliver. Quell disaste!

We then headed for St Aygulf, the next village, on our bikes as they said there was a market on. As it turned out it was a flea market and not very big either so a bit disappointing really.  The journey there had been a bit hairy over the last bit as there was no cycle path, but when we were ready to go back we saw a road which looked as though it cut the difficult bend off and went where we wanted to go so we decided to take it on the way back. BIG mistake!

We cycled for mile after mile and finally arrived on the other side of Frejus at the point where we had come in off the motorway the day we arrived. I knew where we were immediately and just had to convince Joan. We had managed to convert a simple 2 mile trip into a very long ride plus I had NOT put my little bike computer on so I was definitely not flavour of the month. As I've said, my fitness is not great but I did it without a problem and after a spot of lunch I slept for ages, so we did very little today but relax, ho hum.

Lots of love
Joan & Bryan xxxx

Went to McDonald's and taxed the van

Wednesday 11th September

Précis:- it was very hot, we did the blog, taxed the van, went to beach and pool. Had bad news. The end.

Today is supposed to be the cool cloudy dull day. Obviously this was one of Michael Fish's weather reports because it was the hottest this week! So we delayed our trip to the beach until after mid-day and only stayed an hour then returned for a swim in the pool as it was at least 12 degrees hotter than the blooming sea.

Earlier we'd been to publish the blog and get emails and thanks to Pam we've managed to get the van taxed. You don't realise, (well we didn't), that by the time you come home from such a long holiday your road tax is out of date. You can do it on line but you need the special number from the form the DVLA send you. We were getting a bit worried because Pam & Colin are off on holiday but it arrived just in time, thanks Pam.

I've just had a bit of bad news, my dear friend John Douglas has died and sadly I will miss his funeral, but we are thinking of Mavis and his girls and will be next Tuesday. The thing is, in a way it's a happy release because he was pretty ill but he will still be missed greatly.

Lots of love
Bryan & Joan xxxx

Lots of sun but really strong winds, hot though.

Friday 6th September

Précis:- very hot, went to Mac Donald's and published blog but couldn't manage to get photos on. Swam in lake, had huge thunderstorm. The end.

Another red hot day dawned and having nipped along to Lidl for a few supplies and a baguette, of course, our next job was a short ride to MacDonalds to finally publish the blog. This proved to be as easy as pie except we had a problem getting pictures on it. First Joan had all the pictures so far on her iPad mini and secondly it wanted us to use Flickr or Picaso neither of which are at present on my iPad and I am not sure how to get them either. So here is more blog sans pictures.

Next it was down to the lake for a swim as we would hate to wake up tomorrow and find it cold and miserable and miss our chance, Joan said. I was not so sure and when somebody daft enough to swim in the North Sea says, " oh it's lovely and warm!" You tend to be a bit cautious, well I do as I am a bit of a wimp. However it was actually really warm and so hot out of the water that I was almost dry before I got back to my towel.

I really hate it when she's right, so when a bit later it really got dark and then a huge thunderstorm erupted, Joan of course crowed about insisting on the swim.  Being in the mountains the storm was great to watch as it flew around the tops but we made sure we didn't get caught in the rain when it finally came, as it came down in buckets!

Love Bryan & Joan xxxx


Saturday 7th September

Précis:- Still hot, disappointed with crossword download. Rode bikes again. Another storm. The end.

The storm has definitely cleared the air a bit. It's still warm but a bit fresher with a slight breeze. Off to MacDonalds to download Saturdays paper only to discover that unless I am prepared to draw the crossword out on a piece of paper it's useless. Damn! Well never mind, time to get ready for the off tomorrow. Nipped on our bikes to the supermarket, popped down to the lake again and noticed another storm brewing. It didn't start until about eight o'clock so it didn't spoil the day but unlike last night, this one was to last all night.

Lots of love
Joan & Bryan xxxx

Sunday 8th September

Précis:- it was raining a lot, we left early, couldn't get parked for the night so went somewhere else. The end.

It is still chucking it down but fortunately almost everything's done and we paid last night so we were away by 8.15am, something of a record for us. Apart from refuelling we had an uneventful journey to Sisteron where there is a hilltop citadel with an Aire for camper vans just outside. The weather had improved as we drove South and it was now very warm and sunny again.

Unfortunately several of the dedicated motorhome spaces had cars and even a lorry parked in them! ( now we know how Alison feels). When we mentioned it to a French woman she just shrugged and ignored us.  I wish I'd had the guts to park across in front of them, but hey ho. So although I was a bit tired and hungry we carried on.

A few miles down the road we stopped, ate and checked the maps for another Aire and found a really nice one overlooking a large lake about 35 miles further on. This did entail driving on some very narrow twisting roads and at the end, going down a very steep hill with several hairpin bends but I think the marks where Joan's door handle and seat were gripped will come out. Tomorrow we will get to the seaside, hurrah!

Lots of love
Bryan & Joan xxxx

Monday 9th September

Précis:- we drove to a campsite that was supposed to be by the sea. It wasn't! So we drove to one we knew. The end.

Ever since the flooding in 2010 Joan and I have been a bit cautious of going back to Frejus. However having tried a few other places like Port Grimaud and found them lacking as the beach is lousy, we were not sure where else to go? Eventually we found an ACSI sight at Cavalaire-sur-mer which was purported to be only 200 metres from the sea. Now the French have a really weird idea of what being actually at the seaside is. So if you see a place name with sur la plage or a la plage it may be some distance from the actual beach.

Having left really early this morning, (8.15), we were pretty pleased with ourselves at having missed the long horrendous traffic that is always present around St Tropez but could see it building as we approached our target campsite.  We found ourselves looking down a very steep cliff at least a quarter of a mile to the beach, if indeed it was accessible. We would also of course have to climb back up again!

So exclaiming golly gosh a lot, we turned around and joined the now long traffic jam back, and here we are sitting in Camping du Pont d'argens, now called La Plage D'Argens which is about 250 metres to the beach. I had intended to do a 67 mile day today and as it was through the Gorges of Verdun on tiny roads it took nearly 3 hours but I had a further 24 to get to here, poo!

The campsite has changed it's name but it is still pretty easy going and if you can get over the very French fact that the toilets and showers are now unisex, but NOT the urinals Pam, it's great.  That is until you read the bit that says incase of flooding gather your valuables and leave, do not attempt to drive your car/van/caravan. Well apart from Joan, my most valuable asset in France is my bloody campervan mate, so if it rains heavy we'll be off!

We should be ok though as the temperature has been 31 today and is supposed not to fall bellow 25 this week so we've booked a week and will see about next week. The only down side is there is usually a wind here and although it's not cold it can get quite strong. However the supermarket is a short ride away and there are several very good street markets around if we want to bother. One sad thing is the greengrocer we used in the past just across the road seems to have vanished but Joan thinks it may just be it's Monday so we will see.

Lots of love
Bryan & Joan xxxx


Tuesday 10th September

Another lovely day, but the baguette from the site shop wasn't great, still we managed to eat it. However as the two main reasons for being here are to enjoy the warm sunshine and eat French bread we may be moving on soon whereas we were thinking of staying a lot longer. Still there are several really good campsites in the area just not as close to the sea, but as the sea was so cold today we won't mind.

Then out with the bikes and off to the supermarket where we bought a baguette that hopefully will be ok otherwise it's cereal until we go somewhere else. Stupidly we bought quite a lot of stuff which needed to go in the fridge which has to go in my panniers so we had to return without finding McDonalds, so no blog today.

However we did finally get to the beach and have a short swim. The swim was short because although the chap on the radio this morning assured us it was 24 degrees in the sea, he lied!!! It was really cold. Still we tried it then after a bit we decided to get back and go for a swim in the site pool. This was a good plan as it was about 36 degrees and the pool was 26 and had been 28 earlier, so tomorrow we'll give the beach a miss.

Talking about the radio station it's a hoot, it's a commercial station which broadcasts some of BBC world news and gives the market news as well as playing really good music. The adverts are great, we have been invited to a yacht show with yachts to suit all tastes and several people in Monaco will apparently help us with our investments.  We also know where to hire a private jet or find someone to build us a swimming pool/jacuzzi, it's great.

Funny we've been really busy today but when I wrote it down it doesn't seem much? Oh well we're exhausted and it was fun so God bless you all.

Lots of love
Bryan & Joan xxxx

Friday 6th September

Précis:- very hot, went to Mac Donald's and published blog but couldn't manage to get photos on. Swam in lake, had huge thunderstorm. The end.

Another red hot day dawned and having nipped along to Lidl for a few supplies and a baguette, of course, our next job was a short ride to MacDonalds to finally publish the blog. This proved to be as easy as pie except we had a problem getting pictures on it. First Joan had all the pictures so far on her iPad mini and secondly it wanted us to use Flickr or Picaso neither of which are at present on my iPad and I am not sure how to get them either. So here is more blog sans pictures.

Next it was down to the lake for a swim as we would hate to wake up tomorrow and find it cold and miserable and miss our chance, Joan said. I was not so sure and when somebody daft enough to swim in the North Sea says, " oh it's lovely and warm!" You tend to be a bit cautious, well I do as I am a bit of a wimp. However it was actually really warm and so hot out of the water that I was almost dry before I got back to my towel.

I really hate it when she's right, so when a bit later it really got dark and then a huge thunderstorm erupted, Joan of course crowed about insisting on the swim.  Being in the mountains the storm was great to watch as it flew around the tops but we made sure we didn't get caught in the rain when it finally came, as it came down in buckets!

Love Bryan & Joan xxxx

Saturday 7th September

Précis:- Still hot, disappointed with crossword download. Rode bikes again. Another storm. The end.

The storm has definitely cleared the air a bit. It's still warm but a bit fresher with a slight breeze. Off to MacDonalds to download Saturdays paper only to discover that unless I am prepared to draw the crossword out on a piece of paper it's useless. Damn! Well never mind, time to get ready for the off tomorrow. Nipped on our bikes to the supermarket, popped down to the lake again and noticed another storm brewing. It didn't start until about eight o'clock so it didn't spoil the day but unlike last night, this one was to last all night.

Lots of love
Joan & Bryan xxxx

Sunday 8th September

Précis:- it was raining a lot, we left early, couldn't get parked for the night so went somewhere else. The end.

It is still chucking it down but fortunately almost everything's done and we paid last night so we were away by 8.15am, something of a record for us. Apart from refuelling we had an uneventful journey to Sisteron where there is a hilltop citadel with an Aire for camper vans just outside. The weather had improved as we drove South and it was now very warm and sunny again.

Unfortunately several of the dedicated motorhome spaces had cars and even a lorry parked in them! ( now we know how Alison feels). When we mentioned it to a French woman she just shrugged and ignored us.  I wish I'd had the guts to park across in front of them, but hey ho. So although I was a bit tired and hungry we carried on.

A few miles down the road we stopped, ate and checked the maps for another Aire and found a really nice one overlooking a large lake about 35 miles further on. This did entail driving on some very narrow twisting roads and at the end, going down a very steep hill with several hairpin bends but I think the marks where Joan's door handle and seat were gripped will come out. Tomorrow we will get to the seaside, hurrah!

Lots of love
Bryan & Joan xxxx

Monday 9th September

Précis:- we drove to a campsite that was supposed to be by the sea. It wasn't! So we drove to one we knew. The end.

Ever since the flooding in 2010 Joan and I have been a bit cautious of going back to Frejus. However having tried a few other places like Port Grimaud and found them lacking as the beach is lousy, we were not sure where else to go? Eventually we found an ACSI sight at Cavalaire-sur-mer which was purported to be only 200 metres from the sea. Now the French have a really weird idea of what being actually at the seaside is. So if you see a place name with sur la plage or a la plage it may be some distance from the actual beach.

Having left really early this morning, (8.15), we were pretty pleased with ourselves at having missed the long horrendous traffic that is always present around St Tropez but could see it building as we approached our target campsite.  We found ourselves looking down a very steep cliff at least a quarter of a mile to the beach, if indeed it was accessible. We would also of course have to climb back up again!

So exclaiming golly gosh a lot, we turned around and joined the now long traffic jam back, and here we are sitting in Camping du Pont d'argens, now called La Plage D'Argens which is about 250 metres to the beach. I had intended to do a 67 mile day today and as it was through the Gorges of Verdun on tiny roads it took nearly 3 hours but I had a further 24 to get to here, poo!

The campsite has changed it's name but it is still pretty easy going and if you can get over the very French fact that the toilets and showers are now unisex, but NOT the urinals Pam, it's great.  That is until you read the bit that says incase of flooding gather your valuables and leave, do not attempt to drive your car/van/caravan. Well apart from Joan, my most valuable asset in France is my bloody campervan mate, so if it rains heavy we'll be off!

We should be ok though as the temperature has been 31 today and is supposed not to fall bellow 25 this week so we've booked a week and will see about next week. The only down side is there is usually a wind here and although it's not cold it can get quite strong. However the supermarket is a short ride away and there are several very good street markets around if we want to bother. One sad thing is the greengrocer we used in the past just across the road seems to have vanished but Joan thinks it may just be it's Monday so we will see.

Lots of love
Bryan & Joan xxxx


Tuesday 10th September

Another lovely day, but the baguette from the site shop wasn't great, still we managed to eat it. However as the two main reasons for being here are to enjoy the warm sunshine and eat French bread we may be moving on soon whereas we were thinking of staying a lot longer. Still there are several really good campsites in the area just not as close to the sea, but as the sea was so cold today we won't mind.

Then out with the bikes and off to the supermarket where we bought a baguette that hopefully will be ok otherwise it's cereal until we go somewhere else. Stupidly we bought quite a lot of stuff which needed to go in the fridge which has to go in my panniers so we had to return without finding McDonalds, so no blog today.

However we did finally get to the beach and have a short swim. The swim was short because although the chap on the radio this morning assured us it was 24 degrees in the sea, he lied!!! It was really cold. Still we tried it then after a bit we decided to get back and go for a swim in the site pool. This was a good plan as it was about 36 degrees and the pool was 26 and had been 28 earlier, so tomorrow we'll give the beach a miss.

Talking about the radio station it's a hoot, it's a commercial station which broadcasts some of BBC world news and gives the market news as well as playing really good music. The adverts are great, we have been invited to a yacht show with yachts to suit all tastes and several people in Monaco will apparently help us with our investments.  We also know where to hire a private jet or find someone to build us a swimming pool/jacuzzi, it's great.

Funny we've been really busy today but when I wrote it down it doesn't seem much? Oh well we're exhausted and it was fun so God bless you all.

Lots of love
Bryan & Joan xxxx

It's all going so well.........or it was!!!!!

Monday 2nd September

Précis
We went to Heidelburg ate, shopped, went home, the end.

What a lovely morning it's going to be a hot one so on with the pack for carrying water, cameras etc. Off to catch bus which turns out to be totally painless and we have two 24 hour tickets to travel back and forth to Heidelburg. The annoying thing is if the lady in reception had told us yesterday we could have gone in about 3pm had a stroll around and gone again today, oh well.

They have these bendy busses which are great and very comfortable and before we knew it we were in the town. Having totally failed packing of plugs etc my first task was to buy a charger for my iPad. It's still a mystery to me how to put pictures onto our blog but next time we will have to bring the laptop or pull my socks up! The only other job was to wander around and generally sight see, so we did.

Before we knew it, it was time to sit in the main square and drink huge glasses of excellent German beer and of course eat a huge lunch. Sadly the main Schloss was wreathed in scaffolding and sacking so we did not bother to go up there. This didn't spoil the day though and having walked for miles we returned to the van tired but contented. There was still loads of sunshine so we sat outside and chilled.

Tuesday 3rd September

Précis:- We drove a long way to a place called Baume le Dames, the end.

The weather seems to be getting warmer by the day and today is no exception I'm glad to say. We are moving on, not to the Bodensee as originally planned but into France to Annecy. It's a distance of about 400 miles give or take a couple so we will be stopping today at a little place called Baume le Dames.

Getting out of Heidelburg was an absolute nightmare and needed a couple of 'u' turns to finally get us onto the motorway and going in the right direction, aren't these sat navs' great, NOT!!! I think we will seriously be looking for a new one very soon, so any info regarding what's best will be appreciated.

Anyway the journey was pretty straightforward and most of the 225 miles we did today were on German motorways which are really superb. We arrived at about 3.30pm and found a nice spot in between an Irish couple and a Frenchman. I again provided much hilarity for the French as I murdered their language, but hey I like to spread a bit of happiness as I go along. He seemed pretty impressed when I gave him a beer so that's ok.

There is a little river with some boats moored there and just to stretch our legs after all day in the van we went for a wander and came to a supermarket, so first thing in the morning we'll be there to fill up with diesel @... No it wouldn't be fair to brag about how cheap it is, ha ha!  It has been so hot today, 30+, so when we got back to the van we just sat out in the sun until about 7.30pm before attempting to cook dinner, good old wagamamas sauces, chicken and lots of veg. Off tomorrow to Annecy and my first Baguette, yummy!

Lots of love
Joan & Bryan xxxx

Wednesday 4th September

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Reena xxx

Précis:- We set off early, had major traffic problems in Besancon and got to Annecy at 3.30pm, it is very hot and sunny, the end.

We all knew I would be up early so no surprise. We are on the road by 9am on a lovely hot sunny day. Filled up with diesel and bowling along as happy as Larry, the roads are good what could possibly go wrong?  20 minutes later we entered Besancon a big city in France where, Oh joy of joys, they are having a brand new tram system installed. I kid you not, it was like a war zone with huge craters and piles of rubble everywhere. However no problem, they have deviation signs, labelled deviation 1, deviation 2, deviation 3!!!! Now I may be a bit of a deviant but they totally confused me as there were no destinations mentioned so we aimed for the motorway sign. This was made more difficult as every roundabout exit with a motorway sign was dug up or BARRED! So round we went yet again............

Joan was getting very worried, the lady in the satnav was shouting all sorts of instructions then frantically recalculating until we turned her voice off.  Eventually we followed a motorway sign and turned down a steep hill on a fairly small turning to find a huge, no I mean "HUGE" lorry and trailer loaded with straw bales reversing towards us, Joan nearly flipped. I just had room to pull over and waited until it was ok to pass, ignoring the horns blasting only to then find we are on a one way street heading along an alley with the last building covered in scaffolding! Having all the other traffic following "deviation 2" behind us, all I could do was continue slowly, VERY slowly.

We were now in the middle of the old town, i.e. little narrow streets not designed to take traffic. (I still cannot work out where they would need all that straw?). It was a bit like a scene from the Pink Panther: there's an old Frenchman sitting at a little table drinking his coffee and looking nervously at my bumper inches from his chair. I felt it necessary to wind down the window and say "pardon Messieur" to which bless him with, a very Gallic shrug he replied "Pas de probleme".  At this point Joan's blood pressure was off the scale and only by an illegal 'U' turn and jumping a set of lights did we finally get out on the right road. It took us nearly an hour and I swear we passed several people at least twice!

When we finally stopped for lunch Joan tried to get me to have a nap but we both had so much adrenaline flowing we just continued. As we drove into Annecy Joan nearly screamed, as we hit major road works. Not helped by me missing the easy turning, but I knew I needed to aim for Albertville as we have been here before and there were plenty of signposts to follow. We arrived at 3.30pm at the site and were amazed it was almost full! But we got a nice little pitch with both sun and shade. Normally I avoid anywhere with shade but it is around 32 degrees so we will probably be glad of it.

I must confess having driven here with only a short stop plus all the problems, we are absolutely shattered, still we are here for at least 4 days if not longer. Having had a long snooze and a cuppa, about 6pm we strolled down to the beach where people were swimming in the lake, apparently it's not too cold so we may try it another day.

Lots of Love
Joan & Bryan xxxx


Thursday 5th September

Précis:- It is still very hot and we cycled to Annecy a return trip of 8 miles. Had an anniversary meal, the end.

It's our anniversary today so having discovered that neither bus or river boat will allow us to go to town in the evening and get back, and Colin's or Joe's excellent taxi services not being available, we decided to cycle in to Annecy which the book says is only 5 kilometres, about 3 miles. In the event it turns out its just over 4 miles, but it was ok and we had a very nice meal then wandered around the lovely old town returning about 4pm to sit in the shade with a gin & tonic and chill.  I am surprised that I still get very tired after any exercise  but I am sure I will get fitter soon.

Lots of love
Bryan & Joan xxxx

Well we seem to have managed to get something on here but no titles and sadly so far no pictures.
God only knows why no titles but the no pictures is because they are not on my iPad yet so we will keep trying to get some on. We hope you are all well and having fun.

Love Bryan & Joan xxxx

Sorry everybody but this is the first time we've managed to get on line and post. Joe gave us Internet access at their house but it was not the time or place to do the blog.

At last we are off to Europe


Stephen and Andy, we left home, got to tunnel on time and are now in Germany and it's raining! The end.

Sunday 25th August
As usual I awoke really early and could NOT get back to sleep, it was 4am! I was worried that somebody had parked across the front of the van and we could not get out.  At 4.30 I gave up and got up, dressed and Joan followed me down stairs. We were on the road by 5.10am, it was pouring with rain and there were huge puddles flooding the road everywhere.

So far so good, we were at the tunnel in time and everything went smoothly. I even managed to sleep on the train. Then the pleasure of driving in France, it's so easy. Before we knew it we were in Belgium and approaching our destination for the day with 185 miles done from Angela's.

I have promised Joan and Angela NOT to over do it so although it was only 12.30pm we stopped. Unfortunately we were told that they had done away with the campingplatz at Grimbergen so had to move on to a campsite further on. On arrival we found several people also waiting to get in as they close for lunch until 3pm. We had a leisurely lunch while parked outside and I went to bed and slept for an hour and a half.

Being fully refreshed and not liking the look of the campsite, plus knowing Angela would not know, I convinced Joan that I felt great and we set of to the next days stop in Monschau. It was only 97 miles further and we arrived at 5.15pm, great. Well it would be if we hadn't had to drive down a very steep hill to the site. I hope we can get out tomorrow, damn, another sleepless night.

We are relaxing now after our meal with a lovely bottle of red wine.  The only down side is that it has been chucking it down for about 3 hours now and doesn't look like stopping, guess whose face looks like a slapped bum?

Love Joan & Bryan xxx


Monday 26th August.

Wow, we've done four days planned driving in two!

Andy & Stephen, We got up, drove some, more slept mid day and drove another 123 miles to our target for day 4 on day 2, met our German friends and relaxed. The end.


We awoke about 7.30am and it was NOT raining but there's time. Joan has had a lousy night worrying if we will be able to get up the bank out of the campsite, I slept like a log!!  In the event, we drove straight out no bother at all, proving that the expensive chipping we had done to the van was worth it.

Next stop was Limberg an der Larn this turned out to be a motorhome dealer and although very nice, after a kip I decided to continue as it was only 2pm and I felt refreshed. Joan threatened to tell Angela but I insisted. German roads are so good, even the side roads, that we were in Thungersheim by 4.30pm
 As this was day two and our destination for day four, I was delighted. It was a lovely spot by the river with electricity and drinking water if you can find it. We found the power but failed water devining!  Having finally found a place to completely chill we did, and slept until 8.50am. Joan was all for staying put until Wednesday, our original arrival day but we needed water so we left. As soon as we got to Veitshochheim we phoned Ingrid & Joe, who came straight over and took us back to where we could get water free. It was so simple we felt pretty stupid, but they said they had had the same trouble when they went there for the first time.

Next we returned to the Aire in their village which is on the river front. This is a really beautiful place with restaurants and a riverside walk. Having enjoyed a light lunch in a biergarten and having ensured we were ok, they left us to chill out for a while, lovely.  Later that evening they took us to their home where we had a great night with fabulous food & conversation, finally driving us back to our van at 11.30pm.  We both agreed that having done four days travel in two days, we felt totally at ease and finally ready to chill out and enjoy our holiday.

Love "US" xxxxx


Wednesday 28th August

Oh hell we may need a new windscreen!

Stephen & Andy: We had our normal expensive holiday disaster which was quickly solved with money and enjoyed our friends company. It was hot and sunny, the end.


Waking up in this lovely place the sun shining and all seeming well I was alarmed to see a huge chip in our windscreen. This wasn't helped by, after 30 minutes on the phone, our insurance company telling us that we weren't covered for glass and that it was our problem! Fortunately just then Joe & Ingrid turned up, made a phone call and took us to a windscreen place who did a repair but were concerned it might not work. The alternative was a new windscreen for. £900.00!! So far touch wood it looks good but it still cost £110.

Then we followed Joe to the campsite we are on now which is very close to town and there is a trolley bus stops right outside if we wanted to venture off on our own. At last we are really relaxing and I am certainly getting a mid-day nap which is good for me. With nothing to worry about, Joan is really chilled and loving it. Again Ingrid & Joe took us back to their home and we enjoyed convivial evening of food, drink and chat. Joe showed us his collection of ancient Roman coins and we again tried to get them to come to us and visit the Roman wall. Back to the van about 11.00pm





Off on our bikes at last.

Thursday 29th August

Andy & Stephen:- We finally use our bikes on a flat path beside a river. Hot and sunny again. Did a Coconut Raita dinner in our van for Joe & Ingrid, the end.


Wow, perfect holiday weather, red hot wall to wall sunshine, great!  Joe and Ingrid arrived about 11am to take us and our bikes out to the country for a bike ride. They have earlier on taken their bikes and locked them up on a riverside cycle track about 7 miles away and they say they will still be there, wouldn't it be nice to live like that. They are appalled when we tell them they would be lucky if the frame was there if we did that in England! Anyway we cycled for a few miles to a riverside cafe and had a really superb lunch and a radler (a shandy). Then back to repeat the process of getting us back then getting their bikes, they really are a lovely couple.

Our turn to cook dinner tonight and as they had said they preferred to eat vegetarian at night, plus they liked Indian food, we naturally turned to coconut raita. We did take the liberty of adding cauliflower and broccoli to Reena's potato curry but we hope she won't mind. We also Made the egg one which we had enjoyed once as a starter at her house. We had both dishes with some very nice bread from the local baker. delicious!  Needless to say she now has two more very keen devotees so we must have made them right. And remember we did this cooking in our little van kitchen.   Tried The local brandy, very nice.

Love to you all
Joan & Bryan xxxxx

Oh dear after today I think Joe & Ingrid will be pleased to see the back of us!

Andy & Stephen, we gave thanks at the Kepple, had a fair well dinner and lost a bracelet. The end.

Friday 30th September

This was sadly our last full day with Joe & Ingrid. We went up to the lovely church on the hill overlooking the whole city of Wurzburg to give thanks that all our children are well. This was a trip we had wanted to make with our friends because when Jacqueline was very ill they prayed for her there. The church is very beautiful and the views across the city are stunning.

After this we returned to the city square for some grub and then left them, to take a trolley bus ride back to our van. Later that evening they called for us and took us to Veitshochheim where we enjoyed a last meal together. The meal was really good and of course the company excellent.  Then we all went back to the van to check with Joe the stellplatz which would be best for us over the rest of our trip through Germany.

After fond hugs we reluctantly said goodbye to two people who really are the best, and prepared to get ready for the off tomorrow. Suddenly Joan noticed she had lost her brand new pearl bracelet, she was really upset. Then as we got ready to go and see it had fallen off as she had got out of the car she noticed Ingrid's jacket hanging on our drivers seat. We tried to ring them on Joe's mobile but for some reason it would not work. A gentle tap tap on the door and Ingrid had returned for the coat. She was distressed about Joan's bracelet and we all said good night, again.

Joan! I've just seen a knight in full armour with a huge sword getting out of a Mercedes. Honest!!!

Saturday 31st August

Stephen & Andy, we left our friends, went somewhere else, climbed a tower and visited a medieval fayre.

Well I said they were good friends, Joe & Ingrid having left us late last night, drove all the way back to where we'd parked and retraced our steps all round the town, plus asking in the restaurant for Joan's lost bracelet, they are amazing. Sadly their efforts were not successful but they still insist they will ask at the local lost property offices in both cities.

Finally we left and had a really pleasant drive to our next stop, a stellplatz in a town called Hirschhorn. Although we were there by 12 O'clock the van park seemed a bit full and we were lucky to just get in to a spot near the river, very nice. The whole car park was heaving and then we noticed some people in traditional dress of the Middle Ages. I mean it's not everyday you see a family in chain-mail with huge swords wandering about. So grabbing the camera's we followed to find a huge medieval fayre with craft stalls, tents, lots of food and of course beer.

It is amazing how the local people all get into the spirit of things and whole families even little tots are dressed up. As we went in they stamped our hands so we could come and go as we pleased which  Joan was not too happy about as it will not come off easily. It worked for us pretty well though as shortly after we got inside the camera blinked full, so we needed to return to the van and get another card.

But before this we had been amazed at the sights inside, it was as if we had stepped back in time. There was a whole village with blacksmith, carpenter, basket weaver, leather worker, candle maker, rope maker and fletcher. Plus of course sword practice and archery for everybody to participate in. There were minstrels wandering around and a lady playing a harp, plus as I said so many people in costume. It was amazing!

On the way back we decided to look around the village a bit and ended up climbing 425 steps to the top of the Schloss which is high on a hill above the village. It is now a restaurant where a wedding was in progress but nobody seemed to mind as we carried on up. It nearly killed us but I was determined to do it.

Our legs were like jelly when we got back to the fayre and we staggered in, found a seat near the beer tent and had a couple of pints while watching the acts in the arena. We stayed for ages and ended up eating a really good meal. I had Bratwurst and Joan had a pork dish (Joe's favourite) with chips all washed down with a couple of flagons of ale, finishing with a lovely big slice of cake, delicious.

Tomorrow were off to a campsite near Heidelburg. A really long drive, about 8 miles!

Lots of love
Bryan & Joan xxxxx

1st September

Is it us? We wanted the train to Heidelberg and the line's broken!

Andy & Stephen, we left early and arrived at campsite about 10.30am walked into town and back. The end.

Actually if you read the above it's almost all we did really. It was a nice day and we drove into Heidelberg and tried to find somewhere to park and wander around. This proved difficult so we returned to Neckargemund a few miles away where there is a campsite. We thought we may not be able to get in so early but we forgot we are not in England so they were delighted we came and just booked us in. They offered us a riverside pitch for 2.5€ more but we are pitched 4 metres away from it and that's close enough to see the boats and ducks.

Having pitched we wandered into town to see about trains or busses to Heidelberg only to discover the train line is broken and busses only run occasionally on Sunday. There is also a boat trip from here so we tried to find out how and when to get it but as everywhere was closed we gave up and returned to the van and just relaxed.

Tomorrow we will hopefully find more places to get information and buy tickets from. In Wurzburg you buy your tickets from a kiosk or machine not on the bus. But we are keen to go on the boat trip if we can discover how to purchase a ticket and what time it stops here. Apart from that and a bit of washing using the new dryer thing Ingrid & Joe bought us, we did very little really, sat outside the van with a beer, read our books etc., very restful.

Love from
Joan & Bryan xxxx