Time to leave

We sat and enjoyed the bright sun first thing in the  morning whilst having breakfast overlooking the players on the golf club whilst watching the dark clouds slowly coming in our or direction. We packed the car just as the rain started to fall, initially quite light and then bucket full’s as we left the Hotel car park in the direction of Hoek of Holland where we are to connect with the Stena Lines ferry to Harwich.

The journey took about 90 minutes using the motorways and when we arrived it was still raining but soon after we arrived they opened the check in after a delay on our part of the queue caused by three people in a grey Merc it must have taken at least ten minutes to sort them out whilst every body else was whizzing thro and we could not move. Then on to a car park where waited to board and we had to go the Dutch Immigration which is separated and marked EU and NON EU and blow me down we ended up behind the grey Mercedes that delayed us earlier and again we had to wait a long time before I could reverse and try another booth. Clearly this was not going to be our day and subsequently proved correct.

After a short while we boarded and went to the cabin which I must say was a darn site superior to the Brittany ferries version and very comfortable and better bathrooms with a proper shower door rather than the bit of plastic sheeting which seems to cling to you whilst showering. We then for a brief walk around the ship and fond the main restaurant which had just opened and enjoyed a very good lunch indeed. We retreated to the cabin for the rest of the seven hour journey and about 45 minutes before the ship was due to arrive we vacated the cabin and went to a seating area for a cuppa  and wait to be able to disembark.

The ship arrived a few minutes late  and the order  they unloaded the cars meant that we would have to wait and finally were were in the last fifty odd car to disembark and that's when UK immigration showed their worst. With over perhaps 150 cars on board they had three kiosks open and no difference between EU and Non Eu and no matter what we did after moving lanes were actually the last ones to leave the dock, was I pissssed off.

We left the docks and surprised that the major A12 had not overhead lighting for many miles and then we came across what appears to be a vehicle fire on the opposite carriageway which delayed many people getting to the ferry we had just left and then again about ten miles further on a motorcycle was lying in the road with police cars in attendance. WE stopped at a service station only to find it was an off road , around this roundabout and then that roundabout via McDonalds so that we could have a loo break.

We finally arrived home at about 11.20 and had a nice cuppa then watched a documentary on HM the Queen we had not seen before then off to bed.

Well that's it for a while as no more travel planned although once we have the lounge new furniture fitted we may go to the caravan whilst we also have a certificate for a night in a very nice Hampshire hotel donated by the Jubilados group at Noels recent Birthday party

One day before returning home

We arose and the sky was rather grey although some is promised for a little later in the day. I forgot to mention in yesterdays blog that when we checked in it would appear that when I made the bookings for the two night stay in the  Hotel they had decided for reasons unknown to us to upgrade our room for the second night here and so would we mind changing after the first night. Not being aware what they were offering and yet we said yes. So this morning after breakfast we went to see the front desk to find out what the arrangements were and were asked if we could move at around 1045 as the room should be ready then.

The room we had already was very nice with a balcony although it overlooked the car park and the roof of the kitchen and s we repacked our stuff and moved to what turned out to be a one room suite so bedroom and separate room as a lounge with a nice view over the golf course, wow how did we get this??? see photos…

Well we are almost at the end of our European Adventure having driven about 2500 miles or so and was it worth it, YES most defiantly but perhaps if we do it again we have learnt that one night stays are not sufficient to allow for sightseeing and so perhaps we would  always plan at least 4/5 days in a place and then move on. T he weather as I am typing this is looking a bit brighter with some sun and blue sky slowly appearing although rain is expected  here tonight and all of the next few days and so we will have to leave early from this place to ensure we get to the Hook of Holland .

I think we are not continuous eat outer’s and so in the evening we retrieved one of our last bottles of Costco wine and ordered some room service and enjoyed a meal in the room. Noel then connected the PC to the big tv in the bedroom and so we watched a programme on Five Mile Island Nuclear Plant for a while and then some other stuff on You Tue before turning in for the night

ON , On to our next Hotel

It was raining like crazy overnight and the this morning as we had breakfast before leaving and grabbed a couple of extra rolls to hep get thro lunchtime. I have mentioned previously we had intended to stay in Cologne but what with a Digital Festival taking place all the Hotels were full or overpriced and we did think that staying in Sittard we could visit Cologne for the day however in reality this was not sensible what with all the extra travel and car parking issues etc.

To get to our next Hotel which was on the outskirts of Utrecht we could take the autobahn, motorway whatever and would be there in two hours but then we would have to drive behind trucks kicky out spray and people going to fast and so then lets go via the country roads which would take double the time but far more interesting. On going Nijmegen we noticed lot of new houses and large estates being built but we found them quite ugly and boxy and generally very unattractive as far as were were concerned. Then on to Arnhem and then we came across a large amount of troops parachuting on to a large open area from about four Hercules aircraft, we could not stop due to the traffic and guessed they were either USA troops or British but there were quite a lot of watchers standing by and and also quite a few military vehicles.

 On the internet tonight I have tried to find out what was the occasion and the only thing that I can find is that on 14 Sept 1944 the Invasion troops began taking back this area of Holland from the Germans.

We arrived at the Hotel around 1600 , again its a Doubletree at a place called Soestduinen which is on the outskirts of Utrecht and apart from being a Hotel its has a spa and swimming pool which also looks nice in the photos but which we will explore tomorrow hopefully. We checked in to the Hotel and had an early dinner in the restaurant overlooking the golf course. If its dry and nice tomorrow we can either sit on our Hotel balcony or in front of the restaurant, either would be nice to pass the day.

Doubletree Golf Hotel

Now when typing this we are watching on BBC TV the events of delivery the Queens coffin to Westminster abbey and also the pomp that went with it, I must say that Charles as the new King  seems to be coping extremely well and full marks to him.

Finally I have lots of photos to sort out and add to my on line albums and may attempt this tomorrow if I get time and the inclination as we think swimming might be the priority.

Stuttgart to Sittard-Netherland via Heidelberg

We awoke to find the Hotel had no hot water for a shower which was a bit of a pain but we ate our last remaining bread rolls with cheese and a cuppa for a cup of tea. There is not need to spend about 18 Euros for a small breakfast each and so we decided where possible we would provide our own breakfast and snacks  en-route.

We left Stuttgart, a city being rebuilt after it looks like a bomb had dropped on it and then headed for the Motorway in the direction of Heidelberg. We have a long journey today and so made the decision not to use the country routes as we need to travel for quite some hours and eventually we arrived at the old town of Heidelberg where we planned to try and see the old castle but unless you stop for a couple of hours that would be difficult as it was surrounded by trees and perhaps the only way to enjoy is is in a helicopter. However we drove around the town for while and alongside the river and we too a few photos which hopefully might come out.

Then back to the Autobahn and of we went and the amount of trucks on the road I can only say was phenomenal and I thought the amount of trucks in UK was bad but this make our trucks like amateurs, god knows what they will do in the future as they need to move some of to the railways. We stopped in a rather rubbishy motorway service station and noticed the mount of rubbish lying everywhere which came as a shock when in Munich and Stuttgart there was absolutely none , I guess its a question of pride. En-route there were lots of road works and at one point the amount of trucks lined up in a queue after a problem on the Autobahn and I can honestly say its the longest queue we have ever seen as it must have gone on for about 20 miles or so but thank heavens on our side not so much. We crossed the border from Germany in to the Netherlands and made our way to a town called Sittard where we are stay at the Doubletree Hotel there.  

The Hotel was a brand new one which only opened at the end of last year and had been converted from and old school and so the decorations reflected its history with old desks, tiled walls and the small nave turned in to a rather nice bar where we enjoyed a pre dinner drink.

The bar

For dinner we stayed in the Hotel as by this time it was raining very hard and pointless to explore the town looking for somewhere to eat when we could eat at the in the HOtel. The food was very good and we both agreed we would be happy to return here another time for a few days. And so to bed.

A day out in Stuttgart- A city under total construction

The sun was shining as we awoke this morning after quite a good nights sleep and soon after work started on the stadium renovations right next to the Hotel and about 50 yards from our room so we shut the windows and carried on resting for a while.

Rather than pay 20 Euros for a bit of toast and jam each we used up two bread rolls, some ham and cheese that we had purchased within the last day or so for our breakfast. Noel did a bit of blogging and catching up on emails etc.

We had been up and short while and their was there was this whirring sound and the room quite dark??? it turned out that when the sun shines on our side  of the building blinds automatically come down to help keep the rooms cool which a good idea but you cannot see out the window, why could they not be see thro? ha.

The Hilton Garden Hotel Stuttgart

We booked a nearly two hour trip and on a red open top bus around town for 1300 and then had to take a taxi to the Bahnhof ( station) where we could pick up the bus.

According to the website the bus would be busy so having got there a bit early found out only five other people were on board and when questioned this they said that all students started school today so nobody only visitors would be available . The journey lasted about 100 minutes and at least the bus driver had not been following Michael Schumacher, some years ago we were on a open top bus in Barcelona and the drivers only task was to get to the end as fast as possible.

Well about the construction in progress, it was unbelievable, they are changing over the station so that trains run through it rather then stop there and this requires major works over several years, but everywhere there were new building, new roads it was chaos but interesting. We decided that we would get off the bus after a complete round trip unless we saw something that interested us like the Pig Museum?? but eventually we stayed on till the end which was about 1445 and we were getting hungry and rather than another roll with fillings we came across a steak house opposite the station which seemed quite busy considering the time and so we went and both enjoyed a rib eye steak with baked potato and it was really very good indeed so no tea tonight. After a little shopping we caught a taxi back thro all the construction to the Hotel for a cuppa and rest.

In the evening we watched a film on Netflix and prepared for an early departure the next day

Rain in Rain

Needless to say that when we awoke in the morning and the curtains were drawn back you had a perfect view of the grey skies and pouring rain, brilliant just what we needed. We originally planned to go to a place called Ingolstadt and then work our way down the Blue Danube (only it wasn't blue when we saw it) but in view of the weather we found a place on the map called ironically RAIN and so we said we must go there and from there work east to Ulm and then north to Stuttgart.

Being a Sunday there were obviously lots of events taking place from street markets, to cycle day outs, road works and closed roads and so our journey did not go quite to plan as it was not possible to follow the river all the way but we did our best. So driving thro the countryside was quite nice with rolling hills and cattle and also Vineyards and hops being grown and also with lots of agriculture especially fruit trees. We arrived in what we thought would be a small town and blow me-us there was a large Airbus Factory there just outside of Rain in a town called Donauwörth and upon investigation this is the main Helicopter and Training site.

We then arrived in Rain where the main road was blocked for a market day and so we disobeyed the SATNAV and turned up a side road the after about half a minute it gave us a new route avoiding the market. From there we headed alongside, not literally, in the direction of Ulm and after a short while came across a sign which said Parc und Ride  and there were loads of cars and many, many people on bikes and then out of the blue to self made bikes disguised at mini cars turned up, see photo. Avoiding all the wobbling bikers going two and three abreast but we finally made it out of town but there must have been several hundred bikers as there were marker points with stewards and medical help in places.

Eventually early afternoon we arrived in Ulm which is quite a large city where we planned to stop and look around the old town or at least do a drive thro subject to weather and as we got to the old part of town there must have been an incident of some type as their police everywhere with cars and pedestrians refused entry, what's going on??? so considering all the weather we had experienced and this making it a more tiring drive we decided that we needed to change our plans as we could not see the old city and so head for our Hotel in Stuttgart and we would use the motorway being the fastest according to the SATNAV rather than the slower main roads. So off we went and and joined the A8 Autobahn and after about ten miles the overhead motorway light started to show problems and the satnav was saying rerouting due incident and so suddenly us, and few others, got of the motorway and drove thro the countryside for about half an hour then it put us back on the autobahn. I did mention to Jennifer that there is a place called AUSFAHRT which appears on many signs on the road so must be a big town.

We arrived on the outskirts of Stuttgart and located our Hotel which is right by the Mercedes Stadium and checked in. 

For dinner we went to the Hotel restaurant for a beer and burger and then to room to watch some TV. Tomorrow we plan to to do a bus tour but subject to Noel recovering from his last two days of bowel issues as too many hours sitting in the car with not enough exercise is not great.

Saturday rest day in Munich

We had originally planned to do a tour of Munich today but when we awoke the weather forecast was accurate and we had pouring rain and overcast skies. We were also both a little tired after several days travelling and we could do with a rest and then we heard that there was a football match this afternoon with Bayern Munich’s biggest rival Stuttgart and so so many thousands are due in town and with the rain and our tiredness we said ‘lets forget it’ and have a day of rest which is what we did.

At this point we had briefly forgotten all about the change from the Queen to Prince Charles and the TV coverage on German TV in the breakfast lounge was such that we went back to the bedroom and watched this for several hours with all the ceremonial pomp and circumstance that on the Brits can do. Watching this took a few hours and so Noel spent time uploading photos, catching up with Blogs and then we moved on to the the question where to go to next. So we worked out a super plan, from here we would go to Stuttgart area and stay two night and visit en-route some old German towns and the on the second day head off in the opposite direction with a similar view. Following that we planned to go to Cologne and suddenly shocked at the prices of the Hotels which had gone thro the roof, why??? was the question which was soon answered after researching the web and we discovered a special DIGITAL event was taking place with the centre of downtown being converted in to a special space and so the room prices had escalated , if you could get one, from Euros 160 to over Euros 700 per night and some even higher, Damn so what to do? .

So we spent some more time researching and changed our plans and that after Stuttgart we would take a slowing route initially via Heidelberg and then on to a hotel just across the Dutch border about 45 miles west of Cologne for just one night and from there we had already made a booking at a nice Hotel near Utrecht for one night which were going to use for the night before we take the ferry and so we have changed this for a two night stay and will the free time to explore the area, swim in the Hotel pool and whatever.

With all the planning and photos out of the way we were beginning to get hungry, the Hotel restaurant is closed this evening and so we started to look for places where we can get a pizza although neither of us really fancied it and we had some stuff left in the food bag which needed eating or chucking and so we said lets get a salad from downstairs reception and top it up with whatever we have which is what we did. When at first we went to reception to purchase the salads it would appear they had none left then suddenly they said they would get the kitchen staff to make us up a couple and they would send to our room. The wait was longer than expected but in the meantime we watched F1 Italian GP qualifying on the the PC and then they delivered two huge salads and apologised for the delay but the guy who delivered them said  that as the kitchen staff had gone home for the day, that rather than let us down he had made the salads himself, what a great bloke. I am sure in in UK, if the Kitchen is closed, tough….

We added some shrimp and a bottle of wine to the salad and it was really great and just what we waned as we watched the rain pour down outside our window. Nothing planned for the evening, no night clubs, strip clubs or restaurants, just a quiet evening watching a film on Netflix or something and then get ready for an early start for tomorrow.

It was really great to be able to watch the official crowning of King Charles 111 and really sad about HM the Queen who is well respected around the globe, the pwer of global TV really makes it easy to keep in touch with what goes on.

The rain in Spain fall mainly on Bavaria

Time to pack up and leave the Hotel in Innsbruck and head towards Germany. WE both thought that Innsbruck without snow looks a pretty boring place although the mountains surrounding the town were quite beautiful. The Hotel Tivoli has only just joined the Hilton Chain and whether it will change its name it remains to be seen but the interesting  point was that it is run by Muslims with the ladies in their full dress and headgear serving breakfast including pork bacon.

Needless to say it started raining soon after we left as expected and our route was planned using non motorway and non Toll roads so we could get a nice view of the country and we were initially for a nice attractive town, well in the photos it was, called Garmisch-Partenkirchen which in the photos we had seen of the town would be a good place to stop and even have lunch but as we arrived the rain increased significantly and we did not fancy walking around in the heavy rain and so on to the next tourist spot called Castle Neuschwanstein but on route we stopped at a Spar store for some items for lunch and then on to the castle which Noel had visited many years ago on a Lufthansa Airline tour back in the early 1980’s. 

The traffic was quite heavy at times and we thought and discussed the fact in this rubbish weather the castle should be reasonably quiet and as we went past another well romantic old town called Fussen we noticed the amount of people and cars parked some way from the town and the traffic in the direction of the town had come to a complete stop. Fussen is close to the Castle and when we arrived at the Castle the crowds and cars were almost overwhelming with the streets packed with people, others using the bus service up the hill to visit the castle and also the many horse drawn carts loaded all going up the hill in the pouring rain. In fact the car parks looked full and the amount of Motor homes was also significant and so NO we are not going to that and just try to get some photos as it would be impossible to do a tour and then drive the 2.5 hours to Munich.

So we left the town and stopped in the empty car park of a related church to enjoy our lunch and we were parked in a direction so we did not notice until leaving a brilliant view of the Castle in the mist rain.

We decided that we would continue to Munich (or Munchen the locales call it) only to discover that Google maps kept calling it Minchin?? anyway we used all the side roads which of course takes longer but then we did not want to get tied up with the locals leaving for home on a Friday and this was a wise move as the roads and views were quite stunning at times. We noticed that many Bavarian villages had what one might describe as a Maypole which were fully decorated and even a couple we assumed welcomed a new baby to the town.

We finally arrived at the Hotel Hilton Garden Inn Munich Messe and this is a fairly new hotel perhaps less than one year old and the rooms and ambience was very nice indeed and we decided to eat in the Hotel tonight and Noel enjoyed and excellent Hamburger and fries and Jennifer had a Chicken club sandwich also with a few fries. Then back to the room where we watched a film on Netflix before turning in the for the night and at least the duvets were of a weight to enable sleep as last nights in Innsbruck were far to heavy and you were either to hot with it or too cold without it.

Now off to Austria

The heavy rain was still coming down as we awoke at about 0800 and had a cup of tea then finished our packing and made it available for someone to collect only the lift had broken down the previous day, lots of steps for us, so we took down all we could and planned to ask the staff for assistance but they were rather busy and the engineers were there from the lift company and it was suggested that we have breakfast and then hopefully the lift will be fixed which it was. The car had been brought from the garage and so we were able to leave the Hotel at around 10.00 as the heavens opened again and we thanked ourselves that ten minutes later all would have been soaked loading the car. At this stage I must comment that the Hotel was really great and we would easily stay there again with modern rooms and excellent staff it was a pleasure to stay there. For more info see the link

https://www.hotellagodigarda.it/

We had planned that we would  not go on the motorways and tolls roads today as there was only about an hours difference in timing and so we avoided all the heavy goods vehicles kicking up spray and the motorways would have rain restrictions anyway but our decision was the correct one as we had a really nice journey thro the mountains reaching nearly 2300 mtrs in the clouds. Jennifer took a lot of photos from the car and now we just need time to sort them and upload to the various blogs in the coming days. Both the last part of Italy and the first part of Austria the sun had started to shine and it was really lovely to see the hills and chalet style houses going up the side of the various mountains.

We stopped for lunch in a little lay by as the cars rushed by and then continued our journey to Innsbruck where we arrived at about 1545 and checked in the Tivoli Hotel which has just joined the Hilton Group, they need to some work as the place is empty. For sinner we had thought of using the so called Bistro bar but the menu was so limited pretty much frozen pizzas and a baguette and so we decided against that. Using Trip Adviser we found an Asian style restaurant about 300 metres from the Hotel and so went there and explained about Noels issues and they were most helpful and of course restricted what he ate whilst Jennifer had the complete choice which she enjoyed as did I.

Following dinner we went back to the Hotel and sat in the empty bar and did some travel planning for the next few days and subject to the weather holding up it should be good. The Noel did his blogs whilst Jennifer read before turning in.

A day to relax

We had a slow start to the day having enjoyed a lovely dinner the night before and now looking forward to breakfast which was quite a large affair with a very large choice of cold and hot with supplies of donuts and various fruits and breads.

The weather is due to change later in the day and so we discussed what we wanted to do and one thing was the washing as we have been on the road for ten days and cud do with some clothes freshening up. Mum found a Lavateria about five minutes walk away and so off she went while Noel another half hour in the room on personal matters and then joined Jennifer where we sat for about 40 minutes waiting for the washer to finish and the dryer to complete its mission and so by about 1300 all was complete and we had also done some small food shopping at the Coop and having returned the washing to the room we went lakeside and Jennifer made up some sandwiches which tasted great as we watched all the nearly hundreds of wind surfers charging by and in the distant lots of little sailing boats getting blown around. Apparently at the top end of the lake is the windiest by far so people come from far and wide to enjoy their favourite sport but some of the speeds these people get up to is frightening.

Noel took quite a few photos which he will edit when he gets a chance and put on the daily blog and smug mug

We went back to the Hotel for about an hour and then went to a restaurant we had seen earlier which looked popular and when we got there all the table were full and a queue of about 30 people and we decided we would not wait and went elsewhere where we could get a seat quite quickly and the restaurant was pretty crowded and the food was fine accept for there was far to much food, no wonder the Italians are large. Following dinner another short walk and then we sat and watched the lake as the light came down and the lights of the houses on the surrounding mountains went on and then two ferries arrived and dropped their passengers and off they went.

By this time it was looking like rain but we went back to hotel and Noel hooked up the PC to the TV and we watched some you tube stuff and shortly afterwards the rain started. Boy  did it rain overnight what with large chunks of lighting and lots of thunder.

And so to bed after a nice quiet day as tomorrow we hit the road again towards Innsbruck.

from one lake to the other

Well after a quiet night in the hotel where we had enjoyed cheese and bread as an evening g meal and the next day we were up eary, well Noel was, and we thought we would try to leave the Hotel around 0900 and we pretty much achieved that target. Shortly after 0800 Noel found the bell boy to help me find where my car was stored and but 0820 the car was parked outside ready for loading.

We enjoyed breakfast and then loaded the car and headed back down the lake in the direction of Milan and on the toll roads past Milan and departed the road near Brescia. The traffic on these roads was very bad with loads of trucks all driving nose to tail which meant you had to plan well in advance when you needed to leave that road for your next one. Some of the driving was pretty awful even for UK standards. Earlier in the day we had stopped to fill the car with fuel to avoid a motorway stop as they are always more expensive but also by using the ECO mode on the car we are averaging around 42.5 Mpg which is not bad considering we are sometimes travelling at around 70-80 mph.

Using the Toll roads in Ital is a little more challenging as you have to collect a ticket for a machine as you enter the toll way and then put it back in the machine with your credit card when leaving but getting close to the machine can be a little challenging and poor Jennifer has on occasions literally climbed out thro the window the reach the machine. By about 1300 we had reached the lower end of of Lake Garda and started to look for a place to stop for a self made lunch but initially it was very busy but as we moved further North the roads became quieter and so we found a nice pull in by the lake and enjoyed a cheese and tomato roll.

We arrived at the Hotel and boy is it nice and much better than expected, the room is twice the size of the last Hotel and much cleaner and modern and so we were very happy. After the early morning and a busy drive we decided to have an after noon kip and then around 1745 headed downstairs to the bar where we sat outside and watched the world go by. We went to the Hotel restaurant which was very nice and a bit noveau cuisine but very tasty and the staff were most helpful with Noel’s eating issues and so it worked out well. Following dinner we went for a small walk around the small port area and then sat for about twenty minutes watching the world go by and pondering how Chelsea could lose yet again , this is not good enough…

Then back to the comfortable toom where Noel completed the blog and Jennifer did some reading. We did take some photos today and perhaps tomorrow we will have a go in uploading them.

A day in Cannobia on Lake Maggiore

As the car is located a little way from the Hotel in an underground secure car park and also that we had two days of driving we decided that a day without the car would be good, anyways thats what we discussed whilst sitting up in bed having a morning cop of tea with no milk, why don't Hotels supply rooms better than for just one o cup of tea one will ever know.

We went down for breakfast with the usual buffet arrangement and there were most of the table taken already but we had a mixture of stuff and then decided it was time to plan the next few days as we have tonight's Hotel booked but nothing more. So we must have spent a couple of hours looking at cheap and expensive and then bloody expensive Hotels only to end up with one which all the reports on Trip Adviser are quite positive. This Hotel is called Hotel Di Lago di Garda and is about five hours away from here on Lake Garda. From there we are planning to head North with the intention of visiting the Castle (Schloss in German) Neuchwanstein which is one of the most unusual castles in Germany and so we will do this by staying the night in Innsbruck then drive in to Germany to the Hotel and after our visit on to Munich for a couple of nights staying at Hilton Hotels in Innsbruck and Munich as Noel has quite a few Hilton Points to spend..

The Hotel Cannobia which we are currently staying in is right on the lake front, perhaps the only one, and we have a small balcony we  can sit on and watch the world go by. The Hotel staff are very nice and helpful, but I do not understand why you have a phone in your room without any instructions what number to call if you need reception or the emergency services. Likewise with the access to Wi-Fi why not have a card in each room rather than have to go to reception and look at the card on the desk I do not know, perhaps its just the Italian way.

After completing all our Hotel reservations and planning we walked up the small stone embossed pavements to the ATM to obtain some cash and then continued along the back of the town until we arrived back n the side of the Lake. We had seen earlier in the day what they call ‘The Little train’ which takes tourist’s around the town and we did ask at reception but she did not know? but on our walk we could not see any signs of it anywhere, shame. By this time it was about 1400 and so we stopped in a small restaurant where Noel tried to explain his food issues but although it was written in Italian she did not seem to understand?? I had planned to have a pizza but i they have put onion and garlic in the tomato sauce then I am in dead trouble so opted for the the most Italian dish of all a , wait for it,,, a Hamburger and chips plus a local beer. Jennifer had a spaghetti bolognaise and both dishes were very good. On the table alongside was a group of four elderly guys I would say late 60’s mid 70’s obviously riding motor bikes and being swiss they were tucking in their food with gusto but not drinking anything alcoholic.

During the day Noel took a few photos and they will be added to this blog at a later day when I have all the space to use the notebook etc as this room is quite small with only two electric sockets, one taken by the TV and the other in the bathroom and so charging stuff has not been easy. Would we stay here again probably not as its expensive due it location but the rooms are of insufficient size to swing a cat

Following lunch Jennifer visited the Carrefour Supermarket and Noel went back to the Hotel just in case the Hamburger had hidden onions or garlic but after a couple of hours it seemed ok. The late afternoon we sat on the balcony and watched the people go by and had a white bread roll with cheese and tomato finishing up with small mountain strawberries and a further cup of tea then started the packing so we can get an early start tomorrow as we lose a good twenty minutes just getting the car from its underground den.

Have seen we have a new PM Liz Truss ( sound like a male testicular support) and lets hope she can sort out the mess as I think in about a years time if matters have not improved watch out for a Boris return.

Lake Maggiore here we come

We left the Hotel a little later than planned at around 1030 and headed of in the direction of Italy in the bright sun. The journey was to take about five hours but in the end it took a little longer as you will see

The French motorway are generally very good and the ones we used today were no exception  and nice and smoot and perhaps because it was a Sunday with very little traffic at except for one small part of the journey near Chambery. The amount of tunnels and road works was almost unbelievable and we must have gone thro at least thirty tunnels or more en route and there were road works on the the roads, in the tunnels, and almost every where so you had to be extra careful where you went as it would be to easy to end up in the works units. The hills were getting bigger ad with signs requesting snow tyres or chains, not for know, but for later in the year shows just how cold it can get. We arrived at the Frejus tunnel, which is about 13 kilometres long, where there was short wait as you had to pay to go thro an expensive amount of Euros 45 one way but only Euros 52 if its a round trip which does not seem fare to me.

We stopped around 12.30 for some fuel but much more expensive this time but the little stop was quite new and very clean with good sandwiches and so we decided to share a tuna baguette and a bag of crisps, boy we know how to live.  So on sliding by Turin and avoiding all the signs for Milan we finally arrived at the bottom of the lake and boy was it full of tourists, in fact everywhere you looked it was packed with cars, motorcycles, cyclists and of course pedestrians , not sure what they were all doing there .

We finally arrived at Cannobia a lovely little town and we ad difficulty finding the Hotel as several roads had been closed off the days market and with phone help from the Hotel reception we made it at about 1645. We checked in and then Noel was guided to the Hotel secure lock up about ten minutes away, whether Noel will ever  find the place again who knows. After a shower and a chat on ‘whats app’ with family we went off to dinner but did not stray very far and went to the restaurant next door only to find out later it was owned by the Hotel. We both enjoyed the food although Jennifer said here veal was a bit overdone but the plates of food what with starters was a bit to much for our smaller stomachs and so we both left some.

 It was turning a little cool at this time and although we did a brief walk along the Lakes edge with multiple bars and restaurants one after the other and all pretty much busy and then we returned to the Hotel for Noel to catch up with this Blog and Jennifer to read her book.

Time to leave the Lot Valley

Well its been a very nice stay in the LOT valley , one of our most favourite places, but its time to leave and head for the Italian Lakes. We left the Hotel around 1000 and trundled thro the country lanes for about an hour and finally found the the motorway. Driving the the country lines is lovely nut wen you have several hundred miles to cover there is no way you can do this and arrive at your destination in reasonable time.

So we joined the Motorway ( Autoroute ) for a couple of hours and there we spotted a services area with Esso selling fuel at Euro 1.42 per litre, ab40 cents per litre than anywhere else and so we joined in and got a full tank along with many other motorists, no wonder the place was packed. A short while later we stopped for lunch of yesterdays baguette and some brie we also had left over and needed finishing.

We followed the SAT Nav as just as we arrived on the outskirts of Lyon the heavens opened and buckets of rain were chucked down on us all for about forty minutes, perhaps an hour but we found the Hotel which is tucked away in an business and Expo area and checked in and went to our room but then thought after a cup of tea we would check out the Hotel which had only this year year become a member of the Hilton Group as it was previously a member of the Dutch Golden Tulip Group and so Hilton have started work on improving the place but still a bit more to do.

We went to the bar to check it out and there was a very friendly Romanian barman who we chatted to for about an hour and consumed some Heineken beer before returning to the room to change for dinner in the Hotel as we really did not feel like going out. The dinner actually was very good and the staff really tried to follow Noels challenges and it would appear fully succeeded as no ills afterwards. The Restaurant was quite busy but the the limited staff and kitchen crew seemed to cope quite well under pressure.

It was also today that Noel received some sad news about an ex KN colleague who only about a month ago was diagnosed with cancer of the pancreas and then one month later passed away, quite a shock and so Noel then spent a some time sending out the appropriate email to other colleagues. Life can be so sad sometimes.

Boy did it rain

It rained very hard overnight as forecast and it is expected to continue quite hard for the rest of the morning.

Following breakfast , this time inside the apartment, we planned what food we needed to buy for the next couple of day amd actually its not to much just a baguette and perhaps some more water and we also needed some butter to cook the chicken tonight. By around 11.00 the rain had eased off and so rather than sit in the room we decided to visit some of the places we know so well from past visits and also to do our shopping in Cajarc which is about twenty minutes down the road. Soon after we left the Hotel the heavens opened and it chucked it down for quite a while but we carried on anyway.

We went and looked at the camp and caravan site in Larnagol which we had stayed in on many occasions in the past and then  followed the river Lot down through the small roads with houses built in to the cliffs and there had some that had been completely refurbished since we were last here. We arrived in Cajarc and visited the Intermarche Supermarket and shortly after that the heavens opened again but we decided to continue our little tour in the rain and so went to Limogne de Quercy where we had stayed some years ago in a house called Mejas , the town was pretty much closed end the main bar we used in the past looked closed although there were a couple of others which looked open but siting in the rain with a cup of tea was not in our planning.

We followed the road in Calvinac and from there back to the Hotel for lunch and this time we used up the rest of the prawns for a nice prawn baguette and a cup of tea but luckily the weather had cleared up a bit and so we could sit on the balcony and enjoyed our lunch.

Its amazing sometimes that somebody says something which you lisen to but dont consider what the consequences might be and this was the case of a statement that Jennifer made yesterday evening which made me re consider some aspects of where we  want to go on our travels.  So Noel checked out the map and the discovered we could equally go via the several other big Italian lakes after leaving Lake Maggiore and rather than heading North then east to Innsbruck we could East in the the other lakes and then directly north to Innsbruck nd so that it what we have decided to do.

In the last couple of days Noel has started updating the BLOG from just before the 80th Birthday party up till know which has taken several hours to complete along with a couple of sore fingers being a two finger only typist ever since he can remember has taken its toll on his middle fingers on both hands, the sign of aging I believe.

For dinner this evening we have chicken thighs cooked and left to get cold along with salad and we also have a little wine left over. By 1700 the skies had cleared and weather has improved to 25 C from the 18C of this morning during our drive. Its out intention to pretty much pack up after dinner so that we can make a quick getaway tomorrow morning and have lots of time to enjoy the drive with some great scenery expected.

The rest of the evening was spent listening to music and reading and an early night is planned.

 

A day of rest and relaxation and planning

There was heavy rain overnight  but this area needs it as there have been a number of fires recently as well as trees not getting enough water are closing down early for the year end. We enjoyed breakfast on our little balcony overlooking the hills and watched the sparrows zoom in after we had finished looking for crumbs.

Later in the morning we wandered over to look at the Spa which we planned to use and collected our towels and dressing gowns from reception and entered the building but although it was hot outside at around 30 C  it must have been about 40 C in the building what with the Sauna and Steam room emanating into the the main swimming pool area. We spent about five minutes looking at the various rooms and then we both realised that if we were to use the Spa in such heat, Noel for one would faint with a short time and then Jennifer concurred and so we decided to forego the Spa and stick with the swimming pool instead which we said we would use later.

We returned to the apartment and enjoyed a cheese and and tomato lunch with baguette and then decided we need to plan the next few days travel and in which direction we shall be going and for how long we should stay and so we have prepared a basic plan that we go from here to Cannobio on Lake Maggiore and stay there for a couple of night’s but to get there will take some time and so we have split the journey over two days with the first part to Lyon and the second day on to Cannobio. We have booked Lyon Hotel using Hilton Points at a Doubltree Hilton Hotel on the outskirts of Lyon and in Cannobio, after considering everything available, have booked at the main Hotel Cannobio which although a little expensive is certainly the best for quality and location and by using up our large amount of unused Hilton points will be able to stay free for at least 8 nights so offsetting the costs of the more expensive Hotels.

Our next plan was to go the pool but Noel felt an afternoon zizz coming on and then Jennifer said why not and we both enjoyed a nice afternoon zizz until around 17 30 when we did a little more planning and then enjoyed dinner which was pork shoulder cooked in a very, very large urn being the only thing suitable and eaten together with a salad and the dinner was most enjoyable.

The rest of the evening we spent watching some You Tube stuff on the notebook including one of our favourite programs ‘ Plank Of The Week’ which is on Talk TV, quite amusing to watch sometimes…

And so to bed with heavy rain forecast overnight and tomorrow morning.

Off to the Lot Valley and St Cirq Lepopie

There was no panic to leave this morning and at breakfast i tried to get some white bread and although the lady who served us said sure no problem, laughingly said do you want the whole baguette and then produced the same dark brown bread which my tum does not tolerate. So Jennifer reached in to her bag and pulled out the remains of the baguette we purchased yesterday and I gnawed on that instead. We then finished packing our bags an headed out to the car after asking for help in bringing the baggage down four sets of rickety stairs and Noel got the car and we loaded up.

Our plan yet again was to take the country route and avoiding motorways and toll roads which the satnav did for several hours whilst we stopped en route for some bread to go with our cheese and tomato self made baguette sandwiches at a little town in the middle of nowhere. En route on the Western side of Perigueux  many houses with their roofs blown off and many trees down and somebody must have made a fortune selling tarpaulins to all the locals and the roofing guys will make a killing over the next year or so, we only hope they had buildings insurance. The storm was widely reported in the press and I think that a couple of people may have died as a result.

We stopped in St Astier for lunch , this was nice little town with a very comfortable parking location, seats with some shade , a loo and whilst there a number of cars turned up we assume to go to the cinema which was in the same square.

Following lunch a a lot more miles thro roads sometimes only wide enough for one car, a bit like first thing this morning crossing in between field with the road following the sides of the square fields the Satnav decided without our intervention that there there would be no way of us arriving on time in  St Cirq Lapopie and immediately sent us to Toll roads for about two hours that brought us into Cahors at around 1530 where we did some food shopping for the next couple of days at the Carrefour that we used in the past. The shop looked a bit of a mess with a number of chiller cabinets broken and with limited stock. We looked for some strawberries and this is the third supermarket in the last few days without any success, strange as Waitrose and Costco in the last few days had plenty. No doubt Brexit was to blame.

We finally arrived at the St Cirq Lapopie Hotel and Spa around 1715 after a nice drive alongside the River Lot and then were shown to our self catering apartment which is very nice except for limited kitchen equip. For dinner we had a ham and prawn salad which was very nice and a glass of wine before kicking off our shoes with Jennifer reading her book on slavery ( did she have me in mind) and Noel listening to music  and so a very pleasant evening indeed.

And off to bed around 2230 after a very pleasant day

Not the best of nights!!!

Noel was pretty tired after the nights events and so we had a slow morning and late breakfast where there was basically nothing to eat but fortunately there was lady sitting alone who spoke fluent French and English who was able to help us out and the kitchen produced some small white rolls that had been toasted and were fine.

A short while later her husband turned up and we were talking about travel and the fact we had lived in Asia etc and they lived in Switzerland and I mentioned that I visited Switzerland quite a it as I worked for Kuehne & Nagel at which point his face changed a little. I said do you know KN and it was then he poured out his story how bad KN had been for his business and unable to set up tracking systems and nobody seemed to care, I said there is perhaps nothing I can do but he said they had changed to DHL and they now see m to be as bad??? so not a happy teddy.

Early afternoon we went shopping down town for our travels tomorrow and the decided to have lunch in a little café which was really excellent , Noel had the burger and fries and Jennifer a smoked salmon and prawn salad and both were very large dishes and so not chance to eat anything much later. 

Off then to the supermarket where we purchased some brie and a baguette and tomatoes and then went back to the Hotel for a mid afternoon rest. At around 1900 it started with heavy rain but we stayed in the room and enjoyed the bread and cheese and then Noel discover the TV was a smart Tv with Netflix and previous guests had signed in but not deleted there  sign on details and so we were able to watch a film for a couple of hours before retiring again to bed where we slept well.

Thank god Noel did not have a repeat of last night……

This was certainly not in our plans!!!

The bell in the cabin started ringing at at 0500 and so we dragged ourselves out of bed and had a shower and then off to for a breakfast, well you could have bacon and eggs etc etc but at 0530 in the morning its not good and so Noel had a petit pan ( small white bread) and Jennifer a raison something or other with a cup of tea which the serving lady dropped the lot on the floor just prior giving it to me, this should have been a warning of problems to come.

By about 0715 local time we were off the ship but the the French Immigration staff seemed to have gone AWOL as we waited in line with no movement for about 45 minutes and then started to creep forward at a very slow rate indeed. I am sure some people would blame BREXIT for this but no its the French Immigration who do like working at this port as there are no problems like this at Le Havre or Cherbourg or St Malo and when we got closer to the Immigration booths it became clear why the the delay as there are five booths but only two were sort of working…quite appalling really.

However at around 0830 we were heading south and there was a large bang and rattle , rattle noise and some lights came on the car??? we pulled off the main road via slipway which was very close and discovered we must have driven over something and had a puncture in the the rear nearside wheel. Damn or something like that. This car has one of these small temporary wheels which I tried to change but I could not move the nuts. However whilst standing and pondering what to do next a French registered car stopped and out an English couple who live nearby en -route to the local rubbish dump and stopped to see if they could offer any help. This was really nice of them as they went to a couple of local garages which they knew nearby only to discover one was closed and the other had only one guy working and so he could not leave. The English guy also had a go at trying to move the wheel nuts but it was no go and so Noel called the Lexus assist Europe for some help and they said it would take about 60-90 minutes for them to get somebody to us, oh well all we can do is wait.

A few minutes later a French car pulled up and he started to help then pointed out that I had the car jack in the wrong location which is easy to do as I could not get down on the floor due to my knees and so he corrected this and after a few minutes we discovered that he was a tyre mechanic and he changed the tyre and told us where to go toe het a new tyre. Just hen he had finished the English couple had returned still trying to find assistance and then the Lexus support truck turned up and so we had to explain what happened,. So off we went a few miles down the road to Falaise where they checked the tyre and it was repairable and it would seem that whatever had hit the tyre an punctured it had entered and left leaving a nice clear hole which they could fix and did for 36 Euros.

We were hungry know and it was 1200 ish and about ten minutes away there was a Leclerc supermarket where we purchased some sandwiches, mine on a baguette was the most disgusting I have ever had and decided to not to eat.. So off we travelled South and changed our plans and hit the motorways to save time as original plan with eight hours to fill before Hotel check in and a slow drive were now out of the window.

We reached the Design Hotel Des Frans Garcons in a small town outside of Saintes where we had stayed some 9 years ago and forgot how many steps there in this place . Its still a nice and different hotel but if you have waling issues then its really not for you.

After briefly unpacking we sat by the pool in the 33 C temperature and had a beer and then went for a swim and the water was not heated and so quite a shock to the system when you first get in. Dinner was to be served by the pool and I had forgotten the hotel only serves food for its guests and only has a very small menu but Noel found something that should be able to eat which was a beef carpaccio but without any onions or garlic please which was delivered accordingly only was not to be.

We ordered a bottle o red wine which Noel only had one small glass ( that is by Noels standards) and some cheese to finish whilst Jen had the same. BY 1100 that night Noel knew that something was wrong as he spend five hours on the loo with bad diahrea which means they perhaps did not use a clean pan but who knows. So all in all not a good start to the holiday.

Leaving for France tonight

Another busy day, we that's not quite true as we watched the Belgian F1 GP and then a brief rest and we finally left home for the trip to Portsmouth to join the Brittany Ferries car ferry to Caen which leaves at 2245. We left home shortly after 1900 and arrived at the port at about 2015 and there was already a long queue to check in and so we waited for a while and eventually we ready to got thro security, normally with the caravan you get pulled over for a big check over but just the two of us in a car we were waived thro. 

Finally at about fifteen minutes before departure it was our turn to drive on board and we headed for our cabin on the ninth floor which is a long way when there are no lifts close by and carry overnight bags but we found the cabin and settled in for the night.  Well I say the night at they wake you around 0500 as the ship arrives at 0545 UK time or 0645 French time.

And so the bed

Week 22 August thro to Sat 27th August

With Joanne and the children still with us we had a quiet day on the Monday the 22nd August which is Noels actual birthday and then on Tuesday the 23rd we went to see our son and family for a late afternoon BBQ which was really excellent and Michael is clearly good at this so would have no hesitation in going back for more.

We then decided that we would do a Euro trip and have a break and so we had booked on the Sunday overnight Brittany ferries to Ouistream ( Caen) and from there we would follow a route that we had completed with our Texan friends a few years ago and then on to Italy. We had hotels to book and get all the car and travel documentation ready and also get the house up to date and what with two sets of plumbers visiting for various jobs we had a busy old week and perhaps thankful that we had planned some vacation time. Also we went to a funeral of a long standing friend followed by the wake where we met people who Noel had not seen for years.

Right we are really nearly ready to leave…..

Its party time

We had a relaxing morning playing with the grandchildren Katherine and Christopher then they headed off to the Hotel to check in early so they could all use the swimming pool. We went there about 1500 and met with our German based friends Gero and Jackie and we had a good time for about 90  minutes chatting about many things then Noel had to meet the DJ and then Maitre D to discuss the evenings events. At 1800 our guest began to arrive and by about 1845 nearly all had arrived apart from one couple from Exeter who said they could not attend very late in to the event, Noel was not happy with this.

The wine and beer was going fast and so we headed in to the large room which looked really nice and the flowers on the table made the room look very nice and so we had about six tables and a large dance floor and a DJ who was warming up. Noel had already chosen the music what to play during the dinner and they were all Noel’s favourites. Noel then welcomed all the guests and made the following speech.

“

Dear Family, Friends and in this very strange  woke world, Lesbian, Gay , Bisexual, Transgender, queer Etc etc etc

Thank you all for coming to join our family in celebrating two rather important milestones in our life. The first being  my 80th birthday which, quite frankly  six years ago, I did not think that I would actually reach after some serious health issues. But a far more important event is that it was Jennifer and my 51st Wedding anniversary on 31st May this year and the time has flown by

When you reach the age of 80 you suddenly realise that your friends are also growing older and suffering from various ailments Unfortunately quite a few members of my family and also some very close friends  are not able to join us due to in certain cases severe health challenges preventing them from travelling. Whilst some Far East friends have been unable to travel due to Covid Travel restrictions currently in place. And finally there are also friends who are away on holiday at this time and unable to join.

But I would really like to thank the friends who have travelled from overseas ( Gero and Jackie and Jerry & Mura) to join us this evening. And  I'm so glad to have both our daughter Joanne and Son Michael with their respective partners Tim and Becky together with our four lovely grandchildren (Kathryn, Christopher, Ethan and two month old Archie) for joining this important milestone event.

At this point I would like you to raise your glasses to absent friends and family

The idea for this party came whilst we were  in Florida and enjoying a glass of Chardonnay, but little did I realise some of the challenges in organising this event as I had anticipated that Covid would be a  thing of the past and that all my friends would be fit and well, how wrong I was If we carry on like this  I might have to cancel the planned event for my 100th Birthday as I feel I may or not be the only person attending ??

When it came to arranging for a location for this evening we did look at a number of locations but then Jennifer reminded me of the following .

On 30th July 1970  we attended the start of the Tall ships Race in Plymouth and on the way home  after a very long drive we ended up at the Wheatsheaf Steak House on the A30 at Virginia Water for a meal and as Jennifer said she would treat me for dinner after a nice couple of day’s away with her parents,  and so I sort of felt obliged to ask if she would marry me as a thankyou for buying me dinner,  to be honest I was expecting an immediate reply but, all I got was Hmm ‘I will think about it and let you know possibly tomorrow.’ Oh well I thought and started to check my previous girlfriends telephone numbers..

So on the afternoon of the 1st July whilst I working in the Maidenhead, Jennifer called to say we should meet and discuss the marriage proposal and as she was based in Ashford we should meet in the middle at a pub by the river called The Anglers Rest (now called the Runnymede Hotel)…where she accepted my offer of body and soul and but of course and more importantly still, the cash .

Also another lovely memory of this place  was when I was just a kid my parents would bring me together with my two sisters and whilst my parents enjoyed the beer and my sisters helping open the locks I would go fishing  and so you can perhaps understand that this location does bring back some really special memories.

Well tonight I hope you will all enjoy it. We will be having a buffet and the  wine, beer, soft drinks etc are all on us but those guests who require a 2002 Dom Perignon or a 1787 Chateau Margaux should start looking for their credit card.

Later you will be offered a piece of  Birthday cake which has been prepared by my daughter Joanne and my daughter in law Becky. Thank You ladies…

We will try to meet as many friends as we can tonight and hope you can also hit the dance floor later.

Please send any photos of this party which would be great

Again Thank you for joining us on this special night and to my wife lovely Jennifer , Thank you for everything, I would not be here without you and I love you to bits..”

We then started the buffet and I must say it was really excellent and the side of beef had people going back for more. Once the dinner was over Noel and Jen started the dancing with one of our favourites “Savage Garden - Truly, Madly, Deeply”  and  then we were joined on the floor a few other guest and then to liven it up on to Le Chic and we danced the night away whilst consuming a reasonable amount of booze.

When just about the time most people had left at around 1130 some of us staying in the hotel went to the bar for a nightcap and we finally went to bed about 0130 which was late for us.

Gosh that was a really good night but the last time we shall do anything like this again as to much hard work.