tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-52855335220430329642024-03-19T23:31:54.005-07:00Kiwi FreewheelersTwo kiwis experience living in a motorhome Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.comBlogger48125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-28022153247301518302019-10-13T09:51:00.001-07:002019-10-13T09:51:33.640-07:00Taos, Los Alamos and . . . Winslow Arizona<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKHSrsZe-Q8iR-jAE5kaaG7I8moddL__uW8HpPu4Ryub6e7Ox_otB8j9QXx0hmqrUB_KdGo7iVPuYKavrnXugfhFMwJopThNZRTH306kX5C6utdK27p53lYfgurFXnfpMXbgbVVNIvciaR/s1600/Pueblo+Taos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKHSrsZe-Q8iR-jAE5kaaG7I8moddL__uW8HpPu4Ryub6e7Ox_otB8j9QXx0hmqrUB_KdGo7iVPuYKavrnXugfhFMwJopThNZRTH306kX5C6utdK27p53lYfgurFXnfpMXbgbVVNIvciaR/s400/Pueblo+Taos.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Taos Pueblo</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Taos, rhymes
with ‘house’, is set on a glorious high desert plateau with a backdrop of pine
forested mountains. It is steeped in history but the modern town dates from the
1630s. The town has an over abundance of high-class art galleries and when we
visited there was a wool festival taking place that we ended up mooching
through.</span>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br />Taos Valley RV
park is on the pricey end of the scale and we only scored an ‘overflow’ spot as
we had no reservation. The two other RV parks looked like places to avoid at
all cost. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">I did some overdue washing using the big US washing machines – all
speed and no effectiveness - I pulled out items that managed to have patches of
dry remaining on them. The clothes dryers are something else though – items too
hot to hold and all done in 45 mins.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Taos Pueblo was
a few miles north of Taos itself and is the oldest continuously occupied settlement
in the US. The day was brilliant sunshine as usual and the ochre adobe
structures with their turquoise woodwork, some resembling apartment blocks,
stood out in stark relief against the sapphire sky. Little pizza oven things
were dotted around and to satisfy my curiosity I ordered a blue corn fry-bread.
It was sprinkled with cinnamon and icing sugar and looked a bit like an oily
chapati – curiosity satisfied, I didn’t order any more.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfHHmlkew2mVjm0GepBaHoTkyA8V7tHIJJDsjqKSAiSLiJfvf5PXLuQZJoGJxOlarwKYci5b6mo2z9kTESkR8fnrfDlLs80J-LrzsLXsg70EsNTrz05c4VptVPTydywYCuMUuAKgYQIyLf/s1600/Taos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1291" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfHHmlkew2mVjm0GepBaHoTkyA8V7tHIJJDsjqKSAiSLiJfvf5PXLuQZJoGJxOlarwKYci5b6mo2z9kTESkR8fnrfDlLs80J-LrzsLXsg70EsNTrz05c4VptVPTydywYCuMUuAKgYQIyLf/s320/Taos.jpg" width="258" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">St Francis of Assisi church, a landmark in Taos</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8tju0-JHyj-xOQ5G6gBvqLTTDmWi5pswonZFdiw1_puzO1Ep-OV1JTH1YqVxurVXJyX2VVTiAAbdcdpns7gkmzvAojtDfxVxQHqSH-1sGGibnYZr3SRKMoXOZIKg0vKd7G7UgyTeTLU7S/s1600/Bandalier.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8tju0-JHyj-xOQ5G6gBvqLTTDmWi5pswonZFdiw1_puzO1Ep-OV1JTH1YqVxurVXJyX2VVTiAAbdcdpns7gkmzvAojtDfxVxQHqSH-1sGGibnYZr3SRKMoXOZIKg0vKd7G7UgyTeTLU7S/s400/Bandalier.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bandalier National Monument<br />
Climbing up to see where the Pubeloan people lived, I didn't like this bit</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Things in the
cab don’t always go smoothly and my intentions didn’t co-incide with the
driver’s understanding, therefore we ended up in Bandalier National monument. A
serendipitous outcome as it had a lovely campground set among the junipers. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Each campsite had all the usual equipment plus a large bear-bin, I don’t know about
the bear but I certainly couldn’t open it. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We trekked downhill 1.5 miles to the
visitor centre getting a fabulous view of the ancient ruins on the way. A
shuttle service delivered us back to our camp at the end of the day. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoUcnvxMa_PwrHmSfrVH04gxhajoLRx7QG8p_tqjOUVChTdnxnz3tcGP91NMHNyDg7us_4Av0j5CDkGXf_6kfWm2aH7Eqkl8uY6_BvpY2ku-jWwVZ7bU-gxGVfON4yz57UbWyaSbsy_yHE/s1600/Los+alamos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoUcnvxMa_PwrHmSfrVH04gxhajoLRx7QG8p_tqjOUVChTdnxnz3tcGP91NMHNyDg7us_4Av0j5CDkGXf_6kfWm2aH7Eqkl8uY6_BvpY2ku-jWwVZ7bU-gxGVfON4yz57UbWyaSbsy_yHE/s320/Los+alamos.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Groves (left) and Oppenheimer, <br />
the main drivers behind the creation of Los Alamos</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Bandalier
National monument (a national park) is on the doorstep of Los Alamos town. More
swearing in the cab before we finally parked the oversize gaudy beast. We had
to go through ‘checkpoint Charlie’ who made us turn around and detour around
the LABORATORY. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Los Alamos was
created specifically to engineer an atom bomb to end WWII. The location was out
of range of enemy bombers and set on a high defensible plateau. A collaboration
of US, UK and Canadian scientists with quite a few Jewish scientists fleeing
Europe joined the <i>Manhattan Project</i>. Within two years the bombs that were
dropped on Hiroshima (‘Little Boy’) and Nagasaki (‘Fat Man’) had been created
and deployed. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Los Alamos was a ‘town that never was’, at the time officials denied its
existence and access was a dirt road from Santa Fe. Eventually there was a
rough road made of chip and seal to replace the dirt road. The ranger told us
the chip and seal is not like roads the US has today - sorry to say that is still
what NZ roads are made of.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIWMOB1YCDEX-aJoCGGcFjpXiTbXE1Rlm9eEYr7v-vKXrOwRpaYBZHtzFaiisYsJvDFWF-mni_YAli_dkWXLnmEofp-66nlPADM2ncnYAZ3QforNbv-JHbA-371k7AFcZ0l0bleI_5L5LB/s1600/Little+Boy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIWMOB1YCDEX-aJoCGGcFjpXiTbXE1Rlm9eEYr7v-vKXrOwRpaYBZHtzFaiisYsJvDFWF-mni_YAli_dkWXLnmEofp-66nlPADM2ncnYAZ3QforNbv-JHbA-371k7AFcZ0l0bleI_5L5LB/s400/Little+Boy.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stuart looking at full size replica of "Little Boy" named after Eisenhower with<br />
'Fat Man' replica (Churchill) in the background)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We visited
history and science museums and the house where the head scientist lived, it
had a bath unlike most of the other accommodations which were allocated
according to employee importance. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Today the town looks decidedly bland but was
decked out in brilliant autumn yellows glowing against a blue sky. We had to
show passports to take the road out of town and on our way glanced across at the
installation that gets $US2 billion a year to research and develop nuclear
weapons. Food for thought indeed.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We are swinging back in the direction of Las Vegas taking in a few State parks with bits of Route 66 thrown in. We struck a bad patch of campgrounds either being full or unsuitable and with the day growing darker Wikicamps suggested the Walmart carpark which welcomes RVers parking overnight.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">So - I didn't get to be "standin' on the corner in Winslow Arizona, such a fine sight to see..." but I did get to stay overnight in the Winslow Walmart and we made use of their excellent restrooms the next morning. We were not the only ones though, there were 8 other campervans plus a couple of trucks thrown in.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Adios mes amigos, after we return the truck we have a weeks siesta in Noosa, somewhat more familiar ground, before returning home.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC0zzHxam4jdqwjrSsEqvGOLTYhvJA-bRQENnR-rH-3tVQ32PNYSVKM7keYUpd4RtNVDKt5UDTSjToGuP8Db3dLZF38_nSfjjMl9f0_GgEZk6tsrxxbAkOoMJK7X7GoPJvjLybl7Z5QibW/s1600/untitled-6053.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC0zzHxam4jdqwjrSsEqvGOLTYhvJA-bRQENnR-rH-3tVQ32PNYSVKM7keYUpd4RtNVDKt5UDTSjToGuP8Db3dLZF38_nSfjjMl9f0_GgEZk6tsrxxbAkOoMJK7X7GoPJvjLybl7Z5QibW/s320/untitled-6053.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br /></div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-41301680025504806832019-10-06T21:05:00.000-07:002019-10-06T21:05:54.245-07:00Ancestoral Puebloans and New Mexico<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg02_75zGzWnxrJEYXcxDdceq4_RJQ6fqslyXks-BTfCuEwJgA1GI8rxbfak7B_h_Xk_9nQWg9zs4DActfS8OKQjm3dbXhLnZqS3VKHybwV5Eegh_tLDGvJMGFAgixM_LGdxChdvgo8GUxJ/s1600/untitled-6170.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg02_75zGzWnxrJEYXcxDdceq4_RJQ6fqslyXks-BTfCuEwJgA1GI8rxbfak7B_h_Xk_9nQWg9zs4DActfS8OKQjm3dbXhLnZqS3VKHybwV5Eegh_tLDGvJMGFAgixM_LGdxChdvgo8GUxJ/s400/untitled-6170.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pueblo houses under the lip of the mesa, Mesa Verde</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD6ugXSjlff04_r9CIGf1rWD6DFHkj1amSZOVZRq1oTspvH1_uYAO-NxpAoBLhyphenhyphenP6eftcZWqsfohQlPCP3xSN6nk0pfQz9tHZaJkZfwjTbZ6r9ukSxMipLGW3VaWSFm7n_2hn2YFsiocnO/s1600/untitled-6115.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD6ugXSjlff04_r9CIGf1rWD6DFHkj1amSZOVZRq1oTspvH1_uYAO-NxpAoBLhyphenhyphenP6eftcZWqsfohQlPCP3xSN6nk0pfQz9tHZaJkZfwjTbZ6r9ukSxMipLGW3VaWSFm7n_2hn2YFsiocnO/s320/untitled-6115.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">South West
America has been home to Native Americans for about 12,000 years, and we visited some places that had been home to their descendants. Mesa
Verde is a ‘must-see’ if you are in the area with a great museum, visitor
centre and lots of well-preserved cliff dwellings. These sites don’t date back 12,000
years – more like 1500 years ago.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We set off
burning more fossil fuel at 8mpg to Mesa Verde National Park. We pre-booked
tickets in Durango for a couple of ranger-led tours to see the remains of the
buildings created by the Ancestral Puebloans.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">On the way we
called into the sorry monument erected at the “Four Corners” where Arizona,
Utah, New Mexico and Colorado states meet. It was wind-swept, tatty, and
unkempt. Nevertheless we paid the money and I had my photo taken with a limb in
each state.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Mesa Verde is the huge ‘green table’ of a mountain where the Ancestral Puebloans
(previously called Anasazi) lived. These people eventually migrated away from
the area and are ancestors of the Hopi. The Navajo are relative late-comers to
the area and now form the majority of the population of the “Four Corners”.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Mesa Verde is
huge and with speed restrictions it took a long time to get from one part to
another. We hiked with rangers below the lip of the mesa and walked through the
remains of houses and meeting areas being careful not to touch anything. To
get between levels we had to climb on reconstructions of old ladders and I was
glad we didn’t have to use the hand and toe holds that remained in the cliff
edges from the original inhabitants. The rangers each had a unique delivery of
their story including strong conservation messages, humour was doled out in
spades. We stayed a couple of nights in the park campground and missed
seeing the black bear that our camper-neighbour spotted.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHmX-_1wFkwPZUm8gen9GlNT-cwpABFn_uwIbmprqxAvtUsqYV0AOYnUg0F3wAIWqSyeHuAhkXInQP8hUGAMDOKajUIiO0wQycnMYc1cwgQYCtMQLo1dloL-rPYmNAYBTHQaqcdEYkzHXC/s1600/untitled-6248.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHmX-_1wFkwPZUm8gen9GlNT-cwpABFn_uwIbmprqxAvtUsqYV0AOYnUg0F3wAIWqSyeHuAhkXInQP8hUGAMDOKajUIiO0wQycnMYc1cwgQYCtMQLo1dloL-rPYmNAYBTHQaqcdEYkzHXC/s400/untitled-6248.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Monument Valley</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Remember when
Forrest Gump stopped running? It was in Monument Valley. I joined the people playing chicken in the
middle of the road to take the iconic photo before we drove toward those
massive mesas to check in at the campsite overlooking the valley. Here we met
the dragon to end all camp dragons.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">“Question?” was
her opening line without bothering to looking up. “Answer” said Stuart (who
always accuses me of antagonising these people). After we said we wanted to
stay at one of her windblown, hot, dusty, hugely overpriced sites she replied
with “no this, no that, no the-other, no nothings you get for your money”. OK,
we’ll take it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi44kj6LxPowDgQtxHTNR7uyo1EdKpqqmOs9WdRykoJZs2hrIHNfQspjMpEKhGYzseQzo_mbE99CkssgULs-t92C_xD4XIYrGl70VqQ1-ZLiagUvKLCBsMtf9K6tLf7TX5zrQ-W5-9cgbB-/s1600/untitled-6232.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi44kj6LxPowDgQtxHTNR7uyo1EdKpqqmOs9WdRykoJZs2hrIHNfQspjMpEKhGYzseQzo_mbE99CkssgULs-t92C_xD4XIYrGl70VqQ1-ZLiagUvKLCBsMtf9K6tLf7TX5zrQ-W5-9cgbB-/s320/untitled-6232.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We also took an over-priced jeep tour in the canyon between the mesas as RVs are not allowed on the scenic route. The jeep was open-sided and our guide tried hard to ensure she kept on the tail of the vehicle ahead so we had maximum dust exposure, she pointed out bits of rock we might find interesting ‘can you see the rabbit? How about the shoe?’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">That night the RV shook against the wind and dust swirled around, but all credit to Stuart, he battled out with his tripod and little torch taking astro-shots of the mesas with the milky way lighting the background.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAMpXlW80FMYGQoEis-GScaaWTWaHWjsezQVP3W9WDidhVFCynziEtokx26-d3Q0EmzSsGm7GOlDZsism5bmj8QZJPH3QzUtbiDJ3X8wvnPe9DBgLcq1OxM1xYTYysP6C5ibVkq5Z6r9Dm/s1600/untitled-6217.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAMpXlW80FMYGQoEis-GScaaWTWaHWjsezQVP3W9WDidhVFCynziEtokx26-d3Q0EmzSsGm7GOlDZsism5bmj8QZJPH3QzUtbiDJ3X8wvnPe9DBgLcq1OxM1xYTYysP6C5ibVkq5Z6r9Dm/s320/untitled-6217.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Goosenecks State Park - a camp for a night</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQMD72aJ33zSpv_OzZyL7WNq0jY8dhkasvr8N-roOZDMG2wifFK7wFLb5R7ODYVgTCUtN67i3Sp0n76dXhFHNm4NB9-lxP26uYjfSv9tINzH1IXm21b4OP-4gkI-3c13oe3Jl5xCtFPuqS/s1600/untitled-6431.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQMD72aJ33zSpv_OzZyL7WNq0jY8dhkasvr8N-roOZDMG2wifFK7wFLb5R7ODYVgTCUtN67i3Sp0n76dXhFHNm4NB9-lxP26uYjfSv9tINzH1IXm21b4OP-4gkI-3c13oe3Jl5xCtFPuqS/s400/untitled-6431.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stuart 'off-piste" in Canyon de Chelly</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Petrol in the
Navajo reservations is cheaper than other places so Stuart ensured we had our
fill before we set off eastwards. I fiddled continually with the radio pulling
in Christian, C&W, Mexican and everything in-between, the RV doesn’t run to
any USB input on the ‘entertainment system’.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">A bit of a haul
to Canyon de Chelly National Monument where we hiked into the canyon to see
some more Puebloan ruins. It was another blue sky day and the campsite among
the cottonwoods was a lovely place to spend the night. A Texan neighbour came
over to add his 2 cents worth when he saw all our maps spread out and
recommended we head toward Abiquiu. We plotted a zig-zag journey and opened an
excellent Californian chardonnay to off-set the low-key dinner.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Travelling 500km on the wide well
paved back roads was quick and painless before we pulled into a campsite on the
shores of Lake Abiquiu ready to explore Georgia O’keefe country (famous SW
America artist).</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We were greeted
by our host Ken, who made us very welcome and we settled into a well-priced
site complete with all the usual – own firepit, hooded bbq, huge picnic table
and bench with its own shelter. The downside was Ken pointing out the site was
‘alcohol-free’. We had to play ‘secret-squirrel’ with the booze.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Georgia O’keefe
is big in this part of the world and we visited some of the places that she
painted, the colours and light in this area near Santa Fe are an artists dream. At night I could hear coyotes yipping and howling and I saw one cross our path the next day, but he didn't hang around. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Taos is the furthest east we will be travelling and then we turn and head back towards Las Vegas, but that will take several days driving, so Taos here we come (remnants of an R. Dean Taylor song are playing in my head "I'm serving time in Taos New Mexico".......).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Adios amigos.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXuqnskxxzIifC-73ZkYfeSG9olER8FYhD39EKMCmYvmVO2ZS7XMj_HvHSJgZjomtcH-XAxXa8bjYR-CN1-HL6lfbNSN-oyxTQply0vQTqeGEDo2ktg4ihKbBCXbul7BakSqNwdyG8hchh/s1600/Ghost+ranch.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXuqnskxxzIifC-73ZkYfeSG9olER8FYhD39EKMCmYvmVO2ZS7XMj_HvHSJgZjomtcH-XAxXa8bjYR-CN1-HL6lfbNSN-oyxTQply0vQTqeGEDo2ktg4ihKbBCXbul7BakSqNwdyG8hchh/s320/Ghost+ranch.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br /></div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-49996267204496581152019-09-27T21:21:00.000-07:002019-09-27T21:30:03.650-07:00Rocky Mountain High, Colorado<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiflzJK-kresUSV9Dx8p0_NOF8VO7fj0OoZpSR-_V8CTPnkWC6sWIO51LXNj3-NcJu5zhWSC1tPqiggcU37GrV5ntHuhR4dQvTx88HPCkV8kwvzO-BAql-fdddFvGHJjM1PFtjcyiQUOKHL/s1600/untitled-5605.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiflzJK-kresUSV9Dx8p0_NOF8VO7fj0OoZpSR-_V8CTPnkWC6sWIO51LXNj3-NcJu5zhWSC1tPqiggcU37GrV5ntHuhR4dQvTx88HPCkV8kwvzO-BAql-fdddFvGHJjM1PFtjcyiQUOKHL/s400/untitled-5605.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Arches National Park</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Arches National
Park is one of the most popular in the US, after seeing the queues of cars
waiting to enter the park we decided to get there early the following day. In
the meantime we would continue the shoe search in Moab, have a dinner out and
stay in a camp ground. Moab is tagged as being a cool destination, not bad
compared with where we had visited so far, and after shoes were bagged we
watched the homecoming parade; well actually the road was blocked so we had no
choice.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br />The Moab campground beside the dusty highway, cost $NZ120 for night and we were
shoe-horned in between some big rigs. It looked as if nothing had been spent on improvements in 45 years. The
restaurant next door had an unpromising appearance but after we were shown to a table outside on the patio we found the food was excellent,
a great choice of craft beer, and one of those bands whose songs all sound the
same.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji3w6GFjTv-eNLV5E6Eo9ACgC9llu6AojpgcEU-sMgV_e1WZ8mRDHhmm46AxFsIvsXGwxw6RVlHjWG4tCxV-k7G3df3WclKWaXK98zhub2YBgR3x00gMXMDraQX2x0r7xg9v0DGeeVVg_6/s1600/nesa+arch.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji3w6GFjTv-eNLV5E6Eo9ACgC9llu6AojpgcEU-sMgV_e1WZ8mRDHhmm46AxFsIvsXGwxw6RVlHjWG4tCxV-k7G3df3WclKWaXK98zhub2YBgR3x00gMXMDraQX2x0r7xg9v0DGeeVVg_6/s400/nesa+arch.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mesa Arch, Canyonlands</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Arches NP,
followed by Canyonlands had some impressive arch and canyon formations. The
geology is lost on me, but let’s just say ‘erosion’ covers a lot of
explanation. We stayed in the area for a couple of nights at a Bureau of Land Management
camp (BLM = DoC) set high on a saltbush plateau.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><i>Mesas, table-like hills abound in this area as do buttes that are similar but narrower than mesas.</i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmucJHBzXDNIw5jyVPR0PD947Itc0MAVcOPVcEaI1NB_B4Q9YVxvxBYYkAiBiUTnRKD31bCsG8f1gTL92iLARc2EXEeQMdm8MUcj_nhp8LKxCRXtgmHnRHoZbPofaLQ_3RSKIxT4AesF90/s1600/untitled-5697.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmucJHBzXDNIw5jyVPR0PD947Itc0MAVcOPVcEaI1NB_B4Q9YVxvxBYYkAiBiUTnRKD31bCsG8f1gTL92iLARc2EXEeQMdm8MUcj_nhp8LKxCRXtgmHnRHoZbPofaLQ_3RSKIxT4AesF90/s320/untitled-5697.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Pueblo granary tucked under the rim of a mesa. <br />
Had to climb the mesa to get the shot</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">A cortado is the US equivalent in this area of a flat white without the latte art. We said goodbye to Moab with a cortado apiece inside us and an ‘O’ ring for the waste pipe that had left a drippy trail behind us. (Just shower water). Colorado, a change from the dry dusty desert, lay ahead as we hit the road east. It is like travelling between different countries, the rockies in Colorado are high altitude with plentiful vegetation.</span><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5XjMBqxk5sbqW7LmsPlLEHUSUfoT5ORWD_pfydBGjyIZh9x7exuUiD6-DDbvKhiA-Z_N2Vq1PJTSPVDzpUFvs8IdG_NRR01ZZuDzM_sRSapcQYtuuPjxhl1uLDX1keVxErSq6ACsQrOar/s1600/untitled-5907.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5XjMBqxk5sbqW7LmsPlLEHUSUfoT5ORWD_pfydBGjyIZh9x7exuUiD6-DDbvKhiA-Z_N2Vq1PJTSPVDzpUFvs8IdG_NRR01ZZuDzM_sRSapcQYtuuPjxhl1uLDX1keVxErSq6ACsQrOar/s320/untitled-5907.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">San Juan Highway</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The San Juan
Highway is strung out over 200 miles through a series of Wild West towns.
Telluride, Ouray, Silverton, Durango. Telluride is a base for wealthy winter
holiday-makers with shops to cater appropriately, and on the other end
of the scale is Silverton, a former silver mining town which offers endless
shops of cheesy tat from the only paved street.
All the broad side streets were dirt roads with ATVs driving through. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The highway
between these towns climbs up to over 11,000 ft with autumn colours a riot of burning
yellow splashed among the evergreens. The craggy mountains lining the highway glow richly red, tenacious pines cling to their sides.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbXpBUvSUoZrDH6M6zE7jX7sZu6QycBN8M3BV9-Tf_NS8KNvM6Y1sI5ZFnhE4K4v44RCrfmLsgDkJInqsO7WtGjzRG8IRRB1POp6Szf1O6yCrR5frF-3McHOcgd96-tvKnQFqHE9GlQS-J/s1600/untitled-5856.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbXpBUvSUoZrDH6M6zE7jX7sZu6QycBN8M3BV9-Tf_NS8KNvM6Y1sI5ZFnhE4K4v44RCrfmLsgDkJInqsO7WtGjzRG8IRRB1POp6Szf1O6yCrR5frF-3McHOcgd96-tvKnQFqHE9GlQS-J/s400/untitled-5856.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ouray, delightful little town</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_Rs33EvvP-on5Tm3isdSPFJSEDEgTFTrNnzJxo99K5Htbw34KxIVEu5zDl0mxRVUZ5j-1cH6-WcbvxgzSMF311CBvi0lxhwiMGaGAL-k4xrOKTxeZzIXom_EWWHxozLwaF7MAKZz1C2ef/s1600/untitled-6013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_Rs33EvvP-on5Tm3isdSPFJSEDEgTFTrNnzJxo99K5Htbw34KxIVEu5zDl0mxRVUZ5j-1cH6-WcbvxgzSMF311CBvi0lxhwiMGaGAL-k4xrOKTxeZzIXom_EWWHxozLwaF7MAKZz1C2ef/s400/untitled-6013.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wild West Silverton</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The temperature
at these high altitudes is much lower at night, we had been given a new red sleeping
bag by a fellow camper, Walmart brand –
but it opens out to makes a cozy, if slippery, extra quilt on the bed. The
propane powered fridge does not like the high altitude, especially as the tank
is getting low. It keeps trying to light itself making disconcerting clicking
noises.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">I love the rocky
mountain campsites, the downside is fellow campers starting up their generators,
and filling our truck with smoke from their traditional campfires. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Patriotism is alive and growing in the areas
we are travelling in. Stars and stripes fly from camper wagons and one
neighbour even had a flag on their picnic table.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBgXbODxDjJCbJm0PQhPKaOkidR7cq3qhyJqyyh-ma8OLsoTxuyxrYOsE_PPbfPOH_GuZhXP1RSIEApKy27VXFl3dELo6lZZJkNo4BWygrHfKyuoJnDnZLZBvhsO4wESQlXaz3FNmBJK4z/s1600/flag.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="765" data-original-width="1024" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBgXbODxDjJCbJm0PQhPKaOkidR7cq3qhyJqyyh-ma8OLsoTxuyxrYOsE_PPbfPOH_GuZhXP1RSIEApKy27VXFl3dELo6lZZJkNo4BWygrHfKyuoJnDnZLZBvhsO4wESQlXaz3FNmBJK4z/s320/flag.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Patriotic campers</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The highlight
of this last week was the moose that nonchalantly sauntered through our campsite,
past the front of our truck while I was cooking dinner. It was huge with
enormous dish shaped antlers. Our Oklahoman neighbours were as excited as us. Elk and
deer are commonplace but moose are rarer in this area. There are warnings
about bears but luckily none have crossed our path.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We are off to improve our cultural intelligence, setting off towards National Parks that are dedicated to preserving the archeological heritage of the Pueblo people.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-54676154584919561022019-09-25T16:14:00.000-07:002019-10-06T17:35:17.290-07:00Yoo-tah, Utah - the desert lands<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwSpVs_Yu58EucN65qSRDjDZFItiyMptuU1z1NNxfZEZ0wNKSutm_TabB0LozvvsTumMcyv4TdVhFZ5-PYdtzqZwUPJ8n5PJVPF4rWfLdCff5qVlLiJ383nUUtEw0bMpeo3QZjjxpwHGWd/s1600/dog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwSpVs_Yu58EucN65qSRDjDZFItiyMptuU1z1NNxfZEZ0wNKSutm_TabB0LozvvsTumMcyv4TdVhFZ5-PYdtzqZwUPJ8n5PJVPF4rWfLdCff5qVlLiJ383nUUtEw0bMpeo3QZjjxpwHGWd/s320/dog.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Twenty years have passed since we last visited Las Vegas, I must have changed and certainly aged
as </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">the glitz and glam
had faded for me. After a fruitless shopping journey to outfit our feet we had
some shut eye </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">in a hotel bereft
of my most important need - something to make a cuppa with. I had the teabags
and even </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">some sachets of a
dreadful product called “creamer”, but no cuppa for Jane and no energy to
traipse miles through </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">the hotel to find
one. </span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I did however gamble my allowance of $US1 on a slot machine, pocketed
$US16 and walked. </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Stuart lost his dollar, so $14.00 up.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #222222;"><o:p><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Our helpful uber-lady dropped me off at Walmart while Stuart did the business with the RV rental
company. </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I had hardly
started to wade through a difficult grocery shop, discarding products that
looked unsuitable for</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">normal consumption,
when himself appeared at my side. Stuart was given his own list of goods
to procure </span></span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">and set off with his own trolley.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The gaudy beast was
waiting outside in the heat and glare. Cruise America had us given a labrador
puppy </span></span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">to mind. </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Gaudy on the
outside and grimly brown on the inside. A very serviceable colour is brown and
the </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">manufacturers had no intention of updating
their design over the past decades. It also has only 2 windows </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">which together with the wilful brown curtains that refuse to remain open makes the interior </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">gloomy. It is built </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">with no thought for
weight-saving, in fact the mattress can barely be lifted. Never mind, they said
“just shove a v8, </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">7 litre engine
under the bonnet and that should move the beast along". Ten miles to the gallon
if the going is good.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpnwMbk85w-m41qjHlUb3fU0NogvLeiIvV1ptSWHqMYikAqOC_BwlXIO2hrigARhU3OO2KTibDl5NHVrIz1OJiyNicrecauYW7lr57AtF30shTf6ZmcV53r9OldVlzetFDArpzAYFsERqJ/s1600/untitled-5174.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpnwMbk85w-m41qjHlUb3fU0NogvLeiIvV1ptSWHqMYikAqOC_BwlXIO2hrigARhU3OO2KTibDl5NHVrIz1OJiyNicrecauYW7lr57AtF30shTf6ZmcV53r9OldVlzetFDArpzAYFsERqJ/s400/untitled-5174.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hoodoos at Bryce Canyon NP</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The trip to our pre
booked camp in Zion National Park went very smoothly, so smoothly that I was
able to </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">unpack clothes and
organise the groceries while Stuart drove. We arrived in the dark and I checked
in with </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">the kamp kommandant
the next morning, phew - I only wanted to show her my reservation. She wasn’t
having </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">a bar of me, loudly telling her husband to
ignore me as I was ‘just a walk up’. I had to persist before </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">I was given an official tag for our site.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-NZ;">Zion has a
wonderful shuttle service which eliminates private vehicles from the park, we
joined more people </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">than we would have
liked on a non too peaceful riverside walk. Still the grandeur can’t be denied.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-NZ;">We bought an annual
pass for the National Parks and were disappointed at either being too early or
too </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">late to present our credentials at the
entrance booths of the string of parks we visited.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-NZ;">The tunnel that
exits Zion towards Bryce National Park is too narrow for RVs so we had to buy a
permit for </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">the rangers to
close one lane so we could drive down the middle. As it turned out, it seemed as if
they permanently </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">operate a one way system. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-NZ;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-NZ;">Bryce Canyon has
rows of brick red hoodoos that glow with a light of their own. They form
amphitheatres </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">and the area was described by Ebenezer Bryce
as “a helluva place to loose a cow”. You can walk the rim trail </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">looking down on the
hoodoos or descend into the canyon for a close-up view. </span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbeTnsHMluqaabk_RA2gi16SUNQiLGVQD6IBPudbKwwCo1mO26xTyuItSfe0AX1UU1i9Qtg1YSPjk95T5opU7ZodPlqbwjxQV9PI57tQ-QveDRNaENCcO-znJuos0OspwM403SLEpV-wID/s1600/untitled-5176.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbeTnsHMluqaabk_RA2gi16SUNQiLGVQD6IBPudbKwwCo1mO26xTyuItSfe0AX1UU1i9Qtg1YSPjk95T5opU7ZodPlqbwjxQV9PI57tQ-QveDRNaENCcO-znJuos0OspwM403SLEpV-wID/s400/untitled-5176.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">More hoodoos</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-NZ;">But yet more NPs
were on the list.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-NZ;">We scored the
nearly impossible goal of getting a camp site in Capitol Reef NP at Fruita, a former
Mormon </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">settlement. The
camp was surrounded by orchards, and apples and pears were ripe for picking. A
family of </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">mule deer with
their over-size ears grazed, their teeth aren’t designed for apples and I hoped
they wouldn’t choke </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">as they rolled the
apples on their tongues.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji7FiOEZgDKCOl-RPeABQBeGJGOxE9DmWEVyvXzO3M5ZICVR5b0wCumvZ9lkwQsjZdBpDM5k1gfwxrUZWaazw9n3F9n4K-nQ1uPYPse8PrPYR_EOaGkTsxeOuyyTnfol66FmGAeE11OIiz/s1600/untitled-5295.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji7FiOEZgDKCOl-RPeABQBeGJGOxE9DmWEVyvXzO3M5ZICVR5b0wCumvZ9lkwQsjZdBpDM5k1gfwxrUZWaazw9n3F9n4K-nQ1uPYPse8PrPYR_EOaGkTsxeOuyyTnfol66FmGAeE11OIiz/s400/untitled-5295.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mormon barn at Fruita, Capitol Reef NP</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEintBd13v4loEP4v1zaAgpl7QgG8wLKSfvl4p_jzNbXg_U4p5tqaFjFLKlJHOK_y_Qp2WM4DkH0InHaFCd1V-wPv__wCv7kOOnHH5v_serfimDa7T_NWXKG5FBRxFUWUDrujHpACadbB0-3/s1600/untitled-5328.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEintBd13v4loEP4v1zaAgpl7QgG8wLKSfvl4p_jzNbXg_U4p5tqaFjFLKlJHOK_y_Qp2WM4DkH0InHaFCd1V-wPv__wCv7kOOnHH5v_serfimDa7T_NWXKG5FBRxFUWUDrujHpACadbB0-3/s400/untitled-5328.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mule deer in orchard</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSRfjV75HluLgM-ML2cgx9dhOiM74XYJ45atSWX0aFtw-mD1QHa1aYWNYXVFTLzGOuIB6jes4eznH577wsMLNde35R4CWPLn2HKNBOakbKXK-BHwDG8fW7kLb2whIT3JEvctvLjsXRky_s/s1600/untitled-5350.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSRfjV75HluLgM-ML2cgx9dhOiM74XYJ45atSWX0aFtw-mD1QHa1aYWNYXVFTLzGOuIB6jes4eznH577wsMLNde35R4CWPLn2HKNBOakbKXK-BHwDG8fW7kLb2whIT3JEvctvLjsXRky_s/s400/untitled-5350.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stu picking apples</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl0PeJm8HEoIhKY7707YB-h3U4Nyr9c8nGRVYk2soAFYGcsNs8jVK9UIkIDX1P3RuOJ822X-CsO86DWquk17pljT4fD9I6zBEjqPymvXJDDZzGKJwOhn-8TLAkShBi-3KdCAbn9XO-1fDx/s1600/untitled-5363.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl0PeJm8HEoIhKY7707YB-h3U4Nyr9c8nGRVYk2soAFYGcsNs8jVK9UIkIDX1P3RuOJ822X-CsO86DWquk17pljT4fD9I6zBEjqPymvXJDDZzGKJwOhn-8TLAkShBi-3KdCAbn9XO-1fDx/s400/untitled-5363.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We both had
persistent colds so decided to have some rest in a couple of state parks, with
gentle hikes </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">thrown in for good
measure. Coral Sands State park is a magnet for ATV fans, and like the RVs that
towed them, </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">they were big – bigger than my car anyhow. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The
park has very fine coral pink sand that forms dunes and </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">beautiful
desert flowering plants were in bloom. The camp host, with his ATVs, full set of BBQs, huge
RV, stars and</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-NZ;">stripes flag etc on
display showed us a nice canyon for walking in.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-NZ;"> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0r0j5HMYf2iuzmcWdh6wGNQVxisPbL8pdtMl_uzoOZZKb4jvUKaq5ZtymWFxmlMDWiiwoA2ROgpyQxMXf97KN8eBMzRDFxllhv_1OzO-uA0WM4vqGPXwdNx3pMzXLWeePrDjqEuEjnWWu/s1600/untitled-5224.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0r0j5HMYf2iuzmcWdh6wGNQVxisPbL8pdtMl_uzoOZZKb4jvUKaq5ZtymWFxmlMDWiiwoA2ROgpyQxMXf97KN8eBMzRDFxllhv_1OzO-uA0WM4vqGPXwdNx3pMzXLWeePrDjqEuEjnWWu/s400/untitled-5224.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kodachrome State park</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-NZ;">Kodachrome State park, wish I could forget that
Paul Simon song, was stunning with 5 star bathrooms. There w</span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">as one anatomically
accurate natural rock formation that had campers pointing and shaking their
heads, but the park is aptly n</span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">amed with red and
white rock, blue sky and yellow flowers. My favourite so far.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We are still in
Utah but not done yet with deserts and rocks, we are travelling </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">on the lightly trafficked roads,</span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">wishing </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">NZ roads could </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">receive the same
quality and quantity of road surface. Blue skies, yellow roadside flowers and </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">red rocky hills. Adios for now.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI29FIds0ISeAG8Oo1NDoAvgT3Ruh9S5h4eJNh3J3R-R6H_zTTpy-9Wv3dXaAkKCJTEkqgOMto1tBtREktN2U47RnQpNvPYIQ7rOyApsCB-V1IrMYhBKJJtY0loVLGrHFPIcfDUC661k29/s1600/untitled-4965.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI29FIds0ISeAG8Oo1NDoAvgT3Ruh9S5h4eJNh3J3R-R6H_zTTpy-9Wv3dXaAkKCJTEkqgOMto1tBtREktN2U47RnQpNvPYIQ7rOyApsCB-V1IrMYhBKJJtY0loVLGrHFPIcfDUC661k29/s320/untitled-4965.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Indian Paintbrush plant</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<br /></div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-30028549638821737252018-07-18T10:34:00.000-07:002018-07-18T10:34:36.477-07:00Moseying along the Moselle and heading for Blighty<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDStjV8eyOyOWe2dhEMgF4AHo_V81O9N3jotsJ6XhHnRg9ppBWY-fg4cNx0F-2sX3ry9WclPO7dZbdPxeuzG2J4alLf8e4OGPKR-zCDilpdGmVNIXiYguHqubPz49V5cD96fbM_0jYu6gO/s1600/vines2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDStjV8eyOyOWe2dhEMgF4AHo_V81O9N3jotsJ6XhHnRg9ppBWY-fg4cNx0F-2sX3ry9WclPO7dZbdPxeuzG2J4alLf8e4OGPKR-zCDilpdGmVNIXiYguHqubPz49V5cD96fbM_0jYu6gO/s400/vines2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The Moselle
changes its name to the Mosel when it crosses into Germany, a sinuous snake of
a river that confuses our sense of direction as it twists and turns. The steep
hillsides are raked with vines, planted in cross-hatch patterns amongst rocks
and shale. The slopes are so steep that crampons would be useful for the vineyard
workers. There is help for the viticulturalist however, small monorail systems
that stretch up from the riverside for transporting grapes and supplies up and
down the slopes.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnW0WXQth2C8sZ8EQ06H-l8EUwsP1YsJT2i6uCPO0gfIX_o4AxXa6s19OCobO0nQYheAVCtGzNwiEHpJMvGGthZ0G4F35FlKpkmgJLGeWcvrYKqxG4FVO-Bg5rNrgsFk-Dr3l05Nz9HNN0/s1600/moselle2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnW0WXQth2C8sZ8EQ06H-l8EUwsP1YsJT2i6uCPO0gfIX_o4AxXa6s19OCobO0nQYheAVCtGzNwiEHpJMvGGthZ0G4F35FlKpkmgJLGeWcvrYKqxG4FVO-Bg5rNrgsFk-Dr3l05Nz9HNN0/s320/moselle2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The river route
between Trier and Koblenz is lined with ‘stellplatz’ that cost about $16 a
night, usually with a water view and sometimes with wifi and electric.
Stellplatz means ‘stopping place’ and they are nearly always close enough to a
village for fresh bread or coffee/beer. The Mosel river is an ever changing
scene of barges and pleasure craft, the villages are of course immaculate, not
OTT with geraniums and twee, and with a distinct Germanic flavour.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7xYGDfaSo_5sQkrwvS4jzPYtvDWfFaX-WIlXvCbCEQEc-4V0ZSSPmIYiY3mZgy9PosmXDKI74O5-HN_7ZmYdDfWX5pZIurKupyeLHu0pq3tGmiqKeNLBLJNmHH-k4JgpDce1yibR8UlyV/s1600/moselle1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7xYGDfaSo_5sQkrwvS4jzPYtvDWfFaX-WIlXvCbCEQEc-4V0ZSSPmIYiY3mZgy9PosmXDKI74O5-HN_7ZmYdDfWX5pZIurKupyeLHu0pq3tGmiqKeNLBLJNmHH-k4JgpDce1yibR8UlyV/s320/moselle1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The town of Zell</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">About midway in
our journey we back-tracked to a stellplatz attached to a
restaurant/winery/bakery and plugged in for the night. The English people in
their big new luxury motorhome parked next to our dusty small rental job
recommended the restaurant, so we got changed and had – you guessed it –
schnitzel von krumb. I had bought a new dress that afternoon but didn’t wear it
as I saw ‘her next-door’ wearing the identical dress as she walked toward the
restaurant. It was just as well we had back-tracked as Stuart decided the boots
he bought were the wrong size so we swapped them on our way back. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVhHiNxHwYgsDqI7Edi74TGw34zB1XWDkWV2ej1loSAfPjfoFQQU0JzRT0ZoA1P-l5GMlkYAQ101edY5hoZkXseWnJ0J4LDCCKwq_veV52ne37XE0FH5gHiX0ZjxR4GnYtmuKLmPhUXbKh/s1600/eltz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVhHiNxHwYgsDqI7Edi74TGw34zB1XWDkWV2ej1loSAfPjfoFQQU0JzRT0ZoA1P-l5GMlkYAQ101edY5hoZkXseWnJ0J4LDCCKwq_veV52ne37XE0FH5gHiX0ZjxR4GnYtmuKLmPhUXbKh/s320/eltz.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eltz castle</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">To reach Eltz
castle, we had to detour out of the valley and up onto a plateau covered with
fields of wheat that rustled and swayed in the breeze. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">The castle
is a dead ringer for a Disney castle, I guess they copied it off TV. It is a
bit of a Tardis in reverse as they often are – huge on the outside but only a
small part is open to view. Still good to have been there.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">After our tour we left the beautiful park like
setting and descended back into the valley before heading to Koblenz.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG0uSICWO2HH8gxVVRqiObNwwD0YMHyJBebwUhUzrScMWLYWS7jquLsDdmlCjG2rhZpjqt66bklHE_tZUlkj7V8bU_yJxooNmScjVfOWpfhbu3dk2vsdjpVOpzyMUeIE8AlFQY6qUrjxwA/s1600/confluence.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG0uSICWO2HH8gxVVRqiObNwwD0YMHyJBebwUhUzrScMWLYWS7jquLsDdmlCjG2rhZpjqt66bklHE_tZUlkj7V8bU_yJxooNmScjVfOWpfhbu3dk2vsdjpVOpzyMUeIE8AlFQY6qUrjxwA/s320/confluence.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stuart at the confluence of Rhine/Mosel</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The final stop
on the Mosel experience was a very expensive campground in Koblenz, no special
amenities but it sits at the confluence of the Mosel and Rhine rivers. Jutting
out into the confluence on a triangular piece of land is a monument to beat all
monuments commemorating Germany’s last emperor – Kaiser Wilhelm II. Kaiser Bill
is massive as is his horse, the pediment underneath it dwarfs people as they
climb to get the full experience. The ‘prow’ of this piece of land is something
like being on the bow of a huge ship, people were taking selfies in ‘Titanic’
poses. A small ferry takes us from the campsite to the town opposite and Kaiser
Bill stares down on the ferry and across to our wohnmobile (as the Germans call
it) parked in the camp opposite. Koblenz is abuzz with river traffic separating
under Bill’s eye to go up either the Mosel or Rhine; a gondola is in perpetual
motion overhead and streams of trains and cars run alongside the river. All
this motion!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJDsTS3n8qA8fposYKaqdWFR2zKhNlXDJ6MUYgTjW6acM-Uze2kzeWsZpSMBHPjNjYiqCPxYJr9Ra0mJgahyphenhyphenKZu9WuajAR-r8IGFjloXD8sX-aYvrZuj2Q6ts7Cxbbgmfen2WNWx1j3L8w/s1600/moselle4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJDsTS3n8qA8fposYKaqdWFR2zKhNlXDJ6MUYgTjW6acM-Uze2kzeWsZpSMBHPjNjYiqCPxYJr9Ra0mJgahyphenhyphenKZu9WuajAR-r8IGFjloXD8sX-aYvrZuj2Q6ts7Cxbbgmfen2WNWx1j3L8w/s320/moselle4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">I miss the
French polite greetings and farewells and the elegant language – a menu in
German is not nearly as enticing as a menu in French, but there is something
interesting in the sound of ‘puddingplunder’. The currywurst I had for lunch
was not quite the wurst choice of streetfood I have ever made but I won’t be
repeating it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTyRFhW4UN_8nLmcCA-ezOFFUhskpZXyr4lxUumZiPj9cUlXTCdOpj0KsgIsYOhVtNbhXswkZCPxlBbGR2RznF1OviDAHhqvNc7DCOMWR1krmVIabJrP7Ok5NSONjwO0se4HD_Da_Cr5Or/s1600/trier.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTyRFhW4UN_8nLmcCA-ezOFFUhskpZXyr4lxUumZiPj9cUlXTCdOpj0KsgIsYOhVtNbhXswkZCPxlBbGR2RznF1OviDAHhqvNc7DCOMWR1krmVIabJrP7Ok5NSONjwO0se4HD_Da_Cr5Or/s320/trier.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 107%;">It is auf wiedersein
to Germany as we start the trek back to Calais where we have an early morning
rendezvous with a ferry for the trip back to Blighty. Belgium did not exactly
beckon but whichever way we turned the map it seemed inevitable. There was
muttering about cheap diesel in Luxembourg but it seemed counter-productive to
travel extra to get it. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU-FeCs11-LnjkuWzqUSfpZDMhXpUxewfCowIi2XD6RH4tTy1klHIb1UofFdMZkRDsxUpbC6lBIysWWYBWm_nHov0ENt9I-1W8X-Dc19Jj5RF6Jh8TECkIeSRuHBv18VYs8Zhvt8nxfqUG/s1600/fountain.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU-FeCs11-LnjkuWzqUSfpZDMhXpUxewfCowIi2XD6RH4tTy1klHIb1UofFdMZkRDsxUpbC6lBIysWWYBWm_nHov0ENt9I-1W8X-Dc19Jj5RF6Jh8TECkIeSRuHBv18VYs8Zhvt8nxfqUG/s320/fountain.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Sunday is a
great day to travel on the toll-free motorways in Germany and Belgium, all the
trucks are squeezed into laybys and service areas to sit out Sunday in the
scorching heat. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Our meals are
becoming a bit creative now as I try to use the supplies up, and the treats
cupboard is emptying quickly. The last leg of the journey is a bit of
pick-n-mix as we make our way across Northern France. Will the detergent and
toilet paper last?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">I am looking
forward to coming home, nothing like home is there? People spot the GB identity
on our registration plate and assume we are from England – we quickly put them
right. Older people think we have travelled from the end of the earth (we have)
and younger people fall into paroxysms of delight. “Wow! I want to go there, it
is the best place” they say. The promotions must be working.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We have a few
weeks in England, one in Suffolk re-visiting the area we lived in 40 years ago then
three ‘L’s’ – Ledbury, Liverpool, London. We drop off the camper at another L –
Luton, and pick up a rental car to see us through the final weeks. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 107%;">
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">London is the
venue for Stuart’s birthday – maybe a West End show. So it is au revoir from
her, and auf weidersein from him. Bonne
chance and catch ya later.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIf7qskccR1XKqz23_tW2Z2vXHGU3kGMaH45DuR5vu4b4HY-paD4obpsr0iRtnbh_kekoSTLJgW1wmHXe4Y9SEbOqKi1zpV4tczuThfKqgMCcoW0Xxn61aWU7mQ7SgB-WZWprM3GAoNum9/s1600/castle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIf7qskccR1XKqz23_tW2Z2vXHGU3kGMaH45DuR5vu4b4HY-paD4obpsr0iRtnbh_kekoSTLJgW1wmHXe4Y9SEbOqKi1zpV4tczuThfKqgMCcoW0Xxn61aWU7mQ7SgB-WZWprM3GAoNum9/s320/castle.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chateau in Belgium next to our camping spot</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<br /></div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-80331294452691187512018-07-09T10:08:00.000-07:002018-07-09T10:08:01.096-07:00Verdun, Luxembourg and the Three Frontiers<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC4oFvdWCp_bwxxDJU6U8NDkCOd_vWpBwe0ly4Ls8IXwuwwwXiLr2YkWJwl9FbL5SYoqggHAoFmGut6utVa1j5jF7YlulUWlgZyV51pE-W-FPGDXIO6MBuPVpSl1sW78jucIPMAbDK-dm5/s1600/eve.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC4oFvdWCp_bwxxDJU6U8NDkCOd_vWpBwe0ly4Ls8IXwuwwwXiLr2YkWJwl9FbL5SYoqggHAoFmGut6utVa1j5jF7YlulUWlgZyV51pE-W-FPGDXIO6MBuPVpSl1sW78jucIPMAbDK-dm5/s400/eve.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; text-align: left;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Moving right along from the magic of Metz we drove across the rolling Lorraine countryside, all wheat-fields, corn and sunflowers to the WW I battlefields of Verdun. In 1916 the longest battle of WW I raged in Verdun, the town’s name is synonymous with wartime slaughter. The town was never actually taken but it was nearly destroyed along with 9 villages that surround it. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Close to a million soldiers alone died in the area.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We chose to
visit a couple of forts, the Ossuary and the war memorial of Verdun near the
destroyed village of Fleury. We lined up the “Just Go’ with the other
motorhomes in what looked like the bus park and passed a modern French army
tank on our way to the entrance of the memorial.</span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpCxvjVwtYuWA1PuoU0S7tN-34TZb7mT8237Cj-iL1tdVWVC-kZgavj3XhnWARxSfmbU_TuL4kEqsgIOUV8_PBjSJUVSY0huV3g0GLqetMbxPIbHyGKPcTlXLUqqtNzmnoCikVFC-XLyFz/s1600/on+top+tank.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpCxvjVwtYuWA1PuoU0S7tN-34TZb7mT8237Cj-iL1tdVWVC-kZgavj3XhnWARxSfmbU_TuL4kEqsgIOUV8_PBjSJUVSY0huV3g0GLqetMbxPIbHyGKPcTlXLUqqtNzmnoCikVFC-XLyFz/s320/on+top+tank.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Verdun war memorial - view from the top of the tank</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The young
soldiers in charge of the tank invited us to have a look and suggested I sit in
the gunner’s seat. Initially I didn’t think I would be able to fit down the
narrow entrance or get out again, it was very ‘enclosed’ and the only view was
through some high-resolution periscopes. A similar seat for the driver is accessed
on the other side of the tank, I couldn’t see where the third member of the
team sat. I managed to get out with some dignity.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXSwb7tm4IT5uuijoj-5O24exc0lMzzMdNQDeXByvQh5POdIPmCDH_ojdzMTdLG1fZ7bhH1o-xhtHWg7WdvnYN7t8BmYNSYBtXzL56NTCSxxUwSRz909loC76L_y8LosuH7An00ZvtenDX/s1600/Tank.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXSwb7tm4IT5uuijoj-5O24exc0lMzzMdNQDeXByvQh5POdIPmCDH_ojdzMTdLG1fZ7bhH1o-xhtHWg7WdvnYN7t8BmYNSYBtXzL56NTCSxxUwSRz909loC76L_y8LosuH7An00ZvtenDX/s320/Tank.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">inside the tank</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The war
memorial is a modern three-storey building with re-creations of the
battlefields and it holds a lot of personal items belonging to soldiers who
fought in the war. I pulled open a display drawer to see a very large red,
white and black kerchief which was issued as part of the French soldiers’
uniform. It performed a dual purpose of clothing and training manual. The
kerchief could be used as necessary for a bandage/sling/scarf/towel …. but the other
use was a training manual. There were 13 kerchief designs printed, the one I
viewed showed among other things, how to dismantle the army-issue gun. As most
of the French soldiers were recruited from rural areas the pictures helped
those that could not read.</span></div>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEj7Q2oyUGaetwEYYdLItFb38Zb3sEhS4-i5ricPqo35QTWbHJz1N3xaA5fZImG16GT9sgDkJ1fAgXh6cYD0C6K3kC3mSj4CBHtnjq2d0wZhyTJ6TP9SkDpFyuRQ6OSxBHxPPLYJle3Pdr/s1600/fleury.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEj7Q2oyUGaetwEYYdLItFb38Zb3sEhS4-i5ricPqo35QTWbHJz1N3xaA5fZImG16GT9sgDkJ1fAgXh6cYD0C6K3kC3mSj4CBHtnjq2d0wZhyTJ6TP9SkDpFyuRQ6OSxBHxPPLYJle3Pdr/s320/fleury.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Destroyed village of Fleury - <br />
white marker posts where houses used to be</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">After enough of
the memorial we walked about 200 metres to the remains of the little village of
Fleury. All around us were huge shell holes; after 100 years grass had
smoothed their edges, the contours of the ground reminded me of a giant egg carton. An
unusual silence hung around the trees that had been planted amongst the white
wooden upright posts that denoted where the butcher/baker/school had been.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMw075pTyyvDivtuby5ZO0jPSsIiPrIwdUXAJ4KHuBEIS80f1kanfjwEnJvIN_SUOx89uiV-aE5v5D2WwtJKFvIfwgV8nD7suZFdUkqb7sLone5dFqLLPdD5TWa2spm3exVKTyJu_in260/s1600/ossuary3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMw075pTyyvDivtuby5ZO0jPSsIiPrIwdUXAJ4KHuBEIS80f1kanfjwEnJvIN_SUOx89uiV-aE5v5D2WwtJKFvIfwgV8nD7suZFdUkqb7sLone5dFqLLPdD5TWa2spm3exVKTyJu_in260/s320/ossuary3.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ossuary and a French military cemetery</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">A short
distance away was an ossuary where the bones of 130,000 unidentified French and
German soldiers are kept. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The ossuary rose like a giant white sword from the
ground, standing 130 metres high. Each stone in the monument is engraved with
the name of a missing soldier. Outside are row upon row of small perfect white
crosses on the graves of French soldiers.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">Let’s go to
Luxembourg – it was my idea and seconded by Stuart who was tempted by the
cheapest diesel prices in Europe. We didn’t see a lot of Luxembourg but
immediately we crossed the border we were faced with lines of trucks, 2
abreast, stretching beyond my range of sight. They were blocking roundabouts
and traffic was at a standstill. There was every brand of fuel on offer and the
trucks were waiting their turn to fill up on the cheap stuff. We managed to get
in and get a tankful as the trucks can’t use the smaller pumps. </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgblOgcTfSLQznantCFT1yQ-o1MPKepMLaQTg9wppQD0th0ZIHnhHNrx9YLieUYLST6CXQ_6UdQco13NAnelw9ZfJqtSzLGRNKza1Zlvpykh0z8s5oPdi0nSZLicgf4Bt_2580VeAA9haPK/s1600/fountain.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgblOgcTfSLQznantCFT1yQ-o1MPKepMLaQTg9wppQD0th0ZIHnhHNrx9YLieUYLST6CXQ_6UdQco13NAnelw9ZfJqtSzLGRNKza1Zlvpykh0z8s5oPdi0nSZLicgf4Bt_2580VeAA9haPK/s320/fountain.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A rainy day in Luxembourg city</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The following
day we went by rail to Luxembourg city. It was the first day in weeks that it
rained – more like drizzle really but still enough to dull the sights of the
lovely little city. We both felt very scruffy compared with the young chic set
that moved between the pale, clean classical buildings. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh1mTP7Hw7t6-mrsufrQJkgpdMw0RO9nLeM15ItTNEAAJ2WxAxMcWHlOSb2rmla1cEQq2Qix6oqdulgFrUT5HsXJnqMaTXUuMCHbEn0JeLeyI6bpLauALRnCZtmGhAgJrn_lh0QdEk6pp5/s1600/rain+in+lux.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh1mTP7Hw7t6-mrsufrQJkgpdMw0RO9nLeM15ItTNEAAJ2WxAxMcWHlOSb2rmla1cEQq2Qix6oqdulgFrUT5HsXJnqMaTXUuMCHbEn0JeLeyI6bpLauALRnCZtmGhAgJrn_lh0QdEk6pp5/s320/rain+in+lux.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rainy day in Luxembourg city</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The city is built on the sides of two gorges and there is a lift to move you between the high town and the picturesque low town. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">After our fill of walking around the ramparts in the drizzle we (I) drifted into Zara and bought some clothes that are identical to ones I already have.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Enough already,
we tightened the hatches and set off the short distance back to Thionville in
France. The municipal camp was well placed with an easy walking distance to
town and beside the Moselle river.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">I
have had some tussles with the commandants who man the reception at municipal
camps and was daunted to see that this one was wearing khaki camo shirt and
matching pants, sturdy boots completed the ensemble. She was certainly dressed
for battle, but pas de probleme –</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">the
nicest camp lady I have come across.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9AfPDxGERwBggBmQbVltx_oQ3SOfvrhHEloS86I4f0S-e77zG4wMOC74jQKnz27TE30WRByyyrZlCh4D_lbCzTfVHMoX9P-QLvyjOUUdGlMHwxZspRCblwtfr_icBmY895LBUtotIcCqW/s1600/Sierck+les+Bains.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9AfPDxGERwBggBmQbVltx_oQ3SOfvrhHEloS86I4f0S-e77zG4wMOC74jQKnz27TE30WRByyyrZlCh4D_lbCzTfVHMoX9P-QLvyjOUUdGlMHwxZspRCblwtfr_icBmY895LBUtotIcCqW/s320/Sierck+les+Bains.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View from the campsite at Sierck-les-Bains.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Sierck-les-Bains was a top place for a spot of chillout beside the Moselle river. It is on the 'Three Frontiers' - we could smell the schnitzels cooking in Germany, wafts of cheap diesel were drifting in from Luxembourg and the aromas of fresh baguettes and Camembert completed the scene as technically we were still on French soil. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The French lunch reigns as we found when we arrived 10 mins after the midday cut off time at the campsite. We cooled our heels for 3 hours until camp-mother let us approach the desk. Forms and documents were signed and we were given the code to approach the front gate. Only one person at a time is allowed to complete a form and it is <u>forbidden</u> to be on the camp without completed forms.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Sierck had a food festival one evening and we walked along the river to join in the fun and taste some wonderful food, but all good things roll into more good things and we are pressing on into Deutschland to follow the Moselle as it wends its way past picturesque villages. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW3zt4igzRl0emg8XOPNEw9pO3QOOBzABFqUeunme9vOFdTlQcvSC07QISxiHHLnPDezDDmZoka_lfjPLvfUuPqaH8et51awvmMIfyyw5VzIOspypzJ1wkxN3JRod_sMPwn_wpVgoI9ehw/s1600/bread+machine.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW3zt4igzRl0emg8XOPNEw9pO3QOOBzABFqUeunme9vOFdTlQcvSC07QISxiHHLnPDezDDmZoka_lfjPLvfUuPqaH8et51awvmMIfyyw5VzIOspypzJ1wkxN3JRod_sMPwn_wpVgoI9ehw/s320/bread+machine.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Vending machine dispensing hot baguettes</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<br /></div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-8049963265841250512018-07-02T12:25:00.000-07:002018-07-02T12:25:12.653-07:00Rolling through the Routes des Vins and magical Metz<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLvrhxgyBcvgoKvECMQA8gYqHMZ5MZo_vLvUVGRikGR35cOIqEgMqZYrEwiQWLIdl1jlxCN1MAbtp5oF7PDzvTYLBoP1l6fGdN9ff3QP6NZoCiXG1vLoPUFBpXIxIa-rq8dKC8oXWnWC2m/s1600/o+town.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="816" data-original-width="1600" height="203" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLvrhxgyBcvgoKvECMQA8gYqHMZ5MZo_vLvUVGRikGR35cOIqEgMqZYrEwiQWLIdl1jlxCN1MAbtp5oF7PDzvTYLBoP1l6fGdN9ff3QP6NZoCiXG1vLoPUFBpXIxIa-rq8dKC8oXWnWC2m/s400/o+town.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pretty town of Ortans</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br />Eastern France has a lot to offer, mountains, great scenery and pretty villages. Our mode of travel is to avoid the large roads if possible and choose routes through the small towns and countryside.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The area of Alsace is very
close to the border of Germany and has been passed back and forth between the
two countries as a result of wars. Many of the towns have Germanic names
and architecture. The cuisine and culture has Germanic roots as well, with
sauerkraut, sausage, bretzels, and bundt cake on offer.</span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8ZcjjzFgnebRr0opc38BxvKRTS28GL7OY4yvI2BEhRTVpa0WKlVGwJvXCqHoxZpB_Ps33lNJ3LBRtb5J8tPehyCx0G4_Qn41d5bhbqEMi_zhVQ-_roj_0Uiq-jd6IY9880T2NHeC7RoH4/s1600/thann.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8ZcjjzFgnebRr0opc38BxvKRTS28GL7OY4yvI2BEhRTVpa0WKlVGwJvXCqHoxZpB_Ps33lNJ3LBRtb5J8tPehyCx0G4_Qn41d5bhbqEMi_zhVQ-_roj_0Uiq-jd6IY9880T2NHeC7RoH4/s320/thann.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thann</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Thann is the start of the </span><i style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">routes des vins</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> in Alsace, a pretty town with an aire for motorhomes. We parked under some shady trees while we checked out the impressive church, decorated streets and had a general toot around the river and environs.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">When we returned to the truck it was covered in yellow tree droppings – small flowers that were trapped in the concertina insect screens, on the roof, in the air vents and generally gathering in drifts all over the truck. It took a bit of effort to rid ourselves of the yellow peril.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-jEGoRTSpOpw3V-ZrX1rumTf5RlSlsU0lbJ2fR26aggECt9oMBDId4jf5bLgLwDnT5L5FDjFPbRkI0hoE2MT2DA1eALC-w2-m4QwlhH5oPguV1dugZRcFW_flNTAXrS1fR3dICHPXkOuz/s1600/storks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1052" data-original-width="1600" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-jEGoRTSpOpw3V-ZrX1rumTf5RlSlsU0lbJ2fR26aggECt9oMBDId4jf5bLgLwDnT5L5FDjFPbRkI0hoE2MT2DA1eALC-w2-m4QwlhH5oPguV1dugZRcFW_flNTAXrS1fR3dICHPXkOuz/s320/storks.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">storks</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The route goes
through Alsace villages dedicated to producing wine. Some are working villages with no sign of
life at all, everybody at work in nearby towns. They are immaculate but ghost
like. The only signs of life, the occasional vintner driving a tiny narrow
tractor designed for working between the rows of vines, or trucks delivering
wine bottles. There are grapes growing up and down the hillsides, sylvaner,
pinot blanc, riesling, muscat d’Alscace, pinot gris and gerwurtzraminer plus
pinot noir – so white wine is the favoured drop here.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">On the flip
side, villages that had become tourist destinations are bedecked with geraniums
and gingerbread-house shopfronts displaying revolving stands of fluffy acrylic red
and white storks – so much so I was questioning myself if I really should be
stocking up on them.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Black and white
storks on chimney tops and nesting perches clattered their bills, fluffy grey babies
peered out of the nests – it’s a long way down.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Storks stalked
around the camping ground searching for frogs and lizards and I watched what I
assume is the male stork bringing building material for the already over-engineered
nest while the female is saying ‘we are all starving, we have enough sticks –
bring more frogs’.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLfyP83CILnYNq9XMxqH0f4TRhMnpLgXeGCIa89zQK4NqiLHpTYeGpI-KJMJ4cz_BW2v3w1XiKBr39vt2Zw4FWfgL-j-A237eqV7hANFxbyj4NIQdq1Bn-kEFlsNJN6aFHj9Pd_VP-4th7/s1600/gingerbread+houses.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1195" data-original-width="1600" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLfyP83CILnYNq9XMxqH0f4TRhMnpLgXeGCIa89zQK4NqiLHpTYeGpI-KJMJ4cz_BW2v3w1XiKBr39vt2Zw4FWfgL-j-A237eqV7hANFxbyj4NIQdq1Bn-kEFlsNJN6aFHj9Pd_VP-4th7/s320/gingerbread+houses.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eguisheim</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Eguisheim on
the routes des vins was our base for a couple of nights, the municipal camp close to the village was our home. Sixteenth century half-timbered houses are
painted in pretty shades of pink, lavender, terracotta …. this is a modern
trend started in the 20</span><sup style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">th</sup><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> century – back in the day they wore sombre
colours and the windows were even tinier than they are today.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We hired
electric bikes to do a trip through nearby villages, it was my first trial of
an e-bike. The bikes powered away on the uphill but boy are they heavy – my one
had the world’s worst seat and days later I can still feel the effect.
Afterwards we stopped to buy a bottle of aged local pinot gris which helped ease
the pain for a while.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc1SleThtb8XTYCfNm_R1PpLP_p_jQCfgtz0N6Zp1uc0Y7HLnR_7HWB7_Z2y0KJGJOJRFrVy7V1HicAlIBUb4lS9AD5r1V7pUpIWoTENaWtDeRGVngbFYLYfd-Z8vtUnHXc9sc83HFHZnw/s1600/moulds.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="979" data-original-width="1600" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc1SleThtb8XTYCfNm_R1PpLP_p_jQCfgtz0N6Zp1uc0Y7HLnR_7HWB7_Z2y0KJGJOJRFrVy7V1HicAlIBUb4lS9AD5r1V7pUpIWoTENaWtDeRGVngbFYLYfd-Z8vtUnHXc9sc83HFHZnw/s320/moulds.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">bundt moulds used in decorative way</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Rolling along
we found a tiny campsite in Barr, the large shade trees would provide some
respite from the heat which is spreading over France. No sooner had we found
the little site than we realised we hadn’t stocked up on essentials and it
looked too far to walk in the heat, so we used the old Garmin which is
programmed with the locations of my favourite chain of supermarkets to lead the
way. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Instead of using the opportunity to
redeem itself, it headed straight for the middle of the ancient town and before
we knew it were in a place that motorhomes shouldn’t venture. We squeaked
through and before we knew it we were travelling behind an over-sized lawnmower
along a road narrower than our driveway. The return trip wasn’t any better, we
tried to outsmart both satnavs but ended behind a truck in a place where both a
truck and motorhome shouldn’t be. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlb8A79Pwb2ZjO5NKDDIjGIm6liVEZJbOzdl7aOjCV4Ph9-ZSm4X0WBRrNUSP2ZRrv8yRZwDL_HIY-pB_7KA6n7qiOhyphenhyphenPCCgus9tj5xvbvC2rjOU_igrFtAl-Jjx7E-MKHO6yRmNSrNBfU/s1600/metz1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlb8A79Pwb2ZjO5NKDDIjGIm6liVEZJbOzdl7aOjCV4Ph9-ZSm4X0WBRrNUSP2ZRrv8yRZwDL_HIY-pB_7KA6n7qiOhyphenhyphenPCCgus9tj5xvbvC2rjOU_igrFtAl-Jjx7E-MKHO6yRmNSrNBfU/s320/metz1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Moselle, Metz</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Metz (pronounced
‘mess’) is the capital city of the area of Lorraine, which borders Alsace and is where the quiche came from. I had
recommendations to take a look-see at this little gem. It sits astride the confluence of the
Moselle and Seille rivers and I certainly can recommend it as worth a visit. Such an elegant city
with arched bridges, big spacious areas, lots of greenery and waterways. There are no vehicles in the centre except for slow moving electric buses which makes a peaceful atmosphere. Many towns we have visited have us jumping out of the way of cars. I give
it 5 stars. Metz has also undergone historical hand-</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">changing between Germany and
France over the years</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The number one
tourist attraction is the Centre Pompidou-Metz, a satellite branch of the
Centre Pompidou in Paris. Its aim is to bring modern art to the masses and there
were several exhibitions on when we visited. All a bit strange to us - I am still pondering the trough of blue sand (so maybe the centre is doing its job after all).</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">I have included some snaps I have taken recently, but I am a lazy photographer, I should be taking photos when the light is right but that is either before my getting-up time or after dinner when again I don’t feel like moving. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">C’est la vie.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfFo0LqSifarIP4Wown6gXen5n1CWNkWnj20m-XZMdS-1KzRuQXjD-wszijcPyz3T0qP8FBaJxgcJA70hCsGab3tNG7IejetHzQPXQRM-kRJvb-hoW0s3LHP_IpvuN3VJgqisiEhih08PN/s1600/metz3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfFo0LqSifarIP4Wown6gXen5n1CWNkWnj20m-XZMdS-1KzRuQXjD-wszijcPyz3T0qP8FBaJxgcJA70hCsGab3tNG7IejetHzQPXQRM-kRJvb-hoW0s3LHP_IpvuN3VJgqisiEhih08PN/s320/metz3.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Moselle river with swan sculptures</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4R06UiTSEn-moQAbs9tZSgd8nHAgRk_UpLVWOb9wirGjjNrH1iJ0Ojs13Hzx2o1QODv0c32gPkbnEawl6Kau1IuF_LuH_GV_JS9VcuFoBm2ONMo6z06ej75vGqv1CLtc5-ZjgCEtclBT2/s1600/metz2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4R06UiTSEn-moQAbs9tZSgd8nHAgRk_UpLVWOb9wirGjjNrH1iJ0Ojs13Hzx2o1QODv0c32gPkbnEawl6Kau1IuF_LuH_GV_JS9VcuFoBm2ONMo6z06ej75vGqv1CLtc5-ZjgCEtclBT2/s320/metz2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT6GYR0oYS1aTdy0ad5UZ0-SnM_iVmQv0p7ZMmR4-cETKTqOpK8L1IoXC48mPu84r3upViqbubL1DEHRdmkEjgxXH7W_29BB2-D01E-Ty96TQhaZlScduzAA0xyI33HBgybUB91cph3Jc8/s1600/metz4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT6GYR0oYS1aTdy0ad5UZ0-SnM_iVmQv0p7ZMmR4-cETKTqOpK8L1IoXC48mPu84r3upViqbubL1DEHRdmkEjgxXH7W_29BB2-D01E-Ty96TQhaZlScduzAA0xyI33HBgybUB91cph3Jc8/s320/metz4.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Moselle with origami boats </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiexbJ7x3VEZXpdKftVIFdhbqOG9Es1i4V7E9k2jQZhyphenhyphenrm9JNod0JW1bEfozrnPWH7faPXYk8IYXmkxlA4wMZQWSWlc2eDh0-N_FVqqVHFuROMvwOn9GLrfqdXIhUDYBipkQK8DvwkiLqJ9/s1600/wine+bottles.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiexbJ7x3VEZXpdKftVIFdhbqOG9Es1i4V7E9k2jQZhyphenhyphenrm9JNod0JW1bEfozrnPWH7faPXYk8IYXmkxlA4wMZQWSWlc2eDh0-N_FVqqVHFuROMvwOn9GLrfqdXIhUDYBipkQK8DvwkiLqJ9/s320/wine+bottles.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
</div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-3445456049867031482018-06-26T22:12:00.001-07:002018-06-26T22:12:55.122-07:00Tournon and on<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3iXga6DF8L4AQ_dFJNcz6DfJLLg0O-YUwr9wHR3rPA1mudmg9ZwJhz74VoSllYswacoRYtLVY45YSkKwlTF2DJDzvoRP54fD3a3ZRXC6LS339l0Zfj-7LfMNhPnDN1dnFty_OgKLE4syn/s1600/boules.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3iXga6DF8L4AQ_dFJNcz6DfJLLg0O-YUwr9wHR3rPA1mudmg9ZwJhz74VoSllYswacoRYtLVY45YSkKwlTF2DJDzvoRP54fD3a3ZRXC6LS339l0Zfj-7LfMNhPnDN1dnFty_OgKLE4syn/s400/boules.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tournon sur Rhone</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Tournon sur Rhone, a very old town on the Rhone faces the
famous wine producing Tain-l’Hermitage’ across the river. The steep hillsides of
the Tain are a patchwork of well-groomed </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">vines stretching up to a spotlit tiny chapel
on the top, just beside telecommunications tower. We scored a riverside camping
spot which had a great view of Tain-l’Hermitage, we claimed it as ours by Jane
standing in the middle of the plot staring down all possible takers while
Stuart returned with the truck. Fabulous view of the river, river craft and a
swan family.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrQ4BjJ2ZlSb0Dvhg4sWrTHT2UwsICl8X53PWhhempX63zHMeFDPIEcWfDZAUlB3xwYbbb4HTvVL104Tkv_Qtmti4cFgMTjOVdmzDQO_dVQ_VNL9D0NmZ5py6VSgpUclw-oWGN32JP0jxA/s1600/swan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1214" data-original-width="1302" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrQ4BjJ2ZlSb0Dvhg4sWrTHT2UwsICl8X53PWhhempX63zHMeFDPIEcWfDZAUlB3xwYbbb4HTvVL104Tkv_Qtmti4cFgMTjOVdmzDQO_dVQ_VNL9D0NmZ5py6VSgpUclw-oWGN32JP0jxA/s320/swan.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> Tournon swan and babies - photo credit Stuart</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The castle in Tournon is founded on a megalith of rock right
in the middle of town alongside the main drag, it dates back to 894. The maze
of alleys behind the castle make up the old part of the town, very interesting
but with an aroma of dog pee. Just off the alleys I walked along the old main
street that was full of fascinating little specialist shops. I had time to
check them out properly as Stuart climbed the hillside behind them in the
scorching (31+ C) heat taking a ‘special shot’.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFx2SnNaMKkTVdAJzvVnQxpqHkMqDAyajtslaXDUhaqUPgaOlBTVJ8jRdZYSfcr7nY92dQQVg74JHnAfBP6FgKGyOzq7f0NPxThbIVTIbHcrxydHcaRb_y7Xj-_zF_fFRWPdFr3X1Nitd_/s1600/children.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1283" data-original-width="1600" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFx2SnNaMKkTVdAJzvVnQxpqHkMqDAyajtslaXDUhaqUPgaOlBTVJ8jRdZYSfcr7nY92dQQVg74JHnAfBP6FgKGyOzq7f0NPxThbIVTIbHcrxydHcaRb_y7Xj-_zF_fFRWPdFr3X1Nitd_/s320/children.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tournon sur Rhone</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Plane trees line the main sandy square in town and under
their shade petanque players battle it out. Large river tour boats moor
alongside the square, just along from our pozzie.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn0QMOTBijeGht6L6CS9MJR2ER0fq_gUDNjf708U-HLuEwUWTEEMhuVrnJF2AmEIZj42FNulcYrLeMeJbJCUuNKhWVuHSdHervQsvRVSVK-ypRb3rYrp14er_kfnunDNNLfCej4fh7e_GV/s1600/valrhona.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1037" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn0QMOTBijeGht6L6CS9MJR2ER0fq_gUDNjf708U-HLuEwUWTEEMhuVrnJF2AmEIZj42FNulcYrLeMeJbJCUuNKhWVuHSdHervQsvRVSVK-ypRb3rYrp14er_kfnunDNNLfCej4fh7e_GV/s320/valrhona.jpg" width="207" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">photo credit Stuart</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The last time I was here I couldn’t get enough of Tournon (and
the chocolate factory) so had to return for a second time. Valrhona is one of
the most highly respected producers of chocolate in the world and they have a
Cite du Chocolat which is an educational experience. Throughout the educational
experience are samples of the different types of chocolate, they have single
origin chocolates just like coffee and whisky. The gift shop had even more
samples which made me wonder about my true reason to visit this mecca of
chocolate.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One whole day in Tournon was spent trying to keep as cool as
possible as the thermometer just kept climbing, reaching a peak by about 5pm.
Our site is under trees but even with all the windows open it was 43C inside. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizHKii0aoY6kberuh8rYv1ugqzYxwJ4SFNbRf1h4G0tAN9yTWG1AZ9Mo7DcgWbq1eC-htyr-lAkaIngbsrpTibNDHMi-kyXFVyUj37HcbToo5tiEZi4LH01L-ygtoWZQ5KiXQOOPo5AlE6/s1600/DSCF7027.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizHKii0aoY6kberuh8rYv1ugqzYxwJ4SFNbRf1h4G0tAN9yTWG1AZ9Mo7DcgWbq1eC-htyr-lAkaIngbsrpTibNDHMi-kyXFVyUj37HcbToo5tiEZi4LH01L-ygtoWZQ5KiXQOOPo5AlE6/s320/DSCF7027.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">photo credit Stuart</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_B_zWndRlBtwuxsU6HFeIByrdT5_YyR_USVslc6KxnOHjiOparU-kWwK1Hg-u6-FhvkW4upo-6mxIJiXPLIawQBQIahExB7KMLveAQUniavWpHZAhD_0SV2jOlyi9sROdkjATWol3GSB0/s1600/train.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_B_zWndRlBtwuxsU6HFeIByrdT5_YyR_USVslc6KxnOHjiOparU-kWwK1Hg-u6-FhvkW4upo-6mxIJiXPLIawQBQIahExB7KMLveAQUniavWpHZAhD_0SV2jOlyi9sROdkjATWol3GSB0/s320/train.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We took a ride on a tiny steam train along a narrow gorge
track, basically to have lunch at another village. One man in our
uncomfortable, third class, rattling and shaking carriage seemed rabidly
excited, hanging out of the window as much as he could. A showering of soot and
small cinders was his reward. At peak heat time – 5pm, absolutely gasping for
drinks, we collected the truck from the station carpark and made our way back
to the campsite. While I popped into a supermarket, Stuart popped into <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Mr Bricolage</i> – “a wonderous place, much
better and cheaper than Bunnings”. So wonderous that he bought a bag of
bricolage – most of it to do with plumbing. I fended off two potential takers
from our vacated but ‘reservee’ spot and we had a quick dinner before joining
the Fetes de Musiques which is held all over France on 21 June to mark the
longest day. There was live music and dancing in front of the bars in town,
which looked as if it would carry on for quite a while.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The GPS on my phone was programmed with NANTUA as the
destination. The old GPS sat along alongside spitting out lies and falsehoods.
It seemed a long haul to get around Lyon and quelle horreur we ended up on a
pay road. Nantua is close to the Swiss border and despite the spirit-level in
Stuart’s head wanting to face the block-wall we faced the bright blue lake. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The front of the truck rested on two large
flat stones to appease the spirit-level. Children in optimists were struggling
to manage their craft in the windy conditions, white caps whipped up crazily.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7YcuGQzgJGosxQfEuzLI6B5MC0t1qRynZNzj1jiNCk9cxXkSuDhxeRMTL4236aHwuAEboZbN8HvL8dmrKzYVVI75HEyyuYqztIqTbkgSeRCTupTn_XLbjhA1gIziWrbqOj9AMqUSwItyE/s1600/nantua.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="880" data-original-width="1600" height="176" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7YcuGQzgJGosxQfEuzLI6B5MC0t1qRynZNzj1jiNCk9cxXkSuDhxeRMTL4236aHwuAEboZbN8HvL8dmrKzYVVI75HEyyuYqztIqTbkgSeRCTupTn_XLbjhA1gIziWrbqOj9AMqUSwItyE/s320/nantua.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nantua memorial</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">On a promontory facing the young sailors was a large white monument, a coffin with open sides containing a skeletal body. A lone tricolour flailed in the wind overhead. It was a poignant memorial to citizens of Nantua taken by Nazis in W</span>WII, <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">the puppet government in Vichy at the time demanded a quota of people that were on their 'undesirable' list and Nantua had to fill the number from their citizenry. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The houses in the town were narrow and stood shoulder to
shoulder with their backs to towering cliffs. Up a narrow alley was a museum dedicated
to the French Resistance and the lives of the Maquis (guerrilla type fighters
who took their name from the low scrub growing on the hills). There was only a
smattering of English translation, but we got the story the museum had to tell.
The Ain area and Nantua will remain in my memory for a long time. </span></div>
<div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJOrjCqen1OnzQlQ-Scqkk8W4gieNem8LDs3fmihMXmJX4bK7ZFDES0W4fl7oHNBHgTDUbfYjhjcu4I5GUFrM6Rbpb4cFv_NT1bjVLd9jNUaFN8ewvK1zHa7eN06wrDMvbfSwR0DR8tCA8/s1600/baume1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJOrjCqen1OnzQlQ-Scqkk8W4gieNem8LDs3fmihMXmJX4bK7ZFDES0W4fl7oHNBHgTDUbfYjhjcu4I5GUFrM6Rbpb4cFv_NT1bjVLd9jNUaFN8ewvK1zHa7eN06wrDMvbfSwR0DR8tCA8/s320/baume1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Baume-les-Messieurs</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We happened upon Baume-les-Messieurs by accident – I put my
finger on a red star on the map and away we went.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Down a narrow, windy road into a deep Cotswold-looking
valley. The church spire (actually an abbey) poked its finger up through the
cluster of houses around it. No thatched cottages but hump back stone bridges, lots
of leafy trees, stone buildings and shallow stone-lined stream gave it that
English look. What a contrast to dramatic Nantua. We will stay in the lovely
campsite for a couple of days and plan our next sortie.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Au revoir</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjboz9smzg4_5sBVCRosAg8BKZ21258iqq6EonCKqHvXfuvS16pM0sJ_-fdcEFnOJdedgxqV7EO5BMIVMEYy7bVrgsR4kiqKuEn2MMe5VWIlTPHhuHJjV7KP-gQ72ifDgztVUrzPo2Pwxce/s1600/window.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjboz9smzg4_5sBVCRosAg8BKZ21258iqq6EonCKqHvXfuvS16pM0sJ_-fdcEFnOJdedgxqV7EO5BMIVMEYy7bVrgsR4kiqKuEn2MMe5VWIlTPHhuHJjV7KP-gQ72ifDgztVUrzPo2Pwxce/s320/window.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-21723758761853427442018-06-18T10:12:00.000-07:002018-06-18T10:12:02.662-07:00Lavender fields and Gorges L'Ardeche <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6bbPwcTixoFWEJswdjrF6OW4aetsLWqeBbGqXTxTMV0EfxHHVBf_Cnrz5Y9DOTL7U1xZp9i5G4ow5ayjXoVyLTOeUJhtksWMBEtY0yGcY3iuh2uhIAZ9OBfm-L6a4eRuHAZ96UJSF_DSI/s1600/Simiande.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="727" data-original-width="1600" height="289" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6bbPwcTixoFWEJswdjrF6OW4aetsLWqeBbGqXTxTMV0EfxHHVBf_Cnrz5Y9DOTL7U1xZp9i5G4ow5ayjXoVyLTOeUJhtksWMBEtY0yGcY3iuh2uhIAZ9OBfm-L6a4eRuHAZ96UJSF_DSI/s640/Simiande.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Simiane La Rotonde</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">At the other
end of the Gorges du Verdon, is Moustiers Sainte Marie. For centuries it has
perched on the top of a hill wearing a church as its crown. The cobbled stairs leading up to the church
have been worn to a treacherous polish by millions of tourist tootsies. The
inside of the church so gloomy it was hard to see anything except a glowing gold
leaf altar.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">I wasn’t
wearing grippy shoes and clung onto the handy metal rail as I made the downward
trek. I felt for the woman in front who was creeping in a similar fashion but
carrying a baby in a sling. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibsi6aCn6bD50QcMBIn53Ht8X8nDvizPRLTo1cAou7kykUZtaZ4XDzhvpZ-2SBVd3whqoEK8vgp0t25Vi0pCWKTmRgc_XOzQNC1saDod56u5-shw2DIbKrYs-TU5mp0C-clgfOpF5oFJcG/s1600/jane+lavender.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibsi6aCn6bD50QcMBIn53Ht8X8nDvizPRLTo1cAou7kykUZtaZ4XDzhvpZ-2SBVd3whqoEK8vgp0t25Vi0pCWKTmRgc_XOzQNC1saDod56u5-shw2DIbKrYs-TU5mp0C-clgfOpF5oFJcG/s320/jane+lavender.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Meanwhile, crouched below the hill, is the aire du camping cars. All the big white boxes are arranged in a circle – facing an empty centre eyeballing each other. A popular place – the latecomers were pointed to the overflow area for “Norman-no-mates”.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br />We were on a lavender hunt. It was a bit early in the season but ever hopeful we set off across the Valensole plateau. A most fabulous drive, the sun had warmed the flowers and the wind blew lavender fragrance in the cab windows. The colours, the colours, great blocks of purple and mauve, red pools of poppies and sunshine fields of rape.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh35Ep6iqu8bshOssFz39L-SO_Xv9hGamr9TLY7vsfXcx8GwLnisim518DKGks0Hr_fWwRnXGJZnvxVmntEvBCjl7rvAIbuXV083PXI8IDRK7EpOIo4AeaJh-xo8pAm_oedBJqp0oquEwZ1/s1600/stuart+poppies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIe3V2kzL51c937X144dOy5Pdoy__m8BJ7zuSkJw8Fck8gDrRxQ7KkJT3vOYFfF94rtlXX4DFM38ftVGkB-nchMaPDc88kIuioVqpXTAC8CtoBQs65BU9qCCwImtWZbPMh5du16e10lCSv/s1600/purple+flowers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1015" data-original-width="1600" height="126" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIe3V2kzL51c937X144dOy5Pdoy__m8BJ7zuSkJw8Fck8gDrRxQ7KkJT3vOYFfF94rtlXX4DFM38ftVGkB-nchMaPDc88kIuioVqpXTAC8CtoBQs65BU9qCCwImtWZbPMh5du16e10lCSv/s200/purple+flowers.jpg" width="200" /></a><img border="0" data-original-height="921" data-original-width="1600" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh35Ep6iqu8bshOssFz39L-SO_Xv9hGamr9TLY7vsfXcx8GwLnisim518DKGks0Hr_fWwRnXGJZnvxVmntEvBCjl7rvAIbuXV083PXI8IDRK7EpOIo4AeaJh-xo8pAm_oedBJqp0oquEwZ1/s320/stuart+poppies.jpg" width="320" /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh35Ep6iqu8bshOssFz39L-SO_Xv9hGamr9TLY7vsfXcx8GwLnisim518DKGks0Hr_fWwRnXGJZnvxVmntEvBCjl7rvAIbuXV083PXI8IDRK7EpOIo4AeaJh-xo8pAm_oedBJqp0oquEwZ1/s1600/stuart+poppies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Sometimes our
travels are a bit serendipitous, we drove through Reillanne then turned around,
with some difficulty, and headed back to spend the night. It is a truly
delightful village. We were peering into the tourist office through the glass
door, deciding that once again it was probably the day that it closed, when the
door opened and we almost fell on top of the lovely lady in charge of the
office. Claire was ex-pat English who plied us with many maps and instructions
to visit a nearby village. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimFTf1r3BwBjy5CKQaY7fZe5VF30FVI-lWBLU2146TsnYf581knGTXVNi7f1SOsxxxMs3hSW2clkns2JMczQaPgyF5pM2ggBNCf7ZppdvgbWURCGit8eDggol2xouZsDzkEMyCpvofcip0/s1600/Reillane.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimFTf1r3BwBjy5CKQaY7fZe5VF30FVI-lWBLU2146TsnYf581knGTXVNi7f1SOsxxxMs3hSW2clkns2JMczQaPgyF5pM2ggBNCf7ZppdvgbWURCGit8eDggol2xouZsDzkEMyCpvofcip0/s320/Reillane.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Reillanne</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Reillanne had a
large square that was being used as a venue for a dance class. The houses were
painted in all sorts of <i>Karen Walker</i>
washed out pastels with contrasting shutters and flowers cascading out of pots
and gardens. There were cafes with music and the village looked like a place
with real people, young people, living there, not just a clutch of holiday
houses. I could move to this lovely place in the Hautes Alpes region!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The next
morning we set off and followed Claire’s instructions but stopped – the road indicated
was no better than a farm track, and there was a ‘chausses deforme’ sign which
meant the road was even worse than usual so we gave that opportunity a miss and
carried on to a couple more hilltop villages for a quick toot. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPoMKlKkwL5kVvTfu2R9JdQ7Y8KaLwgwr8xSUJdnvlDtQKDES0DJQVQIF1MPalpP1GqbggSzL8Dn4q_-Wv8w-rveqxvzmtkUjFI2cuh2GJLBf2JM7yPogUFTRMULYIonhWgpWq8IAwU5qg/s1600/Reillanne+cafe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPoMKlKkwL5kVvTfu2R9JdQ7Y8KaLwgwr8xSUJdnvlDtQKDES0DJQVQIF1MPalpP1GqbggSzL8Dn4q_-Wv8w-rveqxvzmtkUjFI2cuh2GJLBf2JM7yPogUFTRMULYIonhWgpWq8IAwU5qg/s320/Reillanne+cafe.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Reillanne</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Return to Roussillon.
It is a town built of reddish stone. There were ochre formations in sunset
stripes along the wind and rain sculpted cliffs. The pigment from the clay has
been used for centuries and was once the source of the town’s economy but don’t
touch it – or it will stain your clothes forever. Tourists are now the towns fortune
- twangy American accents rang out across the tangle of quaint lanes and shops are
selling what our friend Tim calls ‘fluff’.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWFaOtLY2SNdjr96BWa5idd4AXZ-xkFnMowKRzv7GGHG6IT4Qi-a53mX_h5824fFKp1H4n4Ca4Ka31AhqUHAeCaWV_k9x-zEgIlu6Kc2JRWwt6jpPtu9HbmxDLNSAGdoFfhcn4pulDYg43/s1600/Rousillon+town.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="864" data-original-width="1600" height="172" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWFaOtLY2SNdjr96BWa5idd4AXZ-xkFnMowKRzv7GGHG6IT4Qi-a53mX_h5824fFKp1H4n4Ca4Ka31AhqUHAeCaWV_k9x-zEgIlu6Kc2JRWwt6jpPtu9HbmxDLNSAGdoFfhcn4pulDYg43/s320/Rousillon+town.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rousillon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB4VlHOlsmailqMlWZ9uRDpaFrfLClFTazPi_FVI9e2zyeA-LaAF6HoiYMWI54g63bB5jSxb1HTAKqwN8Z54kdOS4ihlaDeiP0UUilNjTLSQSHfyLhPxZKtma3I8x2hAUKx2R3JMd34muK/s1600/Rousillon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB4VlHOlsmailqMlWZ9uRDpaFrfLClFTazPi_FVI9e2zyeA-LaAF6HoiYMWI54g63bB5jSxb1HTAKqwN8Z54kdOS4ihlaDeiP0UUilNjTLSQSHfyLhPxZKtma3I8x2hAUKx2R3JMd34muK/s320/Rousillon.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rousillon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Sadly we left
the Hautes Alpes of Provence and entered the wide open spaces on our way to Vallon
Pont D’Arc at the end of the Gorges L’Ardeche (Ardeche Gorge). Pont D’Arc is a
stunning natural stone bridge formed over the eons by water and spans the
Ardeche river. Eagles soar on the thermals above it and swallows are swooping
into their nests underneath it.</span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFliTRKfvH1ZjhemJQNNg-jelY4O0sDu1VUS8678h3FOjcGPiPEtuTpHA0GxM9YrhlU8Qf1CC1V_WEKUslHstIhr3VwfjaKAWt6zg7ecy9JgM0ZnatqfHbv5cY8izvQt2oYV3fOK2PAVAp/s1600/Ardeche.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFliTRKfvH1ZjhemJQNNg-jelY4O0sDu1VUS8678h3FOjcGPiPEtuTpHA0GxM9YrhlU8Qf1CC1V_WEKUslHstIhr3VwfjaKAWt6zg7ecy9JgM0ZnatqfHbv5cY8izvQt2oYV3fOK2PAVAp/s320/Ardeche.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gorges d'Ardeche</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The Ardeche a
serpentine spirulina-smoothie slithers between towering cliffs. From a vantage
point high above the river we can see parties of kayakers moving quite quickly
around bends, looking like tiny toy boats.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Did I mention
‘kayak’? Did I hear the word ‘kayak’ on many occasions? I wasn’t a happy camper
or sailor at the thought of kayaking and then the kayak rental man talked about
all the rapids. Zut alors! Sacre bleu!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Again – long
story short, I packed our baguette, camembert and bottle of water into the
white screw-top barrel and Stuart firmly strapped it on the craft. ‘Keep a
little bottle of water out so we can drink it while we travel’. ‘OK’.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkLSqPIAWYi7fj687m7xDaeWgTumV0xXXa06-YQIk2PxdiGcWCoT8F9pNFq3OTYwyvR0lzfIvgpZwl4sRoZ2x_77noTgCUBfG-zG2yE60z_S8HEIei-SvZJMJvihzJefcavG1z5oE2MdpJ/s1600/jane+kayak.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkLSqPIAWYi7fj687m7xDaeWgTumV0xXXa06-YQIk2PxdiGcWCoT8F9pNFq3OTYwyvR0lzfIvgpZwl4sRoZ2x_77noTgCUBfG-zG2yE60z_S8HEIei-SvZJMJvihzJefcavG1z5oE2MdpJ/s320/jane+kayak.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jane with plastic fantastic</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The first set
of rapids looked fine as we approached but then we were in a maelstrom – it was
more than ‘zut alors’. Water crashed over the bow soaking me through, and where
was that little bottle? I didn’t think the man in the stern was paying enough
attention – how could he see what I was seeing? I didn’t want to join those
poor unfortunates who walked along the riverbank looking for their piece of
plastic fantastic. Anyhow, we made it through the 24km unscathed and a bus took
us and a trailer full of yellow plastic craft back to our motor camp on the
way. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY5f6M0LO2zCiqhBFMmSJRpREEK_5PrcvH9tKGrtPI0MLm-rMkJfV5yC3fQ3X2kAgtlmBfC-w3IIVTQuzbfYdqy_76aVISVqHIVuVneDKGFHreH4C8TXccErfwjpPw8h5fxJDU_9Aq8849/s1600/pont+dvallon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1122" data-original-width="1600" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY5f6M0LO2zCiqhBFMmSJRpREEK_5PrcvH9tKGrtPI0MLm-rMkJfV5yC3fQ3X2kAgtlmBfC-w3IIVTQuzbfYdqy_76aVISVqHIVuVneDKGFHreH4C8TXccErfwjpPw8h5fxJDU_9Aq8849/s320/pont+dvallon.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pont D'Arc </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The washing was
getting more than pressing and the camp man let me use his washing machine to
do the biggies while we washed the smalls by hand. Stuart’s handy washing line
was strung between the trees and cleanliness was restored.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">After a random
consultation of our very detailed map of France I settled on Vogue as our
destination, its name had a nice ring to it. Luckily it more than met our
expectations, and a few others as well – it was Sunday after all. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Dining out was
on the cards, and I had a very strange starter, an éclair stuffed with a slice
of terrine and garnished inside with swirls of lavender coloured (blueberry)
cream. Sprinkled around were pieces of bright green sponge cake (pistachio) and
small strips of bacon. I had read the menu correctly but was surprised all the
same to see that nothing was lost in translation. I had the ‘house aperitif’ and
Stuart declined my suggestion of biere pression (draft beer) and chose instead ‘biere
Monaco’ from the list of beverages. Was he surprised to get a bright red beer
with pink froth on top! It is made from lager, red cordial, lemonade …. and tasted
a lot like the house aperitif.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQqxNGsaAXaUS3pgLIXjNBC23EpjCEjaS5du_Ttr6ewIry7I7sshAUAsbEYmjx5YU6l8GJNb1yDUHos0k4oYa4rFuqT5W0I2PZhKKOnX7lD3EpRv0PAk-7MYBB0-Io4a3cdB89h6rzt1GV/s1600/lavender.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="905" data-original-width="1600" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQqxNGsaAXaUS3pgLIXjNBC23EpjCEjaS5du_Ttr6ewIry7I7sshAUAsbEYmjx5YU6l8GJNb1yDUHos0k4oYa4rFuqT5W0I2PZhKKOnX7lD3EpRv0PAk-7MYBB0-Io4a3cdB89h6rzt1GV/s400/lavender.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We are going to
follow the Rhone northward and see what it brings. Au revoir.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br /></div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-67002010941724964772018-06-12T12:36:00.002-07:002018-06-16T23:09:50.405-07:00Lake Orta, Gorges du Verdon<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG5T8W9uM6Dnr-kd60LGh16wesoC8N6iP2fZ33Dgjx0ybdfAZFNl53MA1mKs5qrKQIXmYUJMacBlyO1NXCCU75M8wTPewb_AWg_ofqHxIwtVaRQ_iec76OL9IwTqY7_1nuTFrVBAqlH3UP/s1600/Lauzet-Ubaye2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG5T8W9uM6Dnr-kd60LGh16wesoC8N6iP2fZ33Dgjx0ybdfAZFNl53MA1mKs5qrKQIXmYUJMacBlyO1NXCCU75M8wTPewb_AWg_ofqHxIwtVaRQ_iec76OL9IwTqY7_1nuTFrVBAqlH3UP/s400/Lauzet-Ubaye2.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> Lazet-Ubaye, France - the camping car 'aire' had a fantastic view of the lake</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br />The GPL story –
it is the weekend and we couldn’t find anywhere (bar travelling on the
autostrada in an undefined direction) that was open to supply the gas we use
for cooking and heating water. We checked into a campsite and plugged into
electric. The campsite we took was on the side of Lake Orta. We were so
lakeside that we had our own set of swimming pool type stairs to descend into
the lake. So, long story short, we spent two nights beside the fantastic Lake
Orta . The truck we hired has the same gas system we had set up in our own
truck before arriving in NZ. It is a refillable bottle so we can travel Europe
without changing bottle type. Not only cheaper but more convenient- until you
strike a weekend. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgouw0cLfX22iICuZToVGR1vnayQglmxgpgXPRFwEgwFrq2krnx69uvk0qvvSTMpNS2mPASgp63iepLvqfhOSeNqCLvnkNE2tdpIGdE6s8pQkr90rR6DOSy05pBwAAbA8TIl-8XjFgGleUX/s1600/Island+orta.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgouw0cLfX22iICuZToVGR1vnayQglmxgpgXPRFwEgwFrq2krnx69uvk0qvvSTMpNS2mPASgp63iepLvqfhOSeNqCLvnkNE2tdpIGdE6s8pQkr90rR6DOSy05pBwAAbA8TIl-8XjFgGleUX/s320/Island+orta.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lake Orta</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Lake Orta was
delightful, we visited Sacro Monte. It is a UNESCO world heritage site on a
hillside overlooking the lake. Spiralling around the hillside are 20 chapels containing
statues and frescoes portraying the life of St Francis of Assisi – he is
following me on this trip.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The first chapel
was built in 16</span><sup style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">th</sup><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> century and the last 100 years later. The
perfectly landscaped park surrounding the chapels contains scotch pines,
broadleaf trees and an avenue of hornbeams.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVt-yg3RoOjoWUmqRlesAJoOxz_2DB5R0QtRmXGpyShqEm9iQHEI-ZVGo5WQhj4c8chxOuJoZtqjQiIrqSrphFHAUDLw4m8DwVBhyJQcJ9T6PUu8YwQsc-tUFAunE8ojyL0GeErL95cIh4/s1600/orta+concert.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVt-yg3RoOjoWUmqRlesAJoOxz_2DB5R0QtRmXGpyShqEm9iQHEI-ZVGo5WQhj4c8chxOuJoZtqjQiIrqSrphFHAUDLw4m8DwVBhyJQcJ9T6PUu8YwQsc-tUFAunE8ojyL0GeErL95cIh4/s320/orta+concert.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Orta</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The time to
depart Italy had arrived – we headed to France crossing an alpine route. A
different route than we took last time, shelling out toll after toll. We snaked
down a steep descent from Italy into Briancon in the Hautes-Alpes region, the
truck was running on engine braking and regular brakes but holding back to
avoid over-heating. Hairpin bend after hairpin bend was negotiated before we
arrived at upper Briancon – phew. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6Eagbjxu3FN1NQHHloshJBhjWSusvKqRTyfkJD7ZHdRy45bpY8kHmODA0FV2VCMVsnAjHpSALrhK5Km5DCOg_6LsGZN9CbFmIUMyi5s3-xCYoJ2lWldFlpMLidIKPlzM6wZe5akfSfrIX/s1600/Briancon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6Eagbjxu3FN1NQHHloshJBhjWSusvKqRTyfkJD7ZHdRy45bpY8kHmODA0FV2VCMVsnAjHpSALrhK5Km5DCOg_6LsGZN9CbFmIUMyi5s3-xCYoJ2lWldFlpMLidIKPlzM6wZe5akfSfrIX/s320/Briancon.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Briancon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We were greeted
by ancient grim fortifications strung out across the hilltops, a reminder of
times that were not peaceful. The main street of old Briancon has a channel in
the middle that runs with water, its nickname is the grand gargoyle, and has
existed since 1345. Lower Briancon was a congestion of children just released
from school, roadworks and a whole circus occupying the area we intended to
spend the night in, so we pressed on to a municipal campground about 20 km away.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJFwVvz9eutWitSfDma0bELP_dkHq42HHJqy2aYAg0hCMogpepcj2SZKvQAKBEN5PI6bJuQ6IFgxJjIWulXf6sbJXCcUohFRoJ0HGkLsP9fnWno26McbjjG2gTh7cnoUWIGjJqR-lBSkec/s1600/leaving+Italy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJFwVvz9eutWitSfDma0bELP_dkHq42HHJqy2aYAg0hCMogpepcj2SZKvQAKBEN5PI6bJuQ6IFgxJjIWulXf6sbJXCcUohFRoJ0HGkLsP9fnWno26McbjjG2gTh7cnoUWIGjJqR-lBSkec/s320/leaving+Italy.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leaving Italy - Just Go</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Our route
planning is quite ad hoc and a day later we ended up in Digne les Bains. I was
sure we stayed there before on a non-motorhome trip and I was right!
Please erase this town from my memory banks – it has no saving grace then, and
still hadn’t anything to offer this time around. The only thing I gleaned was that
ordering ‘café crème’ meant I got a latte. In my best schoolgirl French I asked
the waiter, who put aside his cigarette, what another customer had
ordered.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Noisette” was the answer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yeah right, it is a small coffee with a ‘nut’
of fluffy milk on top. Must remember that for next time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The Hautes
Alpes area of Provence is up in the mountains and we headed to St Andre Les
Alpes for a quick look-see. Nice place, we had a stroll around and watched
children and their parents visiting the patissier on their way home to collect
some after dinner treats. We did like likewise, walking away from the shop with
a beautiful little carry-box.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The Gorges du
Verdon, described the Grand Canyon of France - but first a stop over at Castellane
at the eastern end of the gorge.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">It met my criteria of gorgeousness, and the
dedicated camping-car place was about 200 metres from the town square.
There was a towering cliff with shrine atop looming over us and once again we
were beside a river. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibbHKkXesaSyvDUKs6QP3heavEkk-_tjeB9z__y4z6hqwHF11_czV9cjupF0D98Vg2I5HXGasnkeA9KG1sNUMKewBJq5Ym95TZFKMZm5fsVw69fvqXiddjlIBMT6Lggku3OmrBPGu8UfNe/s1600/dancers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibbHKkXesaSyvDUKs6QP3heavEkk-_tjeB9z__y4z6hqwHF11_czV9cjupF0D98Vg2I5HXGasnkeA9KG1sNUMKewBJq5Ym95TZFKMZm5fsVw69fvqXiddjlIBMT6Lggku3OmrBPGu8UfNe/s320/dancers.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dancers at Castellane tramshumence fete</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Castellane has a Citroen museum that we took a look through, and there was also a transhumance (moving of livestock) fete while we were there. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Traditional dancers, geese being shepherded by a border collie (who took his job very seriously, his eyes never left those geese) and unusual sheep breeds were on display. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">All sheep that are not NZ sheep look unusual to me. </span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ6t0jXhq9aV08fFl2pqkKeWo71wnltWalmUL6vh0lEQbVu8pDLdEq5d-v44lHw6ksWzraplusQsBL6yzO0OFXK0u4VQyPnxHErptGTof-v2XKRsx0aBaYS13IfgoD3XZ2HGAt9JK1a18g/s1600/geese.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1221" data-original-width="1600" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ6t0jXhq9aV08fFl2pqkKeWo71wnltWalmUL6vh0lEQbVu8pDLdEq5d-v44lHw6ksWzraplusQsBL6yzO0OFXK0u4VQyPnxHErptGTof-v2XKRsx0aBaYS13IfgoD3XZ2HGAt9JK1a18g/s320/geese.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fixing them geese with his steely doggy gaze </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We drove along the gorges of Verdon - taking in the 'Route des Cretes' - a narrow road with many view points overlooking the gorge, at a dizzy level way below. We also walked a recommended scenic track that involved several tunnels. Huge birds of prey circled above - some had been re-introduced. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We forgot our head-torch and ended up relying on the torch in my iphone in the tunnels, never mind, it did the trick. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Can't say it was one of the best hikes we have ever done but it was popular. The whole gorge route route was popular with endless streams of motorcycle enthusiasts touring in groups. Given the narrow width of their vehicles you would have thought staying on their side of the road would have been easy.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We are heading off to explore the lavender routes in the Hautes Alpes region of Provence.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk195y58Xj_rI6IMeRjJJUkDWZDX4QIoqk2W8eir2hqrdZQnNdQTMu1ZWTCn5Tzxcbyuyu10S5zWFA3Fs8pbEshLC7-9ZbryvGKh3a-8ck0um3kwJZFnb7yWaGbvDImnJFQFX3xW-i1aiZ/s1600/gorges.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk195y58Xj_rI6IMeRjJJUkDWZDX4QIoqk2W8eir2hqrdZQnNdQTMu1ZWTCn5Tzxcbyuyu10S5zWFA3Fs8pbEshLC7-9ZbryvGKh3a-8ck0um3kwJZFnb7yWaGbvDImnJFQFX3xW-i1aiZ/s400/gorges.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gorges du Verdon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br /></div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-21700255891427401042018-06-04T00:10:00.000-07:002018-06-04T00:10:46.946-07:00Chianti, Maggiore<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHHz856-p6FO8sz5YxKbDLnlOsmu4jtYNCN4tOErDrqXi5JuPCrvWb9BTGpkqS0LUuXJ9DzBl6XE7QhnohsD0j1ZX-E3rsukenNhINrVWSvfBQsDgGal4EjnuTB0iLsAqfvSkBhYbIOBdJ/s1600/night.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="848" data-original-width="1600" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHHz856-p6FO8sz5YxKbDLnlOsmu4jtYNCN4tOErDrqXi5JuPCrvWb9BTGpkqS0LUuXJ9DzBl6XE7QhnohsD0j1ZX-E3rsukenNhINrVWSvfBQsDgGal4EjnuTB0iLsAqfvSkBhYbIOBdJ/s400/night.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bevano, Lago Maggiore</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Chocks away, some
tanks filled and others empty, we hit the road northward - back to where we
picked this little truck up – Tuscany, specifically the Chianti area. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Rows of vines
stretching up the hillsides, pencil cypresses and the occasional umbrella pine
are standard issue in the Chianti area. We made for Greve, a place we had
previously enjoyed. It is known for Chianti Classico, demarked on the bottle
with a black chook. The dark red wine is made from the <span style="background: white; color: black;">Sangiovese</span> grape and is very velvety and plummy.</span> <o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">That evening we
ate outside a restaurant offering typical Tuscan fare. The evening air was warm and
we spent a little time chatting with other diners – Aussies, but when they
speak your lingo, conversation comes easily. A nice change from my stuttering ‘mi
dispiace, non parlo Italiano’ hoping the poor person can understand
what I want.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiPza0Kg8-4TWJRDk4i71BO8S2qeRr4WaRpAV3aKJ6u6wPfQdy7mfZZDI99ciexA5qxHCH3yLMQtXJRjo1degDu79fvTe0vabtNfQ7ZZebUB2RXJF15GMG2LFiSPI3ub2I_hpK-BBN1uUe/s1600/chianti2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="842" data-original-width="1600" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiPza0Kg8-4TWJRDk4i71BO8S2qeRr4WaRpAV3aKJ6u6wPfQdy7mfZZDI99ciexA5qxHCH3yLMQtXJRjo1degDu79fvTe0vabtNfQ7ZZebUB2RXJF15GMG2LFiSPI3ub2I_hpK-BBN1uUe/s320/chianti2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chianti area</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Two nights in
one place already! It meant time to move; wallets opened as we clicked through
various toll gates on the motorway (autostrada). Quibbles have to be put aside
as traveling any long distance in Italy without using the autostrada is like
being in your own never-ending story.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The speed limit
is 120km/hr, and in some places trucks are assigned to the inside lane, so
the passing view is a wall of trucks. The autostradas need full concentration
as stuff is happening everywhere, bum clenching time (for me). <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have seen a truck driver weaving across lanes as he concentrates on his smartphone – one foot on the dash. Generally
though, things are orderly.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8hTn__CpjTLbMzPlW4JCs0kalu524M68tErXB-nS4wbvnqIpHuN2xx6vP49uTw3Ed4TULUHRjqQRLB950qda3OxZzmckeTTHZOPQrZE4yHGc6upo2JHxmSNjNI5oHGLGoIEd1sSaLinvo/s1600/old+olive+trees.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8hTn__CpjTLbMzPlW4JCs0kalu524M68tErXB-nS4wbvnqIpHuN2xx6vP49uTw3Ed4TULUHRjqQRLB950qda3OxZzmckeTTHZOPQrZE4yHGc6upo2JHxmSNjNI5oHGLGoIEd1sSaLinvo/s1600/old+olive+trees.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8hTn__CpjTLbMzPlW4JCs0kalu524M68tErXB-nS4wbvnqIpHuN2xx6vP49uTw3Ed4TULUHRjqQRLB950qda3OxZzmckeTTHZOPQrZE4yHGc6upo2JHxmSNjNI5oHGLGoIEd1sSaLinvo/s200/old+olive+trees.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC6ud6GJ0vFR2Ex-HGJN726oUC6IT1Hz1FJE3hm9cABnXGFMv7pDTrQ3iBvVXf87KCeFTs31vBgpQTqABuSqm5hk-c9vwLc6ejtjjgs_uU2d44C4jvX2DnN7UqT7RppVfB6475C29oJ3TV/s1600/Baveno.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1068" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC6ud6GJ0vFR2Ex-HGJN726oUC6IT1Hz1FJE3hm9cABnXGFMv7pDTrQ3iBvVXf87KCeFTs31vBgpQTqABuSqm5hk-c9vwLc6ejtjjgs_uU2d44C4jvX2DnN7UqT7RppVfB6475C29oJ3TV/s320/Baveno.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Lake Maggiore in
the far north of Italy was glinting when we finally caught sight of it. We stopped
in the vain hope of finding a light-weight blanket. No blanket, but Stuart
found a length of plumbing pipe in a diameter not available in NZ. It was sawn
in half and stowed in the small ‘garage’ at the back of the truck. It will be
used to repair an “oops” that happened to Chausson on the Molesworth Road in NZ.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The Maggiore lakeside
road passed spectacularly grand hotels and elegant Italian villas, similar to
what I imagine George Clooney lives in, on Lake Como. The lake has steep craggy
mountains streaked with snow as a distant backdrop and in the foreground are inhabited islands that have beautiful gardens and buildings.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The camp we stayed at in Baveno backed onto the lake and was close to a ferry landing, it was very full. We didn’t realise we had arrived during a series of holidays,
but Miss Campground showed us where we should park and where we should face.
The spirit level that lives in Stuart’s head said we should face the amenity
block (as it usually does) but Signorina Campground said we need to face the
lake and back a few inches and over a few inches . . .<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>the floor in the truck was on a bit of a slope and the
spirit level wasn’t happy ….. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDqZ9GJqBHisXjwp4cDPtRyHsp_iCL7rYohCewTZlPIDHYChQpvfMtXxH_7ZGyqq0TafyEf_IPszpuDpX2KN_pxaO4TGb_4FCVaXe-7TdJ4iYtAveF3NKjska7Nu2m1i6JrVB7TrkUiUfL/s1600/old+bike.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDqZ9GJqBHisXjwp4cDPtRyHsp_iCL7rYohCewTZlPIDHYChQpvfMtXxH_7ZGyqq0TafyEf_IPszpuDpX2KN_pxaO4TGb_4FCVaXe-7TdJ4iYtAveF3NKjska7Nu2m1i6JrVB7TrkUiUfL/s320/old+bike.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Even your old bike needs a good lock</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Isola Bella is
the most beautiful island on the lake and has a palace that is open for visits.
We had a leisurely stroll through it admiring the rooms and sculptured gardens compete
with strutting white peacocks.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">I walked around an elegant room with a ceiling 3 stories high It held a conference of high representatives of Italy, France and
the United Kingdom in April 1935, resulting in the agreement known as the Stresa
Front, which was an attempt to avoid WWII. The town of Stresa is just a short ferry ride
away. Princess Diana and husband as well as Napoleon and Josephine had also
been hosted at the same palace.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We finished our
visit to Maggiore with a ferry trip up to Locarno in Switzerland and caught a
couple of trains, including a narrow gauge panoramic train through part of Switzerland
back to our campground. A spectacular firework display was launched from a barge
on the lake to celebrate Republic Day.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">There is no particular plan of where to go next but we do need to fill up with GPL (gas) and head in the direction of the French Alps.</span></div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ-wER-O69R3Z7w8K9c9XZ4ZhVefA8AXC1ao9_EBOuyeV8zlp6IH52Cq1R7ii7FZI2kfBzTe-MxlQTNuu8CsTV1kovYlkdHQH1A0ZJo9dlGyh6IfwQLgqosEWVydMn_e2-N_Br5lkHwoZy/s1600/kisses.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1108" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ-wER-O69R3Z7w8K9c9XZ4ZhVefA8AXC1ao9_EBOuyeV8zlp6IH52Cq1R7ii7FZI2kfBzTe-MxlQTNuu8CsTV1kovYlkdHQH1A0ZJo9dlGyh6IfwQLgqosEWVydMn_e2-N_Br5lkHwoZy/s320/kisses.jpg" width="221" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Italian Lakes are a film makers ideal of a honeymoon destination. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<br /></div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-70548757921420175922018-05-30T06:44:00.000-07:002018-05-30T06:45:03.062-07:00Computer says 'no' again<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_55A_UIcx_92dnyXUMSvtE5fNP_E3oc2LNysXaBRhI32KbLJEZuaIdD1bBJ-DS035zrNT77dCrl6TwwLN6H3tyVGB3Q0v-rDTnvRTbsUZZPqXFjIvaA2oELDeLVbQyxGCAPVoTGjExCgk/s1600/landscape.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="724" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_55A_UIcx_92dnyXUMSvtE5fNP_E3oc2LNysXaBRhI32KbLJEZuaIdD1bBJ-DS035zrNT77dCrl6TwwLN6H3tyVGB3Q0v-rDTnvRTbsUZZPqXFjIvaA2oELDeLVbQyxGCAPVoTGjExCgk/s400/landscape.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Umbrian countryside</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We left Matera
with a mental image of the blue building we should be looking for in Bari to
book a passage for Greece. We had seen the photo on two blogs – Bari likes to
keep things subtle and there was no sign anywhere for a big shipping ferry at
the port and we were thankful people had helpfully shared their experiences of
what to look for.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Bari also likes
to make a puzzle of its roading network and before we had even hit the main
chaos of roadworks and closed roads, we were in a quarry surrounded by clouds
of dust and large noisy trucks. We followed a big truck that looked to be
leaving and arrived back on the correct road. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Eventually we
arrived at the port and squeezed past trucks from Bulgaria and Romania to find
the mystical blue building – it was just like the photo – no logo or
signs. We parked right in front, but our
expectant expressions changed when ‘computer says NO’. No passages available for days.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi570bUjLu2tpC1FO1mBCyzAaY1H9eevpwD4f3_BQ0vLusoN-puI4VuxGIen0B26W6bzgDvM5RNI1BRMzxG1LJmomRZaAhLQ3aGs7aEpetc2OBzwImamQE8W-OJ61jmzQ9AgxZ3Ycek6sT4/s1600/truffi2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi570bUjLu2tpC1FO1mBCyzAaY1H9eevpwD4f3_BQ0vLusoN-puI4VuxGIen0B26W6bzgDvM5RNI1BRMzxG1LJmomRZaAhLQ3aGs7aEpetc2OBzwImamQE8W-OJ61jmzQ9AgxZ3Ycek6sT4/s320/truffi2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Truffi houses, Alberobello</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We re-booted,
decided not to go to Greece but spend some time in Puglia. Lonely Planet said
“Alberobello”, so off we went, satnav said “go up narrow street with badly
parked Range Rover”. Two heads hanging out the windows checking the clearance –
only just enough room before having to reverse back down a restricted entry
street. My job was standing in the
street stopping traffic as I was <i>in loco
reversing-camera</i> (which is a piece of %#*&^, Stuart says).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">I was already
off Alberobello and that was before I saw the parades of tour coaches and
vendors of tat. All the tat seemed to be the same, and surely of a nature that
no one would want. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">To be fair,
Alberobello is unique with lots of Truffi houses cascading down the hillside.
The Truffi houses are round with roofs made of flat overlapping stones. To
avoid a large tax the roofs must be dismantled every so often (don’t know time
frame) and rebuilt. Their appearance is somewhat hobbit like. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga-xy5vpv901OtUJePV9Qp7gL-JMfC755xEgpuh2_9Qy7NInfwr1C0NGtjuxTZIfwWxscL7D7vhQs_jc2dkteEKuQqAiNoX7Cmpqsl7Bs3gP2vAL3x8NEA5hDn_grYVol_YyK4NY_CUY5M/s1600/Truffi1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga-xy5vpv901OtUJePV9Qp7gL-JMfC755xEgpuh2_9Qy7NInfwr1C0NGtjuxTZIfwWxscL7D7vhQs_jc2dkteEKuQqAiNoX7Cmpqsl7Bs3gP2vAL3x8NEA5hDn_grYVol_YyK4NY_CUY5M/s320/Truffi1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alberobello<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We were looking for a bit of time out from travelling so off we set for the Adriatic coast.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We stopped for
lunch near a beach in one truly abysmal town that had every layby filled with
rubbish. We heard a vehicle pull up behind us. Nec minit, there was a knock on
our door and three expat Kiwis living in Aus were chatting with us. Our truck has large lettering - <i>New
Zealand, Australia and Great Britain</i> on the back and that caught their eye.
Goodness knows there were NO other tourists, Italian or otherwise, within a
50km radius of the hideous place. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We stopped for
a re-stock at my favourite chain, Lidl, there was a savvy stray dog who
followed shoppers to their cars. It was obviously a move that had paid off in
the past. Full up with good priced wine and beer plus assorted cheeses, we hit
the highway. I kept seeing prostitutes on the roadside, I can’t imagine the
life they must be forced to live, made even more miserable when standing in
rain.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAHg6JOvatqlQIinAHNrC3tf-dJwCtKkIfTTsgXNLePL8WwZ5r1_8x-pnMkqTKtMrV6QfAoqUTOEmfNH0oaEpQ3RWuCQztW6b3QlLzO8ostZb1WQUn_cDzdGquaiPjbSXLtkwjRM1ONa6w/s1600/Lucera.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAHg6JOvatqlQIinAHNrC3tf-dJwCtKkIfTTsgXNLePL8WwZ5r1_8x-pnMkqTKtMrV6QfAoqUTOEmfNH0oaEpQ3RWuCQztW6b3QlLzO8ostZb1WQUn_cDzdGquaiPjbSXLtkwjRM1ONa6w/s400/Lucera.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lucera</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Lucera was
marked on our maps and in the Camperstop book as a town worth visiting. It is an
old town with a large 14C castle and regulation Duomo. We found a good spot in
front of the castle, sidled up to a large German Carthago motorhome as their
unchosen friend, and made ourselves at home for the night with some nice basil
and ricotta ravioli served with asparagus for dinner. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5pSqHP6bKN-syJpNHGSITg-TC2GiudJ3rJVu80UFyMwqOjOsE6XIGLleiNJnS2qeIxNMK0ffQG4I3O9tlRrO6fLLtbUeZRWhJXBRVoioR0VsVxGYFSLhjoEmkV3fEer9x0kmqCnEY-j40/s1600/Jane+paddling.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5pSqHP6bKN-syJpNHGSITg-TC2GiudJ3rJVu80UFyMwqOjOsE6XIGLleiNJnS2qeIxNMK0ffQG4I3O9tlRrO6fLLtbUeZRWhJXBRVoioR0VsVxGYFSLhjoEmkV3fEer9x0kmqCnEY-j40/s320/Jane+paddling.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jane paddling in the Adriatic</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Still searching
for the slice of paradise, we gave the coast a couple more chances but unfortunately we didn’t find an undiscovered gem, or any gem, come to that. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The sea was a
lovely temperature, but I was dismayed to see the amount of plastic washed up
on the shores of the un-groomed beaches.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBCldi0u-I_oaMtkDl8ufQUfNqk9Cgp9sRYVA1VWABBxkA2AnX-Mr9QypVzyQ_RKNwyCHIl6m4bsrEj85Rw5jIpO-ErSWFGP2PkcX1c9D7Oi4drbV7nidMoB3fQgHeHgvxck0_yVt6YjbK/s1600/red+zone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBCldi0u-I_oaMtkDl8ufQUfNqk9Cgp9sRYVA1VWABBxkA2AnX-Mr9QypVzyQ_RKNwyCHIl6m4bsrEj85Rw5jIpO-ErSWFGP2PkcX1c9D7Oi4drbV7nidMoB3fQgHeHgvxck0_yVt6YjbK/s200/red+zone.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">It was a very
long drive to Norcia, the distance wasn’t great but it took a long time as
there were no major roads in the area. The truck rattled and shook on the
potholed roads and when we finally saw the turn off it was blocked. We had to
carry on for another hour to the next turn off, we passed the reason for the
road block – earthquake damage. Houses had collapsed down the hillsides and shipping containers were protecting the road from slips. When we finally reach the
esteemed Norcia we found it red-zoned, and there were props and scaffolding
holding up the ancient churches and medieval walls.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Norcia is famous for truffles and salami made
from acorn-fed local pigs which were on offer in the remaining shops. Temporary
houses and temporary shops had been erected to accommodate the people affected
by the earthquake.</span><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjls1UQHi9Pxqwvez2qGfN8D6f2yY6yoKp63Fx9-7mPgOdnvJZPk3TifeC-D8CyXURcUTh73BL2LQScv_nWvBxLBPVnjLUkoQhae3q_qJ-muDLhjPsKzKp4hkLQNj6ERnHdsZ2PEtmNLQoU/s1600/Spoleto+church.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1480" data-original-width="1600" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjls1UQHi9Pxqwvez2qGfN8D6f2yY6yoKp63Fx9-7mPgOdnvJZPk3TifeC-D8CyXURcUTh73BL2LQScv_nWvBxLBPVnjLUkoQhae3q_qJ-muDLhjPsKzKp4hkLQNj6ERnHdsZ2PEtmNLQoU/s320/Spoleto+church.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spoleto</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We ticked off a
few more pretty Umbrian towns with their ancient stone walls, immaculately
swept marble streets and restored churches, and diners enjoying dinner in the
warm evenings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Assisi was the last one. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">It was hot as
we climbed higher and higher to the Basilica. Sweat was trickling down my back
as the temperature went past 30 degrees on my way to see St Francis’ tomb. We
were not by ourselves that hot Sunday afternoon as tour buses disgorged masses
of sightseers and pilgrims. But wait, there is more – more churches higher up
and a fort or two as well. “I read that the view is really good from the top”
himself said.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">St Francis was
born in Assisi in 1181 into a wealthy family before renouncing the pleasure
seeking lifestyle to live a humble life in imitation of Christ. The glorious
churches and robust souvenir industry we saw in Assisi are an ironic comment on Francis’ values.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCBiBOB69yfrSElrLEy6lSrSxqX0rvgPeeoqLIDfA5P7632Y0rWBLXzWubFUvzfUr6O8rcld7VVo5tCfRjSHFfW32jSV_EecnHs759DTz8rlXZmu17xKHk-ulWVDeSOckEGn3HKpLOTnVh/s1600/Street+scene.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCBiBOB69yfrSElrLEy6lSrSxqX0rvgPeeoqLIDfA5P7632Y0rWBLXzWubFUvzfUr6O8rcld7VVo5tCfRjSHFfW32jSV_EecnHs759DTz8rlXZmu17xKHk-ulWVDeSOckEGn3HKpLOTnVh/s400/Street+scene.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Street scene</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdMIkLviIXWCisviFbkUYn93SVrRu3bvsYV-TtQ1hPpYLliyjd3rdB5b9Suaz3JTDVmHk7XboM37eMUEDqffkdlaVWmjYO280ZmgaishDRlnR7qZHMZSJlbAScXXZxVZlEdBkqH2PO0r5-/s1600/urn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdMIkLviIXWCisviFbkUYn93SVrRu3bvsYV-TtQ1hPpYLliyjd3rdB5b9Suaz3JTDVmHk7XboM37eMUEDqffkdlaVWmjYO280ZmgaishDRlnR7qZHMZSJlbAScXXZxVZlEdBkqH2PO0r5-/s400/urn.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Chianti in Tuscany is calling and we have a little time up our sleeves given that Greece is off the agenda so we will head in that direction and see what it throws at us.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<br /></div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-10933295133944115362018-05-22T06:03:00.000-07:002018-05-22T06:03:05.303-07:00Under The Tuscan Clouds<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_qsa7vmlPArgTEcjRpkjYdDQsjAnuZrJtiTnowmXNTXl1b4NnFUCPntK6YSKOTOveM5sKm-4Y01j5KRRpfas3_Ak1TzmmmOjstXJ4lQkdkTKVXPeMToExOD_CvGd4Nlm7rVR__eZZ58T3/s1600/pompeii1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_qsa7vmlPArgTEcjRpkjYdDQsjAnuZrJtiTnowmXNTXl1b4NnFUCPntK6YSKOTOveM5sKm-4Y01j5KRRpfas3_Ak1TzmmmOjstXJ4lQkdkTKVXPeMToExOD_CvGd4Nlm7rVR__eZZ58T3/s320/pompeii1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">Roma – bright
and sunny. The breakfast lady at the hotel made a rose from a serviette for
Stuart to give me for mothers’ day. When he handed it to me she cried ‘allora –
you need to give baci (kiss).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The hotel was
a short walking distance to the storico centro (historic centre). In no time we
were at the Colesseum fending off the sellers of selfie sticks and scarves. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTACj4dzdnoHi4UiwxeMaGFGPYjjjbFJAwIGChUxCTMuOUercs9dOglYvkFgB458qQlJd3MiS-MGDNQLdO_fJzULD0G1t6zWi3s33JzVvPoeS1LXEGJFI1gtwHjSbhdTb2QycOn8enZVt2/s1600/pope.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1242" data-original-width="1600" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTACj4dzdnoHi4UiwxeMaGFGPYjjjbFJAwIGChUxCTMuOUercs9dOglYvkFgB458qQlJd3MiS-MGDNQLdO_fJzULD0G1t6zWi3s33JzVvPoeS1LXEGJFI1gtwHjSbhdTb2QycOn8enZVt2/s320/pope.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Pope catching a few rays</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">We struggled
with our cases, that are over burdened with electronic gear and devices, to the
train. Our home for the next 9 weeks was waiting near San Gimignano in Tuscany
and small panic started to set in as our GPS didn’t let us know how far we were
from our stop – that plus the malfunctioning exit door made for a nervous trip.
All was restored however that evening when we found a nice restaurant and a
bottle of Chianti Classico. I had pasta purses containing pear and gorgonzola
in a poppy seed, pinenut cream sauce while Stuart had gnocchi made from little
purple potatoes in a saffron sauce.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">A taxi
delivered us to collect our white wagon with purple logos from the Rollerteam
factory. It is a similar layout to Chausson but without the garage, so makes
for less ass to swing around. We weren’t allowed to take it away however until
I spent a penny. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised when our account showed we
owed one penny and ‘computer says no’. I had to use my credit card to pay the
penny before harmony was restored. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">The camper is
new and belongs to a British based company, it comes equipped with the basics
that we need for a trip.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were
directed 4km up the road to a supermarket to buy the rest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Twenty kilometres later we were back where we
started without finding a supermarket. Should have used the devices!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">Cortona is a
hilltop town, the setting for the movie “Under the Tuscan Sun”. Absolutely
gorgeous and immaculate. Art exhibitions, restored churches, little shops ,
nice cafes – just what ticks my checklists. We navigated there very
successfully using 2 x GPS apps and 2.5 kilos of reference maps. (The other 2.5
kilos of books are waiting their turn.) The countryside has pencil cypress and
those ‘mop top’ pines that are typical of Italy artfully placed across vistas
coloured with poppies and fluffy barley.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">Our old GPS has
a penchant for narrow unpaved roads but we aren’t quite confident enough to cut
the apron strings so we have both devices glued to the windscreen until we let
the new guy take over and give ‘Karen’ the backseat. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">Tuscany in May
is very green, a different scene from late summer when everything is a dusty
gold colour to match the houses. It seems like a different place to us
altogether, no Tuscan sun though – little patches of blue but a lot of grey
cloud. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">Orvieto was
hiding in the cloud when we arrived, we parked in the sosta (camp spot) at the
base of the town, which is perched on a volcanic outcrop, and took the
funicular into the stunning historic centre . Has to be one of THE best towns
in Umbria and Italy. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">It was in
Orvieto that we chanced across “The most beautiful race in the world” – the
Mille Miglia. Stuart was blown away. The opening act was a parade of new
maxi-specced Ferraris and racing Mercedes rolling through the old streets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The drivers obliged the crowds by letting rip
some ear-splitting revs which reverberated off the ancient stone walls.
Participation in the race is for cars built pre 1957 which had attended the
original race on the Brescia-Rome round trip race.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjolRdiyb0pejovZlv5He-Zn-8xmmndGgSukHQkZBkeVPh9r-l9pVEVCTl-Rh705gNPihS9EU3T4Llzr2d6bD8usPvzqB1ZVHhLOVRDAEPcUtL9eIpB6GsRnD3Rt6y6MxcUmpWO52Yhs3cg/s1600/ferrari.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjolRdiyb0pejovZlv5He-Zn-8xmmndGgSukHQkZBkeVPh9r-l9pVEVCTl-Rh705gNPihS9EU3T4Llzr2d6bD8usPvzqB1ZVHhLOVRDAEPcUtL9eIpB6GsRnD3Rt6y6MxcUmpWO52Yhs3cg/s320/ferrari.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">80s Ferrari Testarossa - an older 'modern'</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">We waited in
drizzle for the oldies to come through – vintage Alfa Romeos, Bughattis, gull
wing Mercedes and other vintage racing cars passed us with inches to spare and
it looked as if some drivers had tenuous control so I moved position.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKT_x48lk1H0Z3rqBc1XPTEoWQZxKJ8Q1Zyb2qVVu1NRTpI1GuHDw0j6v7ou4qOkCACuXmk0KNFKzFDxpglGcej2uX8y8HC4n8K9hBGnuO8Mt-P8Iz5r2YGF8-1QEfEF-h2rXs7EcWQ1L5/s1600/alfa.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKT_x48lk1H0Z3rqBc1XPTEoWQZxKJ8Q1Zyb2qVVu1NRTpI1GuHDw0j6v7ou4qOkCACuXmk0KNFKzFDxpglGcej2uX8y8HC4n8K9hBGnuO8Mt-P8Iz5r2YGF8-1QEfEF-h2rXs7EcWQ1L5/s200/alfa.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKXF0lYb8b_DvMKVNT-8LYmGrFyjkyBuBxEzxkgaDIim3wpm8hawU-uIigNZlJdQT87XYw2eHkWDaQwUVjBnLI8OSf2xWBUCXW1epgb28nRSKRk-l67NNjmOO5dnxCbCtbPLjZnqimUfyi/s1600/blue+street+car.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1151" data-original-width="1600" height="143" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKXF0lYb8b_DvMKVNT-8LYmGrFyjkyBuBxEzxkgaDIim3wpm8hawU-uIigNZlJdQT87XYw2eHkWDaQwUVjBnLI8OSf2xWBUCXW1epgb28nRSKRk-l67NNjmOO5dnxCbCtbPLjZnqimUfyi/s200/blue+street+car.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikMJqc1MHt371esFQfFQwvdqTYEdgslYSgCrwHCK31rw9K88y0FIRWRByKkzHTAIfJJZigzqLvbDW58eE_RukfQo47n3N258sNHO1QHkXEUCahdSUXPOB6EjmBo8vIXPQKQGBztPPspzBj/s1600/gull.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikMJqc1MHt371esFQfFQwvdqTYEdgslYSgCrwHCK31rw9K88y0FIRWRByKkzHTAIfJJZigzqLvbDW58eE_RukfQo47n3N258sNHO1QHkXEUCahdSUXPOB6EjmBo8vIXPQKQGBztPPspzBj/s320/gull.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gull wings waiting their turn</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD-KTsVryRZIbBu05x6Ps7RX-hm7uaRxKt2g1zkNYC8krerLNjaXQhiwmD0P6NznZhG_-zXm8relOcmnxFXI6pUACpkxEABU2J2jSOwG_W6GXv2nYPebC_vR7idnm2rN63FV4_kfVSsx-g/s1600/pink.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1165" data-original-width="1600" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD-KTsVryRZIbBu05x6Ps7RX-hm7uaRxKt2g1zkNYC8krerLNjaXQhiwmD0P6NznZhG_-zXm8relOcmnxFXI6pUACpkxEABU2J2jSOwG_W6GXv2nYPebC_vR7idnm2rN63FV4_kfVSsx-g/s320/pink.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgatN2akNlTsyWPa9j2H-1B-X7NklZzx3Hz5AGiDm5_GICd_fEKz3Qc2rHZRgFze6BkPQPvhhEHt8XpZo5fSm8clCgHAZKLEOlmMSNZpgc9XhSTCph6YT-Hmxk_54HY38aunuwsWswQ_k_d/s1600/Bugatti.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgatN2akNlTsyWPa9j2H-1B-X7NklZzx3Hz5AGiDm5_GICd_fEKz3Qc2rHZRgFze6BkPQPvhhEHt8XpZo5fSm8clCgHAZKLEOlmMSNZpgc9XhSTCph6YT-Hmxk_54HY38aunuwsWswQ_k_d/s320/Bugatti.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">The next
morning was clear and bright as we unplugged our power, emptied the waste, took
on fresh water and took to the pay-road (yes – Euros were spent) to get to
Pompeii. We rattled and squeezed through the streets clogged with tour buses
and their passengers. Pompeii was probably best seen as we managed it – in the
very late afternoon. The site was vast – much bigger than I imagined and I
started to glaze over after a while. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
sun was lowering as we made our way back to one of the grottier camps we have
stayed at, and no love lost from madam in reception as I argued for possession
of our passports.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I won that one but failed
to get a receipt for payment.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">Pompeiied out –
we rattled our way (did I say the streets are in appalling condition) to a
hypermarket to ponder the question of buying bikes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We settled for a couple of deck chairs
instead.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1YFDMbUa8RGADVva-1Nn1ky0s8wJyc_M65AOBNTrbmxktcsUrvyiK_3t1Qb77Hy2m82Npp_8fJlSRuUipBN245zYjhCR-mEVtUEfYhKoZEr1e80WJiu9U7vyQTI-vAjVMkc2JqG6duEgu/s1600/pompeii2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1YFDMbUa8RGADVva-1Nn1ky0s8wJyc_M65AOBNTrbmxktcsUrvyiK_3t1Qb77Hy2m82Npp_8fJlSRuUipBN245zYjhCR-mEVtUEfYhKoZEr1e80WJiu9U7vyQTI-vAjVMkc2JqG6duEgu/s320/pompeii2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pompeii street</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">After a very
long trip trip to Venosa (again appalling roads with Stuart dodging the worst of
the potholes and earthquake subsidence, we ended up in a sosta with 20 Dutch
mohomes. They made us welcome (we are always glad to see the Dutch as they are
mines of information and speak excellent English). In front of us was a view of
the historic centre of Venosa, behind us was a carwash that the Italians must
regard as a novelty as they washed well after dark. Dinner with squishing
squirting noises.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">Matera is about
70km from the eastern coast of Italy (near Bari) and I had wanted to see it
after seeing a programme on the telly. It is one of the oldest towns in the
world (people have lived here for over 7000 years). The town sits on a series
of caves that used to house animals and fodder until the population outgrew
available housing and people moved into the caves to live a peasant lifestyle.
Conditions were poor and infant mortality was over 50%. In 1952 half the
population of Matera (15,000) were forced to move out of the caves and into new
government housing. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht82bSV5V6jyWI4GuWSYWhHoua_anvrt_nB7aOLpc2_G-wLkGmksZQpQ844AJz8fC6wmXKYOuuvWlY33AWIDnAiZqd4GVPJRgrRfelaVJLMePtT9497wAJ2IrGcsGG_nDvCLGLKZj7n1N8/s1600/matera.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht82bSV5V6jyWI4GuWSYWhHoua_anvrt_nB7aOLpc2_G-wLkGmksZQpQ844AJz8fC6wmXKYOuuvWlY33AWIDnAiZqd4GVPJRgrRfelaVJLMePtT9497wAJ2IrGcsGG_nDvCLGLKZj7n1N8/s320/matera.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Matera</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">We walked the
slippery marble streets of Matera viewing it from many angles along with a fair
few other tourists as the caves are now the major drawcard for the town -<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>a bit of a turnaround in the fortunes of
Matera.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">Next stage - onto Greece.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br /><br />
</div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-61201184701418516332017-09-11T04:26:00.000-07:002018-05-05T14:16:15.873-07:00Overlanders Way<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCzjHaQYG7sZp_RJOOxnfaVYmjxa3Xcg-Ovln5MwtaoXNTgENSLftJe2bgbmnZKqp4yekRKl2b1KE1paO0X91XiMPdB8V7856OS7N6Uy5gdaVO9Ab0A3KOPnA-L4VOzh0322yFxd04eO8k/s1600/Marbles.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCzjHaQYG7sZp_RJOOxnfaVYmjxa3Xcg-Ovln5MwtaoXNTgENSLftJe2bgbmnZKqp4yekRKl2b1KE1paO0X91XiMPdB8V7856OS7N6Uy5gdaVO9Ab0A3KOPnA-L4VOzh0322yFxd04eO8k/s400/Marbles.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Devils Marbles</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Another BIG drive, from Alice Springs to Townsville which we
did in stages. The longest part was on the Overlander’s Way which was the route
taken by cattle drovers to move stock from Queensland to Northern Territory.
The road is good but the scenery same-same. There are the termite mounds of
course, quite a few wore clothes. Some looked almost realistic with hat, hair
and tee-shirt. There is also roadkill and the carrion feeders to dodge. We
passed lots of dead cows and kangaroos and one dead camel. Live spotting is a big snake for Stu and an
emu for me.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Road trains rocket past in the opposing direction; when it
is my turn to drive I get as far over as I can and never stare at them in case
I am sucked into their vortex. Mostly 55 metres long to our 7 and standing so
high you can’t see the driver easily, they transport all sorts of essentials
back and forth across the deserted Australian outback highways. High crosswinds
and a rush of displaced air as they pass, has us hanging on to our steering
wheel.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There are some cute settlements like Aileron and some
not-so-cute like Tennant Creek where Stuart optimistically thought he would
find a flat white coffee he could recognise, it all ended in tears. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We stayed at a place called Devils Marbles with about 30
other campervans, there are huge circular concretions all around us, some
balanced on top of others in stacks. This was the snake-spotting venue.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHXlKd9iJ0RPW4N0GX5PatTDNu0L6w7ebfTei4JhWl2h_ee9vPsIWzTJpXPmIefHCttFCgZNGtzXtT6YawV3LZMEJI1M6bSotlFzgjyj6Zg63hPVtZKikhS_aZImSjZ8oXQzZmrxZjNtcs/s1600/brolga.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="951" data-original-width="1268" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHXlKd9iJ0RPW4N0GX5PatTDNu0L6w7ebfTei4JhWl2h_ee9vPsIWzTJpXPmIefHCttFCgZNGtzXtT6YawV3LZMEJI1M6bSotlFzgjyj6Zg63hPVtZKikhS_aZImSjZ8oXQzZmrxZjNtcs/s320/brolga.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Friendly brolga</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The settlement of Barkly Homestead is an oasis, sitting on
the Barkly Highway which peels off the north/south Stuart Highway. We stopped
for lunch and watched a family of bush cattle make themselves at home on the
front lawn. I could almost hear the big bull say “look kids, I bought you and
mum to a resort for your holidays, now tuck in at the all-you-can-eat buffet”.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We crossed into Queensland where the roads are poorer. We
found another great campsite and were accompanied on a riverside walk by a
Brolga, and we took part in a mining experience in Mount Isa where they served
excellent sandwiches and pasties for afternoon tea. We missed the first half
hour of the tour because we didn’t realise Northern Territories is half an hour
ahead of Queensland. The obliging staff equipped us with orange overalls and
safety boots, then chased the tour guide before the group descended
underground.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We had travelled 1500km by the time we reached Mt Isa from
Alice and after spending most of the day there we made ourselves at home at
Mary Kathleen, or the remains of Mary Kathleen. It was the site of a uranium
mine but all that was left was concrete slabs and a series of little roads
where other campers made themselves at home under the gumtrees. (That clicking
you hear isn’t a geiger, it is tinnitus!)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
On our BIG BIG day we did 750 kms in 8 hours of engine time.
We reached the cute town of Julia Creek just in time to catch the dunnart-
feeding at the tourist centre. These particular dunnarts were thought extinct
but are now being bred in captivity. The
cute little carnivorous marsupials can inflict a sharp bite and have to be kept
separate as they fight to the death. We interrupted the wee chap having his workout on the treadmill for a meal of 3 mealyworms. He bit their heads off and feasted on them.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Julia Creek is a town of 400 that is a hub for pastoralists,
a contrast to the other towns which have mining based economies. We saw cattle
being herded by helicopter which we are told is preferable to the issues of
employing men to do the job (HR in the outback!). Farms comprise of ‘downs’ and
‘bush’. Young cattle are grazed on the downs then moved into the bush area to
fend for themselves for up to 10 years after they have calved for the first
time. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Our plan is to head on to Townsville then down the coast to
Brisbane, there are parts we have traveled before so we will visit some other
spots this time.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxgqUASbwev8pJnGfFfyKR4tCnkgXV7TJ4b130d3V9c77uCijGtGgLASPoEuyUcXN_NznwGitP25C44xHQ4sO2Sa5HUczTywKubnSnrq71mnV4qdEp1TS5c6rwAsPniCIilcu9Xv2OPdj2/s1600/road+train.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="848" data-original-width="1600" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxgqUASbwev8pJnGfFfyKR4tCnkgXV7TJ4b130d3V9c77uCijGtGgLASPoEuyUcXN_NznwGitP25C44xHQ4sO2Sa5HUczTywKubnSnrq71mnV4qdEp1TS5c6rwAsPniCIilcu9Xv2OPdj2/s400/road+train.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Four tanks plus tractor unit</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuk-bLmc0ACrpcL5CsLACLsAsAGSpNyeovaKcDNKqCMOV4y4rK3EtNT8rf6rjSbmo1LSI4rQ3I4eMIh9T6JUkt7oKpY5pKampqx6o9RQadwcX0_mOUzSQ4g8Ao9eH6F9IzL8O1eKZTkZwB/s1600/MARBLES2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuk-bLmc0ACrpcL5CsLACLsAsAGSpNyeovaKcDNKqCMOV4y4rK3EtNT8rf6rjSbmo1LSI4rQ3I4eMIh9T6JUkt7oKpY5pKampqx6o9RQadwcX0_mOUzSQ4g8Ao9eH6F9IzL8O1eKZTkZwB/s400/MARBLES2.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">site of snake-spotting It was 1.5m long and 90mm diameter</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
</div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-43846956898589694872017-09-05T19:51:00.000-07:002017-09-05T19:57:23.061-07:00Red Centre in a Roomy Country<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
Three flights and two shuttles later in the same day we were
in Alice Springs. We are embarking on a toe-dipper of a trip to the red centre
of a very roomy country.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjojM_NxiKpox4jVLrnwgEH8x6QPSTueXk-gAwvkcdJnhgoiXG3hHxhf2_IaLgxPLh1TaTJC34lUDX4P9SNbhLQyGU9_ep2bVONwuu0uDmLzTbpMO_KjFBU6C-vM6ukihJVilbAKuGChdEM/s1600/ayers+rock.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjojM_NxiKpox4jVLrnwgEH8x6QPSTueXk-gAwvkcdJnhgoiXG3hHxhf2_IaLgxPLh1TaTJC34lUDX4P9SNbhLQyGU9_ep2bVONwuu0uDmLzTbpMO_KjFBU6C-vM6ukihJVilbAKuGChdEM/s320/ayers+rock.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
My ankle is not up to much walking so we took a taxi from
our hotel to the Alice Springs Telegraph Office where a ‘Mcleods Daughter’
look-alike showed us the original Alice Spring. A bit of a misnomer as it was a
temporary waterhole and not a spring at all that was named after the original surveyor’s wife. We walked back to town along an excellent cycleway, stopping to return
the stares of a couple of ‘roos, (slipping into local lingo here). The nearby sign
warning us about dingos being active was a little disconcerting but we pressed
on and found the only decent coffee house in town.<br />
<div class="MsoHeader">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
Our campervan for this 3 week trip is not nearly as well
appointed as our Chausson. I can’t get into the fridge without standing on my
head, space being so tight. Never mind, it has its own bathroom if you can fit
into it. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
The West Macdonnell ranges deserved some attention and we
camped at National Park camps. The gorges didn’t exactly flow with water but
there were waterholes and the ghost gums overhanging them gave them their
iconic Aussie scenery stamp along with the big blue skies and red rocky
backdrop. Our fellow campers were very friendly even though we were emblazoned
with a Maui logo. Spinifex pigeons darted underneath our feet pecking at the
crumbs from our hors d’doeuvres. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL4umJ8qnKTbw2hLZn7HvgtOcd-I2hdZ2kQuY9pyMEikE2bqFfGxrviu3hl0wsLZVeba25SqvMmcuBDVyAbmfJh3Or6l8PShEDYzPEXQ_b7FfxiVDOoFtJqu55EUs_GyOUstyoUWs8pgbn/s1600/billabong.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL4umJ8qnKTbw2hLZn7HvgtOcd-I2hdZ2kQuY9pyMEikE2bqFfGxrviu3hl0wsLZVeba25SqvMmcuBDVyAbmfJh3Or6l8PShEDYzPEXQ_b7FfxiVDOoFtJqu55EUs_GyOUstyoUWs8pgbn/s320/billabong.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
We took a trip to “Glen Helen” resort to look at another gorge but the prospect of
having to swim the icy waters to get to the beauty spot stopped that idea in
its tracks. Glen Helen Resort looked as if it had enjoyed a previous life as a
POW camp.</div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
We called back at Alice on our way to Uluru. A mere 440 km
away. We restocked the larder and showed ID at the wine shop, passing the
friendly policeman on door duty as we clinked our way back to the van with
lovely Aussie Shirazs stashed in our bags.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
A bit of a drive but we were rewarded with the sight of a
purple monolith rising from the plains in the setting sun. We stopped to take
photos whilst enduring a fly-fight. The flies were winning, Stuart was doubled
over after swallowing one. They were on my glasses and trying to crawl in our ears.
Retreat back to the van and back up the
road to a campsite we passed 5km ago. No
flies! Phew! We researched our guidebook for the next day and discovered the
fly battle had been fought while we photographed “Fool-uru”. It was Mt Connor
doing a passable imitation of Uluru that was the battle-site.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
Uluru itself was just like the pictures and postcards. Close up it was
quite magnificent and there was a serenity about it that the Aborigines must
treasure also. There was no rubble around the base, just a sheer pitted rock
rising from the graceful gums and greenery that surround it. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcJ2R2RoaBjUQbhX8nF1F84qoM2d1Yl5Eel7HIC-KVKwPEUQyVVwgSm1dKGoXdpFnvbdGUZpJvyWTtGpNTWet_xs7OWEOlBuJ1dCA6dECS56-1mkEVp_jbBv_I_kZI7pWNPF-F19JxLGiO/s1600/ayers+and+trees.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcJ2R2RoaBjUQbhX8nF1F84qoM2d1Yl5Eel7HIC-KVKwPEUQyVVwgSm1dKGoXdpFnvbdGUZpJvyWTtGpNTWet_xs7OWEOlBuJ1dCA6dECS56-1mkEVp_jbBv_I_kZI7pWNPF-F19JxLGiO/s320/ayers+and+trees.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
The scenery along the roads is ever changing but there is a
consistent theme of trees and vegetation specially adapted to life in a dry
climate. We traveled through stands of Mulga and desert oaks as well as past
wild flowers blooming in swathes amongst the spinifex.</div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
The Olgas (Kata Tjata) are red rounded rock monoliths
standing shoulder to shoulder about 50km from Uluru. After an unexpected (for
me) tramp around their perimeter we headed 300km to Kings Canyon where another
tramp was planned. It was my turn to drive and I took care to return the waves
from fellow campers as I drove, these varied from sublime one finger lifts to something
that looked like ‘Heil Hitler’. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
We stayed at Kings Canyon resort paying $40 to park on an
unpowered site surrounded by moon dust, but there is no overnighting in the
National Park. The entrance to the shower block has strong high wooden gates
and although we didn’t see dingos we saw their calling cards the next morning.
I had a shower during daylight hours just to be certain!<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
The trek around Kings Canyon was a lovely trip and not
difficult when fortified with Voltaren, glad I did it. Back in the van with
Stuart fussing about solar charging, waste disposal … some things don’t change ….
and on our way back through Alice up to Tennant Creek. Timing is crucial
though, the wine shops don’t open until 2pm and beer is ‘too expensive”. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRJ2TQTL8chhKDXXCHlqZ0mQdw2K4KsDCs4MN6XApOC0IWPbmpPgA2nhyphenhyphenzj8nA6wgsy6lvz9IbFssgSjyWxCKEdIoV2tSh1z-8e5o2-7vUl5C8V7V7mI8RLqA7LdxzMBkuN583gH4aRlF_/s1600/kings+canyon.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRJ2TQTL8chhKDXXCHlqZ0mQdw2K4KsDCs4MN6XApOC0IWPbmpPgA2nhyphenhyphenzj8nA6wgsy6lvz9IbFssgSjyWxCKEdIoV2tSh1z-8e5o2-7vUl5C8V7V7mI8RLqA7LdxzMBkuN583gH4aRlF_/s320/kings+canyon.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmLS59zUb8TNLdAk9nfWIC1tGKNlsBv9QYkyYYCpRALY4dz8fN3ljvmxJSeAcyTNk-RKGda0Y2FLSgaI_3rp_-MIIXGG9qtTesakmBF63aI9u3-J2kJWEqyU8qOBaKGz87OlSY0l05uHF6/s1600/tramp.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmLS59zUb8TNLdAk9nfWIC1tGKNlsBv9QYkyYYCpRALY4dz8fN3ljvmxJSeAcyTNk-RKGda0Y2FLSgaI_3rp_-MIIXGG9qtTesakmBF63aI9u3-J2kJWEqyU8qOBaKGz87OlSY0l05uHF6/s320/tramp.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoHeader">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
</div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-72244223837758876132017-01-20T10:47:00.001-08:002017-01-20T10:47:29.641-08:00A few final thoughts<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5ya6eE1Ylsxjsu0DjS4gszw7O4_58GqBnGhLHTloRpn-1G-Z8KiBujSV6kYAB_r7ZBfqUJRkE165xUUi17H-yy9brTFN1YyOuFH3CisZv9gaaNHT6eDCmlO4dMlpstuEgmbHQ4Nz9SB2B/s1600/snow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="356" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5ya6eE1Ylsxjsu0DjS4gszw7O4_58GqBnGhLHTloRpn-1G-Z8KiBujSV6kYAB_r7ZBfqUJRkE165xUUi17H-yy9brTFN1YyOuFH3CisZv9gaaNHT6eDCmlO4dMlpstuEgmbHQ4Nz9SB2B/s400/snow.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Snowfall at our final campsite</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The trip is over, I am at Heathrow filling in more than a few hours before we fly home via Dubai. This morning we drove to Southampton docks, handed Chausson over to the shippers and caught a taxi to the coach station then on to London.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We left Spain on a Brittany Ferry arrived in Portsmouth and spent the rest of our time visiting with my Mum, Dad and other relatives in and around Herefordshire. It was cold but not as cold as Spain had been when we were at altitude.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now is a good time to reflect on the past 8 months and how we spent our time and the countries we visited.</span><br />
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Run down:</b></span></h3>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>United Kingdom</b> - Spent about 3 weeks kitting out Chausson and testing everything.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Loved the Elan valley in Wales.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>France</b> - 5 weeks in Normandy, Loire, Burgandy, Alsace areas in June/July</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another 5 weeks in the Alps, Dordogne, Pyrennees in Sept/Oct</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Loved the food, wine, mountain areas, cycle paths, great aires and municipal campsites</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Good roads, easy travelling except some of the smaller squeezy streets</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Italy</b> - only a week</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Great food and wine</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Not very good roads, dusty and a bit littered in places, also security worries so we were careful when selecting places to park.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Loved the Dolomites, Lucca, Montepulciano, Ravenna, Brunico and Venice</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Austria</b> - two weeks, but what weeks! Mid August peak holiday time in Europe but not crowded.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Pristine everything</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Loved the mountains, rivers, cycleways, GrossGlockner High Alpine road</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Southern Germany - </b>3 weeks in July/August</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">An unexpected delight, great cycleways, </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Loved Fussen, Deutsch Alpenstrauss (German Alpine Road), Bavaria.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Was hot when we visited</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Food a bit too schnitzel and chippy, not to mention sausages</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Portugal - </b></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Only a week - in November</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Probably not the best time for Portugal. I have visited Portugal twice now and still think I should like it more than I do.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Enjoyed the Douro River area, cheap eats, friendly people </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Roads so bad we were forced to pay tolls!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Spain </b> - 11 weeks, November, December, early January - the longest time spent in one country</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was our first proper visit to Spain and it exceeded expectations.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Great heritage sites, fantastic roads, good wine, Best spots - Segovia, Granada, Avila, San Sebastian</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">How was our life on the road made easier?</span></h3>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The big fridge, running on gas, battery, mains</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The refillable gas system, Gaslow, so we didn't have to worry about incompatible cylinders in different countries.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Howard and Hilda, the bikes from Halfords, - until stolen - made getting around easy-peasy</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Large drop-down bed. A full size super-comfortable bed that dropped from the ceiling at the press of a button - no sore backs.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Webasto diesel heater that ticked away quietly in the colder times.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Big separate shower</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Gas pull-out bbq, no cooking smells inside the little house.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Stuart's custom made shelf that held my morning cup of bed-tea and the dirty dishes at washing up time</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Satnav, good maps</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mifi - our roving internet connection</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What would have been better - some more space in the kitchen . . . . </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUysB3G_tM_SqA8pn1bmcyWHnS6ZQhJIEemzsPdhOlMz_fot6385ruD8ZK2sPbOpOqO3tXZNJJnbuOLZZC4WGXfAViTlPh1rWf-CfXgY9aPExBluXlPuqhE8LSzazw6ajQwKAVNnun4Enx/s1600/inside.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUysB3G_tM_SqA8pn1bmcyWHnS6ZQhJIEemzsPdhOlMz_fot6385ruD8ZK2sPbOpOqO3tXZNJJnbuOLZZC4WGXfAViTlPh1rWf-CfXgY9aPExBluXlPuqhE8LSzazw6ajQwKAVNnun4Enx/s320/inside.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Can you see Stuart's shelf and the secret photographer?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We will be home soon and looking forward to seeing Chausson again and planning some more trips.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">See you later alligators</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOfiTHU_GN8R2Hn1s8zxJ3j6TUyQ8h9DE007jdEyhMFYqlT8_zWUDNRrG85m8hInYxCKmTRpGA1VfHPXdIykWbKJZHzP-qpqtk-BybzExevGmAWmy3p7pwhmLL6I9NJdE2fzhVJu_emNla/s1600/campsite.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOfiTHU_GN8R2Hn1s8zxJ3j6TUyQ8h9DE007jdEyhMFYqlT8_zWUDNRrG85m8hInYxCKmTRpGA1VfHPXdIykWbKJZHzP-qpqtk-BybzExevGmAWmy3p7pwhmLL6I9NJdE2fzhVJu_emNla/s400/campsite.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Campsite in French Alps, near Italian border</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<br /></div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-73395264974809761092017-01-09T09:51:00.000-08:002017-01-09T09:51:12.519-08:00Hasta la Vista Espagne<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoMqjwXh2TDGKp0kRu4QEMvIn_ypKh5jY5ifzyOTtTy8VNjqr1MKt-mqmOpyQ0J4NPTFnyCvVTlVA3nr2U_ueTcoC9kvzFAGln6ahyphenhyphenAaYCpkm1vLrmqhWgQbTq-LHov0qPe-G2GNYRNBXF/s1600/DSCF9464.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoMqjwXh2TDGKp0kRu4QEMvIn_ypKh5jY5ifzyOTtTy8VNjqr1MKt-mqmOpyQ0J4NPTFnyCvVTlVA3nr2U_ueTcoC9kvzFAGln6ahyphenhyphenAaYCpkm1vLrmqhWgQbTq-LHov0qPe-G2GNYRNBXF/s400/DSCF9464.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In Abla, in the Alpujarra area</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Where
were we ???? </span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Ah,
yes, Cabo de Gata. The </span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><i>wild
west</i></span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">
cape of Southern Spain provided us with some lovely warm sunshine and
views of the blue</span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">
</span></span></span><em><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-style: normal;">Mediterranean</span></span></span></span></em><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">until
it was time to make the trek back up to colder climes before flying
home.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">On
our last day on the coast we had plans to visit the flamingos wading
in wetlands near the saline lagoons, then to check out an old gold
mining town (more shades of the wild west).</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">All
packed up, the truck was idling, then another motorhome owner
gesticulated. </span></span>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">A
very flat rear tyre, no one gets punctures these days and Fiat only
pro</span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">vided a kit to get you to the nearest repair centre. Out came the
kit and instructions, and with a Frenchman breathing over our
shoulders the silicone sealant refused to be injected into the tyre.
The compressor worked but it wasn’t making headway against the
damage caused by a large nail. A helpful Welshman came to the rescue
with a can of squirty tyre gunk that he and Stuart managed to force
into the tyre. We abandoned our plans and set off carefully to find
a repair-man. Luck was on our side and the first place we stopped at
made repairs for a very paultry amount. So relieved we were that
Stuart gave him some extra for his trouble.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhns89nwctnmgHot6sOmctDxRRTa6wLAnQvx9-Nh7QnNc-GYOuPTRkPLmromqNEeB1D2gzAcxmNyGp7EdhS9z8LO1ktdkXzwbI3T_X9003SZsfegyon0y_qtzBqxl-PC0fKTDEzBBLGu8XU/s1600/DSCF9471.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhns89nwctnmgHot6sOmctDxRRTa6wLAnQvx9-Nh7QnNc-GYOuPTRkPLmromqNEeB1D2gzAcxmNyGp7EdhS9z8LO1ktdkXzwbI3T_X9003SZsfegyon0y_qtzBqxl-PC0fKTDEzBBLGu8XU/s320/DSCF9471.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Abla</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We
decided to make a start on our trek and visit Abla in the Alpujarra
mountains. The houses were cosied up to one another on this hilltop
town, huddled together against the bitter wind that swept down from
the snow covered mountains behind it. In the other direction,
multitudes of wind turbines were taking advantage of the conditions
to produce energy. It was an immaculate little village on the Camino
de Santiago trail. We stayed the night in one of the special
motorhome aires that the town council had installed and before dinner
we walked around some chalet developments that had been abandoned
before completion, the rooms inside were tiled and really very close
to being able to be inhabited. A sad sight.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">In
the morning Stuart set the cruise control and we took a dual
carriageway for 600 km, there was very little traffic on the
excellent Spanish roads that cut through vast areas of olive trees.
Sometimes the highway went straight through the middle of a hamlet,
under footbridges that connected the two sides of the town, no need
to slow down.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqZmeOOlwD7hk8qNXm_81_WHew1VYb6Fyp4AaXllpHVsp7b2nmtix-NsIQ-hRAe2jkyRgbz3rYy88IIikjY1Y8FNZ8fKG7s5G4cTvzm9aRC7ymtTUrRYsBLQC3KK9FOX26tZH905idIbIk/s1600/DSCF9551.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="254" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqZmeOOlwD7hk8qNXm_81_WHew1VYb6Fyp4AaXllpHVsp7b2nmtix-NsIQ-hRAe2jkyRgbz3rYy88IIikjY1Y8FNZ8fKG7s5G4cTvzm9aRC7ymtTUrRYsBLQC3KK9FOX26tZH905idIbIk/s320/DSCF9551.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lighting little hot air balloons</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">One
of the remaining ‘to dos’ on my spreadsheet was Avila. We had
actually driven past it previously and re-traced our steps to find
the town’s aire. It was dark when we walked the short distance into
town. The whole central area is encircled by very well preserved
walls illuminated in a golden glow in the cold evening air. The town
exuded prosperity with ancient buildings converted into luxury
hotels. The town was decked with Christmas lights; carols and
iceskaters under the clear starry sky completed a perfect picture of
Northern Hemisphere Christmas. It was the night before Epiphany, the
Three Kings Day, where children receive presents.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We
did a little shopping, buying new shoes for Stuart and a pastry for
me and returned to find our truck along with 6 others in the midst of
preparations for an ‘event’. We asked if it was ok to stay and
shared a mushroom risotto and bottle of chardonnay. With Stuart on
dishes I popped my head out the door and was greeted by the sky
dotted with masses of little hot air balloons taking flight into the
crisp night air. We grabbed our cameras and down jackets and joined
the crowds. I bought a little balloon (fire and light – it can’t
get any better!) and a helpful volunteer showed me how to light and
launch it properly. Stuart’s camera got a flat battery at the
crucial time so only one photo of my launch.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><i>Major
Tom</i> and <i>Coldplays
Paradise</i> were the music of the
night as the stars were joined by these airborne fires. The
crenelated city walls and turrets were the perfect illuminated
backdrop.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaaX38M9jK5t1jjTdK_pgCScuRRLVfIWnhOtdpfRXhK-AnIH97i4o8bzTgTl7SuM-OQpG3zlRdO7CHqJOPRveuwV-QFECcsbhLXEBDWCTjcissHhMyW5Z1U5Ms04BaLBVsSNRYZYWEwL9S/s1600/DSCF9567.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaaX38M9jK5t1jjTdK_pgCScuRRLVfIWnhOtdpfRXhK-AnIH97i4o8bzTgTl7SuM-OQpG3zlRdO7CHqJOPRveuwV-QFECcsbhLXEBDWCTjcissHhMyW5Z1U5Ms04BaLBVsSNRYZYWEwL9S/s320/DSCF9567.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Launching little hot air balloons</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit_FkT8Y1n8GBrJ2KtPnn3ymLvzklXwle_G-4cjSCfkcR3JL_iSQrrJdTp0SQOslxIlZQO8lMRK1Y8LofoGBYS5jc36rO8zbMK_m-4Xamck2AvucgCKOhpoqnY61ivmsSSeQBLYcIohlxA/s1600/DSCF0344.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit_FkT8Y1n8GBrJ2KtPnn3ymLvzklXwle_G-4cjSCfkcR3JL_iSQrrJdTp0SQOslxIlZQO8lMRK1Y8LofoGBYS5jc36rO8zbMK_m-4Xamck2AvucgCKOhpoqnY61ivmsSSeQBLYcIohlxA/s320/DSCF0344.jpg" width="261" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Much excitement before lift off</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUg6CHfTeb0qDl1sXGOocqL-pvaYVujU8K5bfL2BHK3o_-IqWPjzmcXsvS3a1SxiD5evP3dNjoSwvLNBfZhJlHtGvwEnNTI65pe-s6CIh-i9oFXPlBg6xvy26im-VzxMK4J3ZSaXmhJzLW/s1600/DSCF9650.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUg6CHfTeb0qDl1sXGOocqL-pvaYVujU8K5bfL2BHK3o_-IqWPjzmcXsvS3a1SxiD5evP3dNjoSwvLNBfZhJlHtGvwEnNTI65pe-s6CIh-i9oFXPlBg6xvy26im-VzxMK4J3ZSaXmhJzLW/s400/DSCF9650.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Medieval walls of Avila - they stretch off into the distance</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The
next morning was a hard frost, about -4</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">,
as we set off to explore the town proper and walk around the walls
and up and down the many towers </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">and
city gates</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">. Avila </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">is</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">
a world heritage site, the highest provincial capital in Spain, built
on a flat summit of a rocky hill that rises steeply in the middle of
a brown, arid, treeless wilderness strewn with huge grey boulders and
surrounded by lofty mountains</span><span style="color: #252525; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #252525;"><br /></span></span></span>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh35768Mfit6Wl6JKSK8iWhfxKDK2J2VUBFd0p_sVyTrQbpUGFZygdwS8MCtSI5CSwYXtXPsWb2owVHN82S-CD0OWMIVk8oReWFlv01_PWJdzWDs_X_H9K4HeWJBkqucNwNzQI0FIB91KyR/s1600/DSCF9642.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh35768Mfit6Wl6JKSK8iWhfxKDK2J2VUBFd0p_sVyTrQbpUGFZygdwS8MCtSI5CSwYXtXPsWb2owVHN82S-CD0OWMIVk8oReWFlv01_PWJdzWDs_X_H9K4HeWJBkqucNwNzQI0FIB91KyR/s320/DSCF9642.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stuart on the ramparts</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #252525;">On
th</span><span style="color: #252525;">is</span><span style="color: #252525;">
trip to the northern coast we had another couple of stopovers, one
night in Palencia where we woke to </span><span style="color: #252525;">a
frost of </span><span style="color: #252525;">minus
seven. We put towels in the front to absorb the condensation – they
froze to the windscreen, but we had been cozy with the Webasto diesel
heater ticking over slowly during the night. It runs on some magical
mystery heat-exchange system and fine tuning the thermostat took a
little mastering. </span><span style="color: #252525;">More
shoe shopping and on the road again back to Cabaceno where we had
taken a trip over the wildlife park in cable cars. </span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJtxNZVWjw-SqTPMm3QqDWG1G-S1YZhTzLK15upPZHVgJgvEqmGdvqepKNMObbqIJxRN_zXUEWZixp5O5-ABOOW2WwB-bpvQFpThNeaeIMr4NFfuDSjZL0FR48bhkj3sW2iqiOKTk3GdyN/s1600/DSCF9732.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJtxNZVWjw-SqTPMm3QqDWG1G-S1YZhTzLK15upPZHVgJgvEqmGdvqepKNMObbqIJxRN_zXUEWZixp5O5-ABOOW2WwB-bpvQFpThNeaeIMr4NFfuDSjZL0FR48bhkj3sW2iqiOKTk3GdyN/s320/DSCF9732.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #252525;">The
aire is next to the elephants and I watched them in the late
afternoon sun. Just like cows at milking time, 5.30</span><span style="color: #252525;">pm</span><span style="color: #252525;">
in this case, all 15 of them quietly stopped what they were doing and
sedately trundled to the elephant house, waiting to be let into the
warm. The youngsters were pushing each other while their mothers were
probably thinking of the awaiting dinner. </span>
</span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We
are on the ferry on a 28 hr trip to Portsmouth, it is nice
but not luxury, still much
better than the Cook Strait ferries, many
trucks were loaded before our turn came.
I reveled in the space in our cabin – I could twirl around if I
chose. After living in such small quarters it is a wondrous feeling. Along the corridor I can see Chausson's bum through the window in the door leading to the cardeck. Just a stone's throw away.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd5tSV39Vy6JTVsAsv4KT1UHhWPtzkRvx8lbIFStQp1k7p1CchuSXadvvLQvhUoycG002_xS15pyifJfFVoZZVe4kwOW8H6ybQtqdwwiFE-HEaxu7DsRI-SbMtgLmEFJQ_whOtjVcktGed/s1600/DSCF9722.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd5tSV39Vy6JTVsAsv4KT1UHhWPtzkRvx8lbIFStQp1k7p1CchuSXadvvLQvhUoycG002_xS15pyifJfFVoZZVe4kwOW8H6ybQtqdwwiFE-HEaxu7DsRI-SbMtgLmEFJQ_whOtjVcktGed/s320/DSCF9722.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We
have ‘stuff’ to do in England, stuff that makes the last few days
unable to be planned, but there is a plane to catch and home to a
brand new 2017. We have lots to look forward to, Alex
has just
bought a house near Katherine in Beach Haven and Katherine and Jason
announced their engagement at Christmas. The newly engaged are
expecting a baby boy in late May so we will be grandparents. We have
a household to unpack and restore and then renovations to undertake
as it has been 20 years since we built and things are needing a
freshen up to reflect our new status as ‘not in paid employment’
people.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Until
next time . . .</span></span></div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-34741449831431843622017-01-03T01:03:00.000-08:002017-01-03T01:17:32.747-08:00Sunny southern Spanish soujourn<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYhKf1SGJVVNO9vHkbaNALgMQ4VqW3ac42USsyTdXZd5kWar29K_gX64yrQi2cu0dVMY422kfE3xvmuntKJuzGLjO4uFw4zaSM8IVaHkBM1MaULlxXoH_JcvV1gQ5DVcjbvABzeT4lMoOY/s1600/DSCF9214.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYhKf1SGJVVNO9vHkbaNALgMQ4VqW3ac42USsyTdXZd5kWar29K_gX64yrQi2cu0dVMY422kfE3xvmuntKJuzGLjO4uFw4zaSM8IVaHkBM1MaULlxXoH_JcvV1gQ5DVcjbvABzeT4lMoOY/s400/DSCF9214.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Christmas campsite</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Boxing
Day and we headed a whole 10 km up the road from our Christmas
campsite to Almerima. I had researched a marina that looked a good
place to stay in what I thought was Almeria. Almerima/Almeria –
what’s in a name – about 50km. Luckily we decided to have a
quick look-see otherwise we wouldn’t have found the abovementioned
marina, we would have ended up stranded among high rise apartment
blocks in Almeria.</span></div>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHkUoQ3r929Mz4qZc4iJ4slI1qOA2vW3Qc9RWn3qA5vkIK0SEwpSagMdKgwCjVDCqfuWtUqFR1FXhjujgg-KMBa1Ft00RdKkIKQz3XS8jTIYvZGzOvps3UXtbzTrEQKm0bIuhjZU0mEXhy/s1600/DSCF9272.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHkUoQ3r929Mz4qZc4iJ4slI1qOA2vW3Qc9RWn3qA5vkIK0SEwpSagMdKgwCjVDCqfuWtUqFR1FXhjujgg-KMBa1Ft00RdKkIKQz3XS8jTIYvZGzOvps3UXtbzTrEQKm0bIuhjZU0mEXhy/s320/DSCF9272.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">La Isleta, Cabo de Gata</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Almerima
suited us well, views in front of the moored boats and views behind
of the beach with mountains rising in the background, the snow still
present on the highest peaks. Our new neighbours were either English
or in the case of Tanja, had spent time in New Zealand. We were even
paid a visit by Tony and Ruth who used their electric bikes to whizz
the 10km from our previous camp. </span></span>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">It
was tempting to stay where we felt comfortable but tempus fugit and
our days in Spain are numbered so we packed away the items that might
fly around, clicked the door locks shut, wound down the hatches and
away. Away past a huge area dedicated to the services associated
with large scale horticulture, we had been oblivious in our little
marina-world of the massive truck depots, processing plants, more
plastic houses and factories that make the plastic. We left that
behind fairly quickly as we ate up the excellent Spanish roads
leading along the Mediterranean coast.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGYd729iU8eDYjWmI4Bc0kkivJXZu9O1Lhg18419RBSX5SWQry9AVwuy_G8IPkZ5MUBPYGl94a5vUpg5tiGQ59JE2mMovh_CCwi_7L8-AR5ggMmhr3b7cSNbeApccIaTG0_-Rm6qGg5weX/s1600/DSCF9319.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGYd729iU8eDYjWmI4Bc0kkivJXZu9O1Lhg18419RBSX5SWQry9AVwuy_G8IPkZ5MUBPYGl94a5vUpg5tiGQ59JE2mMovh_CCwi_7L8-AR5ggMmhr3b7cSNbeApccIaTG0_-Rm6qGg5weX/s320/DSCF9319.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coast road</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOQ7aUlVLmqRcHZhicEeDgpmW02mwhX109kDF7IEN_aYZz4y9SoYhR-hZK11IR6AYinuePJR8aRL34oWecmQvbIFahIh_U7P-qeWvaF57j0abfsUIoTsjDx9bmjdHpQ-gIORtl_Dq4JxZ0/s1600/DSCF9320.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOQ7aUlVLmqRcHZhicEeDgpmW02mwhX109kDF7IEN_aYZz4y9SoYhR-hZK11IR6AYinuePJR8aRL34oWecmQvbIFahIh_U7P-qeWvaF57j0abfsUIoTsjDx9bmjdHpQ-gIORtl_Dq4JxZ0/s320/DSCF9320.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The
coast road is stunning and an engineering masterpiece in places, we
drove past some huge hotel developments that stood half completed and
abandoned, a result of the financial downturn in Spain. There was
very little traffic and the sea twinkled turquoise and gently lapped
the shoreline. We have not seen proper waves since we arrived, not
exactly a surfers paradise.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The
coast offers some excellent wild camping in picturesque spots as did
the Cabo de Gata national park. The scenery in Cabo de Gata is
straight out of an old fashioned western movie, and the area was used
to film spaghetti westerns, but now it is a popular place for filming
shows such as Game of Thrones. It is a stark landscape with crumbling
pueblos/casas, tough grey-green sage brush and cloudless blue sky.
Flocks of goats wearing bells were grazing on whatever nourishment
they could find while their shepherds sat lonely and disconsolate.
And you thought you had a boring job!</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNGF97WSU1-WOcQ_CXwIZFtCwLwHasN_oIGmKAYdA9nUtUkZwSyIaoPvJbRvfLkO6-wZ9vIKbi0vLSQqbNj5QQe6uQQ-feGqqsB_ty3ZS4Rq-NcFRdrp7rJhO_LV3oqUMdNMiLiaUktiwi/s1600/DSCF9352.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNGF97WSU1-WOcQ_CXwIZFtCwLwHasN_oIGmKAYdA9nUtUkZwSyIaoPvJbRvfLkO6-wZ9vIKbi0vLSQqbNj5QQe6uQQ-feGqqsB_ty3ZS4Rq-NcFRdrp7rJhO_LV3oqUMdNMiLiaUktiwi/s320/DSCF9352.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hamlet close to wild campsite - Calabardina</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br />December
29, 2016 – our 40th wedding anniversary, was celebrated with a
selection of tapas and beer overlooking the aforementioned turquoise
ocean. We parked right outside the bar and the owner told us during
peak summer season when temps rose to 40 - 45 C the traffic would be
bumper to bumper and no parking to be found. We hadn’t found a
place for the night so too much drrrrrink was out of the question so
we stopped to pick up some giant prawns and that night cooked them on
the barbecue, washing them down with champagne. We (nearly) had the
clifftop spot to ourselves. How those 40 years have flown.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4XmDG9fWOVOZerQNnES7rAj5_NcnVSe8VisZASev6-gNaIlKKkXrp0qkyZLRRnMBM01tulBF7U0MPIlATibMR9BZ5UlaEJ5TuI3cS43QYT3BGeM5Cx60ctltadRmup53moB0erI3nkivT/s1600/DSCF9359.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4XmDG9fWOVOZerQNnES7rAj5_NcnVSe8VisZASev6-gNaIlKKkXrp0qkyZLRRnMBM01tulBF7U0MPIlATibMR9BZ5UlaEJ5TuI3cS43QYT3BGeM5Cx60ctltadRmup53moB0erI3nkivT/s320/DSCF9359.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spot near Calabardina</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">December
31, 2016. New Years Eve – again we faced the sea, this time in a
spot recommended by Tanja. We were the only vehicle with GB plates
among the French and Germans. How I wish I could speak other languages! The site is large and there must be
30 vehicles dotted around the sage brush. The beach is called Playa
del Arroz (rice beach?). Wild camping surrounded by some wild
campers, it offers security in numbers which is a nice feeling. There seemed to be an
unspoken division of vehicles with intrepid trucks and surf dude vans
on the high ground and the sedate vehicles taking the low ground. We
walked into the hamlet along the coastline and had a coffee at the
only beachside bar.</span></span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8ZZQ6_g-7FYqaLNkxLt-6R3Mx9urRbF5IRh1UbwUPDW30RKZ8zCqta9UraL9B5ECGOJeotlXuBeaaWlHj5PgypvBgNRuvsnGuC2b7QqJVBEvNj9GqRP-c1_EQxMrUsjniH_PK4M3eiN9T/s1600/DSCF9361.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8ZZQ6_g-7FYqaLNkxLt-6R3Mx9urRbF5IRh1UbwUPDW30RKZ8zCqta9UraL9B5ECGOJeotlXuBeaaWlHj5PgypvBgNRuvsnGuC2b7QqJVBEvNj9GqRP-c1_EQxMrUsjniH_PK4M3eiN9T/s320/DSCF9361.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spot near Calabardina</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We
liked the Cabo de Gata so much that we have returned to its rugged
coastline and red hills dotted with small cushions of grey-green
vegetation. The sea has an indigo colour and small fishing villages
have not been entirely overtaken by apartment developments.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We
are in countdown mode before we make the big trek across Spain’s
vast interior, very cold at this time of year and baking in summer.
We are booked onto a ferry that leaves from Santander on the
northwest coast, it is a 28 hr trip and we have a cabin (it remains
to be seen what that is like!)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXd9utVQa2jf3N-5ZedN04fXc1s0svWrMc9SYB116SCcNvPxyeuWeDdA2g6eQQ5hlkDQN0GXb6OUI3_zSIMDmmCUvBxjm_tnDXUeisfWcAkZ-uM4R_S35Dc6y3eOsqaucD51wW9NExyTwA/s1600/DSCF9291.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXd9utVQa2jf3N-5ZedN04fXc1s0svWrMc9SYB116SCcNvPxyeuWeDdA2g6eQQ5hlkDQN0GXb6OUI3_zSIMDmmCUvBxjm_tnDXUeisfWcAkZ-uM4R_S35Dc6y3eOsqaucD51wW9NExyTwA/s320/DSCF9291.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Catching some morning rays</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">In
the meantime</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">HASTA
LA VISTA</span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdcQlUYh5r220uffhfQ7B1Tt9fByQl2umB9ivJs5BOcWNsjhp13_Xxm1vfZkwe8g1BzHhPwayKBaDYCxnBqQYrvWGZuq3vaFBn5zpGUEKEwNOAbpytkBOlZ4BFEIu0BQJJDN0Yg_VzNeM0/s1600/DSCF9394.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="135" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdcQlUYh5r220uffhfQ7B1Tt9fByQl2umB9ivJs5BOcWNsjhp13_Xxm1vfZkwe8g1BzHhPwayKBaDYCxnBqQYrvWGZuq3vaFBn5zpGUEKEwNOAbpytkBOlZ4BFEIu0BQJJDN0Yg_VzNeM0/s320/DSCF9394.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What the .....</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8w0T2ji4Z2QyY46BDf4m_fjvFkJeQedwa2KLuiQHP_A-I3q0d6nGKbs4b4y5mDKP5F-CIsJWTtghoX0nAa_drYhzHechl8rndXEHBzw5U_iqwpdCVxYhoY_oqMaNzcjIrVZvlPQEsPavK/s1600/DSCF9272.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: left;"><br /></a></div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-70049267572820626522016-12-25T04:21:00.000-08:002016-12-25T06:58:05.653-08:00Feliz Navidad and all that<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5jTBKQDo6guHDsvf3iMgaZYpmsVx3xAh1NmwZnNg6SDJxUuOmN6-VRCMISI0u3NrbFxBxNz8RHdVJfMqy9-m3rqzOcy6Xqx3cyyycIsk1wRdQAe9vzQovFmJh7eatYppwV17NhvyEx8IW/s1600/feliz1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5jTBKQDo6guHDsvf3iMgaZYpmsVx3xAh1NmwZnNg6SDJxUuOmN6-VRCMISI0u3NrbFxBxNz8RHdVJfMqy9-m3rqzOcy6Xqx3cyyycIsk1wRdQAe9vzQovFmJh7eatYppwV17NhvyEx8IW/s400/feliz1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">"The
rain in Spain falls mainly on the plain", not in our experience . . .</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The
weather seemed to rain on us around the coast line – throwing the
odd sunny day then reverting to its wet side. We sat out a few days
in a campsite about a 1km from the coast, ducking out for a walk when
the drizzle abated then after the sun looked as if it was going to stay we packed up and headed for a spot we had
noticed during a walk along the beachfront of Torrox Costa.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOTIdLh1JIGXjqyIXy-nk3zcy3rkcuXNRvvr6TrSdgeuOc0SkS31RBARIqiOlGuHcaAec0mzo8fMjENzoMKcvjcPJZNt07B6s6OJCfqnH0wdnwm7OeoSZtkux8VYR1xTc67XQGaYbzGKzA/s1600/Wild+campsite+Torrox+Costa.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOTIdLh1JIGXjqyIXy-nk3zcy3rkcuXNRvvr6TrSdgeuOc0SkS31RBARIqiOlGuHcaAec0mzo8fMjENzoMKcvjcPJZNt07B6s6OJCfqnH0wdnwm7OeoSZtkux8VYR1xTc67XQGaYbzGKzA/s320/Wild+campsite+Torrox+Costa.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wild camp, Torrox Costa</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Services
– 3/10, views 10/10, convenience 9/10. The weather was warm and
sunny, the waves providing a white noise background, snow capped
mountains making a backdrop behind us (with apartment blocks in
between) and a pretty lighthouse to the right of us. The other trucks
were all German but you can’t have everything.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH4bWUfO_llqqcGjrE44HxSPaInT_77V0wl8_foJTwIeF3VEbSvSy4Cxv8BtdnlbDy7jHiwwVElsi3Eoz9cy0RPbkM6gYxYssi6oFrP8ncTy35LcYQUfIyVPSAKKFIkxv0Xy6BpJvhPhLK/s1600/DSCF9870.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH4bWUfO_llqqcGjrE44HxSPaInT_77V0wl8_foJTwIeF3VEbSvSy4Cxv8BtdnlbDy7jHiwwVElsi3Eoz9cy0RPbkM6gYxYssi6oFrP8ncTy35LcYQUfIyVPSAKKFIkxv0Xy6BpJvhPhLK/s320/DSCF9870.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dancers at breadcrumb festival</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">When
we were at our previous site in the campground we walked cross country through large avocado
orchards to go to a festival. The festival was for the locals and
called Fiesta Migas – <i>breadcrumb festival</i>.( <b>Note for Tim</b> –
Stuart thought it was BYOB) </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Migas
is a traditional peasant food of breadcrumbs stirred in warm olive
oil with a bit of something on the side. When I checked in Wiki it
looked a lot more appetising and nothing like the migas I have been
served here, the festival food certainly didn’t tempt me to give it
another go. We watched Flameco dancing, men playing Spanish guitars,
people dancing in the square.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWO7fAz-iumYzPRN9tSWb_i1CSNf253MjRWPzrglrzV3Cy7SgwugCVZHaYVfcaKg5XMaly-8QYaBcMFZfC5id1CXnRjJh_dwyOOou1s5Mfda-S040r5MDt2ccghV5ajdsxfU3k3XiS4iYe/s1600/DSCF9176.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWO7fAz-iumYzPRN9tSWb_i1CSNf253MjRWPzrglrzV3Cy7SgwugCVZHaYVfcaKg5XMaly-8QYaBcMFZfC5id1CXnRjJh_dwyOOou1s5Mfda-S040r5MDt2ccghV5ajdsxfU3k3XiS4iYe/s320/DSCF9176.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Original houses in Balerma</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Our
Christmas base is in Balerma in a coastal campground. It is a well
appointed new site so hasn’t attracted large groups and is totally
sunny as the shade is provided by removable shade cloths. It is close
to a village that was targeted by developers; the economy and market
took a downturn and the village has lots of half completed apartment
blocks which gives it a strange unloved feeling. Such a contrast to
Auckland where there is a shortage of housing, in these parts there
is a surplus of apartments. A few of the original houses are left
which would look at home in a cowboy movie – actually the remnants
of a spaghetti western movie-set is nearby, recycled into a tourist
attraction, </span><i style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><i style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Good, The Bad and the Ugly </i><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">was
shot here</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVdSAl-UGM_TXM5A5g_qPflDulDuIWo43OLPwnINkJHpHCNmFCn6fTk5twLCQl78Ef0wC5AdNuEqbYFxYl8becWXu40y3-fw-ZBBZityYk6dbuFy7DSQzs1MaF7u3lodA3Qm2m4rKNBgIw/s1600/DSCF9156.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVdSAl-UGM_TXM5A5g_qPflDulDuIWo43OLPwnINkJHpHCNmFCn6fTk5twLCQl78Ef0wC5AdNuEqbYFxYl8becWXu40y3-fw-ZBBZityYk6dbuFy7DSQzs1MaF7u3lodA3Qm2m4rKNBgIw/s320/DSCF9156.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Original houses in Balerma</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The
other big point of difference in this area is the enormous number of
‘plastic houses’ used to grow produce for the supermarkets in
Europe. These huge dull-green coloured constructions sit wherever a
flat piece of land has been created. At one stage we were travelling
with snow capped mountains on one side and the Mediterranean on the
other but a sea of plastic houses filled the large gap between
highway and water. They seemed to be seamless except for the odd
access road. I peeked into a couple of these places near the
campground and saw cucumber/aubergine/capsicum plants growing
vertically. I could have plucked a huge red capsicum if we weren’t
filled to the gunwales with capsicum already.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXejs1khEEyw5j1ausGJxiwlK9CAzZDVPWeJG4b7iReyyodws1Ise-LTFZEiCbOwjVouESR6NFM7CHH1S9YzD_ZPYMVrNt3x4NmcYg4HMY-CZboIQr9Yk4co41zM9itGRtHx2l2V2QnHWs/s1600/DSCF9118.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXejs1khEEyw5j1ausGJxiwlK9CAzZDVPWeJG4b7iReyyodws1Ise-LTFZEiCbOwjVouESR6NFM7CHH1S9YzD_ZPYMVrNt3x4NmcYg4HMY-CZboIQr9Yk4co41zM9itGRtHx2l2V2QnHWs/s320/DSCF9118.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So cute, a little ice cream served with the coffee</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXvn4E6_m75hJG3WzAlKOarmvogcF_gb7dhVSwjseJbeBVs69R_3pgRu2c98sZOPs9CO3ml4ryuebEY5K8e0QzXBDvECQ4-0m42-LmHqhVEHzRDdYjvJRCCeVpAyvx6T4Ok8DA3bwEcf93/s1600/DSCF9962.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXvn4E6_m75hJG3WzAlKOarmvogcF_gb7dhVSwjseJbeBVs69R_3pgRu2c98sZOPs9CO3ml4ryuebEY5K8e0QzXBDvECQ4-0m42-LmHqhVEHzRDdYjvJRCCeVpAyvx6T4Ok8DA3bwEcf93/s320/DSCF9962.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A more adventurous motor home than ours</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh00GwYhtuswUNHrxS04aDJLs2vrTFOvRxt43vLQKLD5Cv7e0gG_LQJ7z8ZfZ2g_R_vJ05mkqPLWx2lxqcRgeZNm4YLy5XUcnmVBwNx1P0nqLmBvQqPQvCaeNcGz7Mm9bb-rFxxX0koHmKq/s1600/DSCF9093.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh00GwYhtuswUNHrxS04aDJLs2vrTFOvRxt43vLQKLD5Cv7e0gG_LQJ7z8ZfZ2g_R_vJ05mkqPLWx2lxqcRgeZNm4YLy5XUcnmVBwNx1P0nqLmBvQqPQvCaeNcGz7Mm9bb-rFxxX0koHmKq/s320/DSCF9093.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Part of lighthouse near wild camp at Torrox Costa</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj63opQIQ2nEKkSUsOQdZZhgDpKqsd1NflL2ThFbOcXt2V0N1w7uuu19z_EaBIUDEhE81hep6TBlitW12k-YF1WXwsaafh9LojgtJWQD0Ccpj7sqzL6XHUZI9RYOIfY5W3AzsHgABHIKck/s1600/DSCF9103.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj63opQIQ2nEKkSUsOQdZZhgDpKqsd1NflL2ThFbOcXt2V0N1w7uuu19z_EaBIUDEhE81hep6TBlitW12k-YF1WXwsaafh9LojgtJWQD0Ccpj7sqzL6XHUZI9RYOIfY5W3AzsHgABHIKck/s320/DSCF9103.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Torrox Costa</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">So
here’s wishing you all a jolly good holiday – by the time you
read this you will all be back at work wasting company time reading
blogs, not that I would know any of that of course.</span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;">Feliz
ano nuevo</span></span></h2>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<br />
<br /></div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-2215846664128063272016-12-17T03:42:00.001-08:002016-12-17T09:43:59.408-08:00The noise, the gorge, the palace<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsKMcMgJ3SSic-YxFS4WYM-gjxOUGBPlBifmS6eAtFtHFyKINVB7BWjQt-2LSuGhl5z5USRBntKAP9p7aCjwmFYtSPVQ68XxDZRNt9lpnqd6rr-TMME54E96NtWsp8j9hCB2yr1tqiUjPQ/s1600/the+noise.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsKMcMgJ3SSic-YxFS4WYM-gjxOUGBPlBifmS6eAtFtHFyKINVB7BWjQt-2LSuGhl5z5USRBntKAP9p7aCjwmFYtSPVQ68XxDZRNt9lpnqd6rr-TMME54E96NtWsp8j9hCB2yr1tqiUjPQ/s1600/the+noise.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">For 9000 miles we traveled with “the noise”. It emanated from the large skylight above the cab area. The first time it happened I nearly jumped out of my skin, it was a huge hornet-scream above our heads and gave no warning prior to its start. It roared and whined at about 100 km/hr. “Make it stop it Jane, twiddle the latches, wind the handle out”. I became the conductor in an orchestra, jumping up and down, releasing the pressure on the latches, tightening or loosening the handle to stop the racket as our speed naturally altered on the road.</span></span><br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Stuart
bought sticky foam in different widths and strengths to wedge between
skylight and roof, ripping it off when frustration set in. We felt
we were managing things however, with me “playing the levers” but
the noise never ceased to frighten me with its sudden onset. It also
played a little game of ‘brrrrriippp’ as we jolted over joins in
the tarmac.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Then
one day last week Stuart stood on the drivers seat and pulled out a
thin strip of cellophane that was between the skylight and roof.
“Whats that” I said, “nothing much” sez he and stuffed it in
the rubbish. That was it – the reed in the flute of the truck,
causing all that irritation. We have enjoyed silence (apart from the
rattling of the cups etc) ever since.</span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEXntCXoyXTB31YG6FFhloSEYY9fdlQee7ZR_kaZyYg-WbeJBWrat9WwKfYX30Ez6DA_KUpRTV8otbYDS2XtQIjfyaUsddVASNLDzA5r_5zE-D7MoNwrfxPrO3BBfFgtfo0TiyDUhDj84s/s1600/DSCF8632.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEXntCXoyXTB31YG6FFhloSEYY9fdlQee7ZR_kaZyYg-WbeJBWrat9WwKfYX30Ez6DA_KUpRTV8otbYDS2XtQIjfyaUsddVASNLDzA5r_5zE-D7MoNwrfxPrO3BBfFgtfo0TiyDUhDj84s/s320/DSCF8632.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A place in the sun - National Park wild camping spot</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The
Caminito del Rey was a ‘to do’ before we left New Zealand. </span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Her in the satnav had spurned the normal scenic route and found us an alternative one that delivered us to the exit. After asking a couple of people about access to the walk, we found out it was Monday - “Monday is closed, you need to turn up early tomorrow at the start of the walk”.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We found an excellent spot overlooking the man-made lake in the national park and sat in the sun reading books. Our new deck chairs were courtesy of our previous Kiwi camp-mates, Keith and Brone in Marbella. Stuart fixed up their chairs to see us through until we leave.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Lack of information and language made organising the walk rather confusing, but we got there in the end. To buy tickets we walked 2.7km to the office to buy them, not a hardship as it was a nice walk in the pines and we were allowed to join a group already waiting.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiouwkkSbDB_OfHmHFLks9iOL2HnSNlGgJMaqc_vRjHvFmOb9hBc6hHVqocNjsBaungjhX1PCZvCkyq9siNlN1hj0USe_SeS3ui91IvRq3DDzuEez0Ibs7h_lSrlaLBlDfksY8jSpkJkgM/s1600/DSCF8674.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiouwkkSbDB_OfHmHFLks9iOL2HnSNlGgJMaqc_vRjHvFmOb9hBc6hHVqocNjsBaungjhX1PCZvCkyq9siNlN1hj0USe_SeS3ui91IvRq3DDzuEez0Ibs7h_lSrlaLBlDfksY8jSpkJkgM/s400/DSCF8674.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Note the original path below the new one</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The walkway was initially built in 1905 and used by King Alfonso XIII in 1921 as a means to inspect the progress of works on the hydro scheme – the name means <i>path of the king</i>. It had a reputation as being the worlds most dangerous walk due to the number of deaths and was closed in 2000, re- opening last year.</span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The Caminito del Rey is now probably the worlds safest walk, also incredibly popular, tickets are usually only available on-line. We were kitted out with hard hats and had a safety talk before leaving. The new path was about 1 metre above the old path which looked horrendous. It hugged the cliff face and the drop down to the water was vertiginous. Garganta del Chorro is a massive natural fissure, 4km long, up to 400m deep and as little as 10m wide. It is above this fissure that the walkway is mounted. The narrowest part of the gorge used to be known as the ‘spurt’ as the volume of water came through the narrow passage with tremendous force spurting into the air and terrifying villagers. It is probably tamed now as the nearby hydro dam regulates flow.</span><br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY42cVU1zJNSK-kaLuDBfdaL4bp336VnhT-G4JnW5Nu6ZAp7awRtYcDwjwQHiHy4_h3Y2ILrTK-P-tFUb7t3VA0eFOTBApOg0kqak0MiFH0FACNK9HPwIqg7QD5_1xlzEfJfs4N5GIvDx6/s1600/DSCF8669.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY42cVU1zJNSK-kaLuDBfdaL4bp336VnhT-G4JnW5Nu6ZAp7awRtYcDwjwQHiHy4_h3Y2ILrTK-P-tFUb7t3VA0eFOTBApOg0kqak0MiFH0FACNK9HPwIqg7QD5_1xlzEfJfs4N5GIvDx6/s200/DSCF8669.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A long way down</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;"> After the pleasant but not frightening trip, a bus transported us back to the start.</span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ-q5S9yWWbg9ZK2RT-ZmrdRvFSUVgXhuPB3ysNrQD_QLzV9o2lad1knv0Gu_JDUglxzAEGKROs5y0OOP2WDaFy7R0NOVIAT1CM1Q9frGBJKFTVgs4ParOpXG5-uLgogL8tm7k6oZ5HzwL/s1600/DSCF8725.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ-q5S9yWWbg9ZK2RT-ZmrdRvFSUVgXhuPB3ysNrQD_QLzV9o2lad1knv0Gu_JDUglxzAEGKROs5y0OOP2WDaFy7R0NOVIAT1CM1Q9frGBJKFTVgs4ParOpXG5-uLgogL8tm7k6oZ5HzwL/s320/DSCF8725.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The fissure - Garganta del Chorro</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></span>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiayPDfzqsVP1JkdPBrh4YX9EmP7VkYPysfjMMpEbIkrsbVNvm2NzoM0PoVRYCI78aP6BYCDwF45CNO3WczbOS1sMQ_aLtl9WJcjafuKlGVWCg_m_sxsIHYcn0tGxpMJVTMq_WFrD6nj5hyphenhyphen/s1600/DSCF9456.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiayPDfzqsVP1JkdPBrh4YX9EmP7VkYPysfjMMpEbIkrsbVNvm2NzoM0PoVRYCI78aP6BYCDwF45CNO3WczbOS1sMQ_aLtl9WJcjafuKlGVWCg_m_sxsIHYcn0tGxpMJVTMq_WFrD6nj5hyphenhyphen/s200/DSCF9456.jpg" width="133" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo credit: Stuart</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKijwb84RsL5f6Y37JmSa5sYYgfTAOqYTORamI1BxB56_vxBZ06YX5AlfWcDX5aIdT_nteBWOniI7QYw91E6r9sMbRWgE4t4F2wCPhYch6qH0tujLeEmcRqMsSDGTojZYlzCNLPCVI1Rik/s1600/DSCF9468.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKijwb84RsL5f6Y37JmSa5sYYgfTAOqYTORamI1BxB56_vxBZ06YX5AlfWcDX5aIdT_nteBWOniI7QYw91E6r9sMbRWgE4t4F2wCPhYch6qH0tujLeEmcRqMsSDGTojZYlzCNLPCVI1Rik/s320/DSCF9468.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo credit: Stuart</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie_JbDDrze9cdAPvOg8yNH7KGUZmHZakTvAnUVORQuZ5iZE9f2WlwJACwk4Rb0mavrGB4pSYmZWhrQwtuhv8ur3CQ6Nw6DIi0UL2GL1C8X-nrftoiRhyEFbx8ho7QI0xe2AlcFx0-6zl-2/s1600/DSCF9495.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie_JbDDrze9cdAPvOg8yNH7KGUZmHZakTvAnUVORQuZ5iZE9f2WlwJACwk4Rb0mavrGB4pSYmZWhrQwtuhv8ur3CQ6Nw6DIi0UL2GL1C8X-nrftoiRhyEFbx8ho7QI0xe2AlcFx0-6zl-2/s200/DSCF9495.jpg" width="133" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo credit: Stuart</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi60RVufsj3AOL4mTiKDW7YJc-QtLz__41k2qKWwKaiGvvtQARNARwopZTSiV2A5o1QTmAZ6T1epb6IDQM5DV1biIVq69p2750FkoXNxjpER56wzBEZBHmR4osCXhEBxo-WT0DEsi9lK0PS/s1600/DSCF9518.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi60RVufsj3AOL4mTiKDW7YJc-QtLz__41k2qKWwKaiGvvtQARNARwopZTSiV2A5o1QTmAZ6T1epb6IDQM5DV1biIVq69p2750FkoXNxjpER56wzBEZBHmR4osCXhEBxo-WT0DEsi9lK0PS/s320/DSCF9518.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo credit: Stuart</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg09gTEaBzeW5Ryzlcuqwl_vOwk_rrM1FmVock45X_zjKD6BqOcZo8Vvsu38UFag4hjqZn_Z0Xxt17o_7ymITL0P0nHy9ydeNuL-Wgtk5ry0hXWSZEzdmgWBtASy5bTPNMks-cXcO7qgCOP/s1600/DSCF9529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg09gTEaBzeW5Ryzlcuqwl_vOwk_rrM1FmVock45X_zjKD6BqOcZo8Vvsu38UFag4hjqZn_Z0Xxt17o_7ymITL0P0nHy9ydeNuL-Wgtk5ry0hXWSZEzdmgWBtASy5bTPNMks-cXcO7qgCOP/s400/DSCF9529.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo credit: Stuart</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Granada
is about 100km inland from the southern coast of Spain, situated
under the impressive snow capped Sierra Nevadas. It was the last
stronghold of the Muslims against the Catholic church and the legacy
is the Alhambra palace which was our main reason for visiting. It is
a city with a gritty side as well as having elegant white high-walled
houses, souvenir and high-end shops and an inner maze of small shops
not unlike that in the grand bazaar in Istanbul – and indeed
selling similar items. It was also extremely cold as it is quite high
in altitude and receives cold air from the mountains. It is reputed
to have the best churros and chocolate in Spain. The churros of
course cooked fresh, and the chocolate I had to share with Stuart who
says he prefers coffee but helps himself to my order.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY6-xfjz7krFMqduXfOG4ume-rNkqBVEA2lb5bFnUKCmghUybf593jz4Se2aymwSZZQ-xmE0Hj3j-0VdLTSlVDmkcqihqWm9T3PyuHY2LCB0Hzn0vhD1B9H9l-O3ozcExSSRI9I-Dj3tYP/s1600/DSCF8761.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY6-xfjz7krFMqduXfOG4ume-rNkqBVEA2lb5bFnUKCmghUybf593jz4Se2aymwSZZQ-xmE0Hj3j-0VdLTSlVDmkcqihqWm9T3PyuHY2LCB0Hzn0vhD1B9H9l-O3ozcExSSRI9I-Dj3tYP/s320/DSCF8761.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Granada</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>Alhambra</b>
is part fort, part palace, and a world heritage site – all set in
beautifully manicured and geometrically sculpted gardens. It was
built by a Moorish Emir and converted into a palace by the Sultan of
Granada but taken over by Christian King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella
in the 1500s. It is truly Islamic in architecture and one of Spain’s
major tourist attractions. The detail inside the palace was amazing,
in everything you looked at, but somehow harmonious and restrained,
unlike some major cathedrals and palaces I have visited. </span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPR3jxMLAb2NyLfu8TCD_zZ6oZIxqhxH2O7W2kuIDdDdW1MULF1MlG-DxQki3XZWH3TKdEVBnBfUzw-c-EkVZ_FzGgSD7N35e-D1y5aib86sMuE1LapXpvLTe_b2PoTisCa0bpXRtEEfi4/s1600/DSCF8792.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPR3jxMLAb2NyLfu8TCD_zZ6oZIxqhxH2O7W2kuIDdDdW1MULF1MlG-DxQki3XZWH3TKdEVBnBfUzw-c-EkVZ_FzGgSD7N35e-D1y5aib86sMuE1LapXpvLTe_b2PoTisCa0bpXRtEEfi4/s320/DSCF8792.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Part of Alhambra</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi69uV2lJesn60bG5oftQQLlJq68yHOVxu3qJ9TPHZ1GA_tTzw3ETazlLNxrYhUTLpgz5qdFHzgyZBA3tbaIKINS9j2rZBO2Y9MOO41jelSKxi-U549pjLDvmIw4ESuyMt7KnlolZ1KHX5M/s1600/DSCF8812.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="188" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi69uV2lJesn60bG5oftQQLlJq68yHOVxu3qJ9TPHZ1GA_tTzw3ETazlLNxrYhUTLpgz5qdFHzgyZBA3tbaIKINS9j2rZBO2Y9MOO41jelSKxi-U549pjLDvmIw4ESuyMt7KnlolZ1KHX5M/s320/DSCF8812.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Suffice
to say I went away well satisfied with the experience, there was
water flowing everywhere with understated fountains that would
provide a cool atmosphere in summer, however I was quite cold and
regretted my wardrobe choice. Four layers were not enough, should
have taken the down jacket. More churros and chocolate ordered,
sitting next to one of those outdoor heaters warmed me up
sufficiently for the trip back to the campsite on the bus. Chausson
chucked out some good heat quickly that had us peel off a few layers
and we rattled up a dinner of sausages and mash.</span></span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLkI8ctRWk-H_0-1JJZJi8orX_XwWu-3jKltZKAd895WCoHnW-ENu9a0uAVYq8xTgNyUSANlQvnm9DPNisx1iomBKEYgpNjWnJyBNjkWAZcPWZ3phc31vTSLjP7mtAvYHZ4E26iNUMaO7E/s1600/DSCF8902.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLkI8ctRWk-H_0-1JJZJi8orX_XwWu-3jKltZKAd895WCoHnW-ENu9a0uAVYq8xTgNyUSANlQvnm9DPNisx1iomBKEYgpNjWnJyBNjkWAZcPWZ3phc31vTSLjP7mtAvYHZ4E26iNUMaO7E/s320/DSCF8902.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking at Granada from the Alhambra</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy8Yx2qGL9651E7hDl7RYujcrlgr-sYo9J3jtP-Tx6-mum0ourYFcFphttGi4pXx97wFVDKZUeJ4iA0ElNWjIqGGaf1C-40QRMr4kPmOilw_PRtvHBC6m5523qBKtE3X0UyWKTyBtAdRJY/s1600/textos+feliz+navidad%252Cpng+%252813%2529.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy8Yx2qGL9651E7hDl7RYujcrlgr-sYo9J3jtP-Tx6-mum0ourYFcFphttGi4pXx97wFVDKZUeJ4iA0ElNWjIqGGaf1C-40QRMr4kPmOilw_PRtvHBC6m5523qBKtE3X0UyWKTyBtAdRJY/s320/textos+feliz+navidad%252Cpng+%252813%2529.png" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Adios
amigos, we are back off to the coast to seek some sunshine, we will
be among British, German and Dutch motorhomers who flock to the
Spanish Coast to escape the European winter. Hopefully we will find
somewhere suitable to enjoy Christmas, which isn’t quite the same
this year.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjdS4mmrdn1E4BH1-358EiXy9mD7DqMuRhXVGvO0fUD8QpiKh365on2G28lJa48g-Ltf6TuhahNsRPkZYw4rMgUlLLHgSHU-vNHHPCvQD1Vmz7nLdhipDcHUVrSmaZTvJM4i606vmHkH_J/s1600/DSCF8908.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="140" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjdS4mmrdn1E4BH1-358EiXy9mD7DqMuRhXVGvO0fUD8QpiKh365on2G28lJa48g-Ltf6TuhahNsRPkZYw4rMgUlLLHgSHU-vNHHPCvQD1Vmz7nLdhipDcHUVrSmaZTvJM4i606vmHkH_J/s200/DSCF8908.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo credit: Stuart</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-29835551170586435802016-12-11T09:17:00.000-08:002016-12-11T09:17:56.050-08:00Help help me Ronda, The Rock<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2KlrSjJQ2BRZNyUVEzA-65Smtlnuu_r6_ECGg3Q8rwDbzvyIORSZgEhLeUzFDK0MC2VE50dme64TuV4L57OkQQAFsXjIF6QNoV3rM1Juv1O0_0oBsYMTm_mKgU1FhTXzO1ruITn79hzkI/s1600/DSCF8445.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2KlrSjJQ2BRZNyUVEzA-65Smtlnuu_r6_ECGg3Q8rwDbzvyIORSZgEhLeUzFDK0MC2VE50dme64TuV4L57OkQQAFsXjIF6QNoV3rM1Juv1O0_0oBsYMTm_mKgU1FhTXzO1ruITn79hzkI/s400/DSCF8445.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Impressionism - rainy day in Ronda</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Heavy
rain, drizzly rain accompanied us when we arrived at Ronda, a ‘white
town’. Fortune smiled on us though as we noticed the parking lot at
the railway station had the barrier raised, and 5 motorhomes were
‘in’. We slotted in to a spot chosen to minimise the risk of
entrapment by Spanish parkers and dodged puddles as we walked into
the centre of town. The rain doubled its efforts and an umbrella
purchased; we dripped quietly in a cafe that advertised fresh churros
and thick chocolate. The buzzy cheerful waitress ignored the puddle
growing around us and set down our order. It was SO GOOD - all the
other churros I have had are just stale imitations.</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYwOurV8zIe5MvtmSEZ4OafNgiDsojCe0yUyi8ueL5xtBT7DJJwDc0dzGdesEuAVowoKztUjeQnA3nCnmC1ve9b1c_A-oK37m-ZnP1FqD5dsCStDcVEig7IHw0RZ7EkuUjnp9rFulR35eg/s1600/DSCF8504.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYwOurV8zIe5MvtmSEZ4OafNgiDsojCe0yUyi8ueL5xtBT7DJJwDc0dzGdesEuAVowoKztUjeQnA3nCnmC1ve9b1c_A-oK37m-ZnP1FqD5dsCStDcVEig7IHw0RZ7EkuUjnp9rFulR35eg/s320/DSCF8504.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tajo gorge in Ronda</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We
waited out the rain back in the truck and set off again into Ronda
when the sun peeped through, we were not leaving with business
half-done. Ronda was a big surprise for me, we had been told to visit
but I didn't know why. The 'why' is the spectacular placement of
this white town on the sheer cliffs of the Tajo gorge. The town has
been made famous by people such as Hemingway and Orson Welles. The
dizzying gorge is spanned by a towering bridge, the gorge so deep you
can't see the river without climbing down steps to view it from a
distance. This bridge (Puente Nuevo), separates the old and new
towns. We walked through an Arab fortress, descending flight after
flight of steps running with floodwater down to the river and also
visited the adjacent hanging gardens. Both rather disappointing
compared with the spectacular setting of the town. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The
visit concluded, we decided we didn't need to spend the night in the
railway carpark and although the light was diminishing we set off to
an aire in another white town. The journey was on a steep ridge, fog
coming up from the valley obscured the scenery, and in some places,
the road. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuhJCGhTi1-T94AmhVdO22gVhH0l3zrv5QQ2cQGwntjoT9LSX5ifctyCnxcB2u8txb5JoFKHEhfUnOyTxHluddCagjc7jDWauZIqgQ1w1fut-syXvsIQs60vJraCd65-dGxy6d7JwQ80O7/s1600/DSCF8481.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuhJCGhTi1-T94AmhVdO22gVhH0l3zrv5QQ2cQGwntjoT9LSX5ifctyCnxcB2u8txb5JoFKHEhfUnOyTxHluddCagjc7jDWauZIqgQ1w1fut-syXvsIQs60vJraCd65-dGxy6d7JwQ80O7/s320/DSCF8481.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The sun came out - looking out from the cliff in Ronda</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">It
was quite dark when we turned onto a minor road and headed
downwards into the valley. I had fingers crossed that the aire
didn't involve plowing through some squishy village and it worked </span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">because
the aire was neatly set on the upward side of the village. Five
spaces each with their own services. Over-engineering had come into
play here, we have experienced one black/grey/fresh water connection
to service 100 vehicles. This one had 5 of each!</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Hoods
up on our jackets, we had a look-see around the village, a coffee in
the bar and then off to Gibraltar with a via point of Lidls to
replenish supplies. It bucketed down as Stuart returned the trolley,
joining it to its fellow trolleys to get our Euro coin back. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We turned onto the highway and followed the coast in the rain, when around a corner suddenly a huge chunk of rock standing sentinel looking out to sea dominated the vista. We settled
into a spot on the marina, tomorrow would be a better day to explore
'The Rock'.</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSLALVdSnO5T47tLN7WQDls1oo8DXmBbDIf_13x-GhtO8THVpBMwMk_MEWoDMG1SrqZVTg0icofx1wZcD3-NPkYullND5FYkiUUufxs1t4a4GyGPLKkIY_luW95qTLQDVieBJTlmwDnIu0/s1600/DSCF8462.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSLALVdSnO5T47tLN7WQDls1oo8DXmBbDIf_13x-GhtO8THVpBMwMk_MEWoDMG1SrqZVTg0icofx1wZcD3-NPkYullND5FYkiUUufxs1t4a4GyGPLKkIY_luW95qTLQDVieBJTlmwDnIu0/s320/DSCF8462.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">100 metres above the Tajo gorge in Ronda, <br />
an Egyptian Cleopatra poses for the ultimate photo</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">We
walked from the marina, through customs and immigration and across
the airport runway to get to British controlled Gibraltar. Yes, both the road and
footpath bisect the runway at Gibraltar. Once in the town proper it
was like stepping into an English high street. Debenhams, Marks and
Spencer, Next, Mango - all were there together with advertisements
for fish and chips with mushy peas. The surprising thing for me was
eavesdropping on locals' conversations. They would start in Spanish,
drop a whole sentence in English in, then revert to Spanish. The
accents were British and the currency sterling, things were a bit
pricey and ever so slightly scruffy.</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">A
cable car whisked us up to the top of ‘The Rock’, a strategic
military position overlooking the entrance to the Mediterranean from
the Atlantic. It is a prized piece of real estate that has been
fought over many times. We walked through tunnels that have been
developed over centuries, the last extension was made during WWII.
The day we visited there was water running everywhere, fallout from
all the rain that had bombarded the area recently.</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn_bLkobtLRlovRRTCzRi8EvO44GY2WgBYC4RH-dz_OxvlTPtFakTI_QdBYXigLDBnLos5HkK6tvwUzHbII42KH3BSqAsYHa3X7nemub8UjvN9u_xRmaKiUARErUFl_Hh06U7ZqtueGoNc/s1600/DSCF8558.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn_bLkobtLRlovRRTCzRi8EvO44GY2WgBYC4RH-dz_OxvlTPtFakTI_QdBYXigLDBnLos5HkK6tvwUzHbII42KH3BSqAsYHa3X7nemub8UjvN9u_xRmaKiUARErUFl_Hh06U7ZqtueGoNc/s320/DSCF8558.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sitting on top of the world</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">I
was a bit apprehensive about meeting the Barbary macaques that live at Gib, my encounters in India and Nepal with monkeys have not been
good. There they were, greeting visitors as they emerged from the
cable car or taxi-vans. One grabbed at a woman’s handbag – she
had something interesting inside, I kept my bag zipped and eyes open. They were pretty cool really and after a while I could
walk quite close to them and not feel threatened. The babies were
especially cute and subjected to a lot of grooming by the adults. The
macaques (tailless monkey) are provided with good quality food and
there are notices about not feeding them – something disregarded by
the taxi drivers. Legend says that when the macaques disappear from
Gib so will the British, they looked as if their feet were well under
the table so to speak.</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We
had a quick look-see in St Michaels Cave, a huge natural grotto
within The Rock full of stalagmites and stalactites, lit with lurid
pulsating lights and music and once again running with water. </span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxDVRqrBHbCxVHY_xdyV6kap6hj1z2aLAtY7cNJwYs527Xym2RPjjwuTFj_5CTEf9ufo5mQIeTNC-I3or_Xw2Nqdr6BFkCTEy9Q2V0coC8SWNdo3TvMyuMGiGIvT6jlfQ3zy80-uSbLGO9/s1600/DSCF8537.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxDVRqrBHbCxVHY_xdyV6kap6hj1z2aLAtY7cNJwYs527Xym2RPjjwuTFj_5CTEf9ufo5mQIeTNC-I3or_Xw2Nqdr6BFkCTEy9Q2V0coC8SWNdo3TvMyuMGiGIvT6jlfQ3zy80-uSbLGO9/s320/DSCF8537.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Top of the Rock</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Our
feet were tired by the time we arrived at the heaving Morrison’s
supermarket, part of an English chain. Such a treat to peruse the
shelves filled with things I haven’t been able to buy in Europe. As
we were still some distance from ‘home’ and only could choose
what we could carry, we were somewhat limited. I choose some precooked
lamb shanks in red wine and Stuart chose a box of hot roast potatoes.
It was a feast that night.</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYtXqJlsE9B_PgRr97W_PZXyyCtRoKUS3AyHAyldS21ZBJ190YWd_BPQdQuVTlBjEq4Er2QuQRLxyTENOXmWLd4NfW1lvf-ny24iLgestRyA2_LVdNeVykGAGT7lwRmY4cSyobQYHso-FD/s1600/DSCF8528.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYtXqJlsE9B_PgRr97W_PZXyyCtRoKUS3AyHAyldS21ZBJ190YWd_BPQdQuVTlBjEq4Er2QuQRLxyTENOXmWLd4NfW1lvf-ny24iLgestRyA2_LVdNeVykGAGT7lwRmY4cSyobQYHso-FD/s320/DSCF8528.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Street in Gibraltar</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">This
post is being written from a campsite between Marbella and Malaga on
the Mediterranean coast. </span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Marbella is one of the more swanky places on
the Costa del Sol (sunshine coast). A highly developed (think
concrete tower blocks) area which has offered cheap holiday
destinations to Europeans since the 70s. There is a large Brit
population here and lots of notices are in English.</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">It
is a short walk to the beach which has stretches of sand dunes and
boardwalks, a little like NZ. The camp is a lot different to the
other places we have been staying, the majority of the guests have GB
on their number plates and it looks as if they stay for a long time
and are regular visitors. They are into the Christmas thing and
pitches are decorated with lights, baubles, 3D reindeer, purple
Christmas trees .....We are the odd men out – the tourers who only
stay for a short time. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Fu0bYqQWzJ9e0Gtu2GoGa2O8_S2U9R1mjD7HYtBoKzUfvuVgUBq85LtNF4lcYTKfxFiLrZxs9TtALov8SF_swPByyDYzOGuFuNEDLA9awpR6q55VLyowwRR_dN31MAuPoYBP-LS3X1V2/s1600/DSCF8601.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Fu0bYqQWzJ9e0Gtu2GoGa2O8_S2U9R1mjD7HYtBoKzUfvuVgUBq85LtNF4lcYTKfxFiLrZxs9TtALov8SF_swPByyDYzOGuFuNEDLA9awpR6q55VLyowwRR_dN31MAuPoYBP-LS3X1V2/s320/DSCF8601.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beach near our campsite</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Serendipity
struck again in the campground and we parked next to two Kiwis towing a Fifth Wheeler
that they are exporting back to NZ in a weeks time. We have had a
great time sharing dinners and drinks with Keith and Bron-e and they
have been generous with sharing their equipment – a ladder for
cleaning our roof and awning, a printer/scanner for some admin, and a
lift in their Navara to the supermarket. We had a kiwi working bee
cleaning organic matter from our vehicles so they can make the big
trip home. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">All
good things come to an end and we will embark on the next chapter of
our adventures to – El Chorro and Granada in the mountains.</span></span></div>
</div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-3691678093411415162016-12-05T11:31:00.001-08:002016-12-05T11:34:30.548-08:00Rain, black bulls and white villages in Espagne<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBKHVWbfTy3bp_n8PhZKRDVuuPCMi1MjS6oR-waqFgGfqL1shabSbq0YvXz-SeiwlbhBJNtHe7Wk9tjijmnJqQksAOx4qlgxK0tzjLq9gqOba4l4lDr3bodiqr2jm-rpRjAiWaMCPbpaW4/s1600/DSCF8137.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBKHVWbfTy3bp_n8PhZKRDVuuPCMi1MjS6oR-waqFgGfqL1shabSbq0YvXz-SeiwlbhBJNtHe7Wk9tjijmnJqQksAOx4qlgxK0tzjLq9gqOba4l4lDr3bodiqr2jm-rpRjAiWaMCPbpaW4/s400/DSCF8137.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
After the loss of
Howard and Hilda we headed for the coast for some R & R, sitting
in the sun in a little camp ground. Grass of sorts was on the ground
which is a luxury in campgrounds in Europe – there are a lot of
dusty campsites that become yukky when wet and trail muck into the
truck if I am not vigilant re fellow truck-dweller.</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
The second day it
started to rain, the next day thunder was roiling in the distance,
jagged flashes of lighting striking out across the bright turquoise
sea. The sky joining the sea on the horizon was a matt
ashy-charcoal, very dramatic. Two ships offshore, one listing
severely to starboard. Every day we looked, the ships remained the
same – a mystery we shall never solve.</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
The rain kept
coming, the pools of water in the camp got larger and we sat tight
watching TV shows and movie files that we could agree on. Books.
Eating. Internet. Peering out at the neighbours. We studied the
forecasts and decided everywhere in southern Spain was getting a
lashing, the news reported 10 people died in the flooding so we were
looking pretty good really.
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
When the weather
cleared, the race was on to get to the washing machine first. I
bagged first wash but had to fall back in the queue for the next
load. Alfonso (campman) had a large enclosed marquee that trapped the
heat, I strung our laundry out to dry in it – done in next to no
time.</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
The nearby village
was far from picturesque, the houses and gardens neat and trim but
rubbish collected in the pot-holed main street – often next to the
huge bins provided by the council. The horticultural activities
interspersed between the houses had their own refuse accumulating
around them. The beach was a long horseshoe of golden sand but each
tide bought in a fresh collection of plastic bottles, nets, and other
depressing matter, to add to that flushed out by the village
stormwater.
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
We visited a coffee
shop close to the camp many times, the proprietors were no more
friendly on day one than the day we left. Stuart used the Google ap
on his phone to translate the menu with a view to lunch, he aimed the
phone at the menu and Google translated it. Nothing took our fancy
that day – the word ‘lizard’ popped up a few times. I didn’t
believe it until I Googled it, and yes – this area does eat
lizards.</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjO7GRI_QwKTqWjQzL4OiZLj19PsURw8Ktf5A5R5dbXjv6qvNINzPUqzo2oSUvSKslZBNPPFp1sIgxw7voW6kyLQXpKe2lgq2RE1rW8W4Vj8APbLFIwi_H94ePWVxhDyqg638tSETDsFPX/s1600/DSCF8079.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjO7GRI_QwKTqWjQzL4OiZLj19PsURw8Ktf5A5R5dbXjv6qvNINzPUqzo2oSUvSKslZBNPPFp1sIgxw7voW6kyLQXpKe2lgq2RE1rW8W4Vj8APbLFIwi_H94ePWVxhDyqg638tSETDsFPX/s320/DSCF8079.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View from truck at Puerto de Santa Maria</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Puerto de Santa
Maria and Cadiz beckoned. A short drive south and my faith was
restored, all was clean and tidy. We parked next to a river in a
secure carpark, no rubbish along the river or the perimeter fence.
The view across the river is whitewashed houses with palm trees in
front and the streets have extravagent Christmas lighting. Does this
town see a lot more government, EU or tourist Euro? No lizard on the
menus, and the barman not only gave me the manzanilla I requested (a
dry sherry served chilled) but he bought out 2 other types for me to
taste. </div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
We rushed our lunch
to catch the catamaran ferry to Cadiz (pronounced with a lisp). All
was good until the skipper attempted to crank up the revs to ‘plane
– “un problemo” he said and made a looping gesture with his
hand. We turned back and spent the rest of the day exploring the
lovely P. d Santa Maria. The historical centre has sherry bodgas
(wine houses), the biggest of which was Osborne. Osborne had supplied
large black bull cut outs emblazoned with their name on hoardings
around Spain, the black bull is their logo. These large cut outs
that loom on the horizon no longer bear the Osborne name but are all
made in the same style.
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikQkIip9Iw_il6kTF9RzQWCRqudknYr1O6O4IBTVJcZiVArfLYvcuPebNz3Ydj2DhtB9DODoYa3kdo7hNAhPmGcGeDlZ0gYssunzhEsPB8kMTMs-Kry9-2fZo4Ept8ZnDFwKRkP1SYlJF_/s1600/DSCF8139.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikQkIip9Iw_il6kTF9RzQWCRqudknYr1O6O4IBTVJcZiVArfLYvcuPebNz3Ydj2DhtB9DODoYa3kdo7hNAhPmGcGeDlZ0gYssunzhEsPB8kMTMs-Kry9-2fZo4Ept8ZnDFwKRkP1SYlJF_/s320/DSCF8139.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo credit Stuart</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Talking of bulls, I
have an abhorrence for bull fights, rodeos and suchlike but there was
a very well preserved bull ring in P.d Santa Maria and for the sum of
$NZ5 each Stuart and I stepped into the ring and I twirled the matador
cape. I know, I felt bad even being there but ...... We were the only
people there (others had more sensibilities). The cape is incredibly
heavy, it reminded me of PVC fabric, not easy to twirl.</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Houses in the
historical centre have large studded doors that when propped open
revealed elegant tiled atriums. The atriums often lead through iron
gates to leafy courtyard gardens. I slowed my pace to get glimpses
of what looked like very desirable residences.</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY7-FK9LYsPYlScnTRoGl_ZNUros64isgx-AqBBcKq46RsHxmKd5DWCz0OYfYBT0y_szVbIcuWW8SBaSHd0oPXvCh_CvP92j7boOP1B4UcC70Cpn3YCoA1FNn-w3g7jDCiNNSNwedBeXZc/s1600/DSCF8228.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY7-FK9LYsPYlScnTRoGl_ZNUros64isgx-AqBBcKq46RsHxmKd5DWCz0OYfYBT0y_szVbIcuWW8SBaSHd0oPXvCh_CvP92j7boOP1B4UcC70Cpn3YCoA1FNn-w3g7jDCiNNSNwedBeXZc/s320/DSCF8228.jpg" width="226" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo credit Stuart</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoQyI-Q6X7OcOOzhUE480GKxUUJ-tCvn7q5wR01wQ2OR0-QnbFqH0MNXrMA-zuJIQdf24gD_HoU9PwImHSMKJbsMXyEMKmx5Jq9ODl8wQL3hJfL0zKYAXjfGFYw2Vz72k-uTOjXuMeOkwu/s1600/DSCF8167.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoQyI-Q6X7OcOOzhUE480GKxUUJ-tCvn7q5wR01wQ2OR0-QnbFqH0MNXrMA-zuJIQdf24gD_HoU9PwImHSMKJbsMXyEMKmx5Jq9ODl8wQL3hJfL0zKYAXjfGFYw2Vz72k-uTOjXuMeOkwu/s320/DSCF8167.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cadiz</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
The new shoes went on their maiden voyage to Cadiz, the ferry was no longer broken but it was too windy! A coach was arranged for the passengers. Does the coach depart at the same time as the ferry? What do you think?</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
</div>
<div style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Cadiz dates back to 800BC when it was settled by Phoenician traders (origins from around the coastal Syria/Lebanon/Israel area). There wasn’t much left from that era but there were layers of architecture from different eras in the old part of the city. Cadiz was the departure point for explorers going to the Americas and the receiving point of riches that were shipped back to the mother country.</div>
<div style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihgUPPGRo-NJwrDskrTyNe7kHlWHiJ5b5mjM1hTkJkqoH-38m3K9AP6WBmEGNxQX8U0OlGan_I_LK5ofAqrcG381Z2kcb6JSStA_zTuAfZlOg6QEMQ1tP9qrQVUrQPGXz9Wj2nxkot_KcB/s1600/DSCF8277.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihgUPPGRo-NJwrDskrTyNe7kHlWHiJ5b5mjM1hTkJkqoH-38m3K9AP6WBmEGNxQX8U0OlGan_I_LK5ofAqrcG381Z2kcb6JSStA_zTuAfZlOg6QEMQ1tP9qrQVUrQPGXz9Wj2nxkot_KcB/s320/DSCF8277.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Arcos de la Fronterra*<br />
*(means frontier between Christian and Muslim settlements)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
We had heard about
the ‘white villages’ of Andalucia and set off on a three day
tour. The villages were all either on the top of a hill or spreading
up the hillside. Every building was white and box-like in
construction. Streets were narrow, immaculate and no place for a
truck like Chausson to attempt. The drive between the villages was
lovely, we could see where the cork oaks had been de-barked for their
cork. Gnarled olives dotted the hills and goats, sheep and lambs
grazed the fields. We tried some of the prize-winning local cheese
but remained unmoved.</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
We stopped for the
night at the base of Grazalema village and dined in on asparagus,
chicken fillets with lemon and rosemary (plucked from the
aforementioned village) together roasted potato cubes and salad. The
following day we set off over a high narrow pass with spectacular
views. The road looked like a single lane but two vehicles could
squeeze past very carefully and slowly. The view from the top was
stupendous. Griffon vultures wheeled overhead, their wide wingspans
catching the thermals. We went past a few more white villages and
then before we knew it, we were in the midst of one – a big white
box on wheels surrounded by white plaster box houses.</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
Fortunately it was
Saturday siesta time and there was not much activity, Stuart stopped
in the only place possible and I asked a Westie-looking guy hanging
outside a bar for the road to Ronda. I only said ‘Ronda’ and
gave an expansive Gallic shrug. Too much for him, he directed me
into the bar where I did the same. I was accompanied out and we were
pointed down a narrow street. It would not have been too bad if a
car wasn’t parked taking half the available road, but to add
difficulty the whole street had rainbow-painted terracotta pots
attached outside the houses. Stuart squeezed Chausson’s big bum
through with just millimetres to spare, keeping one eye on the parked
car on and the other on the terracotta pots hanging just above head
height.</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
We set our sights on
Ronda after an uneasy night parked in the national park with rain
thundering down on the roof, I had visions of us getting stuck but
the ground held reasonably firm. People had told us we must visit
Ronda so that is where we are going next. Then afterwards the coast
beckons, I hope it has dried out.</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtrGFJKp3zBOqTqff2PFH7jNIrGZ5iiS-WxQfdBUYkS1NGd0xvABzUuOGZH9IwDdTNtv6U1bdbheTe1wbULhq4iQKsU-ZxTdStT6xc6Bc1IOmBcVg9cUIYgWKMcGcIduVy_vw9LsZs5AkZ/s1600/DSCF8281.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtrGFJKp3zBOqTqff2PFH7jNIrGZ5iiS-WxQfdBUYkS1NGd0xvABzUuOGZH9IwDdTNtv6U1bdbheTe1wbULhq4iQKsU-ZxTdStT6xc6Bc1IOmBcVg9cUIYgWKMcGcIduVy_vw9LsZs5AkZ/s320/DSCF8281.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
</div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-35077162612830044072016-11-27T02:35:00.002-08:002016-11-27T02:37:34.995-08:00A mosque-cathedral, Howard and Hilda abducted<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8-wD9KSm0Zvs3iMAe4S_E0N3z1H5aWlxsElwnO0QMrr_lgfiEvioCVzf1SSkqr3aIz0LDF5lF7WS9Tu6joFvwUp0Cq-5ZjQfBwpQf_zjuzKI_BK2ioVuQXliWnXAV2efu0yw3bEwbrXrn/s1600/DSCF7919.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8-wD9KSm0Zvs3iMAe4S_E0N3z1H5aWlxsElwnO0QMrr_lgfiEvioCVzf1SSkqr3aIz0LDF5lF7WS9Tu6joFvwUp0Cq-5ZjQfBwpQf_zjuzKI_BK2ioVuQXliWnXAV2efu0yw3bEwbrXrn/s400/DSCF7919.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Frites
cooked for us by our Belgian neighbour under his awning in the rain.
A lovely treat; we said goodbye and thank you to our friends at the
campsite at Penarroya-Pueblonueova including mama, who I think was
extolling me to wear socks. I was ‘kiwi-style’, wearing flip
flops in the rain to save getting my shoes dirty. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We set off with no water in the truck as we didn’t want to fill our tank with the non-potable water
pumped from the nearby lake. </span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">We drove off in the rain, t</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">he
satnav set
to Cordoba, with a via point
of a Lidl supermarket. Lidl had goodies galore, some Lidls have an array of upmarket items
and I have
trouble restricting myself.
I popped a packet of whole
candied orange slices dipped in dark chocolate into the trolley along
with some truffle pasta. There was a whole aisle
of pick and mix frozen seafood, I only chose the peeled raw prawns. It all seems too hard dealing with full crustaceans in the tiny kitchen now that daylight and the weather is
against us. Shame. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Stuart assigns himself the task of perusing the
wine selection and choosing
his staff of life - bread.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQjsNPLe6o9ox2jnP5gPFbPJ4W0rFD1oggdcFaxXn5VYMJBt5b78vpdx1Lvkc_QPtZs2ENC92fhy-opRGu2BjHSpCBaecF24uHZQusNe7jVt3yfR1FRP2V94evbwJBE6D8X6B7Kd0f9QEO/s1600/DSCF7890.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="203" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQjsNPLe6o9ox2jnP5gPFbPJ4W0rFD1oggdcFaxXn5VYMJBt5b78vpdx1Lvkc_QPtZs2ENC92fhy-opRGu2BjHSpCBaecF24uHZQusNe7jVt3yfR1FRP2V94evbwJBE6D8X6B7Kd0f9QEO/s320/DSCF7890.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Inside mosque-cathedral</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">We
parked in a free carpark and
walked alongside the river
to the Mosque-Cathedral of
Cordoba.</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">It
ranks with me as one of the best buildings I have visited, along with
the Taj Mahal in Agra. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">It
was originally a Christian
church built
in the mid 700s, recycled
as a mosque, but in 1236
consecrated as a Catholic church. Later
there were alterations to
create a beautiful chapel in the middle of
the mosque that brings light
into the interior of this
enormous
building. It
is the only place where you can worship Mass in a mosque.</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Stepping
into the mosque-cathedral
was awe-inspiring</span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">; double
rows of striped arches -
red brick alternating
with white stone set on a forest of 856 pillars. Islamic style
candelabras hang from carved
beams, lighting
an eerie but striking
atmosphere. Outside the rows
of pillars are replicated with rows of orange trees in the former
Muslim ablutions patio.</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFxMixaSme32BHejpTNf6rg3aprvvvst7rJCMfkiq9Tb5iz-o_JayPbOnLfrgkq4s2QboU6UXYdifXpqOXmz8TUaM-4tYYK4g4O_br4KxIx3iWhf2LQSelpFWtnKkqId4suw2MLHHMDLLf/s1600/DSCF7911.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFxMixaSme32BHejpTNf6rg3aprvvvst7rJCMfkiq9Tb5iz-o_JayPbOnLfrgkq4s2QboU6UXYdifXpqOXmz8TUaM-4tYYK4g4O_br4KxIx3iWhf2LQSelpFWtnKkqId4suw2MLHHMDLLf/s320/DSCF7911.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A street so narrow, only a tiny car can fit - others scrape on the kerb</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We
picked our way back to the
truck through the old
Islamic and Judaic quarters, one
road was so narrow car tyres scrape along the curb on either side.
I took a photo of a tiny Kia following a disabled scooter - just the right size. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">On the way to Seville
the
rain stopped and we passed endless fields of olive and orange trees, the land
was refreshed by the rain and the fields had lost their dusty look.</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXJsbppKxz683sNmzNOylb5XdRAFzQqSHzGAS87riR5yQkWQ96Byv-g-498R0rOwQLFUPPvGWOKA9Wt9safauD-Hzmnlq7mzayzZLpkj4ubETwH3hc1Tvrhv8RM6KukF1vtHrdcnkcqDAc/s1600/DSCF7949.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXJsbppKxz683sNmzNOylb5XdRAFzQqSHzGAS87riR5yQkWQ96Byv-g-498R0rOwQLFUPPvGWOKA9Wt9safauD-Hzmnlq7mzayzZLpkj4ubETwH3hc1Tvrhv8RM6KukF1vtHrdcnkcqDAc/s320/DSCF7949.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Seville</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The aire we stayed at in Seville is conveniently located across the river from the centre of town but talk about ugly! </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">It is also a loading area for cars on transporter trucks, the strong perimeter fence </span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">keeps out windblown rubbish, street dogs and other undesirables. The wifi is hopeless and the showers cold.</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvvykcWQx9TW0ZmsLFHMrUY6Hv8J-A4VYEKcO0N-BK4n6bL4jd2gm1Wm2hdcvVqWbLsWzuFcNaKn88_zi43qE0ipXZyg1XdOKn1cgohXozLgnJFeNg9Y91X8wPNljbfmjBdTR16AJZYucy/s1600/DSCF7960.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvvykcWQx9TW0ZmsLFHMrUY6Hv8J-A4VYEKcO0N-BK4n6bL4jd2gm1Wm2hdcvVqWbLsWzuFcNaKn88_zi43qE0ipXZyg1XdOKn1cgohXozLgnJFeNg9Y91X8wPNljbfmjBdTR16AJZYucy/s320/DSCF7960.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Seville</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Sevilles inner shopping area had lots of shoe shops, that </span><u style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">don’t</u><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">
have that big close down period, only re-opening when I am too tired
to be bothered. I found the shoes I wanted, then had to cart them all
around the Real Alcazar (royal castle). The Alcazar is very Islamic
in style with lots of intricate details, gardens and orange trees. We
got lost a couple of times and had to ask for help to exit, battling through thickets of selfie sticks.</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The
Alcazar is next to the largest cathedral in the world, in the plaza horses and buggies wait patiently to give (sell) rides to tourists.
After seeing the castle, the cathedral is all too much, tomorrow would be another day. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">As Christmas is only a month away, sellers of nativity
scene paraphernalia had filled temporary shops in the main plaza near
the cathedral with their wares. The scale of nativity merchandise on
sale made Stuart shake his head. It is a new concept for him. There
were items like tiny hams, baskets of lentils, herds of sheep,
shepherds, all like those model railway dioramas. The item I liked
best was a scooter carrying Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus - a donkey and cow are in the sidecar.</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHld5qtYm1kdu-FQCBWK0ig9_KYriRvwliz_weHu1tbvjrSeNwm14LQ3fOT_OWJ-HDxJS3sI2wGl-WK3W3c1KroUd1bJ4L58c64XkMfdL7_WiSbjuCwWIRlY4rMp-8N81eqEC60hSAHejJ/s1600/DSCF7984.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHld5qtYm1kdu-FQCBWK0ig9_KYriRvwliz_weHu1tbvjrSeNwm14LQ3fOT_OWJ-HDxJS3sI2wGl-WK3W3c1KroUd1bJ4L58c64XkMfdL7_WiSbjuCwWIRlY4rMp-8N81eqEC60hSAHejJ/s320/DSCF7984.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Real Alcazar, Seville - photo credit Stuart</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The
following day was not so good, after having a bad sleep with an
insomniac truckie waterblasting his truck at 2.00am we cycled into
Seville. Intending to see the worlds largest cathedral we locked
Howard and Hilda together while we stopped for a coffee. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Returning to
the railing all that remained was our cable lock cut cleanly. About
20 metres away was a police car, we tapped on the window and the
good-looking young man carefully marked the place in the book he was
reading, and shook his head. We are to report the theft to the
National Police but there is no hope of rescuing Howard and Hilda.</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We
didn’t feel like visiting the worlds biggest cathedral then and set off
for the long walk back to collect Chausson and head for the coast.
The aire had been recommended by someone we met at Honfleur in
France, right by the beach and close to tapas bars. It was more like
a campsite catering soley to motorhomes with electric hook up,
ablutions and good wifi. Alfonso greeted us as he greets all
prospective campers, showing us a large sunny grassy plot and giving
us the run-down on the local amenities. We think he must have ESP or
a little camera in his office as he is quick off the mark making sure
potential customers don’t slip away. (we don’t have a lot to do
at the moment!)</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEK7OOjtqpF2XPkjqlYSBYOI1nYRmi3hmOFBawiGLl0iaZLn3zdP6vC55d87D-7DW35-dZYCNhjCfz5QC0NzGkvPZo9qXUbFG9NImmmi69xBJ8TG3Ntez6mTSw0RRIGz01bV8LSF8Z7u3u/s1600/DSCF8008.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEK7OOjtqpF2XPkjqlYSBYOI1nYRmi3hmOFBawiGLl0iaZLn3zdP6vC55d87D-7DW35-dZYCNhjCfz5QC0NzGkvPZo9qXUbFG9NImmmi69xBJ8TG3Ntez6mTSw0RRIGz01bV8LSF8Z7u3u/s320/DSCF8008.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Inside Real Alcazar</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Without
Howard and Hilda we can’t cycle the nearby rail-trail to
the next town, I don’t suppose Howard and Hildas' new life as ‘street-bikes’
will be as cloistered as their life with us. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We are truckin on southward with the intention of going to Gilbraltar, we had thought of parking the truck and visiting Morocco but I don't know about that, I have seen a little of India in Spain already ... </span></div>
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Adios until next time</span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZTY8BwHvQ7NPWzJsuICh0Jhmge1U8_otqeJlFmfdX7eALuLtbrFIpnNdccQLCft8cisE1Ng5YBvZ94zp5S_bRQzqmFW6lDIKSN3OPyPa7xDV0cy_Fw4PUZ948MXRaUWyyhZZXUkh9zgE4/s1600/DSCF8041.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="299" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZTY8BwHvQ7NPWzJsuICh0Jhmge1U8_otqeJlFmfdX7eALuLtbrFIpnNdccQLCft8cisE1Ng5YBvZ94zp5S_bRQzqmFW6lDIKSN3OPyPa7xDV0cy_Fw4PUZ948MXRaUWyyhZZXUkh9zgE4/s320/DSCF8041.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Modern nativity twist</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc4JpGKImJUnTe3WQc4GdONh4l8M0kTiTcd8jJC6i9GH1mV2mgsoWiBOjlZCf2QOdAVteXlf9SnXfEk-GCYqzIu1rTFVAyCCelCjJIz6gR5C4RFOZfIksS7olOdH9hYRTEDZrxyvArP43h/s1600/DSCF4053.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc4JpGKImJUnTe3WQc4GdONh4l8M0kTiTcd8jJC6i9GH1mV2mgsoWiBOjlZCf2QOdAVteXlf9SnXfEk-GCYqzIu1rTFVAyCCelCjJIz6gR5C4RFOZfIksS7olOdH9hYRTEDZrxyvArP43h/s320/DSCF4053.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hilda, as I remember her</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
</div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com1Maghreb25.6422079 2.46041450000007-2.6102351000000006 -38.848179499999929 53.8946509 43.769008500000069tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-87343784425988017292016-11-20T02:27:00.000-08:002016-11-20T02:27:02.403-08:00Espagne encore, serendipity and silhouettes<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcf7zJYfVoxYyq1Pd7cZ_LNbRm-g4HSpLSzPMY6N9dq5feYKw3Mq3d8ceSGBV4wnWA123PSNM-7kgC9yAWI88v69rIGpTBhaYYcEfhMR-B6wcIYZSPcUzNPhcObWQqFfEkrNK8SRIrL8GG/s1600/DSCF7634.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcf7zJYfVoxYyq1Pd7cZ_LNbRm-g4HSpLSzPMY6N9dq5feYKw3Mq3d8ceSGBV4wnWA123PSNM-7kgC9yAWI88v69rIGpTBhaYYcEfhMR-B6wcIYZSPcUzNPhcObWQqFfEkrNK8SRIrL8GG/s400/DSCF7634.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Farewell
to the pastel de nata (custard tarts) of Portugal and hello to
churros of Spain. I prefer the tarts, but dipping the crispy churros
sticks into thick chocolate has a certain je ne sais quoi (or Spanish
equivalent).</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSEBGj3Dmvox1rj8jGZqOliW7gT1gVnt7zQGHOeGKGA-9jiv6YNj1uu84d6C9V2fPlQWfiUWJTLsFxSWTmiSZOVG2NM7hA9lu9DxHjLdTyTsOlhX5u2rxWCfiVSDW67dQgzQwG1U-CO-In/s1600/DSCF7591.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSEBGj3Dmvox1rj8jGZqOliW7gT1gVnt7zQGHOeGKGA-9jiv6YNj1uu84d6C9V2fPlQWfiUWJTLsFxSWTmiSZOVG2NM7hA9lu9DxHjLdTyTsOlhX5u2rxWCfiVSDW67dQgzQwG1U-CO-In/s320/DSCF7591.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">La Alberca Plaza</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Hello
also to a massive amount of air cured hams, we visited </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">the
small</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> town </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">of
La Alberca,</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> popular with
Spanish tourists, and </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">watched</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">
the hams being walked away under </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">peoples’</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">
arms. These hams hang from the ceilings in shops and are on the
counters of bars, set up in a special torture device to have wafer
like slivers carved off. </span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">La Alberca was one of the </span><span style="font-size: 14.6667px;">serendipitous</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> events to happen recently, we didn’t quite throw a
dice but ended up at this amazing little place with narrow alleys
flanked by ramshackle houses build of stone, wood beams and plaster.
The houses were tightly packed, in some places the sun would have a
job reaching the cobbles on the ground. Some houses had the year of
construction carved into the lintels above the door, most dating to
18 century.</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvu0rGj_2_ufbJLMYGv7-TsWdqlGV9QMPVQjX33k-hJ5gUKk5vAWQ1uApYKibBg8rPkSclap959S8UbE5_zLTNZclOZUrxqNsv8qDQIZMZgYu2IfgpDwTJTi-lUTj2a63DqlKtAjjXSA36/s1600/DSCF7620.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvu0rGj_2_ufbJLMYGv7-TsWdqlGV9QMPVQjX33k-hJ5gUKk5vAWQ1uApYKibBg8rPkSclap959S8UbE5_zLTNZclOZUrxqNsv8qDQIZMZgYu2IfgpDwTJTi-lUTj2a63DqlKtAjjXSA36/s320/DSCF7620.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Portraits on the outside of houses in Mogarrez</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We
drove about 7 km from La Alberca through oak forests that were
showing off their autumn finery, to arrive at Mogarrez. It had similar
very old houses, all neatly restored but the difference was there
were over 400 portraits on the outside of the houses of past and
present residents. The pictures were started in the 60s when poverty
drove many locals overseas to seek work. They needed ID cards and
these inspired the portraits.</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Back
in the truck, this time a drive across a Sierra plateau to spend the
night at Salamanca. A very attractive town with large cathedral and
square. The square had plaques with reliefs of the heads of past
leaders, Franco was there – his plaque covered in a plastic bag
because of vandalism problems. The other thing I remember about
Salamanca was seeing a spaceman carved into the gold sandstone
outside the cathedral door – a contribution from the last
renovation period in the 1990s. Isn’t Lonely Planet helpful as a
spotter’s guide?</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMxcc4J79ntpylmcM5FVYPwf1Zews_Sua-B_u2cTcZ9U4NQFP2c047sM0K3Qa8-l1JGPc8QFlQ2U0gFBLpqqO13otBNQtPJTqZgrMuPJXwxyO6qPfSeAM1yIadCpHlRIB4-i3AcTbAxnIO/s1600/DSCF7629.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMxcc4J79ntpylmcM5FVYPwf1Zews_Sua-B_u2cTcZ9U4NQFP2c047sM0K3Qa8-l1JGPc8QFlQ2U0gFBLpqqO13otBNQtPJTqZgrMuPJXwxyO6qPfSeAM1yIadCpHlRIB4-i3AcTbAxnIO/s320/DSCF7629.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Salamanca, view not far from where we stayed</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The
wind whistled across the high plateau and as we neared Segovia we
could see mountains dusted with snow on the horizon. As we drove
closer I got up and turned the diesel heater on, to warm up the living
area in the truck. I sometimes wonder if this looks alarming to
drivers in on-coming vehicles as they think I am in the drivers seat.
Starting the heater when we are driving saves power in the batteries as the start up uses a lot of energy. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI7nOZyncPfYbNKwG81nqSOJSDOBzY-3g8rWbH4EazsHpxhHPTPyWdePfucTuYO9u2MX98dqVwBFzmBfroda5zVw0qoBeDQHW55jZQcXk73EGsRZ_otDKpO_Zl6cR-OASPFbFHP_DRVlyl/s1600/DSCF7644.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI7nOZyncPfYbNKwG81nqSOJSDOBzY-3g8rWbH4EazsHpxhHPTPyWdePfucTuYO9u2MX98dqVwBFzmBfroda5zVw0qoBeDQHW55jZQcXk73EGsRZ_otDKpO_Zl6cR-OASPFbFHP_DRVlyl/s320/DSCF7644.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Aqueduct in Segovia</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Segovia
is a fabulous town with a huge Roman aqueduct in the middle of town –
2 layers of arches and all in pristine condition. The water from the aqueduct
disappears underground and there are plaques in the streets tracing
its route. The tourist office directed us to the aire in town, behind
the disused bull ring, we shared it with another motorhome from GB and stood in the bitter cold wind
</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">trading notes.(We don't meet many native English speakers).</span><br />
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">Segovia had a castle, Alcazar, in the old quarter that once again, was supposed to be the inspiration behind Disney’s Sleeping Beauty castle, we didn't go in but admired its setting on the edge of a canyon.</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgJroim22u-ydgy518eysbgqPxcmoHZtR_2gJJ3Cwjd7yjb-VdJYJTvOuoJx9bVbag7D0hUPn3hGvgDliPPXWY-MSL6hTkhIpTyNV7IeVZqUBC3nkArKmWmHXbmvz4KihTVHrlOoZxVkFc/s1600/DSCF7663.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgJroim22u-ydgy518eysbgqPxcmoHZtR_2gJJ3Cwjd7yjb-VdJYJTvOuoJx9bVbag7D0hUPn3hGvgDliPPXWY-MSL6hTkhIpTyNV7IeVZqUBC3nkArKmWmHXbmvz4KihTVHrlOoZxVkFc/s320/DSCF7663.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alcazar, castle in Segovia</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><i>"In
a bar in Toledo</i> ...."</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Not
the same Toledo, this one had bright sunny skies with cool air,
perfect for exploring the back streets of this lovely town. Lovely
but busy – phew, we thought we were never going to find a park. The
Spanish are inventive parkers – even parking over the entrance to
carparks.</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">I was inventive with my lunch choice as well and had to
have churros and chocolate to make up for the great heap of orange
oily breadcrumbs with an egg on top – not at the same place of
course. Stuart was safe with the beefburger.</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Serendipity
is the word again – we stopped at Consuegra where the satnav had
her wicked way sending us up narrow back streets to get to a park
that held 13 windmills and a castle. She was the small price to pay
for such a fabulous place to stay. Stuart was beside himself,
swarming up the hillside with
his camera to catch the
final rays of sun on the whitewashed walls of the windmills. </span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7zTd1nWbUoMmRVvMVjNPGkfQqHmX19bLO4mQciZEkDqOHIWE_RzeSiTEgtV7JIIo6JTKeKmP5st3UJA3WUu16ictvjQXSoKp6Am9U5jlDgl9JaEKBH50viRXCjbhlG0lBXRhCL9vaDudD/s1600/DSCF7812.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7zTd1nWbUoMmRVvMVjNPGkfQqHmX19bLO4mQciZEkDqOHIWE_RzeSiTEgtV7JIIo6JTKeKmP5st3UJA3WUu16ictvjQXSoKp6Am9U5jlDgl9JaEKBH50viRXCjbhlG0lBXRhCL9vaDudD/s400/DSCF7812.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Windmills at Consuegra</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">We just struck lucky because there are so few places in our book of aires to stay in
Spain and Consuegra was the only one anywhere near our route. </span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">We
are in Don Quixote country and his silhouette along with his
companion Sancho Panza feature on sign boards along the way. It is
wide </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">open country</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">
with olive </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">trees planted in
endless neat rows and ditto for small bush-like grapevines. All around us large geometric dusty paddocks are being prepared for crops and
farmers are adding smoke haze to the dusty look by burning cuttings. We see silhouettes on the horizon of large black anatomically correct bulls - I wonder if they are government standard issue as they all look the same. Black pigs graze under cork oak trees in bucolic bliss, however judging by the amount of pork available these must be the lucky ones.</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">We are enjoying a couple of days off travelling, staying in a funny little backwater with a mama as the camp warden. She speaks no English and has her customers translate for each other, a Belgian man explained the ropes to us and we in turned explained things to a German couple. She has sold me eggs, a laundry service or two and tried selling me homemade soap and, I think, the benefits of being vegetarian. I have been cornered several times - I don't understand so she repeats it all in rapid fire Spanish.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAD8EAUCUKP_1HRqlAYJfuCZvmQoURFuw2qZC_97l73WQYlYKDx2UBBCa63l4m_r6cEVx2E7-aHReWJjb1CYAxjKMAytCLIymrcYB6cLUHIvn3RhoeCIgZx-vR8RpzDm_3JFFfksaiVMgP/s1600/IMG_0315.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAD8EAUCUKP_1HRqlAYJfuCZvmQoURFuw2qZC_97l73WQYlYKDx2UBBCa63l4m_r6cEVx2E7-aHReWJjb1CYAxjKMAytCLIymrcYB6cLUHIvn3RhoeCIgZx-vR8RpzDm_3JFFfksaiVMgP/s320/IMG_0315.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stuart outside impressive Travel Truck</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">We spent an evening with the German couple who showed us the inside of their truck. Their favourite destination is Mongolia and they have visited all the 'Stans', Uzebeckistan etc</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The spare wheel on the back weighs a massive 140kg, and has a special lifting device. The truck is a rebuilt Mercedes fire engine and even has ducted aircon inside. There are metal ramps on the side to make bridges for difficult crossings. Some of the roads are so bad they have had broken springs, but found the people in Eastern Europe to be helpful getting them going again.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">When we get the inclination we will head south towards Seville but in the meantime we are satiating ourselves on wifi, sunshine and electricity.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY1jwVeNn6DNpy9V1_L7K6GQF-MFKmMoubXbLxGcX1dnrYCG0JKCY9C8LTCAd69k0fZx7SdKMWMyYJklCl41E9ahnyhvFbXYFgZPmoEpvt3rILY6qcwq0CemBS9MHcHy13AUj6BoMw7MGw/s1600/DSCF7813.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY1jwVeNn6DNpy9V1_L7K6GQF-MFKmMoubXbLxGcX1dnrYCG0JKCY9C8LTCAd69k0fZx7SdKMWMyYJklCl41E9ahnyhvFbXYFgZPmoEpvt3rILY6qcwq0CemBS9MHcHy13AUj6BoMw7MGw/s320/DSCF7813.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8O_x-4PN57QVI5wMbz87qNLymgAZ2CcE9dIz8_eb6Tt2oMpjrNuUiyFzGKcrub7orSxFYVvUYUlQwX0lkomkCc2R-dFYY-KNHMgsaHHw59M2cRUkZmDaIEa9AQKEkGXVEu3mFqFq9H-ij/s1600/DSCF7799.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="156" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8O_x-4PN57QVI5wMbz87qNLymgAZ2CcE9dIz8_eb6Tt2oMpjrNuUiyFzGKcrub7orSxFYVvUYUlQwX0lkomkCc2R-dFYY-KNHMgsaHHw59M2cRUkZmDaIEa9AQKEkGXVEu3mFqFq9H-ij/s320/DSCF7799.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5285533522043032964.post-32418427445207024152016-11-15T01:44:00.000-08:002016-11-18T07:09:03.363-08:00Progressing to Portugal<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUeYkXqRfScXf7jYmtX8ruOg4N134WqDvFm867kmaklQR6IigziOV4HKOxrARoJse3QgD6_UhqPDpd4RLYNn87tjgZGZkJ2PXhzg5mXcj1ZR9QyA0dQJ7YAmLllZ88ayXUqHTaATvcnfkA/s1600/DSCF7539.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUeYkXqRfScXf7jYmtX8ruOg4N134WqDvFm867kmaklQR6IigziOV4HKOxrARoJse3QgD6_UhqPDpd4RLYNn87tjgZGZkJ2PXhzg5mXcj1ZR9QyA0dQJ7YAmLllZ88ayXUqHTaATvcnfkA/s400/DSCF7539.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The
drive from Spain to Portugal was one of the nicest we had been on in
a while – lots of green eucalyptus trees and a great road. Our
destination was a really pleasant surprise as well, Ponte de Lima.
The little town is named after the multi-arched (31) medieval bridge
that crosses the Lima river. The town displays a great deal of civic
pride with lots of statues. Apart from the usual stamping and
snorting bulls and mounted cavalrymen, there are large statutes of
musicans and farming folk. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">A
French man parked next to us was doing repairs to an oops on his
motorhome with man’s best friend – silver duct tape. Stuart
offered him some of his white tape to cover up the silver and act as
the ‘invisible mend’, he was effusive in thanks, standing back to
admire his handiwork. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjk3D5P6SZP3zdP2XE9zaz3MgQHKI-ZaaRoA7FGUDAnehcvonFFZtyGciJ0mKEViakffiHHO19YdMqb66HfWK8X7jPWC4SlySe4Lf7KayQ4mjPY9nV4dfQEHRjcMsd-cpQp7h1gP-KQ5Ps/s1600/DSCF7416.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjk3D5P6SZP3zdP2XE9zaz3MgQHKI-ZaaRoA7FGUDAnehcvonFFZtyGciJ0mKEViakffiHHO19YdMqb66HfWK8X7jPWC4SlySe4Lf7KayQ4mjPY9nV4dfQEHRjcMsd-cpQp7h1gP-KQ5Ps/s320/DSCF7416.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ponte de Lima, Roman soldiers crossing river</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Porto
– the home of port wine is a ‘must see’, and we headed to the
coast to a campsite at Vila Cha where we could catch the metro into
the city. The campsite was in the low season and I don’t know why,
but we were sent to the end furthest from reception (ie wifi) passing
all the other motorhomes. Not only was it furthest away but the
access was tree-lined and narrow, Stuart steered this way and that to
avoid taking out a wing-mirror or corner of the truck. Our designated
area seemed to be the home for stray cats and kittens and they were
always on the lookout for an open motorhome door to jump into. I love
cats but these didn’t look very healthy, poor wee things, I felt
bad shooing them out.</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">In
the morning we shared a taxi ride to the metro station with a French
couple. The old Mercedes had a worn out suspension and bumped and
rolled along the cobbled streets, but the driver was friendly and
spoke English, he promised to meet us at 5pm for the return trip.</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The
highlight of Porto for me was the trip through Taylors port wine
lodge established in 1692 with a tasting afterwards. We were offered
a chilled white port, aperitif style and a late bottled vintage. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Port
is made by stopping the grape juice fermenting after about 3.5 days
by adding a colourless grape spirit. This preserves some of the
natural sweetness of the grape in the finished wine. The oldest port
houses are British. A ban on importing wine from France had caused
merchants to look further afield to Spain and Portugal and to help
the wine travel better, the ‘fortification’ process was invented.
</span></span>
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The
lodge (as they are called) was up a steep cobbled road from the Douro
River. The lodges face the old area of Porto across the river, with
its narrow colourful houses piled on top of one another, it is full
of character. It is to the lodges that special vintages are bought to
be processed into various types of port, they used to travel down the
river in barrels on barges but are transported by road now. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Porto
is undergoing renovations and old buildings are being revitalised,
graffiti in Porto has been elevated to a form of art and is used in
some places as decoration to disguise otherwise ugly features. Porto
still has a long way to go though to become as elegant as its sister
city Lisbon, but that is just my personal opinion.</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We
caught the metro back and there was our driver, as promised, waiting
for us and we bumped and rattled back to the campsite where the staff
are helpful and welcoming but with the grey weather and all those
permanent caravans it is a bit depressing. I did a magazine swap
however – a lovely new ‘English House and Garden’ for a
photographic magazine, woo hoo, I miss seeing English books etc</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br />
</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjMtwuHHGSjTP8r7wAh7y9-wcWpvj3SdaJu8o3W1dUXAiH2HN88BFC2dHLo2427t5_e_rEcHUCLDQvJ5sQRZRYAGuPTuYc8JraFvUtMmdKOK8slqOGke_2HoLmweea5wtTDZ7ZRTR_gim8/s1600/DSCF7453.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjMtwuHHGSjTP8r7wAh7y9-wcWpvj3SdaJu8o3W1dUXAiH2HN88BFC2dHLo2427t5_e_rEcHUCLDQvJ5sQRZRYAGuPTuYc8JraFvUtMmdKOK8slqOGke_2HoLmweea5wtTDZ7ZRTR_gim8/s320/DSCF7453.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking across Douro to Porto old town, wine barge in foreground</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The
weather is cooler and the way to warm weather is south and coastal
but we are pressing on east and central. On our way east we stopped
at Amarante, once again there are cobbled streets and narrow roads. I
watched some small cars carefully thread themselves through a narrow
difficult turn from a medieval bridge into a square. Then I looked
from the other side of the turning and saw a sign bearing the graphic
of a caravan and tent, pointing to the camping ground. Surely a
mistake as there is no way a car towing a caravan could ever make the
turn and other options looked hopeless as well. We continued to walk
over the old bridge and saw an even bigger sign pointing in the
direction of the difficult passage to the camping ground. A separate
sign displayed the maximum length of a vehicle to be 5.5m, so if a
Mini with a tent wanted to get to the campsite they would be ok. Such
is the cruelty of satnavs and municipal officers.</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We
journeyed on to Peso da Regua, part of the way following the Douro<b>
</b>river looking out
at the vines turning gold
and crimson on the narrow terraces that rise
steeply from the river. The lines they make
look like contours
on a topo map. We continued
to follow the Douro, passing
steep fields of Chupa Chup grey/green olive trees
and ended up in the Foz Cua
valley that is famous for prehistoric
rock drawings. Such
is the demand to see the sites where archeologists are working that
even in this low season we missed out. However we took advantage of
the carpark outside the
futuristic-styled
archeology museum
building and made ourselves at home for the night. The museum
is perched on the edge of a cliff with a grand view
over the river, precision-built
drystone walls line the 2km
access road and olive and almond trees
cover the hills.
We spent time inside the
museum and came out not a
lot wiser.</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br />
</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdzxyJQsFMI5kuQnTDeg8njSWUs43Q0u1npeKiz1qt2SESKh7Knx6ZqUgs2yKhacq1oBjiJVC2U65fedebF_3nvcxE0nZ1NeSC8h4tvGI5fWchmBPa7uw3E6ZFJdGHZRL4AkaFV9sjy65m/s1600/DSCF7533.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="182" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdzxyJQsFMI5kuQnTDeg8njSWUs43Q0u1npeKiz1qt2SESKh7Knx6ZqUgs2yKhacq1oBjiJVC2U65fedebF_3nvcxE0nZ1NeSC8h4tvGI5fWchmBPa7uw3E6ZFJdGHZRL4AkaFV9sjy65m/s320/DSCF7533.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Overlooking terraces of vines above Cua, near Douro valley</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The
food in other countries is always interesting, I peruse the
supermarket shelves picking up items and wondering what they are.
Here, in
the meat chiller there are
long narrow packs of something called ‘enviserado’ - and
they looked exactly like it too – the enviserated entrails of
animal unknown. Portugal specialises in salt cod. This looks like a
fish opened up, flattened out, dried, covered in salt and as stiff as
cardboard. It is everywhere, especially on display outside shops. I
had the misfortune to accidently order it in a restaurant after I
thought I established that I was getting fresh cod. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Pastel
de nata however is a different story - crispy pastry cases with
creamy egg custard topped with a thin brulee finish. I buy two, one
for me and one for Stuart – then eat both myself. Vinho
Verde (green wine) is the Portugese equivalent of Beaujolais, a wine
that is meant to be drunk while young and fresh. Stuart
found a few of these and added them to the roaming cellar, along with
a bottle of port.</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br />
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibcJzVcgsgiFWnKuSuLW6YAR3bsiynjSS7-xXn_GCJ4wqMnTje1cTMUgEkJnd2biPojIgrASIiPp01jxVGDq1JTAaijEz6XPsso_ed7M7YbMgewld4BnUuXAwshSjpOgXosfy-ZISjaPBR/s1600/DSCF7431.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibcJzVcgsgiFWnKuSuLW6YAR3bsiynjSS7-xXn_GCJ4wqMnTje1cTMUgEkJnd2biPojIgrASIiPp01jxVGDq1JTAaijEz6XPsso_ed7M7YbMgewld4BnUuXAwshSjpOgXosfy-ZISjaPBR/s320/DSCF7431.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Street kitten with incredible eyes, lots of street cats had Siamese traits</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We
have our sights set on Spain again
as we have travelled in Southern Portugal before but Spain is much
bigger and lots to see, so we have set the satnav to ‘allow tolls’
after swearing never to travel on Portugals minor roads again. The
driver doesn’t see much and the passenger does some teeth sucking
and wincing when the walls on either side of the road tower over the
truck, the camber leans into some serious ditches and oncoming
traffic doesn’t stay on their own side.</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi29IAtPLnej4jZY44RgV5948ntLUFpv0znSOSJIqFoy71R66epLj47nZTq2KaQnwd4pTRwrmJ34Bk3PMO9U_rN-_EFjH6lXA7CUUCk9HgtcgfifTkvWgkbz014yenIH-W9Bxs_zHQrq96/s1600/DSCF7436.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi29IAtPLnej4jZY44RgV5948ntLUFpv0znSOSJIqFoy71R66epLj47nZTq2KaQnwd4pTRwrmJ34Bk3PMO9U_rN-_EFjH6lXA7CUUCk9HgtcgfifTkvWgkbz014yenIH-W9Bxs_zHQrq96/s320/DSCF7436.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<br /></div>
Jane and Stuart http://www.blogger.com/profile/03044087315257267869noreply@blogger.com0