Catherine Anderson

May 28, 2019June 2, 2019

26 – 27 May: Loving being lushes in Lucca

Author: Mrs A

Location: Lucca, Tuscany, Italy

Sunday: It was only a short drive down into Lucca, and our chosen sosta for the night, behind a mechanic’s garage a ten minute walk from the city walls. We parked up and decided to explore on foot, given the threatening skies and promise of forthcoming rain.

Lucca is one of the first towns we have visited which is not situated on a hilltop – sitting on a plain at the foot of the Apuan Alps with flat cobbled streets. It’s a nice break from climbing stairs and steep pathways! Its history dates back to Roman times, with traces of an amphitheater visible and archaeological remains beneath other buildings.

It was just lovely wandering into town, ambling down the lanes. Mark was literally salivating around every corner, with shops selling cheese, meat, pickled and fresh produce, pasta, sauces, vinegar, olive oil…the lists are endless.

Olives, anchovies, fresh pesto…thank you very much

Endless interesting boutiques to explore

Too much walking and shopping makes for a hungry Mr A

We took a break as the rain fell for an Aperol Spritz and a slice of lemon meringue pie for Mr A before continuing our exploration.

We decided to go out to a local restaurant for dinner and randomly selected one in a quiet suburban street, La Norma, promising us good quality Sicilian food. They certainly delivered!

From the street it looks like nothing special, but entering the restaurant you’re presented with high vaulted ceilings, with glass skylights, walls lined with Sicilian wine. The menu was hand written, but interesting and we both selected an appetiser and a pasta. Most of the people eating there appeared to be Lucca locals rather than tourists.

Mark’s appetiser of pecorino and potato compote with black squid ink and olive oil…

Every dish was like an art work, beautiful colours and textures, thought given to not only the flavours but the visual impact. And we got bonus dishes especially prepared without dairy products, so I could eat them too – a roast potato with a baked quail egg inside….extremely light and crispy artichoke with prawn meat…by the time we reached our pasta dishes we were quite full! We would definitely come back here again. A fabulous first day in Lucca.

Wandering home after dinner through the empty wet streets of Lucca

Monday: One of Lucca’s main attractions is the city wall, which remains intact around the city. It is in excellent condition and topped with a wide shared pathway to encourage cycling, running and walking around the city limits. We decided to start our day with a ride around.

The streets within the walls are a maze of historical buildings, a multitude of churches and museums, grand old monasteries and art galleries. To ride through these cobbled roads is to spend your time noticing many little details – carvings above doors, sculptures inset into stone, ornate gateways…to understand all the iconography of what you’re seeing would be quite a challenge and perhaps a lifetime of work.

Historical complex of San Francesco

Mr A riding under one of the grand gateways

Lucca’s Cathedral – San Martino – built in the 6th century with a cascade of pink, green and white marble

Fabulous old roses in a monastery garden

Our network of cycling around Lucca – many one way streets make it a challenge to fill in all the gaps!

Throughout the day we explored a good part of the inner street network as well as lapping the city at least twice on the walls, clocking up around 25km. The only cat we saw was disappearing down a drain into another world beneath the streets…

Lucca’s a lovely settlement and definitely worth a visit, especially if you like history, fine food and wine, and shopping for clothes or jewellery. It feels a very safe and friendly area and is definitely up there in one of our favourite Italian towns.

Onwards tomorrow to Florence, and to adventures new.

May 25, 2019May 25, 2019

22 – 23 May: A visit to the Cinque Terre (five lands)

Author: Mrs A

Location: La Spezia and Cinque Terre

Wednesday: We had seriously thought about missing out a visit to the Cinque Terre, given how popular they are and so much on the tourist trail, but given we were so close and travelling out of peak season we thought we’d head over for a day.

Leaving San Rocco, we headed back on the E80 and drove an hour or so along to La Spezia, where we parked up in a secure sosta along with about 40 other motorhomes. The site we were on looked more like wasteland than a camping area and was located in the docklands area of town, surrounded by containers and ships. It was not a great first impression to our visit.

A boat returning from a day out at Cinque Terre, looking back towards the port

Regardless, we jumped on a bus and headed into town. La Spezia is actually a very pretty town, with a lovely pedestrianised shopping area with a mixture of small boutiques and designer stores.

A very smart and affluent town

Giant pots welcome you into the shopping district

We had a great afternoon wondering around and Mr A managed to get a haircut too.

Plenty of yachts awaiting a day out on the water

We enjoyed a glass of wine before dinner in the evening at a great little bar in a side street, a customer and the owner jamming to blues music, and providing entertaining conversation – La Spezia has a lovely feel.

Thursday: Cinque Terre (pronounced Chink-we Terrer) are five Unesco-listed villages painted across the steep Ligurian coast, stitched together by a great piece of railway engineering connecting La Spezia and Genoa. If you can build tunnels, then Italy is the place to work, as the scenery calls for many to link the towns. We cannot imagine how people coped before the transport networks were developed.

The five villages comprise of Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore. We decided to start our day at Monterosso, the furthest away village and jumped on the train from La Spezia.

Monterosso al Mare is probably the most resorty of the five villages, with a large beach set up with sun beds and umbrellas. It also seems to have the greatest amount of flat area, with market stalls set up selling wood carvings, clothes and fried food. We had a wonder around before setting off to do the hike across to Vernazza.

A vibrantly coloured village with flowers everywhere

Looking down across the beach – grey pebbles, no sand here

Looking along the coast and the hilltop walk we are about to embark on

Feeling blessed with incredible sunshine after a few days of cloud

The hike between Monterosso and Vernazza is described as challenging and requires purchase of a card and agreement to wear the appropriate footwear and take water. It’s a great way of doing things – we have been on many hikes around the world and seen people stumbling along in flip-flops with no sticks and no water, ultimately putting the lives at risk of anyone who is then sent out to rescue them from injury or issue.

This hike is tough, particularly if breathing is a challenge. It climbs steeply up along the coast, following a rough rocky pathway. In its favour, it follows alongside many of the terraced vineyards and olive groves you look at from the villages, wondering at the fitness and agility of the farmers who tend the lands – I can assure you they were not breathing through an airway the size of a straw when they did it!

Incredible views from up here along the rocky coastline

Mr A tackles one of the old stone bridges with gusto

Our first glance of Vernazza as we climb down the headland

It was a hard climb over, with some amazing views along the way – it was a busy walk too, with occasional groups of people marching on past, unable to utter ‘thank you’ in any language for letting them past! But within two hours we were descending into Vernazza.

The village of Vernazza

Of course there’s a cat waiting for Mr A’s treat bag!

As always, a gorgeous maze of little stairways and streets to explore

Vernazza’s a smaller village set around a lovely little fishing harbour. We sat by the water’s edge and enjoyed a gelato – banana and kiwi fruit on the recommendation of a young Melbourne lady we happened to sit beside!

View from our harbour wall resting area

From here, we caught the train our next destination, choosing to skip the village of Cornoglia and arriving in Manarona. This village sits high up on rocky cliffs, seemingly impossibly perched above the turquoise waters.

A wonderful colour palette awaits us

Lunch is calling – we head to Nessun Dorma for bruschetta

We climbed up to a restaurant with incredible views, expecting it to have ordinary service and overpriced food and drinks…but no, Nessun Dorma served us some delicious refreshments and freshly made bruschetta which satisfied our post hike hunger, with great service. Fabulous, and totally in line with all of our Italian experiences so far.

We had a bit more of an explore around the streets after lunch, before heading back to the train to head to our final village for the day.

Riomaggiore allowed us to escape the crowds and find ourselves a few moments alone to sit and enjoy the views. There is a walkway which links all five villages, but only the segment we hiked is still open. Apparently a combination of heavy rain in 2011 and abandoned terraces on the cliffs led to major landslides, plunging the path into the sea. We could see evidence of the path being restored in a few places, particularly Riomaggiore, but it looks like slow and difficult progress.

Down at Riomaggiore’s harbourside

Looking across at terraced gardens that have been tended for centuries

Finding some solace high up in the village

Looking out towards the closed walkway, the train station to the right

As the crowds began to leave, taking their boat trips or the train back to their hotels, you could almost feel the sigh of relief as the locals reclaimed their home streets for their own, and the lapping of the water on the boats in the harbour became the prominent sound.

We had our final look around before heading to the station and our short journey back to La Spezia. By the time we got back to Truffy at 7pm, we had walked just under 15km (9 miles) and climbed more than 100 flights of stairs. We were appropriately tired!

We’re pleased we got a chance to see Cinque Terre, but do appreciate there are many other places which are perhaps equally as beautiful, and certainly less frequented by tourists. When we look back at the spectacular places we have seen in the past week, we feel very fortunate to have experienced those without coach and boat trips blocking our views and interrupting our peace.

May 21, 2019May 23, 2019

19-20 May: Gorgeous Cervo (You won’t find it in the Lonely Planet)

Author: Mrs A

Location: Cervo, San Bartholomo al Mare & Diane Marina, Italian Riviera, Italy

Sunday: With just an 18km journey between locations, it was one of our shortest journeys yet, but not without its challenges! We followed a busy stream of traffic and our Google directions down a one way road, which appeared to get narrower and narrower with a line of parked cars down one side and a wonky stone wall on the other.

We pulled to one side to assess our options. With traffic constantly coming down the road, reversing was going to be impossible without significant help…and going forwards looked equally daunting without potential damage to Truffy and/or parked cars. Not a fun situation.

One of the cars passing us slowed and wound down his window. We half expected abuse for blocking the road, but no, the Italian driver told us that the road is not as bad as we thought, and that as a motorhome driver himself he was confident we could drive down safely. Mr A bravely took off, me walking in front, letting him know how much space was either way. To increase stress levels, a bus was following us, but amazingly was very patient. When Mark pulled over on a wider piece of road, the bus driver even indicated he understood the caution and gave me a thumbs up. Phew! Another skilful negotiation of a tricky road – absolute kudos to Mr A for excellent driving. We could not imagine such patient drivers in Sydney – they’d be much quicker on the horns!

So we arrived at our next destination with no damage done, a campground beside the beach 15 minutes walk from the village of Cervo. We immediately set off to explore.

Stormy skies over Cervo but we didn’t get too wet

Cervo has around 1200 residents, many of them artists, sculptors, wood carvers, painters and jewellers. The village largely built up around an initial Roman villa more than 2000 years ago. Like France, Italy has a ‘most beautiful villages‘ classification and Cervo has well deservedly achieved that recognition.

The streets are very steep, and at the moment I am not breathing too well…but made it with a little wheezing. Mark is suffering with tendonitis in his calf, so also struggled up the streets – not doing brilliantly between us! It was well worth all the effort though, with gorgeous views, interesting little alleyways and of course the friendly village cat there to meet us at the top!

Curvy cobbled steps lead us up into the village

A well looked after village, touches of colour and flowers everywhere

Trees growing on seemingly impossible surfaces

Endless beautiful laneways enticing us down

You can almost imagine the lives that have taken place in these streets over the centuries

‘St George and the Dragon’ mural painted in the early 1900s after sailors from England shared the story with local artists

Fortified walls evident at the top of the village

Italian cats say ‘Ciao’

A fine view from outside the church

One of the key highlights in the village is the Romanesque Oratorio di Santa Caterina church. You don’t have to be religious to appreciate the historical and artistic significance of this magnificent building, having pride of place looking out to sea and covered with incredible frescoes (mural paintings painted on plaster).

Incredible frescoes cover the walls and ceilings

The equivalent of the church hall, all set up ready for a conference

Such a picturesque area, with plenty of exploring to be done. We can only imagine how busy it gets here in the summer holidays, despite the fact that Cervo does not appear in the Lonely Planet and has a pebbly beach.

All this exploring worked up an appetite and we went along to Pizza Pazza, the restaurant right next door for dinner in the evening. Yet another fabulous meal, and again at a fraction of the price we would pay in the UK or Australia, including a bottle of wine.

Monday: Glimmers of blue skies greeted us so we leaped on the task of washing first thing. Once everything was either hung out or dried we decided to go exploring in the other direction, biking our way to the next little settlement, San Bartholomo al Mare.

There are no bike lanes here, but the drivers continue to be quite respectful of cyclists, keeping their distance and no agression at all. This is all in absolute contrast to what we have been led to expect by the various blogs we’ve read – maybe our expectations have been lowered by our experiences on the road in Australia and New Zealand?

We took a random uphill road just to explore, and were soon making use of the motors on our electric bikes to take us up past gated villas with incredible views, meadows and Ligurian olive groves. It was all very picturesque.

Gorgeous views across to Cervo on our ride

Garden like wildflowers along our cycle

Terraced olive groves are plentiful here with agriculture still a key source of income

Beautiful orchids growing by the side of the road

We then cycled up to the next settlement, riding up a cycle friendly pedestrianised area and finding a little pizza place for lunch – yes, they even did me a pizza without cheese! We both ordered the small portion, which ended up being absolutely huge. Despite the fact I only ate half, we had no need to eat for the rest of the day!

May 18, 2019May 18, 2019

17 May: Benvenuto in Italia!

Author: Mrs A

Location: Ventimiglia, Italy

As we packed up to depart this morning we met two sets of interesting fellow campers. The first a British couple, fellow Hymer owners (also members of the owner’s group), Steve and Kathy, permanent travellers who offered many great tips for our foray into Italy. Secondly the German couple parked beside us who were travelling with their gorgeous camping cat, a friendly 12 year old tabby. It was almost enough to make us stop a second night.

We moved on regardless, onto the toll-road that was to take us along the coast into Italy. We filled up with diesel and then had the daunting task of filling with LPG gas. No two filling stations seem to be the same, and on this occasion I had to pre-authorise an amount in the shop before anything would start. Sensing confusion, an attendant came out to help Mark connect the French/Italian adapter and we purchased our €12 of gas – no nightmare fill up like our last experience in the UK, thankfully!

On we drove, the temperature dropping down to 15 degrees centigrade as we climbed into cloud. Before long we were back down by the coast and passing through the border in to Italy – no passports checked, but a few military vehicles around.

Crossing the border into Italy

We wound our way along the coast, spectacular views in front of us, and before long we were arriving at our campground in Ventimiglia.

It always amazes us how you can cross a border and instantly the culture and look of an area changes. Although there has been much Italian influence in the French Côte d’Azur it is nothing compared with the real Italy.

More than one in ten people in Italy is unemployed (compare this with 5% in Australia and just under 4% in the UK and USA) and it was immediately obvious with young men hanging around and our first sight of people begging for money. Reading the forums, it seems that Italy is also the location where many motorhomes are broken into. We felt safer leaving our Truffy parked up at a campground with good reviews on the outskirts of town and taking the shuttle bus in for a look around.

Friday is the day for the big market in Ventimiglia, and we had great hopes for picking up some fresh fruit and vegetables. Unfortunately there were few food stalls, mostly selling cheese, sausage, fresh pasta, sun dried tomatoes and pasta sauces. We bought some pecorino and sausage, Mr A trying out his Italian.

So much for the arts, crafts and flowers here…

The rest of the stalls were a repetitive mix of cheap clothing, shoes, handbags and homewares. Nothing unique or artistic…while this was on the scale of the market at Edmundi in Queensland, Australia, it was nowhere near the quality or variety.

After a good look around, we wandered over the river, deciding to explore the old town. It is high up above the water and dates back many centuries.

Looking dramatic against an alpine backdrop

It would have been great to have taken a tour, there are dozens of interesting doorways and clues to past building uses but for now those stories remain hidden.

Walls gradually dismantling their own history…

We were dying to know the story behind this hidden archway…

When you can’t make it, fake it – spot the real balustrade…

Is there a rule on making your washing picturesque?

Few painted buildings, but when they are they stand out

Fabulous views from the top of the village

All this climbing makes you warm up!

No post complete without a colour coordinated cat

After a good explore, we called our campground shuttle bus and they were there in 5 minutes to collect us and take us back to Truffy for the evening.

Of course our first meal in Italy was pasta, together with pesto, vegetables and some of the delicious spicy sausage we’d purchased. But no wine. No, we are still recovering after the excesses of France!

May 17, 2019May 17, 2019

14 – 15 May: Endless gorgeous villages

Author: Mrs A

Location: Bagnols-en-Forêt, Saint-Paul de Vence, Fayence & Tourettes, France

Tuesday: Curious about the joys of riding an e-bike, we took our friends out for a cycle along some of the forest paths where we were staying…we can safely say they approve!

David & Mr A head off down a woodland path on a ride

Jenny admiring the view down to the coast

It was just a short ride in the morning before we headed back to wind our way by car across the mountain villages, past Fayaence, Tourettes and Grasse across to the small walled town of Saint-Paul de Vence.

Nestled among the olive trees and overlooking Nice

Approaching the walled village

Saint-Paul de Vence is a perched village located about 12km north east of Nice. It was originally settled in about 400 bcd and then was renamed in the year 120 when the Romans called it Castrum Sancti Pauli (interpreted as St Paul’s Fortress). In the late 1800s and 1900s the village was discovered by impressionist artists such as Picasso, Matisse and Marc Chagall (who is buried in the little cemetery there). The poor artists enjoyed the clean light and spectacular views – to the coast in one direction and the snow capped Alps in the other.

The Colombe d’Or restaurant and inn started life in the village in the 1920s and had a great reputation for good food and dancing on its terraces. It became a popular place amongst the artists, who often exchanged a painting or two in return for food or accomodation.

Today the whole village remains full of artists and galleries selling everything from today’s modern art to older Chagall and Picasso paintings and prints.

The Colombe d’Or restaurant – we didn’t lunch here

Lunch was our first port of call, having forgone breakfast for a ride. We found a little terraced cafe with a fabulous view. It was a little tourist trap really with overpriced average food and wine from a sack, but the views made up for it!

Lunch with a fine view

We continued our exploration of the village, visiting Marc Chagall’s grave, covered in stones in the Jewish tradition and admired the views down to Nice and across the mountains. We wandered around the little lanes, admiring paintings with high price tags (€65,000 for an original Picasso artist’s print thank you very much – that’s around AU$106,000 /£57,000 /US$73,000 for our international readers).

Exploring the village…So much to look at here…oh for an endless bank account!

Perched with a view

Beautiful multi-toned roses blooming

Front row seat at this hotel with a view down to the Mediterranean

Every alleyway entices you down

Di admires an artwork from a prize winning Macedonian artist

An Apéro Spritz on the terrace concluded our afternoon before returning back to Colin’s feast of fish and prawn gumbo – delicious!

Cheers…though I think Di is sad we’re all leaving

Wednesday: Our final day with our friends in France – it was time to give Colin and Di back their peace, serenity and healthy livers and Chris, Karen, Jenny and David were to be off back to Australia. The weather greeted us with appropriate sadness with a fine rain falling, and the morning was spent sharing stories, photos and doing the final packing and washing.

Di then took us up to the little village of Fayence, which had overlooked us on our Monday night farm meal. Mark and I visited here with Diane three years ago – then it had been sundress weather and the streets were bustling with the Saturday market. This time, it was jacket weather and other than the odd cat, the streets were largely abandoned.

“I might have fleas but I’d still like you to rub my tummy s’il vous plait.”

The cats rule the streets here

Closed today…looks like this cat had a run in with a slamming door

We walked across to the next village of Tourettes, enjoying the unique doorways and artworks on the walls, and admiring the views down across the valley towards the coast.

The evening saw us get suited and booted for our final meal together.

Our final glass of champagne from Epernay

Dinner was held at Moulin de la Camandoule an old olive mill with a history that dates back to Roman times.

The old Roman aqueduct – tiles have been found suggesting a villa was located here too

It was a delicious meal and a fitting end to our time together in Provence. Many thanks to Di and Colin for putting us up for the past few days and being such fabulous hosts.

May 15, 2019May 18, 2019

12-13 May: Spring on the Côte d’Azur

Author: Mrs A

Location: Bagnols-en-Forêt, Provence-Alps-Côte, France

Our wonderful hosts have lived within the community of Bagnols-en-Forêt for about four years now. It’s tucked up on the hinterland behind the sparkling Mediterranean, on land which traditionally has been used to grow olives and grapes, but these days is more profitable being subdivided to house terracotta tiled villas with swimming pools.

Sunday: We joined them for a walk around the neighbourhood with Genie, their little poodle-cross rescue dog, and got a good feel for the area. Many of the houses are on half acre plots with lovely gardens. Just 100 metres from the back of Diane and Colin’s property the forest stretches on for miles with views out to the foothills of the Alps.

Genie enjoying her neighbourhood stroll

View out north over the forest to the foothills of the Alps

The delicate mauve flowers on the wild garlic

Later, we drove on down to the village for a lazy Sunday lunch, enjoying salads and a glass or two of local Rosé.

Colin and I awaiting our lunch

Miss Genie wondering why we’re taking away her attention!

Towards the end of the afternoon a rental car arrived bringing Jenny, David, Chris and Karen to the house, here to enjoy their final four days in Europe before flying back to Australia. Colin cooked us all up a delicious feast and we had a good catch up.

Monday: We awoke to a beautiful morning and so Mr A and I decided to jump on our bikes and see a little more of the area. We rode up into the area behind Colin and Di’s house and explored some of the tracks leading into the forest. It’s great fun riding our little e-bikes and we were grateful for them on the steep uphills back out of the valley.

The area is stunning, and as we rode through the area full of wildflowers we marvelled at how parklike the area was. We reached a clearing along the road and with views that took our breath away – looking south towards the Mediterranean, Saint-Raphael gleaming in the distance, and north up into the beginning of an alpine environment.

Looking south across the Esterel Mountains (Massif de l’Estérel) to the French Riviera

Looking inland towards the Pré-Alpes

Gorgeous wisened old trees admiring the views too

Our kind of pathway – we could ride forever on here

Bees collecting pollen on the wildflowers

Yellow, white, pink and purple the prevalent colours

We clocked up 20km and returned to get ready to head out with the group. We piled into two cars and headed south towards the coast. Our first stop was the little town of Fréjus.

The town is on the site of an ancient naval base founded by Julius Caesar in about 50 bce and known originally as Forum Julii. Its Roman ruins include a late 1st-century amphitheatre, an aqueduct, and ancient fortifications.

As we arrived in town we saw a parade starting – it turned out it was the saint day for saint François de Paule, the Italian monk who arrived on the day the plague ended in the town – and henceforth was praised for being the town’s saviour.

Parade about to commence

We ambled through the little streets, checking out the architecture, arriving at the main square and the cathedral.

David and Mr A chilling out on the steps

The Cathedral of Notre-Dame et Saint-Étienne (13th century) has a 5th-century baptistery, gradually being excavated.

After lunch in the square we drove a short way along the coast to Saint-Raphaël. A €4 ferris wheel ride gave us the perfect opportunity to enjoy views along the coast and get our bearings in this resort town.

Looking along the coast – Diane’s favourite sandy beach below

Up and away – Karen, Chris, Jenny & David in the other capsule

We explored the streets before ice creams and returning back for the evening. Di and Colin had booked us a unique experience, a private dinner prepared and served at a local farmhouse, La ferme Constantin in nearby Fayance.

It was a fabulous rustic setting, as we enjoyed wine and appetisers outside overlooking the fields, before heading in for food as the sun set.

Arriving at the farm

Our private dining room

It was a great experience, one we will never forget.

The village of Fayance up in the hills behind us

May 9, 2019May 9, 2019

7 – 8 May: Castles, Champagne and Churches

Author: Mrs A

Location: Château-Thierry & Reims, France

Tuesday was the day Mr A and I had planned for the household, taking us to the small town of Chateaux-Thierry, about a 25 minute drive from our gîte. We parked up outside the town hall, a grand building in the centre of town, and climbed up the stairway to the castle above.

Hôtel de Ville (Town Hall)

A magnificent view awaited us at the top of many stone steps, looking out over the town to the Marne River and south to the farmland beyond.

View over the town from the first set of stairs

Mr A proceeding along an avenue of trees along the castle wall

Ancient varieties of roses grow here, with incredible aromas

Jenny climbing the tower steps up to the next level

More great town views as we walk around the castle

The walls and tower

The castle has a varied history dating back to Roman times, starting with a wooden fortification and gradually being added to and amended by subsequent inhabitants. There is evidence of the biggest castle kitchen in Europe within this shell, once employing in excess of a hundred workers in meal preparation.

We all had an explore around the town before meeting for a delicious plat du jour served at L’adresse Rive Droit, a superb recommendation from our next destination.

Wandering along the pedestrianised streets

This feels a very authentic and alive town, many local residents and lives lived here

After lunch we drove a short distance to Champagne Pannier, a champagne cooperative sourcing grapes from 400 small producers across the region. Our guide, Elina, took us into their caves, a combination of natural and man-made caverns originally discovered in the middle-ages.

The Middle Ages carving found on the walls which inspired the archer on Champagne Pannier’s logo

Champagne is laid down for a minimum of three years before bottling

We learnt a lot more about the making and bottling of champagne, giving us an appreciation of why champagne is so expensive. We finished off with a tasting of two champagnes, one a 2014 vintage. Delicious.

Champagne and Ratafia Champenois (made from the skins of grapes pressed for champagne) were purchased.

Happy times. L-R: Ann, Jenny, Peter, Penny, Karen, Chris, Steve, Mr A, David and Mrs A

After this we returned to the castle in the hope of witnessing a falconry show – sadly after climbing up to the entrance we were advised they did not do it on a Tuesday any longer (despite the sign saying they did), and so we did a little shopping for the evening’s dinner and moved on.

Our final destination for the day was the American War Memorial, a magnificent monument overlooking the town in recognition of the relationship between the American and French armed forces during World War II. It was quite sobering after a jovial day, and reminded us how fortunate we are to live in peaceful times and to be able to do what we are doing.

‘This monument has been erected by the United States of America to commemorate the services of her troops and those of France who fought in this region during the World War. It stands as a lasting symbol of the friendship and cooperation between the French and American Armies’

Mark and Karen reading the inscription – horrified at the sheer numbers of lives lost (67,000 American soldiers alone)

We returned home to consume our goodies of the day – delicious food from the bakery, deli and greengrocers, accompanied by some fine French white and red wines.

Wednesday morning began with rain, which continued on as we piled into the minibus and Chris drove us all for an hour to the nearby town of Reims.

Our plan had been to split into two groups, five members heading to a car museum, and the rest of us heading to a large market in the city centre. Mr A and I were in the market crowd. On arriving at the market we found it was closed. What we hadn’t realised is that today is a national holiday in recognition of V-E Day, the day in 1945 the Germans surrendered in Reims following World War II. The wet weather didn’t discourage several people from attending a ceremony close by, and we immediately forgave them for closing the market.

I decided to break from the rest of the group and go to see the cathedral. Mr A and I leave this region tomorrow, so we wouldn’t have a chance otherwise.

The city of Reims was very quiet, with most of the shops closed and the rain keeping people at home. It has some fabulous classic French architecture and the cathedral itself is hard to miss as you wind your way through town.

Shining empty cobbled streets of Reims

Beautiful architecture in empty squares, the cathedral towering over in the background

Strangely it was great to see the Cathedral Notre-Dame de Reims in wet weather, as the water poured from the roof and out through the mouths of gothic wolves.

Gothic wild beasts foam at the mouth, drainpipes channeling the rain down to the street

The more than 800 year old cathedral has been listed by UNESCO since 1991, and is has been the location of the coronation of many of France’s kings. It’s quite incredible to stand inside and imagine centuries of kings and courtiers looking at the same or very similar view.

It was built between 1211 and 1516 and during its time has been damaged by revolutions, attacked by peasants, and bombed during World War I. But the cathedral within told of a progressive view, with beautiful stained glass windows telling stories from the old and New Testament as well as more recent additions which are there for the pure art of colour and form. There is a fabulous window dedicated to the local peasants, recognising their part in the congregation and work in the champagne industry.

One of the newer stained glass windows

Dedicated to the wine growers, harvesters and makers in the area

I returned to meet the others, who were sipping coffee in a local bistro, and together we went up to the local war memorial to watch the ceremony, observe a minute’s silence and spend a moment or two in recognition of the significance of the day.

The local gendarmes in short sleeves despite the chilly wet day…their dogs ensure we observe the minute’s silence

We returned to the house for a fine three course dinner prepared by Penny and Steve, starting at 3pm and concluding around 8pm. Much fun, very delicious and a fine end to our visit with our friends in this area.

About to start course 2 – delicious roast chicken, potatoes and vegetables. L-R: Mrs A, Jenny, Ann, Mr A, Chris, David, Karen, Peter, Steve and Penny.

May 4, 2019May 4, 2019

2 – 4 May: And off to France we go!

Author: Mrs A

Location: Newhaven Ferry Port, Dieppe, Grandvilliers, Saint- Quentin, Longpont, France

Thursday: The day had finally arrived to board our ferry across to France. We originally booked our tickets while visiting my dad in New Zealand, and it seemed so far away. We had sat there wondering what would have happened to us in the intervening five months…an awful lot as it turned out!

We had not had the best night’s sleep. While sleeping at the port seemed like a good idea (and we were not the only motorhome to do so), the night was punctuated by the arrival of multiple heavy goods vehicles running their engines and freight trains moving to and from the port.

Nevertheless, a crisp clear morning greeted us, blue skies and light winds seeing us off from England.

Into the belly of the ‘Seven Sisters’ we drive

The three hour journey went without incidence, and we pulled off the boat in Dieppe reminding ourselves to drive on the right and give way to the left on roundabouts. Finally our left hand drive truck was coming into its own.

Both tired, we decided not to drive too far on our first evening. Those of you unfamiliar with travelling by motorhome in France will probably not have noticed the ‘Aires de camping car’ in many of the small towns and villages. These are designated areas for motor homes with often four or five parking spots. Sometimes there is the option for a couple of hours of electricity (around €2) and drinking water, which is often free. Generally there will be a drain to dump your grey water (showers/dishwashing) and a dump-point for your black water (toilet).

We selected a random one from an app which had good reviews and drove over.

The village of Grandvilliers sits on the far northern outskirts of Paris, and is fairly unremarkable. We had a stroll around the village and bought some bread from an artisan bakery before retiring for the night.

Wonky old house along the road from where we parked up

Loving the tulips

A beautiful array of tulips on the entrance to a mechanic’s workshop

Monsieur A very proud of his ‘Je voudrais du pain s’il vous plaît’

Friday: A bit of research of the area revealed nothing too exciting for us to aim for, so we picked another location in the general direction of the Champagne region we’re heading to. Either there are no towns of note here, or nobody is writing about them (probably the latter!)!

We drove through relatively flat countryside, mostly growing rape seed for canola oil and various other vegetables, and ended up at another small town, Saint-Quentin.

Picturesque patchwork of fields on our drive

Saint-Quentin has a long history and was originally founded by the Romans in around the 4th century. Many of the roads we drove to get there were dead straight, a clue to this history. Apparently many Roman artifects and coins are still found in the surrounding fields and properties. This town has a bit of a tragic story, with more than half of its population killed during the great plague and during World War II 80% of the town was destroyed or severely damaged as it was part of the German Hindenburg Line.

Today it is a peaceful centre, with a train line into Paris taking just under two hours, and the Canal du Nord taking water borne traffic through town. Our aires for the night was right beside the canal, so we decided to jump on the bikes for an explore.

Despite the grey day, a picturesque cycle

Potential to go a long way…we stuck to 20km

Other than a few rowers, there was little traffic on the water, perhaps a bit early in the season for barges. We were interested to see that the canal near here heads underground for a few kilometres. In the early days, it took hours to travel through the 5 or so kilometres but today it is traversed using a chain boat. We didn’t make it up as far as the tunnel.

Saturday: The temperature plunged to 3 degrees centigrade overnight which made for a slow emergence from bed. We really miss the warm bedspread we left with my mum in Hastings, but are hoping that nights this cold will be few and far between as we head south.

We drove to the town of Soissons where there was a choice of large supermarkets to choose from. There we did a huge shop for 10 people – tomorrow is Sunday and French shops will be closed, and we are joining a group of friends who are staying nearby in a house. Somehow we managed to make a whole trolley load of purchases disappear into Truffy, and set off for our night’s destination.

It was not too far to drive to the little village of Longpont. The village is very pretty and dominated by the ruins of an old abbey which was active between 1131 and 1793. It was open to be visited, but with looming black clouds and no roof on the abbey we retreated to a nearby pub instead. Are you surprised?

Abbaye de Longpont – ancient ruined monastery

Can almost imagine the stained glass in this grand window

The old entranceway, several hundred years old

One pastis and one vin rouge, merci boucoup

The Forest of Retz is close by to here, an ancient woodland which has been under protection since 1672, quite rare for Europe where forest was seen as something to cut down and use for fuel or clear for agriculture. Hopefully the rain will hold off so we can go for a stroll tomorrow before we head to Priez, our home for the next few days.

As for tonight, we’re sheltering from the showers (currently marble sized hail!) and are going to enjoy an Italian red (yes, I know, blasphemy in France) with a home made Pad Thai. Bon soir!

April 30, 2019April 30, 2019

24-27 April: Heading back down the country

Author: Mrs A

Location: Ivinghoe, Bucks, Little Gaddesden, Herts & London UK

Tuesday: Leaving Milton Keynes we headed south, travelling just half an hour to reach our next destination. We settled for the night at a farm in the hamlet of Ivinghoe Aston, close to the rolling hills of the Chilterns. The evenings here are light until about 8.30pm, allowing us a chance to go for a stroll.

Ten kilometres (about 6 miles) later we had crossed beautiful countryside via a bridleway and had explored the village of Ivinghoe. We even managed to pop into the local pub for a quick drink before heading back for dinner.

A bee swarm in the apple orchard at our farm-stay

Dandelions line our pathway as we walk

Hard to resist a pub with a good reputation

Old cottages in Ivinghoe – few with parking

Mr A strolling through the village of Ivinghoe

Mr A swears a half pint goes down much faster than half-a-pint within a pint

Wednesday: The following morning we departed and drove up to Ivinghoe Beacon. Ivinghoe Beacon is a hill standing 233 metres above sea level. It sits within the Ashridge Estate and is managed by the National Trust, but it has great significance historically. In the past, this location was used to send signals from and was also a fort during the Iron Age (around 800 BCE). More recently it has appeared in Harry Potter and Star Wars movies… For us though, it was a spot to enjoy lunch and a few cups of tea as we sheltered from the blustery cold wind and showers. A good day to be behind glass, as we say!

A couple of long distance walks/cycles start from this point

Eventually there was a break in the weather and we drove a short way down the hill towards Dockey Wood. This woodland is famous for its incredible display of bluebells, and my cousin Karen had let me know they were in full bloom after the warm Easter weekend.

We had only driven a few minutes and we spotted a carpet of purple by the side of the road. We quickly pulled over and went in for an explore. It was incredible, and unbeknownst to us, we were in the quieter less visited woodland area – the main display (and crowds) we found were just down the road where the official car park was.

Just breathtaking – set off by the bright green new leaves

Dizzy with the delicate perfume of the bluebells, we headed on down to our home for the next three nights, parked up on a farm track close to my cousin and her family in Little Gaddesden.

Before long a taxi arrived to take Mr A, my cousin Karen, her husband Iain and I into nearby Berkhamstead. There we caught up with my old school friend Jo and her husband Stuart for a beverage at a local wine bar, The Berkeley. From there we enjoyed a fabulous Thai meal at The Giggling Squid – delicious food and probably the best Thai we have tried in the UK so far.

The years flash on by with nearly 30 years of friendship

Much laughter – L-R: Stuart, Karen and Iain

Thursday: After a relaxing night’s sleep, Iain gave Mr A and I a lift up to the cafe in Ashridge Estate so we could catch up with an old friend of mine from way back, Amanda. We last met up when she was visiting her sister in Sydney Australia, more than 15 years ago. It was great to see her, and we had a stroll through the woodlands, admiring yet more bluebells.

Footpath windings through the wild flowers

Mr & Mrs A – (incidentally, I left my lens cap on this tree trunk, in case you find it!)

Walking back to Karen & Iain’s house via Ashridge House

Mr A and I walked back to Karen’s house through the estate, spotting many deer and enjoying the sunshine as we went.

We’d been back a few moments and I was back in the car with Karen off to visit my aunt while Karen took my uncle to the doctors. It was just enough time for a cup of tea and a tour of the house and garden before heading back for the evening.

Mrs A with auntie Pam and uncle Brian

Friday: Mr A and I hitched a lift into Berkhamsted when Karen was dropping off her daughters, Hannah and Ella to school. From there, we caught a train into London – Mr A heading off to do some shopping, while I went to Hammersmith and Charing Cross Hospital to take part in a focus group about the major airway surgery I had there back in 2014.

After the group I caught up for an hour with Jacky, a lovely lady with iSGS I have met through the support group I run, before heading back across town to meet up with Mr A, and some more friends at a pub near Warren Street.

L-R: Karen, Mrs A, Mr A, Martin, Karen’s sister, Chris

It was a fun catch up, with Martin (who was best man at our wedding 17 years ago) plus friends from Australia, Karen and Chris, who are staying with Karen’s sister near Greenwich.

It wasn’t a late night though, we were back on the train to Berkhamsted by 6.30pm and back tucked up in Truffy for the night by 9.30pm. A great end to the week.

Saturday: It was time to say goodbye to Karen and Iain and the girls, and continue our journey south. We really appreciate the hospitality we’ve been shown by the whole family.

L-R: Ella, Ryan, Merryn, Karen, Iain, Hannah, Mrs A

Mr A and I are both are loving rekindling old friendships and making new friends on our travels, and particularly cherish the time such as this with family who are also good friends. I hope we are leaving each time with stronger relationships and a better understanding of one another and look forward to spending more time together when we’re back from our European travels.

April 19, 2019

15-17 April: A brief dalliance with Derbyshire

Author: Mrs A

Location: Dronfield and Newhaven, Derbyshire, UK

After leaving Fuller Leisure on Monday afternoon we headed north, hoping to find a spot for the night not far from where we were to have Truffy’s eye-mask (see previous post!) fitted. We’re pretty new to the travel apps for motorhoming, but both Search for Sites and CamperContact showed a pub 8 miles away which allowed free stopovers.

We headed on up there, just an hour’s drive from Gunthorpe. It was an ‘interesting’ drive with Miss Google Maps directing us down little single track lanes with blind bends…but we made it without incident. We even managed to do our first LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) fill up on the way, meaning we’re all set again for off the grid heating, hot water and cooking.

Our stop for the night was the Hyde Park Inn, a cosy pub opposite playing fields in the village of Dronfield. We called in for a drink before we settled down for the night, welcomed by the publican and locals alike.

A nice quiet stopover

We were joined by another Hymer during the night

On Tuesday afternoon (after getting Truffy’s thermal eye-mask fitted) we headed off on the road, leaving South Yorkshire and the surrounds of Sheffield, and heading into the Derbyshire Peak District. Despite working in Derby back in the early 1990s, other than one weekend trip, I have never fully explored this area. Mr A’s previous experience hails back to when the world was black and white and he was in the Boy Scouts.

Our first impressions were very positive – quiet winding lanes lined with dancing daffodils, stone walled paddocks full of skipping lambs.

Truffy heading off down towards his next adventure

We called into the village of Monyash for lunch, opting for delicious baked potatoes before we moved on.

Little village of Monyash

We continued on from here to our little farm stay parking spot for the night.

Wednesday morning we awoke to perfect blue skies, an ideal day for a cycle. We had selected our campsite based on its proximity to two of the Peak District’s best rail trails – the High Peak and the Tissington. Our home for two nights was Brundcliffe Farm, a working dairy farm alongside the High Peak trail.

It was a fresh start to the ride as we headed up the trail towards Parsley Hay, before moving onto the Tissington Rail Trail south. These old rail routes were turned into traffic-free walking and cycling routes back in 1971.

Wrapped up warm as we reach the junction of the High Peak and Tissington trails

Stripping off layers as the temperatures climb from 6-16 degrees centigrade

Newborn lambs skipping across the fields

We reached Ashbourne around midday and so set about finding somewhere for lunch. Ashbourne is a pretty market town, its roots dating back to Anglo-Saxon times (around the years 500-1000, before King Harold met his death near Hastings in 1066). Today it looks like a prosperous settlement, with classy boutiques and lovely cafes and shops.

We ate lunch in a sunny courtyard at a Mediterranean restaurant called Jack Rabbits. Mark enjoyed melted Brie on toast with a fig chutney, while I went for the home made sweet potato and tomato soup. Delicious.

Did I forget to mention the sweet potato fries? Naughty but oh so nice!

A very good soup. My only criticism is their menu is a bit heavy on the dairy products!

After a good feed we jumped back on the bikes and headed back on the trail. As it was uphill on the way back we had to make use of the motors on our eBikes – but still had to do plenty of work. It’s a pedal assist motor, so unless your legs are moving, it will not work.

Endless possibilities for walking here, with public footpaths criss-crossing the dales

Flowers galore along the path – daffodils, celandine, violets, daisies and more

I swear the buds on the trees were bursting with new leaves as we rode

This is definitely one of the loveliest cycles we have done. The scenery was spectacular and the Peak District National Park carefully manages the land through clearing to ensure there is a year round corridor of wildflowers.

The temperature climbed to 16 degrees centigrade – the warmest we’ve been in about three weeks, and we saw our first bees and butterflies along the track.

Bright yellow buttercups light up the side of this cutting

Plenty of old bridges to cycle under, built in the 1800s

Reaching Parsley Hay we saw the track continued north…we could go on and on forever!

We continued on past Parsley Hay to the next ‘station’ where we went to a local pub garden for a refreshing drink.

Our legs were aching by the time we reached Truffy, having clocked up 56km in the saddles (35 miles), and we were pleased to say we had plenty of battery left on the bikes.

This was a fabulous taster of the Derbyshire Peak District and we definitely would like to come back. There is so much to do here. Big tick from us!

Author: Catherine Anderson

26 – 27 May: Loving being lushes in Lucca

22 – 23 May: A visit to the Cinque Terre (five lands)

19-20 May: Gorgeous Cervo (You won’t find it in the Lonely Planet)

17 May: Benvenuto in Italia!

14 – 15 May: Endless gorgeous villages

12-13 May: Spring on the Côte d’Azur

7 – 8 May: Castles, Champagne and Churches

2 – 4 May: And off to France we go!

24-27 April: Heading back down the country

15-17 April: A brief dalliance with Derbyshire

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