20/7 Strasbourg - Harrogate
A very long drive, not recommended in one day. We set of at 7 a.m. and drove off the toll roads through Luxembourg and Belgium, stopping off in Mons on the way. An 18.50 crossing from Dover with P & O and the usual choking back the tears thing when the white cliffs came into view. Also had the usual total panic in Dover, trying to do an intensive course in getting used to driving on the wrong side of the road - a pretty scary ten minutes, with the GPS getting more and more frustrated as we kept turning the wrong way, down the wrong roads. We even drove back into the port by accident and nearly ended up sailing back to France, but for a bit of nifty Greek driving along the pavement and back to freedom.
We drove through rain, heavier rain, really heavy rain and total deluge until we hit the A1 (with that wonderful road sign that just says 'The North'), and arrived in Wetherby to fog and the lowest temperature yet - 7 degrees.
In Harrogate the temperature was just one degree higher, a miserly 8 celsius. It's not often this cold even in winter back home...
Saturday, July 21, 2012
Thursday, July 19, 2012
19/7 - Last night in Strasbourg
We drove over the Rhine to Kehl in Germany for icecream today (it's only a few kilometres, you can do it easily by bike, or even on foot). .
Then this evening the Korean family on the seventh floor invited us for dinner - moussaka (oh yes, and very good) and greek salad, with Korean spring rolls made with real rice paper. We drank cherry beer and a local red and the conversation around the table was in French, English, Korean and Greek.
We're all packed up and ready to go again tomorrow morning. It's a long drive to Calais for a 20.30 crossing, and England.
We drove over the Rhine to Kehl in Germany for icecream today (it's only a few kilometres, you can do it easily by bike, or even on foot). .
Then this evening the Korean family on the seventh floor invited us for dinner - moussaka (oh yes, and very good) and greek salad, with Korean spring rolls made with real rice paper. We drank cherry beer and a local red and the conversation around the table was in French, English, Korean and Greek.
We're all packed up and ready to go again tomorrow morning. It's a long drive to Calais for a 20.30 crossing, and England.
Strasbourg - L'orangerie
Another reason why Strasbourg deserves to be near the top of any list to do with quality of life.....L'orangerie is another park, across the road from the Council of Europe building, a paradise for walkers, joggers, runners, cyclists, children, dog walkers - anyone who wants to get a nature fix in the heart of the city. Acres and acres of green, trees, flowers, playgrounds, even a little, well kept zoo, and best of all (though we're getting used to the sight now), storks flying about everywhere! They swoop down overhead and land at your feet. Massive birds that've made the park their home and colonised the tops of trees and buildings, and mingle freely with us gawking humans. In other cities, it's the pigeons. Here it's storks.
We also went to the Picine du Wackken (sp?). Hmmmm, well if you live so far from the sea and fancy a swim, what to do? This is a swimming pool complex with pools to suit all ages and abilities - open-air of course (so it works about 20 days of the year...) and absolutley heaving because Strasbourg's in the middle of a mini-heatwave at the mo' Bit too much French semi-nudity for my liking though. There's only so much cellulite and belly fat and pierced bits and pieces that I can take in one go.
Another reason why Strasbourg deserves to be near the top of any list to do with quality of life.....L'orangerie is another park, across the road from the Council of Europe building, a paradise for walkers, joggers, runners, cyclists, children, dog walkers - anyone who wants to get a nature fix in the heart of the city. Acres and acres of green, trees, flowers, playgrounds, even a little, well kept zoo, and best of all (though we're getting used to the sight now), storks flying about everywhere! They swoop down overhead and land at your feet. Massive birds that've made the park their home and colonised the tops of trees and buildings, and mingle freely with us gawking humans. In other cities, it's the pigeons. Here it's storks.
We also went to the Picine du Wackken (sp?). Hmmmm, well if you live so far from the sea and fancy a swim, what to do? This is a swimming pool complex with pools to suit all ages and abilities - open-air of course (so it works about 20 days of the year...) and absolutley heaving because Strasbourg's in the middle of a mini-heatwave at the mo' Bit too much French semi-nudity for my liking though. There's only so much cellulite and belly fat and pierced bits and pieces that I can take in one go.
17/7 - Rue des vins d'Alsace, Obernai - Ribeauville
Driving from Paris to Strasbourg three years ago, we came into Alsace late at night, and what we saw, in the dark and despite utter exhaustion (we'd already spent the best part of the day in Disneyland) made us curious to explore it more.
One way to do this is to follow the 'wine route', a meandering road through the vineyards, with vines as far as the eye can see in every direction, and every so often little medieval villages of such unspeakable beauty I'm not even going to attempt to describe them.. You'll have to wait till I upload some photos. Driving into each village was like going back in time to the Middle Ages. Cobbled streets, houses painted all the colours imaginable, with their steep rooves and storks nesting on the chimney stacks. Boulangiere, patisserie, magical words. Too many sights and impressions to make sense of.
We started off in Obernai, which is about 40 minutes south east of Strasbourg, and drove as far as Ribeauville to the South. The road extends a bit more, both north and south, and for wine afficionados, is a bit of a must. You can stay over night in chateaux and hostelries, wine tasting as you go. It's perfect too for walkers and cyclists, with gentle hills, manageable distances between the villages and as much picturesque scenery as any heart can stand.
Driving from Paris to Strasbourg three years ago, we came into Alsace late at night, and what we saw, in the dark and despite utter exhaustion (we'd already spent the best part of the day in Disneyland) made us curious to explore it more.
One way to do this is to follow the 'wine route', a meandering road through the vineyards, with vines as far as the eye can see in every direction, and every so often little medieval villages of such unspeakable beauty I'm not even going to attempt to describe them.. You'll have to wait till I upload some photos. Driving into each village was like going back in time to the Middle Ages. Cobbled streets, houses painted all the colours imaginable, with their steep rooves and storks nesting on the chimney stacks. Boulangiere, patisserie, magical words. Too many sights and impressions to make sense of.
We started off in Obernai, which is about 40 minutes south east of Strasbourg, and drove as far as Ribeauville to the South. The road extends a bit more, both north and south, and for wine afficionados, is a bit of a must. You can stay over night in chateaux and hostelries, wine tasting as you go. It's perfect too for walkers and cyclists, with gentle hills, manageable distances between the villages and as much picturesque scenery as any heart can stand.
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Strasbourg - Cittadell
This is a big park in Strasbourg with lakes, the river, playgrounds, pools and goodness knows what else - paradise for children, joggers, cyclists, child-minders....There are swans, people playing boules, badminton and table tennis and something that looks like a cross between fencing and judo. There are people from every corner of Europe - and beyond - here, due to the European parliament, and the international research centre, and they gather with their multi-coloured, multi-cultural, bi-/tri-lingual offspring in the parks. OK, so there are no beaches nearby, and the sun doesn't shine every day, but every inch of the city exudes quality of life. And then there's the bread, and the cakes. You can even get 'vromika' from the turkish kebab shops that you can find in most neighbourhoods. We had 'vromika' tonight - donners and pizzas. You can take the greek out of Greece, but you can't take Greece out of the greek!
This is a big park in Strasbourg with lakes, the river, playgrounds, pools and goodness knows what else - paradise for children, joggers, cyclists, child-minders....There are swans, people playing boules, badminton and table tennis and something that looks like a cross between fencing and judo. There are people from every corner of Europe - and beyond - here, due to the European parliament, and the international research centre, and they gather with their multi-coloured, multi-cultural, bi-/tri-lingual offspring in the parks. OK, so there are no beaches nearby, and the sun doesn't shine every day, but every inch of the city exudes quality of life. And then there's the bread, and the cakes. You can even get 'vromika' from the turkish kebab shops that you can find in most neighbourhoods. We had 'vromika' tonight - donners and pizzas. You can take the greek out of Greece, but you can't take Greece out of the greek!
15/7 - From the Tyrol to Alsace
According to the trusty GPS, today's leg of the journey shouldn't have been more than about 4 - 5 hours. Right. We were up and off pretty early (for us) because it was just too cold and wet to hang around, and after the briefest of looks round Innsbruck, plotted the coordinates for Uncle Spiro's house in Strasbourg.
Don't forget, we're armed with our vignette, so we can drive on any road we want in Austria, and there are no tolls in Germany, so it'll be motorway driving all the way. Yet it still took us hours and hours to get there. Why? One of the mysteries of life. Whenever I looked at the GPS,there were always still four hours to go. Ok so we met traffic going into the Leermooser (sp?) Tunnel, which set us back about an hour, and a bit more traffic around the big cities, but still. We finally drove into Strasbourg, the heart of Europe, at six thirty in the evening.
Strasbourg is beautiful. I mean, I love Alsace anyway, but Strasbourg is something else. It has finesse, elegance, that je ne sais quoi that you breathe in as you walk down its wide tree-lined streets. It's multi-cultural, polyglot and just charming. Flat fronted buildings wear tiny flower filled balconies with intricate wrought iron railings,there's a river, the European parliament, Germany (Kehl) is a short bike ride away over the bridge (there are people on bikes everywhere), and there's a full programme of events every evening.
Tonight we watched the 'Jeux d'eau et lumieres' on the river. A bit tacky, I thought, but much impressive all the same - water spirting about all over the place in time to music from different eras, and lights and lasers and images of dancers projected onto the surrounding buildings. They do something similar on the cathedral facade (without the water, obviously, but with lights and music) which I saw three years ago (and found tasteless), and this year apparently they're doing the same, but with a live philharmonic orchestra. I'll keep you informed.
According to the trusty GPS, today's leg of the journey shouldn't have been more than about 4 - 5 hours. Right. We were up and off pretty early (for us) because it was just too cold and wet to hang around, and after the briefest of looks round Innsbruck, plotted the coordinates for Uncle Spiro's house in Strasbourg.
Don't forget, we're armed with our vignette, so we can drive on any road we want in Austria, and there are no tolls in Germany, so it'll be motorway driving all the way. Yet it still took us hours and hours to get there. Why? One of the mysteries of life. Whenever I looked at the GPS,there were always still four hours to go. Ok so we met traffic going into the Leermooser (sp?) Tunnel, which set us back about an hour, and a bit more traffic around the big cities, but still. We finally drove into Strasbourg, the heart of Europe, at six thirty in the evening.
Strasbourg is beautiful. I mean, I love Alsace anyway, but Strasbourg is something else. It has finesse, elegance, that je ne sais quoi that you breathe in as you walk down its wide tree-lined streets. It's multi-cultural, polyglot and just charming. Flat fronted buildings wear tiny flower filled balconies with intricate wrought iron railings,there's a river, the European parliament, Germany (Kehl) is a short bike ride away over the bridge (there are people on bikes everywhere), and there's a full programme of events every evening.
Tonight we watched the 'Jeux d'eau et lumieres' on the river. A bit tacky, I thought, but much impressive all the same - water spirting about all over the place in time to music from different eras, and lights and lasers and images of dancers projected onto the surrounding buildings. They do something similar on the cathedral facade (without the water, obviously, but with lights and music) which I saw three years ago (and found tasteless), and this year apparently they're doing the same, but with a live philharmonic orchestra. I'll keep you informed.
Alpencamping Mark
If you're ever out this way, do drop in. The owners are kind and friendly, the whole campsite amazingly clean, the water in the showers the hottest I've ever encountered, the location (the most important) breathtaking. They've got a small swimming pool - more a paddling pool really, which wasn't much use to use, but best of all, horses. We arrived late on Saturday, and Sunday is the horses' day off, but otherwise, you can ride them, if you've got your own equipment and go on horse and trap trips around the site. The campsite's got its own little restaurant, which was quite busy and on weekdays you can order fresh bread for breakfast, or home made apple streudal.
The village, Weer, is pretty and very, very quiet. Saturday evening, and noone to be seen, anywhere. And it wasn't raining that much.. The rain came later, in the early hours of the morning. And yes, the tent does still leak, but not on my side.
A long day, a lot of mileage, sensory overload. I'd love to come back here for a cycling or walking holiday, if anyone's interested....
If you're ever out this way, do drop in. The owners are kind and friendly, the whole campsite amazingly clean, the water in the showers the hottest I've ever encountered, the location (the most important) breathtaking. They've got a small swimming pool - more a paddling pool really, which wasn't much use to use, but best of all, horses. We arrived late on Saturday, and Sunday is the horses' day off, but otherwise, you can ride them, if you've got your own equipment and go on horse and trap trips around the site. The campsite's got its own little restaurant, which was quite busy and on weekdays you can order fresh bread for breakfast, or home made apple streudal.
The village, Weer, is pretty and very, very quiet. Saturday evening, and noone to be seen, anywhere. And it wasn't raining that much.. The rain came later, in the early hours of the morning. And yes, the tent does still leak, but not on my side.
A long day, a lot of mileage, sensory overload. I'd love to come back here for a cycling or walking holiday, if anyone's interested....
14/7 - Into the Tyrol
In the Trentino Alto Aldige, you know you're in Italy (it says so on the map) but you can't help thinking that you must have already crossed the border into Austria. All signs are in both languages, and the building style slowly but perceptibly starts to change. I have Italian friends here who speak German as language of preference and feel closer to Austria than Italy. The houses now have steeper rooves, and the warm earthy colours of the Dolomites give way to the brightly painted facades typical of the Tyrol.
To make up a bit of time, and get to the campsite before the rain got any heavier, we decided to switch to main roads once we hit Austria. We dutifully bought our Austrian vignette and assumed we had covered all eventualities, except that we were still in Italy and the weeny bit of motorway we still had to traverse as far as the border, cost 8 euros.
Once into Austria, we drove north as far as Innsbruck, then took a sharp right towards Schwaz, and soon found Alpencamping Mark. It wasn't raining, but had been, the cloud was low and everywhere green and trees and low Tyrolean houses and churches, with their high bell towers. And quiet; sharp, clear alpine quiet. And cold. Remember, we're still in shorts, and it's about 12 degrees out there, and damp.
In the Trentino Alto Aldige, you know you're in Italy (it says so on the map) but you can't help thinking that you must have already crossed the border into Austria. All signs are in both languages, and the building style slowly but perceptibly starts to change. I have Italian friends here who speak German as language of preference and feel closer to Austria than Italy. The houses now have steeper rooves, and the warm earthy colours of the Dolomites give way to the brightly painted facades typical of the Tyrol.
To make up a bit of time, and get to the campsite before the rain got any heavier, we decided to switch to main roads once we hit Austria. We dutifully bought our Austrian vignette and assumed we had covered all eventualities, except that we were still in Italy and the weeny bit of motorway we still had to traverse as far as the border, cost 8 euros.
Once into Austria, we drove north as far as Innsbruck, then took a sharp right towards Schwaz, and soon found Alpencamping Mark. It wasn't raining, but had been, the cloud was low and everywhere green and trees and low Tyrolean houses and churches, with their high bell towers. And quiet; sharp, clear alpine quiet. And cold. Remember, we're still in shorts, and it's about 12 degrees out there, and damp.
14/7 - From the Dolomites to the Alps
No journey worth its salt is ever entirely without incident, and as the road began to climb, the air began to thin and our ears to pop, we realised that the road signs announcing the 'Passo di Pennes' were not joking. I've been over the Brenner Pass and the Passo Tonale, but in recent years have begun avoiding high places. Unless I'm wearing skiis. Not only that - the weather had taken a drastic turn for the worse, increasing low cloud, rain and mist, and a huge 20 degree drop in temperature (and I'm still in shorts...). And worse still? Nowhere to turn round and go back. Actually, I don't think I even considered it. Despite the cloud and the rain (maybe because of the cloud and the rain) the scenery was unearthly and brought back memories of the first morning I woke up in the Dolomites, at the impressionable age of 17.
I found this on www.alpentourer.com 'If you take the route from Bolzano you will pass the famous Runkelstein Castle [too much mist and cloud for us to see that]...The road follows north the river Torrente in uncounted curves and innumerable rock tunnels up to the pass summit [about 2,700m] ...steep rocks pile up to the sky...The road surface is terrific with endless grip, the curves clear and even the serpentines [read:hairpin bends] are easy to tackle. Pure riding fun'.
Couldn't have put it better myself
No journey worth its salt is ever entirely without incident, and as the road began to climb, the air began to thin and our ears to pop, we realised that the road signs announcing the 'Passo di Pennes' were not joking. I've been over the Brenner Pass and the Passo Tonale, but in recent years have begun avoiding high places. Unless I'm wearing skiis. Not only that - the weather had taken a drastic turn for the worse, increasing low cloud, rain and mist, and a huge 20 degree drop in temperature (and I'm still in shorts...). And worse still? Nowhere to turn round and go back. Actually, I don't think I even considered it. Despite the cloud and the rain (maybe because of the cloud and the rain) the scenery was unearthly and brought back memories of the first morning I woke up in the Dolomites, at the impressionable age of 17.
I found this on www.alpentourer.com 'If you take the route from Bolzano you will pass the famous Runkelstein Castle [too much mist and cloud for us to see that]...The road follows north the river Torrente in uncounted curves and innumerable rock tunnels up to the pass summit [about 2,700m] ...steep rocks pile up to the sky...The road surface is terrific with endless grip, the curves clear and even the serpentines [read:hairpin bends] are easy to tackle. Pure riding fun'.
Couldn't have put it better myself
Monday, July 16, 2012
14/7 - Trentino Alto Adige, or, driving through the Dolomites
Being as how the Italian Autostrada are mighty expensive (and not much safer than the B roads...) I set the GPS to take us to Weer via aforementioned B roads. This sometimes works well, sometimes not. It did a good job in the Swiss Alps last time, when the road across the Italian-Swiss border closed following a landslide (not an eventuality I'd considered when planning the trip...) and we had to skirt murderously narrow roads through otherwise very quaint villages as it made neat work of getting us to Locarno.
Based on this experience, and in the belief that if things got too ...high for our (my) liking, we could always turn back and continue on the main roads, we set off. I spent a lot of my teens and student years in this area, skiing, hiking, studying and generally enjoying the feeling of living in a foreign country. It was here that it first dawned on me that I didn't want to live in England any more. For reasons I couldn't explain I felt more at home there, and driving through all the tiny villages from Trento to Bolzano again, I think I felt homesick.
It's the earthy colour of the little houses clustered around the bell tower, the river that meanders slowly down the mountain side, the wooden bridge that connects the two sides of the village, the clear mountain air and the feeling of being somewhere not exactly home that seeped into my subconscious at an impressionable age, and left me with a barely perceptible longing to always be somewhere else.
Being as how the Italian Autostrada are mighty expensive (and not much safer than the B roads...) I set the GPS to take us to Weer via aforementioned B roads. This sometimes works well, sometimes not. It did a good job in the Swiss Alps last time, when the road across the Italian-Swiss border closed following a landslide (not an eventuality I'd considered when planning the trip...) and we had to skirt murderously narrow roads through otherwise very quaint villages as it made neat work of getting us to Locarno.
Based on this experience, and in the belief that if things got too ...high for our (my) liking, we could always turn back and continue on the main roads, we set off. I spent a lot of my teens and student years in this area, skiing, hiking, studying and generally enjoying the feeling of living in a foreign country. It was here that it first dawned on me that I didn't want to live in England any more. For reasons I couldn't explain I felt more at home there, and driving through all the tiny villages from Trento to Bolzano again, I think I felt homesick.
It's the earthy colour of the little houses clustered around the bell tower, the river that meanders slowly down the mountain side, the wooden bridge that connects the two sides of the village, the clear mountain air and the feeling of being somewhere not exactly home that seeped into my subconscious at an impressionable age, and left me with a barely perceptible longing to always be somewhere else.
14/7 - on land, at last....
After the usual half hour messing about with the GPS and driving up and down the same road fifty times, we got it sorted out, sort of, and pointed ourselves in the direction of Verona. For those who are worried, so far the weather's been good, hot and sunny with just a cheeky hint of cloud. A quick look around the central piazza - molto bella - and an argument with a man dressed as a gladiator (it's not worth going in to) and then full steam ahead for Weer and Alpencamping Mark in the Austrian Tyrol. But will we get there before it starts to rain? Storm clouds are brewing....(and this blog is filling up with a worrying number of cliched phrases).
14/7 - At sea, continued...
Things got a wee bit bumpy in the early hours of the morning. It sounded (and felt) like we were being rammed on all sides by angry sea creatures. Kriti 1 put up a good fight though, and despite some severe creaking and groaning (a splitting apart at the seams kind of noise...)she emerged victorious.
The gondola diversion added over 3 hours to the journey, and we didn't disembark until after 11 a.m.
Things got a wee bit bumpy in the early hours of the morning. It sounded (and felt) like we were being rammed on all sides by angry sea creatures. Kriti 1 put up a good fight though, and despite some severe creaking and groaning (a splitting apart at the seams kind of noise...)she emerged victorious.
The gondola diversion added over 3 hours to the journey, and we didn't disembark until after 11 a.m.
13/7 - At sea...
We discovered half-way into the voyage today that we're not actually going to Venice - we've booked the only weekend of the year that the port is closed for some gondola thing and we'll be disembarking about 15 km down the coast. So, there'll be no sailing in majestically at dawn lark; a bit disappointing, but anyway.
The boat is heaving with these people - www.crystal-tour.de, which seems to be a teutonic Club 18 - 30. Well, not as drunk and rowdy, but just asleep everywhere, on every bit of spare floor. The good thing is that you can trip over them and stand on them and they barely notice it because they're so exhausted from so much partying in Corfu.
I like the boat. It's a bit small - it looks like a tug boat next to the Minoan giants, but it's got a friendly, laid-back atmosphere, like a floating youth hostel, and sailing so far has been uber-smooth.
We discovered half-way into the voyage today that we're not actually going to Venice - we've booked the only weekend of the year that the port is closed for some gondola thing and we'll be disembarking about 15 km down the coast. So, there'll be no sailing in majestically at dawn lark; a bit disappointing, but anyway.
The boat is heaving with these people - www.crystal-tour.de, which seems to be a teutonic Club 18 - 30. Well, not as drunk and rowdy, but just asleep everywhere, on every bit of spare floor. The good thing is that you can trip over them and stand on them and they barely notice it because they're so exhausted from so much partying in Corfu.
I like the boat. It's a bit small - it looks like a tug boat next to the Minoan giants, but it's got a friendly, laid-back atmosphere, like a floating youth hostel, and sailing so far has been uber-smooth.
Thursday, July 12, 2012
It's nearly time to set off, and we're ...nearly ready. Just time for one last swim and a quick souvlaki (it'll be a while before we enjoy either again), before we board the Kriti 1 for a 22.30 departure. Two nights on the boat and a Saturday morning arrival in Venice, breakfast with the koubarous and a 3-ish hour drive to AlpencampingMark in Weer, 12km from Innsbruck, where apparently it'll be raining. Have a look at it here: http://www.alpencampingmark.com/. If I can sort the wifi and the camera out, I'll post from the boat and upload some photos too. But don't hold your breath, it might be Strasbourg before we talk again.....
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