We've concluded the campervan leg of the journey. 10,000 miles in total with 1,350 miles in the last week long journey through Italy, Switzerland, Germany, France, Luxembourg and Belgium before arriving back in the UK.
Heading north from Rome we headed for Parma for a wander and a spot of lunch. I'd have loved to buy an entire pigs leg but it turns out they're pretty expensive.
After lunch we headed for the Swiss border and stopped overnight near a beautiful lake at Tamaro. The driving in Switzerland is easily the best of anywhere we've been. Fantastic scenery, polite drivers and great roads. Nice to see they're putting all Amazon and Starbucks's taxes to good use. Our route north took us through an enormous tunnel which goes straight through a mountain. The side we entered on was a snowy wonderland and after a good half hour of driving we emerged into a rolling green paradise.
Sadly the rain kicked in before long putting paid to our plans to spend the night next to a lake in Luzern. We stopped for a while and admired the postcard views before ploughing on to the German border at Basel. We then drove north alongside the French border to Kehl, did a bit of shopping in Lidl (memorable for being spoilt for German sausage choice, for queuing behind the smelliest man in the world ever and for having child style grab baskets of fags at the checkout) and crossed the Rhine into Strasbourg. After all that driving we had a nice 2 night stay in an Aire next to the river. We caught a tram into the centre of Strasbourg, admired the Germanic-Franco mish-mash and enjoyed some great beer.
The next day we headed north west through the bare but atmospheric Parc Naturel Regional des Vosges de Nord and back over the border into Germany. The road then followed a river past some fascinating industrial and manufacturing areas before entering Luxembourg. We stopped on the outskirts of Luxembourg City for a late lunch/early dinner and then carried on to Belgium where we stopped for the night in the middle of nowhere at Saint-Hubert.
The driving in Belgium was pretty dull with not a lot to see but we did stop for lunch in Mons, a fairly nice little place. Managed to buy a couple of nice Belgian beers for the evening which we spent near the port at Dunkirque. The next day we caught a ferry to Dover and drove back to my folks place in Market Bosworth. Our first steps on British soil (excluding Gibraltar) for 9 months.
It was great to see my parents again and to join in with their retired lifestyle. It's actually not dissimilar to life in the van with a trip to Morrisions being an entire days activity. We also put our four days to good use cleaning up the van, photographing it and putting it on eBay. Within the space of about an hour it'd sold. Obviously did a good job on the photos. Or maybe a bad job on the pricing model.
We accepted a deposit on the van and agreed for it to be picked up a week later in Stafford. So off we drove to Stafford to spend some time with Lucy's family and to plan the final leg of the trip to South America. Thank you BA for your New Year sale.
So that brings us to where we are now in Rio de Janeiro on the Atlantic coast of Brazil. We're heading for Lima, Peru on the Pacific coast. It was 30 degrees and sunny on the beach today.
Traaarabit,
Ralph xx
A few notes:
More photos: https://plus.google.com/photos/101454232293966616010/albums/5861942472039730657?authkey=CPbhwbfh1MmhXQ
Heading north from Rome we headed for Parma for a wander and a spot of lunch. I'd have loved to buy an entire pigs leg but it turns out they're pretty expensive.
 |
| Parma for all your overpriced ham and cheese needs |
After lunch we headed for the Swiss border and stopped overnight near a beautiful lake at Tamaro. The driving in Switzerland is easily the best of anywhere we've been. Fantastic scenery, polite drivers and great roads. Nice to see they're putting all Amazon and Starbucks's taxes to good use. Our route north took us through an enormous tunnel which goes straight through a mountain. The side we entered on was a snowy wonderland and after a good half hour of driving we emerged into a rolling green paradise.
 |
| Very pretty and very glad for heating in the van |
Sadly the rain kicked in before long putting paid to our plans to spend the night next to a lake in Luzern. We stopped for a while and admired the postcard views before ploughing on to the German border at Basel. We then drove north alongside the French border to Kehl, did a bit of shopping in Lidl (memorable for being spoilt for German sausage choice, for queuing behind the smelliest man in the world ever and for having child style grab baskets of fags at the checkout) and crossed the Rhine into Strasbourg. After all that driving we had a nice 2 night stay in an Aire next to the river. We caught a tram into the centre of Strasbourg, admired the Germanic-Franco mish-mash and enjoyed some great beer.
 |
| Gingerbread architecture in Strasbourg |
The next day we headed north west through the bare but atmospheric Parc Naturel Regional des Vosges de Nord and back over the border into Germany. The road then followed a river past some fascinating industrial and manufacturing areas before entering Luxembourg. We stopped on the outskirts of Luxembourg City for a late lunch/early dinner and then carried on to Belgium where we stopped for the night in the middle of nowhere at Saint-Hubert.
 |
| Clearing away the Christmas decorations in Mons, Belgium |
The driving in Belgium was pretty dull with not a lot to see but we did stop for lunch in Mons, a fairly nice little place. Managed to buy a couple of nice Belgian beers for the evening which we spent near the port at Dunkirque. The next day we caught a ferry to Dover and drove back to my folks place in Market Bosworth. Our first steps on British soil (excluding Gibraltar) for 9 months.
It was great to see my parents again and to join in with their retired lifestyle. It's actually not dissimilar to life in the van with a trip to Morrisions being an entire days activity. We also put our four days to good use cleaning up the van, photographing it and putting it on eBay. Within the space of about an hour it'd sold. Obviously did a good job on the photos. Or maybe a bad job on the pricing model.
 |
| Bye bye Juanita - you've done us proud |
We accepted a deposit on the van and agreed for it to be picked up a week later in Stafford. So off we drove to Stafford to spend some time with Lucy's family and to plan the final leg of the trip to South America. Thank you BA for your New Year sale.
So that brings us to where we are now in Rio de Janeiro on the Atlantic coast of Brazil. We're heading for Lima, Peru on the Pacific coast. It was 30 degrees and sunny on the beach today.
Traaarabit,
Ralph xx
A few notes:
- Almost entirely certain the guy who bought the campervan was trade. What's the game of pretending you're buying something for yourself? We just wanted the cash and couldn't really care less what they choose to do with it.
- Will I feel any sorrow for selling Juanita? Does this apathy make me heartless?
- When back in the UK we also had time to see Matilda the musical. It was good fun, such a good story and such an amazing cast. Sadly I've found I can't even start to hum any of the songs. I think that means the music was pretty forgettable - sorry Tim Minchin.
When I try and recall any of the songs I just keep reverting to "We Could Have Been Anything That We Wanted To Be" from Bugsy Malone
More photos: https://plus.google.com/photos/101454232293966616010/albums/5861942472039730657?authkey=CPbhwbfh1MmhXQ
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