Tuesday 29 November 2016

Our Little Holiday in England before Heading Home!

Thursday 24th November 2016 - A lovely warm sunny autumn day.

Today found us pitched up at the Canterbury Caravan and Camping Club site from where we planned to have a walk into the City to do a bit of shopping, visit the Cathedral and treat ourselves to lunch out, and to an extent we managed 2 out of the 3!

The site is situated about 20 minuets walk from the city and as we went we learned about The Via Francigena pilgrim trail - an 1800km route that leads from Canterbury to Rome and follows the path taken by Sigeric - Archbishop of Canterbury, and a chap who walked to Rome in 990 to meet Pope John XV.  The Council of Europe designated the Via Francigena a European Cultural Route in 1994 and it is now available as a walking or cycling trail that crosses Europe via the North Downs Way to Dover, the Great War battlefields of Northern France, the Champagne region, Lake Geneva and the mighty Alps, the Apennines, and the hills of Tuscany and then finally takes you into the City of Rome - and if you want to go as a pilgrim, you can get a passport that allows you to rest at religious refuges along the way.  It all sounded like a great adventure but sadly not on our agenda for today.

We continued our walk into the city and headed first towards the Cathedral, but when we got there we found you could only enter after coughing up £12 - a price we thought a bit steep after being able to enter all the magnificent Cathedrals and religious establishments in Europe for free, so we decided not to bother on this occasion! And anyway, the omission gave us more time for the  much more interesting task of shopping, and also visiting a couple of bike shops - one hadn't really got much to show us, but the other went to great lengths to inform us about their 'Ridgeback E-bike' an all singing and dancing machine that really would have suited us, but the price matched it's top end spec so we went away to think about it over lunch - which turned out to be burger and chips for John and fish and chips for me at good old Weatherspoons - delicious!

By the time we'd eaten we'd more or less decided against the 'Ridgebacks', but we still had  time to  do a bit more shopping before strolling back up the hill that took us home for another cosy evening in T4rdis2.


Friday 25th November 2016 - Another sun filled day

This morning we left Canterbury and headed for the town of Bodiam,  where we had an appointment to try some more E bikes with a company called E-bikes direct - they don't have a show room, your supposed to just order online, but if your in their vicinity they are happy for you to visit for a trial  play.  We arrived as planned at lunch time, and at first everywhere seemed deserted, but eventually we found our contact and he very obligingly got 4 bikes out for us to try.

The first was a Raleigh Motus - a bike that John had been looking at ever since we'd decided to 'go electric', and on 'test driving' it proved to be extremely comfortable.  We stayed and 'played' for quite a while - riding the different bikes up and down  the companies long hilly driveway, but we were soon in agreement that the Raleigh ticked all our boxes and would probably be the one that we were going to  buy.  However, we still had one more place to go and visit, so although he offered us a 'Black Friday' deal we didn't quite commit at that stage, but then he obviously didn't want to lose the sale because once he realised we were leaving without putting our hand in our pocket he quickly added that he would hold the price till 'Cyber (Cycle) Monday'!

Anyway, after our 'playtime' it was forwards and onwards to our next destination which turned out to be a bit of a shithole mistake.   We were booked in for 3 nights on a small site called Leobay on the Isle of Sheppey, and we had only chosen it because we wanted somewhere to pass the weekend before we visiting 'Whoosh Bikes' in South-end-on-Sea.  However, by the time we got there we had already decided we were going to be patriotic and buy the English made Raleigh bikes and we wouldn't be bothering with the other shop because they only stock Chinese made imports.

To get to our destination we needed to cross a huge bridge that passes over part of the Medway, but almost as soon as we were on the island we started to realise that we'd landed in a bit of a G-R-I-M place.  It was quite industrial and with lots of building work going on (a huge Aldi distribution centre), but then as we got nearer to the site the scruffy narrow residential streets didn't instil any confidence, and finally we had to traverse an unmade bumpy dirt track.  Now to be fair, this chucked us out into a little oasis that was the camping ground and we were greeted by the owner and made welcome with coffee and mince pies.  Additionally we were also entertained by the many varieties of birds (that included Keith the Kestrel), that swooped and squabbled around the numerous 'feeders' that festooned the area, and we also had views over the Medway from our pitch.  So there really was nothing (much) wrong with the site, but from where we were it was difficult to know what we were going to do for the next couple of days, especially in view of what we had seen so far!


Saturday 26th November 2016 - Windy and with light cloud.


We decided we'd go for a walk into the town of Sheerness this morning, but by the time we'd done I don't think either of thought it had been much of a pleasure!  To start with we'd had to go along the same dingy streets we'd passed through yesterday, then only to find that a footpath that should have been available was fenced off. Eventually we made it down to the waterfront, but even that wasn't very inspiring - the trail was strewn with dog💩 and as the tide receded a very muddy and smelly shoreline was revealed along with abandoned shopping trolleys, old tyres and all sorts of other rubbish.


Also we hadn't gone far when we found ourselves veering away form the water's edge  and forced to walk along a never ending path that had a high concrete wall on one side, and on the other, a tall fence topped with razor wire that guarded a massive car storage area. We calculated that there must have been at least 10,000 new cars and vans there (it took half an hour to walk past it), but additionally, later in our walk we passed two other storage yards as well.




I think I'm painting a fairly G-R-I-M picture, and it was at this stage that we wondered whether to give it up as a bad job, but we persevered and at about mile 4 we came across 'The Blue Town' which at least added a bit of interest to our walk.


Here we learnt about Naval Queenborough and that a dockyard was built at the north western point of Sheppey in 1665 along with a fort to defend the mouth of the Medway.  Apparently in the early 1700s a small set of wooden houses were erected by the dockyard workers - and these became known as 'The Blue Houses' - so called because they were painted with paint 'acquired' from the naval stores!  This development slowly grew and eventually included shops, trams, chapels, schools, a theatre, many pubs and a railway station, but today, although some of the buildings are still there,  the naval paint must have ran out because none of them are blue!  We  learnt that the real demise of the town coincided with the withdrawal of army and navy personnel in the early 1960s when a lot of the vibrant Blue Town was demolished to make way for the massive car parking storage areas that we had seen earlier - I suppose they call that progress, and all that is left now is a Heritage Trail with information plaques along the way. They highlighted such things as:-


  •  a gas jet at the dockyard 'Factory Gate' where workers could light their pipes on exiting because  matches were strictly forbidden inside the dockyard!  
  • The Red Lion public house - the oldest surviving pub in the town and one that still serves beer after hundreds of years in service.
  • The fire holes - spaced along the dockyard wall there are a number of holes were hoses could be poked through in the event of fire breaking out in the mostly wooden town - the main ones occurred in 1827 and 1830
  • The dockyard rush - a daily event that saw hundreds of workers emerge and flood up The Blue Town's high street, both on foot and bike, resulting in anyone in the way having to dodge the stampede!

A BIG anchor!

Next we came to the promenade at Sheerness - not particularly a pretty site, but by now we were hungry so we braved the wind and sat and ate our lunch while watching the murky waves wash up over the shingle shore.  And while we were doing so we decided that, rather than stay another day, we'd move on - even if the site wouldn't give us a refund on our already booked 3rd night.  So all we had to do then was walk all the way back and decide where to go next because we still have a few more days before we can take up residence on the site we've pre booked for the month of December.









Sunday 27th November 2016 - A cloudy morning but with some nice sunny bits in the afternoon.

As planned we packed up this morning (with our pitch fee fully refunded) and headed north to the town of Theddlethorpe  which is about 15 miles up the coast from Skeggy.    Why Theddlethorpe -  well the Camping and Caravan Club Certified Site there was just about the only place we could find that was open at this time of year, however we were a bit concerned when the address red Arklow House on 'Rotten Row'!

But it turned out to be anything but 'Rotten'.  We were greeted and shown to our pitch by a very friendly chap who proceeded to tell us that there was a fishing lake and 9 hole golf course available for our use and included in the price, along with all the other facilities we were likely to need.  However, by now the time was getting on and it was nearly dark, so there was no time for anything more than filling with water and then settling down for another T4rdis2 special Sunday supper!


Monday 28th November 2016 - A glorious sunny and quite warm day

So out came our bikes for a ride along the coast towards Skeggy, but as that would have made our round trip a little over 30 miles, and because the days are short now, we thought it was more likely that we would only make it as far as Chapel St Leonard's - and that was all we managed - so only 28 miles in the end!  Also, for a change, rather than our usual picnic I decided we would have fish and chips by the sea - but I hadn't reckoned on everywhere being shut on Monday's - we very nearly went hungry😒

We left our 'Rotten Row' campsite and only had about a mile to cycle before we came to the cycle track that has been built into the sea defences and runs between Mablethorpe and Huttoft Car terrace, and in the warm sunshine it really was a lovely place to ride.  And it was in the early part of our journey that our cultural knowledge was improved when we learnt that this area (Somersby) was the birth place and home of the poet Alfred Tennyson (1809 - 1892), and that the surrounding district influenced many of his famous poems.


We paused for coffee on the Huttoft Terrace, and then continued on our way to seek our lunch at Chapel St Leonard's, but it seemed  there  would be no chips for us from there😠😋😭 !  So we quickly turned tail and hurried back to Anderby Creek - but still no luck - and by now it was nearing chip shop closing time!  But, not to be thwarted, we peddled hard until we reached Sutton on sea (2.20pm), and our diligence was rewarded - we got there just in time to have freshly cooked delicious fish chips and peas which we hungrily consumed on the promenade with several gulls  watching and hoping we would share.

Thus fortified, we recommenced our homeward journey, but by now it was cold, so it was a very good job we had the distraction of the lovely seaward views to accompany us on our way.


Tuesday 29th November 2016.  Another lovely sunny day - but bitingly cold.

When we'd arrived here on Sunday the friendly caretaker had told us about a nearby place called Donna Nook - a Nature Reserve that runs for over 6 miles of coastline between Grainthorpe Haven and Saltfleet. The area is salt marsh and is used by The Royal Air Force for bombing practice, but additionally it is also used by a huge colony of grey seals that return each year from October to December to give birth to their pups on the sand dunes.  We'd never heard of the place before, but like many others, we were keen to go and see. And what a beautiful spectacle it was - literally hundreds of seals and pups spread out over dunes, but many were very close up to the small fence that was the only thing that separated them from the viewing public.


While we were there we learnt that this year the first pup was born on 24th October, so the ones we were seeing were about a month old, but they were already nice and chubby and shedding their downy white coat for a darker more camouflaged appearance.  The other lovely thing about it was the 'song' that was constantly being sung - a very haunting melody!

A Ringed Plover noshing on a discarded
Placenta!


It would have been really nice to have our lunch there, but it was quite busy and there was really nowhere to perch, so eventually we retreated and found our way to one of the other nature reserves nearer to home. Here we found a viewing platform that overlooked the marshes, but maybe the cold had driven all the birds and animals away because there wasn't really anything much to see, and by early afternoon (3ish) it was certainly driving us home - our fingers and toes were quite numb.


Tomorrow will see us on the final leg of our journey back to Ripley - we're really looking forward to being reunited with everyone - so next time you hear from me the blog is likely to be full of pics of our much missed children and grandchildren.

Take care 😘







 


Wednesday 23 November 2016

T4rdis2 Tour 2 - Day 142 - 147 Netherlands

Day 142
Friday 18th November 2016 - a windy, cloudy and cold day!

Well, what a night!  The wind rocked us and the rain 'serenaded' us - so all in all, it was quite difficult to sleep - but at 7am it felt like we were under a waterfall - such was the torrent that descended onto our roof!  And then - all went quiet and we finally went into a sound deep sleep, but only to be woken a short while later by our alarm that went off at 8am!
Gouda's magnificent Town Hall

Once we were up we got sorted and moved on to the town of Gouda - which wasn't quite what I expected. In my minds eye I'd pictured quite quaint streets that were lined with cheese shops and other usual tourist paraphernalia.  What we actually found was a busy city with numerous canals criss crossing it, and streets that were thronged with the usual huge number of cyclists and people going about their business.  And to get to the Stellplatz John had to negotiate said narrow streets which he did with his usual aplomb, so it didn't take long before we were parked up on a Stellplatz that was at the side of a car park but which provided all the facilities we need for the princely sum of 8 euros.

We'll we were wondering we found this barbers
Shop but the 'cut and shave' bit put
John off trying it out!
Some of them reminded me of soap in the 'Lush' shop!
Now, our purpose for coming to Gouda was to buy cheese, (we're both cheese monsters) so once we'd had our typically British lunch of beans on toast, we set off to find a cheese shop - which turned out to be a bit like looking for hens teeth in the town of Gouda!  In the end we found 2 - a real one, and one that seemed to cater more  for the tourist market. So after a though  tour of the area we settled on the former and were hugely delighted with the products that we brought - even if they were a little expensive.

We made our choices after  an extensive tasting experience, and out of the many we could have chosen we settled for 3 different authentic cheeses that we were sure were going to delight our taste buds later.  And this was because the shop is apparently the only one in Holland that sells exclusive Gouda farmer's traditional cheese which is made from unpasteurised milk to enhance it's flavour.  While we were in the shop we also learnt that the cheese is made in limited batches so it isn't exported, and additionally, it is quite unique in the range of flavours available.  www.kaaswinkeltje.com.



Once our purchases had been made we hurried back to T4rdis2 where we indulged in our very own exclusive cheese and wine party - I think maybe I forgot to mention we'd also purchased aged ruby port and posh crackers to go with the main act!








Day 143
Saturday 19th November 2016 - A windy but warm and sunny day!

Our first priority today was to find a hidey hole to shelter from Storm Angus which we knew was heading our way and bringing with it high winds and lots of rain  - but more no that later.  Our other priority was obtaining supplies 🍔- we'd already tried to visit a couple of supermarkets but without success due to being unable to get anywhere near with T4rdis2.  Our first attempt had been on Thursday at Katwijk, but the Lidl there only had on street parking, and even to access that we would have had to negotiate several very tight streets. Next we tried another Lidl while we were in Gouda, but that was worse - they only had parking on the roof 😒! So today, we either had to get some food or eat cheese and biscuits all weekend, so although that wouldn't have been a bad fate, John got out his maps and highlight 3 places where he thought we would be OK.


We set Tommy Sat Nav for the first one at Barendrecht, and although there was plenty of parking all around it, it turned out to be a big NO NO because it's entrance was guarded by a height barrier.  But not to worry, we still had 2 other options in reserve - but this was where we came unstuck good and proper!  Tommy was now guiding us into the heavily industrial south side of Rotterdam where the very complex road system of the A15/16 can be found -😨 in places there are at least 16 lanes, many of which are new and therefore not in Tommy's memory.  This, along with one inaccessible road that  Tommy was insisting we use resulted in us travelling in circles, and in the end it felt like we were in a vortex from which we were never going to escape. However, eventually my excellent and trusty driver did manage to extract us, but as soon as we could find a parking place he did need coffee and cake to help him recover - and I wont tell you about the few four letter words that had blued the air as we went😠!

And we still had no food!  So out came the maps again and another location at Brielle was programmed in, and once again we found ourselves traversing very narrow residential streets, and when we got there - still no room to park!  However, by now we were a bit desperate so we left T4rdis2 on a side street and just dashed in to get essentials to see us over the weekend, then proceeded  with our journey to a campsite on the coast at Zeeland where we plan to stay for the next 3 nights.


Day 144
Sunday 20th November 2016 - Very high winds and lots of rain courtesy of Storm Angus.

You wouldn't really believe that 2 days could be so different.  When we arrived here yesterday afternoon we'd had sunshine streaming through our windscreen and been able to sit with the door open while we ate our late lunch🌞.  But then as evening drew in it got quite cold and the wind started to rattle around, but still not causing us any worries in our sheltered little spot.   John had been watching the weather forecast closely and it seemed to be telling us that the worst of the storm wouldn't reach us until early this morning, and that really is just what happened.  We woke about 6am to find the van occasionally shuddering and rain pattering on the roof, but it still didn't seem too bad, however by lunch time the shudders had turned to jolts and at one point the wind tried hard to steal our silver screens form our windscreen.


Therefore, we spent the day in the safe confines of T4rdis2🌀🌊⛈🌀 hiding from what seemed to be a cyclone!  We passed our time with our usual electronic gadgets using the campsites free wifi and File Factory to download things that we'd missed on TV while we've been away.  Then later we treated ourselves to a home cooked roast beef Sunday dinner and watched Blackpool Strictly!

Oh, and I bet you can tell I've found the new Emoji button on Blogger 😀😘 - but I was somewhat disappointed because they haven't got one for a bike! Or maybe I just din't look properly🚲🚴😁






Day 145
Monday 21st November 2016 - Overcast and drizzly but less windy

This morning the weather was still grim 🌁so the grand exploration of this area got postponed until we come back next spring.  However, after being in the van all day yesterday we did feel the need to stretch our legs, so at around 11am, when the rain seemed to have stopped (it didn't last), we donned our coats and went for a walk on the beautiful white sand beach🌊⛱. In all we were out for a couple of hours, but other than a short dry spell  while we ate our lunch, the showers kept coming, so in the end we went home and did a little more research into our pending purchase off new E-bikes, hopefully soon after we get back to Blighty - Oh, and of course we watched the 'Strictly Results'!  


Day 146
Tuesday 22nd November 2016 - Bright and sunny, but still very windy.

This morning we're heading for an Aire in France that is  near the ferry port  at Dunkirk from where our ferry⛴ home is booked for mid-day tomorrow. Our journey was about 130 miles - we left Zeeland at about 11am, zoomed through Belgium with just a quick stop off to do a bit of last minute European shopping🛍, and arrived in France at the respectable time of  3.30pm.  And now all we have to do is wait - after 5 months away we are very much looking forward to setting foot on home soil.  However, even when we do we wont be quite home - we plan to spend another week or so in the Southern part of the country visiting several ⌁🚲shops that seem to be clustered in that region .

Day 147 - The Last Day
Wednesday 23rd November 2016 - Pouring rain Again!

Today was the final day of our European tour, that has seen us stay for prolong visits or fleetingly pass through 7 countries which include France, Germany, Czech Republic, Austria, Poland, Netherlands and Belgium, and in doing so we have travelled 5,334 miles.

Have we enjoyed it?  Mostly yes!

So what's been good

  • The freedom to wonder at will
  • Finding beautiful locations, especially the ones where we have been able to cycle and walk
  • The learning experience related to historic happenings, culture and local produce
  • The challenge of being able to interact with the local people
  • Our time in the Czech Republic with Sharon, Paul and Benjamin 
  • Cheap booze🍷
  • Sometimes cheap or free nights/campsites
  • T4rdis2's performance - we mostly managed more than 30 miles/gallon, and apart from on little scrape, no mishaps!
  • Having special time to spend together💏
What's been not so good
  • The oppressive heat in the summer months which was sometimes inescapable in our little home
  • Missing our family and friends, and at times being a bit homesick.
  • The 'bugs' which sometimes invaded when John left the fly screens open!
  • Finding our way in some city traffic situations and where lots of major roads converge 
  • Very occasionally getting on each others nerves in a confined space!
Are we going to continue with this lifestyle?
  • Yep, Definitely 😁!

Today our journey was boringly simple.  We boarded the ferry on time and our crossing was 'wave' free, so other than the rain we've got nothing to complain about.  On arrival at Dover we nipped into the local 'Tesco' and acted like children in a sweet shop - chucking all sorts of goodies (that we've deprived of over the last 5 months) into our trolley.  This included items such as tomato soup, proper bacon and of course a drop of decent cider which we are now sipping while relaxing at the Canterbury Camping and Caravan Club site. Tomorrow we plan to do a little exploring around and about, and as I've already mentioned, we've also got a couple of stops booked to look for our bikes, and then after that we'll be heading home to see our family - we can't wait.  

Anyway, that's all for now xx😘





Thursday 17 November 2016

T4rdis2 Tour 2 - Day 139 - 141 Netherlands

Day 139
Tuesday 15th November 2016 - Low cloud and lots of mizzlely rain

This morning we checked out of our Stellplatz in Amsterdam and headed for the nearby Windmills at Zaanse Schans,  a place that presents the image of a typical nineteenth century residential and industrial area, but it hasn't always been as it appears today.  In 1959 a group of people from the region became concerned about the disappearance of numerous historic buildings, so using plans drawn up by an architect - Jaap Schipper - they started to move historic buildings and windmills to form this living museum that is now a major tourist attraction.



When we first arrived the rain had stopped so we took the opportunity to explore the quite waterways that criss cross this area, and while we were walking we had the pleasure of watching loads of waterbirds from the numerous little bridges.

And just to make up for missing my shot a heron in my last post, I've popped this one in - he was a sitting duck!






Eventually the path led us around to where the windmills are situated, but in times gone by this would have been much more industrial that it is today.  We learnt that in it's heyday this waterway supported around six hundred industrial windmills, and apparently, the area blossomed due to it's proximity to Amsterdam, because that was where the shiploads of raw materials landed.



Now, when I look at windmills I always think of them as machines that grind grain into flour, but this was not the function of these mills - their uses ranged from the production of cocoa, pigments,  paper, oil and wood, and today, some of the ones that have survived still perform these activities as museums.  However, on a wet windy Tuesday most of them were closed so we continued on our way into the 'village' where we found more preserved historic buildings from the late 1800s, and as many of these were shops they were open.








,






We nipped into the cheese shop but these specimens seemed a bit to brightly coloured to actually eat!










And although there were loads of 'shops' we could have visited, the clog shop caught our interest the most. We discovered that, depending on the region and the use of the clog, they come in many different shapes and presentations, and that some were even made for animals.

The ones on the left are for a horse!













Also for weddings, clog making was important, because in times gone by the bridegroom would traditionally carve a pair of clogs by hand for his bride, and the examples on display were beautifully intricate.





We also found clogs that had been converted into musical instruments and ones that had been added to for sporting activities.  However, I couldn't find a pair with cleats in for John!  And amongst all the others we also found humorous ones!



Laughing Clogs!



















Eventually we emerged from this extraordinary place, but by now it was pouring again so we quickly scampered back to the dry confines of T4rdis2 and set off for a camp site called Noordduinen (right by the North Sea) in the town of Katwijk, and this where we'll make our home for the next few days.


Day 140
Wednesday 16th November 2016 - A bit windy and a bit cloudy at times, but lots of lovely sunshine in between.

Today was a real treat, sunshine, cycling, and impressive vistas.  I think we'd really missed being able to go out on our bikes over the last few day, although I suppose we could have used them in Amsterdam.  The city was certainly bike friendly enough, but it was incredibly busy with pedestrians, trams, cars and of course bikes, all of which seemed to be travelling at speed in every direction that you looked.  Added to that, we'd heard about an old saying there - if you shout 'Hey that's my bike' at least 5 people will get off  the one they are riding and scarper! Therefore, it felt much safer to leave them at home and use Shank's pony instead.

Spot the deer
Then spot him again!
Anyway, back to today, and as we left the campsite we were straight onto a brilliant cycle trail that followed the coast but took us through a vast sand dune area that had been supplied with individual paths to cater for the needs of bikers, walkers and gallopers!  We didn't see any of the latter with riders but we did spot deer lurking in the undergrowth on 2 occasions, and both times it seemed to be a case of who was watching whom!

The trail led us first to Noordwijk and then on to Zandvoort, but before I tell you about them I feel I must just make more comments about the trail itself because it was an absolute pleasure to ride on.  It was tarmacked and divided into 2 lanes, and as we went we commented that it was actually better than a good many of the roads we have driven along (especially in Portugal)! However, it wasn't flat - it undulated with the contours of the dunes, so as well as providing lovely views, it also gave us a bit of much needed exercise.
 
Noordwijk proved to be a very pretty and fairly upmarket seaside town that looked down over part of the 13km stretch of lovely sandy beach.  It was backed by grand hotels where bell hops hopped out to collect your luggage, and also lots of restaurants and cafes, but probably it's main claim to fame is related to Bulb cultivation and exhibitions, and with respect to that it can trace it's history back to 1880.  Apparently, not only tulips are grown here, but also daffodils and gladioli flourish in the vast sandy fields that lie behind the dunes - it must be a magnificent site, and one we plan to come back to see in the spring.


Further along the coast we came to the town of Zandvoort,  one of the Netherlands major beach resorts, and also the site of Circuit Park Zandvoort - a place where Formula 1 Grand Prix races used to be held, and one that now hosts numerous sporting events including several related to cycling. Additionally, the town has quite a torrid history from  World War II,  suffering  heavy damage from bombing, and in the summer of 1942 the town was made ready for the coastal fortifications of the 'Atlantic Wall'.  This was an extensive system of coastal fortifications built by Nazi Germany between 1942 and 1944 along the coast of continental Europe and Scandinavia as a defence against an anticipated Allied invasion from Great Britain.  However, even though the defences included huge guns, and thousands of German troops, the Allies managed to storm many areas within hours during the Normandy invasion in 1944.  Today, some ruins of the wall still exist, but over the years the ocean has claimed much of it.

While we were in the town we also found some magnificent sand sculptures from The European Championship Sand Sculpting completion which had taken place on 30th July.  The first prize had gone to a chap called Baldrick Buckle who comes from Leeds, for his work called 'Tolerance of Amsterdam' - a representation of how an ultimate goal can be achieved by people working together.  However, we did wonder why the many nights of rain hadn't washed them away.



Then once we'd finished admiring these lovely works of art, we retraced our tyre tracks back over the dunes, all the while keeping our fingers crossed that the clouds that were heading our way would hold onto their loads until we got home - and they did.








Day 141
Thursday 17th November 2016 - Very windy with early and late heavy showers.

This morning our plan had been to cycle in the opposite direction to yesterday to visit The Hague - the seat of the Dutch parliament and also home to the United Nation's International Court of Justice.  However unfortunately the weather scuppered our plans.  Overnight the wind had been gusting and the rain had hammered on our roof, and when we looked at today's forecast the wind speeds were predicted to reach over 40 mph, which would have resulted in us having to battle into it all the way there.   So instead of cycling gear we donned our walking togs, and although we still had to fight against the wind, we were blessed with intermittent sunshine for most of the time.
  

Our route first took us along the sea front through the town of Katwijk, and then onto another dedicated and undulating walking track though more dunes.  But it really was quite hard going so after about 4 miles we gave up and found a sheltered spot for our picnic lunch.  Then, for a change of scenery, we decided to walk back along the beach, so after scrambling through the deep sand over a high dune we found ourselves right beside the angry ocean surf, a place from where we could admire the brave (or stupid) kite and wind surfers as they sped over the waves at great speed.

From where we had crossed over we had about three and a half miles to walk to get back to the town of Katwijk, and for this part of our walk it was a good job that the wind was on our backs, because all the way it was wiping the sand up into a frenzy that would have blinded us had we been walking into it.  As it was it was like the smoke that is sometimes sprayed onto dance floors - at times our feet were almost invisible in the ghostly sandy haze.

As we walked we mostly had the entire beach to ourselves except for numerous little sandpipers who entertained us with their antics as they tried to dodge the waves, but at this stage of our walk we didn't dawdle because there were some sinister looking storm clouds chasing us from behind.  With still about a mile to go we started to feel big splats of rain, and although we didn't get soaked we didn't manage to outrun it either.  Then once back in T4rdis2 John rechecked the forecast - it looks like being a rough night with more gusts at over 50 mph!  I'll let you know how we got on with that in my next episode but for now we're going to set about battening down our hatches xx!







Monday 14 November 2016

T4rdis2 Tour 2 - Day 134 - 138 Germany

Day 134 and 135
Thursday 10th and Friday 11th November 2016

Not sure if I fancy that!
On Thursday morning we left Eckwarderhorne and headed for the town of Norrdeich - a North Sea Spa town that has the Frisian islands just off it's coast.  These include Borkum, Juist, Norderney, Baltrum, Langeoog, Spiekerroog and Wangerooge and all around them is the National Park Niedersachsisches Wattenmeer .  Apparently, the park was established to protect the unique ecosystem of the shallow seas, that at low tide, turns into a vast area of mud flats call 'The Watt'.



The Watt
Now, our guide book suggests that you could explore this area by paddling barefoot around it, but that would definitely not be on my bucket list of 'must do things' - yuk. However, once we'd settled in on our new Stellplatz we did decide to go for a walk (with our shoes on) in the late afternoon sunshine, and  we were very pleasantly surprised by the tourist friendly shoreline that had lovely walkways that took you right into the harbour.  You could also walk both on and below the dyke where you were rewarded with distant views of the islands, as well as ferry and fishing boats chugging to and from the islands.


Friday dawned bright and sunny, and just as John had predicted, warm enough to go for another ride, so we chose a route that took us along the concrete paved trail, which to start with put us on the sea side of the dyke where there were large numbers of sea birds 'grazing' on the mud flats.

The heron should be there somewhere
but I think I missed!
Eventually the route crossed back over to the land side of the dyke, and from there it wasn't long before we found ourselves crossing a huge nature reserve that was situated on a grassy flood plain. What more could we ask - warm sunshine and frequent sightings of numerous birds which included herons stalking their prey , majestic skuas in acrobatic flight, and large numbers of geese and ducks.

However, much as we were enjoying ourselves we'd decided not to go to far today, so once we reached the far side of the nature reserve at about 20kms into our ride, we stopped for lunch at the ferry port of Nessmersiel.  Then, once fed and watered we started our return journey, and it was on this leg that we saw a sight worth seeing!

Have I mentioned the geese - there are literally thousands of them in this part of the world, and they can often be seen in vast numbers feeding in the fields.  As we were cycling along we noticed such a group off to our left, but other than a quick glance we didn't really pay much attention, until a few seconds later I heard a great rushing and honking noise, which at first I thought was a motorised vehicle .  Then, as we looked behind the whole flock had taken off on mass, and as they flew overhead the sky almost became dark - and I did wonder if we would need our brolly!

They were a magnificent site to see, especially in relation to the formations in which they flew.  Apparently, they fly in a V shape to assist their neighbours - when each goose flaps it's wings it creates an uplift for the birds that follow, so by flying in this manner the whole flock can fly much further than if each bird flew alone. And a bit like big groups of cyclists -   when the lead goose tires, it rotates back into the formation and another goose takes over it's position - and why do they make such a noise - the honking is supposed to encourage those up front to keep up their speed.

Because we hadn't gone too far we got back to T4rdis2 about 3ish, so after a quick cuppa we went for a walk back up onto the dyke to see if we could spot any more birds on the mud flats, but no.  It was a lovely sunny ending to the day and there were loads of people out walking, and lots of them with dogs, so there was hardly anything to see - except another lovely sunset.


Day 136
Saturday 12th November 2016 - A cold frosty morning but with plenty of bright sunshine

This morning, as we peeked out of our windows we could see that Jack Frost had been out to play and splattered the Stellplatz liberally with a dusting of powder white frost that made everywhere look like a wonderful winter wonderland.  But it wasn't very wonderful inside T4rdis2 - it was bitter cold at only about 6 degrees!  And that was because we were using electricity to heat the van overnight, and sometime in the small wee hours our 'bob' must have ran out, and sods law, it was my turn to get up and make the tea.  So I very quickly leaped out of bed, switched over to diesel heating, stuck the kettle on, and then jumped back into my pit while things warmed up.

By 8.30 we were toasty again so our day could start properly - another moving day, and after 96 days in Germany we're waving goodbye to it and moving on (and homewards) to the Netherlands - but first we had to escape from this Stellplatz!  It was one of those where you pay on exit, so we duly put our ticket into the machine and it rudely asked for the extortionate sum of 48 euros when it should only have been 22.  We asked the machine to spit out ticket out again but it wasn't keen on that idea, so then we had no choice other than to press the button for 'help', and keep our fingers crossed that the person providing it could speak English.  She did, but only in a limited fashion, however eventually we made ourselves understood, and after visiting a nearby sports centre, we were given a ticket that facilitated our escape, but only after we'd paid extra for the towns Kurtax!

Then we were on our way, but we couldn't leave without paying  a final visit to one of Germany's Lidls to stock up on 'plonk' for Christmas - now all we have to do is make sure it's hidden away so that we don't indulge before the appointed time!

And really, there's not much else to say about today.  We're in the Netherlands now and parked on a campsite near the settlement of Koudum, and right on the side of a massive lake that is linked by canals to the North Sea.  After our long drive John was quite tired, so other than a short exploration walk around the site and down to the waters edge we haven't done much, and as we plan to move on to Amsterdam tomorrow we will probably have to save exploring this area until another time.  So the only thing we need to do this evening is keep our fingers crossed that the rain that is forecast for overnight doesn't result in us getting stuck on our already  slightly wet and slippery grass pitch when we try and move on in the morning!


Day 137
Sunday 13th November 2016 -  Wet, grey and miserable!

Well, did we get stuck? No, but it was a very close thing - T4rdis2 set off ok, but as we crossed the 10 foot strip of grass towards the road we started to slid  - and unfortunately left deep gouges in there pristine lawn - oh well, it wasn't our fault, they had told us to park there!

Then we were on our way to the only Stellplatz in Amsterdam, which turned out to be on the opposite side of a large body of water to where most of the tourist part of the city is, but we felt this wouldn't be a problem because the ferries run every 5 mins and are free.  The Stellplatz itself turned our to be a mechanised secure one with a high fence all around - in fact it was so secure that we got locked out - while all our worldly goods (including T4rdis2) were locked in! On arrival we'd had to pay at a machine and take a ticket which electronically operated the huge gates, that once opened, allowed you 8 seconds to drive in, however we did note that there was a pedestrian access at the side which we planned to use later.   As usual, we got settled and then went for a walk through the dank and dirty litter strewn streets where redevelopment and building sites seemed to lurk on every corner (I think the pristine-ness of Germany has spoiled us).   Eventually, we made it down to the water front from where the ferries left, and here it all seemed a bit more presentable with cafes, museums and futuristic buildings lining the shore line - we even found this bicycle 'race track' - however, you'd have to be very sure your brakes were good if you were going to have a go!  

But the weather was miserable and cold, so we were soon on our way home - only to find the pedestrian entrance to the Stellplatz very firmly locked and only accessible with your pass card - and guess where ours was - yes, it was very safely stowed inside T4rdis2.  So there we stood dithering in the freezing rain looking like 2 big drips - until a very kind Dutch lady came to our rescue - but she did tell us off and to make sure we didn't do it again!


Day 138
Monday 14th November 2016 - It's still raining and cold!

We couldn't quite work out how they parked
them on the top row!

Today was our day for sightseeing in Amsterdam, so despite the weather off we went - for the mile and a half walk to the ferry, and then across the water into the main part of the city.  Oh and did I mention the bikes - the're everywhere, hundreds and thousands of them so you have to be extremely careful when not only crossing the roads, but the bike lanes as well.  On both sides of the water there are massive bike parks that were crammed full of with every conceivable sort of bike you can imagine, and some with very inventive seating arrangements for 2 or 3 passengers!


The ferry dropped us off just outside Amsterdam Central Station, but as we didn't want to catch a train we just passed straight through and headed into the very eeclectic shopping streets where you could buy everything from Dutch cheese, clogs, tulips, liquor and favours from ladies who practice one of the oldest professions in the world!  We also spotted numerous places where you could not only buy all kinds of smoking paraphernalia, but also something special to go with them.





This massive tree was
hanging from the ceiling!
We visited Dam Square with it's Royal Palace, Madame Tussaud's, and Museums dedicated to what Amsterdam is famous for; we pottered around some of the canal region and maybe viewed more than we bargained on; and we visited The Magna Plaza with it's very upmarket shops and lovely Christmas decorations.  But even though we walked for many miles, overall we remained unimpressed by the City's attractions, and even a visit to The Body World Museum didn't change our minds (We'd really wanted to go to the Anne Frank Museum but the queue was horrendous). Therefore,  I don't think it will be on our 'come back soon' list, but having said that, I'm sure we'll find plenty of other places here that we do like!



So tomorrow we will move again, probably to a campsite on the coast, so fingers crossed for some sunshine, but that's all for now so take care xx