Gens de Voyage

Camping Le Parc could only accommodate us for a week as the International Fair (this year's theme: Latin America) was due to take place, so we spent a pleasant if quiet time there and then headed off to Agde for ten days.
Montpellier remains one of Greyrock's favourite cities, and the cycling in and near it is excellent, but Ruth was suffering again with a cough and the knees so it was Bob that did those trips. We both, though, used the new tramline 3 which goes from Lattes to the centre and we sat in the main place in glorious sunshine being entertained by students - presumably as part of rag - hurling cream pies. Palavas was very crowded on the Sunday and it was hard to discern signs of austerity. The weather was so good that the site delayed the closure of the pool and hardy Swiss campers went in. Greyrocks didn't!

 

Being too mean (careful) to pay a booking fee we set off early on departure day in order to catch the Mimosas reception before the lunch break. We were greeted effusively and given a three-bedroom mobile for an excellent price. The weather was not as good as that of the previous week, but still remarkably pleasant for October, and Ruth was recovered sufficiently for bike rides down to the Grau. Our Sunday lunch was at La Créoline beside the Marina:- glorious food and treats for the birthday of one of the owners!
Climatic conditions became less than tropical as our stay progressed, with high winds causing  Dutch motorhome owners to dismantle awnings and flee! We battened down hatches and survived unscathed. On a day with a particularly unpromising méteo we made a long car tour, getting deeply embroiled in the difficult historic centre of Béziers as we sought the locks of Fonserannes. We got there in the end and they are as interesting and impressive as ever!
Fortunately our mobile had a large canopy, under which we parked Yvette for the major unpack and re-pack necessary before final hibernation. We spent the final Sunday engaged in this whilst dodging showers, then had a jolly time at the hypermarket laundrette, where the dryers were very busy! Our final French meal of the year was reduced by the weather to an unremarkable affair at the hypermarket cafeteria!

We feared we would have another of those terrifying stormy Pyrenees crossings, but in fact it was alright. We went in and out of five thunderstorms on the autoroute / autopista to Girona, but the traffic was light, and we arrived at the parking in good time. The first train was very crowded, but the Line of Fear presented no problems and we were transported by shuttle from the airport (avaoiding Celtic fans!) to the hotel. We compensated for the previous night's dinner by eating at the hotel, which serves what looks like a rather expensive menu but has free-flowing wine and worked out both delicious and good value! Reveille was 4a.m, and that was the start of a very stressful day! Watch this space!

 

Snowbirds make a Slight Detour!

From "Understanding Canadian Slang":- "Snowbirds - (Usually) older people who leave during the winter months and stay in the southern states of the US."
.. make that "the southernmost parts of Europe"!
Part 1: Crete to The Car: Last year we felt we had stayed a little too late. This year we left Paleo in glorious sun, having had three or four days of perfect beach weather; but we had said a lot of goodbyes and potential hazards for departure were starting to be evident:- particularly strikes and bad weather on the mainland, so off we went according to schedule on 26th September.

The route involved Heraklion as this had been a very cheap option once the outward route had been established. The first panic was that this date was that of a General Strike in the whole of Greece; but fortunately for us the buses - being privately owned - were running as normal, so it was two hours on the crowded first bus, a break at the newly renovated bus station in Chania (including use of the new Ladies to commemorate the demise of the worst toilets in the Western world) and three hours on the second crowded but fast bus. After taking an ill-advised hilly route to the hotel we were given a choice of rooms and got a beautiful view of the harbour. When we went out into the city that evening it was like a bank holiday - not a strike, and we found a Noodle Bar with just the right delights for those newly arrived from the sticks. Next day it was E1.20 each on an empty bus to get to the airport, which was heaving with Scandinavian buggies built likr tanks, and Russian stilettos, and not a very pleasant experience. Our flight was a little late but this helped with killing time in Milan Malpensa airport, as did a very pleasant dinner airside. There was then a quick hop to Barcelona, a pick-up by hotel shuttle and a night at the Frontier Congress. Next day was not so smooth! We had turned down the offer of expensive breakfast and so went out to the two cheap franchises in the same commercial centre. Not open!! Grrr! We pay an extortionate price for (excellent) breakfast at the hotel and do mental arithmetic throughout! Never mind! We turned out to be the only takers for the shuttle and the very nice driver took us directly to the airport train station. there were no incidents on the "Line of Fear", and the Parking bus was waiting for us, with Yvette champing at the bit for a quick run to Figueres.

Part 2: Not making the most of Figueres:

Museo de Dali, Figueres

The plan was to spend a couple of days in Catalunya so that our Amsterdam trip would be after the weekend and thus both cheaper and more convenient for Chloe, so we decided to book a hotel from where we could do the Salvador Dali thing, with a trip round the musem in the town and then over to Cadaquez. By the time we got there Ruth was two days into a filthy cold and much of Spain was under water! Friday was dry enough but R was more or less hors de combat for traipsing round. We drove aimlessly round the town with few ideas what to do and then found a good restaurant walking distance from the hotel. On TV we saw what was going on in Malaga and Murcia, and the forecast.  Oh dear! Indeed next morning the rain started and it poured all day. People were arriving at the hotel in states of shock having come up from the South. We lurked round a nearby shopping mall and went for an early Chinese buffet (the largest Greyrocks has ever seen!) at Wok You! Next day it had stopped raining so we went to the seaside at Roses - a pleasant resort deserving a longer visit! The sun shone and we had a good cheap lunch and watched the world go by. on Monday we went back to Girona to give Yvette a few days off and flew Transavia from Girona to Schiphol. Salvador will have to wait until next year!

Part 3: Going Dutch
Clearly Amsterdam in October is not part of a sunseeking itinerary! The purpose was to visit

Chloë, who is in her second month of a full-time Masters (taught in English) at UvA. She is finding both the academic level and the workload challenging, and as she was preparing for a presentation on our final day we gave her plenty of space, and only met up in the evenings to feed her! She also kept us well away from the accommodation in Diemen which she detests! Greyrocks has "done" Amsterdam a good few times both together and in olden times, so we were not on a major sightseeing mission! The knees and cough were also issues, so we chose a hotel in the Plantage area (near the zoo and on Chloë's cycle route) that had a lift. It turned out to be right next to a tram stop and very comfortable, as well as good Greyrocks value. We also armed ourselves with 72-hour tram tickets with th eintention of touring by short hops. (The days of the old strippenkaarten are gone - it is chip technology now!)

"No! we are staying next door!"

On the first evening Chloë found us and we ate at the brownish café opposite, which had been recommended by Dutch friends:- Café Koosje, then sent her off on her bicycle into the night. Next day we spent a couple of hours in the fascinating Museum of the Dutch Resistance. which we had seen by coincidence the night before. It is very skillfully arranged and deals with the Dutch Jewish history in a much more understanding way than at Anne Frank's house where one is subjected to a dose of Zionism. We learnt a lot that we didn't know - particularly about the war as experienced in the Dutch colonies. We bought a small booklet documenting a number of war-related sights, and went to see a few of them. This includes the building next door to our hotel, which is now a memorial, having been a theatre.(From the booking.com site we had thought we were staying there!) It contains amazing stories and is one of the best 50 cents we spent! We left it with Chloë to aid her enculturisation.


After a few tram rides past key places we met the daughter again in Dam and she took us to the Beer Temple, and then sent us by tram to meet her and friends (Canadian and Swedish) in a brewery beneath a windmill. When that closed we moved to a nearby bar and ordered delivery pizza:- Dutch cuisine at its best, and a great bunch of people!
By next morning it was pouring with rain. Greyrocks reluctantly put on socks and closed shoes (which turned out in R's case to be deeply uncomfortable) and sallied forth on trams. Where better to escape the rain than in Europe's largest public library:- Bibliotheek? It is a magnificent place and makes you contrast with how libraries are being steadily destroyed in UK. We dealt with internet business, browsed around a bit and went to look at a great (if wet) view from the top floor.


Greyrocks was last here in 1989

and here!

It rained all day and well into the evening, but trams and bars came into their own and we went in search of old haunts like Hotel De Lantaerne (no good for us now with the knees and all!) and the Melkweg - newly (well maybe not that newly) - extended, and clearly with as bizarre a programme of arts as we recall from all those years ago!

For the "last supper" we met Chloë at Rembrandtplein at took her for a (slimmed down) rijsttafel in a recommended Indonesian restaurant.  Despite being a minor version there was still plenty for her to take back for next day! We did the goodbyes in pouring rain and returned to the hotel. The weather was a great deal better the next day, but it was too late for us! We flew back to Girona and were re-united with Yvette. We spent the night nearby in Salt (but at the Sidorme because we are disgusted with Holiday Inn Express' WiFi policy!) having some great tapas in the mall. We set off early next morning as we were unsure whether they could fit us in at the campsite in Lattes. They could (just) and that is where we are now!