Friday 26 August 2011

Day 34 - The last day

It was our last day. Woke up to the sad realisation that the trip was pretty much over and next week I would be back in work.
I did not want to dwell on this too much so put it to the back on my mind and we got on with breakfast and packing up the van.
Check out was not till 12 so we had a pretty leisurely morning. After a nice shower and shave I was ready for the day. We planned to park the van and up somewhere and head into Cologne again to have some lunch in a place which was recommended to us by Lexy and her boyfriend.

The lunch was called curry wurst and was essentially German sausage with cheese in a curry sauce. It was lovely and we were both stuffed afterwards.
Once we had lunch we headed back to "the dom" as Rachel wanted to get some more pictures with her camera. That done we decided that we should make our way back to the van and start the drive which we planned to do overnight to dunkirk. The drive was 400km so we planned to stop a few times along the way to eat.

We got caught in a huge rain shower on the way back to the van and got completely soaked which was fun for a bit but after a while made us a bit cold. Back at the van we changed into some dry cloths and hit the road.

We drove for a couple of hours before stopping for dinner. This stop only lasted about 45 min and we were making really decent time so we decided that despite our ferry not being till 12 the next day we would just head to the port and see if we couple get an earlier ferry.

In the end we made it to the port around 12 which meant we were a full 12hours early. Luckily we were able to change our ferry and we on one by 1am heading back to the UK.

It was a bit of a sad way to end the trip as everything happened so quickly but it made alot more sense than just killing 12 hours.

Back in the UK we just had the 55 mile drive to Rachel's mom's and then the journey was over.

Was a great trip. Will post up some stuff on the highlight and all the stops we made as well as the cost of things at a later date.

Final photo with the van - Cologne 25th August 2011

Day 33 - Leaving Manderscheid and Cologne

Woke early (before 8) as we wanted to get to cologne early but before we did so we had a stop off to see one of the volcanic lakes in the nearby towns.

Although it took us a while to find despite it was huge we eventually did. We walked down to the lake. The water was lovely and warm, 21c apparently. There were a few people which we swimming which looked lovely but unfortunately we did not have time so we took a couple of pics and then got back on the road as we were still 150km from Cologne
   
Volcanic Lake
Back on the road we made it to Cologne in decent time and arrived the campsite which was right on the Rein pretty easily.
Once we had set up the van we had a quick bite to eat before making our way into the town. This proved to be pretty easy and we jumped on the tram and we in the town in no time.

Once in town we head straight for "the dom". It was very impressive and definitely worth a visit.
We walked to the top of one of the towers which involved a rather sweaty 500 stair climb up a spiral staircase. I did not make it to the top as I am not a big fan of heights but Rachel said the view was great.

That done we met up with Lexy and her boyfriends Chris and they showed us around some nice parts of the town which we off the beaten track. It was great to have someone local to show us around as we were able to get a proper feel of the city instead of just visting the normal tourists spots.

This took up most of the afternoon and evening and included visting some cool local bars and well as having a drink outside a church which has for some reason turned into a cool spot to hang out and have a drink as drinking in the street in Germany is not illegal. It as a wednesday evening and there must have been 150 people sitting around drinking and chatting.

All in all it was a good day and was great to see Lexy who I have not seen in about 6 years. We are very thankful for them to showing us around the city. Will upload some more pictures in a later post which I plan to do on the highlights of the trip.



Thursday 25 August 2011

Day 32 – Manderscheid


Woke up and had some breakfast before heading into town to the tourist information. Manderscheid is home to two castles and so we decided that we would go and see them and then go by some supplies at the local supermarket.
The castle was very interesting but we found it a touch strange that in the English guide, which we bought only about 70 per cent of the castle was covered. 

Once we had seen the castle we headed back up the huge hill on our bikes. This was a real test and called for the smallest possible gear practically all the way.
Back at the top of the hill we waited for the tourist information to open again after lunch, as we wanted to enquire about a bike trail which we had picked up a leaflet on but was all in German.
It turned out that to get on the trail it was about a 10km cycle ride from where we were so we decided to give it a miss.
We cycled back to the site and chilled for the rest of the afternoon.
In the early evening I cycled back to the local shop to purchase some food and some wine for dinner. We had steak and a bottle of wine and then went to bed.
The site was pretty nice but very noisy with kids so if that is not your thing then I would say avoid it. In the morning we planned to head to see one of the volcanic lakes, which the region is famous for before heading to cologne to meet a friend.

Day 31 – Leaving the Black Forest


Woke up early as we wanted to be on the road by 10am. Usual routine of packing the van up and checking out from the camp site. Rachel bought some locally grown apple juice, which she later went on to smash all over a petrol forecourt.
Again we had to go over the mountain pass to get back to the motorway (autobahn), which was a killer on me and the van. Again 2nd gear most of the way, which proved pretty unpopular with those behind us.
We stopped at the top as there were some amazing views and so Rachel could eat her black forest gateaux before it turned to mush in the sun. 

Back on the motorway we headed for another site listed in the cool camping book. The drive was approximately 300km and we made pretty decent time so were there by late afternoon.
After arriving we spoke to the man who ran the site and he informed us that we could pitch where ever we wanted. After checking out some of the pitches we found one which was not too far from the hook up and set up the van only to realise 15 min later that the hook up connection was not the correct one for the van. Rachel went to speak to the man to see if we could borrow the correct adapter but he was rather rude to her and seemed to not like the English and said he had no adapter so we were without hookup, or so we thought.
Once all set up we began to make dinner of potato hash. While sitting preparing the food I noticed that a further 20 meters along the pitches there was another hook up box which from a distance seemed to be the right connection which we needed. I walked over to find out that this in fact was the case so we decided to move pitch. Don’t know why the guy on reception could not have just told us this but clearly he was a knob.
After dinner we just chilled out in the van as it was a bit cooler and we did not want to sit outside. This was probably the best thing as the site was rather noisy with kids as it was a bit of a holiday camp.

Tuesday 23 August 2011

Day 30 – The Black Forest


Woke up and headed straight to the local bakery which we were told would be open from 7.30 till 10.30am. As we were low on all the essentials we got croissants for breakfast and a few other bits which of course included beer. Don’t think you would find a bakery in the UK selling beers so it was all a bit strange but I was not complaining.
We returned to the van to have breakfast and get ready for the day. The plan was to walk to the local fish farm to buy some trout for dinner and then later in the afternoon do one of the cycle routes that run through the Black Forest.
After making some lunch to eat later we headed off in search of the fish farm and after about 25 min walking we found it. It was a very German affair and eventually we got up the courage to attempt to ask for some fresh fish to take away. After many hand gestures and pointing we eventually had our fish and walked back the site to put them in the fridge for this evening’s dinner.
That done we packed our lunch which we made earlier and headed off on the bikes. The plan was to do the shortest route, which we had seen which was about 17km, That was the plan but it did not quite work out like that. Although it mentioned that the walking and cycle routes were very well sign posted we struggled to make sense of which way we should go. After about 8km we stopped for some lunch and to try make sense of where we were and where we needed to go. After lunch we worked it out and headed for the trail. By the time we had actually made it onto the trail we had cycled over 10km so we decided to head off up the trail and see how we got on all along thinking that we could always turn back if we did not think we would do it in time.

I think we maybe covered the first 4km of the trail which was all up hill before we decided that we would not make it round in decent time if this bit was anything to go on so we decided to turn around and go back.
On the way back we stopped to collect some wood for a braai (bbq).
Back at the site I used the solar shower to have a quick wash, as I was very sweaty from the bike ride. The water was lovely and warm and it was perhaps one of the best showers I have had on the trip and definitely the most fun. 

Shower done I set the fire going as when cooking with wood it takes at least an hour for the coals to form and be at a good cooking temp.
Coals ready we wrapped the fish in foil with some garlic and chilli oil. Although I am not a big fish lover it tasted lovely and made a nice change from the usual food we had been eating. 
Fresh Brown Trout

As mentioned before it was a lot cooler in the evening so as soon as the sun set we were in the van as the dew was setting in.
All in all a good day. Tomorrow we would leave and head to another site recommended in the cool camping book.
The Black forest was a lovely stop and I would definitely recommend it to anyone who likes a bit of peace and quiet with some walking or mountain biking. This is definitely somewhere I would come again.

Day 29 – Leaving Luzern


Woke up early as needed to cycle to town to pick up some coffee that my mom asked me to get. That done we packed up and hit the road.
Today’s destination was the Black forest, which was about 300km. Rachel started driving. It took us a fair amount of time to get there as the last 20 km or so were over a mountain pass which meant driving in 2nd gear for about 30 min which was not fun and probably did no good for the engine which was already running hot. The pass was seriously steep in parts but this did not stop a number of cyclist tackling it at a snails pace. It really must be a lung and leg killer.
Once at the site we picked out the best pitch available and set up. This site was very nice with a little stream running through.
Set up done we wandered down to see what was available. As it was late Saturday everything was closed but we were informed by the site owner that the bakery would be open in the morning along with a fish farm further up the river which we could walk too and purchase fresh trout.
The rest of the evening consisted of sitting gazing at the stars of which thousands could be seen due to the sites remote location and very little light pollution and having some dinner. A lot cooler in the evenings in Germany so we actually had to use the sleeping bag but did mean a more comfortable nights sleep was on the cards.

Day 28 – Luzern


Today we were going to head into Luzern for a little look round. We had not got anything for breakfast so the plan was to find somewhere to have a quick something to eat. We jumped onto the bikes and were in the town in no time. There were so many cyclists and such good cycle lanes it was unbelievable.
Once in the town we found somewhere to park the bikes, which was easier said than done as every spot conceivable was already occupied with a bike. Eventually we did and headed off to find some food. This was not successful either and we did not end up eating breakfast till after 11am, which puts Matt in a bad mood. Once food was in my belly we could think about other things.
Luzern town is very pretty and we enjoyed walking the streets and going to see the old city walls. We managed to find a nice cheese shop and got some for what was meant to be lunch.
After a pretty much full afternoon we decided to head home but not without stopping at a camping shop, as we needed to buy a cable for the van. We left the shop with a lovely Italian coffee maker and a Camping Raclette, (something you melt cheese on) but no cable.
Back at the site we used the Raclette to make a lovely dinner and chilled with a beer. 

Later in the evening we headed back to the town to enjoy some of the night life and have a drink by the river. The riverside bars and cafes were very busy but we found a spot and sat and had a drink. That done we headed home as we were both tired from all the walking and cycling which combined must have been about 20km.

Day 27 – Leaving Lake Como, Into Switzerland


Woke up and went for a quick swim in the lake before getting our stuff ready to leave. Was very refreshing and enjoyed diving off the diving board without hundreds of kids swimming all over the place.
Today we head for Switzerland. The planned route would take us through the San Gotthard tunnel which we decided was a better idea than attempting one of the mountain pass in a 20 something year old aircooled vehicle which does not like hills.
Before getting there we had to cross the Italy-Swiss boarder and purchase a vignette, which is required for all vehicles that want to travel on Swiss motor ways. This cost us 40Fr which was pretty expensive but was a lot easier than paying for a lot of separate tolls as we had in France and Italy. While stopped we had a quick bite to eat and then got back on the road.
The San Gotthard tunnel is 17 km long as it cuts through a large section of the Alps. We had planned to try and drive it over night as we had heard horror stories about the traffic. That was the plan but once we set off we seemed to be making decent time and so thought the traffic might not be too bad. Big Mistake! About 5km before the tunnel the traffic came to a stand still. Luckily for us it was right by a service stop so we immediately pulled off and parked up. As mentioned being stopped in traffic with a running aircooled engine for any extended period of time is not good at all for the engine and my bank balance. 

We decided to sit there and wait to see if the traffic would die down before getting on the road again. We waited and waited! I think in total we must have been at the services for about 4 hours. Pretty boring although we did get to play a decent amount of cards and also witnessed a guy pull up next to us and pop his bonnet to see his engine on fire. His response was to run to the shop and buy a bottle of water, which he poured on the engine. He then shut the bonnet got back in the car and drove off. I was pretty sure we were going to see his whole car burnt to the ground further along the road but somehow we didn’t.
Eventually we made it through the tunnel, which was a strange experience to be driving underground for a full 20 min. Once through, the drive was lovely going past loads of little villages on the mountain side and seeing lots of little farms. Our destination we had decided would be Luzern.
Once we got about 10 km from Luzern the main motorway was shut for some reason so we were once again stuck in some serious traffic. This was not good but all of a sudden an all mighty storm appeared out of nowhere and the heavens opened which was followed by lightning bolts which Zeus would have been proud of. This made seeing where we were going very tricky but did serve to cool the very hot engine a bit.
Eventually we found ourselves at the campsite and we just managed to get a pitch before reception closed. The storm was still lingering so we had dinner inside the van and then hit the sack.

Saturday 20 August 2011

Day 26 – 17th August


Our time at Lake Garda had come to an end. We had intentions of going for another quick swim in the morning before leaving but I could not drag my ass out of bed and get it into gear quickly enough so that plan had to be shelved.
The plan for the day was to head to Lake Como. We had not booked anywhere so we headed there hoping there would be a nice site we could stay at. Rachel did all of the driving which was nice for a bit but after a while of not doing anything I tend to get very bored being a passenger.
When we arrived at Lake Como we headed to a site we found in the AA book. After getting lost once or twice we found the site, which had a scribbled sign drawn outside saying they were full. This was not good news as it was very hot, we saw a sign giving the temperature at 34c and the van does not like being driven in such warm temperatures. We decided to try head back to a site we had seen on the way in. This did not prove so successful as we somehow ended up on the other side of the lake. With the help of google maps and Rachel’s binoculars we managed to spot the site about 5km away on the opposite river bank. After much googling we found the name of the site and how to get there and we were off.
When we arrived at the site we were lucky to get a pitch as the site was very busy. It seemed to be a strange mix of people that seemed to live there semi permanently and people who we just camping short term.
Again this site was right on the shore of the lake and the beach was private. It also had its own diving board and floating platforms you could swim out to. As it was so hot we decided to go for a swim. The water seemed to be a lot colder than at lake garda but I’m not sure if it actually was. We spent the rest of the afternoon swimming and chilling on the Lake banks. 

Going for a swim to cool off

In the evening we had some dinner and bought a beer each from the shop as we had stupidly not stocked up again after Garda. The beer was lovely and cold and just what was needed on a hot day.
After dinner we had a little wonder around the site and then treated ourselves to an ice cream. As we wandered around we could not figure out if some of the people who were camping lived on the site permanently as the caravans they were in looked like they had not moved in a very long time and had full size ovens standing outside. Pretty strange place but was nice to be right by the lake.

Day 25 - Lake Garda


We had booked two nights at the lake so it was a leisurely day planned. We woke and had some breakfast and just chilled out for the morning, which included me finishing the wiring of the rear speakers.
After lunch we decided we would take a walk to the little island, which was just off the point of the camping ground. The walk involved getting wet up to your waist so we both stuck our swimming gear on and headed off.
The water in the lake was warm and clear, which made it a very pleasant little walk. Once on the island we had a little wander around before going for a swim. As we did not know how deep the water was for the walk over we never took a camera, which was a shame as we could have got some really nice shots of the campsite but nevermind. After the swim we lay and enjoyed the sun for a while before heading back to the main site where we decided to break out the beach bats which was good fun.
At around 4pm it was time to think about dinner again and we thought why not have another braai (bbq) as our chances before this had been limited due to site rules. That decided I jumped on my bike and headed back to lidl to get the essentials.
This time I did not get lost and was fairly confident in getting back in decent time so much so that I purchased some ice lollies. This however did mean I needed to set a decent speed on the way back to avoid them melting in my bag as it was 30c.
I’m happy to report that I made it home in lightning pace and an ice lolly was a good reward as I was sweating rather a lot.
The braai once again went down a storm and enjoyed the evening watching the sun go down drinking wine. This site was definitely one of the best sites we had been too although it was very pricey. 

Day 24 - Lake Garda


With only one day in Venice under our belts we felt we had seen enough and decided that today we would head to Lake Garda which had a camp site listed in the cool camping book we had been using called “San Biagio”.
The lake was about 2 hours drive from Venice so we hit the road early (around 10ish) to try get there in decent time so that we had most of the day once we arrived there.
We made decent time until we got to the turn off for the lake and it was jammed with traffic. Every man and his dog was going to the lake it appeared. This added approximately 45 min onto our travel time which meant we did not arrive at the site till about 1pm. Not before the sat nav had sent us down a little and I mean little road, which resulted me in once again curbing the alloys which put me in a bad mood for the rest of the afternoon.
The site itself was lovely. Right on the shores of the lake with its own private island which you can walk out to.
We set up pitch and decided to head to the supermarket as we were low on supplies (beer). After getting a bit lost we eventually found a local lidl and decided that it would be nice to have a braai(bbq). We purchased all the essentials and headed back to the site to chill for the rest of the afternoon in the hammock. 

Around 8ish we fired up the bbq and ate like kings while sipping on some local wine. We hit the sack with the sounds of the lake lapping on the shore. This was definitely one of the best sites we have stayed at.

Tuesday 16 August 2011

Day 23 - Venice

Slept like a baby last night despite the fact that the camp site we were staying at seemed to be the party stop for all young travellers.
The site we were staying at was just 30 seconds walk from the ferry port which took you over to Venice which was a bonus as we did not have to rush to get to the ferry. We had a quick breakfast of cheese on toast. Not sure why I always mention what I had but nevermind.

We walked down to the ferry only to find that there was a huge queue. We should have learnt our lesson with the bus in Rome. The queue meant we could not get the 10am ferry but only had to wait till half 10 which was not too bad.

The ferry ride over took about 20 mins and during it we saw the 12th most expensive private yacht. How do I know this you ask. Well I saw the huge yacht and thought I bet that is expensive so I googled the name of the boat and voila! there you have it.

Once in Venice we wandered the back streets for a while and then headed to San Marcos square which is the main site in Venice. It was packed with people so we saw it and got the fuck out of there.

Venice was very nice when wandering the back streets but was incredibly busy when you got nearer to the main attractions.
Before we got to Venice, Rachel and I had decided that no matter how romantic the gondola was, 100 euros was too much to pay for the experience so we decided we would give that a miss.

In all honesty there was not much to see in Venice so we were soon done and killing time till the utd game. I had already seen a bar that would be showing the game at 5pm so we decided to just wander the town and stop in one of the squares to have a drink.
Santa Margherita was the square which we chose to chill at. It was lovely as was a bit off the tourist track so was nice and quite(relatively). We got a nice ice cream and then had a beer in one of the student bars as the square was not far from the university.


At around 4 we started making our way back to the bar to watch the UTD game. We soon realised that you can't get anywhere quick in Venice, and it becomes even harder when you don't really know what way to go.
We made it in time for kick off and had a few beers with the game. Was not a great game but a win is a win.
We then headed back to the site via the evening ferry which was much larger than the morning one.


All inn all it was a lovely day wandering the streets.


Back at the site we had dinner and hit the sack. Tomorrow we would be heading to lake garda and some much deserved relaxation.


EDIT : Can't seem to upload pictures to this post for some reason. Will upload some when I get the chance.

Day 22 - 13th August - Leaving Rome


Today we decided that we would leave Rome and start making our way back north. This technically meant that we were starting on our way home which was a bit depressing but hey.
Rachel had decided to get up early and head to Rome to see a few last bit but I stayed in bed so was in charge with packing up and checking out. That done I sat and waited for Rachel to return.
We were on the road about 11ish and aimed to head back toward Florence and see how far we got. By early afternoon we seemed to be making pretty decent time so we decided to continue on as far as possible.
At around 3pm we got stuck in a horrible traffic jam which is not good for the van as being aircooled it relies on the air flowing over the engine when driving to cool it, No airflow means no colling. This means that if you are sat stationary for too long with the engine running in it may overheat. Add to the fact that it was 30c and this was not a good combo. With this in mind we decided to pull over at a service station for 45min to see if the traffic died down and to let the engine cool.
The traffic did not seem to be getting any better so after 45min we got back on the road and hoped for the best. After the best part of an hour and a half we got through the traffic and started making some progress. At around 6pm we stopped for some dinner . We somehow managed t pick the worst service station to do so but we were hungry and so just made do. We worked out that we were only about 220km from Venice and we decided that we should try push on and make it there tonight.
At around 10ish we finally made it to Venice after numerous stops for petrol and to let the van cool. It had taking us 11 hours with stops but we had made it. 520km in total. It was an absolute mission but we had made it and this meant we had a full day in Venice tomorrow.
Was not the best day of the trip but unfortunately due to the delays with breaking down we simply needed to cover a lot of miles.
Obviously arriving late at the campsite it was dark and we were told to “find a spot anywhere” which was easier said than done when nobody seemed to be in pitches, they just seemed to set up wherever they could. We did the same and had showers and then hit the sack.  

Monday 15 August 2011

Rome - Day 21 - 12th of August - The Evening

After returning to the camp site to chill in the afternoon we decide to head back into Rome in the early evening to see a few more sites and then have a nice meal to celebrate our six year anniversary.

Was alot nicer to be wondering round in the evening as it was not only a lot cooler but there was alot less people about which was nice.

We saw a few of the sites that were left on the list and then decided to go for a drink as it was still early and we did not want to eat too early. We ended up going to a nice little bar/cafe for a drink before dinner. It was nice but a bit costly. It was 7.50 for a pint which was a bit much if you ask me, although we did get a nice spread of snacks which was pretty comprehensive.

After the drinks we tried to find one of the restaurants which recommended in the Lonely Planet book after about 10 min of walking up and down the correct street we realised that it was closed as we found a really small sign saying so.

About 15 minutes later we had found somewhere which looked nice and were at a table. The food was nice but the service was poor. Rachel's main course came a full 15 min before mine which meant she was pretty much finished before I had even started. Not ideal when you trying to have a romantic evening and one person it just watching the other eat.

Meal done we left, without leaving a tip, and went for a little stroll back to the tube station.

The tube turned out to be closed for work so there was a replacement bus service which never arrived so we ended having to get a cab back which was not ideal as it had been an expensive few days and payng 20 euro's to get back to the site was not ideal but we did not really have any other option.

Another very busy so we were both exhausted once back at the site. Bed was calling. Night Night!

Rome - Day 21 - 12th of August

Today was mine and Rachel 6th year anniversary which was exciting.  

We had decided to head to the Vatican today and then come home early to chill before heading out for a nice meal.

The day did not start well when we rushed to get up shower and get the shuttle bus only to be turned away as the 10am bus was full so we returned to our site to kill time till the 11am shuttle.
We returned at 10:35am to get the 11am shuttle to find this one too was already full as a group of 10 people had booked tickets so we ended up having to get the public bus and hope it dropped us somewhere near the Vatican.
The bus ride was not to bad to be honest and only cost a euro.

At the Vatican there was a pretty big queue but it did not take long to get in. I was really excited to be in the Vatican but to be honest it was a bit of a let down due to the amount of people who were there. It was fucking rammed with people. You could hardly move. We saw a few things but after about an hour an a half I was ready to kill someone so we decided to just head to the Sistine Chapel which was very nice but again ruined by the hundreds if people chatting and generally making a noise. Despite this is was worth the trip just to say I had been.

Once we had seen the Chapel we got a quick bite to eat which was pizza. The one I had was a bit wierd as there was no tomato sauce on it which was strange.
Both Rachel and myself did not realise that we when had to leave the Vatican to see St Peters square, if we had we probably would have gone somewhere a bit cheaper for lunch as it was almost 15 euro's for two pieces of Pizza and 2 drinks.

We left the Vatican both a bit disappointing with the crowds and not being able to take out time to view everything. If you plan to visit Rome I would suggest going in the winter for sure.
We briefly walked round to St Peter's Square to get a few photo's before heading back to the campsite to chill before heading out for dinner.





Rome - Day 20 - 11th of August


Same routine in the morning of getting up, having some breakfast and then having showers.
The plan for today was to head to Rome and see all the sites of the city and then tomorrow we would go to see The Vatican.
After making some lunch to take with us we went an got the shuttle bus some the hostel to the Vatican from where we planned to walk into Rome. This was a bit of a mistake on our part as it was pretty far to get to the sites we wanted to see. It was easily a 30min walk from the drop off point to the first site we wanted to see.
We started off by seeing a few of the fountains and piazza’s and getting and ice cream from a place that only seemed to do off the wall flavours. There was no chocolate or vanilla but there was vanilla with whisky and many other odd flavours. After the ice cream we headed to the Colosseum, which we wondered around for a while before going to see the forum. The ticket which we purchased for here included entry to the Colosseum so once we were done there we head to take a look inside. It’s crazy to think how long ago it was built and is still standing. I wonder if any of the stadiums from our time will be standing in thousands of year’s time. I’m pretty sue they won’t. Let’s hope Anfield falls first! : )
I could go into more detail on the sites we saw and things we did but to be honest I have forgotten most of the name of things. I will add a few photo’s of the things we saw at the end of this post
Once we were done in town we started the long walk back to the pick up point. I swear we must have walked what seemed like 10 miles this day. Once back at the site we chilled as we both exhausted and had another full day planned tomorrow. A few ice-cold beers were sunk and we drank our bottle of wine which we had purchased in Umbria. It was very nice although not as lively as a wet spaniel, which is how it was described in one guidebook.
As a side note I should add that Rome is home to more smart cars than I have ever seen in my life. Honestly they must consist of 50% of all cars in Rome. I could not believe how many there were. Crazy. I always wondered how Smart stayed in business and now I know. 


Wednesday 10 August 2011

Day 18 – 9th of August


Today we started our journey to Rome stopping at one of the sites we had found in cool camping book for Europe, which was in Umbria. We were in no real rush to set off as the drive was only about 150km, which even at the slow speeds we were travelling could be covered pretty quickly.
We packed up the camper, which currently we can do pretty quickly after all the practise we have had. After doing our washing up and putting our empty beer cans in the recycling we were off. Stupidly we had not got fuel in the place we had seen before we got to the site so now we had the mission of finding fuel, which is always a major ball ache in a city. Rachel asked our sat nav, (which we have called Jane) to find the nearest station. Unfortunately the first place she directed us to did not exist. This was not a good start. We then asked her to direct us to another station. This lead her to leading us down what must have been the smallest street in Florence, which resulted in me curbing the alloy wheel which always serves to piss me off. After this I was pretty fed up so we decided to head for the motorway and if we could not find a station we would have to use the jerry can we had in case of emergency. Luckily it did not come to this and we found one a few km before the motorway.
The motorway drive flew by and we were soon at the exit for the campsite we had booked into via email the night before. According to the “Cool Camping” book that we had been using, this site was the 2nd best in Europe which was some claim so we held high hopes for this one.
The site is situated just outside the little town of Civitella del Lago, which is at an altitude of over 500 meters which meant a pretty steep climb and 2nd gear for most of the windy road which proved very popular with the trail of traffic behind us. Once we got to the site we were not disappointed. The views were beautiful and the site itself was very nice, set amongst olive trees with very clean facilities. Obviously being so out the way it was very quiet, which was nice after the 18-30 style site we had stayed at on Florence.
After setting up we decided to head to the little village to get some supplies for the evening. This was about a 15min walk. This was truly a tiny little Italian village (see photo). When we arrived it was about 4.15pm and the local shop did not open till 5pm so we decided to grab a quick coke. 
Lovely little Italian Village

Once the shop opened we were pleasantly surprised as it had all the basics as well as a butcher, which was all the invitation we need to have our first braai (bbq) of the trip. We decided to pig out and got steak, sausage, ribs and of course, some more beer. We then hot-footed it back to the site to get the braai fired up. 

We spent the evening chilling out with a few beers and the braai. We chatted to another older British couple who we traveling in a old Bay window camper, which was mint and must have cost a fortune. They too had broken down a couple times on the way which made us feel better.
After a few drinks and dinner it was off to bed. Tomorrow we would head to Rome. Wished we could have spent more time at this site but a break downs/delays meant we had to get a move on.

Day 17 – 8th August – Florence


I slept in a bit so by the time I was up Rachel was already showered and ready to go.
We headed to Florence town around 10ish in the morning and with it being only a 10 min walk we were soon there. The town itself was packed with tourists and in parts was unpleasant with the amount of people about.
We saw most of the major sites but did not go into any of them, as some of the queues were honestly almost a mile long.
As we were running low on supplies of fruit and veg we decided to go to the market to pick up some bits which in this case turned out to be some pretty expensive oranges and grapes. This should have been a sign of things to come. After the market we continued our walk around the city and decided to stop for an ice cream as we were pretty warm and had been told Florence had wonderful ice cream shops. We both decide to go for pots instead of cones and this turned out to be the wrong choice as when we got to the till to pay for the two pots the bill was 18 euro’s. This was bit of a shock but thinking about it the pots were very large and came with waffles so it makes sense that they were so much. With this in mind we decided not to bother with lunch, as we were full up on ice cream.
After the ice cream we headed for the one bridge that survived the war (the ponte vecchio), which was one of the main sites. The bridge used to be home to butchers but in an effort to lift up the city’s image they were evicted and replaced with gold and silver merchants. Saw a nice watch when window-shopping, but 30 thousand euros’ was just a bit out of my price range.
All the main sites down we headed back to camp for happy hour in the bar. This turned out to be a bit of a waste of money as it was 2 euro’s for a small beer but in the market which was meters away it was 1.15 euro for a 660ml cold beer so everyone just walked to the market, bought a beer and walked back to the bar with it in hand. After a few beers we headed back to the van for some dinner, which was pasta with broccoli and chorizo.
Once the sun had completely set we headed up to the piazzale michelangiolo which had great views of the city at night. That concluded our stay in Florence. Tomorrow we would head for Rome stopping off along the way. 
Florence at night

Day 16 – 7th August


Arose early to have breakfast at the site. We bought some fresh eggs from the site shop so had fried eggs on toast. After breakfast we let our food go down fully as our moms always told you before heading for a swim in the sea. The sea was a bit choppy so we kept the swim pretty short. After the swim we packed up the van, paid the bill (40 euro’s) and got on the road. Although this was one of the most expensive sites we stayed at, it was well worth it for the location and private beach and the price did include electric hook up which meant cold beers which, as I have mentioned before you can’t put a price on when its 30 degrees.
Back on the road again we headed for a brief stop in Pisa to get the text book photo and then the plan was to head to Florence.
We made decent time on the auto strade so were in Pisa by lunch time. We parked up about 3km from the tower and jumped on the bikes to cycle to the tower. 

As you would expect the tower was packed with tourists. We took a few photos and then got a quick bite to eat which could only be one thing, Pizza!
The pizza was nice but not the best I’ve had but I’m sure the more time I spend in Italy the closer I will get to the prefect pizza.
Back on the road again we had about 150km to Florence, which seemed to fly by although we were cruising at about 60-65mph. Once in Florence we headed for the campsite that was recommended in the Lonely Planet book which we had been using most of the trip. The site was very busy upon arrival. We parked up and went to reception.  Luckily for us they had space and we were soon directed to our pitch. When we parked up we realised that our 10m electric hook up cable would not reach to hookup point so we asked if we could be moved to another pitch was fine luckily and meant another few days of cold beers.
After setting up our home we did some much needed washing as I only brought clothes for 5 days and was running distinctly low on clean stuff. After stocking up on beer we chilled in the evening sun with a few games of cards ready for a day of walking round Florence.