Amsterdam

Wed.28^th August : A bike ride, train ride and then a tram ride and we were in the city of Amsterdam yesterday morning.  The bike ride was to the nearby station where we paid 7,50 Euros each for a day ticket…the trains run every few minutes but because of track work being done on ‘our’ line, we weren’t able to travel all the way by train, having to transfer to a tram to complete the journey.  We found it a bit confusing at first until we realised that the tram travels along the same track as the train!  So, we got off the train, walked down a little ramp,  and two minutes later, got on the tram. 

On our arrival in the city, the first thing we did was to buy hop on hop off canal boat tickets and we spent the day touring Amsterdam by boat and by tram, with a little bit of walking thrown in.  It’s easy to get around, very busy, cheerful, interesting and although we are not big city people, we found that we liked it very much. 

Mike did the ‘Heinekin Experience’, recommended to him by Kym and thoroughly enjoyed it,

we wandered through the ‘red light’ district…interesting…stopped at a few cafes for refreshments throughout the day and of course, took many photos.  When we returned to our station on the way home guess what? Our bikes were still safely chained to the bike rack. There are sooo many bikes in Amsterdam that I guess everyone has one and there is no need to pitch them..

As far as big cities go Mike likes this the best.

 

A most enjoyable day!

Leaving Hunfield

Sun.18^th August :  Since leaving Hunfeld

 yesterday morning, we have driven through glorious patchwork farming country, a forest or two and countless villages.  Our first call yesterday was to Marburg, which was recommended by Karl and Manfred, but on arrival, we found the mobile home parking place was full and as we couldn’t find another suitable parking place to leave Boris while we explored the narrow, hilly, very busy streets and the impressive looking castle, we continued on to Bad Laasphe, about 35kms west.  A bike ride through the town revealed many of the old buildings, cobbled streets and cafes we’ve become used to.  After a quiet night, and coffee this morning at one of the cafes in town, we headed for our next destination, a journey which took longer than it should have.

 Less than 20kms after our departure, we came to a crossroad and found that we could go no further along our chosen road as it was open only to local traffic…don’t know why…so had to take an alternative route.  Unfortunately, there was no indication as to how this could be achieved so we consulted the map and our GPS “Kenny” and opted for a route, which though round about, would lead us to our destination.  We were travelling along “wriggly roads” nicely for a while, enjoying the mountain scenery 

until, on reaching the town of Kirchhundem we found another detour, this time due to a fair being held in the town, but there were directions which we could follow and we soon found ourselves back on track, eventually arriving at our overnight stopping place.  So, we are now in Warstein, east and slightly south of Dortmund. 

It has been raining on and off all afternoon but at 8.00pm, the sun came out!  All is good!

Mon.19th Aug:  We were woken through the night by ground shaking thunder, lightning and heavy, heavy rain which persisted until morning.  The power was off and visibility was practically nil, but by 9a.m. the rain had eased considerably and the sky had lightened, so we packed up and were on our way shortly after.  After about  a 20km drive north we reached the autobahn, turned west and headed for Osnabruck via Dortmund and Munster.  As the sun had now appeared, we thought we were in for a fine day (wrong) but before the rain began again, there was a major traffic jam on the autobahn…we crept along for a while until the truck ahead of us took the off ramp and thinking that the driver probably knew what he was doing, we followed, drove along a parallel road for a few kms and then returned to the autobahn, pleased with ourselves as we had avoided what we could see was a stand still.  From Dortmund we headed north again and through increasingly heavy rain, arrived in Osnabruck at midday.  The next couple of hours were spent watching a dvd as being ‘Boris’ bound there was little else to do…very decadent!  When the rain had eased to a drizzle, we donned rain jackets to walk the few hundred metres into the nearby suburb of Haste and back.  An early night was on the cards as we had an appointment at 7.30 in the morning and an early get up was required.

Tues.20^th August :  By 7a.m. we were up, showered and dressed, breakfasted and packed up ready for the 10 minute drive to the Osnabruck Iveco/Fiat Service Centre where Boris was booked in for a service, thanks to Karl, who made the phone booking for us last week as he is fluent in German, it being his native tongue.  Mike had scanned the English/German dictionary to find the correct translation for the jobs that needed doing but as it happened, the service advisor spoke English, had been to Australia and was very helpful.  Our day was spent in Osnabruck, a 15 minute bus ride from the service centre.  Thinking that it was going to be a long day, we were pleasantly surprised to find an interesting and vibrant city and happily wandered around, exploring a couple of churches.

(for heathens we sure do visit a lot of churches!), the extremely interesting town hall, a couple of cafes and before we knew it, it was time to collect Boris.  Once we’d picked ourselves up off the floor after receiving and paying the bill, we set off for Recke, about 35 kms away and home town of Ingrid and Willi, relations of relations.  We checked into the camp site, were getting ready to cycle the short distance to their home when Ingrid and her son Frank arrived to escort us there along the canal and across the bridge to meet the family and to partake of a bbq meal in the garden.  It’s four years since we last met up with Ingrid and Willi and nine since we saw Frank, his wife Connie and their delightful children, Elias and Lilith and we enjoyed their company immensely.  We spent much of yesterday, Wednesday, with the family

…there is a wonderful German word, “gemutlichkeit”, which roughly translates as ‘comfortable, cosy, goodnatured, easy going’ and is an accurate description of the hospitality we’ve received, not only with our ‘old’  German friends, but with our new friends too. 

Thurs.22^nd August :  We went for a short cycle ride around the Mitteland Canal before leaving Recke this morning at about 10.30, and have driven only about 50kms to Bad Bentheim.  We’re camped next to the lovely Schloss Park and down the hill from the castle which we visited this afternoon. 

 Since visiting the castle, we have done very little, having decided to take the rest of the afternoon off.  It started raining a couple of hours ago, nothing too serious as it’s not much more than a drizzle.  This is probably our last night in Germany, the Netherlands border is only about 10kms away so unless we decide to stay here a little longer, we will be in the land of windmills, tulips and clogs tomorrow.

Mon.26^th August :  We said “auf wiedersehn” to Germany about 10 minutes after leaving Bad Bentheim on Friday morning when we crossed the border into The Netherlands.  Our expectations were not high as we already knew that this country is as flat as a pancake, but we’ve been pleasantly surprised by the neat little houses in the neat little streets in the neat little towns that are dotted throughout the lush farming country and by the canals which criss cross the country.  Our first two nights were spent in a town called Meppel, a lovely canal town where we camped alongside one of the canals, enjoying sitting watching the many pleasure boats cruise up and down the waterways, through the lock and lift-up bridge.  Last night we stayed by another canal in the town of Wommels

and tonight we are in the suburbs of Amsterdam, having driven across the ZuiderZee, a thirty km marvel of engineering, a dike completed in 1933 to prevent The Netherlands from flooding. 

We rode our little motor bikes across in 1969, in the rain and cold so it was a welcome change for us to drive across in comfort, in bright sunshine…very impressive.

Tomorrow we will venture into the city of Amsterdam.

Oppenheim

Oppenheim : Thurs.8^th August

After sleeping in till nearly 8a.m., we did all the usual morning stuff and then went into Oberwesel.  Mike had seen a shop there yesterday which sold bikes and thought we might be able to find one to replace mine which was stolen while we were in Paris.  I had ridden his bike in Cologne, the one that caused Kym some problems and I could understand why he was so reluctant to ride it.  I found it difficult and most uncomfortable to ride and can’t ride the Cash Converters one, so a ‘new’ bike was the only solution.  So…although the shop actually only hired bikes out, the very kind gentleman, an 80 year old Mr Fix It who only opens his shop in the mornings, showed us 4 or 5 secondhand bikes that he was willing to sell, I chose one, he accepted Mike’s bike as a trade in and even threw in a brand new basket!  I am soooo happy! 

We rode back to camp, strapped the bikes on the rack and drove just a few kms down the road, stopping at the lovely little old town of Bacharach where we spent a couple of hours strolling around.  About ¾ of the shops were closed…it must have been their ‘Ruhetag’ (closing day)…and although a few people were about, it wasn’t terribly busy…not really a ‘touristy’ town.  We enjoyed being able to wander around in the cooler weather without being jostled by crowds.  I may have mentioned once or twice that we don’t like crowds!

Now we are in Oppenheim in a quiet part of town and not far from the Rhine.  We went exploring by bike shortly after arriving here, had drinks and a light meal at a restaurant overlooking the river and then rode into town to see what we could see.  In the morning we will investigate a couple of sights that were recommended to us by a motorcycle instructor who was putting a student threw his paces in the park when we arrived…stay tuned!

Fri.9^th August : Another lateish morning…we must finally be getting used to the European hours!  After breakfast etc., we cycled into the main square of Oppenheim where dozens of workers were preparing for the wine festival weekend which starts tonight at 6p.m.  It seemed that a large crowd was expected and I imagine there’ll be some sore heads by the end of the weekend!  This lovely old, hilly town boasts an ancient Cellar Labyrinth and found by accident in the last century when a car ‘fell’ into it.  The tour we joined was a German language tour, which made it a little difficult for us but the lovely lady guide made it interesting anyway, she was so enthusiastic and obviously enjoyed imparting her knowledge to those who could understand.  After the tour we inspected the huge Katharine Church before returning to Boris to pack up and leave.  Just a few kms back up the road, we caught another car ferry back to the eastern side of the Rhine

 and headed for Aschaffenburg where we are parked by the Main River for the night.  A short bike ride across the bridge took us into the old town and the Museum of Aschaffenburg, which is situated in the Schloss Johannisburg.  

We had an hour before closing to wander through the museum which houses spectacular paintings, furnishings, porcelain, pottery, china figurines…a veritable treasure trove and it was awesome.  A wander through the town brought us to a dinky little pub which invited us to sit outside and enjoy a beer…which we did!  It was back to camp then for a quiet night, sitting by the river eating home-made hamburgers while watching the barges and other water traffic go by.

Sat.10^th August :  We didn’t leave Aschaffenburg till 11.30a.m. after yet another late  morning…one would think we’re on holidays!  Travelling less than 50kms, we reached Miltenberg, our intended overnight stop only to discover that the parking places for motor homes were closed…don’t know why…so we drove on another 8.5kms to Freudenberg, where we are once again camped by the river Main.  We’ve done little since arriving, a ride along the river and to the supermarket to buy some rolls for lunch, washing, snoozing, reading, watching the boats and cyclists go by, and relaxing.  There is a ruined castle up the hill behind us but as it’s a very steep climb, we’re content to look at it from ground level, and take a photo of course.

Tomorrow, we’re going to Wurzburg to visit Jochen and Evi who we met in Italy about 6 weeks ago, so no sleeping in!

Sun.11^th August :  We reached Jochen and Evi’s home at 10a.m. and were treated to a warm welcome and breakfast!  After chatting for an hour or so, Jochen drove us into Wurzburg to see the sights, starting with the church where he and Evi were married and which is situated on the hill overlooking the town and Main River, so…wonderful views from a magnificent church. 

Then down into town, a walk across the “old” bridge with a stop in a café for imbiss, then on to the Dom, the Residenz with gorgeous gardens and spectacular chapel, followed by a walk around town, visiting a couple more churches…just a few of the 52 churches in Wurzburg.  

Needing a thirst quencher, we headed for a café/beergarden overlooking the Main where we sat for a while enjoying the view

before heading off into wine growing country for a tour, passing through several lovely villages and acres and acres of vineyards.  “Schon”.

Unfortunately, Evi had to work on Sunday afternoon and evening so she was unable to come with us and so it was dinner for three at a local restaurant, returning to the house for coffee at 9p.m., by which time she was home and we were able to spend some time chatting before retiring for the night.

Mon.12^th August :  Jochen and Evi both had appointments in the morning, so after another sumptuous breakfast, they left and we logged onto their internet to make a few bookings for our return to the U.K., which we will write about in detail at a later date.  When they returned home we chatted for a while before saying our goodbyes

and heading off to our next destination which was Lauda Konigshofen to visit Karl and Helga, friends of friends.  We had met Karl before in Australia and it was good to see him again and to meet Helga.  Once again we were made very welcome and what was intended to be a brief visit, ended up by being a 3 night stay.  Since Monday, we have been taken on a walking tour of their town, to the forest on the hill behind Konigshofen, 

 to Bad Mergentheim and to Weikersheim Castle where we strolled through the beautiful gardens

and to the town square for ice creams, directed to the Baroque church in nearby Gerlachsheim and to Wertheim, where the Main and Tauber Rivers meet and where we climbed to the castle ruins before exploring the town.

Pam and Manfred arrived from Cologne on Wednesday afternoon so we had a lovely evening catching up and hearing stories of the times they and Karl and Helga had when living and working in Dampier 40 years ago.

Thurs.15^th August :  It was time for us to go…we said our goodbyes to our old friends and our new ones and set off on the next leg of our journey, heading north,

driving through farming country with an occasional slow down through a village and arriving in Lohr/Main mid afternoon.  The camp was just across the road from the old town so we cycled in for a wander around and found yet another gorgeous town with many old buildings, flower boxes everywhere and narrow cobblestoned lanes…has Germany cornered the market??

Fri.16^th August :  The weather has changed, summer is over I think and the extremely hot days have gone, replaced by warm, sunny days with cool nights and mornings.  It’s much kinder weather for travellers and we don’t even mind the occasional rainfall.  We are now in Hunfeld, camped by a lake and it’s very peaceful.  We’ve had a lazy afternoon, after the last few hectic days we’re enjoying doing nothing for a while.  Tomorrow is another day!

 

Along the Rhine

We left Cologne this morning in drizzling rain to backtrack a little…first to Bonn, where, because we became caught up in a traffic snarl with fire engine sirens blaring, we decided to escape as soon as possible and managed to do so unharmed and unfrazzled with the aid of our trusty GPS/SatNav Kenny, then on through Koblenz to the eastern side of the Rhine.  The rain had stopped but the sky was still overcast, the temperature several degrees lower than it has been in the last few days so with the beautiful Rhine River on our right and a cool breeze wafting through the windows as we drove, it was a very pleasant drive.  We stopped along the way at an imbiss (snack) café for Frikadelle (rissole) and pommes (chips) which we ate while sitting watching the many cruise boats and barges go by…it’s a tough life!  Then it was on to St Goars

where we caught the car ferry across to St Goars on the western shores of the river to travel the 6kms down the road to Oberwesel, our campsite for the night.

We are now sitting about 50 metres from the river bank watching all the boats go by, enjoying the cooler weather and a nice cold beer.

Catch Up

Tues.6^th August  :  In the nearly two weeks since we left Paris, we have travelled     across France to Metz, followed the Moselle River into Germany and on to Koblenz and from there drove to Cologne, which is where we are now.

The proposed bike ride along the Moselle did not eventuate…when we met Debbie & Kym in Paris on the morning they arrived, we offered them the use of our bikes, if they found them suitable for the purpose, as hire bikes hadn’t yet been organised…we didn’t know at the time that my bike had been stolen and we had only one bike!  Our first night with them was spent in Chalons en Champagne where they pitched the tent they’d bought en route…it rained through the night and again the next night at Corny sur Moselle but they stayed dry and on leaving Corny s/M the following morning, we spotted a Cash Converters with a row of bikes at the front of the shop so swooped in to check them out.  They found a bike they liked and bought it, strapped it on to the bike rack and continued on to Metz where we spent a couple of hours strolling around the town, stopping for coffee at the Kangourou Café and checking out the magnificent St Etienne Cathedral which was being renovated.   Debbie & Kym decided to ride from there

to our next stop near Thionville and we drove to the camp to wait for them.  Unfortunately, they didn’t get very far as there was a problem with the tyre on Mike’s bike and we had to backtrack to collect them, buying a new tyre and spanners to fix the problem when we reached the camp, and after pre dinner drinks and showers all round, Boris took us to a nearby cafe for a lovely meal.

We drove to Merzig the next morning and the cyclists set off from there to ride to Saarburg.  It turned out to be a rather hot day and by the time they reached the camp alongside the river, they had decided that Mike’s bike was not really suitable for their purpose and they’d be just as happy travelling with us and Boris, so that’s what they did. That night we had heavy rain and strong winds…the awning tried to blow away and we had to get out of bed to wind it up, shut all the windows and hatches and put everything away…late at night and all the other motorhomers were up doing the same thing.  The little tent was waterproof so our guests stayed nice and dry.

After we left the camp the next morning, we drove the couple of kms into Saarburg, a lovely little old town that we ambled around for a couple of hours, taking the obligatory photos…

Mike and I took a chair lift ride up the big hill while Kym and Debbie walked up to the church on a different hill…both gave wonderful views of the town and river and then it was on to Trier where we stayed overnight.  It was a 2km walk into the town for the usual look see, not so many photos there as we’ve visited before and have hundreds on file but had a wander around, ate near Porta Nigra and shared a taxi hom.

The next five days were spent travelling along the Moselle River, stopping to investigate many small towns along the way, enjoying the company but not always the weather as it alternated between hot and humid and cool and wet. The Moselle is a wonderful place to visit with lot of small towns to investigate and we only travelled a short distance each day.

We revisited Berkastel Kues and went to the pub we visited 4 yaers ago that served Kolsch beer.

There are so many Motorhome overnight stops that there is no problem fing a place for the night. The last place we stayed had a swimming pool and cold beer and was a welcome relief from the heat, so we stayed there two nights.

We parted company with Debbie and Kym on Saturday morning, when we left them at Koblenz railway station to catch their early morning  train to Berlin…we then backtracked a little to visit Burg Eltz, a wonderful old castle which has belonged to one family for 33 generations…superb!  Even older than Neuswenstein (Disney Castle)

After our visit, we drove to Neuwied on the Rhine River, camped at the boat club harbour , snoozed a little and spent a restful afternoon and night.

On Sunday morning we made our way via the autobahn to Cologne, settled in to the camping place by the river, contacted friends Pam and Manfred from Perth who are here visiting family after recently completing a couple of ocean cruises and were collected by them and Manfred’s sister Brigitta and taken to Brigitta’s allotment garden where we spent a very pleasant and happy afternoon catching up.  Yesterday we cycled into the city, parked and walked the short distance to the Dom which is a magnificent structure and amazingly escaped serious damage during WW2

We met our friends again for a visit through the cathedral and a stroll around the town, then returned to camp for a while before being collected by Manfred’s other sister and brother-in-law, Doris and another Manfred and driven to a pub to meet the other three for drinks and dinner. It has been lovely to spend time in the last couple of weeks with friends from home and to make new friends.  So far this morning we’ve done very little…shifted Boris to the opposite side of the camp to take advantage of the afternoon shade which we didn’t have where we were, planned the next leg of our travels, tidied up a bit and just generally taken it easy.  After lunch we went for a ride on the cable car over the Rheine and back

and then called in to the biergarten on the river next to the camp for a coldie. Before going up the the youth hastel to post this blog. Tomorrow we back track a little towards Wurzburg and the Romanticstrasse. Still two months before we have to get on the big bird.