Wednesday 20th May
Well here we go. We are booked on the Eurotunnel for 22:50 this evening for the crossing to Calais (Coquelles), but before we can get there we have to make a detour to Tonbridge to see the headstone that Christopher has had erected at Tony and Sylvia’s grave. The headstone really looks great and the script stands out nicely.
Then it’s off to Folkestone for a fish and chip supper on the harbour. Super portions of fish and chips.
We arrive at the Eurotunnel terminal very early, as usual and we are fortunate in getting booked onto the 20:50 train without any extra payment. In next to no time we are disembarking from the train and we head to Cite Europe for our traditional first night.
Thursday 21st May
Our original intention was to head for a campsite just outside Amsterdam, but when we thought about it we decided not to travel so far on the first day. We found an Aire at Antwerp and headed for that. At our mid morning coffee stop, for some reason I checked my prescription medicines and found that the most important one only had a 30 day supply instead of the required 60 days. Panic number 1, how could we get around this? I could cut down to half of the prescribed dose, but our Doctor was very insistent that I did not cut down on this. Have to find a solution for this. We arrived at the aire at Antwerp only to find it packed to the gunwals. It turned out that there was a large exhibition in the centre next to the aire. We stopped for lunch and were then informed that there had been a spate of thefts from vehicles with fifteen broken into that morning. Needless to say, we decided not to stay.
There was an alternative aire just across the Dutch border and we decided to head for that one. Unfortunately, on arrival we found that the “aire” was a parking space on an industrial estate. We didn’t stop. There was another aire not far away and we set a course for that; what a revelation, the aire was at the harbour of what appeared to be a super little town called Tholen near Bergen op Zoom. We were greeted by the Harbourmaster, a very friendly lady who was determined to tell us everything about her beloved town.
After a short walk it was love at first sight of this town. Possibly helped by the totally unbroken blue sky.
Friday 22nd May
I was starting to fret, what would we do if we couldn’t get hold of the missing prescription? The Harbourmaster directed us to the town Apothecary so first job was to get there. The receptionist was very helpful, but could not assist unless we had a signed prescription. She directed us to the Doctor Surgery in the same building. Again, very helpful, but could not assist as they did not have my medical history. They suggested that I contact my Doctor in the UK and arrange to to have a prescription faxed to the Apothecary. 20 minutes of phone call to the UK and we had arranged the necessary document. Another 10 minutes and the tablets were in my grubby little hand. Excellent service all round, many thanks to Linda the receptionist at our surgery for taking ownership of our problem. This showed up panic number 2, Val tried to pay for the prescription with her card (Visa); this was the second time that she had attempted to use the Visa card and the card was rejected. Was there a problem with Visa in Holland? We had not seen it before. A visit to a hole in the wall restored our faith in the system.
This is a really lovely town to discover; two windmills and three churches, one of which has the most melodious bells we have ever heard. The main windmill has recently been lovingly restored and is open to visitors, super little visit.
Saturday 23rd May
Sadly it is time to leave Tholen; we have 400 miles to travel to meet up with the tour in Kiel and only three days to get there. Amsterdam is out as it is in totally the wrong direction. Our destination for today is the village of Wilp, just East of Apeldoorn. First port of call was a service station to fill up with LPG. I like their prices, 50p per litre at today’s exchange rate. Both bottles filled and we are on our way.
We arrived at Wilp in good time at 12:30, just time to get pitched up and lunch. There was only one minor glitch, the Aire no longer exists. Chatting to a neighbour reveals that it hasn’t been there for some five years. A search for an alternative revealed that there was another Aire to the North of Apeldoorn, about 14 miles away. Off we set back along the motorway that we had just driven down. Once again, the Aire no longer exists and has been replaced by a new house. Somehow I get the feeling that they would appreciate us camping on their drive overnight.
There were no more suitable Aires between here and the German border so we decided to head for the first Stellplatz into Germany. This turned out to be at Bad Bentheim, yet another pretty country town with lots to see and plenty of places to walk around. The Stellplatz is full, in fact we managed to get the last authorised place. Looks like a quiet night.
Sunday 24th May
It’s time to move on towards Kiel. Today we head for Bremen, there is a Stellplatz close to the city centre so we should be able to see plenty of the city. Sunday really is the time to travel on the Continent, trucks are banned and the roads are a joy. Today they are even more of a joy for me as I get to travel in the passenger seat for the first time in many years. Well done Val, you’ve got the job.
As we were about to leave the motorway towards Bremen we spotted a sign showing that Umwelts are in force in the city. An Umwelt is an extra tax that has to be paid on all vehicles before entering green zones. Places to purchase them are very restricted, but hopefully we will not need it. As we turn left into the road leading to the Stellplatz there is a sign with very small writing on it: Umwelt. Too late now, we are in, so we continue the half mile to the Stellplatz. It’s very busy, but there is plenty of room for us. After lunch we take a walk into the city centre. There is a tourist information centre where we can ask about the Umwelt. The young lady that served us had no idea about the Umwelt so she asked a colleague who shrugged her shoulders and told us it was our bad luck. They then found out more and made a couple of phone calls, only to find out that you cannot purchase an Umwelt on a Sunday or public holiday. Tomorrow is a public holiday. I then decided to adopt their attitude; we tried, failed, tough.
Bremen is a lovely city with the centre very much in tact, although I have to wonder how much it cost us to restore the historic buildings after the war. Everything is too perfect to be original.
Monday 25th May
It’s a public holiday today so just like other European countries, all shops are shut. Two whole days without shopping, the UK would be brought to it’s knees.
We have decided to stay in Bremen for another day as there is so much to discover. Today’s walk takes us into the old Artists Quarter or Schnoor as it is know here. This their version of Brighton’s Lanes and they attract the tourists just the same. One particular shop amused us; it was a Christmas shop, open all year selling every type of Christmas decoration. We explored every nook and cranny of the city centre to the point where we got lost. Finding our way back to familiar territory took us through a market with a band playing 50’s rock and roll.
