Florida Trip 2015

Hi All, sorry about the last blog, I decided to add a couple of photos and posted it by email which resulted in breaking the blog. It is obviously easier to email it but it obviously can only handle text . So I had to go online and manually edit the post to fix it. More haste less speed.

MONDAY 19th January
We got up early for the long drive to Key West and back. 125 miles each way on mainly a single carriage road with constantly changing speed limits. Not wanting to get caught speeding We just set the cruise control and poodled along which resulted in some quite aggressive behaviour from large trucks and SUV's who would drive right up close and push and flash.
We arrived safely and found some parking near to the most southerly point of continental USA and had a stroll around for about three hours. It was very busy, being a holiday weekend and there were three large cruise ships in the harbour. But it was a very clean and friendly place with various trolley, land train or bicycle tours as well as many little electric golf buggy type cars which could be hired.
We had already checked the accommodation situation which was pretty well full which is why we had booked in Florida City and visited Key West as a day trip.
So we arrived back quite tired so a nice steak meal and bed because we have to move on tomorrow.

Florida Trip 2015

THURSDAY 15th January: Well the Edison Ford museum was very interesting but the Americans just do not quite get the experience right but try to push towards the guided tours where the guides put their own humorous spin on everything. But two hours of Southern Drawl and being patronised was just too much for us so we opted for the self guided tour, and we're pleased we did when we came within earshot of one of the tours. But we still learned a great deal more about Edison than we knew before.

After a good morning we got on the road heading for Naples which is just before the Everglades.

We stopped at a McD's to book a Motel for the night only to find everything below $200 a night had terrible reviews. We pulled into the one with the best but from outside it looked just too run-down. So drove back a couple of blocks to one we had seen as we passed. The outside looked pleasant and when we inspected the room it was passable, just, so we accepted the ridiculous price. It was run by a young Asian couple who were very friendly and it looked as if they were trying to bring it up to scratch, the bathroom had been recently totally re-fitted but the workmanship was a bit lacking. When we booked in the lady said that everything was way overpriced in Naples and when we went for a walk downtown it was all Valet Parking and sports cars. The night turned out to be the worst we had had so we decided that as it was a four day holiday weekend coming we had better book the whole weekend from there as the wifi was very good. The only Motel with half decent reviews was the Ramada in Florida City at twice the price we had been paying thus far but it was close to the Everglades National Park where we wanted to spend the weekend and on Highway 1 which led down to Key West which we also wanted to visit so we booked it. Just before we booked it our son NIK sent an email about a site I had joined some time ago but forgotten called Top Cashback which he told us produced Cashback from Booking.com which we had been mainly using it costs nothing and on this booking alone gives us £13 cash back. If you buy anything on the Internet if you connect via their site you get cash back. Tesco's for one so if interested use this link and we both get a bonus http://www.topcashback.co.uk/ref/Member119672378232

FRIDAY 16th January : Leaving our fairly grotty Motel we headed for the Everglades arriving at the Gulf Coast Visitor Centre which was just had a boat dock for trips into the Mangroves or round the Ten Thousand Islands. The trips we would have liked to do were booked up without a Two hour wait so we drove on to do some of the Board Walks just off the Tamiami Trail which is the main road which heads from West to East across the bottom of Florida. We're we glad we did, on our first one we met a really informative young lady Ranger varying a Aligator Skull wro told us all about the American Aligators and their salt water cousins the American Crocodiles. Then we walked just a short distance to view our first Aligators just a few feet from us, we were then very lucky to experience the amazing rumbling roar of a large male hidden in the grass across the canal about 50 feet from us. The sound is difficult to explain but we both thought it was a very large outboard motor without a silencer starting up at first.

After this exiting time we walked a few more board walks experiencing many more close encounters with Alligators and many many birds. Then turned into Shark Valley National Park Paying the $10 which gives us 7 days unlimited entry into the Everglades National Park. Cars were not allowed past the Visitors Center , the trail was 10 miles each way which you could walk, hire a bike or take the tram. A tram trip was about to leave so we quickly bought two seniors and took the two last seats. Oh how glad we water that we took it. There was a fantastic guide, who didn't have the Southern Drawl who was so informative and a very young girl driver who spotted every bird, flower and Alligator along the way and stopped so the guide could talk about what we were seeing. At the halfway point we walked about 500 yards to an obversation tower and the guide stopped and pointed out to the few of us who were near a very strange sight, about two feet from the path was a ten foot Crocodile who must have walked the forty odd miles from the sea and salt water areas to live in the fresh water among the Aligators and had even turned from green to black to match the Alligators.

 We showed the picture to many of the Rangers we met later, who had heard about it but not really believed it. It was a great couple of hours and well worth the ticket price.

By the time our tram ride finished it was getting late so we motored the thirty odd miles to our Motel, with a bit of trepidation after last night's experience. But all was well, the receptionist was great and the room was fine and breakfast was included so we would be ok for the next four nights.

SATURDAY and SUNDAY 17 & 18th January

The next two days were spent in the Everglades National Park, we listened to all the talks and went on all the organised Ranger walks we could. On one we came across this  large Aligator just two feet from the path. He lazily opened one eye to look at us all then closed it again. Then a very young child came a bit too close, two eyes opened, then the mouth opened then he stood up. Luckily the Mother grabbed the child and pulled it away so the Aligator just laid down again, but Judy got this incredible photo. No he is not stuffed, he is very, very real! And that may be a wicked smile who knows.

On Sunday we went on a "Slough Slog" which was a walk across the flooded prairie and into the woods which entailed waiting up to thigh deep in swamp while a really passionate Ranger explained about the area and the plants and animals as we came to them. So a quick visit to Walmart to buy some trousers and long sleeved shirts as the required clothing.

What a fantastic time we had two or three hours, we lost track of time, wading about in a primeval soup just hoping we didn't fall flat into it. The trousers washed out OK but not sure how long it will take to get our walking boots dry.

We finished off the day with a Starlight Hike to see all the wild animals we had seen during the day getting down to the real business of life.

Florida Adventure 2015

SATURDAY 10th January: Well a bit of a strange start for a holiday but helped our hosts move some furniture and pack a van to help two of their kids move to a new apartment for University then in the afternoon a really long walk in a nearby nature reserve.

SUNDAY 11th January : At Christmas Kerry presented us with a really unusual present - A morning at a gun firing range? It turns out that Kerry's company has an office in Orlando and one of his collegues shoots at a local range and Kerry thought it would be a very unusual gift for us. Well we met Evan at the range and after signing-in and donning safety glasses and ear defenders, he showed us the correct way to handle and load a small 22 pistol and then fire at targets, then through the same procedure with Evan's own larger 9mm pistol, a bigger bang with quite a bit more kick, then Evan went out and exchanged the first pistol for a very large 355 asult rifle (I think!) just like you see the police at the airport carrying. A really Big Bang but it had electronic sights so seemed a bit of a cheat and although it had almost zero kick Judy found it too heavy to use so  after we had used the ammunition went out with Evan and swapped it for another 22 pistol which had less kick than the first but the sights were not as good. So then it was Steve's turn to choose and he chose a conventional Winchester rifle. Even though Steve had probably not fired a gun of any kind for probably 50 years it turned out that somehow he was quite accurate so we finished off the box of ammunition with a shoot out between Evan and Steve at the maximum length of the range on the smallest part of the target. Obviously Evan had more nearest the centre but Steve was really chuffed to have all shots within two inches of the centre. Two actually nearly through the centre. So... a very strange day, not one we would have chosen but we did really enjoy it. Not so we will now go out and join a gun club but something else ticked off the bucket list perhaps.

MONDAY 12th January. Time to move on and start exploring so we headed off towards the western coast and Tarpon Springs. A small town famed for it's sponge industry and a substantial Greek influence. We arrived at the harbour just before three in the afternoon in torrential rain. They tell us that it only rains for fifteen minutes in Florida but it persisted constantly all afternoon. So with the help of Mc D's for the Internet and Booking.com we found and booked a hotel room for the night.

TUESDAY 13th January. The Sun was now shining so back to Tarpon Springs harbour for a very pleasant exploration starting with the Sponge Factory where we watched a film then wandered along the road constantly avoiding the offers of a boat ride and watching a "Real Live Hard Hat Diver" descend to the depths. But did have a really good Greek doña kebab lunch which they call a GIro. But probably the best we have tasted. We then moved on towards Venice. FL where again with the help of Mc D's and Booking .com we found another reasonable Motel for the night.

WEDNESDAY 14th January. We decided to take the back roads South perhaps wandering by the side of the sea, but Florida's back roads are monstrous dual carriageways quite a long way from the seas side try as we might we didn't find the silver sand beaches we had read about but very soon found ourselves crossing an enouremous bridge to Fort Myers where we pulled into a park for a picnic lunch. After a quick scout round the town and a visit to the Visitor Centre we decided to stop at the Library to again use Booking.com to find a room. Only one seemed to have good reviews so we booked in. The room was fine but we were a bit unsure about the immediate area.

But off to the town for the free "Trolley" bus ride around which was quite entertaining and then a very nice meal at the "Ford Garage" a very nice burger meal with a bun branded with the Ford Logo. perhaps it was originally the garage that Henry Ford owned. We will find out when we visit the "Edison Ford" museum tomorrow.

Florida Holiday January 2015

Hi all yes off on our travels again, this time without the Motorhome but flying to Florida for three weeks.

7/1/15. Wednesday, woke early, 5 am and on the road by5:45 but car really thick with ice so had to spend ten minutes defrosting. The roads were really icy so glad we left early.

Arrived at APH parking without incident about 6:40 then smoothly booked in and on the coach arrived at Gatwick North terminal probably about 7:30. After a little learning curve we negotiated the Self Check-in terminals to print our luggage labels and que'd for bag drop off then security arriving actually in Departure at 08:30 after looking at the food selection on offer we decided on a simple bacon buttie and coffee rather than a full breakfast sitting down at 9:00 for a leisurely time watching the world go by then a wander round the shops then it was soon 10:40 and our flight appeared on the board so a walk to the plane a short wait for boarding and we were sitting in our seats getting ourselves sorted for the nine and a half hour flight.

Arrived Orlando at 16:30 local time and speedily through immigration once we were directed to the fast track terminals, then Homeland Security were extremely polite so swiftly passed them. Unfortunately we had to then part with our cases again while we boarded the shuttle train then had to wait nearly an hour for our cases to arrive again.

Picking up the car from AVIS was fairly slick because we had joined their preference program and she gave us a free upgrade (probably because they didn't have the car we ordered) but she didn't manage to give me a smile, just attitude. Then getting the guy at the gate to note scratches and dents on the car was difficult. With him saying we don't count scratches and minor dents. After what I read on the web I really do not believe it. With the que behind us growing he finally relented and gave us a pink sheet stating that the car had many scratches and dents all over. Finally on the road we then had to pull over and wait for our TomTom to get a satelite fix after being moved three thousand miles. Finally with the GPS directing we drove the thirty minutes to our friends house to a great welcome and a meal and a large glass of wine. Then a very good nights sleep after a 23 hour day awake.

THURSDAY 8th January, Rob and Natilee had told us where to go at Disney and have a good look around without tickets, where to park for free and to visit the various hotel attractions and we had a really good day riding the buses and wandering around the shops. We visited Animal Kingdom Lodge which has Zebra, Giraffe and many other African animals wandering around in the grounds. Unfortunately the weather was very cold but we had a great day.

FRIDAY 9th January, went with Rob again to Disney this time entering by the Staff Entrance which obviously the locals all know about so no entrance or parking fee and this time spent most of the day riding the monorail trains into more of the variously themed hotels. The whole site is vast and probably the greatest money making machine on earth but every possible whim of the guests are catered for in a very slick way. Another very enjoyable day getting to know Disney without actually going into any of the attractions yet.

Azrou to Tanger Med and Home

Thursday 06/03/2014

Judy was worse this morning so we set off towards Tanger Med so if she needs a doctor we will soon be in Spain, apart from the odd yelp when we hit a bump she did very well and in fact perked up quite a bit so I was able to drive vertually non stop. I didn't take the Motorway because it was quite a bit further and I have no idea whether their are regular service areas if Judy needed to stop. But the roads were quite bumpy so in retrospect perhaps I should have.

We arrived at the port at about 8pm and were through security , x-Ray and other checks by 20:30 much quicker than coming in! giving time for me to prepare a cup of soup which she managed to drink and looks to be over the worst and has got her colour back.

The ferry is supposed to be at 23:00 but will probably be midnight.

Apart from the last couple of days this has been a great couple of months, we have taken it much slower and have enjoyed every minute especially the three weeks at Tafraoute which is a lovely place. When we come next we have decided that the best bet would be to just head down the motorway to Agadir, see our friend Ismail then head for Tafraoute for a couple of months and probably get the body damage fixed!

The best advance this year is sorting the internet out, I bought a 3G router in Tafrauute and a long cable so I could tape the dongle to the CB Ariel and cover it with a small plastic tonic bottle for protection from the elements, which has enabled us to have virtually 24/7 internet even on the move, so listening to BBC Radio 2 while driving. The router has given us local  wifi in the van so Tablets, laptop phones and iPod have been constantly connected. Maroc Telecom give a 400mb daily allowance with the speed throttled after that and even with the radio on for about 14 hours a day and unlimited use of all the other devices even buying a couple of Kindle books we have had no problems whatsoever even miles from anywhere in the desert, the odd time it has cut out while going down into a valley or something but generally "always on" and all for just  €10 per month. I wish we could get even close to that service in Europe.

So when the ferry finally comes we will spend the night near Mercadona in Algeceras then make our way back through Spain dropping in to see friends as we go, then back in time to sort out the French and UK tax returns before heading to the UK for our annual visit.

Thanks for subscribing to our blog if you have done, hope you find it interesting. If you have just clicked on a link again hope the content is interesting, if you have come from a google search and I know some must have from some of the country flags we have collected then welcome and I hope it has been interesting for you also. Please send us an email.

Best wishes to all.

Steve & Judy

Tiznit to Azrou

Friday Morning 21/02/2014

We emptied and filled the Water which took ages as the tap was so slow. Judy decided to fill some extra bottles as we were heading for a wild camping spot we had heard of and ended up getting a French lesson from some ladies who were doing their washing up at the sinks because she had used the verb "etre" (to be) rather than "avoir" (to have), all good fun.

Finally after paying the 66dh for the night we set off from Riad Assllaf just a couple of km to Tisnit so as to have a mornings walk in the town and see about a large satelite dish as we had just heard that the satelites had changed and we now needed a 1.1 mt dish at home but we had forgotten it was Friday and most of the technical shops were closed as it was a holy day, so after doing a bit of grocery shopping which included a loaf of bread of a type we had not seen before which was about 30cm in diameter and lumpy and puffy with quite a dark colour, we will try it later.

The journey to the wild camping spot was via probably the smoothest road we had ever encountered and was bliss except for the last few miles but only 55km in total today.

We arrived at the tiny fishing Port of Sidi Boulfdail at about 15:00 to find what looked like a small walled village with about 30 Motorhomes parked outside it's walls so we found a nice spot at the top of the cliffs with a great uninterrupted view across the sea to hopefully good sunsets. After a walk in the village which turned out to be modern fishing storage units leading down steps to a large concrete apron with all the small rowing fishing boats only about 7 mtr long. There were two tiny shops selling most things and probably kept going by the campers at the moment as a Belgian guy we met told us that they were not able to fish at the moment because the sea was too rough.

Getting back to our parking spot we saw a GB van so went to have a chat. They were a young Australian couple who had taken a couple of years out, to come to the UK and buy a camper and travel round Europe for a couple of years with their five year old son. What a lovely experience  for  them all.

We sat to have a drink and watch the sunset and discovered that all the French were coming to just in front of us and throwing their rubbish bags over the cliff. We spoke to the Australian couple again as they returned from a walk and she said that she had already had a go at one of them and just got the Gallic shrug saying "That's what the Moroccans do". It may be what the Moraccans did and to a certain extent still do but they are learning and most of the larger villages we had encountered now had road sweepers and rubbish collections and anyway, they bring their rubbish they can take it away with them till they find a bin, we just hoped they didn't start coming and emptying their loos in front of us. Unfortunately the French Motorhomers are getting a very bad reputation because of their behaviour, we just hope it doesn't rub off on us all.

We decided that we would only stay one more day there even though it was a beautiful place, but spoiled by the Arrogant French.

Sunday 23/02/2014 08:45

We left the little port and headed along the coast to Inzegane where we knew of the big market selling all sorts of electronic and computer stuff to look again for a satelite dish. Ismail had taken us there last year so were sure we would find just  what we were looking for. First we went into the now covered Municiple market, it was enormous, probably about 500mtr long with about six isles of closely packed mini shops. It was packed with families shopping on Sunday which is a family day. Having browsed about half the market we moved on to the other with many electronics shops and found quite a selection and soon found a very good quality dish made in Portugal with a stand for about £26 then caused quite a bit of amusement walking through the town carrying it back to the Motorhome.

We set off for Aouri just North of Agadir, where Ismail lives, we met up with him at about 15:30 and spent a very pleasant evening and afternoon chatting and catching up with Ismail. The next morning we headed back to Inzegane market with Ismail as Judy had liked the style of shirt he was wearing with a short stand collar to buy some for Steve, unfortunately they were a summer item so nobody had any, we are walking about in shorts and tee shirts but the Moroccans are still in wooly hats and overcoats. So we walked back to the van and had some lunch then drove back to Tagazoute a few miles north of where Ismail lives to meet up with some friends we had met in Tafraoute, who were wild camping just off the beach with about a thousand others, well it was actually Guardian Parking and very well set up. We finally found Alan & Karen and spent a very nice afternoon chatting together with Ismail explaining many things about Morocco, we left a bit late and ended up travelling in the dark which is not good because it is difficult to spot all the pot holes!

On Tuesday Ismail suggested he showed Judy how to cook a traditional Tagine so we went shopping in the village then they set to assembling the dish while Steve installed email and Skype on the laptop Ismail had bought since we visited last year. The Tagine was fantastic but the computer setup took a little longer than planned so we had to leave soon after the dish as we had promised to meet up with Alan & Karen again before seting off towards Marakech via Esourria.

Wednesday 26/02/2014

We took a walk into Tagazoute which is mainly a surfers town with a few shops selling overpriced Morocan tourist items so we didn't spend too long then set off towards Esourria. It was a nice drive across the mountains and we arrived at the car park by the port at about 14:00 but had to wait for cars to leave before we could get a space, it was very tight and we saw a couple of cars get bumped, but we got a good place which was not too vulnerable.

We had a really nice wander round the tourist shops and bought a couple of the wooden items which we had seen the previous year, which the town seems to specialise in made from wood from the Argan tree. It got very cold so we went back to the van to warm up and have dinner before coming out to explore further. After dinner we managed to find the local market street which was very busy with people walking out for the evening, a really different experience.

Thursday 27/02/2014

We got up early to walk into the port to watch the fish being unloaded, but the boats must have landed really early because everything was cleaned up and finished, shame but another year.

We left the port at about 09:00 to drive to Marakech and arrived at a parking spot Steve had found on the French camping car site. It was guardian parking in a small lay-by off the road behind the large Mosque with room for just five Motorhomes but much better than the lorry park nearby where we had stayed a few years ago. it was expensive at 100dh for the night but it was in the middle of the city and we heard later that the lorry park was the same price.

It was just a 500mtr walk to the large square where everything happens. We spent  about three hours exploring the enormous Souk and Medina  then went back to the van for a rest before the evening. As we walked through the square they were starting to set up all the pop up  eating places for the evening.

As we walked out of the square an interesting thing happened, a guy collided with someone on a bike which started a bit af shouting and the start of a fight. But within seconds about twenty guys moved in pulled them apart and walked them away from each other and calmed them down to send them on their way, so quick and gently done. I think in the UK every one would have walked in the other direction or watched them fight. Such a gentle sort of people we meet everywhere in Morocco.

After a rest in the van we went out at about 7pm to enjoy the square which by then had been transformed into a gigantic multiple Resteraunt. Each outlet with three or four touts  scrabbling to entice passers by into their establishment. We will put some pictures up on our gallery, just go to the blog and click on the picture of the blue building. The touts got a bit persistent with us which annoyed Steve quite a bit but we walked round and round finally deciding to have some Harira, which is spicey Morrocan soup which was delicious about £1.50 for two large bowls and two loves of bread to eat with it.

We then walked along to another stall which Judy thought looked best which had brochettes, declined the offer of an upturned milk crate to wait for a seat which then turned out to be in full smoke from the bar-be-que. So got up and walked along to another place which had plenty of room because they had a double sized stall. 

As we decided all the staff started clapping and cheering because they had won our custom.  There was a loaf of bread on each place then two bowls of tomato based sauce were put in front of us, one sweet and one spicey. We ordered chicken brochettes and chips which arrived in just a few minutes, six skewers and a big bowl of beautiful chips each. The chicken and the chips were great and well cooked and the sauce was really good. So we ended up with a for us a good meal. Then we had to pass all the others asking, why didn't you eat with us. The Moroccans are past masters at inducing guilt for great effect. So we returned to the van, full and pleased to have had a very different experience.

Friday 28/02/2014

We left the parking at 09:00 heading for a natural arch we had heard about on the way to what we had heard were the best Cascades in Morocco. We were looking for a petrol station that took credit cards and noticed one next door to what looked like a supermarket. Well it turned out to be a cash and carry which acepted ordinary customers. It was very clean well stocked with reasonable prices and a wine section as we were getting a bit low. After the shopping we filled up with diesel and he also let us fill up with water. 

Along the road we turned off heading accross country and  Steve spotted a little shop with traditionaf Tagines outside. We had been looking for one but Ismail had told us what we should pay and the shops in Marakech were asking ten times as much.

So after a few minutes the shopkeeper finished with his customers and came out to see us. We had decided on a size so asked how much, he said 30dh which was exactly what Ismail had said we should pay, but he said you don't want that one because this one is far better quality, which it looked, ok we said but how much is that one? 30dh he said, the same, in Marrakech the better looking ones were twice the price of the rustic ones. He was also trying to speak English which he said he had been learning from a Sinbad the Sailor  book he had in English. We had a great ten minutes chatting to him and went on our way well pleased with our purchase.

About two hours later we came across an enormous market in the middle of nowhere so just had to stop. We were quite a curio walking about, we decided that we also should have a smaller Tagine so asked the price, 15dh, no question of inflating the price for tourists. We had a great hour walking about and also bought a straw hat for Judy as the sun was very strong on her neck.

After a bit of lunch we continued to the Naturel Bridge but had trouble finding it but eventually after directions from a Policeman at a checkpoint we found it at about 4pm  and started walking down the very many steps only to be soon accompanied by a young Moraccan guide. He pointed out where we should put our feet when climbing over rocks and a few sights along the way like, at one particular position the shape of the opening looked exactly like a map of Africa. Well it was a great experience and we were glad we decided to come this way after all. We then had the long climb up of I don't know how many steps, but they were regular and we took our time. When we reached the top our guide just wondered off without holding his hand out, I know we didn't ask for him but Judy thought he deserved something so went and gave him a few dirums which he seemed pleased with.

After the Natural Arch we had to backtrack about 11km to get on the road to the Cascades and it very soon got dark so we had difficulty finding somewhere to stop for the night, but eventually Steve spotted a small space on the right hand side of the road and we backed into it and managed to get reasonably level and we had a nice quiet night with no traffic disturbing us.

Saturday 01/03/2014

We woke early and found that we were only about 10km from Camping Zebra which was where we intended to stop to visit the Cascades d'Ouzoud so took things slowly so as to give some campers time to leave the site. Then drove to arrive at 09:45. We received a nice welcome from the Dutch lady owner who invited us to participate in a Moroccan Buffet meal they were organising that evening. The site was very clean and very well organised but a slightly higher price than the area deserved.

We walked to the Cascades which were very impressive, we walked down the steps then up the long steep climb up through the woods on the opposite bank which was the way the site owner recommended although we had read that it was easier the other way round. But we were glad that we took her advice because the climb through the woods was dusty and slippery which could have been more difficult going down.

When we returned to the site later friends from the MotorhomeFun.co.uk group we were members of, who we met at Tafraoute arrived and there was another English couple also like us in a French registered van so the evening meal turned out to be quite fun.

We decided to stay for a second day and get the sheets and other clothes washed and dried and a bit of R&R and chatting to our friends.

Monday 03/03/2014

We left camping Zebra just before 11:00 after filling and emptying and saying goodby to our friends who we were unlikely to meet up with again in Morocco. We were heading for a wild camping spot we had been told about by a lake which also took in a fantastic scenic drive over the Atlas Mountains, with breathtaking views of a large reservoir as we went over the top of the mountain, it was a beautiful azure blue then a stunning decent and under a tunnel and straight over a hydro-electric dam. Then another climb to be presented with a fantastic view of a large flat plain as we again went over the top it seemed that we could see the whole of North Morocco, then another stunning decent. We finally arrived at our wild camping spot at 17:45 which was 1.5km of the road along a very bumpy track. The place was amazing on a spit of land jutting out into another very large reservoir. We arrived just in time for a fantastic sunset.

Tuesday 04/03/2014

Judy must have eaten something odd last night and had a very bad night on the loo she was in pain and very I'll in the morning. At about midday we decided to slowly move as she had used all the medicine we had on board so we had to find a Pharmacy. Unfortunately every one we passed was closed but finally found one open at about 14:00.

We had again been told about a really scenic drive and after taking some medicine Judy felt up to it so we took the turning. The drive turned out to be extremely rough and at one point Steve failed to see a rock which was in the road and managed to cause a bit of damage to the bodywork of the Motorhome. When checking later he also found it had hit at the back and snapped off the drainpipe from the waste tank, which will make things quite a bit difficult. So a bit of repair work to be done when we get home. Unfortunately although the scenery was good it was not up to the standard of yesterday so it is a bit sad that we sustained damage unnecessarily.

We arrived at Camping Amazigh near Azrou just up the road from the amazing Disneyland palace site we had stayed at on the way down but thought we would try it for future reference.

Thursday 20th February - Tafraoute

Leaving Tafraoute

Last Sunday evening when returning from drinks we found a Motorhome  parked in front of our door, oh dear not again but as we got closer we saw it was our friends Pam & John who we knew were coming to Morocco but didn't expect to see them in Tafraoute, but they had driven straight down to meet us, what a surprise.  

On Monday, Mohamed the body repair man came to see us about a bit of repair work where we had dropped into a deep gulley last year and another spot where somebody had directed Steve into a wall when helping him to reverse into a tight driveway. He said, no problem we will come Wednesday, 550dh about £40, John decided to also have some work done on the front of his Motorhome and Mohamed said he would do both at the same time.

Monday and Tuesday turned out to be very cold cloudy days with a bit of rain at night but Wednesday morning turned out sunny and at 10am Mohamed arrived with two young guys who set about fibre-glassing, filling and sanding on both vehicles. Then after lunch Mohamed arrived to check the work and asked us to drive to his garage for the spraying.

We had bought a grey plastic tube last year which sits behind the bike rack to keep our Maroccan carpet in to save the dirt in the van, so Steve asked him to spray that at the same time. Both jobs were done by the end of the day and he added 55dh (£4) for spraying the tube which is 2.5mtr x 140mm dia not bad at all and all done in the time promised, so we can move on tomorrow. We spent the evening in the village having a bit of fun negotiating for a few gifts we had decided to buy.

Thursday morning we said our goodbyes and headed off, stopping in the village for some gas and heading for Tiznet via the pretty route we had been told about accross the mountains to a gorge full of palm trees. The drive was spectacular rising another 700mt   to 1716mtr high then down again to weave between the Palms through the gorge.

Then on to a road that didn't exist on the Michelin map for a challenging but fantastically twisty drive across the mountains.

We arrived in Tiznit at about 5pm, as usual the Municiple Camping was full and Queing outside so we went round the rounder out and back to the camping Riad ASSLLAF about 2km outside the town. It was also nearly full but they found us a spot but after nearly three weeks at the guardian parking at Tafraoute we are parked so close to each other. I don't think we will stay here long.

Only 162km today but spectacular driving.

One month in

Saturday 8th February 2014

Sorry folks it has been a long time since the last posting, I said this was going to be a lazy tour and that is the way it has been.

We stayed at the very nice Auberge Camping just before Merzouga for eleven days and apart from when we had three of the five days a year when it rains we walked every day three or four miles usually, one day we ordered a taxi to take us to Rissani the nearest town the cab (Renault 5 van) took us the twenty odd miles there waited the four hours we spent walking round the market and town then took us back all for about €13.

21st January we moved on heading for Ouarzazate accross country passing the spot where we had the major blow-out last year, we intended to stop for the night at Todra Gorge where we had stayed on previous trips but they were digging the roads up so much in Tinerhir making big wide pavements and dual carriageways that we missed the turning and had gone too far by the time we realised. But we found a nice quiet market area in a village and spent a quiet night. 

We intended to try the other camp site in Ouarzazate but when we got there we would have been the only camper there and it was quite a way from town so we moved on the the municiple camping we had used before which had plenty of vans but mainly French or German so still nobody to chat to.

We parked close enough to the office to pick up the wifi so as to do some research and contact the makers of our mains charger which had packed up but it turned out that the low voltage we had experienced in Spain and some places in Morocco had permanently damaged it. So we would have to rely on solar power unless we can find a car charger here. Well we rode our bikes all over the town but only found a very old 2nd,3rd or4th hand one which he wanted more than a new one would cost in Europe.

So we decided to struggle on and hope for sunny days, but in our searching we did find a really nice supermarket which wasn't there last year and only about half a mle from the campsite. They unusually took cards which saved on our cash.

Again after eleven days we decided to move on, we had seen much more of the town this year although we still had not visited the film studios where they made Laurence of Arabia I think and quite a few of the Hollywood Western's

We had a really nice drive across the mountains but the road got very bad for the last 50km.

We arrive at Tafraoute at about 6:30pm as it was getting dark so pulled onto what's called the free camping area just for the night till we could see what the site was like. There were very many campers there about fifty that we could see. In the morning we found that the tribe who owned the land now charged 10dh (less than a euro) per night and they now had rubbish bins a fairly basic but usable emptying place and a water bowser comes round three or four times a week so apart from the internet all seemed ok. So we took a walk into the town and saw that the camp site was jam packed so no real chance of getting a place without shade because we needed the sun for our panels. There was a Marroc Telecom shop in town so we topped up our dongle and found it was now half price about 9euros for a month of fairly unlimited internet.

While in the town we found a good electrical shop that had a 3mt extension USB cable so as to extend the dongle to put it up on our CB ariel to get a better signal. Just on the off chance Steve asked if they had a 3G router and he did after a bit of haggling we bought it for about 27euro so now everything sorted. When it was all set up we had our own permanent internet in the van so we could listen to Radio 2  in the morning and download the daily Times and Judy could get all her art videos. So we are absolutely sorted. We are in the most idilic spot in a plateau at 1000mt above sea level surrounded by mountains,we get sun from 08:30 till 5:30pm with a very nice village that we can even buy a 3G router in, and the bread man comes every morning at about 8:30,heaven.

Gradually English Vans started coming in and so we were able to chat and socialise. The thing is, we came the European's route basically clockwise. The Brits being a sea fairing nation usually hug the coast before venturing inland so we had basically met in the middle.

So we now have to suffer a continuous round of afternoon drinks, and evening cocktails (or Beer o'clock) as they call it! Absolutely great. We have met some really nice people.

Yesterday somebody said "We are off for a walk, coming?" Then found they were climbing the mountain behind us. It was about a 1000ft climb some on goat tracks but most climbing up over gigantic boulders. Judy made it to the top which at 70 amazed the others, she really did very well and enjoyed it immensely.

Sitting reading in the sun in the afternoon after the "walk" up a mountain friends from the Motor Caravan club we had met in Benidorm who were in Morocco for the first time went strolling past.

So a bit more socialising. The town is great very friendly negligible hassle and more or less everything we could want. Everywhere in the town are little enterprises. Many with a camper outside having some work done.

I think we will stay here for a bit longer before we head off to Agadir where we can meet up with our Moroccan friend Ismael. So we will probably not be updating for a while again.

Morocco 2014 - Week One

30/12/2013 - 75528 - 19:00

We left home on the 30th for our long drive to the bottom of Spain to catch our ferry to Morocco.

We stopped at friends near Barcelona for a couple of days to see the New Year in with them, had a great time then onward to Beniccasim to meet other Motorhome friends on to Benidorm to meet others

05/01/2014 - 76380 - 07:30

Left Albi near Benidorm for a very long drive  to  Algeceras and drove nearly non stop on non toll roads all day arriving at Viajes Normandie at 16:30 nine hours 648km then queued for two hours to buy our tickets for the Ferry. A few last things in Carrefore then dinner and early bed for an early start for the first Ferry.

Monday - 06/01/2014 - 77028 km - 06:15

Left parking outside Lidl to drive the 15 minutes to the Port to wait as will be normal from now on. Arrived at the port and, joined the line for check in, as usual the Moroccans in charge managed to turn an orderly situation into chaos but eventually we were checked in and to the que for loading. Sailing time of 8am came and went and we were finally loaded by about 08:30 and the ferry sailed at about 09:00.

We joined the que to see the policeman to check and stamp our passports and got chatting with a French couple who came from Anger in the west of France near the factory that built our Motorhome. 

The lady pointed out that the seats and especially the headrests in the salon were absolutely filthy so  we made our way up to the cafe where the seats were cleaner and the French couple joined us and we had a pleasant voyage in conversation with them which was great for our French because she spoke a little English so between us we could work out what we wanted to say.

The ferry docked at about 10:15 and after waiting for a poor Frenchman with a trailer behind his Motorhome to reverse off and up the ramp, we were at the immigration area by about  10:30.

With just a little bit of waiting and a few questions like, have you got any pistols? We were on our way by 11:00, amazing, it just gets better every year, what an improvement  the new Tanger Med port is compared with our first time with the Motorhome going into Tanger city when there was absolute chaos and touts everywhere.

Now just one more policeman to check that we had the rubber stamps on our forms and we were off. There is a fairly strict procedure to follow for entry into Morocco which has changed in the last couple of years so I will be producing an article on our website soon as a form of reference for ourselves and others if it will be helpful to them. There are quite a few on the web I have found which are now out of date so it won't hurt to provide an updated version.

When we left the Tanger Med Port this time we turned left heading along the Med coast rather than right which is the way most people go. Because we have become bored with the Atlantic coast and hundreds of Motorhomes with inevitably full camp sites. We intended to experience the Mediteranian coast and Riff mountains but understand that at this time of year (January) there can be snow making the mountains impassable. So intend to follow a figure of eight route possibly ending with a tour of the Mediteranian coast and Riff mountains. But as we are looking for a more leisurely time this trip, that may not happen.

So we trundled along the coast road past the many holiday hotels, finally  sweeping inland to Tetouan where we stumbled on a Marjan supermarket, these only exist in the large cities in Morocco so worth a stop to get anything we might have forgotten. The first discovery was a Maroc Telecom shop where we bought a new sym for the 3G dongle we bought last year so as to get internet on the move. It was a bit more than the whole thing cost last year 200 dirham about €18 or £15 which includes a month of relatively unlimited use, but we did buy it in a Souk (market) with our Moroccan friends help last year.

After buying some large bath towels to put on our chairs which we had forgotten to bring and the essential large bottles of drinking water, we continued our days journey towards Chefchaouen. We had bought a Moroccan Map for TomTom this time to make things easier but before we realised it had taken us what it thought was the quickest route, but not with a Motorhome nearly three meters wide at the mirrors. However time is not important and it turned out to be a beautiful detour into the edge of the Riff mountains, quite slow because of the rough roads and many steep hills and switch back turns but really worth the extra time. The cab camera we bought for our Italy tour should be great on this trip because it will quietly take pictures of the locals, the ladies especially usually turn their heads away when they see Judy with the camera their colourful costumes and interesting faces really make superbe photos.

We finally reached our camp site high above the pretty town of Chefchaouen where many of the buildings are painted in beautiful shades of blue and lilac. The road up to the camp site has some really challenging steep hairpin bends which are quite difficult to negotiate with our Sprintshift Auto gearbox. Arrived about 17:00 - 77200 so just 172 km today.

Stayed the next day at our campsite and took a walk down a very steep path into the old part of the town which is absolutely beautiful as most of the houses are painted various shades of blue, you can see some of our photos at:- http://tinyurl.com/OAT-Morocco  drop back occasionally to see the new one as we add them.

Wednesday 08/01/2014 - 77200km - 09:00

Left Chefchaouen to drive to Azru, we intended to stop at Meknes for a bit of sightseeing but it was so busy and smelly with traffic that we decided to just keep going. TomTom again decided to take us the pretty route which became piste (dirt road) in places and quite slow going because of the holes in the Tarmac but was pretty and interesting. We will have to be a bit more vigilant on the route he takes us from here on though because the minor roads can just run out and get very bad the further south we get.

Just before Azru we saw a very nice petrol station advertising that they took credit cards, which is very different to our previous visits when the only place to take cards was the Marjan Supermarkets. It really is amazing how quickly Morocco is progressing. Even at €0.87 per litre fuel is a major expense and can quickly get through cash so buying on a credit card is a bonus. We pulled in and Steve checked first and they did really take cards so we filled up.

Our French database of camping spots from www.CampingCar-Infos.com had given strange mixed opinions of our intended nights stop a bit more confusing because it had been translated by Google Translate. Words like Disney Land, slippery slates, and impossible to reach the terrace left us full of wonder. 

TomTom took us to the door and it was indeed a Disney Casbar with a very impressive gate house which did indeed have glass smooth tiles to drive on. But past the guard on the gate they had obviously changed all the smooth tiles on the road for special grip ones which led very steeply to a large terrace about 30 meters above the road and fairy tale looking buildings which were the hotel. Unfortunately it was getting dark to take photographs so must remember tomorrow. So the faults in the design reported by previous French visitors had been rectified and produced a beautiful site as a result and only 60dh about £4.60 a night plus 20dh if electricity was needed. Unfortunately our charger has misteriously stopped working so electricity is of little use other than for the fridge, so we are relying on our solar panels and motoring to charge our domestic batteries until we hopefully get a reply to an email to the manufacturers to see if there is a re-setting procedure that may bring it to life again.

We had a fairly quiet night  and a late start so ignored a knock on the door at 08:30 with a guy outside holding bread. But when we checked out he said here is your loaf you were asleep when I called this morning, when Judy asked he said it was free, what a nice gesture, ok only about 1.5dh but still a nice gesture. A really good site, the staff were very respectful and helpful as we filled with water and emptied down and the facilities were impeccable. Euro Camping Center, Azrou, Ifran GPS: N 33.44471, W 5.1918 well worth a visit more than one night.j

Remembering to take some photos on our way down from the terrace we got on our way.

Thursday 09/01/2014 - 77473km - 10: 00

Left the beautiful site at Azru for a fairly short drive to Midelt but we intended to stop at a lake formed by a flooded extinct volcano our guide book said was worth a  visit.

Just outside Azru we were driving throu the Cedar forest and came upon the road full of wild Barbary apes similar the the ones that inhabit the rock of Gibralter. Steve had read about them but had forgotten, so we pulled off the road for a few photos then ten minutes later came across quite a few holding a sit-in right across the road but they slowly but reluctantly moved aside as we slowly edged forward.

We came across the lake about lunch-time so drove the kilometer off road to park by it. We had visited the same spot about five years ago on a previous visit but it was covered in snow then and we had to keep the heating on all night to keep warm and that was the beginning of March then so it is much warmer this year as there was no snow at all and we had a nice lunch stop. A Maroccan guy appeared in his car and Steve chatted to him for a bit and he said he was waiting for a tourist bus as he was going to take them into the old French lead mines to show them where he hunted for fossils. He showed Steve a couple of beautiful examples he just happened to have with him and finished with the inevitable sales pitch but it was a very good natured pitch.

Moving on we arrived at Midelt about 15:00 being very high it was quite cold so we decided to push on across the High Atlas Mountains to the oasis of Source Bleu at Meski which we had visited before and had a nice drive over the mountains apart from being pushed over a bit by a truck and hitting a large pothole with a very loud bang, we stopped as soon as we could for a check and there appeared to be no damage apart from a few things jumping out of cupboards, hopefully the tyre will be ok, there is no apparent damage.

We arrived at Meski at about 16:30 but remembering that there was no 3G reception at the oasis which was in a gorge about 10 metres below the surrounding ground level down a steep slope so we stopped at the top to pick up emails in case leVoyageur the Motorhome manufacturers had replied with a solution to the charger problem, unfortunately not. 

Just gone 17:00 we headed for the site to be stopped by a smartly dressed Maroccan gentleman trying to get us to go to his camp site. We declined as it was getting dark and the entry to the oasis was very tight and we didn't want to hit any of the many palm trees we knew we had to steer between.

The camp site had deteriation quite a bit fromlast year and the traders with shops there seemed to think that it was our duty to buy something at their shop and had to be told quite firmly, NO.

Steve then wished we had taken the time to check out the other camping.

Friday 10/01/2014 - 77755 - 08:50

We paid our 50dh for the night and decided we would check out the other place and there at the top of the slope out was the same guy so we went with him just 50mtr along the road to his resteraunt where he had parking for four Motorhomes in the front and another area for four more across the road.

He insisted on showing Steve every part of his establishment including the kitchen and the panoramic view across the gorge to the old abandoned village which we didn't know about. With promises to stop on our way back north Steve finally extricated himself with card in hand. Certainly worth remembering.

We had a fairly easy drive to Mazouga ahead of us but it started raining sorn after we started and all the way down to the edge of the Sahara, oh dear.

A Dutchman last year had told us to turn off a little bit before Mazouga which we did and found a really nice Auberge Camping called Ocean Dunes in a village called Adrouine  which is 50dh per night with free Electricity and WiFi so will be our home for a week or so if we like it. So arrived at our first long stop about midday after just 112km drive today.

We got ourselves set up then had a stroll around the village which was actually quite large with quite a few small grocers shops for supplies.

Unfortunately it started raining again and continued for the rest of the night so an evening of reading.

Saturday 11/01/2014

Morning turned out fine but cloudy and cool, one of the lads from the site knocked at 08:30 with a loaf of bread 2dh so after breakfast and a few chores we set out for a walk to Mazouga for a bit of excercise after nearly a week sitting. It was a long walk about 5 miles and the route we took ended up in soft desert sand which was very hard going but quite safe because we could see the villages all the time on our right and the gigantic sand dunes about 2km to our left.

After a little walk around Mazouga which had improved quite a bit from last year in that the main road with shops in it which was just sand last year was now Tarmac with a nice shaded area with seats in the middle.

The walk back was a bit easier along the new wide gravel road which had been built between the villages.

Arrived back after about four hours walking a bit stiff but feeling good so an afternoon and evening reading.

Sunday 12/01/2014

Awoke to bright sunshine,  so after a light stroll around the village and finding a little shop with quite a few veggies we settled down for a quiet day in the sun.

So a week of travelling and we are now settled in a nice site, we are the only English because all the others are French but a good chance to improve our conversation. The French come here because it is one of the few French speaking places they can easily visit.

So we are unlikely to post any more until we move on or something exciting happens because it is difficult to write about lazy days in the sun.

ITALIAN TOUR

Sorry another week between blogs, we have been just soo busy!

Saturday 02/11/2013

Left our parking early at  07:30 to avoid the crowds that may developed later as this Festival is probably for the whole weekend although it had started raining which was a terrible shame for all those people in their wonderful costumes. We decided to take the Motorway as they appeared to be not too expensive and yesterday's driving at 50kph most of the way was just not enjoyable. We were heading for Bologna and yes the Autostrada was just €3.40 for 59 km so probably cheaper than up and down between 70, 50 & 30kph.

Suddenly TomTom took us off the motorway and straight up over the mountains. A very twisty but beautiful alpine drive, very slow at times but delightful views. About 40km from Bologna our road converged with the motorway so we jumped on to it to get there a bit quicker. We arrived at the car park indicated on the CampingCar database to find it completely full with people visiting the nearby cemetery probably over 500 cars so we headed for the next one on the list which was great but just a bit too far out so had a cuppa and a bit of lunch for an hour and headed back to the first one which now it was siesta time was completely empty. We walked the mile or so into the town and had a good time in the main square although the information centre was the most unhelpful we had encountered. But she gave us a map with the main things to see, one of which was the central library which was the meeting place for the Bolognians and it was heaving, on three floors with a large open central area with a glass floor over the ancient city foundations and there were coffee bars etc. and everyone just doing their thing. We found a spot on the first floor and connected to the internet with our iPads for Judy to do some research on some other places to visit and Steve to sort out the picture gallery on the blog which Google has started asking for a sign-in to Google Circles to be able to view it. It looks to be sorted now but if you have difficulty let us know. It was a long walk back to the Van so decided to get the bikes out tomorrow to make sightseeing easier.

Sunday 03/11/2013

Rode into the town via the cycle tracks very nice and easier than walking. Found a good spot and chained them up so as to visit the Basilica which had beautiful paintings and sculptures but there was a service going on so it limited viewing a bit, walked round the square which was full of musicians and other entertainers and walked around some of the roads looking at the very different architecture with ocre coloured buildings and the wide pavements covered by long loggias.  With the odd medievil tower or two everywhere. Basically a University town like Oxford in England, in fact it is the oldest university in Europe but it had a vibrant young feel to the very old town.

Back to the van by 2:30 pm and onward towards Ferrara and found the enormous parkingt place "Sosta" with probably 200 Motorhomes parked who had probably been there the whole weekend. But you could see that many were preparing to leave, there was (paid) dumping and water available which they were queuing for before leaving.

We found a spot and walked into the town. It was heaving with people with a large flea market by the side of the castle. Had a really nice evening just walking and gazing in all the shops a really nice atmosphere. Got back to the van about 7:30 the car park was now nearly empty so decided to move from the dark corner we were in into the centre nearer to the few Motorhomers remaining which was good because there was free wifi there which we couldn't see on the other side.

Monday 04/11/2013

Woke to find the car park rapidly filling up with workers cars and campers moving to try to fit in the parking bays, which we had read was important in some towns so decided as we were taking up four bays, to move back to where we were yesterday which didn't have marked bays either by length or width, there were a couple of mini buses there.

The guide book said that there was a city wall like Lucca here which had a cycle path so we set off on the bikes to ride it but found nothing so returned to the town to find the information office but found the whole square blocked by people with a remembrance service going on. Asked a policeman but he just gabbled about the castle. Then a lady tapped Judy on the shoulder and pointed to an alley indicating that we should go down there then following us pointed to another alleyway which took us all round the square missing all the people and found the Castle and information who gave us a map which showed the town wall which we had missed by about 100mtr because it only survived on two thirds of the town. Followed the map and had a really nice ride on the wall but it was not a patch on Lucca which is a must to do next time without the thousands of strange creatures and people. Back to the van and away by 2:30pm to head for Venice we took the motorway but had torrential rain all the way, hope it stops for Venice.

We had read that it was best to stop at a Camper Stop at Punta Sabioni which was just along the road from the ferry terminal to Venice but it was a 70km drive right round the lagoon to the very end of a narrow spit of land so unfortunately we arrived in the dark. The parking from Camping Car Infos turned out to be a coach park and he wanted 15euros to park so we went looking for the Camper Stop only ,to find the gate was shut. There was plenty of meter parking on the road €6 for twelve hours but we decided to drive the few miles back to Jesolo and found a nice quiet bit of blocked off road so parked the night as it would be easier to find secure parking in daylight in the morning.

Tuesday 05/11/2013

Up early to drive back to Punta Sabioni only to find that the Camper Stop closed for winter at the end of October but there was a site nearby €25 a night (cash) but it would be much safer to leave the van all day while we took the ferry to Venice. Parked up and quickly walked to the ferry terminal where we found an Information point with a very nice and helpful lady who took us through our options for visiting Venice. It was only €5 more for three days than two days so coughed up the €70 for two three day tickets so we eventually stopped here talking and on to the jetty to catch the 9:30 boat. We arrived in Venice to find all the squares and pavements under water due to a high tide which obviously happens often as wooden walkways had been set up so people could walk around but the whole of St Marco's square was under about 50cm of water, a great opportunity for the tat vendors who were selling disposable wellies for €20, we later saw another selling for €12 but still extortion. Especially as it was easily possible to get around on the wooden walkways. We decided to leave the museums and Basilaca etc. until later after we had done a bit of sightseeing. We had listened to Rick Steve's guide to the Grand Canal last night so decided to get a water bus number 2 along to the station end which only did half the stops to get an overview before catching bus no 1 back and follow the guide which was very informative wandered around for a bit more just soaking up the tiny streets and canals and bridges and boats and gondola's balked at €1.50 each for a pee so took the water bus to Ca d'Oro where we had seen a poster advertising McD's did what we had to do picked up emails and had a dreadful latte coffee. Walked back to the Rialto bridge the first and oldest bridge over the grand canal which like the one in Florence had shops on it which were not as expensive as we would have expected. The stalls and shops just continued so we kept walking eventually found ourselves caught up with everybody going home including the Eastern Europeans after a hard day begging and acting crippled now striding along carrying their crutch at a faster rate than we walked! Really the number of beggars and illegal traders we had encountered throughout Italy was disturbing but more so in Venice. What will happen when the restrictions come off next year I hate to think.

Reaching the water bus stop of Roma we decided we had, had enough for the day so jumped on the faster no 2 boat then realised it was going in the oposite direction, Steve heard the ladies in front of us speaking English so asked them and they explained that it was going round the outside which was a bit quicker than through the Grand Canal where they were limited for speed. Got on the homeward water bus and arrived back at the van about 7pm extremely tired but a full and enjoyable day.

Wednesday 06/11/2013

Up early and on to the water bus to St Marco square to change to another as we had decided to visit the Island of Murono to see the glass work. We then realised that if we had just walked across to the other side of Venice about 15 minutes at that part, we would have saved about three quarters of an hour but still it was all an experience.

We spent a very nice three hours or so walking the streets and looking at the amazing glasswork then while in one shop were invited to go out the back to the furnace to see the glass blowing. The skill was amazing especially with the second item he did which was a rearing horse just using a pair of pincers to crimp and shape the soft red hot glass. Back towards the water bus stop and Judy couldn't wait so just had to fork out the €1.50!

Back to Venice and walk across this time heading for Acedamia where we had seen there was an exclusive exhibition of some of Leonardo Da Vinci's unseen work from all over some from the queens private collection in Windsor. Passing McD's Steve took the opportunity of sneaking in and saving €1.50. The exhibition was expensive  but fantastic especially for Judy to see the many tiny intricate drawings sometimes many different ones on just one piece of paper. Unfortunately the audio guide was hopeless which spoiled it a bit. After the exhibition the drawings will be locked away again for a few decades to protect them from the light. So a once in a lifetime experience. After Leonardo's rooms the rest of the gallery had some very fine paintings as well. It was about 5pm when we got out of the gallery so headed back. Steve bought Judy some beautiful Morano glass earrings and Necklace Ruby Red as it is our Ruby Wedding Anniversary in ten days time. So back to the mainland but decided on the way to stop off at Lido which is on the Long Island which basically with the peninsular of Punto Sabini protects the islands of Venice from the full force of the sea.  We had an hours walk about, it was very different, there were cars and buses for a start whereas the only things with wheels on Venice were the porters sack barrows and the tourist luggage.

On the boat back we suddenly remembered the free walking tour Judy had seen on the web so back at the van Steve connected to the web with the phone and managed to book for the next day.

Thursday 07/11/2013

Up even earlier and didn't bother to make sandwiches as we had decided we would get a meal in Venice tonight on our last day. Got to the Basilaca by about 8:45 but it didn't open until 9:30 which wouldn't give us time to see it properly and get to our walk in time for 10:45  right at the other end of Venice.

We wandered through the streets passing through the Rialto market with lovely fish and vedge and met our guide who turned out to be really good but a bit brusque at first with a strange sense of humour. We thought he was Russian at first but when Steve asked he said he was born in Venice.

We had a great walk through four of the six departments of Venice including the Jewish Ghetto where he pointed out the most authentic but not expensive places to eat and down small streets we would never have ventured down. With our permission he took us all across the Grand Canal on a Gondola Ferry €2 each €0.70 for locals with fourteen of us and one local it was a distinctly unsettling experience negotiating across the Chanel weaving between water buses, taxi's and delivery boats steaming along and not one life belt. And then a young Indian lad in the party decided he would stand up and step to the other side to take a picture producing a very loud remark from the Gondoliar and the local with us!

The tour finished at about 3:15 in the Student quarter, a very lively place where the guide said it was best and cheapest to get lunch.

We skipped lunch and headed for the other side of Venice because the guide had said it was worth visiting the Island of Burono which was very pretty with all different coloured houses. We spent a couple of hours there, it was indeed very pretty with many shops selling the intricate lace work the speciality of the island.

We arrived back in Venice not far from where the guide had said was the best plac to eat but a bit early for the Venetians who don't come out till later so we decided to walk across to the Student quarter  to see what food was available there and  pass by a shop Judy wanted to buy something she had seen that morning.

The Student quarter was very lively but the resteraunt he had recommended for lunch had a party of very loud drunken English in it so we went in search of another and were finally enticed into one by a waiter who took the trouble to explain the menu to us in English the food was fine and very good value but spoiled by a French couple who having finished all their meal and wine decided to complain that it was poor quality and too salty and offered €20 for what the waiter told us later was an €80 meal, yes the law in France says you can do that but they were not in France and I don't think even in France having finished it all. He even came back to finish the glass of mineral water on the table! So loud English and even louder French spoiled it a bit, we wished we had gone to the ones near the Jewish quarter. 

The water buses were not quite so frequent now so we decided to walk as there was anotherr shop on Rialto that we wanted to go back to and it turned out to be the only one open.

Finally back to the van at 11:45 exhausted but a really good day and the number of water buses we had used we had really good value from our three day pass.

Friday 08/11/2013

A leisurely start sorting out the van and filling and emptying. Paid then set of in the direction of lake Garda. TomTom had a funy half hour and went the strangest route possible to the motorway but on the way we saw an IKEA store so stopped to se if they had the drawers for the hanging wardrobe storage unit we use in the van unfortunately  they did not but 2 hours and €40 later we got out and back on our way. Finally on to the motorway but on exiting our card would not work and by the time Steve had sorted out the cash it wouldn't let us pay but spat out a foot long ticket luckily with instructions in English as well on how to pay later or suffer a fine but the barrier did not rise and the guy in the control box was yelling something in Italian and Steve was yelling back that he didn't speak Italian and all the cars behind were leaning on their horns. Finally a guy came stomping across the motorway obviously annoyed to be disturbed from his nice warm office, snatched a small bit of ticket that had stayed in the machine and threw it through the window and stomped off. The barrier then rose so we could get out. The ticket which was almost out of Steve's reach had obviously torn badly and would not lift the barrier until it was sure you had taken it so you could pay. We have to pay at the next manned toll booth or by bank transfer at a post office. Something to be sorted out later, we have 15 days before a fine kicks in.

Onward to our destination now in the dark only to find the camper stop we were aiming for closed at the end of October. Found another one in the book which was supposed to be open till December and headed off but it was about 37 km. We stopped at a supermarket where there was another camper so we spoke to them to see if they knew anything closer. They thought they had seen a large parking area about two km back so we said we would see them there after some shopping. Unfortunately we never found it but did find a large area behind a block of shops with a lorry parked in it so stopped there quite comfortably except the rain started and continued all night.

Saturday 09/11/2013

A nice quiet night except the noise of the rain on the roof so set off to drive up the western shore of the lake, a pretty drive till we arrived at a tunnel 3.5 mtr no problem we are 2.9 mt. All along the lake the tunnels got longer and narrower with quite jagged edges then suddenly a sign saying 3mt with nowhere to turn or escape oops! But round the corner the 3mtr one went off to the left further into the mountain ours seemed to be the same 3.5, hope the guy that measured was careful with his tape. Kept going through more tunnels and finally saw layby behind a crash barrier so pulled in for a coffee and sit for a bit as driving was difficult in the torrential rain, so time to catch up on the blog overlooking the lake in the rain. Continued after a couple of hours and decided to continue round the lake back to Garda rather than taking the longer route to the motorway. 50kph speed limit all the way with cruise set to the gps speed and just poodled along but two Italian campers shot past us then suddenly turned off into what turned out to be a large Sosta so we followed through an electronic barrier. It turned out to be all wind surfers so We went to look at the ticket machine and it wanted €1.65 an hour for all hours all year so €28 till the morning for a bit of Tarmac, the Italians  didn't appear to be paying but they were Italian so obviously not worried, but we were not happy so left to find somewhere better. About half an hour down the road there was a parking area by the side of the lake with the height barrier removed and a bag over the meter saying parking free, that'll do us so we pulled in. There was another camper in there already but much happier than waking in the morning to find the Italians all gone knowing that the warden came round at 8 and a ticket on the window or worse a clamp.

So now sitting with a glass of wine watching the lightning across the lake.

So up to date now, hope you enjoy. 

ITALY TOUR 2013

Sorry about the last blog, hadn't realised a week had gone by.

Tuesday 29/10/2013

Steve decided overnight that it would be better to use bikes as we had to get to a particular street in Florence by 9am tomorrow for Judy's special 70th Birthday treat from Nikki  and Kerry. And we're not too sure of the buses and the long walk down the drive to the road so a test run was necessary. So spent a bit of time getting the bikes out and set up and with TomTom round Steve's neck we set off at about 9am. We took the walking route which turned out to be a bit of a trial as we (Steve) had to carry the bikes over a very high  foot bridge over the railway. There were also a lot of one way Streets going the wrong way and we were not yet as confident as the Florentines riding against the traffic. So it took about an hour. Steve left Judy talking in Palazzo Vecchio to some Australians and looking at  the statues while he went and checked on the booking and whether we could leave our bikes tomorrow. All the planning via email and text with Nikki while at the beach parking where we could get wifi had paid off and all was fine so we walked about getting the feel of the city after chaining our bikes to some very strong bike racks. First mistake is that we bought the nice removable basket which clips on to the front of Steve's bike so we had to carry that all day. So just back packs tomorrow. We looked around the squares and checked the entrance of the Ufizzi Gallery then walked to the medievil Ponte Vechio, the bridge with shops (expensive jewellery) on it and later we found that also there is a secret covered walkway where the early leaders could walk without encountering the peasants.

Couldn't resist the Ice Cream shop as we finished so had a small one each which was enormous with two gigantic scoops of  whichever flavour we wanted and she let us try a spoonfull of a few to get the right ones. Can't imagine having a large one. Absolutely delicious and just €2.50 each. (See our photo gallery in a day or so for a photo).

We wandered the streets until about 4pm and made our way back to the site this time taking TomTom's cycle route which got us back in half the time.

Wednesday 30/10/2013

Judy's Birthday, we got up early and left in plenty of time arriving  at 8:30 so looked at a few statues for a while then walked to the offices of WalkAbout Tours which was a garage full of Vespa scooters and little Fiat 500's on little rostrums.  A nice guy introduced  himself as Angel and showed us where to park our bikes then asked us to read and sign a disclaimer form, but all the form mentioned was a "Vespa" tour, so Judy freaked a bit thinking she was going to be riding a Vespa round Florence but then Steve explained that it was one of the lovely little vintage Fiat 500's we would be driving, exactly like the one she owned while pregnant with Nikki. She preferred that Steve did the driving so she could enjoy the ride, so a quick rundown on the car and off we go through the narrow streets of  Florence. The clutch was a hair trigger and the gearbox was a crash box so after a few kangaroo jumps and loud complaints from the gearbox Steve got into the groove and remembered how to double de-clutch. So following Angel in the lead car, we were very lucky as usually they would have five cars in convoy, most of them Americans who had never even seen a stick shift! But it was just us with Angel in the lead. Through the tiny streets then out across the river with Angel shouting over the Walkie-Talkie to look at the Punto Veccio on the right etc. then up the hill to the place we had tried to park on Monday night. Left the cars and climbed the steps to a beautiful church which we had not seen when visiting before. The facade was covered in green and white marble. Then Angel told us to turn round to see the wonderful view of the whole of Florence and a full explanation of all the sights by Angel. Into the church which had then just opened for a further explanation of the wonderful craftsmanship in the building. Back to the cars for more hair raising driving through tiny roads one was either 1.5 or 1.8 meters wide the sign flashed by so fast but it was narrow even for a Fiat 500.  Another road was covered with grass I am sure it was through somebody's garden. Another stop to look at olive groves and an explanation on the best time to harvest for maximum oil. Then Galaeleo's (spelling?) old house then the old residence of one of Camila's old relatives who had got into trouble for having an affair with a King, sort of runs in the family! So then we started going down hill and realised just how much better brakes had become.  Finally after a few more tiny streets we stopped outside a restraunt where Angel ordered a lovely lunch for us typical of the region then back to the office at 1pm to say our goodbyes and our thanks to Angel who had made the morning so special. Judy still had the Cheshire Cat grin that had started from the minute we sat in the awful seats bumping across the cobbles till the time we finished. Three hours of manic driving a wonderful old car that brought back many memories. Thanks boys a fantastic present for Mum that she will certainly not forget in a hurry (hopefully the bruises will fade before the memories).

From there we made our way to the Uffizi gallery where because it was lunch time the queues were not too long. When we got in we then spent another three hours looking at mainly religious art and sculpture through the ages by many of the renouned artists which Judy was very interested in. We had a RickSteve's guide which helped a lot to explain the changes in the art from flat two dimension to the development of perspective. 

We cycled back through the rush hour in the dark with no problems for a quick meal then bed and I am sure Judy was still grinning while asleep.

Thursday 31/10/2013

Up early and cycle in to get to the Acadamia to see the original sculpture of David by Michelangelo,  we had heard so much about it, surely it could not live up to all the praise. The line was short and we were in in about half an hour again with one of RickSteve's guides. The sculpture of David was breathtaking, unbelievable and every adjective you could find to describe it, the craftsmanship really is amazing especially considering that he only had a hammer and chisel, no diamond cutters etc, and then we heard that he worked entirely freehand without a previously constructed model to use as a scale pattern as other sculptors did. Once again amazing. The rest of the gallery although fantastic art, just paled in comparison. A great part of the room with David in, was all the unfinished works called the prisoners which Michelangelo had not fully set free from their marble prisons.

Stunned and tired from the gallery we cycled back to break camp and set off for Lucca which Angel said yesterday is a must to see.

We didn't get away till about 4pm and got caught up in the Florence rush hour with buses, coaches, cars, scooters and bikes all fighting for a bit of road, we really needed sensors all round the vehicle because they came from everywhere and the only way was to be as brave (foolhardy) as them and aim for a spot and get it before them. It was getting late when we saw a petrol station with GPL (gas), as we hadn't filled up since before Pompeii we thought we must be low, but all it took was €4.50 worth. Steve found a Camping Car  parking area in nearby Pistoia so we headed there, it was free held about 30 vans with dumping and fresh water as well. N-43.94360,E-10.91591.

Friday 01/11/2013

As the town had provided such a nice free facility we walked in to see the town, everything was very quiet and we realised it must be a public holiday of some kind but we found a very nice walled town with many beautiful buildings including the second biggest Domed church in Italy after Florence excepting the Vatican the man in the tourist office said because that was a  different country. So a good couple of hours spent but off to Lucca because Angel had said it was a Medievil,town with a massive exterior wall which you could cycle all the way round. The guide book said, cars were in the minority, a time warp with mainly old ladies on their ancient bikes squeaking along to buy their groceries. When we arrived at the Camping Car parking instead of three or four there were about three hundred. Everywhere we went there were Camping Cars it seemed every Camping Car in Italy was there and most of the cars, every parking place was full as well as the verges. The last car park we toured around some guys from the other end becond to us and directed us to a nice parking spot, then we noticed that we were in the middle of a Gypsy camp with half dismantled cars all around. The guys were indicating that for a few euros they would keep their eyes on it but we had visions of returning to a partly dismantled camper on bricks, so beat a hasty retreat, a couple of kilometers outside town the cars had thinned down and we found a spot next to an allotment and an old boy tending his vegetables said it was ok to park.

We decided it would be best to walk instead of taking the bikes so we walked in and up on to the wall. All around us were people in fancy dress but not a Medievil fayre as we had thought they were all dressed in fantastic futuristic costumes. We had stumbled upon the 2013 International Comic and Games festival. So a very interesting and enjoyable few hours mingling with strange monsters, Bat Men, and Star Wars creatures and many more whose origins we had no idea of. It looks as if we will have to put Lucca down for another visit, so back to the van for a nice meal drink and bed.