Croatia Trip September 2015 Post 5

Hi all, I was not very happy with the look of my previous posts which I prepared off-line then emailed to the blog when I got an internet connection and had to go back in when I could get properly online to add photos not very successfully like last time. So as we have good Wi-Fi connection where we are now I have searched to find what others do and found some new Blogging Software which allows me to work offline just the same but insert pictures and format the post properly. It also uses the Microsoft spell checker so hopefully I won’t get the typos so much. But it does have to be done on the laptop rather than the iPod so not quite so convenient.Hopefully it will post this blog properly, let me know if it seems better.
Day 17 Friday 25/09/2015 – 93,519 on Speedo 
Well, what a night! Thunder lightening and rain by the bucket load. It really sounded like a thousand seagulls doing a tap dance on the roof. We really felt for the couple in a little pop-up VW van next to us and even more four the youngsters in tents at the other end of the site.
After a fitful nights sleep, at least for Judy (Steve could sleep through a battle!) we awoke to a fine morning. The site owner had suggested we catch the bus to visit Kotor but we decided to drive and take a chance on being able to park so that we could move along in the country. Montenegro uses the Euro and luckily we just had enough left after paying for our boat trip in Euros at the last site, as he needed cash to pay the boat man for us rather than a credit card which we used for the camping charge because we were getting low on Croatian Kuna.
Well we arrived in Kotor and parking looked a nightmare on the approach road. Then suddenly we saw the enormous streamlined bow of a cruise liner which appeared to be right across the road. In fact the road bent round to the left leaving the liner parallel to the road but very very close. We carried on through the town with the Old City walls on our left then found a large parking area outside the cemetery which was ideal and a lot less likely to get the van bumped and free so time wasn’t an issue ok about three quarters of a mile walk but good exercise for us.

While walking back to the town we could plainly see a mini Wall of China snaking up the very nearly vertical mountain. I wouldn’t have thought that they had any fear of attack from that side but there was a fort at the top so perhaps it was needed in medieval times. There was also on the other side a walkway along the wall, right up to the fort, perhaps with a wonderful view but we left that to the people from the cruse. The Old Fortified Town was nice but very many people and tours. But we had a walk around and found a cash machine to get some more Euros and a mini market for some shopping..

From Kotor we worked our way along the beautiful coast road clinging to the edge of the cliff the same as in Croatia. We were heading for Podgorica where our database showed there was camping of some kind, sites in Montenegro did seem few and far between. We had the choice of the new toll tunnel under the mountains or the the old road over the mountains. Steve decided on the old road which was spectacular, quite a climb and hundreds of wiggles but beautiful scenery. We were very glad of our special magnetic braking system on the very steep descents, without it the brakes would have been very hot indeed. As we drove over the top of the mountain the view of the enormous Skadar Lake half of which is in Albania and the Skadar national park .was breath-taking. The road was quite bumpy so well  done to Judy for getting pictures as good  as she did at the same time as hanging on for dear life. At the bottom we actually drove across a long bridge across the lake. then onwards to Podgorica and our stop for the night. Which was outside a truckers hotel, Fairly basic but it had electric and showers and toilets although we didn’t check those as we don’t need them.
Stopped at 17;30 - 93643 – 124 km today – Hostel Izvor - 42.48373N, 1819.30634E
Day 18 Saturday 26/09/2015 – 93643 on Speedo
We left Hostel Izvor at 09:00 a quiet night once the nearby railway had stopped for the night at about 10pm. The temperature was a bit lower that we had become used to. We decided to head back towards Dubrovnik by heading north west via Niksic so we could see a bit more of the Montenegro countryside which also would mean a good stretch of Bosnia rather than the few kilometre corridor we had passed through heading south to Dubrovnik. That little corridor is a bit strange, most Brits going through it have to take a chance driving without insurance as the UK insurers will not cover Bosnia, we hear that occasionally the Bosnian Police will pull a tourist over but most of the time turn a blind eye.
Passing through Podgorica we saw an amazing shopping centre with all the top names including M&S but it didn’t open till 10:00 so we drove on, shame because it would have been interesting to see but we had quite a bit of driving including four customs stops. The road we took was fairly ordinary but with quite a few small factories indicating quite a bit of employment, probably the most we had seen. After we passed Niksic the road climbed with great views across a valley to a large lake, there was a panoramic view point so we pulled over to take a photo and were greeted by four very inquisitive goats, with a magnificent leader with a large bell. Steve shook his keys and they all rushed to see what we had for them. Once we got past the goats the view was again breath-taking. The road descended for a while then climbed again towards the Bosnian boarder. We got our exit stamp in our passports after waiting for a coach driver to clear about 50 passports for his passengers then  the Bosnian one and only one gate open and a another coach in front of us. Steve couldn’t raise a smile from this one but again we had to hand over our green card to be checked through the computer. We gained a lot of patience for boarder crossings from our trips to Morocco  so just waited our turn patiently. There was again a very twisty decent then levelled out to pass through a fairly large town not even shown on our map then TomTom took us out into the country again to avoid going through Dubrovnik but got a good view of the suspension bridge which cuts off a large detour round the estuary.
Moving north we soon turned left off the trusty No8 road towards Stom on the Peljesac peninsular, heading the 58 km to Loviste at the very end. just before Orebic the road climbed up and down the cliffs and became distinctly narrower at some points too  narrow for us and the occasional coach heading towards us. At one point we past through an area where there had recently been a very intense forest fire on both sides of the road engulfing most of the mountain. quite poignant  for us after the recent forest fires near us. We stopped at a magnificent memorial structure with a view point. It was in memory of those inhabitants lost in the second world war not the recent conflict. We reached Loviste at about 5:45 but couldn’t find the restaurant our friends said they stayed at but there was a very nice looking ACSI recommended site 16Eurper night, so we booked in perhaps to stay for a few days.
Stopped at 17:45 - 93928 – 285 km today – Camp Lupis – 43.02827, 17.02978

Croatia Trip 2015

Sorry the pictures in the last post didn't imbed how I would have liked them to have done in the email, but if you click on the link it will shaw the picture. And if you go to the blog online www.TheOldAgeTravellers.blogspot.com you can click on the picture in the right column and it will take you to our online album where we will upload our pictures as we get time to do so.
Steve

Croatia Trip September 2015 Post 4

First off I must apologise for the missed words and typos in post 3, check as I may it is never till the next day that I see my errors. I will correct them in the main blog page.

Day 13 Monday 21/09/2015 - Still 93,438 on Speedo

We woke early to get to the bus stop which was just outside the camp site. A very friendly lady who could speak a little English explained to the driver where we wanted to go, pointed out a few things on the way, like the enormous yacht in the bay which was owned by Mr Abramovich. She then told us and all the other tourists on the bus where to get of and the direction down the hill to walk to the Old Town'. We intended to take the morning walking tour so had about an hour to wait so had a coffee and stroll while waiting for our guide. The walking tour was very good, quite heavy on history and the war which was interesting because we knew very little about it so it was good to get the personal perspective of our young guide who was only two at the time, she got quite emotional while telling us. The tour finished at the port so a beer and sandwich seemed appropriate before we tackled the "Wall" a completely intact perimeter walkway high up round the city, a mile long with very many steps, but our guide had advised us to start at the port end so all the steps up were done at the

beginning which was good advice. Looking across the rooftops you could see all the new tiles on the roofs which showed the very many houses which were bombed.
It was a nice thing to do and an interesting view of the old city but a bit strenuous. After we finished the walk an even bigger beer was called for.

Yesterday Steve's brother had sent an email advising us to stay for the evening because the streets glistened. So we walked around a bit more then found a restaurant for a meal which took us till it got dark. He was right the marble streets polished by millions of feet over the years just shone like polished silver.

We had enquired earlier as to where to catch our bus back to the camp site and were told we had to go to the bus station and read that it was a just a ten minute walk, well, 45 minutes later we just caught the bus as it had a few passengers to load it then drove right back where we had come from, doh.... So a very good 14 hour day, Judy was fine after all the walking, we just need to get her appetite up.

Day 14 Tuesday 22/09/2015 - Still 93,438 on Speedo

Had a lazy day today just resting with a short walk to the local shop then we booked a boat trip to the three islands for Wednesday. At about 4 pm a GB van pulled in and we got talking and it turned out we both belonged to the same very friendly Funsters club MotorHomeFun.co.uk we drank their bottle of wine then drank our bottle of wine and had a good evening chatting over our different travels. 

Day 15 Wednesday 23/09/2015 - Still 93,438 on Speedo

The boat was to pick us up at 10:30 from the little harbour which was down a very steep hill from the campsite. It actually arrived at 10:45 as soon as we boarded and were underway the Captain broke out the drinks and tried very hard to get us to try the local brandy at 11am we declined and had a soft drink. The boat visited the three islands with quite a bit of free time to explore each. Lunch of delicious grilled fish or chicken was served with copious amounts of very good local wine or brandy if you dared. Arriving back at our little harbour at about 7pm. Their was a little Pizza restaurant there so we shared a pizza and salad before the walk up the very steep hill to then just collapse into bed. What a great day.

Day 16 Thursday 24/09/2015 - Still 93,438 on Speedo

After looking at the maps and reading the Meteo which predicted storms today we decided to move on and head for Montenegro which because we have French insurance we are covered for which the English vans were not and talking to Rory the Brit we had met the night before, they weren't covered for the 30k trip through Bosnia either. Shows how narrow minded the UK insurers are. We are covered for all countries bordering the Med just to be sure we raked out our Green card and sure enough a very long list af countries where we have full cover including breakdown and recovery.

We slowly packed up paid at the office and left about 12noon. Just as we were emptying our waste tank the heavens opened and it got harder and harder. Driving along our wipers just couldn't cope with the amount of rain, then because we had got wet just before we left the screen started to steam up and the demister couldn't cope. We were driving trying to wipe the screen which is three feet in front of us with a long handled squeegee. The road was hugging the cliff as usual so there was just nowhere to stop. Not knowing what the cost of fuel was in Montenegro we stopped at the last station in Croatia, who also had an air line which could cope with our rear tires at 80psi

Because the air temperature had gone down significantly since we left home our new Tyre Pressure alarm on the dash was screaming at us that the rear tire pressures were too low.

That all done we soon arrived at the boarder and were just nodded out of Croatia then joined the queue for entry to Montenegro. Steve greeted the grumpy customs man with a cheery "Hello" and actually got a reluctant "hello" back. Then he asked for our vehicle documents which luckily Judy had retrieved from our safe while in the queue. He checked our green card very carefully then stamped our passports and we were on our way.

We found a nice camper spot by about 4:30 with a very friendly man at reception who lent us a map and guide book of Montenegro so we could spend the ev Ning planning what we were going to do here then after a short walk to the local shop settled down for dinner and planning our stay to the accompaniment of thunder and lightning and continious rain on the roof. But the meteo says sunshine tomorrow, we hope.

Stopped at 16;30 - 93519 - only 81km today - Autokamp Naluka - 42.48703N, 18.65153E

Croatia Trip September 2015 Post 3

Sorry over a week between posts, Steve has been a bit preoccupied by Judy being ill again and not very good wifi when he has the chance to do the blog. Hope to get a few days and add some pictures in to the online blog page.

Day 6 Monday 14/09/2015 - 92,658 on Speedo

We left our camper stop but there was nobody in the office to pay and the barriers were up so presumably there is no charge out of season, so no complications with not having any Croatian money.

We had a very nice drive basically round the coast which went from flat to very hilly, but really nice views. From just south of Trieste at Umag  to Senj about 50 miles south of Rijeka. We stopped at a Camper Stop again from our database of places to stop. This was an organised business with marked out pitches which only left about 4ft between vehicles, a bit tight for our liking. The cost was 120 kuna a night about 16 euros with all facilities including good WiFi. Please excuse all the prices I am mentioning, it is for our Motorhome friends who will be reading this to take note if they come this way. The site only takes cash but the reception directed us to a nearby cash machine so the problem of not having any local currency is now solved. The only places we had seen cash machines, we were in traffic and unable to stop and didn't know the exchange rate to know how much to withdraw. Basically 7.5 kuna to the euro or roughly 10 to the pound. September 2015. As Croatia was in Europe I had naively thought they were in the Euro. ( note to self, check currency).  We had a nice stroll around the town which had a few resteraunt's and quite a nice feel about it.

Stopped at 18:00 - 92934 - 276km today - Autokamp Skver - 44.99376N, 14.90006E

Day 7 Tuesday 15/09/2015 - 92,934 on Speedo

Judy hadn't been feeling too good since brunch yesterday of a bacon sarnie she thinks that perhaps the home made brought from home may have started to go mouldy and perhaps after the Moroccan illness which we think was caused from nuts that may have started to get mildew, she may be a bit susceptible to mold. So we had a slow start, emptied down and filled up and left about ten straight to a petrol station across the road as the fuel light had come on just before we stopped last night. The fuel was slightly dearer than France but cheaper than the UK and definitely cheaper than Italy. Steve checked first that they took credit cards as there was no sign up.

It was a really nice drive today up and down the cliff edge road still basically following the coast. We found a Lidl at about 16:30 so stopped to get milk etc and bought a selection of their beer to see which we liked. They had the usual one we buy in France but also a few we didn't know. Their prices were similar to France perhaps a little cheaper.

Half an hour later we saw a camper stop so pulled in, the price was similar to last night right on the water's edge. But, park where you like. No electricity but everything else including free wifi at the office.

After setting up and sitting with a beer to get the last rays of sun we took a stroll and found a GB van, (Pete&lyn from MotorhomeFun) the first we had seen since Venice, had a good chat then back to the van for supper. Judy was feeling worse so had no supper.

Stopped at 18:00 - 93138 - 204km today - Kamp Kalebic - 43.84375N, 15.62022E

Day 8 Wednesday 16/09/2015

Judy was bad in the night, hopefully not a repeat of Marocco last year! So we decided to stay put to see if she can shake it off with sleep today. 

We couldn't pick up the wifi from the office with our special ariel so moved the van a bit closer so as not to have to stand outside the office to send or receive emails.

Day 9 Thursday 17/09/2015

Judy was slowly recovering so just stayed put. It was a nice spot but the Solar Panels which Steve wants to replace are obviously failing as they are only supplying about three amps in full sun. By the evening Judy felt like a stroll so we had a walk to a nearby resteraunt but Judy certainly didn't fancy the grilled fish which is the local speciality but a definite improvement. 

Day 10 Friday 18/09/2015 - Still 93138 on Speedo.

Judy felt well enough to move on today, so Steve filled and emptied and we got on our way just a short hop along the coast to just beyond Split and a site Pete had told us about but when we got to where we thought it was it all seemed a bit too industrial so we moved on to another he said was good about 30km further on in Omis this one was massive but reasonable sized pitches and ACSI price €16 per night. Certainly not whaIt we usually like but we have been advised that the Police here do not like any WildCamping and fine offenders on the spot so until we get clarification on that then sites it has to be. This site is close to the town so we can stop for a few days for Judy to get her strength back. She actually managed to cook  dinner tonight but not eat too much but a definite improvement again.

Stopped at 16:00 - 93264 - 126 km today - Camping Galeb, Omis - 43.44067N 16.68028E

Day 11 Saturday 19/09/2015 - Still 93264 on Speedo.

Judy woke up feeling much stronger so we walked into the town which was about a half hour stroll. A nice clean town fairly touristy with loads of restaurants, shame Judy is still not up to eating out. after a bit of shopping we just had a lazy day in the sun reading, with the odd stroll round the site, then as we were preparing to go in for the evening it started raining. We had heard cars driving round the town all afternoon honking their horns so probably a wedding or weddings, then at about six all the churches in the town started ringing their bells one after the other till about 8 o'clock then a disco or band started probably for one of the weddings. Judy woke at 4am and it had just stopped about then. It didn't keep us awake but I bet it did many light sleepers.

Day 12 Sunday/09/2015 - Still 93264 on Speedo.

We woke to the sound of rain still on the roof which stopped about nine so we decided that it would be best to move on if it was to be showers all day which the Meteo said.

Steve chatted to an English couple who told him about a good site near Dubrovnik with a bus outside for a visit to the city where they said they did a really good walking tour.  So we finished packing up and paid and moved off the site at 11:15 to a nearby garage to fill up with gas and check the tyres. The gas only took just over 5ltr which was very good  since we had retuned from the UK in late June and filled up we had four days in Spain then the eleven days this time with only three nights on electric and the fridge on maximum to beat the hot weather. Plus cooking and using the heating for hot water for showers. Very pleased and surprised with that considering the amount we usually use in Morocco. The price was just 39pence Sterling probably the lowest price we have ever paid.

The drive along the coast was exhilarating with massive mountains dominating the left while we clung to the edge of the cliffs with just a tiny strip of habited land before the sea,  Suddenly though the land changed to a wetland plain dominated by a large river which came straight from the mountains which had now receded to about fifteen miles from the sea. The road turned inland to run beside the river with very many stalls selling oranges, honey, many different bottled  fruits and vegetables and strings of various colours of chillies. We stopped and bought some honey from one of the stalls.

We were soon backinto the mountains and then  the boarder between Croatia and Bosnia was there.  Croatia is split in two by a small strip if Bosnia which reaches to the sea. The boarder was no problem, just a cursory glance at one of our passports and waved through. We soon fount our campsite which was amongst trees with a very nice friendly man at reception who showed us various pitches to take our pick from, where we could catch the bus to Dubrovnik and gave us a timetable and map of the city.

Stopped at 16:30 - 93438 - 174 km today - Auto-Camp Pod Maslinom, Orasac - 42.69859N 18.00559E

Croatia Trip September 2015 Post 2

Day 3 Friday 11/09/2015 - 92206

Oh dear, yesterday evening Steve stood up possibly awkwardly and put his back out! After an uncomfortable night he took som Ibroprufen which usually works and was able to walk into town. Judy was royally spoilt and bought her three favourite perfumes  at about 60% discount to normal duty free prices enough we hope for another couple of years. 

We had. A good look round San Marino and found many places we had missed on our last visit. At the visitors information we connected with WiFi and managed to send our first couple of days blogs. Hope you found them ok. Unfortunately somebody has got "TheOld ageTraveller" which Google has indexed more than ours so hope you didn't get confused.

We got back to the van about three , packed up and left towards Rimini but remembered to fill up with fuel at the garage next to the Camper Stop, what a shock 1.28 euros a litre but that was actually the cheapest we saw later with some at 1.45 a litre for diesel.

On our way we stopped at a huge shopping centre on the boarder with Italy and had a look around. We actually bought a "Selfie Stick" so feel quite modern ready to take many pictures of us against any old background out of focus.

We had a very slow drive through the beach area of Rimini which is an upper class "Southend" but with probably ten thousand loungers and beach umbrellas. We didn't stop but motored on towards Venice.  It began to get dark so we stopped for a few minutes to consult Autoroute and found  a Motorhome Sosta about 3km away which is a free area set aside by the village for Motorhome Parking without any facilities.

So a quick supper with Sussex Bangers, beans and a glass of wine or two, heaven.

Stopped 19:45 Lat: 44.92338N  Lon: 12.23440E Free sosta, Motorhome Parking San Mesola.      Only 147km today

Day 4 Saturday 12/09/2015 - 92353

After a nice quiet night we set off for Venice, a slow difficult journey as the speed limits in Italy have been set very low. We have come across wide dual carriage ways away from houses with a 50kph limit. This journey went from 50 to 70 to 90 to 50 to 30 then back to 70 and repeated continuously. Any way we arrived onto the Venice causeway which we thought was a toll but wasn't then to the Motorhome parking which luckily had plenty of spaces arriving at 11:45 92436km. The cost was €21 for the first 12 hours then €16 per 12hours or part. Which made it €37 for the. First 24 hrs then €32 a day after that with electric hook-up included. We Paid €30 a day two years ago and had to pay to get to Venice on the water busses as well and it is an expensive city.

It was about a half hour walk to the main part of the city then we walked and walked all day exploring, we are both very happy to be back in Venice again, it is so romantic and has such a lovely feel about it. We had a very good glass of beer at an English type pub we found but €11 for just over a pint! We actually arrived back to the van having done 25,000 steps nearly 16km. A very nice day ending with a very nice romantic meal at one of the fish resteraunt's by candle light by the side of a canal, the one we intended to go to last time.  Then on the way back to the van we managed to buy some nice Morano ear rings to match the necklace Steve bought Judy for our Ruby wedding Anniversary two years ago. While at the pub we managed to connect to WiFi and book a free walking tour, which we did last time and really enjoyed so are looking forward to doing that again because we are sure we missed many things.

Day 5 Sunday 12/09/2015- 92436km same

A slow start then on to meet our guide for the morning at 10:45. Francesca the guide we had last time arrived with a young chap Ricardo who was to be our guide today. The tour started the same in the three Jewish Getto's then the Gondola ride across the Grand Canal then into the depths of the tiny streets one of which was less than half a meter wide. We had a great free tour and he deserved all the tips he received which was from everyone we could see. The tour finished at 2:30 and we arrived back at the van with time to refill the water and set off by about 4:30. We found a Camper Stop just short of Trieste in our database and headed for it via the Autostrada, couldn't bear another 100km up and down the speed limits. About 130 km turned out to be just over €11 so worth it to reduce the strain of driving. We also found a Motorhome Dump on a services to dump our loo and grey water so ok for another five days wild camping if necessary. The parking place was nice just beside the sea but we realised that we would have to negotiate Trieste during the morning rush hour so after a cuppa and a stroll we set off for  another camper stop in our database in Slovenia. Which again was very nice but required fifteen Euros in coins in a machine which we didn't have, must remember to get a stash of coins just in case, so set off again. To another camper stop just inside Croatia. We drove into Slovenia with no trouble but met passport control on the boarder going out. We found our camper spot which was quite luxurious but no payment machine probably pay at the office in the morning. We then realised that Croatia does not use the Euro so possibly more complications in the morning. Any way we are stopped a little later than we would have liked at about 22:00 - 92658km on the. Speedo - Umag - 45.44954N, 13.52080E

Croatia Trip September 2015

Day 1 Wednesday 09/09/2015 - 91,102km

Hi, if you are subscribed to this blog or have stumbled upon it, we are the OldAgeTravellers, Steve & Judy. We started writing it as our own diary to remember our travels then many friends said "email us to let us know where you are" and we realised we would be spending our whole time sending emails so TheOldAgeTravellers.blogspot.com blog was born

We finally left home at 10:00, 91,102km. After a stop for some wine at Pepieux Cave we were on our way. A couple of days late leaving because of jobs on the van running over a bit and quite a bit of paperwork to finish off for the business. But hey-ho there was a bonus, Steve had ordered a new GPS dongle for our moving map on the dashboard as the old one would not work on the new Windows-10. It arrived in the post early afternoon on Tuesday so good time to set it up and finish off the last few letters before bed. We would have really missed our moving Autoroute map which we run on an old eeePC with solid state drives so no damage with the bumps. The computer sits on our massive front shelf against the windscreen and the map records a trace of our route and also gives an idea of our general route and position saving Judy having to have her head in the map and missing the scenery and gives her a chance to take photo's as we go albeit many of her knees as we hit the bumps!  It also has a very accurate speedo so she can say if Steve misses a speed limit sign.

Today is a motoring day to get us on or way towards Croatia, however we want to make a stop at Venice as there were some places we missed last time especially a resteraunt pointed out to us on a free walking tour we did which was mentioned again on a recent Rick Stein program. Also Judy is nearly out of her favourite perfumes which we bought at a very cheap price in San Marino so a stop there even though about a hundred miles out of our way is essential!!!

We did pass through some beautiful scenery today, we skirted the Comargue which is beautiful and well worth another visit, and the Grand Motte which is an enormous lake and we drive along a very narrow spit of land with water each side which we first see on our moving map. 

After Avignon which we have visited before but would be worth another visit, perhaps on the way back. We start to see the Rhone Alps in the distance then spend half the journey driving on good roads with incredible scenery all around us with magnificent mountain views, especially in the late afternoon when the sunlight is highlighting them beautifully.

After Gap where our TomTom tried to take us down a narrow shopping street which we just noticed in time but got shouted at by an impatient French man because we sort of cut in front of him, we found a nice picnic spot to stay the night.

We spent a bit of time on Autoroute and see we are not too far from Italy and it looks worth taking the Motorway to San Marino tomorrow as it will save about 100 miles travelling so probably cost effective on fuel.

Stopped 19:30 Lat: 44.52976  Lon: 6.333236 Near Lake Serre-Poncon.  466km

Day 2 Thursday 10/09/2015 - 91,568

We left our nice parking place at 08:15 as workmen had just arrived with a lorry full of tar to fix the potholes. As we drove round the lake we saw there were many more picnic spots most of the others with a beautiful view of the lake. Never mind we had a good night but worth remembering not to pick the first one if we come again. The Alps around us were getting bigger and the buildings more alpine looking. There were many signs for walking, biking, canoeing and skiing so obviously an all year resort.

The road got very twisty as we climbed over the mountains to the Italian border with spectacular views. Then after a very long tunnel we were in Italy and on to the Autostrada where we would stay for the next 560km. For the first hour we had to stop and pay a set toll many times then we were presented with a ticket which turned out to be the only one till we exited at Rimini. The first four tolls for the tunnels I presume was 16.60 euros then the next 500 km cost 33.90 for about 500km of driving, not bad compared to France considering the driving time saved and probably fuel saved.

Arriving at San Marino we drove right through the narrow streets of the tiny city, looking for the Camper Spot we had found last time. We found a pay one but couldn' figure out what the charge was but it was on a slope so wouldn' be very comfortable but just about a kilometre away we found where we were looking for exactly as before, still free for 48hours but no facilities which we don't need. We had obviously taken a different turning and come the other way round the town. Unfortunately while manoeuvring into the best level spot between the trees Steve caught the front of the van on a low wall, no real damage except scraping the gell coat off but the same wing as we hit on a rock in Morocco last visit. So another job for our great garage in Taffraoute next time we go to Marocco.

After a quick drink to get over the annoyance we walked fifteen minutes up the hill to the town and manages to buy a special San Marino postage stamp to post our Granddaughters Birthday card. Apart from a pizza resteraunt and an English Pub little was open so we headed back for a light supper then bed. Steve had a problem with our moving map refusing to save so spent an hour and found a way to get round it so happy that this great gadget would carry on working for us.

Stopped 19:30 Lat: 43.92177N  Lon: 12.45209E Free Aire de Camping Car, San Marino

 638km today

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.