Europe by campervan – Salty tales from Bali Hai on Sunday

On the way to Turkey in our “land yacht”

Our stay in the Netherlands was drawing to a close and we were busy getting ready to drive our “land yacht” (aka our camper van) back to Turkey.

Loaded up with enough food and other essentials to last us for at least a few weeks, we set off on a rainy, miserable day.

As usual, it was sad to farewell our daughter and son-in-law but as they were booked to fly to Turkey in just a few weeks for Christmas we didn’t feel as sad as usual. However, with Covid numbers rising and the threat of restrictions being reintroduced, it was by no means a done deal that they would arrive as planned.

Our first stop was Bremen in north-west Germany. We had ordered some new equipment for our boat from the sailing megastore SVB Bremen which we had expected to be delivered to the Netherlands. When the items didn’t turn up we called to find out why and were told they hadn’t been couriered because the store didn’t accept credit card payment from new customers. Would have been good if they could have told us beforehand!

So, having paid by bank draft, we once again eagerly waited delivery of the goods, hoping they would arrive before our departure date. But no, at the eleventh hour the store let us know that their bank had charged a fee when the transfer came through and they couldn’t release the goods until we had paid them the shortfall created by the charges.

By then it was too late for the goods to be couriered so we had to drive there to collect them. The irony was that because we picked the goods up, the bill was reduced and we were owed a refund!

Having finally picked up our boat bits with no further issues we looked for somewhere to stay the night. We thought it would be easy to find a spot but the camper van park in Bremen was packed to the rafters!

We squeezed into one of the last spaces with some difficulty as the ground was incredibly muddy and the space extremely small with bushes in front of it that we had to plough through to get into the space!

We just about managed to squeeze into the last available space!

The weather was still rainy and dull the following day but before setting off again we had a nice walk to the nearby River Weser which is the longest river to flow entirely in Germany.

All along the lane we walked along there were holiday homes – some reasonably large and others tiny but they were all very neatly kept and each one had a cute sign on their gate.

Our next stop was meant to be a nice looking farm site in Leipzig Nordost but when we arrived we quickly realised that the place was well and truly closed.

The camper stop at this farm was well and truly closed

The proprietor was busy splitting logs with a power saw and had ear muffs on. When he eventually realised we were there, he told us that the authorities had declared the whole area closed to tourists due to Covid. He advised us to drive to Halle where there were no such rules.

So we were back on the road again but before too long we were in Halle – birthplace of my Mum’s favourite composer – George Frideric Handel.

Fortunately we found a car park where we could free camp amongst circus vehicles, trucks and one other camper van.

We eventually found this car park close to the centre of Halle where we could stay

Halle has some truly magnificent buildings but we were shocked to see how much graffiti there was everywhere.

There were some truly magnificent
buildings in Halle

An antidote to all the graffiti- a dolls house sized milliner’s shop

Walking around the town we felt very moved to see on the exterior wall of the Cathedral, a memorial for the East German uprising of 1953 which was violently suppressed by tanks of the Soviet forces.

The memorial for the East German
uprising of 1953

After finding the “Handel Haus” where Handel was born in 1685, we found ourselves near the Domplatz (cathedral square) where a kind of Christmas market was set up in the grounds of what was once a monastery. Because of Covid there was nothing actually on sale but there were plenty of Christmas trees, baubles and other festive decorations in little huts. Each hut was decorated differently – we weren’t sure if it was a competition or just different interpretations of Christmas decorating but it was fun to experience a bit of pre-Christmas festivity.

The house where Handel was born,
now a museum

The ancient monastery where we found a Christmas market

One of the little huts at the Christmas fair

We weren’t sure if it was a competition for the best decorations or just self expression!

A couple of hours drive out of Halle we arrived at the border of the Czech Republic. As soon as we crossed the border we saw snow! Great big piles of it by the roadside and all the trees were sparkling in the weak sunshine. It looked very Christmassy!

We stopped to buy our motorway “vignette” just over the border and were hoping to fill up with water but the promised taps were switched off because of the extreme cold (to prevent burst pipes.)

We weren’t too worried as we were still had enough left for that day and we were bound to find somewhere to fill up again in Prague where we were heading next.

Alas! Absolutely all the camping places in and around Prague that we had picked as potential spots to spend the night were closed. We ended up parking near the Zoo car park (not actually in it as there was a police car parked in there).

We were underneath a steep hill with what looked like a lonely monastery on top and close by a very austere and creepy house was the only sign of habitation.

The lonely monastery on top of the
hill in Prague

Our only neighbour – an austere and creepy house!

We had a lovely walk along the banks of the Vltava River

There was quite a lot of snow in the ground!

The great thing about a van is you can pull all the blinds down and you could be anywhere! Once you sit down to a good meal in the cosy and warm atmosphere you can forget the world outside.

Once you pull the blinds down you could be anywhere in the world!

We drove through the outskirts of Prague the following morning and the impressive buildings we passed gave us a hint of what a glorious city it is. We will definitely be back!

The impressive buildings we went by gave us a hint of what a glorious city it is

More gracious buildings in Prague’s outskirts

We still hadn’t filled up with water. This was a worry as we were almost running out of the most essential of resources.

A very wintery view in the Czech Republic

Jonathan turned to the Internet to research for a solution. One of the very helpful websites for people travelling in a van mentioned a tap in a village just over the border in Austria.

A few hours later we were at a very small border crossing and were stopped by a very forlorn and extremely cold soldier who asked us our purpose for visiting Austria.

Bearing in mind that Austria was in complete lockdown, we were a little anxious that we might get turned round but when we told him we were looking to fill up with water he waved us through with as much cheer as could be mustered when standing in the freezing cold!

We found the small village of Wolfsthal quite easily, we even found the tap but sadly it was switched off!

The good news is that we found the tap. The bad news was that it was not working!

Our only option was to keep going to the nearest town – Hainburg an der Donau and hope we could find water there.

As we drove towards the town we were interested to see a massive castle perched on top of the hill. The original was built in the 11th Century AD and it was destroyed in 1683 by the Ottomans but rebuilt in 1709. We wished we could go and look round it but of course it was closed.

On top of the hill we could see
the massive castle

Hainburg an der Donau was a lovely town with a 13th Century gate – the largest existing medieval gate in Europe. It also has a 2.5 km long town wall and a total of 15 towers!

The town also happened to have a small fuel station with a very friendly manager who kindly agreed to let us fill up with water much to our relief.

In the meantime, the local post office van nipped in front of us and blocked access to the tap. We had to wait for ages while the post woman sorted out the post she had collected at the garage.

Waiting for the post woman
to sort her mail collection.

By the time we had filled up it was getting quite dark and we set off in search of somewhere to stay the night.

By the time we had filled up with water it’s beginning to get dark!

First we headed for the nearby river, thinking there would be a car park or somewhere else suitable there.

We ended up travelling along a very narrow lane through a deserted area of farmland. It didn’t seem to promising so we headed for a sports centre – a good option that we have used in the past when we have had no luck finding somewhere to stop.

We ended up travelling along a very narrow lane which did not look promising

This one was by a pretty pond and was surrounded by fields so we had a very peaceful and quiet sleep before heading onwards towards Turkey.

Our parking spot at the sporting centre was next to a pretty pond

Heading south and SNOW!

After a night of absolutely torrential rain we left Amboise, and headed out of the Loire châteaux and river country towards the South of France.

Perched high up in our van we have a wonderful position to view the countryside as we drive along. This is perfect for us as we prefer to take the “scenic route” every time rather than the faster toll roads.

There was plenty of beautiful scenery on this leg of the trip but the constant rain over the previous week (and probably during the weeks before that) had created extensive flooding. Large ponds had developed in the fields by the side of the road and every small stream and river had burst its banks.

Along the way we went through a number of charming villages and once again, as during our previous visit in 2019, we were struck by how deserted most of them were. You could have shot a 12-pound cannon ball up the main street of each of them and no one would have stirred. It seems very sad that so many of these lovely French villages are in such dire circumstances.

The villages we drive through seemed deserted

It was sad to see lovely villages in such dire circumstances

We arrived at our stop for the night in the very romantic location of the supermarket car park at Ainay-Le-Château in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of central France.

The reason for our stop here was the large commercial washing machine in the supermarket car park which allowed us to catch up with our laundry without having to visit a normal laundrette. It was also a good opportunity to restock our pantry and fridge.

At least the “chariots” were disinfected!

We were surprised to find that there was no Château at Ainay-Le-Château! However, there were some remains of 15th Century fortifications including the Clock Gate below.

We had been driving about an hour and a half, the following day, when we caught a lovely view of the snow-covered alps glimmering on the horizon. As far as I was concerned that was as close to snow as I wanted to be!

The snow-covered alps sparkling in the distance

We had no snow chains, no snow tyres (although the ones we had recently bought were described as “all weather tyres”) and no spade. Apparently these are the minimum (legal) requirements for winter motoring in the Alps!

I had said before we started our trip to France “No Snow!” but less than two hours after that distant glimpse we started to see a covering of snow on the fields we drove past.

Not very long after that were in the middle of a snow storm!

The visibility was quite poor and the road started get rather slippery – just as we started to wind our way upwards on a series of alarming hair pin bends!

This was a bit of a worry to say the least but with great care and carefully ever upwards we managed to stay on the road it was great to see families sledging down snowy hills and having fun making snowmen.

It was great to see families enjoying the snow

We climbed higher and higher and it got snowier and snowier! Eventually we arrived at the small medieval village of Murol at an elevation of well over 1,000 metres!

As we drove up towards the village we caught site of a mighty looking 12th century fortress perched on a basalt outcrop. It looked very forbidding but apparently in non-Covid times it is a charming castle to visit.

The forbidding 12th Century fort in Murol

Driving gingerly we arrived at the supposed location of our site for the night but it was nowhere to be found! We drove further along the snowy road but no camp site was evident so we retraced our steps. We then drove round the small town, still with no luck.

Eventually we gave up. We would have to stay the night in the car park! We counted our blessings that we didn’t need to plug in to get power due to our new and excellent lithium battery. We also had enough water so all was well.

The car park where we were to spend the night

The only concern we had as we settled down to a glass of wine was whether we would be snowbound the following day!

Settling down for a glass of wine – hoping not to be snowbound the following day

During the night it did indeed snow but the fall wasn’t too severe and the roads weren’t too bad – fortunately a snowplough had cleared some of our route.

There was fresh snow the next day but it wasn’t too thick

As we worked our way downwards the snow disappeared and we breathed a sigh of relief!

Luckily the snow ploughs had been at work

….and disappeared completely for a while

It wasn’t long however, before we were driving past fields of white again but as we approached our destination – the historic settlement of Sainte-Eulalie de Cernon – it disappeared once again although it was freezing cold!

The snow looked beautiful on these fir trees

The roads were pretty clear so we could just enjoy the snowy views

Despite the chilly temperature we decided to explore the historic centre which is famous for the Commandery of Saint Eulalia – a medieval “hospital” established by the Order of the Knights Templar.

This time the camper van park was easy to find

The picturesque village of Sainte-Eulalie de Cernon

This was built in the 12th Century to provide hospitality to travellers and pilgrims.

…. it provided hospitality for pilgrims and travellers

The village is really tiny and was absolutely deserted that evening.

It was great wandering the ancient lanes and alleyways

Unfortunately nothing was open but it was still very interesting to walk around the ancient lanes and alleyways and imagine how things might have been in the time of the Knights Templar.

It was a pity that nothing was open. It would have been great to try this restaurant!

We intrigued to see the trees wrapped in crocheted blankets

Lucky trees, they were probably warmer than us!

Seeing the village while it was so quiet meant we could easily imagine how things might have been in the time of the Knights Templar

The inexplicable mystique of Delphi

With the successful survey under our belts on Sunday, the catamaran we planned to buy in Athens, Greece, we decided to take a little break.

We headed for the ancient archeological site of Delphi, the Greek religious sanctuary sacred to the God Apollo (the god of light, knowledge and harmony), on Mt. Parnassus near the Gulf of Corinth.

How many miles had this poor man walked to paint the lines on the road?

My memories of Greek myths and legends was that this is was home to the mysterious oracle of Apollo which was famed throughout the Greek world for giving cryptic predictions to city-states and individuals about important decisions on battles, political situations etc. I was looking forward to seeing the place that I had heard so much about as a school student.

Once we had got out of the Athens traffic, we had a beautiful drive through a deep and fertile valley (the Kopais Plain) where to our surprise the main crop appeared to be cotton. We later learnt that Greece is the EU’s main cotton grower accounting for more than an incredible 80 per cent of total European production.

We saw many, many, small fields growing cotton

There was loads of fluffy cotton balls at the roadside

We stopped for lunch in Aliartos , a small farming community, opposite a cave with what turned out to be a Medieval tower perched above it. At the back of the cave we could see the start of a “secret” passage which looked like it connected to the tower – maybe an escape route if the tower was attacked?

The outside of the cave with the tower above

We couldn’t find out much about this cave but we could definitely see signs of a passage to the tower above

Soon after lunch we started to climb up the southern slopes of Mount Parnassus, and before too long reached Delphi.

Climbing up the slopes of Mount Parnassus

A common site in Greece – sheep at the side of the road

The views were incredible!

To reach Delphi Camping where we hoped to stay, we had to drive on a road with the most hair-raising hairpin bends but the spine tingling trip was so worth it.

An incredible reward after all those hair raising hairpin bends

We arrived in the early evening and there was good news and bad news. The good news that it was open. The bad news was that it was closing for the Winter the very next day.

Such a shame as it was a fantastic campsite with the most incredible views over a deep valley densely covered with hundreds of age-old olive trees and onwards to the sparking waters of the Gulf of Corinth.

There were hundreds if not thousands of olive trees as far as the eye could see the in the valley below

The owners of the site were fantastically hospitable and after we had checked in presented us with a small sample tray of olives, tapenade, olive oil – all products from their own trees – and small nuggets of delicious cornbread

This was such a nice touch and very welcome after the drive up the mountain

They were so delicious that of course I had to go and buy several bottles of olives, a huge can of beautiful olive oil and some bottles of tapenade too.

So many tempting goodies (as long as you like olives) in the campsite shop

We really felt that we were in paradise in this beautiful spot. It was very high up so the air was sweet and clear, even the gentlest breeze generated a beautiful swooshing noise as the cypress tree branches moved above us.

The beautiful pine trees made a lovely swooshing noise – sounded a bit like the ocean

After a peaceful sleep we woke reasonably early to make the most of the day. We wanted to walk right round the ancient site of Delphi as well as spend a decent amount of time at the museum. Then of course there was lunch to fit in.

View from the road as we drove to the Delphi archeological site

We were looking for a place to park in the village of Delphi and was flagged down by a middle aged man who asked if he could help. We explained we needed a carpark for our plus-size vehicle but had found the most likely spot said “no camper vans” at the entrance. “No problem, “ he said “You can go back there, it’s OK. I’m the mayor of Delphi so it’s OK”!

So we parked up and walked through the village of Delphi towards the ancient site but first, following the example of our good friends on S/V Yantara, stopped for “an early lunch” at a very pleasant taverna with wonderful views.

After a typical Greek meal of a beautiful salad with great lumps of feta and juicy olives on top, moussaka, chicken souvlakia and a sticky and very sweet dessert, we walked the couple of kilometres to the ancient site of Delphi.

For the next few hours we climbed higher and higher, marvelling at the Temple of Apollo and other temples such as the one dedicated to Athena and around 20 treasuries which were constructed to house the votive offerings and dedications from city-states all over Greece.

A replica omphalus which marked the centre of the universe

More temples and the remains of some of the treasuries in the background

Incredibly many tablets inscribed in Ancient Greek still survive and have been transcribed to give a wealth of information on the history, religion and social life of the people of Delphi

This serpentine column once held a pure gold tripod dedicated to Apollo following the Greek victory over the Persians in 479 BC

Doric columns from a large stoa – a votive of King Attalus

There was also a spectacular amphitheatre (capable of seating an audience of 5,000) and at the very top of the steep site, a sporting stadium that could seat 6,500 spectators.

Another shot of the amphitheatre from up high

This stadium was where every four years, starting in 586 BC, athletes from all over the Greek world competed in the Pythian Games, one of the four Panhellenic Games, precursors of the Modern Olympics.

Visiting Delphi was an awe inspiring experience

We were absolutely enthralled by Delphi but more than that, we both felt that it had an inexplicable mystique, something awe inspiring and profound.

No wonder the Ancient Greeks considered Delphi as the centre of the universe

No wonder the ancient Greeksconsidered Delphi to be the centre of the world. We could definitely feel the strange and compelling charm that would lead people to believe that.

What a miraculous find. This silver bull was cast in the 6th Century BC

The nearby museum was excellently laid out with many fascinating displays. One of the exhibits that really affected me was a stunning statue of a bull forged from three silver sheets connected by bands of silver-plated copper. This was made in the 6th Century BC.

The statue was so life-like and captured the amazing strength and movement of a real bull.

Emperor Hadrian’s “beloved companion” who died tragically

I was also fascinated by the statue of Antinoos who was Emperor Hadrian’s “beloved companion”. We had learnt about him when we had visited Hadrian’s Wall on the way to Scotland so it was interesting to see an image of this “youth of extraordinary beauty”.

Another treasure was a statue of a charioteer – cast in bronze in 470 BC and erected in honour of the winner of the chariot race at the Pythian Games held in Delphi.

The sculpture would have originally consisted of a chariot and horses but when the piece was rediscovered in excavations in 1896, only the driver and a few fragments survived. How aristocratic and noble he looks!

The bronze cast in 470 BC and erected in honour of the winner of the chariot race at the Pythian Games

This is how the original statue would have looked

A model of Delphi when it was all intact

A copy of the original omphalus which marked the centre of the universe

The views from Delphi across the the coastal plain to the south and the valley of Phocis were sensational and as we walked back to the van we were lucky enough to see this amazing vista in the last of the sunlight, the magnificent mountain slopes were bathed in marvellous reds and oranges. Such a glorious sight.

Because the camping site was closed we had no choice but to free camp but we found the perfect spot just a few minutes away with the same commanding views.

Highland hospitality

From Loch Ness we drove to the small but picturesque village of Garve, situated on the River Blackwater – a perfect spot for exploring the Scottish Highlands.

We were very fortunate to be invited to park our van in the grounds of the beautiful home (a converted and beautifully modernised croft) of friends John and Vera. Very generous on their part as we had only met John for the first time reasonably recently when he was visiting brother Bruce in Brisbane and hadn’t – until our visit to Garve – ever met Vera. Despite this, we received genuine Highland hospitality and thoroughly enjoyed a lovely home cooked meal on our arrival.

We were made to feel very welcome

The hospitality continued the following day when John drove us and acted as tour guide on a spectacular road trip around some of the “must sees” of the Highlands.

On the road for our Highland tour

Our lunch destination was on the Applecross Peninsula an extremely isolated spot that was only accessible by boat until the early 20th century.

A beautiful view with Loch Maree in the distance

Fortunately for us the settlement of Shore Street, lying on the small Applecross Bay, is now accessible via a winding coast road that would have been a nightmare for us in the camper van so we were very grateful to be chauffeured in a very comfortable car by someone familiar with the tricky terrain!

Our first stop en route was to take in the fabulously dramatic view of Loch Maree – surely one of the most scenically attractive areas of Scotland. Queen Victoria thought so anyway, and after her visit in 1877 (and remarked in her diary “hardly anyone ever comes here”) flocks of people followed in her footsteps.

Queen Victoria was quite rightly most impressed by this vista

At each turn there were even more amazing vistas, including of Liathach (meaning ‘The grey one’) a mountain of 3,461 feet (1,055 m) which when seen from the roadside below appears to rise up in a series of near vertical rocky terraces.

We saw so many stunning views

Liathach, when seen from the roadside below appears to rise up in a series of near vertical rocky terraces.

The small hamlet of Arinna on the Applecross Peninsula

After all that dramatic scenery we had worked up an appetite and were more than ready for lunch at the legendary Applecross Inn.

The Applecross Inn (stock footage)

Plenty of choice for lunch at the Applecross Inn

If we were happy to have left the campervan back at our hosts’ house on the way to Applecross we were thrilled and relieved not to be negotiating the notoriously treacherous Bealach na Ba (Pass of the Cattle), which crosses the peninsula and reaches the height of 626 metres (2,054 feet).

The notoriously treacherous Bealach na Ba (Pass of the Cattle)

Thank goodness we weren’t driving the campervan!

On the other side of the spectacular pass we drove through the gorgeous village of Plockton which because of its spectacular setting and traditional Highland atmosphere has been featured in numerous TV series and films, most famously in the TV police drama Hamish MacBeth.

Gorgeous Plockton (not my own photo I’m afraid!)

We stopped at another sweet little village called Duirinish where we saw a small herd of shaggy, hairy and very endearing Highland cattle grazing on luscious green grass on public land (with no fences!) in the middle of the village. A frenzy of photo taking later we were were on our way back to Garve for an excellent barbecue.

The shaggy, hairy and very endearing Highland cattle of Duirinish

The following day our tour continued with a visit to Strathpeffer – a spa town (the sulphurous springs were discovered in the 1770s) developed in early Victorian times but only reaching the height of its popularity after 1885 when the railway arrived (it is said after pressure was excerted by Queen Victoria). A junction on the main line to Kyle of Lochalsh near Dingwall was built which spurred on development and Strathpeffer reached its height as a spa in the years immediately before World War One.

The gracious Coul House Hotel in Strathpeffer

Beautiful interiors

The Highland Hotel was built on a grand scale in 1896 and still retains many of its original features

There are many grand Victorian houses in Strathpeffer

The Strathpeffer line is now closed but the station has been restored beautifully and now houses a small museum and a very nice cafe where we had a delicious coffee and cake.

The station at Strathpeffer has been beautifully restored

There is now a very nice cafe at the old Strathpeffer station

In the afternoon we went for a lovely walk around the Silverbridge circuit which is very close to where we were staying.

The Silverbridge circuit is a wonderful walk

The circuit took us through very pretty woodland bordered by a glorious foaming river with peaty pools and gushing rapids and across two old stone bridges.

The Garve bridge was built in 1767 supervised by Major William Caulfeild of the British Army who was inspector of roads for Scotland. Apparently this was built to allow government troops to move around the Highlands after the Battle of Culloden.

The Silver Bridge was a little younger – built in the early 19th Century to provide drovers and others heading south with their goods, an easier route to travel south.

We managed to get ourselves gloriously lost on our way back “home” but the countryside was so lovely and the air so sweet that we were very content to keep walking until we found our way back again.

Our highland adventure was completed with a visit to the village of Ullapool for dinner at the Arch Inn. This lovely little port on Loch Broom has a population of around 1,500 but despite its small size it is the largest settlement for many miles around, and an important port and tourist destination.