To shop or not to shop?

Meet Christian and Heidi from Denmark.A careful study of the photograph will provide the clue as to how we became neighbours. Yes you've got it, we both drive Delfins.

The Burstner Delfin Club

 Over a bottle of wine ( have you noticed how the old vino is a great magnet for attracting we travellers to sit and chat ) on the banks the river at Charmes, in north east France, they recounted this tale. Needing to stock up on supplies, they stopped at a supermarket in Naples. They locked the van and off they went. They hadn't been gone very long when they returned to find an empty space where once a £ 30,000 camper had stood. Well we have heard about break-ins but rarely is the whole rig stolen. They lost passports, money, vehicle documents, in fact they stood open-mouthed, a shopping bag in each hand, with nothing but the clothes they were wearing!!
I have to say that it made us think about our own vulnerability and security. Wonder if we should get a dog? Or a bloke??

Those with whom we have wined and dined .

Here are a few of the friendly, fellow travellers with whom we have broken bread and drunk wine, often far too much. Hey who cares, we aren't driving home, we just flop into bed wherever we are parked.



John and Linda from Bulgaria

Margery and Len from the Netherlands

Cindy and Joel from Florida USA

And finally, Bob and Mo Jarrett from York. Congratulations on the new van, Wilby 2.

Our Tardis Part 2

Here is the rest of the accommodation.

When you go through the door at the rear, you enter a bathroom which is the width of the van.

  There are overhead lockers, cupboards and sliding shelves.Every inch of the habitation area has been put to good use for stowing our gear.

As you can see, there is a shower, large wash basin and of course our flushing loo or dunny or toilet or john, depending on where you are living and therefore what you call it, when you read this post.

The manufacturers have packed a great deal into a small space without leaving us with a feeling of claustrophobia. Well done Burstner!!

Our Tardis Part 1

Delfin is parked at home until it's time to head south for Dover. It's a bit of a squeeze getting her  between the side of the house and Mark's garage next door, and when combined with reversing her down the slope from the road, well it makes the whole experience a bit hairy,even though the manoeuvre has been done  so often

You are about to enter our Tardis, Those of you who may be wondering how we manage  to enjoy ourselves in a  seven and a half metre tin box, may well be suprised by what you are about to see. Ok, up the step now for those of us with short legs.

and here you are in the dining room. There is seating for 4 if the  driving cab swivel seats are turned to face the table.

See what I mean? Ok  that's the front half, so now let's turn left  and the rest will be revealed.

The kitchen with 3 burner gas stove and of course, the sink. Opposite there is a fridge- freezer and a combined grill / oven. See the remainder of our posh home on wheels in Part 2

In 2010 and 2012 we drove to Greece.

Island scenery. Check out that road we  drove down.

We had 2 amazing trips to Greece, and  from the mainland, we sailed to the Island of Kefalonia to visit Sue's brother,David, who lives there with his partner Ellen. We parked by the harbour for a month for free,and Panae from the taverna gave us water. In return, when we could afford to, we ate at his wonderful restaurant.The small community of Anos Katelios made us very welcome. Our electric bikes were a source of conversation as we pottered from bakery, to grocer, to ice-cream shop, spending our euros, almost as a way of paying for our parking. Holiday makers from the UK who were staying locally, were intrigued  to find a couple of senior ladies travelling alone.We sat there, wine glasses in hand, under the sun shade, with the BBQ stove on the go, doing "Motor Homer's Question Time"  and taking them on tours of   Delfin.

Argostoli, the main town on the island. 

If you look very closely you can see Delfin
in the distance

The harbour.....still not completed!

Fresh sea bream from Captain  Jerry's boat

Feel the heat , taste the grape!

Panagis the owner of a taverna who provided us with  water .

Ain't life grand!

The Camargue in Autumn

The wild, white horses of the Camargue are actually born grey.This one  isn't very wild because he eats apples and lives in the stable that you can see in the corner of his field!!

Spices at the market in Stes. Maries-de-la-Mer, such a colourful site and their perfume assaulted your senses.In fact the whole area was an outdoor arena devoted to tantalising your taste buds. Olives, grapes, cheeses, bread and confectionary, hams, pickles , wine,  fresh fish , fruit and vegetables. Find me a cookery book!

Flamingoes were everywhere.On the "etangs"or salt lakes,their distinctive plumage could be seen as they waded in the shallow waters or as in the case of this one,paddled to take off. Once air born, they flocked together to create a pink cloud as they flew to a new feeding ground.

Bulls are also a popular attraction here. They have bull runs through the streets  and arenas can be found in many towns but thankfully it is bloodless bull fighting , involving the matadors tormenting the beast, then running and leaping over a wooden barrier to escape from it ,as the animal charges across the a arena

Sunsets are ethereal and awesome. On this particular evening, we felt humbled by the magnificene of the sight in the silence of our surroundings.

Camping on board

This is a most amazing experience. We decided to save wear and tear on Delfin and the driver, by taking a mini cruise down the length of the Adriatic for 2 days.We sailed from Venice to Patras,on mainland Greece and then took a smaller ferry to Kefalonia via a port called Kyllini, which is further south down the coast of the Pelopenese.

One gets to experience life aboard  a mini cruise ship without having to book a cabin because you  sleep in the van in your own bed. Furthermore, we could use all the amenities on the ship as well as  have an electric hook up for Delfin so that the fridge, lights and cooker could all function and the batteries were charged at the same time.  Best of all, if we wanted to use the restaurant, then we didn't have to get dressed for dinner.
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Our own special camping car deck where children can play, dogs are exercised and tables and chairs are set up for card games and wine tasting.

Pat and Angus from Derby....we  were a long way from home  but  shared time together on the voyage.

The coastline of Albania appears quite close. It looks rugged and barren. A German couple we met had driven through part of the country and said the roads are appalling. They took a whole day to cover 30 miles on one leg of their trip

Travellers brought their pets and these 2 chaps were grand guard dogs, but suckers for chocolate buttons.

St.Mark's Square  as we sailed out of  Venice.

The Doge's Palace and........

Room with a view

 

Where else? A few snaps of Italy

Lost in Venice and the map is upside down.......calls herself a retired Geography teacher!!

Rialto Bridge

St, Marks Square, 

The Grand Canal 

A cheeky tart who only met one gentleman of Verona

Verona. The scaffolding in the bottom left is the seating being erected in the arena for a concert

Flying kites at Rosolina Mare. How they didn't get the lines tangled beats me.

Switzerland into Italy, for the third time in a the space of 5 minutes. Was it the road signs or the navigator? I just did as I was told but the atmosphere in the van was decidedly heated.

Italian Alps from Lake Maggiore

No one needs rescuing at Punta Sabbione today, but me thinks this is not a beach to use in summer. Can you picture the lines of brollies and loungers? Not our scene.

The entrance to our campsite.The water bus to Venice is outside the entrance, just a 20 minute  crossing and straight into St. Mark's Square. No hassle. No parking.

Lake Como  from a very narrow and winding road with a  precipitous  drop.The navigator was not a happy bunny 'cause it was on her side!