Saturday 29 November 2014

France to Spain

So we left my wonderful Taties and headed South.  Mama wanted to revisit Collioure so she made us stay in a dodgey old car park miles out of town and nearly killed us walking along the main road in the dark.  We woke up to smokey mountains and a beautiful drive along a winding coast by the side of a blue blue blue sea.  The air smells of smoke and pine. 


Collioure
 All of a sudden, Daddy says we are in Espagne and the sun starts to shine.  The No funs find a lovely campsite called El Pins at Mgrat la Mar.  There is no one there but it is right by the sea and full of cats and sunshine.  I actually go in the sea!  I was quite happy to stay here but the NFs move me on again.  They can't sit still.  Mama fidgets constantly.
Camping El Pins
 My feet disappear.
Espagne Per Favor
Daddy drives us through the centre of Barcelona.  I wake up to see a fabulous Gaudi statue.  I like it.  I like it a lot.  Almost as much as I like pinchos.  Oh I do like pinchos.  We stop at a site near Villanova which has a wood yard at the back.  All day long they are chopping wood and trucks are coming and going and it has a heated swimming pool.  I think it is heaven but Mama wants to leave.  What is wrong with her?
My pool
 She takes us to Peniscola because she likes the sound of it.  We find Camping El Eden there.  It's a bit like a busy car park but there is a cafe in the town owned by a lady who gives me chocolate every time we pass. 
My statue Peniscola
We stayed for quite a while in Peniscola. Daddy was very happy because he found his bucket.  He had travelled through Belgium, France and Holland looking for a bucket in every town. 
Daddy's bucket
Peniscola will hold a special place in his heart because he found his bucket there.

What a view
These Spanish like to give me cake and chocolate and squeeze my cheeks and ask for big whoppers.
I like them.  The ladies make noisy kisses like Mama does.
Going for chocolate
Five days later the NFs are off again.  Stop in a place called Olivia at a site called Kikopark.  Not much happening there.  We clear off the next day but we find a dead viper in the road and I pick my first orange from a tree and eat it. 

Snakey
 Daddy seems to drive forever but we get to Altea late in the afternoon and stop at Cap Blanche camping.  There are lots of Norwegians here as well as some Dutch.  I say good morning in Dutch to everyone. 

Alfaz del pi
Mama tells me that I have an Uncle here.  I  have Aunties and Uncles everywhere.  I hope she takes me to see him.

Friday 14 November 2014

Holland to South of France

Spooky McNooky
 They dragged me away from the Maker-of-all-Things Tasty and stuck me on a spooky site in Hasselt which has these giant solar panels and strange men wandering around non of which were daddy.  It all smelt of damp and drippage.  http://www.eurocampings.co.uk/belgium/limburg/houthalen/campsite-de-binnenvaart-101095
Lake at Houthalen
 There was a really beautiful lake there but Mama kept peering into it like she was looking for bodies.  We left really early in the morning and even Daddy didn't have a shower!
Beutiful Woody Wood La Spineuse
The next day we stopped on the border just before France in a lovely dingly dell in Neuf Chateau.  It was full of rabbits.  And trees.  And rivers.  Mama said she would bring me back here again when it was a bit warmer.  There was a home made playground and Mama and Daddy nearly killed themselves on a zip wire.  Daddy went first and had a very strange expression on his face as he came whizzing out of the trees. They wouldn't let me near it and both complained of back ache the fiollowing day.
We have a couple of nights in lay-bys and aires and head down the east of France through the Ardennes. We stop at a site just outside Lyon http://www.camping-indigo.com/fr/camping-indigo-lyon-rhone.html which is great but packed out.  We get to go and see statues.  Mama wants to eat tete de veau and I want to throw leaves in the Rhone.  There is a bit of a dispute so Daddy takes me off to throw leaves and Mama eats her dinner.  She spends hours eating my Mama.

Bonjour La France
 Then guess what.  The No-Funs tell me they are taking me to the nougat making hub of the world and I get all excited.  We get to Montelimar.  No sweets.  They make me walk miles in the rain.  Then sleep in a supermarket car park.
My nougat night

The Med
 I was so happy to reach the South and see the sea.  I saw the sea.  And the wind blew and we all ran in circles like sea gulls for ages.  We finally reach Camping Les Peupliers at Colombiers http://www.camping-colombiers.com/english/index.asp and it is wonderful.  The sun shines, the crickets chirrup, the air smells of pine and woodsmoke and the trees rustle like water running.

L'oppidum enserune
We climb to the top of the Oppidum in the blazing sun and eat cake.  We cycle along the canal du midi and eat cake.  We sit in the port and watch the boats go buy and eat cake.  We see a coypu and eat cake.  We give the coypu some cake.
My aunties come and see me and we eat cake.
Sunday we're off to Spain.
If we'll fit.

Sunday 2 November 2014

Belgium to Holland

Picking sweet chestnuts
 We had a terrible journey around Antwerp.  Daddy says all the lorries in the world come from Belgium.  There were only 2 lanes and the cars were going really fast in one and the lorries were going really slow in the other and we were caught between the two.  But we found a lovely campsite at Hoeven called Molecaten.  http://www.molecaten.nl/bosbad-hoeven Mama said she wouldn't be seen dead there during the Summer months but they had a forest and a heated swimming pool and slides and trampolines and all things exciting. 
Me and my bike

Me and my mate the cake maker
 We cycled into the nearest town and bought cake and hot cholcolate and beer.  We had a lovely time and I said hello to everyone.  We stayed 2 days and then set off for Amsterdam.  We stayed a night in AmsterdamBos http://www.campingamsterdamsebos.nl/en/ and it was very rainy but we went a walk through the forest.

Zeeburg Amsterdam


 We left the following day from the Bos and were in Amsterdam very quickly.  Daddy seems to find his way very well.  He takes after me. I told him where to turn left and where to turn right. I liked the Zeeburg campsite in Amsterdam. http://www.campingzeeburg.nl/  It had goats and a beach and some great smelling cigarettes.
My goats
 We walked into the nearest town and so Mama could have a haircut.  There were herons EVERYWHERE.

Spot the Heron
 The following day we went into Amsterdam.  There were lots of ladies in windows who kept knocking and smiling at me.  I liked them a lot.  Mama took me a fantastic Chinese restaurant Hoi Tin in China town and I had my favourite.  Char Sui.  I also ate the best custard bun from their bakery that I had ever tasted. http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g188590-d2072610-Reviews-Hoi_Tin-Amsterdam_North_Holland_Province.html
Hoi Tin
 I loved Amsterdam.  I loved all the statues and the paintings and the women knocking on windows.  Everyone loved my orange coat. 
Dam Square

The zoo   
Dutch Delicacies

My Aunty Jackjack and her daughter came to visit us at the campsite and we all went to the Artis zoo together.  http://www.artis.nl/ I loved the statues.  My favourite Uncle Joe also came to join us and whisked us off to his house near Rotterdam where he stuffed Mama and me and daddy full of the most delicious food I have ever tasted.  I felt so at home there.  I didn't want to leave but the No Funs are making me get back in the van.  We leave for Belgium tomorrow.
Mama's favourite view of GUJ (at the cooker).