FOR THE FIRST TIME during CORONA: OUTSIDE THE NETHERLANDS – part 1

At home shouts of joy are heard when our government announces that from June 15^th 2020, most borders within Europe will be reopened. Of course, these Corona-times are not normal and keeping distance and always washing hands is still the rule. Outside the Netherlands we also have to wear a facemask in confined spaces. But we can go abroad again, so plans are made and immediately worked out. Dick is sewing extra facemasks and early morning on Tuesday March 16^th we are on our way to the storage to pick up our motorhome.
We take our time to store everything and Dick quickly construct a few levelers to be used for our double-axle Frankia but around 4 pm everything (except some food) is loaded.
After a good night’s sleep, we drive away from home on Wednesday June 17th. Although the day starts with blue sky and sun, the dark clouds are increasing and it seems as if a violent thunderstorm can erupt at any moment. Also in Brueggen, Germany, where we have planned to stay our first night, the sky looks threatening. Here a shower could burst at any moment.

The parking for motorhomes is very busy and we are glad we arrived around noon because at least now we can choose a place. At the end of the afternoon all places are filled up and the space between the motorhomes is also considerably smaller. Finally, after all these months, we can do some shopping at the Rewe supermarket. Richard already told us that Hohes C, my breakfast juice, is advertised, so when the motorhome is connected to the electricity, we walk, of course with our facemask, to the other side of the street and load our shopping cart full of German chocolate (with rum, grapes and nuts), my juice (the whole stock of my brand) and also some sparkling water because we drink a lot when biking.

It feels weird walking around with a facemask. You breathe much harder, it is warm and while wearing glasses or sunglasses you have a blurred view, but a mask is mandatory so everyone wears it. I find out that people get closer to you because of the false sense of security a facemask gives, so we have to be constantly alert in the supermarket. After all the shopping is done, we sit outside the motorhome and read and talk. Just lazy instead of going out. It is warm and pleasant to be outside and we have nice neighbors to chat with.

 

In the evening this parking for motorhomes is full and because of the increasingly threatening weather we do not walk into the town to have dinner.  Instead Dick sent me to get a kebab dish at a Turkish restaurant across the street. I have to wait for it (with mask) but finally we have a delicious meal, we enjoy in the motorhome.
While having dinner it starts to rain. At first it’s a drizzle but soon it looks like there is a cloudburst and the rainwater gushes down past the motorhome.

We are glad we did not walk to town. In spite of doing almost nothing today

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, the fact that we are abroad again apparently makes us tired, because just after 9.30 pm we fall asleep, undisturbed by the continuous flashes of lightning and thunders.

 

 

Due to the enormous amount of rain yesterday, the sky is completely clear when we wake up at 8 am the next day. The sun is shining. The oppressive heat is gone and it feels fresh and clean outside. It is considerably cooler at 65 degrees (Fahrenheit). After a good breakfast, we dump our gray- and black water, refill our clean water tank with a watering- can and leave the town of Brueggen.

We actually want to go to Linnich, but the access road to the village and therefore the RV parking is blocked (to make a sewer?)  so we decide to go to the town of Inden where, high up on the mountain, next to the INDEMAN observation tower, is a nice parking where motorhomes are allowed to stay at night.

It is a bit remote here because to get to the village you first have to descend a mountain but for a single night it is good. Unfortunately, the restaurant here is still closed, but in the afternoon we can climb the viewpoint. So we drink a coffee in the motorhome and after paying the parking fee (only 4 euro until the next morning) we get our e-bikes to explore the area.

Fortunately, there is not much traffic on this weekday, so we have the mountain road almost to ourselves and, feeling like being in the Tour de France, we descend the steep mountainside at speeds of 31 mph. It’s a good thing we have bike helmets.

We have already found out that many caches are hidden in this area, so we cycle to explore the valley of the Inde river. Observing the bike path, it’s obvious that for a long-time few people have been outside. Everywhere the weeds are high.

When we arrive in France later in the week it turns out to be even worse there with weeds-overgrown paths. It makes sense because the French people had no permission to go outside for several months. Our route along the fast-flowing river is quite nice but not spectacular.

 

 

This is in contrast to the climb of the viewpoint (with mask) at the end of the afternoon. From the highest point (after climbing endless stairs) we have a beautiful view of the surroundings.
The still functioning brown coal mine (which will be closed in the future to create a huge lake) is the most dominant in the landscape.
After a simple canned meal, we eat Elsasser sauerkraut, we enjoy the increasing quiet around us. Unfortunately, this silence is short-lived because when dusk sets in, the youth gather in this deserted parking lot and loud music blares from the cars parked everywhere.
Oh well, it’s not a problem, because by the time we go to bed it will get much cooler and the cars disappear one by one.

 

 

The illuminated INDEMAN observation platform remains. Because I already fall asleep, Dick wakes me up to watch the light spectacle of the tower, which is lit with almost 41,000 LED lights. It is awesome to see because the colors of the tower keep changing. I don’t fall back asleep until about 12 pm because I am wide awake after sitting outside for twenty minutes to see the illuminated phenomenon.

Despite the fact that we went to bed really late, we get up at 8 am on Friday. We breakfast on our old leftover bread because I don’t like walking or cycling to the village down the mountain and then we drive to the old town of Nideggen in the Eifel. This town is close by and within 45 minutes we arrive already at our destination.
There is enough space in this parking lot because there are only two motorhomes and 10 cars parked and after some debating (where do we park the motorhome?) Dick decides and parks on a nice spot in the sun.
Just like yesterday, a parking place in such a mountainous environment is not really flat so the wooden levelers, manufactured by Dick, are a welcome addition to the levelling of our motorhome.

 

After meeting and chatting with our Belgian neighbors, we walk into the old town, with beautiful houses, over small bumpy stones. Nideggen was granted city rights already in the year 1313
The terraces in the center just reopened. Before sitting down, we first want to visit the castle, built at the end of 1100 on a great rock massif, to enjoy the view of the surrounding landscape.

This old castle turns out to be the perfect place to celebrate a wedding, because one wedding after the other takes place here.

 

Unfortunately it is very cloudy and not so warm so we do not hang around too long and walk to the terrace of the ice cream shop in the center of this town. We settle down on the last unoccupied outside table and moments later we enjoy a more than delicious Diabolo ice-cream. Wooow, we’ll feast upon and will definitely come back for that ice.

With a full belly we walk back to the motorhome and in the afternoon I walk around to find a Rewe supermarket and do some shopping. Much to my delight I also find a nice pair of elastic jeans in the adjacent Lidl. Inside the supermarket I put these jeans on over my own pants (I think people will not like it when I am standing in my underwear between the food). The pants seem to fit. When I return home, it fits good. I am so happy with this new jeans because my Levi’s from the Walmart are quite worn out after 6 years.

In the parking lot I also discover a grill house so for tonight we have an address where we can get food. And that turns out to be a good idea because the food I pick up in the evening tastes great. However, it bothers to put on a mask every time you enter a store or restaurant. The cleared sky at the end of the afternoon remain so, when we get up on Saturday morning June 20^th, we see a blue sky and sun. Nice because now, shined up by the sun, I can get fresh bread. I buy bread at the Lidl, because yesterday I also saw nice white socks and since my socks are also somewhat worn out, that would be a good addition. Unfortunately this morning the whole pile of socks is gone and so I leave the shop with only bread. When we have breakfast, Dick looks strangely at the fresh bread. It turns out to be a “senfbrot” and the penetrating smell of mustard meets you when you slice it. Not real bread to eat with jam or sweets, but fortunately we also have cheese and ham which tastes better with this special bread. In the future, I better check out which bread I buy. After a tasty breakfast we take our bikes to explore the surroundings.

We are now in the Eifel and it is very hilly and steep so I am very happy that we have our e-bikes. It is not nice that we start with a miles-long steep descent (again we touch the 31 mph) before we can climb up again on the other side of the valley. Dick quickly finds an unpaved steep forest path that leads us deeper into the forest. It is pretty pleasant under the trees because the sun is burning in the sky and it is now 80 degrees.

The steep forest path up the hill is unfortunately not easy for cycling. We are glad that we have wide tires on our bikes so we can handle quite a few rocks and tree roots. The area is rugged and wild and we see beautiful secluded spots and enjoy the steep cliffs towering above us. On one of them is the castle built we visited yesterday; other cliffs are used by rock climbers. We see them walking in large numbers, packed with ropes and climbing shoes.
In the middle of the afternoon we give up and climb back the steep 13 percent slope with our e-bikes.

There is no end to the curves and after having also conquered the bumpy cobblestones in the town, we puff down on our “ice terrace” to have another delicious Diabolo ice cream. We think we earned it. Like yesterday we have to keep a distance from the other visitors and of course disinfect our hands. New is that we also have to give our name, email and telephone number so that if there is a Corona outbreak around, we can be notified. According to Dick our dinner at night deserves a bad mark. Yesterday I saw a can of chili con carne, the label made me licking my fingers (I guess Mike, I have to say: it’s finger licking good) but, mixed with a leftover potato, it turns out not really tasty. And the carne? Dick cannot find anything.
Dick’s criticism of my meals is rare, in our 42-year marriage it happened only 3 times before, but with regard to this dish, which consists exclusively of very strongly spiced chili powder and tomato, I am told that I should never ever again buy this meal.

While I do the dishes, Dick starts working on his laptop to publish the latest developments regarding the Corona measures in a newsletter for our diving club Aqualis.

In the evening, before going to bed, we discover a tick in my foot. Dick can get rid of it but then, while looking at it, I drop it on the carpet of the motorhome. The rest of the night I dream of a troop of ticks, marching to our bed to find fresh meat. I really don’t sleep peacefully, but Dick snores like an ox.

Sunday, June 21^st, the sky shows its best side and when we get up at 8 am, the sun is shining in the blue sky.
The tick-army was apparently not only present in my dreams and struck anyway because now I find a huge specimen at Dick’s belly. Fortunately, the monster is fairly easy to remove and this time we make sure that this tick really dies before disappearing into the trash. After breakfast with the leftover mustard bread from yesterday, it is still less tasty bread than I thought, we leave this nice place with its fantastic ice cream restaurant and drive to Bad Munstereifel, an old walled town in the Eifel. A drive of only 22 miles.

Because we arrive already at half past 10 at the parking, we can choose from empty places and find a nice spot with a view over the sunbathing area of ​​the swimming pool. Normally you have to pay for this parking place at the pool, but because of Corona, pools in Germany are still closed and the water faucet and dumping facility is hermetically sealed, so now you can stay here for free. Even electricity is not charged. I needed to dump our black water, but now that is not possible, I change our toilet cassettes. It is not often necessary but in case  this occasion offers, we have two toilet cassettes. In the afternoon we walk through one of the city gates into the town. All houses have been beautifully restored, but whether people really live there? It seems as if this walled town only consists of restaurants and outlet stores, but it is lovely to walk around here. Unfortunately it is Sunday and then the shops in Germany are closed, even in a tourist town. And that means that it is quiet in the old streets, but also that I have nowhere, and I mean nowhere, the opportunity to buy something. And that while one after another sport- and outdoor shop (in outlet form) appears. Dick get off cheaply.

After walking around the beautiful city walls and admiring all city gate, we wander through the narrow medieval streets and find a place on a high populated terrace by the water among all the other tourists, who cannot shop. We order, yes again, a delicious ice-cream. Well, it is not as good as the one in Nideggen, but sitting in the sun it tastes good. Because other people are pushing for a place, we do not hang about too long on this terrace and when our ice-cream is finished, we wander around again. After all, there are also some caches to look for.

At the end of the afternoon, after walking around for 5 miles, we return to our motorhome and sit outside in the sun for a while. We are tired of the many climbing and wandering in the steep streets of Bad Munstereifel and despite the fact that it is the longest day today, long before even dusk falls, we leave for dreamland.

Unfortunately Monday morning it is gloomy weather (we get up at 7 am) and there is no sun to be seen. At 10 am we are already in Gerolstein, our next destination, where, at the parking for motorhomes in town, we dump and take water. Although this parking is large and spacious, we don’t find it attractive enough to stop now, so I quickly look for another destination and find Weingut Pauly along the river Moselle in Palzem, Germany. We decide to take a look there. When we arrive at the Vineyard, 90 minutes later, a place is left even for our relatively large motorhome. Because the parking spots are very narrow and the owner gives (next to me) also instructions on how to turn in, parking takes Dick a bit longer than usual, but finally we stay at our spot high above the Moselle.

The temperature has risen considerably and is around 83 degrees (and rising) so our afternoon bike ride along the Moselle is quite nice. The little wind that blows here comes over the water. On the other side of the river is the town of Remich in Luxembourg. Here is also the only supermarket in the wider area so we walk inside and buy food.
As in Germany, face masks and disinfecting hands also apply in Luxembourg, when entering the store.

I am really glad when Dick discover a large rack of Crocs in the supermarket. And it’s filled with two pairs of bright yellow crocs in my size. When Dick also discovers a black and red pair in his size, we no longer hesitate and load the 4 pairs of Crocs into our shopping cart. After 6 years our old ones are in urgent need of replacement. The cashier gives us a surprising look.

Because we bought fresh food, we cannot stay around in Remich, so we cycle the 4 mile back to our motorhome. Despite our cooling bag in the saddle-bag where we store our food, the outside temperature is too high to hang around with food for a long time. The temperature has risen above 90 degrees Fahrenheit. When we are back, we are lazy and stay outside, read our books and do our administration.

The sun is burning so we look for some shade of a tree the rest of the afternoon until 7 pm when we visit the wine cellar of the Vineyard. We taste different types of wine.

 

Next to the owner with his wife and son, there is another couple also tasting (all of us keeping distance) and while enjoying the different pressed grape varieties, we discuss the Corona crisis, world politics but also the problems of this small town. Of course we leave this wine-tasting with some bottles of good wine. It is good that the meal we have around 9 pm does not require much attention, because the tasting glasses were not only very large, but we also tasted many types of wine. We sit outside until late in the evening, enjoying our view. It cools down a little at 11 pm. At night we sleep with all the windows wide open.

Early in the morning of Tuesday June 23^rd it is already warm, also because the wind completely died down. I take my bicycle to cycle to Remich for fresh bread. Unfortunately the cactus supermarket is still closed but after some inquiries I find a bakery that is open. We enjoy the fresh bread and then take the bicycles for a ride. This time not along the Moselle but through the hinterland through forests, fields and vineyards along the slopes of the Moselle. It is nice that regularly we enjoy the coolness of forests because the temperature rises quickly and already in the morning the temperature passes the 90 degrees. After a few hours of cycling on unpaved paths we arrive back in Remich. It’s very busy here. Many families walk around and the shops are still closed. Today appears to be the national holiday of Luxembourg. No wonder we encountered so many hikers around Remich and so many families at the campsites, forming a ribbon, along the Moselle. When we are back at the motorhome at 4 pm we immediately look for shade. It is best to stay there with this high temperature and without any wind. Because all the shops are closed, we cannot buy meat so we have simple spaghetti with lots of vegetables and mushroom sauce.

The next day we get up at 8.15 am and without having a breakfast (we will have breakfast later) we dump and fill our clean water and when Dick has stored away the electric cables, we leave. First we stop in Remich because we want to fill up with diesel in Luxembourg (less expensive). Then at a parking along the road Dick has to fish a cache from a tree (it’s not without a struggle because a piece of the rod stays behind in the tree at 26 feet height) but finally we arrive at our new destination, the city of Mettlach, Germany. At the parking lot of the brewery we find a nice spot.

As soon as we are parked, we first have breakfast. We skipped that this morning because of the lack of bread. Then we buy a parking ticket at the Tourist Information (you can also pay with a parking app that we do not have) and explore the town. A cycle path eventually leads us to the bank of the river Saar. It is wonderful to cycle here because there is a cooling breeze and the trees along the waterside provide also sufficient shade. Less attractive is that it often concerns oak trees and everywhere are signs that we really have to watch out for the oak processionary caterpillar. Don’t know how to do that because most of the geocaches here are hidden inside the mighty oak trees. As our trip progresses, I feel more and more tickling on my body.

 

Finally we arrive at the “Saar Schleife”. The place where the Saar makes a big bend. This is clearly visible on the GPS, but to be able to observe this natural phenomenon you have to climb the cliff on the other side of the river. Around 3 pm, after another horrible descent from a long 13 percent steep slope, we are back in the old town of Mettlach where, again, we sit on the terrace of an ice cream shop.
Once again we have to leave our address details and disinfect our hands. It’s not necessary to wear a face mask as long as we sit down at the outside table.
The ice cream is tasty but I have to work for it because it contains skinned fruits. And I am definitely not going to eat the skin of a mango, melon and pine-apple. With sticky hands I finally finish my ice cream. Dick had a less laborious ice cream but thanks to his disinfecting alcohol spray I can clean my hands.

 

 

After visiting the beautiful old church ruin, behind the Abbey, where the headquarters of the famous ceramic producer Villeroy and Boch is situated, we return to the parking.

The parking lot is now filled up with motorhomes. Fortunately, there is a breeze and under our awning we can sit in the shade. Our arms and legs are scratched by berries bushes and thorns and our body is itching. Could we have given a lift to some stinging hairs from the oak processionary caterpillar? Of course we will have dinner on the terrace of the brewery tonight. Renate and Dieter always tell us how delicious the cooking is in such eateries. And they are right because Dick’s rumpsteak and my cream schnitzel are of exceptional quality.

No wonder that during mittagtisch (lunch) and dinner the terrace is completely full with people. The delicious freshly tapped beer contributes to the fact that we don’t wake up until 8:30 the next morning.

Although we had a late dinner yesterday, the freshly made bread tastes delicious. Contributing is that we can have breakfast outside in the sun. With a well-filled stomach, we grab our bikes and start climbing again a 13 percent steep road that seems to be endless. From the top Dick point out the path into the forest.
We discovered a series of 25 caches in this forest that we want to search and with these temperatures, forest trails are of course the ideal environment to stay. Unfortunately, after cycling 330 feet into the forest, the path is blocked and there is an imminent warning not to drive any further due to forest work.

 

 

So, we turn around and decide to drive around the opposite bank of the river Saar. There is also danger there because of the huge numbers of oak trees with their hairy caterpillars, but that is less deadly than a falling tree trunk on your head. Again we enjoy a lovely breeze over the water and see wonderful places along the path. The best thing is a chapel high on a cliff on a narrow forest path with an outlook over the Saar and the town of Mettlach. Because of the excellent food and the beautiful weather in the evening we take again an outside table at the terrace of the brewery and enjoy once more an excellent meal.

March – May 2020 at home and taking a break in the Netherlands

Together with Marjo and Wim we participate on March 7^th   in a CITO cleaning campaign (Cache In, Trash Out) in the Biesbosch, ending with a good BBQ (still possible at that time).
At that moment I think it’s still possible to hit the road with our motorhome.
I am the only one thinking about leaving, Dick lives more in the new reality. Within a week my plan also changes.
Not only because the borders of our neighboring countries are closed, but also the increasingly urgent advice not to travel.
The news reporting about the many Corona deaths make us more cautious and our physical freedom, even with a motorhome, is further restricted.
Almost all flights are canceled, museums and restaurants are closed, trains and buses run without passengers, squares and streets are deserted, many shops are closed and elderly homes are closed.

 

We have to stay at home as much as possible and only do the necessary shopping. Fortunately, in the Netherlands it is still permitted to go outside, provided we keep enough distance from each other (6 feet) and get a breath of fresh air by walking around. We have entered an “intellectual lockdown”. On the contrary to our surrounding countries, they have a complete lockdown. People in those countries can only visit the supermarket and pharmacy and may not even be outside, forced by patrolling army vehicles.

 

Our plan was to attend a Sea bridge meeting in Germany, end of March, to book a ship-crossing to the USA for October 2020. But this meeting is canceled, like all meetings in Europe and at the same time America is announcing that the borders are closed. Europeans have no longer access to the USA.
The street scene is changing very fast; supermarkets are becoming battlefields where people with loaded carts make their way to the cash registers. Accompanied by pushing and pulling, toilet paper, kitchen paper and cleaning products disappear into packed shopping carts. Gradually there is only one topic on the TV: “the Corona virus”.
A new reality imposes on us. We stay at home, Dick makes a new roof in the garden so that the BBQ can stay outside, we clean our house, read a lot and sit behind the computer. We contact our friends in Europe and America and are relieved to learn that they are doing well. Fortunately, we still can go outside in our country and we regularly get a breath of fresh air. Neither of us likes it to just walk or cycle, so at Geocaching.com Dick is looking for quiet places in our vicinity with geocaches. Despite the often icy cold temperature outside, we have wonderful outings.

 

We take our small rubber boat and look for caches under bridges, put on diving suits to crawl under culverts and walk along the shore of the “Brielse lake” on bumpy grass paths because otherwise we will not find the hidden geocaches. Everywhere are thick bushes of brambles, so we are lucky with our long trousers and jackets. We are alone; no one is to be seen around us.
We appreciate the silence and the beautiful blossoms on the trees. The sun on our face gives us a deep feeling of gratitude and happiness.

 

We enjoy moments we normally don’t think about. We explore our surroundings by e-bike and early May we even meet with my sister Hannah and her husband Henk in the city of Bodegraven. For them it means cycling for 48 miles

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, for us only 38 miles. But we succeed and on a warm summer day we find each other at a cheese farm where we chat while enjoying fresh milk, sitting on a bench, of course 6 feet apart. Without Covid 19 we would never have e-biked so much and we both think that time flies in this Corona lockdown.

Mid-May is our country low in the curve of new corona infections and the restrictive measures are relaxed so the intellectual lockdown is less strict. Instead of “stay at home”, is the motto “don’t travel unnecessarily”.

Ascension Day is approaching and we decide, for the first time since we visited Cor and Esmee in France at the end of February 2020, to hit the road with our motorhome. This has to be done in the Netherlands because the borders with Germany, Belgium and France are still closed.
So I look for motorhome parking spots in the east and north of the Netherlands. More parkings than we need because if it appears that a parking is closed or full, we have places in reserve.

We also ensure that we have face masks with us. Thanks to Anne and Werner from Germany, we know how to buy the beautiful face masks that match the motorhome, just in case we need them. Tuesday May 19^th we arrive so early in the morning at the storage that our motorhome has yet to be driven outside.
That goes not without a struggle because the battery has drained after this long period of inactivity. Fortunately, after connecting the charger, the engine starts immediately and we can leave the storage.
At home I first clean the motorhome.
Not an unnecessary luxury, because not only the dirt from our trip to Northern France is still on, but also cobwebs can be seen everywhere.
But at the end of the afternoon, the motorhome is shining and everything we think we need for the coming days is loaded inside.

We finally leave on Wednesday May 20^th . Although the sky is still steel blue, more clouds appear and when we arrive in the town of Varsseveld there is no sun to be seen. Fortunately it is not really cold. There is no one on the parking lot behind the sports hall, in the middle of the village, so we park our motorhome and spend the rest of the afternoon exploring this pleasant village on foot. How wonderful it is to be back on the road with the motorhome.

The next day we take our e-bike to explore the area. To find a logical route, we first print a map with the geocaches and then we go. The sky is getting bluer and the sun is burning. Fortunately, arable lands alternate with forests, where it is a bit cooler. Everywhere it’s remarkably dry. Ditches contain practically no water or dried up and some cycling paths turned into dusty sandy plains.

But the environment is beautiful, we find caches and enjoy. When we return to Varsseveld at half past four, after cycling almost 25 miles and completely covered with the fine sand, the soft ice creams on the square in front of the old church look so tempting that we stop. Despite the fact that Corona has prohibited seating at the eatery, we find a place on one of the many benches in the center where we enjoy an ice cream. The next day we drive to Dalfsen. Here is a nice parking, next to the station, but it is full with motorhomes, so we look for an alternative destination and drive on to Nieuwleusen, here is more than enough place on a large parking lot.

After a good cup of coffee we e-bike to Staphorst. A special place consisting of large farms that are painted green and blue and a tree of life in the window above the door. A number of women still wear traditional costumes during their daily work. Didn’t know that was still happening. Unfortunately, the clouds are increasing and on our way back we have to e-bike against the strong wind, with raindrops slowly soaking us. It is nice that we only have to warm up some kale in the evening because we have not much energy left to cook.

Fortunately the clouds disappear on Saturday and after printing a map with caches (again) and after determining a new route (Dick’s job), we take our bikes.

I quickly recognize the area, we drive into Balkbrug. Years ago, during my studies of law, I was a prentice and came here with the forensic psychiatrist Strobos. Very special to be here again 45 years later. The landscape changes, it becomes less flat and the forest density increases. We search our way from cache to cache over narrow forest paths and through sometimes deep sand channels. It’s good we have thick tyres. For me it’s incredible how Dick find his way. I directly got lost and just follow him on the narrow bumpy paths.
We left the province of Overijssel and are now e-biking in the province  of Drenthe. Every now and then we stop to chat with local residents and to buy something at a farm. Everyone in this area has plenty of time, but in these small villages “us knows us” and that also means that distance is not practiced by everyone, so the conversations are not really relaxed, we constantly move and dance around to keep our distance of 6 feet.
Despite the fact that the sky is getting bluer, the wind keeps blowing so when we get back to the motorhome at half past four, after 30 miles of cycling, we actually feel a bit tired and we start to snore well before 10 pm.

After breakfast with delicious fresh eggs from the farm, we leave Nieuwleusen. We stop in the town of Emmen, although we can stay here, it doesn’t feel very pleasant, so we drive on to Appingedam in the province of Groningen. For the first time in my life I reach this far northern part of the Netherlands. On this parking lot is also a free parking spot. Normally there would be 10 places available, but in this Corona time one space must kept free between each motorhome. This is an ideal place for me. We stay at a bus station and even on Sunday it is a go and come of buses.
And it is even possible to dump our grey and black water and get clean water

I feel at home here.
In the afternoon we walk to the old town of Appingedam. It is very quiet; no one to see on the streets, but it looks nice. Unfortunately it’s cold and clouded. I definitely want to take a more extensive walk here when the sun is shining and it’s warmer.

In the evening the clouds disappear and I devote myself to my task of refilling clean water in the tank. I have to walk back and forth 9 times with our watering can to fill up the tank. It remains significantly colder in this northern part of our country because even though the sun breaks regularly, an icy cold wind continues to blow so when we take the e-bike we put on our winter coats.

The landscape amazes me. I expected to bike through bare flat meadows, but we see a varying landscape of beautiful forests, arable lands and every now and then some hills protruding in the landscape where usually a church is built. One of those churches, the old Romanesque church of Marsum, is a feast for the eyes in its simplicity. We walk into the church and are hit by the poem of Pastor Jaap Zijlstra about this church:

Fled on a mound
is the church of Marsum to be found
Longingly looking forward to
the reverse side of the tide.
The wind has taken the field
and assault a storm against the walls.
The clouds blaze out against the trees
who take a guard possession on the ramparts.
The dark look of the ditches
forebodes nothing good.
The reed is stirred up
and the startled grass runs across the meadows.
But today or tomorrow the tower will get
the sun in her sight again
and the battle is settled.

We will remember this beautiful church in this special landscape for a long time. It is more impressive than the view we have from Delftzijl over the waters of the Eems. With this icy cold wind and thick dark clouds, the yellow-brown water does not look attractive. In addition, where we are, the port area of ​​Delftzijl, you cannot even get close to the water due to quicksand.

After every day of self-cooking, our leftovers are finished, so we walk to the eatery “Unique” next to the bus station. We don’t regret it as the food is really good and next time we stay here, we will definitely order another meal here.
Wednesday May 27^th, after a delicious breakfast with fresh bread, I bought this morning in town; we only have to drive 17 miles. This means that we arrive early in the morning on the outskirts of the city of Groningen, in the Kardinge nature reserve. Because we arrive so early, a number of motorhomes already left, so we can choose where to stay and we park our motorhome in the front.  It’s obvious that this nature reserve is located on the outskirts of the city because it is not only busy with motorhomes but also with athletes and when we cycle around in the area we meet many other people who enjoy the outdoors just like us. But there is plenty of room and the weather is beautiful although it is still cool due to the strong cold wind. Around 4 pm we are back at the motorhome.

I have to climb the high hill next to the motorhome. It is steep but the climb is well worth it, because from the observation tower on top you have a beautiful view of the city of Groningen and the surrounding area. You can also clearly see the parking lot filled with motorhomes. The mountain bikers, using this same hill to descend at enormous speeds, will probably not have the time to enjoy this panorama.

Thursday morning, May 28^th  we leave Groningen early in the morning and drive south over the Hunebed Highway to Tubbergen. Unfortunately we don’t see a hunebed, meaning: a megalithic chambered tomb. In the middle of the small town of Tubbergen is a parking lot next to the local swimming pool, we have a place for the night. After talking to a woman who lives here permanently in her RV, we explore the area by e-bike. It is considerably warmer here, but that could also be caused by the decreasing wind.

We look (of course) for caches. One is hidden under a bridge. Fortunately, the water level here is very low (a fact that the locals certainly will not agree with, they suffer under the water shortage) so that I can suffice with only taking off my long pants and getting the cache reasonably dry. Mid-afternoon we are back at the motorhome and we explore this pleasant town on foot. Unfortunately the local hairdresser is too busy in the coming weeks so I still can’t get rid of my thick and long corona hair. Friday we leave at 9 am. Before we drive to the next place, we first want to visit Obelink in Winterswijk, an outdoorshop. When we arrive there it is already very busy. Especially the parking lot for RV’s is almost completely full and German number plates dominate the RV landscape. Fortunately, Obelink is very spacious so once inside, we are not really bothered by other shoppers. We walk towards what we need and are outside within an hour so around noon we arrive in Varsseveld (again). We find the parking here very pleasant and there are still many geocaches to be found around, so this is a good stopover on our way home. While Dick cleans the e-bikes in the warm sun next to the motorhome (after our trips on sandy forest paths they are covered with sand) I walk into the village. Here, to my delight, the hairdresser does have time, so at the end of the afternoon I have a short haircut. Actually it is a bit too short, but Dick says that I say that after every hairdresser visit.

At 7 pm I walk to restaurant “Enzovoort”, close to our parking, to pick up our ordered food. A couple of days ago and upon arrival this afternoon, we were told by various residents that this restaurant cook well. Not a word too much because not only the owners are very friendly, the food is also very tasty and we enjoy a restaurant meal in our motorhome. We have a few days before we have to be back home so on Saturday we stay another day in Varsseveld. The weather is clearly improving as there is more blue and sun and the temperature is rising.

Again we print a map of the area and as soon as Dick has settled the route, our water bottles are filled and biscuits and currant buns are packed, we leave. This time we cycle through an area so pristine that I regularly express my admiration. I did not know that such quiet and unspoiled places existed in the Netherlands. It is beautiful here. After cycling for 28 miles we return late afternoon.

Before we go back to the motorhome we first enjoy a delicious ice cream, sitting in the sun in the middle of the village. The parking lot is still dead quiet; there is no other motorhome in sight. Because of the delicious food yesterday we order another meal at “Enzovoort” which is again excellent. Locals know which restaurant to recommend.
Sunday morning we leave the eastern part of our country. We are not the only ones on the road because as soon as we enter Highway A12 it seems we are in Germany. Only German cars on the road. It intensifies our desire to open borders with our neighboring countries (which are still closed today). In Woerden we drive to a small parking and find out it’s full. Unfortunately. While turning on the narrow road to continue driving, one of the motorhomes leaves so we can stay overnight. It is a bit of a manoeuver because this small RV parking has a high fence.

Fortunately, Dick can drive well (or is it due to my good directions) and soon we have a good cup of coffee. In the afternoon we take the e-bikes to explore the area.
We stay close to a large recreational lake where it is very busy, especially along and on the water, but the cycle paths are fairly quiet. We don’t cycle that much, only 15 miles, but we can’t resist the temptation of a milkshake.

The terraces may not be open until tomorrow, so all chairs and tables are still blocked with red and white barrier tape, but, sitting on a strip of grass in front of the Mc Donald, the milkshake also tastes good.
The wind and bright sun make us feel sleepy and we go to bed early in the evening.
Monday, June 1^st , we stand up at 7 am and after a shower we dress with our last clean clothes. We don’t really have to drive far and arrive home early.
That is convenient because now we can unload and clean everything at our leisure.

Tomorrow we will bring the motorhome to the shop of Iveco Schouten in Utrecht. There a main switch will be mounted to interrupt the battery power when the motorhome is in the storage.

A new motorhome

October 17^th 2019 we have come to the day we can pick up our new motorhome: the “Frankia Titan”.

Early in the morning we leave home on our way to Raema Campers in Nederweert, our Frankia dealer. With our normal car. Our other motorhome is already in Nederweert at the dealer. The windshield has some ugly cracks and needs to be replaced before we finally can trade it in. Despite the fact that already mid-august we contacted Camperglass about the replacement of the windscreen, it is obvious that it takes time before a new window can be installed.

The traffic jam is enormous and on the road it’s a chaos so we arrive one and a half hour later than intended in Nederweert but after a delicious cup of coffee we are taken to the new motorhome and get a detailed explanation from John. Soon we are bewildered, all those buttons and functions and that with a limited explanation because we are already experienced RV’ers. There are some final administrative steps, as well as a final payment, and then we can really hit the road with our new motorhome. Unfortunately, the old motorhome is still ours because hail damage has been spotted on the roof so our insurance and an expert first must examine this problem.

I am always fascinated by license plates and I am hoping for a nice one. It is: G-667-JL. On the way home, driving behind the camper, I breed on a sentence made by this license plate and yes, I have it: “Geniet Je Leven”. Translated to English it means: “Enjoy Your Life”. How is that possible!

When we get home, after having been in endless traffic jams, I also converted the available numbers into letters of the alphabet and it becomes: “Geniet effe goed Je Leven”.
That means: “Enjoy your life well”. Dick give me a blurry look (the license plate has only 3 letters) and I explain how I get to it, so Dick says “OH”. Dick has nothing with license plates. But this nice motorhome with its particular license plate is already special to me.

 

Unfortunately, at this moment we do not have the time to hit the road or work on it, so we bring the motorhome directly to our storage. Fortunately in the coming weeks we can travel with it for a couple of days.
The route is determined by the things we need to buy such as: carpet, curtains, a toilet brush, bath mats, non-slip plastic, extra keys, alarm, suitable crates, a lashing rail and of course a merino woolen underblanket. And Dick, the handyman of us, turns this Frankia into our motorhome. The carpet gives some headaches. Crawling on his knees in the RV Dick makes a shape of carton. A huge effort because the floor has all sorts of corners and incisions. But finally the shape is ready and the carpet can be cut out.

 

 

 

 

When it’s ready we see that the carpet has a huge weaving error. Unfortunately, we have to return it to the store. Dick has cut the carpet in vain. Without grumbling, Hornbach gives us our money back, orders a new carpet roll and after a few weeks a nice fitting carpet covers the floor of our motorhome.

Staying in the motorhome is agreeable. There is more than enough led light, the cooking is pleasant, also because of the big counter, and showering in the separate shower is very comfortable. It is already running towards the winter and we are undergoing freezing temperatures, but the Alde heater keeps it pleasantly warm inside. Yet there is a downside (also in our previous motorhome) and that is that this pleasant heater also consumes a lot, really a lot, of propane.

After a few nights we come to the conclusion that an independent parking heater needs to be added. Connected to the diesel tank, this saves propane and in the early morning you can immediately give a heat boost. When we come back from a walk through Kevelaer in Germany, we are chilled to the bone by the icy temperatures, the need for such an extra heat boost is definitely great.

Just before Dick will undergo surgery on his knee (that will be on december 11^th  2019), we manages to hit the road for another 10 days. The route is quickly made and after a detour via Winterswijk, Netherland, and Kevelaer, Germany, (again I want to light a candle at the “Candle Chapel”) we drive into the north of France. We are on our way to Normandy. This time we have a better possibility to test the motorhome. In this season we stay mainly  at parking spots in the middle of towns because in colder weather it is more fun to walk around in a town than to stay somewhere outside on a cliff or in a meadow. The selected places also have geocaches (yes, I did my preparation) so after parking our motorhome we walk around town and search for geocaches and of course every morning (we are in France) I walk to a bakery and we enjoy a breakfast with fresh baguette.

The motorhome is comfortable and with two solar panels we have more than enough power. It is surprising to discover that the two bedside lights also have a connection for our mobiles so we can charge them during the night. As most of the time we don’t have a connection with electricity on the parking spot this is very convenient. When we arrive in Normandy, the sun breaks through the clouds. We decide to stay in Honfleur. One of our favorite places.

In Honfleur is still one geocache on top of the steep slope that towers above town. It is dry and freezing cold weather and therefore a good opportunity to climb up (and warmup).
The slope we have to climb is very long and steep and it is incomprehensible that Dick can handle this climb with his knee. But we succeed and almost at the top of the plateau we find the geocache and can enjoy the magnificent view over the coast, the port of Le Havre as well as the town of Honfleur.
Although we normally spend the evenings reading, we also want to try our TV so, when we return to the motorhome late afternoon, Dick turns on the satellite-dish. We do not have canal digital, so Dutch channels are not available, but there are hundreds of German and English channels, and we have plenty of choice to look at and a good opportunity to practice our foreign languages.

The last day of november we wake up with a some sunrays and after dumping our gray- and black water (yeah Riley, we have to remove our toilet to dump the black water) and filled our clean water tanks (even in winter this is possible at the parking in Honfleur), we drive further into Normandy and find a place next to the war museum in Bayeux.

Last spring this parking was filled with RV’s and we could not park there with our motorhome (a shorter one then this new 26^th feet RV) but now we are alone on the parking lot. We will stay here for two nights because we want to visit the famous “Bayeux Tapisserie”.

 

But first we walk around the old center, which miraculously remained undamaged during the invasion in Normandy. It is nice to stroll through the narrow streets around the old Cathedral. We have put on a second coat over our down jacket, our hats are pulled over our ears and we are wearing winter gloves. Not a superfluous measure because it’s icy cold, partly due to the strong wind. Fortunately, France has many bakeries with excellent coffee and delicious cakes, so we regularly visit one and warm ourselves. Saturday evening it starts raining, but then we sit inside and enjoy, after a delicious, home-cooked meal, our exciting books. Reading is more fun than watching TV.

Sunday morning December 1^st 2019 we enter the war museum at 10 am.

Even though we have visited quite a few museums in Normandy in recent years, each museum offers a different view of the events that took place 75 years ago. In the museum a film, consisting of original material, is shown about the battle in Normandy, starting with the invasion on 6 June 1944 but continuing until the summer of 1944. The images are shocking and the film impresses us more than walking around the war memorabilia. We walk almost alone in the museum and 2.5 hours later we leave. After a coffee with a piece of cake we walk back to the center of Bayeux. Before we will visit the Tapisserie we want to find a few geocaches. Unfortunately we only find one geocache. The other has disappeared, but because we meet the cache owner at the hiding place, we get a message later that evening that we can log this (lost) geocache.

The building with the famous 11^th century carpet is nearby and when the French lunchbreak ends at 2 pm we enter the museum.

 

We have no idea what awaits us, but it is a special experience to walk along this centuries old, 229 feet long, carpet. It shows the battle of Hastings, England, in embroidered performances. This battle took place in the year 1066 and after winning, William the Conqueror took over the throne of England. Fortunately, during our walk along the carpet, an audio device gives an explanation so the embroidered carpet comes to life. Just like the early Middle Ages when this carpet, hanging in the Bayeux Cathedral, informed the people what was going on in the world. Unfortunately we are not allowed to take photos, but we can take pictures in the museum halls next door where parts of this carpet have been reproduced and certain performances are explained in detail. We don’t leave the museum until 3.30 pm.

End of the afternoon we will attend a geocache Event of Normandy Geocachers (that event is about the Game of Thrones) but first we want to warm up at a bakery; the temperature feels far below zero. It is good that we have some coffee because when we meet the Normandy geocachers

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, an hour later, we stay outside for quite a long time. It is nice to meet French geocachers and get to know them, although we are confronted with a certain language barrier, especially when the French speak to us in rattling French. But we know how to make ourselves understood and socialize with each other until it is time to watch the carpet of the “Game of Thrones” in another museum.

This carpet has temporarily come to Bayeux from Northern Ireland and hangs in the Reine Mathilde room. And again we pass along a hanging carpet. This time a woven carpet, embroidered by hand in various places and made in 2017.

Vivid scenes from the famous “Game of Thrones” series can be seen over a length of 295 feet. Unfortunately we have never seen an episode of this series so the pictures don’t tell us much but it is all made artfully. It is clear that there is a lot of violence and sex in the series. After a while we walk back in the dark at 6 pm, lit by the beautifully Bayeux Cathedral. It is freezing now. The next morning, monday december 2^nd 2019, we leave Bayeux with freezing cold but nice weather. In the town of Rots, near Caen, is a huge Cora hypermarket, where we get baguettes and some other groceries. We have breakfast on the large parking lot, then dump our gray- and black water and fill it with clean water (for free at this supermarket) and drive on, back to the north.

In the center of Fecamp, along the French coast, we find a pleasant parking at the harbor, where we will spend the night. We take advantage of the wonderful sunny weather and walk pleasantly through town and along the harbor with fishing boats. As soon as the sun sinks behind the row of dunes, it immediately becomes colder so we head back in the dark to the motorhome. Tuesday morning, after breakfast, we drive further north and stop in Boulogne sur Mer. The parking next to the casino is not one of the most uplifting places but when walking across the bridge you are in the middle of the center.

We walk around a bit, enjoy the Christmas atmosphere in this city and get Turkish food in the evening, which tastes great. Tomorrow we can visit the Matratex workshop in Gent, Belgium. Merino woolen blankets are made here. We don’t want arrive late so we get up at 7 am on Thursday. It’s still dark outside but after a good shower the first morning light appears.

At 1 pm we are in Gent. We are surprised to hear that the merino woolen under blankets can be made immediately.
After the size has been cut, using our mattresses, the sewing starts and we leave one hour later with two new woolen under blankets. This will sleep great.
We do not drive straight home but stay another night in Bergen op Zoom, just over the border with Holland, where we arrive at 6 pm, after endless traffic jams around Antwerp, Belgium.
There is a parking on the boulevard. It’s not quiet here because the presence of Mc Donald’s and other food pavilions gives a continuous row of cars. But we sleep like roses on our new merino wool blankets. It is so comfortable. Thursday december 4^thwe are back home at 11am. We unload the motorhome and clean it. No luxury because both the inside and outside are nasty.

 

At 3 pm we can drive the motorhome to the shop where a Webasto parking heater will be built in the coming days. And in the meantime Dick can sew our curtains as well as all kind of bags, for towing bracket, maps and other stuff.