The Schleswig-Holstein Question...and massive motorhomes

The Rathouse in Bremen

Gelsenkirchen provided the chance for a lovely walk with the spaniels in a nearby wooded park, albeit the large lake in the centre would have been rather too attractive for Max had he not been on a lead. We then set off northwards aiming for Bremen. Our progress was not as swift as we had hoped due to a string of roadworks which brought back fond memories of the M6. Apparently when the original highways were built in the 1980s, it was decided to save money by reducing the dual carriageway to single lanes over bridges. Roll forward 30 years and engineers are frantically widening every single bridge on the system. 

We parked up in Bremen on a Stellplatz on an island in the middle of the River Weser and decided to walk into the old town with the spaniels. What a revelation that was.  Böttcherstraße, is a street that, in medieval times was the home of coopers' workshops. It was transformed in the 1920s into what is described as a mixture of expressionist style. It is now lined with high class shops, bars and workshops. 

At the end of the street is the Market Square containing the Rathaus that was constructed between 1405 and 1410 in the Gothic style. Around 140 years later a surge of prosperity in the city saw the front of the building altered to a Renaissance style which it still retains. Only the heroic efforts of firefighters, and the decision to board up the facade with heavy planks, prevented the building from being destroyed during Allied bombing during WWII. More than 60% of the city as a whole was flattened.

The zig-zag moat in Bremen

Souvenir shops are full of tat relating to the Grimm Brother's fairy tale  concerning a donkey, a dog, a cat and a cockerel who set off to become musicians in Bremen. In the event they didn't actually get there but their images appear on a wide variety of merchandise, much like the Cock of Barcelos dominates the city in Portugal.
https://www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm027.html

The next morning we took the little ferry that links the island with the main part of the city and walked around the remains of the city walls, which are more of a moat set in lovely parkland. We liked Bremen, which has lovely green spaces and is very pedestrian friendly.

One thing we have noticed on this trip is what seems to be the preference here for huge motorhomes. Eight metre behemoths shuffle onto the site and their owners decant a quantity of equipment that would have taken a 19th century explorer across Africa. Do they have a ballroom inside we wonder, or maybe a five-a side football pitch? We often notice them travelling in convoys on the autobahn and think that they would have no chance  if they brought them to the UK and attempted to negotiate the

Böttcherstraße, Bremen

Lake District or the lanes of rural Cornwall.

After negotiating an over-engineered toilet cassette disposal machine (what's wrong with the normal British hole in the ground?) we set off for our next stop which was planned to be Hamburg with the idea that we would visit the area around the Reeperbahn and look at some of the places where The Beatles played before they broke through in the UK. However this endeavour was foiled when we discovered the motorhome stopover we had planned to use was full. This only after twice attempting a convoluted one-way system in order to get to it and nearly having the front of the van knocked off by a speeding driver in a black car. BMW obviously.

We decided to forget Hamburg, it was Friday afternoon to be fair so no wonder it was busy, and head back into the countryside where we feel more at home. Tonight we are on a lovely little Stellplatz at Neumunster, one of the larger municipalities in the German province of Schleswig-Holstein.

 Which brings me to the Schleswig Holstein Question, a complex set of diplomatic issues arising from 19th century disputes between The Duchy of Schleswig and the Duchy of Holstein, both claimed by Denmark but eventually merged into the new federal Germany created by Bismark. Quite what the argument was no one really knew. But the British Prime Minister Lord Palmerstone summed it up as follows. "Only three people have ever understood the Schleswig-Holstein business. The Prince Consort, who is dead, a German professor who has gone mad and I, who have forgotten all about it."

They do like them big around here

Appreciating Art in Antwerp

Travelling with spaniels is a wonderful way to strike up a conversation with people, like the lovely Flemish lady walking her three whippets in the giant Vogelzang park near our overnight stop in Antwerp. But it does mean that sometimes cultural activities are restricted. It's seldom been convenient to get to an art gallery or museum - unless we are strolling around Roman ruins, or, in this case, a sculpture park. Having delved into the offerings of Antwerp, we decided that nothing appealed more than the Middelheim open air museum. The spaniels were particularly impressed by the sculpture of a dog by Toni Stadler.

Dog walk zone - you can translate the rest

Perhaps even more exciting was the discovery of a dog park on the way. Off-lead activities have to be carefully considered in unknown spaces, especially with Max's propensity for swimming after ducks. So a safe, fenced field in which to play ball was a real bonus - although temperatures of 25C mean it has to be strictly limited, otherwise Elsa will happily give herself heatstroke. Today, a good run around was much needed to burn off the accumulated stress of walking around Bruges yesterday, then being surrounded by dozens of very blasé bunnies at the campsite.

A rather less curvy Barbara Hepworth 

For the humans, the quarry was a Barbara Hepworth, several Rodins, a Henry Moore and an Ai Weiwei. The Barbara Hepworth was eventually discovered, looking nothing like we expected. It all brought back memories of taking Jackson Spaniel to Yorkshire Sculpture park some years ago. He was very well behaved that time. Unlike the time he spotted the statue of a fisherman in Eyemouth and went berserk.


Max and Elsa took it all in their stride - they were even unfazed by an exhibit that reflected us all, and allowed us to see through. And we promise, no statues were pee'd on in the making of this blog.



After exploring the parks, it was time to head for our next stop, which was supposed to be Arnhem. But after a short diversion to Carrefour for supplies, the arrival time was getting later and later thanks to multiple roadworks ahead, and we decided that it made more sense to stay on the A2 and cross the German border. So you find us tonight in Gelsenkirchen, near Essen, at a lovely little Stellplatz surrounded by trees. Sorry Netherlands, we'll get back to you later. And hello Germany, our first night here and slowly Neri's very rusty (37 years since I ditched German for Spanish at school) vocabulary is starting to return. Gute nacht!

Gelsenkirchen Motorhome Stellplatz

If It's Tuesday This Must Be Belgium

....and the title of a long-forgotten 1969 romantic comedy becomes real because it is Tuesday and we are in Belgium. In Antwerp to be precise where we are overnight at Camperpark Vogelzang which is effectively a green parking area for the Antwerp Expo, which has nothing on at the moment. Lots of space and trees. Bit of road noise but nothing as bad as the M65. Motorhomes from half a dozen nationalities spread out around us. One daring soul has hung out the washing.

A quiet time by the canal

Yesterday we crossed the Channel, or rather travelled under it. Our firmly held belief is that if you have dogs Eurotunnel is the only way to go. On arrival in Calais it was straight to Carrefour to stock up on a reasonably priced wine or two. Bargain of the day was a Sauvignon Vin de Pays for an extortionate 2.60 euros. Eat your heart out Majestic.

Then it was along the A16 to the Belgian border where I managed to conceal my disappointment that we crossed without even a bump. I did wonder how the farmer to the right of the road got on. His house is in France and his barn is in Belgium. Do his cows have passports I wonder.

First night on the continent was spent at a lovely little aire by the canal in Beernem. Very quiet and a nice dog walk for the spaniels by the water although Max was intent on getting in and terrorising the ducks. We were joined by a lovely German couple to whom I explained the mysteries of the ticket machine in fractured English. Fresh water and toilet dump were all we needed. It really is a joy to be

Bruges has to be one of the most beautiful towns in Europe

in Europe where motorhomers are seen as an asset rather than the nuisance we seem to be in most parts of England.

This morning we took the train from the local station for the 12 minute journey into Bruges, a town we had last visited in December around 20 years ago. This time it was warmer and rather busier but the beer was just as good, as was our delight in rediscovering the wonderful taste of Belgian chips. How do they get them like that?

The spaniels had a tiring day walking the cobbled streets and being smiled at by passers by. When we were waiting for the train back a nice Dutch lady came up and wanted to take their photographs. English Springer Spaniels seem to be a bit of a rarity in Belgium.

The weather has been beautiful and at 8pm it is still 23 degrees. Tomorrow we head to country number three with an overnight stop at Arnhem. Didn't they make a film about that too or was that A Bridge Too Far?

Time for a rest and a drink.

Finally....we are underway

Darwen Tower from the other side of the moor

A suitable quote from
JRR Tolkien on the back
of the van

After the tumble drier drama it was a relief to wake up yesterday morning somewhere other than home, albeit we could have walked back to the house across the moor in about an hour. It did mean we could take the spaniels for one of their favourite walks at Roddlesworth Woods before we finally found ourselves turning south onto the M6. This is not our favourite motorway given that we have never travelled on it without some sort of hold up. This time it was work to turn a section into a smart motorway. Maybe they shouldn't have built a stupid motorway in the first place. A stop at Keele services meant we could have lunch and be entertained by a caravanner attempting to reverse into a parking space. He nearly made it.

"I'm in charge"

This morning we finally felt we were actually on our way having shaken the dust of Lancashire from our feet. Last night was spent on a lovely little site on Cannock Chase, (Forest View, Caravan and Camping Club)  where we were able to walk the spaniels, although they had to stay on leads as it is the adder breeding season. We also had to contend with a peacock which strutted around the van daring the dogs to have a go if they felt hard enough. They decided not. 

Tonight we have made it to the lovely Essex village of Thaxted where the parish council is enlightened enough to provide parking spaces for motorhomes. In a generally anti-motorhome England, it is a joy that some local authorities recognise we do bring money into an area. I duly trundled off to the local shop to spend said money on essentials, a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc and some smoked salmon, and luxuries like eggs and onions. This is posh Essex. Not a white stiletto on view but I was delighted to see at least one chap, of a certain age, wearing red trousers. And, on the way back to the van, a Ford Capri went through the main street.

Nice bit of C15th carpentry in Thaxted

The best laid plans...

It's our last night before we set off on our big trip. Except it isn't. Well, it almost is. Everything was on track until 9.30 this morning when the gas man arrived to do the gas safety check on our house before our tenants moved in. All our appliances passed with flying colours. Except for one. The gas man wasn't certified to check our gas tumble dryer. And neither was his boss. And neither, it seems, are any gas engineers in the North West. 

At first we thought this would be something which was easily resolved. Surely we'd find someone, they'd come and check the dryer, and all would be fine. But we didn't find anyone, and neither did our letting agents. 

Slowly it began to dawn on us that our highly valued, green, very economical, and extremely clever tumble dryer was going to be a casualty of our trip. No gas safety check, no tenancy. It had all seemed like such a good idea when we moved to Darwen nearly eight years ago. A gas dryer uses a fraction of the energy of an electric one. And when you live somewhere which was a weaving boom-town because a damp atmosphere reduces the likelihood that cotton will break, you need a way to dry your clothes. 

As we walked the spaniels I googled electric tumble dryers, next day delivery. Okay, that much was possible. Next we had to figure out how to disconnect the dryer, which led to me wriggling behind the appliances to inspect the pipework. A simple bayonet connection. A lay person can disconnect it. Oh, except they can't anymore. An unused bayonet connection has to be sealed by a gas engineer. Cue more phone calls. Gas engineer booked for tomorrow morning. Back to John Lewis website to order a new dryer for next day delivery. The dice is rolled... the dryer will be delivered between 11am and 9pm. A text will arrive sometime during the evening to tell us when. Will we get away tomorrow or not?

We decided last week that tonight we would sleep in the van and eat in town so that everything in the house could be packed up ready. The attic is now full. Very full. So full I was googling the weight load of waterbeds, just for comparison, to confirm we were still likely to be on the right side of the weight bearing load of our beams. Oh come on, these are oak beams dating back to pre-1675. They're like iron!.

So there we were, drinking an obscenely cheap bottle of Villa Maria and deciding today had been the most stressful day yet, when the text arrived from John Lewis. Your order will be delivered tomorrow between 17:48 and 19:48. Not much chance we'll be in Staffordshire tomorrow night then!

The good news is we had allowed ourselves four days to get to the Channel Tunnel, so that we had a margin for error, and could recover from the frantic preparations. But do we really want to spend another night camping outside the front door, when we were due to be on our way? And could we take the risk that our tenants would arrive to find us on the doorstep like a guest that doesn't realise the party's over?

So the new plan is to leave tomorrow, as soon as the new dryer has been delivered. But to drive about five miles over to the other side of Darwen Moor and stay in the car park at the Royal Arms. We'll have started our journey, we'll be a step nearer the first stop in Staffordshire, and we'll be able to take the spaniels on their favourite walk in Roddlesworth woods before we set off.

If this is the biggest hurdle we have to leap before we can set off for more than a year's travelling, we'll consider ourselves pretty lucky. Meanwhile, Elsa is just wondering why her view tonight looks so familiar.

Not long now

Spaniel proof upholstery...hopefully

Five days to go and the pace is going to hot up. It's that time when you begin to worry about what has been forgotten. We just did a couple of nights in Shrewsbury to shake down the van after the full service, cam belt change and  new shock absorbers. Great job by Lodge Bank Garage in Darwen. Since our last big outing we have fitted a 3G/4G aerial booster to give us more efficient wi fi, had the seats reupholstered in spaniel-proof material while Neri has made new and thicker curtains for the front window. Oh, and we installed reading lights in the cab area. The ones that came fitted to the van were not that efficient.

Neri spent two whole days putting down a new floor covering as the old one was beginning to look a little tired. Florence really is looking smart now.

Posh new flooring...just waiting for muddy paws

We think we now have all the permits and paperwork. We already had a French Crit'Air sticker, now we have the German equivalent so we can go into cities where there are restrictions on vehicle emissions. We also have a permit for Antwerp. Our engine is Euro 6 so we don't have too much problem but some cities are talking about banning diesel engines with Euro 1, 2 and 3 emission controls over the next couple of years. We don't intend to go into many cities but Hamburg and Antwerp are on the list as is Copenhagen. The latter only needs a permit for taxis and buses at the moment but I guess that will change.

We also registered for paying road tolls in Norway online. They use ANPR cameras rather than the toll tags we have used in France, Spain and Portugal in the past. Once registered they send us an invoice via e mail for whatever tolls we incur. I just need to check that we have all the adaptors to enable us to top up with LPG in all the 16 or so countries we will be visiting. That's except Finland which doesn't allow LPG for vehicles so we'll be rushing through before we run out.

Despite the best efforts of the EU, five of those countries don't use the euro so we have been loading the currency card with Norwegian Krone to get us up to Nordkapp. We have also equipped ourselves with International Driving Permits just in case we have left the EU before we return.

The house is now pretty much packed up, just a few things to go away and Florence to be loaded. Our new tenants are arriving two days after we leave which is good and means the house won't be empty for long. Mind you, our eagle-eyed neighbours will be keeping a watchful eye.

We are going to take a leisurely 4 days to drive down to the Channel tunnel so the dogs won't be stressed by a longer journey. After all, we have a year to do this trip!

That should be powerful enough to pick up the Rugby World Cup

Three weeks to go!

There's a drum kit under there somewhere

We arrived back from our long planned trip to Australia feeling a combination of jet lag, panic about all there is to do, and eagerness to just get going now. It was wonderful to see Max and Elsa again, and, as usual, they are keeping us on track.

We were able to celebrate some good news this week, we have found tenants for at least the first six months of our trip. A very charming neurosurgeon and his fiancée - an ob-gyn doctor we’ve yet to meet - will be moving in. He says he considers them less tenants than custodians of our house. Well, that suits us, let’s hope they end up staying longer than the minimum term.

What's going on Mum? Don't like it

Our first few days back were a bit full on. I had blood tests, hospital treatment and a tooth extraction lined up. Nick also had a dentist appointment, and I had a sight test. All these things need to be fitted in before leaving the country for a year. Then I suddenly realised that yesterday was three weeks before our departure date, now inked in as the 4th July. Three weeks sounds like plenty of time, but next week will be taken up with sorting out Florence’s MOT, cam belt, tyres and habitation check, and the following week we are taking a few days out to meet up with my Mum and her husband in their van for a goodbye trip. So this week we needed to get cracking with packing up the house.

We are lucky enough to have a large attic room, in which we’ll be storing all our belongings, and we have spent the last few days packing boxes and carrying them up the stairs. Thank goodness it isn’t a ladder! We’re left with a rather empty looking house this evening, but we have moved house often enough to know that there are always lots of last minute things to pack, and we haven’t even started on the kitchen. We have, however, had to take numerous breaks to cuddle spaniels who are very concerned by this activity.

The attic is now looking quite full, and the house quite empty. It's Saturday tomorrow. When we both stopped work we agreed to try to keep weekends different from weekdays, so no packing over the weekend, a little relaxation, some longer dog walks, and lots of spaniel cuddles. 

Room for a few more boxes