70th birthday trip, Tuesday 13 June.

We hadn't drawn the curtains last night - I seldom do unless we are overlooked - but this was a mistake as the sun shone right into my eyes when it was still too early to wake up, so I had to rectify that!

The Swan Whisperer went for a run, of course, as the lakes behind the hostel - I think the remnants of a moat - seem almost as if they were designed for that! 

The hostel doesn't include breakfast and, although you can buy it, the options are all sweet, and I do hate an all-sweet breakfast. So we made our own, boiling eggs in my little kettle and finishing the bread and cream cheese we had bought in Oslo. And the last two not-very-nice yoghurts. Then I went downstairs and bought a coffee, which was far too weak, and some orange juice, which says it's organic but it's made from concentrate, so I don't see how it can be. Anyway, there is plenty left.

Then we went out. We walked to Strøget, which is the longest pedestrian shopping street in Europe - and not all Euro-high-street, although  some familiar chains. I did like the Royal Copenhagen pottery building.

Finally we found ourselves at the Gammel Strand metro station (it's called metro here), by a statue commemorating the fishwives who used to hold a market here until the 1950s.

We took a train out to Østerport, and then walked to see the Little Mermaid (well, one couldn't not!). After which, we caught a riverbus down to Knippelsbro, on the other side of the harbour. There wasn't much to see, so we found a fish restaurant that did a not-very-nice fish burger but some really nice chips.

After which we discovered that there was a bus that would take us back to the hostel, so we caught it, and had a rest while our phones charged. Then the SW went out for another walk, and after that we bought a sandwich for supper in the hostel café (under-seasoned!). 

And so ends my 7th decade! 

70th birthday trip, Monday 12 June; travel day 3/15

We were sad to say goodbye to our studio apartment this morning - it was very comfortable and had everything one could possibly want. I recommend it if you are going to Oslo!

We walked down to where we thought we could get a bus to the station, but first got on one going in the wrong direction, and then discovered that the one we thought went to the station, didn't! But it wasn't far away, and by the time we had looked to see where we could get a bus or tram to the station. It wasn't worth it! So we walked.

We were early for the train we had planned to catch, and ended up getting the one before.  Swedish trains seem as bad as British or German ones, though, as quite suddenly when we got to Malmo they said that our end of the train wasn't going anywhere and we must move up. Of course we couldn't find first class, although there was one, and second class was absolutely rammed! I did get a seat, though, but the SW didn't.

Then they said the train wasn't stopping at Copenhagen airport, so those who wanted to go there had to get out at the next stop and go back. The train did empty at that point, and the SW could come and sit down, but of course we were nearly there.

The hostel isn't far from the station and we walked there. They have put is in a 6-bedded dormitory, but on our own. Quite nice actually.

We made a cup of tea - the first time I have had to dig out my own travel kettle and mugs - and then headed on out, primarily for a walk, but also to try to buy a screwdriver. The SW's suitcase, which I bought to take on our last Inter-rail trip in 2013, has 4 wheels. but two of them had broken - needless to say, in opposite corners. He reckoned that he might perhaps be able to change them round, and has done so although he is not too sure how well this will hold. There is a luggage shop near the station, though, so if necessary we can get a new one on Wednesday.

The place where we bought the screwdriver, just round the corner from the hostel, as it turns out, was a most extraordinary shop. We thought at first it was  basically a Halfords, but it not only sold that sort of thing, but a very random selection of stuff from baby necessities, laundry detergent and knitting wool! And lots of other stuff, including tools!

We went back to the hostel and the SW worked on the case, and then it was supper time so went out to a local steakhouse which we thought looked nice. And it was. I had a steak and chips, plus a side salad, and the SW had salmon with new potatoes and shared my salad, and we both had beer.

Then pudding, which was basically soft ice-cream, his with a chocolate lava cake and mine on a waffle with chocolate sauce and nuts. And so back to the hostel for the night! 

70th birthday trip, Sunday 11 June

I woke up early, and decided to put on my dressing-gown and slippers and take a load of laundry downstairs to the facilities provided, which are not only free to use but they also have an iron and ironing-board, should you wish to use that.  And detergent capsules are there to be used! 

Unfortunately, the door lock chimes very loudly when you open it, so I woke the Swan Whisperer, which I had had no idea of doing! Anyway, I made tea and then washed and dressed to go and put the washing in the dryer before anybody else wanted it. Someone had put their stuff in to dry overnight, but it was dry so I took it out and folded it, although the Swan Whisperer, who went down to get ours when the drying cycle had finished, said it was still there!

There is an Anglican church here, which I learnt was built in the last century to cater for seamen, mostly Scots (so why Anglican rather than Presbyterian?).

We decided to attend worship there, and, as it was a lovely day, we walked - about 20 minutes. Sadly, the minister was ill, so the service was taken by a worship leader and had to be Morning Prayer rather than the Communion we had hoped for. The minister had emailed her sermon to the worship leader, who read it on her behalf, rather well, I thought.

We were not the only people "passing through" Gothenburg at the service, and it was good to chat to an American couple over a cup of tea afterwards. Then we went on to explore the waterfront,

and found a café in which to eat fish and chips, and then took various buses and trams to see where they went - I fell asleep on the final tram and missed the city centre, to my annoyance!

After a cup of tea the Swan Whisperer went out to explore on his own, and got some sandwich stuff in Lidl for tonight and tomorrow. He is now back and relaxing, and I have pretty much repacked my stuff. 

70th birthday trip, Saturday 10 June. Not travel day 3/15!

The hotel breakfast was as delicious as ever, and we firmly made sandwiches to take with us on the coach. I know one isn't supposed to, but since at least half the stuff was far more sandwich filling stuff than breakfast stuff, I expect they are used to it. The Swan Whisperer put a cherry tomato into his, which later exploded when he bit into it and went all over me! But that was later. After breakfast, we went back to the room and packed up, and were in good time to check out before the 11:00 am deadline. 

The Swan Whisperer was marvellous at carrying and/or pulling our heavy suitcases all down the long slopes and stairs to the T-bane station. We changed at Nationaltheatret to a NY local line, which we should probably have marked on our pass, but the SW said firmly that our local tickets would count, and anyway, nobody wanted to see them, so that was all right. 

We parked ourselves in the station and I went for a walk round and took some photos, and explored the various shops, etc

(there was a l'Occitane en Provence, but I resisted temptation!). We then wandered through to the bus station and found where the coach would go from; I bought some drinking-water as I was almost out. 

We thought the Swan Whisperer had booked us seats right at the front of the coach but, alas, they were right at the back, way beyond the back wheels. Fortunately the suspension was good and so was the road quality, so we got away with it. We ate our sandwiches, mopped off the tomato explosion, and then I went to sleep for a bit. When I woke up, I I did some knitting, wishing all the time that I could read or watch videos, and stand up and move about a bit. 

However, we reached Gothenburg at long last, and after visiting the facilities (10 SEK, but you paid by contactless), we bought day-tickets (these are valid for 24 hours from the time of purchase) and caught a local bus to what was probably not the nearest stop, but we are not sure. We finally found our apartment building, and got in with no problems. It is a lovely little studio with all you could want in the way of fittings, etc. 

After relaxing with a cup of tea, we went out in search of a supermarket, and did a shopping for essentials - bread, milk, etc, and a ready-meal for supper which was potatoes in some kind of cheese sauce. Would have been nicer with a green veg or some salad, but you can't have everything. 

There is a washing machine and tumble dryer in the basement, so we will do all that tomorrow! And, of course, explore the town and perhaps attend public worship at the local English church. 

70th birthday trip, Friday 9 June

The Swan Whisperer went for a run this morning, and came back to a hotel breakfast that was even more delicious and copious than the one In Stockholm! I am going to put on an awful lot of fat this holiday, I can see it coming. 

After breakfast, we did a tidy-up and sort-out, and then went into town. Unfortunately, while the hotel location has the most superb views over Oslo, the road down to the nearest T-bane (metro) station is very, very steeply downhill, and I was far too worried about how on earth I was going to get back up again to really enjoy seeing Oslo. So in the end the SW abandoned me to sit outside a café and drink strawberry lemonade while he did a brief explore. I spent the entire time trying to fill in a compensation claim to Inter-rail for the bus fare tomorrow. I don't know whether they will agree. However, SR are going to compensate me for the delay on Tuesday, so that's something. 

Anyway, we bought some rolls in the café and then headed back to the T-bane. I suggested we go right to the end of the line to eat them, and then come back down to the T-bane stop before ours, which might be more downhill and less steep. So we did.

The end of the line was near the Rose Castle, which apparently memorialises the German occupation during WWII. We didn't go in, but did treat ourselves to an ice at the café there. Unfortunately, what the Swan Whisperer (and I) thought was dark chocolate turned out to be licorice, but he ate it anyway and I let him have a bite of my luscious strawberry lolly to take the taste away.

We then got the T-bane down to the stop before the nearest one, which was not much further and the path a lot easier. When we got to the hotel, the path led alongside the underground car park, so we nipped in there and used the lift straight into the hotel lobby! 

After which, as if he had not had enough exercise for one day, the SW decided to go for a hike by himself, and I had a bit of a nap. When he came back and had had another shower, we had dinner in the hotel restaurant. He had a burger and beer, and I had cod in some sort of luscious sauce with rosé wine, and very good it was, too!

Then we wandered out on the terrace for awhile, taking photos of the superb view over Oslo, and of a robot lawn-mower, and so, as Pepys says, to bed! Photos on Facebook, as per usual. 

70th birthday trip, Thursday 8 June. Travel day 2/15

We got up fairly early - well, when it is light by 04:00 it's hard not to! Plus we wanted to catch the first tourist bus of the day, which left at 10. Hotel breakfast was delicious and copious, although the bacon made me thirsty! But quite the nicest melon I've ever tasted!

The city tour was great, and showed you where everything was, although it would have been nice to have had time to get off and look around. Difficult to take photos from a bus. Also had I thought, I would have taken a box for my hearing-aids so I could have listened to the commentary. If we take another tour bus anywhere, I will try to remember to do that.

A lovely walk back to the hotel from the final stop, and then we checked out and sat in the lobby (very comfortable) with a cup of coffee (complimentary) and relaxed. We bought a couple of filled rolls and some chocolate for lunch and then went to the station to await our train.

Not desperately comfortable, and a very long, but pleasantly scenic, journey to Oslo.

Much of it single-track, which surprised us, between two major European capitals. But there are no trains this Saturday - don't know whether strike or track work - so we have had to buy coach tickets, and I dislike coach travel! I am hoping Eurail will refund us the ticket costs - am trying to sort that out. Also, no idea whether SJ will refund the cost of our reservations; they should, but I am not holding my breath. No customer service at the stations of course. This holiday is a total nightmare so far, but then, come to think of it so was our last Inter-rail tour the first few days, and then it was delightful.

Anyway, I had ordered us a meal on the train - nothing grand, just a wrap with meatballs and potatoes, but it was very good! Tea, coffee, water, fruit and chocolate were all complimentary for 1st-class passengers, which was nice. I dozed in front of some YouTube videos for the first hour or so, and then read and watched the world go by.

I made a mistake and booked a hotel miles out of the centre, so we had to take a taxi which was horrendously expensive, and we'll have to take one back to the bus station on Saturday. But it is a very nice hotel, although the loo wouldn't stop flushing in the first room they gave us, so they moved us into a rather nicer one! Not enough pillows, though - I'll have to ask for an extra one in the morning. Meanwhile I have my inflatable one. The hotel is up a massive hill, and there is a fabulous view, which I shall take photos of in the morning - the light was fading rather by the time we were settled tonight. 

70th birthday trip, Wednesday 7 June

We should have arrived in Stockholm at 09:10 this morning. We finally arrived at 16:40. I spent most of the day lying on my bunk as the most comfortable option!  They gave us  breakfast, of a sort - stale roll with margarine (which I won't touch), cream cheese and jam, cardboard orange juice and quite nice coffee.

We had hoped we would be only a couple of hours late - the death that caused the original delay was an "accident" at Neumunster, where the train also sat for ages.  We were still in Germany when we woke up!

And every time the train stopped the projected delay got longer and longer and longer and longer. By the time it was lunchtime, I knew I would probably not last out, so the SW went to see if he could scrounge some food from somewhere and came back with a much nicer breakfast - fresh roll, margarine and jam, (didn't eat the margarine), muesli with yoghurt, fruit juice, and a tub of boiled egg, cheese and salad. And more coffee. We assumed this was the paid-for breakfast available to seated and couchette passengers, but they didn't charge us for it (I should jolly well think not!).

There was some lovely views as we went over the bridges between the various Danish islands and Denmark and Sweden.

Anyway, we got there in the end, and the hotel was not far from the station if you knew where to look! We found it eventually. The room is very nice, although it looks over the railway line - totally soundproof, though. I believe the cheap rooms here don't have windows, but I wasn't having that!

After a cup of tea and a rest, we went out and had a lovely walk round the old town, and a delicious meal. Meat dishes are expensive, but fish is reasonable and beer and so on positively cheap! Then back to the hotel. 

But the hiccups aren't over. The hotel I have mistakenly booked us in in Oslo is about 10 miles out of town and not refundable so we can't change it. And the first leg of our train from Oslo to Copenhagen has been cancelled, so I'll have to rebook. Oh dear. 

70th birthday trip, Tuesday 6 June. Travel day 1/15

Well, we should be en route to Stockholm now, but actually we are still sitting in Hamburg station. The train is here, and we are in bed in it, but it should have left 40 minutes ago.

We got up at sparrowfart this morning and arrived at St Pancras in plenty of time for our Eurostar. Compared to our Christmas trip, there was virtually no queue to check in and go through security and passport control. As we have first class passes, we could travel in Standard Premier, and got a complimentary breakfast, although the coffee tasted a bit burnt.

We got an earlier train to Cologne than we originally thought we would, and could have (perhaps should have) done a cross-platform change on to the next train to Hamburg, but decided to have lunch first and catch a mid-afternoon train.Which was a little late starting off and got later and later - at its worst it was about 45 minutes late, but it did catch up a little of that and was only 30 minutes late at Hamburg.

We went to a restaurant across the road from the station (and, 

 incidentally, next door to the hotel where we will be staying on our way back through the town) and had a lovely dinner including our first beer of the holiday.

And then back to wait for our train, which has still not gone  anywhere! Oh well. I'll watch some videos while I still have a signal!

10 minutes later: Apparently the delay, sadly, due to someone's having died on the train between Berlin and here. Attendant said he thought it wouldn't be much longer. Anyway, we are comfortable! 

Oberstdorf 2023, Tuesday 23 May

 I have never really liked the aire at Sangatte, as it is in the middle of nowhere and too far to get to a bakery before breakfast!  However, the one in Calais does not have this defect, so we had pains aux raisins for breakfast as well as a lovely fresh demi-baguette.  The pains aux raisins were definitely edible, but not, it has to be said, as nice as the ones you can get in Lidl!

Anyway, we left the aire at about 09:35 and made our way to the Shuttle, where we were given our booked crossing.  This gave us half an hour or so before we were called to the boarding area, so the Swan Whisperer had coffee and we finished the packing up in the bedroom and the clothes - the kitchen stuff had to wait until we arrived as it would have rattled and there isn't really room for the crates on the floor.  The crossing was on time, and then it was an easy run to No 6.  In fact, as my mother and sister were going to be out and it was lunchtime, we parked up by Patching Pond

to eat our lunch before going round to the house and packing up the rest of the stuff - groceries, etc.  My mother and sister came home briefly to let the dog out, and then went out again; we finished up everything except the fridge (that came last of all), and then made ourselves a cup of tea.  While we were drinking it, they returned, and we chatted for awhile before heading back to London.  

That was an easy run until we got to Mitcham, when we were held in a massive traffic jam at Figges Marsh, and we didn't get home until about 18:45.  Then we had to unload the car, unpack, and put on the first load of washing - but it is done, now, supper has been eaten, and we are home for the next two weeks!  

Oberstdorf 2023, Monday 22 May

I could have sworn, when I planned this trip, that our drive for today was to have been around 4 hours - quite long enough when you have to sit there, doing nothing except perhaps a bit of knitting! I can't really read in a moving car, and get both bored and tired.  And the Swan Whisperer swears that the route he took was a direct one - but it was nearly 7 hours travelling time!

First thing, he went for a run, and I walked up to the nearby bakery and got bread and croissants for breakfast (actually one croissant and one pain au chocolat). We set off about 09:30, and stopped at a Casino in Sedan for lunch and shopping, which I later regretted as it seemed far more expensive than Carrefour and didn't have such nice things.

Then it was a long, long, long drive to Cité Europe, as there were a couple of things I hadn't been able to get in Casino, including a ready meal for supper, and we needed diesel, which is cheaper here than in the UK. Supper was a frozen dish of potato, fish and scallops, and very good it was too.

However, when we got to Sangatte, where we had planned to spend the night, we found that the car park no longer accepts motor homes, so we came here to the one in Calais. Nothing wrong with it, except it isn't free, and services are extra. Not that we need them, having used them this morning in Dieue-sur-Meuse.

Oh, and apparently Oberstdorf was a super-spreader event, and an awful lot of people have now gone down with, or tested positive for Covid. Well, if I didn't get it again after spending a whole afternoon with my mother when she had it in March, I probably won't get it now. Hope not, anyway.

Haven't taken any photos today, so here is one from yesterday, some random poultry. 

Oberstdorf 2023, Sunday 21 May

Dieue-sur-Meuse, France

Today was a long, slow drive through Germany and into France. The Swan Whisperer went for a quick leg-stretch before breakfast, and said that Kircheim-unter-Teck was a very pretty little town, but unfortunately there was not enough time for me to confirm this. He also found a bakery!

As I said, it was a long, weary drive. The SW said that when we go past Pforzheim it either rains or there are road works. Today, it was the latter. 

We stopped in a random layby to watch our church service livestream, although it was not very easy to hear, and then have lunch, and then it was on and on, and we finally arrived in this little town, just south of Verdun, at about 4:00 pm. We had a quick cup of tea, and then I discovered there was a planned walking tour around the town with historical sites, so we went for a very pleasant, if rather hot, walk, basically down to the Meuse and back. We are parked up alongside a canal, which is rather lovely.

More photos on Facebook.

Then back to the WoMo to have supper and our monthly Zoom Bible study, and tomorrow we will be back in Calais, I hope, and ready to cross on Tuesday morning. 

Oberstdorf 2023, Saturday 20.May

Kirchheim unter Teck, Germany

Today was the final day of competition, and, as always on the last day, lots of great skating to watch.

After breakfast, we used the services and got the WoMo back into travelling condition, everything tidied up and put away. We returned our Kurkarte and filled drinking water containers and so on, and then headed to the rink for the final day. The weather, now that it is time to go home, was lovely, and even got positively hot later in the day! 

But we had to come away before the last few classes, as we need to get home fairly fast - no extended holiday for us this year - and we had two hours' driving ahead. Which we accomplished quickly and easily, calling in at ReWe en route to do a Last Shop in Germany, and are now parked up somewhere and eating supper. And I couldn't leave Bavaria without one of these, could I? 

Oberstdorf 2023, Friday 19 May

Started out today feeling much better, and was up at the rink in good time to cheer on friends in the two Bronze Women III classes. And chat to lots of other friends, too. Sadly, one told me she is hanging up her skates now, as her body is no longer coping well.

Then I went for a walk in town, basically out by one road and back by another,

and was back at the WoMo in time to get lunch. After which, it began clear to me that I was still rather running on empty, so I spent a quiet afternoon dozing and reading. Didn't want very much supper, although it was delicious - Bavarian liver dumplings in a vegetable stew/soup with rice. Not sure I got the seasoning quite right, though. 

Oberstdorf 2023, Thursday 18 May

I woke up at dawn to see this wonderful sunrise out of my bedroom window!

But it was a premature awakening - I fell asleep again and when I woke, realised that I was exhausted! So stayed in bed most of the morning while the Swan Whisperer went for a hike (up a mountain on Ascension Day!) - we had been going to go on what he promised me was a flat hike, but I couldn't do it, and spent most of the afternoon lying down too.

We had an early supper and then went to the rink in time to watch the pattern dances, which ranged from dire to excellent, and then back home for a cup of tea before bed! 

Oberstdorf 2023, Wednesday 17 May

There was nothing I really wanted to watch until late afternoon today, so after a lazy start (I was lazy; the SW went for a run!) , I set out for a walk. This time, I decided to walk down to the Oberstdorf Haus

and the various parks in that area, and very nice too, and then had a peep inside the Protestant church,

which I had not seen before. Unfortunately, I then turned the wrong way and ended up at the ReWe supermarket just at the edge of town! Naturally, I did a bit of shopping, and was delighted to find that the Tony Chocolonely chocolate that my family gave me for Easter was about half the price it is in Sainsbury's!

However, I was getting tired by then and was delighted to find a bus was due which took me as far as the station. Of course I passed the Swan Whisperer on his way down to ReWe (I'd texted him what had happened)! So I rang him up and said I'd just gone roaring past in the bus!  I had a bit of time to wait for the Ortsbus up to the Wohnmobilstellplatz, but it was worth it, although I was getting cold again - my ice dance sweatshirt, lovely though it is, must be 20 years old now and is not as warm as it once was, and my coat is only mid-season weight. The weather forecast had been unduly pessimistic and, although it was far from sunny, it didn't rain today. But it was very cold, and is scheduled to drop to freezing as the skies clear overnight. 

Anyway, I was very idle and took the bus right over past the rink to the shop just past Norma, which is actually no nearer than the lower stop unless you want to get rolls in the bakery, which I did, cheaper than the ReWe. So then lunch, and  then I fell asleep for a couple of hours and had to have a quick cup of tea when I woke up, before going to the rink just in time to see the one skater I really wanted to see.

L had to have her foot completely rebuilt last year, artificial tendons, heel resited, and goodness knows what else. It's been a long, hard and painful struggle for her, and there are moments when I know she despaired. Her doctors had said she might not even walk again, never mind skate. But she was determined and entered the artistic category for her level and age group - and rocked it! I am sure I was not the only one in tears when she finished. Clever choreography focused on what she can do, not what is no longer possible, and she looked fantastic - and is taking home a well-deserved Bronze medal!

After that, there were plenty of other skaters to watch and cheer for, and when the last of the Masters men had made us laugh with his interpretation of Hernando's Hideaway, we treated ourselves to dinner in Zoran's, the restaurant above the rink. I had an Apérol spritz, and Zanderfilet with vegetables, and the SW had beer and tagliatelle with salmon. And so back to the WoMo, and straight to bed! 

Oberstdorf 2023, Tuesday 16 May

Why do ice rinks always have such dreadfully uncomfortable seats? It simply isn't possible to sit and watch a competition all day without developing a servere backache!

Today started with the distressing discovery that I had somehow miscalculated the number of pairs of pants (underpants, if you are American) that I would need, so I had to fish the worn pairs out of the dirty laundry bag and wash them. It is far too wet for anything to dry, so they are hanging up in the shower, still damp!

Once that was done, I popped over to Norma for some necessities while the Swan Whisperer used the services, and then we set off for the rink as the forecast rain started.

We basically stayed there, grabbing a sandwich from the café at lunch time. I did a tai chi practice outside during one resurface, and enjoyed a glimpse of the local cows (difficult to see in this photo)

but by about 4:30 my back was killing me, so I came back to the WoMo and treated myself to a cake from the new bakery with a cup of tea,

and then, because I was cold, snuggled down in a rug. There may have been a nap...

The Swan Whisperer came  in at that moment, and we had the ready-meal I had bought earlier which was not very nice as it was too dry. Now we are  closing up to keep the heat in. And I, for one, am going to bed early! 

Oberstdorf 2023, Monday 15 May

The skating started this afternoon, although there was nothing we wanted to see until about 5 pm. So this morning I went for another walk around Oberstdorf, and this time did a bit of shopping. I had given myself  permission to take the bus back, with a fairly heavy bag, but I just missed one by the skin of my teeth, and the next one wasn't for another 15 minutes and it was raining, so I walked back.

Had I known the weather was going to be glorious, i'd have saved my walk until this afternoon because, contrary to all the forecasts, the sun came out and it was positively hot! The forecast for tomorrow and Wednesday is still dire, though. Anyway, the Swan Whisperer did go for a walk, and when he came back there was time for a cup of tea before we head to to the rink. The mountains were looking lovely in the sunshine,

although there were clouds descending on one of them.

We enjoyed catching up with various friends and acquaintances in the rink, and watching some of our friends skate. We are all getting old now, though, and more and more of our friends have given up - there are  younger ones coming along all the time, of course, but few that we know. Still, always enjoyable to watch those we do know! Even if we didn't always agree with the judges in the artistic category.

Once we had seen all the skaters we wanted to see, we came back to the WoMo and ate cold chicken and salad, followed my melon, followed by cheese and biscuits! 

Oberstdorf 2023, Sunday 14 May

I am not sure whether it was the church bells or the cowbells that woke me this morning! Could have been either, as I'm so deaf I could only hear them faintly! But very much the typical Oberstdorf alarm clock.

After breakfast it was lovely not to have to hurry to get ready to leave or to go and do something before leaving! We do have to keep very tidy, though, as the living space is so small. But I enjoyed my coffee slowly, feeling no pressure to finish it!

When I had finished it, we went over to the new bakery to get rolls for lunch and a Sunday cake each.

Then we went our separate ways - he used the services and, I think, went for a walk, while I went down into the town to remind myself where things were - almost all the shops were shut, of course, this being Sunday, but it was good to see where they were. But in all the years we've been coming here, I don't remember Oberstdorf liqueur and/or chocolates.

Nor a shop selling soap made from the milk of Oberstdorf cows!

Anyway, I walked in up to the rink, delighted to find I didn't even want to take the bus, never mind need to, and went in to say hello to loads of friends - I'd met one lot as I set out and we had stopped to exchange news. Then back to the WoMo in time to listen to our church service. We tried to listen together, but it worked better in the end to use our respective bluetooths on our phones.

Then lunch, and then I went to sleep while the SW had another walk, in the rain this time, and then a quiet afternoon reading until it was time to get supper. I found I wasn't very hungry, and rather wished I'd only had half my cake at lunch. Ah well. 

The competition starts tomorrow; I expect I shall go and watch quite a lot of it, but not all! I have bought my ticket, though. 

Oberstdorf 2023, Saturday 13 May

Oberstdorf Allgäu

I don't know whether I was overtired, or what, but I slept very badly, and today started horribly early as the Swan Whisperer wanted to do a parkrun some 35 km from where we had spent the night. We parked up there, rather on a slope, which made having a shower rather difficult as the water pooled on the back of the cabinet.

I decided that toast was too ambitious for me with that slope, so had a fried egg sandwich for my breakfast. When the SW got back after what he said was a very hilly run (25'44", and a new course record for his age band), he did make toast to go with his fried egg.

We decided that, as we were less than 3 hours' drive from Oberstdorf, and had nothing planned to do at wherever we had planned to spend the night, it was silly not to go straight there. So, after stopping to do a small shop at a convenient ReWe, that is what we did. We stopped for lunch at a random rest area, and again 20.minutes later to do the washing up, as the used plates are rattling so loudly. Then we stopped at Memmingen to get diesel and then straight here, even if the Satnav did take us the pretty way! We assume it thought it was quicker.

Anyway, just as we got here the rain stopped, so we parked up and had a cup of tea before the SW went into town to get cash and I popped into Norma to see what they had, which turned out to be a pair of blue canvas shoes, which I wanted anyway, and some potato salad. Also, there is a new bakery between here and Norma, which will be open tomorrow (bakeries are about the only shops in Germany that  open on Sundays and public holidays, although the tourist shops might). So looking forward to getting tomorrow's lunch rolls from there.

It hadn't rained since we arrived, but it's not exactly sunny, and the forecast isn't good. Oh well, that's what you get in the Alps in May. 

Oberstdorf 2023, Friday 12 May

Weil der Stadt, near Stuttgart

(That appears to translate as "Because the town", which  makes me wonder Because the town what!)

So today was All About Speyer. Our first stop was the Technik Museum, which has been on the Swan Whisperer's bucket list since we visited the sister museum at Sinsheim some twelve years ago now. He and I have learnt, over the years, that we enjoy museums more if we split up and arrange to meet at a given place and time. There was a coffee bar just at the entrance, so we agreed to meet there at 11:30, it now being 09:45.

I did rather love the museum - I knew I would - but, sadly, many of the exhibits such as the inside of the 747 or any of the other planes, for that matter, we're up terrifically long flights of steep and/or spiral metal stairs, which I knew I couldn't manage. You couldn't expect them to put lifts in everywhere, but one or two would have been nice!

However, I had a very happy time pottering around mostly on the level, although I did go up to one gallery to see a model railway. The main hall was arguably the most interesting, although one couldn't not visit the space exhibitions with a Russian space shuttle

and so on. But what I really loved was outside, with trains

and boats

and planes.... And inside, a "proper " Paris bus of the kind I used to use regularly  when I lived there, 50 years ago! 

When I was done, I went to the coffee shop and waited for the SW, and when he had had his coffee we walked on into the town, across a park, and visited the Cathedral. Then we looked up local places to have lunch, and found a very nice café that did us a do good light meal,

and then a rhubarb cake for the SW, and an ice for me.

After which we walked back to the WoMo, used the services and headed on south to this aire in Weil der Stadt, which is in an Edeka car park, and we were lucky enough to get the last place! I did some shopping, and now have enough food for the weekend (I didn't use that sauce last night as the veg had made so much gravy it didn't need it), so, except perhaps for la for lunch and maybe a bottle of wine, I won't need to shop until Monday in Oberstdorf!

Oberstdorf 2023, Thursday 11 May

Speyer, Germany

We had a really lovely morning at the Thermapolis spa in Amnéville. We went there last year, and will definitely go again! Well worth the detour. My smartwatch said I had swum 600 metres, which of course is ridiculous - it was mostly being carried round the lazy river. And getting a wonderful water massage on thighs, legs, bum, back and shoulders! Brilliant.

After which, it was quite a comedown to have to shop, but I hadn't shopped since we left home and we were running low on staples. We ate in the supermarket car park, including delicious Gariguette strawberries and cream,

and then drove here to Speyer. Roads not at all bad, although there was one horribly bendy bit - I had  been asleep, and it woke me up!

We are parked up in a motorhome site next door to the museum,

which we have long wanted to visit, and will do in the morning. We loved the one at Sinsheim, years ago now, and this has been on the SW's bucket list for a very long time. The aire is quite expensive, but all-inclusive, which is nice.

Sadly, the aubergine pasta I had planned for supper can't happen, as the aubergine had gone mouldy, so we are having a clean-the-fridge vegetable stew with a sauce I happened to buy in the supermarket to see if it was nice! 

Oberstdorf 2023, Wednesday 10 May.

Amnéville, France

Oh dear, what a day! Last night I discovered that the bag with things like my dry mouth spray and favourite essential oils had been left at home (fortunately not my medication, and I did have spares of the most important things). Then this morning the Swan Whisperer said we must have left the eggs at home as there they weren't! I said I knew I'd packed them (I remembered doing so), but I couldn't see them, either! So the SW said he would look in the boot. But where were his keys? Again, they weren't anywhere he expected to find them. Last time he'd used them had been when he turned on the gas, but they weren't in the lock and they weren't in the locker with the cylinders, either - he borrowed my keys to check. Finally he found them in the container beside his bed, and then remembered that he had accidentally emptied his pockets when undressing last night!  Whereupon he did look in the boot for the eggs, and there they were!

It was far too wet to go for our planned walk along the canal, which was disappointing, so we set off on the next leg of our journey instead.

The first part of our drive was incredibly stressful as it was pouring with rain and the Belgian motorways were as rammed as usual, so incredible amounts of spray! But eventually the rain stopped and we decided to call in at the Euro Space Centre, which we had some trouble finding! We had been before, some 11 or 12 years ago now, and it was not as nice as we remembered. There had been a small visitor centre and you didn't have to go into the (eye-wateringly expensive) museum to see anything of interest. We did look round the gift shop, and while there was some stuff we could have bought for the grandsons, we were not sure whether they are "into" space and astronomy and that sort of thing, so we didn't.

Then we drove on through gradually improving weather through the rest of Belgium, and then through Luxembourg, where we stopped for (relatively) cheap diesel, and into France. We are parked up in a Camping-Car park in Amnéville, where we have stayed before, too go to the Thermapolis spa baths. We thought of going this evening, but the OAP discount ends at 16:00, which it then was, so we decided to wait for the morning. 

Technology hates me today! They're is a tai chi Zoom class on Wednesday evenings, which I wanted to join, so the SW kindly said he would get supper. But as he didn't know how to make the planned asparagus risotto, I wrote out the details for him and posted them to my recipe blog. But Facebook, when I linked it, decided asparagus risotto must be some kind of weapon or something rude, and gave me a warning! And my Bluetooth keyboard isn't working properly! 

Then I couldn't get my tablet to get the sound right for my class, so had to join on my phone, which was not ideal, and then my smartwatch didn't record the class although I could have sworn I'd set it to! Truly, technology hates me! But the risotto was delicious! 

Oberstdorf 2023; Tuesday 9 May

We are not yet, of course, actually in Oberstdorf; in fact, today we have only gone as far as Maurage in Belgium, where we are parked up beside the canal. 

We got up at sparrowfart this morning, had a quick breakfast and then loaded the car and were away before 7:00, arriving in Sussex at about 08:45. We unloaded the car into the WoMo, and put away the things that really had to be put away, leaving clothes and bedding for later. We then drove it round to No 6, only to find that my sister was doing her Pilates class so the family weren't ready to take us round the woods. We should have walked... 

Anyway, I helped my mother make salad - we had leftover cold chicken and Coronation dressing, which we shared with them. When my sister was ready, we went for a drive round the woods to see the bluebells and other wild flowers. There is a lot of comfrey - boneset - but I didn't take a picture of it.

 

Lunch was early, as my mother and sister were going out, and we needed to get on, so after the meal we said our goodbyes and headed off to Folkestone. I slept through most of the motorway bit. 

Quite unlike last time, we were offered a crossing half an hour earlier than scheduled, and got through Passport Control with no delays at all. After that it was a very easy, if dull, run to our overnight place, although at the last minute we had to divert due to a road closure. It was pouring with rain, although this has now stopped, and we were hungry, so supper was the end of the chicken hotted up in some stock, baby new potatoes and tenderstem broccoli, and very good it was, too. Followed by yoghurt, and now a cup of tea with biscuits and cheese! 

On the Buses

Today, 29 April, was All Change on many of London's bus routes.  Three of the routes involved went through Brixton, so it was a no-brainer to travel on them and see what had changed.  The Swan Whisperer did a parkrun, and I did tai chi, and we met up outside Brixton Library at 10:30 to catch our first bus of the day, the no 3.

Now, the 3 used to go to Horse Guards (back in the day, it went further, up Regent Street, I think, but can't really remember), but from today it goes to Victoria Station.  It really wouldn't be the sensible option normally, as it is a lot longer than the 2, which is the main bus between Brixton and Victoria; however I can see that it does provide useful links once you are in Kennington.  Instead of turning left after crossing Lambeth Bridge, it goes straight on up Horseferry Road and Artillery Row before turning left into Victoria Street, and so to Victoria Station.

Our next bus was a no 11.  This used to be the best bus in London, running from Chelsea all the way over to Liverpool Street Station, and it was the route you recommended to tourists as a great way of seeing many of the sights without having to take an expensive tour.  I believe much of its former route - up Whitehall, along  Fleet Street to St Paul's Cathedral, and so on, has been taken over by the 26, which we need to explore sometime.  Anyway, its new route after Victoria was very dull - straight down Victoria Street, over Westminster Bridge, and so to Waterloo.

The next bus that interests us is the 59, on which I used to commute to Russell Square when I was working in the area.  Alas, no more - if I want to go to that area by bus in future, I'll have to change at Waterloo on to a 68.  However, the bus does now go over to Smithfield and St Bartholomew's Hospital, turning right at Holborn and going along High Holborn, Chancery Lane and Newgate Street to get there.  Our journey was slightly spoiled by the driver's forgetting that the bus stop at Waterloo had changed, so we had to run to catch it, and then the driver, presumably annoyed with himself, was grumpy.

By the time we got to Smithfield, it was about 12:00, so we decided to walk back along the route to Red Lion Square where the rerouted 133 now starts.  It, too, used to go to Liverpool Street, but now goes to Holborn instead.  It was a lovely walk along a part of London we really don't know at all.  With distant views of St Paul's Cathedral

north from Holborn Viaduct

and distant views of the Post Office tower (now, I believe, known as Telecom Tower):

When we were nearly there, we stopped and got some lunch in a nearby Prets, and then found the first stop for the 133.  Unlike the 3 and the 11, not all the bus stops have been updated to reflect the new routes.  This one had, though: 

but in fact, the 59 and the 133, which both start in Streatham and go through Brixton, are going in opposite directions along the route!  The 133 now goes past St Paul's Cathedral, which will be useful as and when we want to go to that area.

We had great fun this morning, but in many ways I'm not impressed with TfL's route changes.  So often now one has to change buses instead of a route going directly.  TfL will say it's not a big deal since you don't have to pay another fare, but that's not really an issue for people with passes, etc, which I think a majority of  people have, except tourists and those who no longer commute regularly.  But really, it means that one will have to allow a good ten minutes longer for a given journey, and what about those with mobility issues, heavy luggage, or small children?  What if it's raining?   Fares are not the only issue!  

Still, we had fun, and maybe one day we'll do the trip in reverse - starting with the 133, walking back to Smithfield and taking the 59 as far as Waterloo, then the 11 back to Victoria and the 3 back to Brixton!