Lockdown Lifted, 20 July.

View through our front skylight

This was the view through our front skylight this morning - excuse the bird droppings, which accumulated during lockdown and which we have not been able to remove. 

The satnav suggested, wisely, that we go the long way round today, mostly on the motorway.  We followed its ideas as far as Annecy but then told it that this was dull, and could it find another route, please.  Unfortunately, there was a third route which would have been much easier as it went round the side of a mountain, rather than hairpin-bending its way over the col.  Oh well, we survived, and tomorrow may well be worse. 

"Here" is Beaufort, which is also an Alpine village.  We found our plan B site without much difficulty, but it was difficult to see where camping-cars could go in our Plan A car park.  So we came back here.  It is not unpleasant, but really rather hot!  Still, it should cool down overnight as, indeed, it did last night.  I'd rather forgotten about the occasional altitude-induced insomnia I'm apt to suffer from, but it struck rather last night!  Oh well, I expect I shall sleep tonight as we are a couple of hundred metres lower. 

It is now compulsory to wear a mask in enclosed public spaces here, and everybody does, even the children. They don't wear pretty or funky ones as I gather they do in Germany, just the flimsy disposable ones. But they all wear them. Mind you, the beach outside Annecy was absolutely rammed, no question of social distancing there. Swings and roundabouts, I suppose. 

I made lemon-limeade as we had some limes and a lemon that needed using, and we have been drinking that!  We are nearly out of the home made lemon squash I brought with us, but I've bought a bottle of French cordial which may or may not be nice.  And fizzy water, to dilute it.  We also have beer and wine, of course, and had a spritzer last night, most refreshing!

View from the aire at Beaufort

View from the aire at Beaufort (and my finger!)

Lockdown Lifted, 19 July

It has been another glorious day.  We were only going about half an hour away, up to the Alps above Lac Léman, to a village called Abondance.  The Swan Whisperer decided to go for a walk before breakfast, rather than a run, but went further than he meant, and had to jog back!

The drive up the mountains was reasonable  - not too many sharp bends, although the road was far from straight.  We are 916 metres here, about the same as Oberstdorf, and have come up about 550 metres since yesterday.  But it was really worth it! 

As soon as we arrived, the SW had some coffee and I had some lemonade - I had already had coffee before we left Anthy-sur-Léman.  Once that had been drunk, we pulled on hats and sandals and set out.  I decided that even though I am probably too old and too fat to wear shorts, I was going to anyway!  

It being Sunday, the village square was full of the market, suitably socially-distanced so we pulled on our masks to buy some Tomme de Savoie (we are, after all, in Savoie!) and some olives.  There's one thing - they won't know me again! 

Back to the van for lunch and a rest before our Church's Zoom service, which was of course at 3:30 pm here - not terribly satisfactory as both our phones decided to overheat and cut us off.  I think next week we might try on my tablet, instead. 

When Church was over, the SW went for a walk - there are lots of lovely walks round here, of course; I just wish I were more able for them.  And when he came back it was supper time!

Lockdown Lifted, 18 July

The Swan Whisperer went to the nearest bakery this morning to get croissants but alas. Google maps to the contrary, it was closed. Ah well. So after our croissantless breakfast, the first order of the day was to use the services. 

With the van empty and full in appropriate places, we set off to the nearest Intermarché to stock up for the weekend. The SW decided that we would go cross-country for the first part of today's drive and it was lovely. To quote him, the scenery was not spectacular, but it was still lovely. I agreed.

At lunch time, though, we transferred to the mototway, and it really was a spectacular drive, through tunnels and across viaducts, with views of lakes and rivers and mountains!

And so we came here, to Anthy-sur-Leman, a resort on Lake Geneva (Lac Leman, in French) and have been lucky enough to find a dedicated motorhome space just by the lake. The place is packed out, as you would expect on a summer weekend, and the other two spaces have been taken by cars, despite large notices saying not to!  The first aire we saw was full, so we were very lucky to get this space! 

Lockdown Lifted, 17 July

Last night's couscous wasn't very nice, but we ate it anyway!  And I slept a lot better than I had the previous couple of nights. 

The Swan Whisperer went for a run this morning, as he usually does when we park up at Chamery, but he got a bit turned round and went further than he meant, which then delayed both breakfast and our getaway.  Not too badly, but we were an hour later than I should have liked. 

Our first port of call was, of course, the local hypermarket, which in this case was an E Leclerc, where I bought mostly vegetables for our casserole this evening.  And some strawberry tartlets as a treat, which got a bit squashed because I forgot they were there and put the fruit juice down on them!  

In the car park, just as I was about to take the trolley back and reclaim my token, suddenly, wonderfully, a squadron of what I think must have been the French equivalent of the Red Arrows flew overhead in formation, and let off their tricolour smoke.  Sadly, all over in 30 seconds, before I could even think of getting my phone out to take a picture, but it was glorious!

We then had another long, dull drive down the motorway to the rather unlovely municipal aire in Nuits St Georges. We have stayed here before, but its ain attraction is free services which we will use in the morning. 

It has been a lovely warm day today, only not very sunny.  The battery went up to its maximum 13. 5 at one stage, which led the SW to play with our new television.  Not desperately satisfactory as its plug doesn't work so it either has to trail across the kitchen or the loo!  Still, we will have fun with it when we have electricity, and it is an awful extravagance really!  But it will be lovely if they have another Oberstdorf and we can watch the livestream there on a big screen.

I had thought of going to the Cassisarium, which is only a few hundred metres from here, and which has reopened, but then bottled it.  I'm sure it would have been perfectly safe really, especially masked, but I find I'm not quite ready for that sort of thing yet.  So I read and dozed for a bit while the SW went up to the local Mr Bricolage to get some screws and then explored the town centre. 

And tomorrow, all being well, we reach the mountains!  How I am looking forward to it - I have so missed my week in the Alps this year. 

Pre-dinner drinks

Our new toy!

Lockdown Lifted, 16 July

As might have been expected, I didn't sleep too well, but when I got up to use the facilities at about 6:00 am, I was disconcerted to find that not only would the loo not flush, but I could get no water to do it manually, either.  Investigation proved that the leisure batteries were flat, and we had to run the engine for awhile to charge them up again!

It was inevitable, I suppose - the machine has been off the road for the best part of six months, with only one excursion just before lockdown and then we turned the engine over once during lockdown, so the battery is evidently past its best.  So we will have to be careful with it, but no big deal.  If we don't charge our devices overnight, we should be okay.  I haven't planned us to go to many places with an electricity supply, but that could change. 

It might have helped had it been sunny, as the solar panels would have charged more than they did, but it was cloudy and a bit wet.  I was, as I rather expected to be, exhausted, so have done almost nothing except visit a supermarket.  Almost everybody wears masks here, which is brilliant.  I gather that, as in England, it becomes compulsory in enclosed public spaces from next week. 

Since we knew the aire here is very small, we drove straight here - I slept most of the way - and just as well, as it is now overflowing and someone asked me, sadly, whether we intended to spend the night here!  Yes, actually.... 

The Swan Whisperer has put up the television, but we are not sure how successfully, and we can't run it when not on mains power - well, we can, but it wouldn't be wise. He then went out for a walk and is just back.  I had another nap and have been crocheting and reading.  I have bought a ready-meal (couscous) for supper, so I shan't have to cook.  

Chamery, as seen from the bedroom window!

Lockdown Lifted, 15 July 2020

Watten, France

It has been a very, very long time.  The motor home was SORNed for several months.  Our Viking River Cruise was cancelled.  The ISU adult competition at Oberstdorf was cancelled.  For many weeks, our only outings were the Swan Whisperer regular runs and trips to Lidl, all of 100 metres away.  

We did go to my mother for a socially-distanced lunch in her garden and to my daughter for a birthday lunch in hers, but that was all. 

And then they announced that we could travel again! So, quickly, before they could change their minds, we booked.  I didn't really believe it would happen, but the motor home got loaded up - still rather a slow process as we don't yet automatically know where things live - and we set off.  And now we are parked up in Watten, on our way to the French Alps.  I can barely believe it!

Moselle Valley, 20-21 February

I didn't post yesterday, as there was really nothing to post about!  The gas cylinder finally ran out while we were getting breakfast, a good week after the Swan Whisperer was convinced it was about to run out Any Minute Now!  So that's all right; we will be going to Germany in May with almost a full load of gas.

We drove from the outskirts of Charleroi (a nice aire - I'd recommend it) to Gravelines with singular lack of incident.  I slept most of the way - you know me, guaranteed to sleep in a moving vehicle at any time!  However, just as we had parked up, the heavens opened and for the next two hours there was a most spectacular storm!  No thunder and lighting, but very heavy rain and wind.  And then it eased, and the sun came out in time to set, but by then neither of us felt like going out again.

Then this morning we got up punctually, and after breakfast drove over to the Super U we could see from our parking - it was further away than it looked - and I did a huge Last Shopping, and then we drove to Cité Europe where we used the services, and so to Eurotunnel, where we were offered a crossing half an hour early (yes please!), but in fact got on an extra one 45 minutes ahead of schedule.  Mind you, there was a huge traffic jam on the South Circular, so that accounted for it!  Home by 14:30 UK time, and the steady work of unpacking and putting away, and generally sorting things out.  But the orchid that the Daughter and Son-in-Law gave us after their wedding, nearly 13 years ago, has flowered again!

We definitely love our new van now we are used to it.  The loo smells more than the old one did - this may be the chemical we were using, as it was what they gave us at the caravan centre, not what we normally use - and the lighting just doesn't shine in quite the right place when one is sitting in the swivelled-round seat (this is also awkward to do).  The table is smaller than in the old machine, and awkward to move, but one can live with that.  But that is the only downside, really.