Home again
Trip Start
Jun 30, 2010
1
9
Trip End
Sep 26, 2010
Perth, Western Australia, Australia
Monday, September 27, 2010
MONDAY 27TH SEPTEMBER PERTH
Hello
Our last three weeks have been very hectic. We started with an interesting drive south from Tesseul. We stopped overnight at Castillones with an English couple who were about to set off in their new motor home the next day. It was interesting to compare notes with them. The town was a very old walled city and they have built a nice new home there. After leaving Castillones we stopped for lunch at Agen and went for a wander. We lost our sense of direction and had no idea which way to go to get back to the car. We asked a couple of policemen who were standing around. With their limited English and our limited French they figured out where we had left the car. They put us in the police car and took us back to it. They were very nice. Just another little adventure! The next time we left the car we took the GPS with us.
From there we went on to Puymaurin, a very small village in the Haute Garonne area. We stayed with David and Catherine who lived a few kilometres out of the town in a lovely big old ivy covered house that they had renovated. We went out for dinner with them and they had us eating frogs legs and goose liver pate, things we would have been reluctant to try on our own. They were both quite nice, especially the pate. From Puymaurin we went to Carcassone for a day trip. It is a very touristy old walled city on the Canal Du Midi which we enjoyed very much. We thought we would go there on our boat trip but we went the opposite direction so decided to make a special trip. It was a hot day but well worth the effort.
On Monday 6th September we left Puymaurin and drove into Toulouse where we dropped off the lease car that we have had for the past month. We then caught the train to Lezignan where Ewan and Wendy were there to meet us. They had arrived on a train about ten minutes earlier. After some lunch and food shopping in town we caught a taxi out to the boat that would be our home for the next week. Our trip went from Argens Minervois to Lattes. The first three days were along the Canal Du Midi. It was a beautiful area lined with an avenue of trees on each side and dotted with small villages. Our daily routine started with a walk to the local Boulangerie where we bought fresh baguettes and croissants for breakfast. After cruising during the morning we would find a nice little restaurant in a village for lunch. Our evening meal was French wine with more baguettes, cheese, etc - a lovely way to spend a week. During our week we had 15 locks to go through. It was a worry at first but once we figured out how it all worked, we managed very well. We had bikes but didn’t really use them as much as we had expected.
The second part of our trip involved a lake crossing that had to be done when it wasn’t too windy. We got across early one morning then continued along another canal that ran not far from the Mediterranean. It was interesting to see the contrast in the areas. We moored near an old abbey near the Mediterranean one night and went over for a visit the next morning. Another night we moored at Aigues Mortes which means Dead Waters. It was another interesting old walled city that we enjoyed exploring. The wildlife in this area included lots of pink flamingos, wild white horses and black bulls. We saw them all but were especially impressed with the pink flamingos. Our last night was spent moored at Lattes, where our trip ended. We were pleasantly surprised to find ourselves in a big marina resort with lovely homes, restaurants, etc all around the water. It was a very nice place to end our trip and meant that we just had to pack up and hand over the boat the before we left the next morning. Ewan’s 60th birthday was celebrated several times during the trip and that no doubt continued when they left us and went on to their friends. We said our farewells and caught the train to Paris.
In Paris we spent four days in a pretty little hotel in the Latin Quarter. The first day we caught a train to Monet’s Garden, a place I particularly wanted to see. It did look just like his paintings and I was surprised how many people were there.. It was in a small village an hour or so from Paris. The next two days we bought a ticket for the Red Bus which we could hop on and off as we pleased around the tourist attractions. It was just too big a city to try to walk it all. We still walked a lot and managed to see a lot of the city. It is a pretty special city. Rob just loved sitting at the front of the bus on top watching the traffic. It was chaotic but they seemed to manage to get around very confined areas. Peak hour was especially entertaining. Parking involves gently bumping into the car in front and behind until you have fitted into the space. There is no way we would have driven there.
From there we went on to Belgium where we spent three nights with a very hospitable couple in a gorgeous arty house at Leuven (just out of Brussels) We even had a box of Belgian Chocolates waiting for us. The view out over the city was beautiful. Lieve is an artist and we enjoyed looking at her paintings, as well as many others around the house. She had a beautiful studio on the third floor with panoramic views. She had books printed showing her paintings and we found one in a gallery in Brussels. They came to Brugges with us one day on the train and we had a nice day exploring this pretty old city. We ended up at Oostende for dinner that night..It was freezing on the coast. The next day we went into Brussels, caught the hop on hop off bus again, then met Lieve, Michael and friends of theirs for a real Belgian meal.Their friends had been to Australia a couple of times and are hoping to get back to Perth next year. Lieve has done some paintings from photos of Australian scenes -Ayers Rock, etc. They took home some real red dirt for her.
Our last three days were spent at Amersfoort not far from Amsterdam. By that time we were well and truly ready to go home. It was nice to see the Dutch shops, familiar words, etc before we finally left Europe. We stayed with an amazing lady in her 70’s who didn’t drive but had a very fancy fold up bike that she has travelled extensively with by train all over Europe.
Unfortunately while at Amersfoort, Rob developed a bad cold. By the time we flew home I had it too. As a result our flight home wasn’t very pleasant. We certainly weren’t the only ones coughing and snuffling. We arrived home early yesterday morning and fell into bed. Now we are trying to cope with unpacking, fixing the garden jet lag and coughing all night. It was not a good trip but it is nice to be home. It is also nice to see everything written and spoken in English again.
Until next trip
Carol & Rob
