Saturday 29th December 2012
We have now moved in and it's been just over a week settling back into this way of living again with a proper roof over our heads!.
Did we sleep well the first night?… well, all I can say can you remember when you have suddenly touched something very hot and your reaction?, we had only slept in single beds up until now and falling asleep was no problem it was when suddenly we touched each other and the instant leap to one side thinking "who is that in my bed"???. These jerky reactions soon stopped however and we were warm and snuggled like a pair of dormouse in our massive expanse of sleeping area.
The little farmhouse we have is lovely and is part of barns and stables which I expect one day will be converted to provide more accommodation of some sort. There is also lots of land and Bradley would look back at me when I let him out the door as if to say "can I really run around like a mad thing, is this field just outside my own front door"?. There are two large fires that need a constant supply of logs so after I had passed my chainsaw authorisation, I am now stock piling logs in one of the many barns!. The kitchen is typical of a large French type with big long table to do all your work on and a large old Aga type heater and cooker. We have already cooked a fantastic curry on there slowly cooking all day and plan do make some of our own French bread.
We are about 1km from the centre of Aigurande which is a small sleepy town and it's nice to walk into the Boulangerie for our bread and we even have a decent sized supermarket so no need for transport to get around. We can of course take the motorhome to visit other areas if we want as parking is so easy in France.
Christmas has come and gone and New Year will be upon us in a couple of days. The French celebrate things slightly different here and shops really do close down regularly which is good, but you have to make sure you have what you need. Christmas day was so quiet, everywhere was shut and not a car in sight, on the BBC news all we saw were shops open, queues of traffic three lanes deep on motorways and unfortunately fatal road traffic accidents, such a difference between countries. Living as local people now were are noticing things more and it is so interesting to see the different lifestyles and expectations.
With UK TV and decent broadband we can certainly keep in touch so look out for the next instalment!
Bonne Journée
Monday 17th December 2012We have lots to tell and some really exciting news as it's been a hectic couple of weeks! We were a little concerned about what exactly we were going to do over the Christmas period as up until now we just make things up as we go along but this time there was a need for some proper organising. The small problem that faced us was the growing depth of snow and ice and the only campsites open were now the big Ski resorts. We had never geared ourselves up for the winter snows as we would have probably been back in the UK but the accident in Italy had put us back about 3 months in total. The expensive insurance policies of various types we had in force, still with over 6 months left to run would also expire as soon as we re-enter the UK and we would have to take out new policies if we returned back into Europe, so we were trying to avoid that option. Also it is law in Germany and the Alpine regions to have proper winter tyres fitted or risk a heavy fine so at over £800 for a set of four tyres we now wanted to head for lower ground and France. That's not to say we had enjoyed the snow especially Bradley and it is certainly different kind of snow all dry, powdery and warmer than the snow we get in the UK!.
The internet was in overdrive now looking at every option and we came up with the idea of house sitting. With now large ex-pat communities that have escaped the UK and living in Europe there always seemed to be a house sitting opportunity available. We quickly joined the many house sitters registered for Europe, got some references and sat back and waited for the call. Also we had contacted our friend Phil in the centre of France and enquired if he knew of any houses that were available for us for short term. Within a few days Phil contacted us and had found a lovely farmhouse that was available in a lovely location next to a small town with all the facilities we needed and most importantly somewhere safe to park the motorhome.
The maps were out and we were quickly plotting the course out of Germany 800 kilometres west towards Aigurande in France.The overnight freeze down to minus -10 was pretty severe that night but the blue sky told us it was probably going to be a good day to travel. It normally takes us about 30 minutes to get everything packed away and the engine started but the size of icicles and frozen everything was going to dictate otherwise. Firstly the waste water outlet was frozen solid and as there was almost a half tank (50 litres) we needed to offload this before driving. So out came Lorraine's hair dryer and with the aid of an extension lead 30 minutes later the plastic piping and tap defrosted. Next thing was the satellite dish, there was no way we could detract that so a bit like opening the hatch on a submarine out I went with the hair dryer through a roof window giving the dish and motors a nice morning blow dry. The strangest thing and something I had never come across before was frozen velcro. That is used at the front to stop the large silver cab window insulation covers flapping about and it would just not budge at all. Water had got into the velcro and then frozen solid making the seal better that super glue!. The hairdryer would not reach so it was down to me to huff and puff my hottest breath on it. Thankfully a few minutes later, out of breath and cross eyed the velcro started to rip away with some pretty awful cracking sounds to go with it!. Over an hour later and with the roads now ploughed and gritted we were heading for France.
Vive la France!
We all know living in the UK the stigma and effect that even a light fall of snow will have on our roads and transport system. I always grew up thinking that it was always going to be like that coz 'thats how it was' until we came to Germany and saw the other side. They really do cope so well with ice and snow here and I would put it down to a simple thing like the Government like to invest properly and can see the importance of keeping things moving for all concerned.
We woke up this morning to really heavy snow and had planned to drive 35km into Konstanz for the day to visit the Christmas Markets. Seeing that amount of snow and driving a motorhome would have been a big NO in the UK but the faith and confidence you have here in the German road networks makes the day carry on as normal. The Germans really do manage their snow with fleets of snow ploughs gritting all day long!. Even in smaller villages there are
Short clip from our driving camera can be seen here.
A few have been asking how we are keeping warm especially with a weekend night low of minus -16 expected. The technology of motorhomes has thankfully changed with the times and we bought our Hymer as it was made in Germany and has one of the most advanced insulated body systems on the market. Linked to that dual fuel blown air central heating and we are as warm as toast. We can chose the source of fuel on a dial from electric if hooked up or gas if we are out and about. Also we can choose both gas and electric to work together and then it gets really hot!, we have only used that once but had to set the thermostat very low!.
Auf Wiedersehen
Sat 1st December 2012
(Dont forget to click the links of coloured text for more information)
We have stayed put for a few days now so that we could visit one of the most traditional German Christmas Markets at Rothenburg and the wait was all worth it! The opening was yesterday and the day before the big freeze suddenly arrived and with it the snow. It was touch and go in the morning but the snowing finally stopped and we edged out of the campsite to one of the special parking areas they have for visiting motorhomes right next to the old city walls. We all wrapped up and Bradley wore his new coat for the first time and didn't we need it with temperatures struggling to get above freezing.
It all added to the atmosphere and once inside the predominantly traffic free walls the feel of Christmas was soon about us. First thing was to try and fine a hairdresser for Lorraine as the locks were getting a little out of control and needed taming. We found a nice salon and the excited shriek of the stylist when Lorraine took her hat off said it all. I was shown a comfortable seat with a nice coffee whilst Bradley was treated to loads of treats and cuddles from the remaining staff. We keep forgetting that in most of Europe dogs can go virtually anywhere. Over an hour later Lorraine emerged with a satisfying grin and we said our goodbyes to the nice staff.
The next stop was lunch and there was so much to chose from. A very nice and traditional hotel with a traditional Franconian menu looked just the ticket and after another check that Bradley was allowed, in we went. The inside was all decked out with the most tasteful decorations and we were made to feel very welcome. Rothenburg is a bit too inland for the hoards of coaches that visit the German Markets from the West side of Europe so it was nice just mixing with the locals and a few Japanese tourists. We soon chose two traditional rustic recipes from the Frankonia (Franken) region and washed down with a half a litre of local beer was just the ticket. (I was soon going to regret that amount of beer when I hit the freezing temperatures outside!)
After a relaxed lunch out we went again taking in the beautiful old town which is like a movie film set and dates back over a 1000 years. Thankfully the excellent public loos were in abundance and thankfully I didn't have more than one beer. It was soon time for afternoon coffee and cakes and we found a 700yr old hotel and café which had the most wonderful seating area within an old library. They also had the most divine Franconian pastries and cakes to sample in the most relaxed and typical German laid back fashion.
It was almost dark when we emerged back outside again and more and more people were arriving. We could understand why as the Christmas lights were just wonderful. It was like stepping back in time, no flashing blue strobe effects or animated Santa's climbing an electric chimney stack out here, just hand made candle powered or tasteful white twinkling lights. It was the warm local welcome and costume that also made the day. Tradition is you go and hire your cup (Tasse) and then visit the numerous street stalls that serve the 'Gluhwein' (Glow Wine) and drink it stood around the many street tables provided.
5 o'clock arrived and we all met in the main market square (Marktplatz) for the opening ceremony. The choir singing familiar carols in German was lovely and the mayor officially opened the event to the sounds of the local brass band. Being a keen photographer I climbed up the back steps of the town hall and got an elevated position just behind the stage and who did I bump into hiding in the shadows?… none other than old St Nicolas himself. A young American couple with a small child had followed me up and I'll never forget the little boys 'WHAW" when Santa Claus turned around to him in the darkness and said hello in German. You didn't need to understand the language seeing the boys face and I managed to get a great shot as Santa bent down opened his huge sack and gave the boy a handful of small treats….priceless!.
I also managed to shoot a bit of video of the opening ceremony which can be seen by clicking here but my video skills aren't as good as my photography.
After another hour of walking about we had to return to the campsite after a brief visit to the local supermarket as we didn't want to be out and about too late in the motorhome. We had experienced a truly magical day and will never forget Rothenburg and its warm hospitality.
A brief day catching up and then its off down the Autobahn tomorrow (Sunday) to Lake Konstanz where we hope to visit some more lovely Christmas Markets. We have decided to stick to the main roads now as the weather is really wintery.
Frohes Fest (Merry Christmas) to you all!
