The scenery on the drive out of France and into Italy was so dramatic you could almost ignore feeling that you’d been dropped into the middle of the Wacky Races. Italian Dick Dastardlies, whether actually or imagined, seemed determined to run us off the road but even this couldn’t detract from the breathtaking views. The only viable route was to take the toll road and skirt close by the Ligurian coast whilst witnessing a real feat of civil engineering (the “normal” non-toll way wasn’t really an option as it takes nearly three times as long). Despite the twists and turns of [View Full Entry]

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Over the Pyrenees next and time to say “bonjour” to France for the second time this trip. A welcome return to the country where driving a foot away from any tourists bumper at high speed is considered an Olympic sport by locals and car indicators are deemed an optional extra. On this occasion we’d be working our way along its southern coast for two weeks or so before crossing the border into Italy. As mentioned in the blog of our first French visit, the high cost of living in this part of the world had taken us by surprise, especially when [View Full Entry]

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By now we were deep into Andalucía, the most southerly point we would reach during this final leg of our year out - it was time for a holiday within a holiday. I can almost hear the howls of derision from here but all this travelling takes it out of you and, let’s be honest, who doesn’t like to put their feet up and sun themselves by a pool every so often? Angela’s dad, Martin and his wife Sue live close to Marbella and kindly allowed us to stay with them for just short of a week. We did almost nothing [View Full Entry]

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Leaving Oporto proved really difficult, partly because we’d grown so fond of the place but mainly as a result of an aberration from our previously reliable Tom Tom. To be fair, it did as it was instructed which was to get us out of the city by the shortest route and on to our next destination of Salamanca, Spain. What we didn’t know though was that this shortest route would involve negotiating some of the city’s very, very narrow back alleys. It was a both wing mirrors flat to the car job as we slowly crawled our way down the steep, [View Full Entry]

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It was clear as soon as we entered Portugal that, even by European standards, their drivers are complete lunatics. Every car journey seems to be treated as if it’s a Formula One GP and the fact that we’re travelling on a British plate makes us a target for “special treatment”. Some of the manoeuvres we’ve seen have been outrageous and speed limits appear to be of as much use as a trophy cabinet to Manchester City. Thankfully though, both us and Bella (Angela’s pet name for her car - no idea why...................) are still in one piece and going strong. [View Full Entry]

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A French style leisurely start from St Jean De Luz and we were in Spain before we knew it - literally. No passports, check points or even a “Bienvenida a España” sign (“Welcome To Spain”), if only moving between countries was that painless in the rest of the world!! Within half an hour we arrived at our first destination of San Sebastian, or Donostia as it is known locally. Hugging the shoreline around the picturesque bay of La Concha, the town is enclosed by rolling, low hills and is a popular holiday resort for the Spanish. The reason for its second [View Full Entry]

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...............and they’re off!! After three weeks back in the UK to catch up on football, family and friends (not necessarily in that order) it was time for us to embark on the third and final leg of the ACDC World Tour ’07 / ‘08. The plan this time is to travel around Europe, a continent we’ve largely neglected previously mainly due to our preference for longer haul holidays. For the next three months or so we’re going to use our own car to explore it, avoiding the “city break” destinations wherever possible as, in theory at least, we can visit [View Full Entry]

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The British Airways Lounge, San Francisco International Airport, Tuesday 8th April, 2008. This will be the last blog update of this middle third of our year out and I’m experiencing real mixed feelings as I type it. In some ways, it seems an age since we arrived in Argentina back on 4th January, pencil cases in hand and ready for a month of hard studying at Spanish School (that worked out better for some than others.............). At the same time, it’s gone in the blink of an eye and left us with memories and experiences we could never have believed possible [View Full Entry]

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They say a week is a long time in politics and, whilst I’m sure that’s the case, it can feel a like an age when travelling. Seven days ago we were in the merciless heat of the Nevada desert, revelling in the chaos and excitement of Las Vegas. As the sun rose today, we strolled through an endless forest wilderness surrounded by deep snow, our breath clouding in the freezing air. There’s a whole lot happened in between times - please let me explain more................... The Vegas “experience” had mesmerised us both and it is another city that makes it onto [View Full Entry]

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I’m typing this entry from a poolside sun bed at the famous Bellagio Hotel, Las Vegas and we’re just beginning to get our breath back. We’ve had a quite sensational five days here and there hasn’t been anything even close to a dull moment - if New York is the city that never sleeps, this place doesn’t even stop to blink. If you’ve been to Vegas, you’ll know exactly what I mean; if you haven’t, it’s everything you see on the TV, in films and a lot, lot more. We pictured it as a slightly sleazy, run down place with not [View Full Entry]

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