26 September 2011 We continued our journey southwards and stayed the night with Eric and Pauline, who live in a hamlet called Viviers located between Poitiers and Limoges. We first visited them four years ago just after they had moved in and were impressed by the improvements they had made to the house and garden. ... read more

24 September 2011 An excellent day in London. It started with a walk around Crystal Palace Park which was the site of the old pavilion which got burned down, but there are still some remains to see. Then it was an hour long trip on the no 3 bus into the centre of the city to see an audio described performance of the play War Horse. Before the play the visually impaired members of the audience and their supporters were privileged to have a tour of the stage when we met some of the actors who described the setting and props used for the production. The play was very different to anything else we had seen. It describes the harsh conditions suffered by the millions of horses used by the armies in the first world war. ... read more

23 September 2011 As usual after packing up, we were late leaving so hit the London traffic in the rush hour, but we eventually made it to the Caravan Club site at Crystal Palace and were surprised how close it was to the television mast. ... read more

22 September 2011 We have just returned from a three day trip to Cornwall, the highlight of which was a visit to the Minack Theatre on the cliffs near Porthcorno to see the Pirates of Penzance performed by Cambridge University Gilbert and Sullivan Society. It was a great show. We leave tomorrow for our Autumn venture in the van which this year is to South Western France. Another dose of culture starts the trip in London on Saturday, an audio described performance of War Horse. On Sunday we cross the Channel via Eurotunnel and then work our way to Carcassonne where we plan to spend a few days. Where the rest of the journey takes us is yet to be decided, but we are booked to return home on 18 October. ... read more

Tuesday 16 August Arrived at Portsmouth at 6.30 drove home and dropped the boys off at their house at about 9.30. It was a very successful first overseas trip with our grandsons and we felt we had chosen an excellent area to visit in the South West corner of Brittany with interesting villages and good beaches. The campsite was also very suitable having a large pool and waterslides and plenty of other activities to keep the boys occupied. ... read more

Monday 15 August We had a leisurely pack up in the morning and Alfie and Freddie had a final swim in the pool with Fred and Edie. Just before lunch we left for the drive north and reached Caen in the early evening. Had a moules et frites supper in a seaside restaurant next to one of the D Day beaches and boarded the ferry about 10. ... read more

Saturday 13 August The weather was very mixed today with mainly drizzle and heavy rain but there were a few dry periods. In the morning we cycled to Lesconil which had a Langoustine Festival where the boys had a go on the boats, we ate Langoustine and chips and went around an interesting display of local fish put on by the trawlermen. The weather dried up after lunch and enticed us on the bikes for a trip around some of the local dolmen and menhirs. Cooked a barbeque in the evening under the canopy in the pouring rain. ... read more