14. As we reach the final few weeks of our 10 week journey its time to wind our way through France, visiting friends and relatives and reflect on our wonderful trip. So lucky are we to have friends and family who have fabulous places for us to visit in France. We spent some vey hot days chilling with my sister and beau-frere just North of Bordeaux. Spent a lovely jazz evening at Montangne-sur Gironde, and enjoyed a karoke in their nearby town. When the weather changed we were able to visit the unique and extraordinary Chateaux Mercerie, and Chateau de Villebois Lavalette. About an hour North we met up and stayed with friends Chris and Gary. We helped them with a bit of extreme gardening then enjoyed a lovely BBQ party for Chris’s birthday, meeting many ... read more

In our previous travels people we have met from Holland, have been good fun. They certainly travel more than many other Europeans we’ve met. Our next 2 campsites we visited were run by Dutch owners, they were to play a part in our long drive up Spain’s Mediterranean coast. Having abandoned Plan A visiting Cordoba, Granada and increasingly the likelihood that Barcelona would go the same way because of the heat. Enter Plan B, to travel and camp near the coast picking up, hopefully, more of the cool sea breeze. Our first hoped stop was Marbella, the holiday destination for the super-rich. I phoned the only campsite in the area know to us -no room. We then drive through hoping to park up, but every available inch of parking was used up. Driving further up the ... read more

Travelling back into Spain, although I bemoaned that Portugal did not say ‘hello’ when we drove in it certainly said goodbye and thank you for visiting! We’d loved our travels there. Seville was next on our agenda, we were rather dubious because of the heat, but it was less than 2 hours driving, and right on our route so we dived in. At times our travelling may seem glamourous with all the sights we are so fortunate to see, but travelling by camper is certainly tricky when visiting cities. We’d found a safe secure parking place with good bus access to the city...fab! downside was it was basically a warehouse. We were persuaded to camp inside due to severe heat, but boy was it hot in there! Not wanting to sit in a car park, we ... read more

Arriving in Lisbon, the cicadas are singling merrily indicating it’s getting hotter! and we are looking forward to a dip in the beautiful campsite pool. However, relaxing at the campsite was a challenge, there are hoards of children, primary school aged, seemingly in summer schools, identified by different coloured hats. They are everywhere, including over 100 in our campsite pool! Tram 28 featured highly in the guidebook and social media as the ‘best way to experience Lisbon’. We arrived via bus from our campsite, duly bought our public transport tickets and headed to the recommended start of the tram route, only to find over 100 people queuing! The trams are delightful vintage stock, but they only take around 20-30 people at a time and run every 15-20 mins. Plan B -walk the tram route, its only ... read more

Our first sight of Porto was early evening, bustling crowds crossing Ponte Luis (bridge) on two levels, alongside cars and trams, and a funicular railway lifted you to further heights, whilst cable cars traversed the Vila Nova de Gaia bank. Colourful houses piled high above each other, intertwined by cobbled streets. It was delightful. Music came from all directions, the bars and many street entertainers, soft, sultry, jazzy sounds, and not a bad voice to be heard. In the evening the crowds gather across the river to watch the sun going down, quite an event, there must have been several hundred people on a hill, listening to music and applauding the sunset. Our campsite for the night was certainly not so romantic, a tiny car park. We got in with the help of a guy named ... read more