A busy time, catching up with friends and relatives, some time spent back at Cherry Cottage; sorting it out ready for renting out again.
By shear luck i discover my old friend Ian Bridgeman's son Matt and his family are back from Australia and looking for a house to rent in Arnside...............perfick !!!
We soon get it all sorted and Matt & Karen move in on 1st September.
A good time to visit Bryn & Nic in Manchester, then Paul, Mee and Lizzie in Godalming and then go onto see Gemma , Urs and the the twins in Switzerland. A very good time to give the motorbike a run.............ferry booked i'm off.
A great few days with Paul and co..................visits to the Thai festival, visiting friends of Paul's and drinking a few beers.......excellent !!!
And so, to the ferry. A good run across from Godalming to Dover. A good crossing to Dunkirk and a rapid change in the weather as i got on my way in Beligium........rain & more rain...........yuk.....hate it when it rains and i'm riding the bike..........:-(
By the time i get to Luxembourg i'm whacked. Quick meal at the hotel and bed. At least i could dry my gear out......noice.
On the way again, i filled up with petrol at a station just down the road from the hotel..........wow, equivalent to £1.00 / litre.......brill !!!
A good run through to Gemma's in Greifensee.
Th boys are awake when i get there, a bit unsure at first, we are soon sat playing Brio trains and reading about Emergency vehicles.............ooooooo and watching "Chuggington".........more trains.............and i rename "Chuffington" !!!!! ha ha ha ah
Some great days follow, walking with the boys, on play grounds, going out for meals, generally having some good quality time together........ace. I also rode around the lake on the electric bike..............right down my street !!!
Gemma & i meet up with Rene & Connie whom i met on MV Kennicott.............very weird .........strange how you meet people. We all went to a concert in the grounds of the castle in Greifensee.........really good fun.
All too soon it's time to go, hate saying goodbye..................especially to my 2 young Grandsons.............it's hard for them and me !!
I had booked a few stops on the way back to Calais. I'm finding doing more than 300 miles in a day a bit trying.....especially in pouring rain.
So, first stop Saarbrucken, stupid me, i booked a room here on Saturday night next door to the railway station............muppet !!!!
Anyway, at least i had a rest and SOME sleep.
Next stop Namur, never been here before and it's looks interesting..............6500 years of people here, Romans and all the other races over the centuries.
I had booked an Auberge here, right on the banks of the River Meuse.............lovely spot. I looked around the town and the Citadel.............really enjoyed the place.
i decided to stop at the Auberge for a beer in the evening, a lovely night, so i sat out overlooking the river. After a hour or so, a young lady arrived on a pushbike..........."Bonjours" were exchanged. French girl i thought to myself.
Wrong, 20 minutes later she walked out of the bar with a beer (same as mine a Gauloises.........(very tasty it was too). Make up your own mid there !!! ;-) ). The young lady came over and sat next to me, she was Dutch, her name is Monique.
I have to say we had a very pleasant evening together, it even ended on a high with a pizza !!! It was organised by the manager of the Auberge, he ordered about 7 altogether.
Monique was on a cycling trip from Texel, one of the Freisian islands in Northern Holland to Paris.
We had both had a few soakings over the last few days, in Belgium and Luxembourg.
Fair play to Monique she made it to Paris a few days later......well done her !!!
Next day off i went again to Calais to catch the ferry for Blighty..............another good soaking !! A stop in Calais overnight, then onto the ferry in the morning........yet another soaking, this time only a couple of miles.........brilliant.
At the port they had caught 17 migrants hiding in a bulk powder carrier................they must be crazy / desperate/ stupid to hide in a locked down powder carrier, i've no idea if was carrying powder or not....................mad !!!
Uneventful crossing.
A great (DRY) run from Dover to Angela & James's in Chesterfield (Wadshelf, to be precise). I had a great time with them and their 2 sons James & Joseph.............good fun.
Off to Cherry Cottage next day to drop off the bike and all my leathers etc etc.
Stayed at Tim & Gwens............good to see all the neighbours.
Off to Bryn & Nics for a couple of days before i head off to Vancouver. Great to see them both and have a good catch up. House is looking great and coming together well.
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