La Belle France

Finally we have arrived in France. Having crossed the border we have relearned the joy of arriving on French soil, hearing the French language and enjoying the taste of French food and French wine. It is a pleasure not to have to speak in gutteral German again and to try and recapture the famous Gallic shrug as well as the expression that accompaines it an expression that I am afraid I cannot express in a written form.

We are currently in Alsace and have already found that we like the food and the Pastis, today we will explore the wine and the beer.

The last night in Germany was filled with anxiety and horror as a really heavy downpour commenced after a very hot day and then suddenly turned very violent with hail stones the size of golf balls and up to the size of oranges pelting down in great numbers on to our campervan. The damage was mitigated to some extent by the fact that there was a van standing behind us in the next row and so they copped most of the damage from the rear. There was however no protection from the hail on the roof and we were hit hundred of times, wincing at each strike which sounded like someone playing with heavy handed hits on the golf range. For those who can avoid this experience let me be the first to suggest that it should be avoided at all costs.

Today will be our anniversary and we are looking forward to having a very good time both with the zeather and also with the food and drink.

I think we have finally learnt about the width and the length of the campervan and so driving it is proving to be easier even in the small towns and through the narrow streets. Even parking is an easy matter these days. We have also managed to learn how to use the so called Stellplatz or standing places that exist all through Germany.

That is all for this episode. More as we head further into France