My (mostly) sunny summer trip 2024

I left home on 14 July.  This day is one of the very important national holidays in France, Bastille Day, the day in 1789 on which the people of Paris seized weapons from the armory at the Invalides, marched in the direction of an ancient fortress, la Bastille, and managed to break into the Bastille and to release prisoners.  It was the first victory of ’the people’ against a symbol of the Old Regime. The start of the French Revolution. But I did not leave for France (yet), I left for Germany.  For some time I have had this wish to cycle along the river Moselle, and that is what I did. After a trip through a mountainous area with many hairpin bends, I arrived at my first stop, a very pleasant camp site in Senheim (the Holländischer Hof, haha) from where I could take lovely bike rides and visit some of the famous villages along the Moselle, such as Cochem, and Bleistein.  Bleistein was lovely.  On 15 July I had coffee and cake in Bleistein, because it was my birthday, and in the evening I had dinner in Bleistein, very good food and a nice glass of Riesling wine.  I moved to another camp site, in Kastellaun, to walk across the Geierlay hanging bridge (but having to cycle there first).  A nice experience!! And I had a great Ayurvedic massage in Kastellaun, also a nice experience!! Then I moved back to the Moselle, and camped very near Bernkastel, in the small and quiet village of Graach, amidst endless Riesling vinyards.  I enjoyed the sound of the church bells every 15 minutes. Bernkastel was full of tourists but very beautiful! From there I cycled both ways along the Moselle.  Then I drove to Trier, the last Moselle stop. Trier is one of the oldest cities in Germany. I visited the city, and I loved the Basilica (the cathedral). I was very impressed by a simple wooden cross in the cathedral, the Lampedusa Cross, made by Francesco Tuccio, with wood from the boats in which refugees crossed the Mediterranean Sea, and drowned. Such a powerful way of telling the world about the horrors that took place and are still taking place. I took two yoga classes, I went to a concert in the Brunnenhof, organized by the Trier Jazz Club, and I cycled along the Moselle, and along a smaller river, the Saar, to the medieval town of Saarburg, a pleasant surprise.   And I had rain in Trier and got wet!!

From Trier I drove to Esch-sur-Alzette in Luxemburg.  My sister once told me about it. The old blast furnaces from the once thriving steel industry in the area had been transformed into a museum and the building had been remodeled, using the old material, not only to be fit for purpose, but also to create beautiful architecture.  Around it you find the University of Science and Technology in Luxemburg, a railway station, and a residential and commercial area. The campsite was in a natural park on top of a mountain, but I used a very convenient bus service going from the campsite straight to the railway station of Esch (as they call it) from where I could take a train to the area Belval.  It rained that day, but my umbrella kept me dry. The next day I explored the city of Luxemburg a bit, which I found surprisingly nice.

And then I moved to France again (as I was there in June as well)! From the German vinyards along the Moselle to the French vinyards around the city of Beaune in Burgundy. I quite liked the city of Beaune. I was staying at a great campsite, under huge trees, in the friendly village of Savigny-lès-Beaune. I cycled a lot on the véloroute des vins, once I found it! What a joy, and I got good energy from it.  One day, at lunch in one of the wine villages, I had a conversation with an American couple who would travel to Paris a few days later to go and cheer their daughter Elise Cranny who was competing in the 5000 m running for women at the Olympic Games in Paris!!! She made it to the finals but did not win a medal. Sifan Hassan from the Netherlands did!!   The day I left Savigny-lès-Bains I visited the castle in the village, which houses on its grounds a peculiar collection of racing cars, motorcycles, airplanes, fire engines and some other stuff.  I only went there since I had to bridge the time between having to leave the camp site in Savigny-lès-B and the earliest possible arrival time at the campground in Avallon, but it was fun since it was a very strange experience. Avallon is in the Morvan, a Natural Park in the western part of Burgundy. Again, I found myself camping at a lovely and very green campsite. From Avallon I cycled through the hills to Vézelay, a medieval city, best known for its basilica which overlooks the surrounding countryside.  ‘This impressive religious building is a jewel of Romanesque architecture’ I read somewhere, and it is true.  Vézelay is also one of the starting points for the Way of Saint James pilgrimages.

My next destination was Nevers. I did not choose Nevers for a particular reason, I was just crossing from the eastern to the western part of France.  But I camped on the banks of the river Loire, there were plenty of véloroutes to explore, the cathedral of Nevers was beautiful, and in the chapel of the convent of Saint Gildard you can visit the remains of Bernadette Soubirous, who was canonized in 1933 by pope Pius XI.  She had visions of the Virgin Mary in the Massabielle Grotto near Lourdes.  Then I moved to Neuville-sur-Sarthe, near Le Mans.

Yes, again a very beautiful campsite, wild flowers everywhere, and plenty of space.  I visited the cathedral in Le Mans, another truly beautiful cathedral.

Then I had a longer trip to get to Saint-Briac-sur-Mer, at the most western point of my trip. I camped at a pleasant camp site, very near the really nice village, with a café at the village square, and long trails to hike on in the dunes. One of my days there I cycled to Dinard, to get on the ferry to Saint-Malo. The seaside cities were of course a bit busier since August is high tourist season but I liked the old city of Saint-Malo, and I loved taking the ferry to and from Saint Malo from Dinard. From here I started my way back to the North.  My first stop was a 4-star castle camp site somewhere near Pont l’Evèque (where they make the famous cheese with the same name).  I had read about it and got interested in the ‘good vibe’ and music nights they were talking about.  It did not work for me, I did not feel the vibe and there was no music evening on the Monday I was there.  My pitch was spacious, and the old buildings were really nice, but no vibe, and the food in the restaurant was mediocre.  I had been curious and wanted to try and that is what I did.  Then I moved to a lovely place at the seaside, on the cliffs, at Criel-sur-Mer, with stunning views at the sea and the cliffs.  Talking about ‘vibes’, I was completely at ease here.  I could look far away over the sea and the hills, and I like that sense of space very much.  But it is not only that, I have been on a variety of camp sites, and even on some of the busier ones I felt at peace.  Would it just be your (or rather my) state of mind at that moment? From Criel-sur-Mer I cycled along the coast both ways, of which the northern route was the nicest.  My last stop before driving home was not at the coast since all places were fully booked. I found a place in Ardres, a pleasant village at about a 50-minute bike ride from Calais.  That was the crucial criterion for going there, I wanted to visit Calais, I had read about it being a city full of street art.  The day I went there it was raining, so I waited a bit for the rain to stop.  By then my phone battery was no longer full, and when I had lunch (a good one…) I noticed that google maps was not properly working. I decided to just go to the lace and fashion museum, see just a few murals and then take the main road back to Ardres instead of the smaller ones (safer for bike riders) because these roads were easier to find.  I made it back to the camp site, and whilst it had stopped raining early afternoon it was raining again by the time I got ‘home’ and was greeted by the inhabitants of the mobile home park (rather than a camp site) playing their daily game of jeu de boules.

I have been on 13 different camp sites during this trip, and I wonder what makes a site a camp site where I feel happy? Kind people at the reception, nature, space around you, the shower facilities, cycling options? Whatever it may be, I also felt happy when I returned home on 17 August. I always love going away and I always love coming home!