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Day 7 – Hola España

Second rainy morning on the trip. As it was on the bike, everything is just that bit harder when you are doing it in the wet. It effects the mood as well, and any bad vibe gets supercharged in the echo chamber that is the nuclear family. Somehow, we still manged to get off our camp site just in time to avoid late departure fees. It “helped” that Number 3 decided it was getting up time at about 6:30 am.

Plan of attack for today was to do a bit of light culture at the Dalí theatre museum on our way to get into striking distance of Barcelona. We archived the second part all right, at least. Oh, and we also archived the “no more bodily fluids in the car” milestone. Just a tiny bit apprehensive here …

The road was uneventful. We decided to indulge a little to be in Figueres by lunchtime – have the break, lunch and then tackle the museum. We had lunch atop a little hill next to an old fort. It definitely seemed like everyone and their aunt were out and about on this Easter Sunday.

Europe makes us war and fuzzy inside. Next country …

Same held true about an hour later, when we encountered the enormous line in front of the museum. A handy sign informed us that at that time (1 pm), entry slots around 3 pm were sold. Well, we tried. Since the parking was charged by the minute (odd?), we felt no rush to get back to the car and took at least a little stroll. It was also the first time we took our wrap for a spin since leaving. Felt like a good idea to have Number 3 in a wrap in a museum. Turned out, I kind of missed it – it was a real treat having him cuddle up close for a while.

Early check in and some housekeeping then – which tuned out to be a good idea. That way we got a nice and quiet spot before the park got packed jam full. It’s expensive, but a great platform for a full day in Barcelona tomorrow.

A thought about the housekeeping: I guess that is one of the differences between travel and holiday. A holiday is an indulgence for us – where you shed the responsibilities of everyday life for a couple of days. Traveling is more like everyday life for us. You cook, you wash and tidy the house. But it’s a different life – one where we are just a bit more free. But an attainable and sustainable freedom (apart from the money thing, of course) compared to the beautiful illusion that is a holiday.

Speaking of chores: I whipped up a delicious dinner from fresh asparagus from the market and a bunch of leftovers we still had in our pantry …

  • Our first glimps at the Pyrenees
  • Europe makes us war and fuzzy inside. Next country …
  • quick(ish) lunch break at a fort
  • So close …
  • … and yet so far
  • The little one all wrapped up and close
  • some installations were set up around the place
  • There were signs, graffiti and tags for catalan independence everywhere
  • look number 3, a mommy
  • cosiest spot on a cramped campground

Day 5 – Too many meeple on my cité

The night was interesting. Nina definitively had more issues with the wind than I had. The wind kept up at about 40 km/h all night – just about what our tents “ok for” rating was. I think I agree. It was about as loud as to be expected in a tent, but no structural issues or weird out-of-shape-ness.

Number 3 loves them, but Nine seems to be enjoying herself as well ,..

We wrapped up in record time and were on the road by 9:30 am. To have a good half-day in Carcassonne, we allowed the routing via toll roads – which was about 50 km longer but an hour faster. Turned out that the quickest way was a bit roundabout via Toulouse.

Good thing about toll roads are the excellent rest stops though. We could take our lunch on a quiet one just next to the canal du midi and be at the campground first thing it opens for new arrivals. We debated going to the old town first, but the camp was in a premium location apparently within walking distance of the attractions. It definitively had the views. We were all prepared to pay through the nose, but in the off season, prices were reasonable for a prime location. Good thing that we went here first. Soon it was almost filled with Spanish Easter holiday makers fleeing a spell of rain on the costa del sol. We got an excellent spot tucked away from the road but close to the facilities. Judging by the neighbours, an area reserved for families with toddlers!

Given that we had absolutely no plan to even be here a week ago, and mainly went because … well … you know, Carcassonne … gamers … you get the point. Given that, we were pretty chuffed with our first pick for sightseeing. Of course the old city (cité de Carcassonne) is mainly a large tourist attraction. But maybe due to the stubborn occitane spirit it has managed to stay just this side of the “Rüdesheim” point of disneyfication.  

It was also a good test for the “kraxe” – the backpack-like baby carrier. It works, and Number 3 wholly approved of both the “throne” mode as well as the easy opportunity to stretch his legs from time to time.

We learned that we have to adjust our biorhythms a bit, though. Trying to find food at 5 pm falls right in the dead zone between the 3 pm end of lunch and the 7 pm start of dinner time. We still managed to scrounge something together – a bar with a super chill garden area near the wall had enough tapas to get us through. We even struck up a bit of a nice conversation with the next table over traveling with toddlers.

By the time we hiked the easy 30 minutes back to the camp, we were set and happy to add a day to recharge and refocus. 5 days straight on the road is quite enough, even without the little one. So we hopped by the reception and checked in for another night – the great little spot and clean facilities more than justified the 20% mark-up over our other campsites so far. Or maybe it was the promise of an actual French meal out, with some more time to plan it right …

  • First look out the window
  • and this is what we see
  • just peaceful pastoral land
  • two thirds of the family on the beach
  • strong wind and sort legs make for teary eyes
  • Number 3 loves them, but Nine seems to be enjoying herself as well ,..
  • the walk towards the cité
  • the main fortification – with walls to the inside and out 😉
  • he loved playing the tourist
  • bubblegum heist failed
  • old and new
  • former Cathedral, now downgraded 😉
  • why the long face?
  • he is a bit slow on his short legs … yet
  • quiet allys are the best for toddler strolls
  • the “new” city propper
  • the fortification look a bit farytale-ish
  • what an approach
  • silly even with 20 kg load
  • Beautiful evening light

Day 3 – What do we want?

This is probably the least planned trip we have ever taken. One reason was obviously that we were somewhat busy in the last year or so. The other is that we, frankly, have become pretty road hardened. It just does not worry us to not know what tomorrow will bring like it used to.

The downside to all of this is that we have not had the long planning conversations to alingn our expectations and get exited about places. Neither the long days researching our destinations. So it is day 3 now, and we are getting more and more a hang of our setup. That brings the issue even more into focus. What do we want?

I mean to get to Portugal, first of all. But that is a bit of a useless thing to know. If we just wanted to get there, we could have flown, or taken the train. Good weather and beautiful nature then? Well, why not stop at the first opportunity then, like southern France? Should we push south; rest a bit; go to Spain and start exploring then? Quite frankly, we haven’t figured it out yet.

But we know that today was a good day. Smooth start. The sun came out (but not too hot). We like the campsites we are finding through iOverlander. Traditional sites, but a bit off the beaten track. And empty anyway, so early in the season.

To top it all off, Number 3 slept a lot during our 2.5 hrs of driving. Worth taking the motorway for a bit from Dijon just past Lyon to get to camp nice and early. 4 pm was a perfect time to catch up on the blog, cook dinner and even get a shower for all of us in time.

We will have to figure out what we want from this trip, though. Maybe tomorrow …

  • French eclair – approved!
  • Car fun for once
  • Some quiet time …
  • ahh, stop that!
  • Such a gangster…
  • No, I’m not impressed!

Day 1 – Mistakes to learn from

Does it make it better to know that you are going to mess something up the first try? A little bit, I suppose. We are by no means greenhorns when it comes to travelling. Yet, it is inevitable. There will be mistakes. After all, we are trying something new for us. And most importantly of course, this is the very first time number 3 is experiencing anything like this.

First mistake: Our newest crew member has a LOT lower tolerance for chewing kilometres. No iron butt to win on this holiday. It obviously did not help that we allowed him to fall asleep for his mid-day nap while still at home. But look at him. So adorable, who could interrupt su… wrong! Sleep now means no sleep later – and the car seat is the only valid daytime napping place for this trip.

sleeping_linus
Bad mistake – should not let him have his nap before the car

So why did we tarry until lunch time? Well, our pre-packing over the weekend showed a fatal flaw in our overall packing strategy, which meant last minute adjustments and thus an early morning trip to the hardware store. What was the issue? We thought we could keep our sleeping gear in the tent. No chance in hell! With the thicker mattresses, the moisture barrier mats and the inner tent, there is not even enough space left for a sheet. I know, I tried. I think I opened and closed the iKamper Skycamp about 10 times on Sunday trying to somehow make it fit.

So without fully re-doing our luggage and throwing out a substantial amount, I had to find space some other way. I ended up taking out half the rear seats – something I intended to do anyway. But for that, I needed a bloddy T50 torx bit, hence the trip to the hardware store. It still is quite the squeeze. To fit everything in. But everything is secure and the rear view is not obstructed.

Dinner prep for first camp of the trip

That left us with one final goal: Getting going – far enough away that if feels like we have actually gone. That was a bit of a known mistake from the get-go, given the afternoon start. In the end, we made it in a crunch. 340km to a super lovely campsite in the French grand balloon region. A bit too much driving in one go, a bit late on the arrival, but necessary for our minds to feel like we are actually on the trip for real.

Setting up camp was almost as easy as imagined. Even though we arrived at 6pm, we had a full spaghetti-and-home-made-sauce dinner and were all in bed by 9pm. The temperatures at night explained why almost no one else is camping here this time of the year, though. It was about 1° C when we crawled into our plushie-down rooftop cave. 

  • sleeping_linus
    Bad mistake – should not let him have his nap before the car ride
  • linus on the playground
    Never too early for breakfast
  • linus drinking coffee
    Little upper for the road I guess …
  • mountains my wizard
  • linus sleeping in the car
    That’s more like it. Fed and asleep
  • Dinner prep for first camp of the trip
  • flo pointing
    Who can spot the momy?
  • flo in tent
    so much space, amazing!

Day 0.2 – Hard to get going …

Since this is a relatively short trip for us, only two month for what will roughly be around 10,000 km, we had initially planned to make the most of our time and start on the first real day off. That would be today.

To cut right to the chase though, we will not start today. We could, if we really wanted to, but there are a few threads left hanging that we want to finish up before heading off. It proves true once more that anything takes just that bit longer when you add a child into the mix. So what are we waiting for?

Go Vote!

First of all, given the political climate at the moment, we really want to make sure to be able to vote in the European parliamentary elections. Few things count as much as casting your vote when you are as worried about some current trends as we are. Unfortunately, ballot papers for early mail-in voting are only made available 6 weeks ahead of time, which will be on Monday, 8 am, in our case.

Health

We timed it just right for Number 3 to get his final round of vaccination shots before we had to leave, but it seems he might have developed a mild reaction. Nothing to worry yet, but better to have an eye on it at home with our family doctor close by, just in case.

It is probably a good idea as well to take a minute or two to take a breather at home and see how the two of us are holding up. In all the hustle and bustle of everyday madness, certain things get overlooked. Now is a good time to get checked out and just relax a day or two more.

Loose ends

As any traveler would know, there is always another thing that you could do before getting off. A few audio books to decide upon, fine tuning the sleeping and blogging arragements and the like.

Finally, we might take the time to take care of some long neglected little bits. Seeing that exibition that we wanted to go to for months now, sorting some stuff in the house and so on.

So Monday seems like the day now. One cannot leave these things for too long, there will alway be reasons. Time to get moving …

Day 321 – Further north, stats 112 Turkey

We got up early today when the alarm clock went off. Breakfast in the hostel was quick and easy which can also be said for packing the bike. Soon we were on the road.

After 60km, we crossed over into Serbia. The crossing itself was no problem at all but for about 100km, the motoway was a one lane road without much chance of overtaking. All in all, Serbia seemed to be poorer than Bulgaria. It took us hours but we crossed all of Serbia. Crossing into Hungary was just a look into our passports and a wave with a hand…we didn’t even get stamps anymore. Since we had made such good progress, we decided to go for the Iron butt achievement and push on to Budapest. 850km in one day is a new high score for us.

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Country data #12: Turkey

Full screen version of the map

  • 4949 km in total (4854km of GPS tracked)
  • 16 travel days, 25 days total
  • $20.82 Average cost per night (5x room, 19x camping and 1x invitation)
  • 261.32l of standard fuel for $ 614.58 (4.84 l / 100km)
  • ~$24.99 for food eating half the time, two invitations
  • ~$2,400 in total.

All $ values are converted to NZD.

Day 319 – A waste of life

Saying good-bye to Ali, owner of our hostel

Saying good-bye to Ali, owner of our hostel

It was harder than we hoped to say goodbye to Istanbul. Our host Ali gave us another solid breakfast and a broad smile. We hit the road by 10 am and fought our way through suburban Istanbul congestion. Once we were out, the road was clear and the ride smooth.

Instead of following the fastest route via the inland highway, we felt like taking the direct (i.e. coastal) route one more time. It turned out that the GPS idea of getting there from the highway was a bit out-dated, so we meandered through the western Turkish countryside via the worst roads in Turkey before hitting the smooth and scenic coastal road.

The road got smaller and smaller the further we got away from Istanbul

The road got smaller and smaller the further we got away from Istanbul

Today’s ride was pretty long already with its 340 km to go. This meant that we reached the Gallipoli peninsular (known as Çanakkale in Turkey after the provincial capital on the other side of the Dardanelles to confuse things further) well into the afternoon.

Thing took a deep dark plunge from here. We thought to follow the Lonely Planet’s suggestion and visit the 2012 Gallipoli Simulation Centre before paying a visit to ANZAC cove for its importance in New Zealand’s history. As I am writing this five days later, I am still filled with wretched anger on this disgraceful display of revisionist propaganda disguised as a museum. Sad as it is, the only lesson I learned from this is a glimpse of understanding of how a kind, intelligent and hospitable people like the Turks can at the same time display such unreflected rar-rar nationalism. A visit here, most likely with tons of supporting misinformation, is part of every Turkish schoolkids’s education.

*sniff*

*sniff*

Why am I so outraged? It is hard to describe. I like to believe that as someone raised in Germany, we got a rare gift of a particular view of history, especially of armed conflicts. As much as we love our new home New Zealand and its people, their sometimes unreflected celebration of their Great War participation rubbed us a bit. How can something be celebrated that, in a way, was pretty much an imperialistic and also quite racist attack against a country which’s main crime it was to sit on resources that the British Empire would rather have for its own? But there were nuances – and also a way to engage Kiwis in deep reflections on different cultures of remembrance.

This “thing” on the other hand can probably only be described as a Turkish nationalist Call of Duty theme park ride. It clearly had a message: Our war was just, through superiority on culture and religion we fought off the arrogant invaders and it is a pity that today’s Turks cannot die the same martyr death for glory of god and country. Ten multi-media presentations, with props and everything retelling fairy-tale versions of instances of the Ottoman defence. Glorification of Atatürk. Martyrdom revered as a beautiful thing to archive. Everything was clean, good, glorious.

What was missing was any kind of reflection. Any idea of the horrors of war. What does it mean to die a martyr’s death? Not a single drop of blood was shed – people fall with an expression of glorious defiance on their faces and go to sleep – straight to paradise, I suppose. Only, they did not. Trench warfare is horrendous. People die slowly, humans get ripped apart all the time. It stinks, rats start feeding on the wounded as they are still alive slowly dying in no-man’s-land.

The whole thing took an hour. After the second display we were already disgusted, but somehow we stayed to the end. We came out pretty shell-shocked but also angry at the Lonely Planet. Seriously, how can this be in any way recommended? Without any warning or perspective.

Our last night in Turkey

Our last night in Turkey

We were all fed up now and only wanted to leave. We. Skipped. ANZAC cove and headed straight out again, rather getting some more distance done tonight. We camped at a nice little spot 70km further towards our final destination, at the north-eastern end of the peninsular.

What a disappointment to end the traveling part of our journey.

Nina’s comment: All of the above. What shocked me most was that this is a *new* centre. It was only opened in 2012. How can war be so glorified in the 21st century? Haven’t we all learnt our lesson? Instead, you find yourself on the ship (which is rocking… it’s a simulation centre after all) shooting at the enemy, celebrating each hit. You find yourself in the trenches (actual props of trenches… how sick is that?) waiting to shoot at the enemy. It’s disgusting. Yes, if there ever is a “right side” of a war, the Turks were on it. They were invaded, they defended themselves. But there was slaughter all around. The centre disappointed me deeply. The last room, then, just was the last straw, ending in “And this is why Turkey is so great” blatant propaganda.

Day 317 – Holy Wisdom

Hagia Sophia, now a museum, from a distance

Hagia Sophia, now a museum, from a distance

Istanbul, Byzantium, Constantinople … Rome of the East. More than any other city has this place sparked our imagination. Rulers like Emperor Constantine and Justinian, Sultan Suleiman and even Mustafa Kemal Atatürk have made their mark.

Few places stand for the colorful history of this region like the Hagia Sophia. It was the third imperial church built on this spot. Later converted into the imperial Friday mosque for the Ottoman empire and finally turned into a museum in the new found Turkish Republic. If I ever had something of a bucket list, seeing this monument was definitively on it. So today, we did. It was only tainted by our apparently eternal sight-seeing companion, the scaffold. Well, needs must and renovations have to happen at some point.

The inner sanctum: Built as a church, used as a mosque, now a museum

The inner sanctum: Built as a church, used as a mosque, now a museum

All in all, those were two hours well spent. This building more than any other for me showed the marks of its impressive history. From the Roman era over the crusades up to the Ottoman times, each century has left a mark and left a piece that became part of the whole of what we see today. It feels like a great analogy for the city as a whole.

We went for a quite disappointing lunch afterwards, the second time in a row, and promised ourselves to ignore the Lonely Planet for the rest of the stay. We would rather check out the lovely looking places near our hotel on the southern end of Sultanahmet.

It ended up being just that for the rest of the day. After an afternoon rest in our room, we could not really muster the energy for more sightseeing today. Instead, we did check out a beautiful place up the road called mitara cafe & art. We had brilliant mezze and I had a huge glass of good Turkish red. A beautiful way to let the day fade out.