I have never done road trips before. Reasons being;
1. I didn't drive till recently,
2. I don't have a mate who can put up with me for the duration of a trip in a small car with certain uncomfortableness of bumpy roads and sign posts in various different languages, including Welsh. (Croeso Y Cymru!)
3. It's usually cheaper to fly, and I am not romanticised by the sound of road trips, nor besotted by the idea of being green.
Well, it's almost the end of the year, and it is the wine time. Beaujolais Nouveau was released almost 2 weeks ago, and this is the time of the year I do my whole year load of wine shopping, in France.
Sounds gloriously posh, I am sure, but the reality is that I drive down M20 in the middle of the night so I can get on the cheapest ferry of the day, get to Calais in very early hours, it is so early I can't see which side of the road I should be sticking to, so I sleep in the car, under the layers of overcoats.
Then I go to one of these wine super stores which was clearly build for Britons and not for the locals, and buy as much wine as I can put on my battered small French car, before driving straight back to the port for a few more hours of sleep, followed by another cheap ferry ride and M20 + M25 +M4 driving.
This year, because I was so fed up with my work and everything else, I have decided to extend the trip, and even take someone with me.
We have left my place at 11pm, got to Dover at 1.15am, and got to Calais at 4.30am. We slept horizontally on front and back seats for 3.5 hours, and drove for 1.5 hrs to marvellous Brugges.
It was so much fun. It was cold and beautiful, not at all threatening. We didn't get lost, and the hotel was OK. Had some tasty beers, and all these beer infused dishes, along with fries and mayo. Loads of chocs and waffles.
Brugges was very laid back place. It is a big tourist place, yet you never get hustled to spend stupid money on stupid stuff, unless you really wanted to. I mean, what sort of tourist place shut all the supermarkets and many shops just because it's Sunday?
There was one of these famous Christmas markets in the market place, around this ice rink, surrounded by blue-purple Christmas tree shaped illumination displays. Everyone had mulled wine and hot chocolate milk in Styrofoam cups, listening to no-ty's semi oldie club classics. It was just perfect.
Now I have a year supply of wine and ready to work through till next holiday. Free cheers all around!
1. I didn't drive till recently,
2. I don't have a mate who can put up with me for the duration of a trip in a small car with certain uncomfortableness of bumpy roads and sign posts in various different languages, including Welsh. (Croeso Y Cymru!)
3. It's usually cheaper to fly, and I am not romanticised by the sound of road trips, nor besotted by the idea of being green.
Well, it's almost the end of the year, and it is the wine time. Beaujolais Nouveau was released almost 2 weeks ago, and this is the time of the year I do my whole year load of wine shopping, in France.
Sounds gloriously posh, I am sure, but the reality is that I drive down M20 in the middle of the night so I can get on the cheapest ferry of the day, get to Calais in very early hours, it is so early I can't see which side of the road I should be sticking to, so I sleep in the car, under the layers of overcoats.
Then I go to one of these wine super stores which was clearly build for Britons and not for the locals, and buy as much wine as I can put on my battered small French car, before driving straight back to the port for a few more hours of sleep, followed by another cheap ferry ride and M20 + M25 +M4 driving.
This year, because I was so fed up with my work and everything else, I have decided to extend the trip, and even take someone with me.
We have left my place at 11pm, got to Dover at 1.15am, and got to Calais at 4.30am. We slept horizontally on front and back seats for 3.5 hours, and drove for 1.5 hrs to marvellous Brugges.
It was so much fun. It was cold and beautiful, not at all threatening. We didn't get lost, and the hotel was OK. Had some tasty beers, and all these beer infused dishes, along with fries and mayo. Loads of chocs and waffles.
Brugges was very laid back place. It is a big tourist place, yet you never get hustled to spend stupid money on stupid stuff, unless you really wanted to. I mean, what sort of tourist place shut all the supermarkets and many shops just because it's Sunday?
There was one of these famous Christmas markets in the market place, around this ice rink, surrounded by blue-purple Christmas tree shaped illumination displays. Everyone had mulled wine and hot chocolate milk in Styrofoam cups, listening to no-ty's semi oldie club classics. It was just perfect.
Now I have a year supply of wine and ready to work through till next holiday. Free cheers all around!
