Greys Coach Travel Blog - Coach Travel Hampshire

Rudesheim Friday 16 December 2011

2011-12-18T11:07:00.000-08:00

Up at 05:30 (but you already know that!) and after breakfast we are away at 07:30. It is very wet and dark when we leave and the rain will stay with us for most of the day.

We are going to go back a different way to avoid both Brussels and Antwerp on a Friday afternoon.
From Liege we shall go via Mons and Lille which is about ten minutes longer but should be quieter traffic wise.
The rain is heavy all of the way and is a real pain in Belgium because a lot of the motorway is only two lane and now a coach or lorry is not allowed in the outside lane when it is raining. This makes the journey as fast as the slowest lorry and costs us a fair bit of time. What a relief it is when the motorway goes to three lanes.
We have a short comfort stop in Germany and a short lunch stop in Belgium. As we want to have a little time in the terminal lunch is reduced to 35 minutes and luckily the service area we stop at is quiet with no queues in the restaurant.
A lot of the group just buy baguettes to eat but a few go into the restaurant for soup or something more substantial.
We arrive in Calais at 15:20, an hour before our shuttle at 16:20.
Passport checks do not take too long and we have enough time to spend twenty minutes in the terminal before moving off to the loading bay.
A few more bottles of wine are purchased!
Our train leaves on time and we are soon driving up the M20, a very dry M20 I must add.

Bar a little hold up in Guildford we have a trouble free journey home and are finished in Petersfield by 18:45.
I have really enjoyed this short break and Rudesheim makes a great place to stay in, with its excellent Christmas Market and other attractions such as the wine tasting, tourist train and cable car up to the monument at the top of the vineyards.
I also like the hotel as it has a lot of character and is superbly positioned in the heart of Rudesheim. The food is a little basic but I didn’t see too many plates going back with food left on!
I am already looking forward to returning.

Rudesheim Thursday 15 December 2011

2011-12-18T11:01:00.000-08:00

We are going to Frankfurt today and depart the hotel at 09:00. As it is so tight getting in and out of the hotel we decided to wait until today to fill up with fuel and this we do as we leave Rudesheim.

As we approach Frankfurt, all modern high rise buildings made of glass, we hit a lot of traffic and the last part of the journey is slow through the city centre.
There is coach parking in the heart of the city next to the excellent Christmas markets. When we arrive all of the bays are taken up except for one at the front that is for the city sightseeing bus. We pull in here and drop the passengers off and wait to be moved on!
I go off for a short walk before a call from Brian telling me have to move.
Before we set off I ask the English coach parked behind us what time he is leaving and he tells me 11:45. It is now nearly 11:30 so we will try and wait the next few minutes but soon have to move as another city bus turns up.
We drive around the block and after a short wait swap places with the departing coach. Sorted!
We go off for a coffee before finding a mushroom stall for Brian to finally have his mushrooms.
We are departing Frankfurt at 15:15 which may be too long for some but may not be long enough for others. The market here is one of the best and we are also next to the wonderful modern shopping centre.
The drive back is mostly done in very heavy rain which doesn’t stop until we reach Rudesheim at 16:15.
Plenty of time for another look around Rudesheim and some more shopping.
I am on a mission to find some toothpaste as I have run out and end up buying some at the other end of the town close to the coach park.
Once again dinner is at 19:00 and we are in the same seats as last night.
Our wine has been delivered today and is waiting to be picked up from the reception desk.
It is an early night for me tonight as I will have to be up at 05:30 for a 06:30 breakfast as we are departing at 07:30 in the morning.

Rudesheim Wednesday 14 December 2011

2011-12-18T10:53:00.000-08:00

My brother Paul’s birthday today. Happy Birthday!

We have a free day from driving today and will spend the day in Rudesheim.
Breakfast is very pleasant and a lot quieter than last night. The Americans were only here for dinner and the other English group (Shearings) have left this morning. There is a nice buffet spread and everything is very relaxed.
We have arranged a ride on the little tourist train and a wine tasting for the group and we all meet in the courtyard at 10:00.
Before we leave I finalise the menu choices for tonight’s dinner and hand the list to reception.
It is a short walk to where we shall catch the train and we arrive in plenty of time for our 10:15 departure.
Time for a group photo!
Our little tractor pulled train arrives and we all pile on. There is only our group on board so all of the commentary will be in English, which is the cause of some hilarity!
The train takes us up high above Rudesheim amongst the barren looking vineyards with magnificent views over the Rhine and the town.
It is very cold and windy with the threat of rain not far away as we are given our guided tour. The funniest moment was the commentary describing people being a little drunk as being concentrated!
We have a photo stop on the way down before skirting the town and back to where we started. Normally we would be taken through the town but that is not possible with all of the market stalls in the town.
We are back by 11:00 and will reconvene at midday for our wine tasting.
Time to enjoy a Rudesheimer coffee.
We choose one of the nearby cafes along with half of the coach! Brian and I are sat with Nicola and Dot, with Primrose and Anna next to us and Anita and Olive close to them. Sue and Toni come in but have to sit in the main building as there are no seats left where we are. Everybody has this well known and delicious coffee.
The waiter comes to your table with a tray full of a pot of coffee, small Asbach brandy bottles, sugar cubes, cream and a Rudesheimer mug which has no handles.
The brandy is put into the mug and then set fire to followed by three sugar cubes and the coffee all topped off with a big dollop of cream with chocolate flakes on.
It is very similar to an Irish coffee and just as tasty. It is also very warming on a cold day. A cold day that is now a very wet day.
I take a few snaps of satisfied passengers before meeting them all at the wine tasting at Adolf Storzal Wines.
The last time I came here we were given our tasting by Adolf who opened his spiel with the immortal words – “My name is Adolf, you may have heard that name before!”
Today Adolf is not there and we are entertained by Hans who is just as funny and every inch the thespian I think he must be. Some of his jokes go over people’s heads but the for the most time he is very funny and informative.
We are trying four wines ranging from dry to sweet and by the time we have finished there are a couple of tipsy passengers! Great fun and all within a minutes’ walk of the hotel.
At the end we have the opportunity to buy the wine and a few do including myself. Any wine bought today will be brought to the hotel by Hans (in his little tank!!) before we leave on Friday.
The rain has stopped for a short while as Brian goes mushroom hunting! He wants to have a plate of cooked mushrooms that are common fare at German Christmas Markets. Sadly the mushroom man has moved to pastures new and we have a dilemma for lunch! In the end the rain comes down so hard that we dive into the nearest place with a Bitburger sign! Well when we are not driving we must take advantage of these things!
We are once again joined by Dot and Nicola and enjoy a couple of beers with our lunch. I had a delicious turkey and chips! Well it is nearly Christmas!
As we come out of the restaurant the rain has been replaced with lovely blue sky but not for too long I think.
We stop at the Asbach stall for Dot to buy a bottle of this famous German brandy and squeeze in another coffee! Olive and Anita are here with a coffee that is made from passion fruit instead of coffee. She offers me a straw to taste it and it is lovely.
I leave the three of them shopping and head back to the hotel for a siesta! I wonder why I feel a little sleepy?!
Dinner is at 19;00 tonight and we are the only group in and have been moved to a much better position at the top of the restaurant.

The food is nice enough, not the best I have eaten and certainly not the worst, and a little basic but it all tastes okay.
After dinner I retire to my room only to find I am out of water so walk back to the restaurant and ask Tanja (waitress) for a large bottle. She obliges without charging me and as I walk back through the bar I stop for a nightcap with Frank, Val, Allan and Sue.
Am ready for bed tonight.

Rudesheim 2011 Tuesday 13 December 2011

2011-12-18T10:40:00.000-08:00

We have our annual Christmas Markets trip to Germany going out today and both Brian and I are going.

We have four people, Frank, Val, Sue and Alan, who need picking up in Bracknell so I will drive over in my car to pick them up and take them to meet the coach in Guildford.
The original plan was for Wendy to come over on the coach with Brian and take the car back but as the weather is a bit stormy this morning she will come over a little later when it is light and before the nasty traffic warden is about!
The pick up goes smoothly and I go off with Brian leaving my car on a single yellow line ready for Wendy to collect at 08:30.
We have an uneventful journey down to Folkestone and plenty of time in the terminal before our 09:20 shuttle to Calais.
Everything is running on time and we drive away from Calais at 11:00 local time. It is a long journey to Rudesheim and we hope to arrive by 18:30/45.
Two hours from Calais, immediately before the Brussels ring road, we stop for lunch at a motorway service area.
The traffic seems to be moving okay on the motorway so we should navigate Brussels without too much trouble.
Had a text from Wendy to say she got to the car at 08:35 and that nasty traffic warden had got there at 08:30!!
We depart the service area at 13:45 and two hours later have managed to travel 3 miles!! There had been an accident and we have been caught in the aftermath. Bum!
This is one of the most frustrating parts of the job especially when we still have a fair way to go.
We have a short stop at the Belgian/German border before arriving in Rudesheim at 20:20.
We are staying at the Hotel Lindenwirt in the centre of Rudesheim. This is a wonderfully located hotel in the heart of one of the prettiest Rhineland towns whose Christmas Market is spread throughout the town.
The hotel is a little basic in many aspects but I do enjoy staying here as it has bags of character and we can park the coach here. Mind you it is a bit tight reversing the coach under an arch which is only just high enough to fit the coach under and then into the hotel’s courtyard.
I have called ahead and agreed to have dinner at 21:00 with us all making our choice of main course at our last stop on the motorway.
The hotel is very busy with another English coach party and two other coach loads of Americans who were just dining and dancing, and making a bit of noise!
There is a musician playing and singing each evening which is common with all of the bars and restaurants along the famous Drosselgasse, a narrow alley that goes from the river promenade to the top of the town and is full of bars, cafes, restaurants and shops and has a lively atmosphere.
We are all sat at the bottom of the restaurant with the noisy Americans between us and the other English group and with their dancing it is difficult to navigate through the throng.
The service was a little slow but that can be expected when it is so busy and when the food did arrive it was good. The Bitburger beer is also a taste to be savoured! And we like to savour!

I am pleased to climb into bed tonight with my room overlooking the courtyard.

Thursford Christmas Spectacular Thursday 08 December 2011

2011-12-18T10:31:00.000-08:00

We depart the hotel at 09:30 and rejoin the A11 which takes us to the M11 and our first stop at a service area close to Stansted Airport.

Half an hour later we are back on the motorway heading towards the M25 and to Lakeside and its massive indoor shopping centre.
I get the impression some are not keen on stopping here but it is in the itinerary and it is nearly Christmas so shopping is a done thing at this time of year!
One gentleman stays on the coach and I go off for a walk around and some lunch.
We leave here at 15:15 and have a trouble free journey over The Queen Elizabeth bridge to Clackett Lane services where I call the taxi’s.
All of the drop offs go well and I am finished in Petersfield by 18:00.

It has been a lovely few days away with Norwich being as great as ever and the Christmas Spectacular surpassing all expectations.

Thursford Christmas Spectacular Wednesday 07 December 2011

2011-12-18T10:29:00.000-08:00

I am taking the group into Norwich this morning before we have lunch in the hotel and then go to the Christmas Spectacular this evening.

Before we leave at 09;30 I have a chat with another driver who went to the show last night and passed on a few tips as I haven’t been to it before.
It doesn’t take long to drive into the centre of Norwich and drop the passengers off by the castle and then go on and park close to the football stadium. One of the passengers came with me as he wanted to buy some Christmas presents in the Norwich club shop for his son.
I went for a stroll but didn’t go far as it was freezing! The sun is out but the wind cuts you in half.
I pick them all up at 12:30 and five minutes later we are back at the hotel, in plenty of time for our 13:00 lunch.
We are sat eating at lunch and during the starters the fire alarm goes off. Nobody seems too concerned and nobody gets up from the table until the staff appear and ask everyone to go outside!
The coach is parked at the entrance and I open the door for people to sit in there as it is even colder than earlier.
The fire brigade turn up and two firemen go inside only to return a short while later giving us the all clear to carry on with our lunch.
After lunch we have some free time before joining the coach at 16:00 to go to Thursford.
I am reading in my room when the bloody fire alarm goes off again! I go out along with everyone else only to be told it is a false alarm.
In my haste I have left my room key in the room! I soon find someone to let me in!
We are away at four and after taking a while to get out of Norwich due to the traffic I am soon nearing Thursford.
The show is at the Thursford Steam Museum and it is way out in the country. I am glad of my sat nav and the chat I had earlier with the other driver as it is pitch black but I know what signs and landmarks to look for.
We arrive at 17:15 which is about perfect as the afternoon show has just finished and we manage to get along the narrow approach road before too much traffic comes the other way.
The show begins at 19:00 so we have a little time to look around the couple of shops and also visit Santa’s Magic Kingdom. This is a decorated hall mainly for children but I found it was great for grown ups too. The colourful lights and displays are gorgeous and well worth the entrance money (£4.00 but free to bus drivers!!).
There are three cafes on site as well as a licensed bar so plenty of places for a sandwich and a cup of tea.
I wasn’t going to watch the show but as I haven’t been before thought I should see it to tell others about it. Normally it is not my kind of thing.
I am so glad I did watch it as the show was absolutely fabulous, one of the best shows I have seen and comparable to anything you would see in the West End.
The dancers we magnificent as were the musicians and singers, the comedian was funny (not all are!) and the illusionist made you wonder how he did it.
I don’t really know what I was expecting but it certainly wasn’t a show as professional as this.
I can’t wait to return next year.
The drive back to Norwich took an hour and we were back by 11:15.

Thursford Christmas Spectacular Tuesday 06 December

2011-12-18T10:27:00.000-08:00

Off on a short break to Norwich and the Christmas Spectacular in Thursford.

My three pick-ups in Petersfield, Liphook and Guildford all go smoothly and I’m away from Guildford at 09:30.
From the A3 I join the M25 towards Heathrow and then onto South Mimms Service Area at the junction with the A1. The road is moving well but the electronic boards keep coming up with longb delays between junctions 19 and 23, right where I am going! There is not a lot I can do to avoid the traffic until junction 20 where I could come off and go another way.
Thankfully by the time I reach junction 19 the problem has been solved and the traffic is flowing freely.
After our stop at South Mimms I head off onto the M11 and to Cambridge where we are stopping for a couple of hours over lunchtime.
I drop off close to the centre and park in the park and ride on the outskirts. As I’m not staying too long I don’t have to pay any parking.
We depart Cambridge at 15:00 and I arrive at our hotel in Norwich at 16:30.
We are staying at the Holiday Inn, one of three in Norwich, on the Ipswich Road a couple of miles from the centre.
Dinner is at 19:00 and I am down to make sure everyone is okay.
I am not eating tonight as I want to see Chelsea play Valencia on the television so take a taxi into the centre of Norwich.
I watch the game in the Castlegate pub and am well pleased to see Chelsea play well and win 3 – 0.
What I wasn’t so pleased about is most of the nearby restaurants that were open when I went into the pub are closing as I come out! The only places open later than 22:00 are a couple of expensive Thai restaurants and I don’t fancy that.
I end up with a bar of chocolate from the taxi office vending machine! I will waste away!!
Am very tired though and just glad to get to bed tonight.

Paris Sunday 31 October 2011

2011-11-06T12:47:00.000-08:00

Normally we visit Versailles on Sunday morning but this year we are going to spend the morning in Paris before heading home.

It is a lovely morning again and I think a lot of the group want to visit the Eiffel Tower as the queues yesterday were very long.

We are away by nine o’clock and fifteen minutes later I am dropping off at the tower. Some of the group also want to have a boat ride so hopefully there will be enough time to do that as well. If there were enough for the boats I would have arranged something but there are only a handful interested so they can go individually. The Batobus boats go from very close to the Eiffel Tower.

I have also offered to take anybody who doesn’t want either the boat or tower to Montmatre and the Sacre Cour. I only have three but don’t mind as there is no traffic which makes driving enjoyable and it also gives me a bit of practice as we don’t often take the coach here. The Sacre Cour and Montmatre are well worth visiting but the drop off/pick up point is in the heart of the red light area and can be a bit seedy. It looks okay this morning though.

After dropping the three off I park in a wide road not too far away and close to a few cafes so I don’t miss my morning coffee!

The intrepid three enjoy a couple of hours before I pick them up and we drive back to a very busy Eiffel Tower. We still have an hour before we depart so I go off in search of something to eat (I know, always looking after my stomach!) and end up with a baguette that I didn’t enjoy as it must have been made yesterday judging by the trouble I had chewing it!

We are due to leave at 13:00 and manage to get away on time with all those who wanted to go up the tower satisfied with their efforts and those who went for a boat ride as pleased.

Some of the passengers either walked up or walked down the tower which is something I could never do. The lifts are bad enough. The last time I went up with the intention of going to the top (I have been to the top once at night) I bottled it at the second stage paralysed with fear! I salute everyone who made the top.

The motorway to Calais is very quiet and after a stop en route we arrive at the Shuttle terminal at 17:00 to be confronted with all of the vehicles we haven’t seen on the motorway! It is heaving.

It takes about 30 minutes to clear tickets, security and immigration which allowed us half an hour in the terminal building before our 18:45 train.

The final part of our journey home was pretty uneventful and I arrive at my last drop off in Petersfield at 20:45 with all of the taxi’s waiting.

I always enjoy going to Paris and get a buzz out of showing people around this fantastic city and I hope those who came this time have also enjoyed what they have seen and maybe want to come back with me another day.

Paris Saturday 29 October 2011

2011-11-06T12:46:00.000-08:00

I walk to the bus at 08:00 and it is still dark. We are leaving at 08:50 to meet our guide close to the Arc de Triomphe at 09:00.

The meeting place is at the top of the Avenue de Grande Armee facing the Arch. Nobody is here and after a couple of phone calls it transpires that Patricia is waiting in a different place! Not a good start.

Patricia turns out to be charming and we all enjoy a lovely tour with stops at various places where the passengers can stretch their legs and take pictures.

I think she must have had a late night as she is always yawning, or maybe it is me! I can have that effect on people!

Due to no traffic at all we complete the tour by 11:45 allowing the rest of the afternoon free to explore at leisure.

We finish the tour at Concorde Square where half the coach leave me while the other half I take to the Eiffel Tower, a very busy Eiffel Tower!

I can park here and safely leave the bus to go for a walk.

I love wandering the streets of Paris and my first port of call is a coffee. Paying €5.50 for a coffee suddenly makes the beer seem cheap!

I walk to a lovely road full of restaurants, small shops and cafes, the Rue Cler. I came across this little gem last year and a year on it is still lovely with a great atmosphere and no traffic. I have lunch here before continuing my stroll.

Strolling the streets of Paris on a nice day really is one of life’s pleasures and something I will never tire of doing.

Back at the coach I check on the Chelsea Arsenal score and am pleased to see Chelsea are winning

2-1 at half time. The next time I look it is 3-2 to Arsenal and then parity is restored at 3-3. When I look at the final score Arsenal have won 5-3! No that can’t be right! Bum!

I leave the Eiffel Tower at 16:40 with four people and drive to Concorde Square where I pick up all but two of the party and return to the hotel. I manage to park in the bus lay-by close to the hotel and am back in my room before six. The clocks go back tonight so we get an extra hours sleep.

Close by the hotel are quite a few restaurants and a couple of pubs as well as a restaurant in the hotel.

I wander out and have a pint in the Big Ben pub before deciding on dinner at a restaurant called Zinc.

It is not the cheapest place I have ever been in but after my sandwiches yesterday I don’t feel too guilty treating myself to a decent dinner!

I enjoyed a lovely meal before taking a stroll back in the rain. Yes it is actually raining! Not what we are used to!

Paris Friday 28 October 2011

2011-11-06T12:42:00.000-08:00

Off to Paris today for a weekend I always enjoy.
I think of the Autumn Paris tour as the end of my summer touring the same as I regard the Bulbfields Weekend the start of the summer season. They are two tours I have done for the last twenty plus years and am very familiar with the feeling every year.
I only have two pick-ups, Petersfield and Liphook, and am away nice and early.
On the way to Folkestone I make a comfort stop at Clackett Lane services and see a minibus from Wheelers, the company who took over Altonian’s holiday business a couple of years ago. Standing outside the bus were two of my passengers! That’s not on! And they are going to Paris! And I have spare seats! Twenty spare seats!
We press on and arrive in Folkestone at 08:30 well in time for our 10:20 shuttle. So early in fact that we catch the 09:20 which helps me out no end today.
Mind you, we very nearly didn’t get on the 09:20. As we were called forward to board the train I’m just about to drive down the ramp to the shuttle when I am stopped and asked to reverse back to the top of the previous ramp. Then all of the cars and vans ahead of me are reversed back.
Something is wrong!
I follow the first couple of vehicles, who are following the Marshall, down one ramp and up the next. At the top I am told that I should have waited back where I was but now I am here I will wait here!
The problem is a coach has grounded on the ramp down to the train and cannot move.
Once all of the cars have been loaded I drive down to the train facing the wrong way to load and turn the bus around before driving onto the train. Panic over. We are still away on time.
It is sunny today and hot driving with the sun blasting through the windscreen and little cold air about.
We have had a problem with the air con on this coach and are half way through a four to six week wait for parts. I didn’t expect to be needing it in the last week of October.
The journey to Paris is relatively traffic free and we pull up at the Novotel La Defense at 15:30 and I soon have everyone unloaded and I go off to park.
Parking is always a problem here and I had terrible difficulty last year. This year I can claim the parking space underneath the hotel. It is very tight parking here as there is a lot of concrete about and very little room for manoeuvre. Even though I have parked this coach in here before I do not like it. But it does give me time to relax and enjoy a shower before taking the group into Paris for the evening at 17:30.
We are all on board at 17:30 and 45 minutes later I am dropping them all off close to Notre Dame and the restaurants of the Latin Quarter. I will be back at 20:15 to pick them up.
I park just off Concorde Square and eat my sandwiches! I am never sure where I will park and sometimes that can be a long way from food or the weather is very bad for walking about, so I bring along a packed lunch!
When I go back to pick them all up the traffic is much busier than earlier and it is a tad awkward stopping.
Once they are all back I show them the main sights illuminated against the clear dark sky. It is always a pleasure driving around Paris and I enjoy this nightime ride.
Our last stop is for a photograph at the Tocadero, which is a viewpoint for the magnificent Eiffel Tower looking splendid tonight.
As we pull away a Belgian Cosmos coach pulls away after me but tries to push in front of me. I recognise him from the hotel and am sure he wants to get ahead of me to claim his parking space! I can’t be arsed to play silly games with a bus and let him go ahead for which I receive no acknowledgment.
Sure enough back at the hotel he has pulled in just in front of me and is parked at the front of the hotel. From there you can just drive out and off you go. He can’t as there must be a car parked there so as I pull up his reversing lights go on as he starts to reverse back out the way he came in. Too bad I arrive at precisely that moment and block him in! Nice one Hercule!

I park on a road 10 minutes walk away from the hotel as I didn’t fancy another trip underground. It has been a good day and I think they have all enjoyed it.
A quick beer in the bar and then it is bed for me. The beer cost €7.15 which is dear but not as dear as I remember.

Danube Cruise Friday 07 October 2011

2011-10-12T04:17:00.000-07:00

Breakfast is everything I expected from this hotel with a great spread of food available. This has to be one of the best overnight hotels I have used and will definitely be using it again.
I book a taxi for 07:15 to take me to the coach on a wet and windy morning. We are not used to this!
Everybody is on and we depart the hotel for the motorway. I have checked a map and am following the sat nav to get me out of the city but the road I want to take to the motorway has a low bridge which i cannot get under so I take a longer route out. This costs me a few minutes but we are soon on the motorway heading towards Aachen.
I decide to go via Antwerp and all is going well until we come across a delay due to roadwork’s which loses me another ten minutes. It is also very wet this morning and when I’m on two lane motorways I am not allowed in the outside lane if it is raining, which again loses me some time.
By the time we have navigated Antwerp and I reach the service area our proposed stopping time has been reduced from 40 minutes to 20.
As I’m driving today I notice the fuel gauge is low and I think I may have to top up again. This is a nuisance as I don’t want to be wasting time at the fuel pump but may have to. When I filled up yesterday I couldn’t have completely filled the tanks as there should be ample fuel to get home with.
We arrive in Calais at 13:20, an hour before our 14:20 sailing to Dover. Passport control is a bit of a pain with lots of non European youngsters holding things up but the group are all soon through and we take our place on the dockside ready for loading.
The ship leaves a few minutes late but hopefully will make the time up as it is not very busy.
Dover is sunny as we drive away and I am still concerned about the fuel.
As per normal, we have a stop at Clackett Lane with enough time for toilets, shop and taxi booking and also the mileage quiz.
My bum is twitching as I decide to put a hundred litres in the tank, first driving onto the wrong pumps before eventually going to the commercial pump after missing the whacking great sign telling me where to go! At about 10p a litre dearer than we normally pay I am glad not to be putting too much in!
We have a good run back and am finished in Petersfield by 06:00.
It has been a great tour and I love the river cruising. It has got to be the best way to relax and is something I can’t wait to do again.

Danube Cruise Thursday 06 October 2011

2011-10-12T04:15:00.000-07:00

We arrive in Passau at about 07:30, along with a load of other ships. Thursday must be changeover day.
All of our luggage was to be left outside of our cabins by 07:30 and each group has their own colour coded label to put on each case. Ours were orange.
The crew will then collect all of the bags and put them in their coloured piles ready for unloading. We are going to be one of the last as I have to fetch the coach and I anticipate departing at 09:00.
The first shuttle bus will not depart for the parking garage until 08:30 which doesn’t leave me munch time so I manage to blag a lift with the luggage man who is going back to the yard with a van full of cases.
The coach is still there ready and waiting. I refill the drinks water, sort myself out and drive back to the quayside.
Our cases are waiting outside of the ship and after waiting a few minutes for other busses to go I pull up and load up.
It is sad to be leaving the ship but all good things must come to an end as we begin our journey to our overnight hotel in Koln.
I fill up with fuel on the way and what should be an easy drive to Koln is a bit of a chore due to heavy traffic, roadwork’s and accidents.
The hotel we are staying at, the Renaissance, is a new one to me and is located in the centre of this famous city.
I expected to be here between 17:30 and 18:00 at the latest but we don’t arrive until 19:15.
On first impressions the hotel looks very luxurious as I check in and arrange dinner for 20:00. The only downside is having to park the coach a way away from the hotel. Once parked I start to walk back but realise it will take me ages so I grab a cab and am driven back. Even going by taxi I am not back until 20:15, leaving me just enough time to clean my teeth and go down for dinner. The hotel had kindly taken my case and laptop to my room on the sixth floor. A quick peep out of the window shows me I am overlooking Koln centre and the Cathedral. It is a shame to be so rushed as the room is magnificent, with a bed as wide as it is long, and every bit as luxurious as my first impression.
The service in the restaurant is first class with lots of waiters and waitresses busily and efficiently going about their work.
The starter for our meal tonight was both unusual and delicious – goats cheese crème brulee! A combination that was delightful.
The Cathedral is only a ten minute walk away and some of the group go for a stroll after dinner while I retire to my room to send details of the changes to the brochure to Dan at the printers. For the first time in a week I can go online!

Danube Cruise Wednesday 05 October 2011

2011-10-12T04:13:00.000-07:00

Our last full day on the Serenity and I think we would all be happy to stay a bit longer! The next cruise is again the Danube but going right down to the Black Sea, a 15 day cruise. That would do for me!
There is an included excursion today to the Wachau region of Austria and I am uncertain about whether to go. I would like to see the scenery and return to Melk but I really need the time for the brochure proof.
The brochure wins out and I’m pleased as the boat is so quiet I can get quite a bit done before lunch. The passengers are due back at 12:30.
Not so sunny today as I start to work on the outside deck but soon come in to the comfort of the lounge.
The passengers are back by midday and some have enjoyed the trip and others less so. They all agreed the visit to Melk Abbey was outstanding (it always is) but there was a slight problem at the wine tasting where the commentary was only in German which made it difficult to understand and then some of the Germans had the hump because the English were talking! I don’t know if they neared World War III but there were some words exchanged. And not the first time this week either! Some of our German cousins obviously do not like the English although others are delightful.
I spend most of the afternoon on deck which is lovely if you can keep out of the wind.
It is fascinating watching the boat being manoeuvred in and out of the vast locks. In one lock we are raised to meet the river level but then have to negotiate a low bridge. All passengers have to come off the sun deck and all awnings and aerials are lowered along with the Captains wheelhouse which is lowered hydraulically. All very impressive and exciting. The boat behind is an older vessel and the crew on there have to physically take the wheelhouse apart and lie the pieces on the deck.
It is the Captain’s dinner tonight and half an hour before we are to meet in the Panorama Lounge for a cocktail.
I have a quick beer in the Lido bar watching the lovely scenery from the back of the boat.
Most of our group are sat just inside the door of the lounge as we are given little snacks to eat and wine to drink and toast the crew with.
The crew are all called out to much fanfare and raising of glasses and the Captain gives a speech which is translated by Andy, the ship’s hotel manager. He is telling us about the worry of low water, especially on their journey to the Black Sea. At one point on the trip the river bed was only 30cm from the bottom of the boat! That is only a foot!
Where we are all sat is a place where two German couples have been sitting and the looks we received when they came in and saw their seats had gone were definitely hostile!
Dinner was great tonight with seven courses of excellent food including a steak main dish that was delicious.
It is time to pay our bills tonight and I have had a print out of mine and the waiter who always serves us has not included many of my drinks and when he has he has only charged me for small beers instead of large.
The note I put into his pocket is appreciated but also a little expected!
On the tipping front we are all given an envelope and advised that between €5 and €7 per day per person is the normal amount given although you can put what you like in the envelope. With 166 passengers on board if we all put the minimum €5 per person per night the crew would be sharing €5810.00!
Food for thought!!!
I pack my cases in readiness for tomorrows disembarkation at Passau.

Danube Cruise Tuesday 04 October 2011

2011-10-12T04:11:00.000-07:00

We have been on the go a week now and the time has flown by. This time last week we were on our way to our first night in Bruhl.
I have an early breakfast because our city tour of Bratislava departs at 08:30.
I haven’t been to Bratislava before and have been looking forward to seeing the Slovakian capital all trip.
We meet our guide whose name is Uri but that translates to George and he is a giant of a man. I heard someone say he is 2m 2cm tall which is just shy of 6’ 7’’! And he is a big unit with it.
He is also an excellent guide with the most wonderful sense of humour and makes things I normally find tiresome interesting. A great tour of a city I would like to come back to and see more of.
The tour finishes at the Opera House, in the centre of the city, at 11:00 and it is only a short walk back to the ship which departs at 11:45 for Vienna.
It is another lovely sunny day and I spend most of the afternoon on deck reading, along with all but one of our group.
I manage to doze off for half an hour and am sure I have been snapped! In fact I know as Colin shows me his photo of me resting.
Coffee and cake are taken at 16:00 before our dinner at 18;00. I will need to get back in the gym next week and lose all the weight I have put on this week. It is all eating and lounging about in the sun!
Some of the group are going on an excursion into Vienna this evening to see a classical concert in one of the gorgeous concert halls of the city.
There is also another excursion to a folk evening but none of my group are booked on that.
I go for a walk along the quayside looking for a quiet bar but find nothing open so back at the ship I decide to have a drink in the Lido bar which is situated at the rear of the ship. There are only a handful of people here and it is a real pleasure to sit outside with a beer looking at the lights of Vienna in the distance.

Danube Cruise Monday 03 October 2011

2011-10-12T04:09:00.000-07:00

We arrive in Budapest at 07:30 and moor up at the same point as Saturday. The morning is free with the ship departing at 13:45.
Lunch is at 11:45 and we have an excursion booked at 13:15 called the Danube Bend. It is a long trip visiting the local countryside, some pretty towns and a view of the Danube where it snakes through a valley. The ship sails while the excursion is on and the group are brought back to the coach in Slovakia at about 19:00. I am going to stay behind.
I still don’t feel too good this morning so hopefully a good walk will help.
All of those who want to walk into Budapest and do a spot of shopping are meeting at the reception desk at 08:45 and I will take them to the free ferry that transports us from Buda to Pest and then walk to the historic market hall.
The ferry’s first journey is at 09:00 and my 15 walkers are all aboard in plenty of time, along with a lot of the Germans and the Turks from the boat. The journey takes a couple of minutes.
Once we are off the boat I walk them to the pedestrianised shopping street, Vaci Utca, and then point out the market hall at one end and leave them to it!
I stroll down to the market hall and as well as being a magnificent building (not unlike an old railway station) the market is fantastic. I am not a market person but this is impressive with all the food on the ground floor and all of the crafts and tourist nik naks on the first floor. Everything looks so clean and there is plenty of room to move about without being jostled. A worthwhile visit.
From here I walk back along Vaci Utca to the far end taking in the atmosphere of this lovely city waking up (most shops don’t open until 10:00) and decide to sit down for a coffee. The first place I try I am sitting for five minutes without being served so I go to another cafe and sit down in front of two waitresses who seem to ignore me so I leave there too! At the third attempt I strike lucky!
It is again very hot so I keep my hat on as I walk to the Chain Bridge and then cross it nervously. I don’t like bridges and this is a real struggle to walk over. I am sweating with a twisted stomach as I lean in away from the edge walking as quickly as I can. I don’t know why I am not good on bridges and can have the same problem driving over some!
I am back on the ship in time to have twenty minutes reading my book on the sun deck before our early lunch.
At 13:15 I see all but Ted off on the excursion and go back to the ship. Over a 100 passengers have gone on the excursion leaving the ship virtually empty. It is with pure delight I spend an hour on the sun deck reading and taking in the scenery as we gently sail away from Budapest, a city I will definitely return to.
I even manage to get some work done this afternoon and am pleased I stayed behind as I feel a lot better and it has been an extremely relaxing afternoon.
Dinner tonight was Pirates Night! Bed sheets had been put up across the glass doors of the restaurant stopping any prying eyes. What can they be planning?!
In the lounge before dinner all the staff are dressed in all manner of pirate costumes and the is much banging of drinks trays and glasses.
I enter the restaurant and all of our napkins are hanging from the ceiling, the individual chairs have been turned upside down or are laying on their side, the cutlery is all over the table along with the wine and water glasses! A ”pirate” is sitting slumped in a seat with a noose around his neck and the other pirates are running around brandishing plastic swords and knocking over righted glasses, messing up corrected cutlery and tipping bread out of baskets onto the table!
A clever idea that goes down well with everyone. The theme is carried on throughout dinner with passengers drinks being drunk and food being eaten and napkins turning up all over the place.
On the table next to me, Colin, Pat, Ian and Jenny collect their empty plates and pile them up upside down, hide their glasses behind the curtain and make bras out of their napkins!
After dinner the crew give a show in the lounge which is definitely an amateur production but has a certain charm about it. It has been a good night.

Danube Cruise Sunday 02 October 2011

2011-10-12T04:06:00.000-07:00

Once again another gorgeous morning with everyone on deck enjoying the sun. The usual strollers are about but Mrs Aggressive is a lot less aggressive today and even manages a smile on her way round! I do a couple of laps before sitting in the sun to enjoy my book. I have brought some work with me to do and feel I should be doing that this morning but it is so lovely and relaxing that I am happy to stay here reading. After a couple of hours I have to move into the shade as the sun is just too hot.
Lunch is at 11:30 to allow time for the optional excursion at 13:00. I struggle through a couple of courses but am not hungry from breakfast.
After lunch we moor in what seems the middle of nowhere but is in fact a small village called Ordas. From here the excursion takes the people into the local countryside and to a farm complex where locals ride horses by standing on the horses. I didn’t go but those who did said it was a fantastic trip.
I went for a short walk around the very quiet village but do not feel right. I think the sun has got me and I have a touch of sunstroke. I have a headache and a temperature and just want to lie down. Even though I have now bought a hat it is too late so I go back to my cabin and go to bed for the afternoon.
I still don’t feel right at dinner and even a couple of beers don’t help!

Danube Cruise Satutrday 01 October

2011-10-12T04:04:00.000-07:00

Another lovely sunny day with most of the ship on the sun deck after breakfast. We have all been given a quiz sheet to complete by midday when they have to be handed into the reception.
There are 33 country names al jumbled up into anagrams. I manage 31 but for the life of me cannot work out the last two. I know some have completed so I don’t bother handing mine in. When I see the answers later I could kick myself they were so obvious!
It passes a relaxing morning with quite a bit of banter going about.
The thing to do in the mornings seems to be numerous laps of the sun deck to work off all of the food. There are two particular ladies who take their morning exercise very seriously and god help you if you are stood in the way, they will just walk through you!
The cruise into Budapest this morning is a highlight of the tour. With the sun shining in a clear blue sky the approach is nothing short of dramatic and many cameras are clicking away.
There is a very real sense of excitement among the passengers after this morning’s journey.
After lunch we are going on a city tour and once again are called off first into coach number one, which is a small 30 seater waiting at the top of the gangplank. Our guide, Anna, is also waiting for us as we begin on the Buda side of Budapest.
The first hour is walking and it is very hot except for the obligatory church visit. Much to everyone’s amusement the guide hands me her lollipop sign while she collect the church tickets and I go over to stand by the entrance holding the lollipop high above my head. Cue more pictures!
Back on the coach continue to see the sights before going to a viewpoint high above the city which affords magnificent views of the Danube and Budapest far below.
As well as us there must be a few hundred motorcycles here in what is a monthly meet for them. There is also a demonstration on its way and we just manage to get away before the police close all the roads down.
The temperature signs are showing 28 degrees!
Dinner is earlier tonight at 06:00 as there is an optional excursion to see Budapest by night and visit a folklore show.
We should have done these trips tomorrow but there is the Budapest marathon on tomorrow and most roads will be closed so the weekend has been swapped around.
I am not having dinner on the boat tonight as I’m on a mission for a ruby!
My friend Paul is engaged to a girl who lives in Budapest and he often visits, the most recent time a couple of weeks ago. He brought back a card from an Indian restaurant he loves called the Taj Mahal and advises me to try it.
So tonight’s the night! Anna pointed out its whereabouts on our tour so I have my map marked with a route.
As it is such a lovely evening I have decided to walk and begin my expedition with a stroll along the promenade and over the famous Chain Bridge into the centre. The demonstration has reached the bottom of the bridge and it has been closed to traffic so I walk across on the road as opposed to the pedestrianised walkway on the outside. I am not a fan of walking (or driving) over bridges and find the road the less scary option!
I am reading a book at the moment by Adam Lebor called The Budapest Protocol and the image on the front is a man walking onto the Chain Bridge on the roadway!
Once over the bridge I stop for a refreshment in the John Bull pub before continuing through the very lively centre. What a lovely place.
After an hour I am at the road where the Taj Mahal is but am very hot from the warm evening and my exertions so feel it is only right to have a beer sat outside a bar to cool down.
The restaurant is down a dark and slightly dingy road but is well worth the effort. The staff are all dressed in traditional Indian costumes, even though most are locals, and the service is great.
The food is delicious and I really am glad I made the effort to come here. I have my picture taken and also show them a snap of Paul and they recognise him. A lovely evening.
I go back to the boat by taxi.

Danube Cruise Friday 30 September 2011

2011-10-12T04:02:00.000-07:00

We have been sailing all night and I wake up to another sunny morning. I walk up to the sun deck before breakfast and although the sun is beginning to glow it is a bit chilly. We are on our way to Vienna today.
The breakfast is all buffet with plenty of choice, both hot and cold. The dining area is not cramped and there is an atmosphere of relaxation about the place.
Between Passau and Vienna are 11 locks and they are rather large. We always seem to go through them at mealtimes but we do enter one this morning while everybody is on deck and this drop in water level is 16m – about 50feet!
At 10:30 we are given a talk on the excursions on offer by Petra, the cruise director. We have include five excursions in the price so it is only any optional trips that people will have to pay for. They are all expensive with an average price of about £30! I will have to put our day trip prices up!
Due to our late departure yesterday I think we missed one of our slots through a lock so today’s programme is running a bit late.
We have an early lunch at 11:45 as we are probably going to moor up before Vienna and be taken into the city by coach for our city tour.
This doesn’t happen as we cruise right into Vienna and then wait for our announcement about which coach we are on and picking up our microphone boxes and also our boarding cards.
We have all been given an earpiece and on disembarkation are given a microphone box that should help us hear the guide talking when off the bus.
You also have to obtain a boarding card with your cabin number and ships phone number on it. When you return to the ship you have to return your boarding card so the ship know who is on board and who is still ashore.
We are due to depart on our city tour 13:15 but it is nearer 14:00 when we finally get away.
The English group are called forward first and we are on coach number one.
The ride in to the centre of Vienna does not show the city in its best light but once on the inner ring road the architecture is magnificent.
Our guide is Hilda and we are off on our tour of Vienna. The tour is very good with the last part being a walking tour through the city centre. It is very busy today because this weekend is a free weekend for all of the museums and as well as free admission they stay open a lot later which encourages many more people to visit.
The highlight of the tour for Hilda was seeing the Vienna Boys Choir walking from their coach to a concert hall for a concert. They all looked like little sailors in their uniform.
I needed Colin’s help to fit my earpiece, I just couldn’t work out how it fitted! Doughnut!
It is a bit of a strain to keep everyone together but we all manage it and hopefully everyone enjoys Vienna.
We are back on the boat at about 17:30 with dinner at 19;30. Before dinner we are all asked to meet in the panorama bar for a presentation of the crew by the Captain.
He explains in German the dimensions of the ship, how much fuel and water it carries and lots of other interesting information in his 10 minute spiel
Andy, the hotel manager, repeats the talk in English and only takes a couple of minutes!
The heads of departments are introduced to music and applause before we all adjourn to the dining room for a 6 course dinner plus tea and coffee.
Our drinks waiter is having a bit of fun tonight and puts a glass of schnapps down in front of Ted who asks what it is.
“Viagara!” The waiter replies
Cue much hilarity and silly jokes around the table.
“At 94 it will need to be good stuff” Ted informs us!
When he did take a sip he nearly lost his voice it was so strong!
A funny evening.
In the bar after dinner Roland is performing his music with a few dancers on the floor when I call it a day.

Danube Cruise Thursday 29 October 2011

2011-10-12T03:57:00.000-07:00

Once again I have some happy campers as we are not departing Wurzburg until 10:00. Hopefully this will allow a little time to see this beautiful city.
Our breakfast is in the front restaurant, not the one we ate in last night.
I was up at seven and at the coach by eight to put another parking ticket on that will take me up to our departure time.
I walk back to the hotel for my breakfast.
Our breakfast room is clean and tidy and tastefully decorated in wood, so typical of this part of Europe. The only thing missing was any hot food!
I am not happy as we (as always) include a hot buffet breakfast and it was clearly stated on the hotel voucher I gave in at reception on our arrival.
I complain to the man in charge of the restaurant and he goes off to check, eventually returning to say I am right. I know I am right! He is very apologetic and says we should be in the main restaurant and the passengers can go through if they wish but the problem is most of them have either finished eating or are in the process of finishing their breakfast.
This is not good enough and I’m annoyed as this is an old problem that shouldn’t arise any more.
I am approached by a waitress who says we can have some food to take away with us, which I agree to, and Sheila asks in her fluent German if we can have champagne instead!
I bring the coach to the hotel and am given three bottles of sparkling wine and a box with small croissants, fruit pastries, packets of nutela and cartons of orange juice for everyone.
We are away at ten and soon on the motorway south, heading for Passau and hoping to arrive by about 14:00.
Colin, Pat and Ann are serving drinks for me and we have a veritable feast on our hands this morning! Lynn has also been roped in and I think there are more passengers serving than being served!
We have a half hour stop on the motorway before arriving in a very hot Passau at 14:10.
I haven’t been here before and am in the hands of the sat nav once again which directs me straight to the coach park on the quayside.
Our boat, the MS Serenity, is there waiting for us and it is a big old beast.
The only other cruise ship we have been on is the Esmeralda, which is smaller and as a quirk of fate is moored up in front of the Serenity. All very exciting as a lot of my group have been on the Esmeralda with me before.
I walk up to the ship and am told I can drive alongside and unload all of the luggage, which I do. We can start checking in from 15:00 and the ship departs at 17:00.
It is a relief to have found the ship so easily and once I am empty I drive the ten minutes to the bus garage of Eichenberger, where for €120 I can park the coach for a week. All very professional and obviously something that they doo all the time judging by the cars being left by people going on the various cruise ships.
Once parked and paid I am transported back to the ship in one of their lovely coaches and make my way on board. It is now 15:45 and I thought I would be one of the last to check in but it transpires that they are running a little late and I have strolled in to the front of the queue! Not bad going on a German ship with a vast majority of German passengers!
As I hand my passport over I’m given my cabin key card (125) and a young stewardess shows me to my cabin.
The cabin is great with everything you would expect from a 4 star ship. The finish is beautiful and it is really a class above the Esmeralda. The bathroom is also very nice with a lovely shower and the whole decor of the cabin is as a hotel room. Impressive.
We are supposed to set sail at 17:00 but are delayed by a late group who eventually arrive at 17:20 and we are away.
The sun is still out, the bus is parked up and I can finally relax for the next week.
We are given a short talk on the do’s and don’ts of the vessel before our dinner.
Dinner is a 4 course meal with a choice of main course and the staff are very attentive and efficient.
In fact there are a lot of staff, all smartly dressed in uniform, buzzing about keeping everyone happy.
Am more impressed by the minute.
And the beer on tap is Bitburger, my favourite. It doesn’t get much better than this!
They are very health conscious and each time you enter or leave the restaurant you are expected to wash your hands with the little cleaning spray from one of the machines by the restaurant entrance.

Danube Cruise Wednesday 28 September 2011

2011-10-12T03:53:00.000-07:00

Our ship sails from Passau on the German/Austrian border at 17:00 tomorrow and for any other tour we would take only two days to reach Passau by that time, but as we are catching a boat that doesn’t wait for latecomers then an extra overnight hotel is required.
As well as less hassle at Passau it also makes for a much easier journey today and tomorrow.
Our overnight hotel tonight is in Wurzburg, a city I haven’t visited before.
As we don’t have too far to go today I am going to come off the motorway at Koblenz and drive along the Rhine Valley to Rudesheim, where we shall stop for lunch, before rejoining the motorway to Wurzburg.
We depart Bruhl at 10:00 and the later start seems very much appreciated amongst the group.
We are also blessed with another lovely sunny day.
An hour after departing Bruhl we leave the motorway and drive into Koblenz, crossing the Mosel as it flows into the Rhine at Deutches Eck (German Corner), a landmark of Koblenz that is now dedicated to peace.
Crossing the Rhine we travel alongside this magnificent river on the eastern side passing through pretty villages and stunning scenery.
I adore driving this road, especially on a beautiful sunny day, as there is always something to see and it is an hour and twenty minutes of pure pleasure. Not really work is it! These are the kind of days I still drive for and still get excited about even though I’ve been coming here for over twenty years.
We arrive in Rudesheim by 12:20 and I drop the passengers off in the town before going on to the coach park to park. Normally I would go straight into the coach park as it is not too far to walk back but we have a couple of people walking with sticks.
We are staying here for a couple of hours.
I have a walk around town taking a few pictures and make my way to the wine tasting company we use to say hello. Sadly they are shut so I wander back to the coach.
The man who takes the wine tasting is called Adolf and he starts his talk with the wonderful line – “My name is Adolf, you may have heard that name before!”
After a quick sandwich and coffee I pop into the tourist information for some bits and pieces and then proceed to leak profusely back at the coach. It really is very warm and being a little portly I am feeling it! I must lose some weight. Some chance this week on a full board cruise!
I pick the group up at 14:15 and follow the Rhine towards Mainz and the motorway south to Wurzburg.
I haven’t been to Wurzburg before and am looking forward to seeing a city whose name I have passed many times on the motorway.
I put my trust in the sat nav and she doesn’t let me down, taking me directly to the hotel which is situated close to the centre of the city.
On the way in we passed some majestic looking buildings including the Royal Palace that is a UNESCO World Heritage site and is not dissimilar to the Palace of Versailles.
Once I have unloaded folk and luggage I drive off to park a couple of minutes away and stroll back to the hotel. I was going to have a walk before dinner at seven but have decided to go for a walk after as Chelsea are playing Valencia this evening and I may find a bar with it on. That is an optimistic shout with two German teams also playing tonight.
At dinner we have a few people with dietary requirements and so the waitresses can see who they are they are given small coloured discs by their cutlery! I can understand this in a busy restaurant but amongst a group of 21 people, with nobody else in the restaurant, it seems a little strange and not really needed.
After dinner I go for a walk and am impressed by Wurzburg. As well as lovely buildings it has a nice feel about it, especially on the bridge Alte Mainbrucke where lots of people are enjoying a glass of wine from the wine bar at the beginning of the bridge. They are all standing along the bridge chatting and enjoying the warm evening. A lovely atmosphere.
No chance of the football though!

Danube Cruise Tuesday 27 September 2011

2011-10-12T03:45:00.000-07:00

Am off on a Danube Cruise today, a trip I have been looking forward to for a year.
I adore river cruising and after doing a couple of cruises in Holland and a Rhine cruise this is a much more adventurous trip. I am not alone as more than half the group came on the Rhine Cruise.
I only have 20 passengers but I’m pleased with that as it is about the number I expected for a long tour that is expensive.
I have two pick-ups this morning – Petersfield and Liphook.
The passengers have all been given a be ready time for their taxi’s and I will have the coach in Petersfield at 05:00 for a 05:30 departure. As I pull in to the Waitrose car park at 05;00 all of the passengers are there waiting for me! They had been there since 04:45!
I will have to ask the taxi’s to pick people up a little later because as good as it is to get away early, when we reach Liphook for our next pick-up we shall sit and wait for half an hour!
We are due to leave Liphook at 06:00 and we manage to leave on time.
Having the Hindhead Tunnel open makes our journey shorter, allowing a twenty minute stop at Clackett Lane before arriving in Dover by 08:30.
It has been foggy all the way to Dover but as soon as we approach the port the skies clear and we are greeted with glorious blue skies and sunshine. A perfect morning to sail across the channel.
Our ferry, the Pride of Calais, departs on time at 09:40 and it seems almost empty. There is only one other coach, half a deck of cars and some trucks.
Coupled with the sun and calm waters it is a pleasure to sail this morning. There wasn’t even a queue in the drivers room so I didn’t have to wait long before tucking into my fat boys breakfast.
We have sun all day today as we drive to Brussels and stop for a lunch break before continuing to the Belgian/German border where we have a short comfort stop.
I came off the motorway a junction early and ended up negotiating lots of parked lorries waiting to cross the border! I seem to remember doing the same thing before so the problem must be with the motorway signs!!
Our overnight hotel this evening is the very comfortable Ramada Hotel in Bruhl, south of Koln. We use this hotel a few times through the year and it is always a pleasure. The meals are all buffet and the atmosphere relaxed, I can park the bus and we are close to the motorway. Splendid.
The only problem tonight is the heat with no air con in the rooms but that doesn’t detract from a good nights stop.

Austria Saalbach Saturday 20 August 2011

2011-10-12T03:37:00.000-07:00

Breakfast is another lovely buffet enjoyed by all. We are away by 08:30 today and I have decided to go back via Antwerp and hope the traffic is not too heavy.
Another sunny day and we have a trouble free ride to and past Antwerp, with just a short hold up at the Kennedy Tunnel, and stop at the first service area from Antwerp.
The traffic is a bit heavy around Ghent but we are still very much on time when arriving at Calais for our shuttle.
We have some time in the terminal which is empty before catching our train home.
I thought the drive home in England would be busy but we once again have a good ride home.
I have really enjoyed this tour and have been particularly impressed with Saalbach and the hotel, especially the staff.
I wish we could operate more Austrian holidays throughout the year as it is such a gorgeous country and the many hotels we use are all lovely and all offer something different from each other.

Austria Saalbach Friday 19 August 2011

2011-10-12T03:35:00.000-07:00

Sadly we begin our journey home today and I am up early to go and collect the coach and bring it to the front of the hotel at 06:45. I want to load the cases at 07:00, giving me plenty of time for breakfast, before departing at 08:00.
We do have a porter available but I have asked if the passengers can bring their cases down to the coach by seven. Those that can’t manage I will ask the porter. By doing it this way I should have the luggage when I want it rather than relying on one porter making many trips in the lift and finally having the luggage just before we leave. Then the poor hungry driver misses his breakfast! And we can’t have that now can we!
All the cases are down at seven.
By the time I have my breakfast I am a little hot and sweaty but reassured by a full locker of luggage.
Just before we depart we all pose for a group photo outside the hotel and are then away by eight.

It is another glorious morning and I have decided to go back to the motorway via Kutzbuhel, which is no longer in distance but is 25 minutes longer in time. It such a lovely day that I think the views will be worth it.
Once we join the motorway at Kufstein we stop at the first service area in Germany for a welcome break! I have to park a couple of hundred yards from the main building though it doesn’t take long to walk over. They come back a lot quicker though!!
I am one of the first out to walk back to the coach and seem to have timed it right as it starts to rain as I reach the coach. It then absolutely chucks it down and most of the passengers are in the toilets two hundred yards away!
They run across the car park at varying speeds, with various forms of headgear, at a rate some of them haven’t reached years!
From here we rejoin the motorway, drive around Munich, and head towards Stuttgart. So far so good, the traffic has been light.
At lunchtime I am about five minutes away from the service area I want to stop at when a police van pulls out from a lay-by and follows me. Why is it when followed by the police you always worry when there is nothing to worry about!
Sure enough as we approach the service area he pulls in front of me and a flashing sign in the back of his van tells me to follow him.
I follow.

Once I have let all of the passengers off the policeman wants to see my German tax form and waybill. To travel through Germany in a coach we have to pay a tax calculated on the miles driven, passengers carried and cost of travel. This is done quarterly and on top of that I have to pay a solicitor to correspond and calculate with the Hannover tax office.
The waybill is a green form that I fill in before travel that indicates the coach and driver details as well as the company operating coach and trip, the journey by dates and also passenger numbers.
They were interested in passenger numbers (or rather that I had filled in the numbers) and the tax form showing my tax number and that I was paying my taxes.
All was in order and I enjoyed a relaxing lunch.
After leaving here we had a tortuous journey with heavy traffic all the way.
A short stop at Hockenheim services broke the journey up but we still didn’t arrive in Bruhl for our overnight stop until 20:00. About an hour and a half later than I wanted.
I have to park at the rear of the hotel and then we all walk around the building to the front and the entrance. By the time I am there so are most of the passengers.
At the reception desk I am given the room keys and then have to negotiate our dinner time. The food here is all buffet so I don’t think it vitally important that we all appear at the very same minute.
The young lady at reception wants us to go into the restaurant immediately and I want the passengers to have the opportunity to have a chance to freshen up after such a long day.
The receptionist is not too impressed when I say we can’t go in straight away and explain we have all had a long and tiring day and would appreciate some time to relax before dinner.
When I tell her straight away is a non starter she says they have five groups in the restaurant tonight and are very busy.
I ask what time the restaurant shuts (10pm) and say we can do 20:30. She throws her arms in the air and says whatever you want!
Once I have handed the keys out I go back to the bus to do a little cleaning before returning to the hotel.
I went back to the receptionist and apologised for being late and that there really wasn’t anything I could do about the traffic. She in turn couldn’t apologise enough to me and sent me on my way with a smile and a wink!
I didn’t have time to shower so just dumped my bag and made sure all were okay in the restaurant before enjoying a nice cold beer.

As I said earlier dinner is all buffet and a decent spread has been put out.
A quick drink after dinner and I am ready for bed. Let’s hope tomorrow is a lot easier.

Austria Saalbach Thursday 18 August 2011

2011-08-21T04:20:00.000-07:00

Am up at 06:30 and on my way to the coach before 07:30. There is a small cafe open and I nip in for a coffee as I don’t expect to be back in time for any breakfast.

I’m at the garage, which is 15 minutes away, by 08:00 and the man there sees me right away. I explain that the air conditioning has been working these last two days so there is nothing for him to look at there. I then show him the coffee machine and the lack of hot water and he calls over an electrician. I leave them to it and they soon disappear. About ten minutes later the young electrician reappears and asks if the water is okay. By my blank expression he tries the hot water himself and it is hot! Great, what was wrong?
A fuse needed replacing where I didn’t know there was a fuse!
They don’t want to charge me but I give them €20 for a drink. Am happy now.
On the way back I buy some water for the fridge and top up with fuel then a quick sweep and mop followed by a washing of the windscreen and I am all done. It is only 09:15 and I will be back before breakfast ends.
The forecast today is for more sunny weather and the temperature is supposed to be hotter than yesterday, which it certainly feels like already.
When I get back to my room I walk out onto a sunny balcony and promptly am rained on! What with all this blue sky and sun! The flower baskets on the balcony above me have been watered and the water is running onto my balcony.
I spend the rest of the morning in my room doing the work I had brought with me before venturing out for a stroll and some lunch just after midday.
I saw Anne and Nicola and they had just been up in the cable car and said how fantastic it was and that it was one of the best they had ever been up.

Off I go for a ride up and down the mountain and it is indeed a magnificent experience. The views from the cable car are fantastic and definitely one of the better rides. All cable car rides in Austria on a clear sunny day are lovely but this one is one of the lovliest! It really is very pretty and Saalbach looks much bigger from afar. Fantastic.
Once at the top I have a quick look around and then go back to the town for a spot of lunch. As you do!
I have seen a nice looking restaurant in the centre that looks like a chalet (unusual?!!!) and decide to enjoy my lunch there.
I have a Tyroler Grostel which is a dish served in a frying pan on a bread board! It is made up of potatoes, bacon and onions all fried together and topped with a fried egg, delicious. And all washed down with a couple of beers, nothing finer. A few of the passengers wander past and for my last drink am joined by Nicola who has been out walking.
After lunch I spend a lazy afternoon in my room. The idea is to work but in reality I end up sleeping and reading! Well it is my day off!
At dinner tonight I arrange for a basket to be passed around for a collection for the hotel staff and hope everyone gives generously as the satff all over the hotel have been great, even the moody looking waitress was happy earlier!
I have really enjoyed our stay here and very much look forward to returning in the future.
After dinner it is an early night ready for tomorrow's journey.

Austria Saalbach Wednesday 17 August 2011

2011-08-21T04:17:00.000-07:00

We are leaving at 09:15 this morning instead of 09:00 as some of the group feel an hour is not long enough for breakfast!

They are also walking down to the coach as I’m not bringing it to the hotel today. The scratch still hurts!
The slide show was a bit disappointing and the Tyrolean Evening drew mixed reactions, some really enjoyed it while others weren’t too sure, some even leaving early.
It is a lovely hot sunny morning as we leave to go on our drive over one of Europe’s great mountain roads, the Grossglockner High Alpine Road.
Being in Saalbach is great for today as we are so close to the start of the Grossglockner and begin our ascent after only half an hour.
It is a toll road and it costs about £250 to drive on it today. No hoping they enjoy it, they will enjoy it!
We are given leaflets in English which point out various sights along the road and some even buy the guide book for €4.
Once we leave the toll booth the serious stuff begins with the first of our 36 hairpin bends to negotiate. The many cyclists on the road prove more hazardous than the sharp bends. At least at this time of the morning there is very little coming down so overtaking bikes is a lot easier than it will be later.
I have driven this road many times and can never tire of the magnificent scenery, especially on a day like today with crystal clear blue skies framing majestic mountains. It is stunning.

We stop for a coffee close to the top at Eidelweisspitz where you can see over two sides of the mountains.
From one side you can see the bends we have just driven looking like a giant boys car set with a constant stream of coaches, cars, motorbikes and cyclists.
They have a set of flags from all the European countries flying high, all except for the Union Flag, which is a bit off.
From here we drive over even more beautiful terrain to the charming village of Heilgenblut. Here there is one of the most photographed churches in Europe. The church is framed by mighty mountains with the glacier in the background. Go to anywhere that sells jigsaws and the chances are you will find one with this picture on it.
It is a lovely village as well and they all enjoy the stop here. It is very hot now and the air con seems to be working again.
We now drive back up towards the top of the pass before branching off to go to the glacier at Frank Joseph Hohe. This is my favourite part of the ride.
It is very busy with parking marshals stopping cars until there is a space free. We are waved through to drive up and park in the very busy coach park, full of not only coaches but cars and caravans too.
From here you can walk up to the glacier or catch the free shuttle bus with an easy walk back.
Looking over the edge from the coach park are the beaver like Marmots
Posing for pictures and waiting to be fed!
Leaving here at 15:30 we return over the pass and back to Saalbach, arriving back by 17:15. I once again don’t chance the hotel and drop the people off at the parking place.
I am going out for dinner tonight and decide to go back to the restaurant Wendy and I used when we came here earlier this year.
A delicious fillet steak and chips later I am back in my room ready for an early start to the garage tomorrow.

Austria Saalbach Tuesday 16 August 2011

2011-08-21T04:13:00.000-07:00

Breakfast starts at 08:00 but I venture in at 07:45 thinking it would be okay especially as it is a buffet.

I am not alone and the young waitress is not impressed, telling anyone who would listen that breakfast starts at 08:00. She has the right hump!
I wait until 08:00 to ask for a coffee and am abruptly told that coffee is on the table. It isn’t and I tell her so. She must have forgotten while worrying about a few people coming in early. She soon has coffee on the tables though but is still not smiling.
We are away at 09:00 and after a couple of buildings down from the hotel I have to turn left. It is tight and there is a German car parked opposite with a lady loading the boot up. It will be hard to turn left with her there so I politely ask if she could just move forward for a second so I can turn and then she can move back again. We are talking about 20 feet. She is not impressed and becomes the second women I have pissed off this morning!
I then drive up a narrow road for a couple of hundred yards before joining the main road but at the junction is an ADAS (Austrian AA) lorry loading a broken down car on to his back and he is stationed in the middle of the road. I have to wait.
We are going to the Eagle’s Nest in Berchtesgaden today, a summer retreat high up in the Bavarian Alps bought for Hitler by Martin Boorman for his 50th birthday.
To access the Eagle’s Nest you have to change from the coach to a local bus that takes you to a parking place from where you walk through a tunnel to a lift that takes 40 seconds to take you the top.
It is a very pretty drive to Berchtesgaden and we arrive in the town at 10:30. My first stop is to drop Colin, Pat and Wendy off at the Salt mine and then drive up to the parking lot for our Eagle’s Nest bus. I had sent an e-mail yesterday but had no reply so called this morning to provisionally book a bus for 11:00. They run every 25 minutes.
We don’t arrive until 10:55 and by the time I have queued for our tickets we have missed our slot at 11:00. This is no problem as the 11:25 will be better as it allows time for the loo and any souvenir shopping.
We are all on bus number 4. It takes 41 but there are 44 of us! We all squeeze on and bang on 11:25 are transported up to the top parking area in 15 minutes. The journey is fantastic with some of the views breathtaking.

Once at the top I have to go to the ticket office to book my return time which I book for 13:55.
We now have to walk through a long dark, damp tunnel to a lift that has been carved into the rock. In 40 seconds we are whisked up to the top. The lift is a piece of art in itself with gorgeous mirrors and old fashioned workings.
Before walking through the tunnel a young lady, Vanessa, is advertising English speaking tours for €5 per person. The tour lasts 35 minutes and seems like a good idea. A few of the group join me on what is an informative and funny (how dare you listen in without paying!) tour and I learn a lot. 35 Minutes was a bit optimistic though as we must have been with her for closer to an hour.
Once the tour finished I had a look around, ate my packed lunch and then went back to the parking lot to wait for 13:55. It is a little cloudy now which is obscuring the view but every now and then it clears for a glimpse of the stunning countryside.
Most of the group are down and ready by 13:30 but we have to wait until 13:55. I ask at the ticket office which number bus we are on and am told we can catch anyone.
The busses open their doors ten minutes before departure and I am soon being called to one bus and then another to show the ticket. Both bus drivers say we should all be on the same bus and I explain that I was told to get on any bus. This does not impress the drivers who in turn do not impress me! Tough, nobody is moving now.

Once we are all back on the coach I drive back to Berchtesgaden to pick the three miners up. I go back the quick way and meet a bus on a bend which takes a bit of manoeuvring but we pass each other with plenty to spare. He is another unimpressed bus driver! I seem to be making a habit of annoying Germans today!
We are back at the hotel by 16:00 and I check to see if I can go to the garage but it is busy today so I book it for Thursday morning. Not ideal as I wanted a day off but at least something is being done. The odd thing is the air-con seemed okay today.
Once I have dropped the passengers off at the hotel I try to make my turn left but am hampered by some decking with tables and chairs on it opposite the road I want. There is some kind of festival on tonight.
I try to get round but only manage to scratch the side of the coach on the damned decking! In the end I have to reverse all the way back up the road and blindly out on to the main road. Now I’m an unimpressed bus driver!
It is not a bad scratch but is a scratch nonethesame.
Once parked I decide to wash the outside windows as we are going to drive the Grossglockner Road tomorrow and as the forecast is good people will want to see the scenery!
I end up washing the whole coach.
After dinner Malcolm walks some of the group to a slide show at the Tourist Information Centre while I walk 22 to the Tyrolean Evening, held at the nearby Sport Hotel.
The seats are in an upstairs gallery in what is a small room for a show and I hope it all goes well.
I was going to stay but decide to leave and spend an hour on this blog back at the hotel.
It is very lively in the town with live music and lots of people adding to the atmosphere.

Austria Saalbach Monday 15 August 2011

2011-08-21T04:10:00.000-07:00

Breakfast starts a little late at 08:00 but it is very good with those delicious rolls the Austrians make so well. They are tasty, light and more often than not warm from the oven.

As we are all inclusive a packed lunch is included and the way they do this is to leave brown paper bags on the table in the morning and you can make your own lunch up from the buffet. A good idea that will not waste much and everyone can have what they fancy. Seems to go down well.
Normally we choose our dinner in the morning but tonight’s dinner is a Gala Dinner so there is no choice.
The only difference I can see between a Gala Dinner and ordinary dinner is the Gala Dinner has one extra course and no choice!
We have a free morning today before going to Zell am See at midday.
It is raining and all the shops are shut! It is a Bank Holiday! Would you believe it. All seems about par for the course!
With it being a holiday as well as shut shops you also have shut garages! No chance of anyone looking at the coach today.
I walk down to the coach in the rain (coats and umbrella on bus) through the village centre and at least the cafes and restaurants are open. A couple of the souvenir shops are open so all is not lost. Some of the group walked to the church and saw a procession of villagers, mostly the elders of the village dressed in military uniform and carrying guns.
I clean the coach and fuel up before driving to the hotel to pick the folks up. Originally I was told that I could only drop off on arrival and pick up on departure from outside the hotel but it seems I can drive to the hotel each day. It is a bit tight getting out though.
All but one of the group are on at twelve and after waiting ten minutes I decide to go and drive past where I was parked to see if the lost lady is there. She is. The mix up is quite understandable as I have put in the brochure that I cannot pick up at the hotel.
Off we go to Zell am See and as we leave Saalbach the rain has finally stopped and we are all optimistic for a nice afternoon.
It is raining in Zell am See!
As we pull into the coach park there is a little tourist train sitting there empty with the driver willing us on board. I catch his eye and nod and as I come to a halt he is waiting by the door.

Nice tache!!
For €5 we can have an hour’s ride around the lake. I tell the passengers before they alight and all but one take a seat on the little train. I join them. Anything to get out of the rain!
It was a bit wet and the clouds were low but I and the rest of the group thoroughly enjoyed our trip around the lake. The highlight for many was not seeing the lake, or mountains, or the Von Trapp home but driving round a roundabout three times! Simple things!
After our tour we all walked into the old town which was surprisingly busy with a few more shops open and a small beer festival going on close to the church.
Still raining though.
Some of the group took a cruise on the lake while others just mooched around. We are leaving here at 16:00 and some were back at the coach by 14:00, tired of walking about in the rain. I don’t blame them. Pity I can’t make them a coffee!
By 15:30 they had all had enough and we were back in Saalbach by 16:00.
For a moment after we returned I thought the sun was going to come out but no, it started
raining again.

Beef was on the Gala Dinner menu tonight and it was excellent. On the menu as roast beef it was more like tender steak.
There is a Tyrolean Evening in the nearby Sport Hotel tomorrow and after dinner I took names and money from those who want to go. There are 22 takers and the cost was €11 for the show and one drink.
I go down to the hotel and buy the tickets.

Austria Saalbach Sunday 14 August 2011

2011-08-21T04:07:00.000-07:00

It is raining persistently! And heavily too.

I have filled one flask up and Nicola the other so we can at least have a cup of tea this morning.
The breakfast was up to the normal high standard with everyone enjoying the choice on offer.
We depart at 08:00 and it is very wet. It stays very wet for the next hour as I drive through very heavy rain and it does slow me down a bit.
We also seem to encounter a lot of roadwork’s this morning and they also slow the journey down.
We stop at a nice service area where I sit and have a coffee with Malcolm and Gill. We chat about how nice the German service areas are and how good the food is.
We manage to refill the flasks with hot water here as well.
I wanted to get past Nuremburg before stopping for lunch but with the delays we have had this is not possible so I pull into the service area just before this famous city.
Well, this must be the smallest service area in Germany! There is one very small serving counter where you can order hot food or filled rolls and if four people were waiting it would be busy and make the room look full. We have 47 people! It is too late to change it now but this is not what Malcolm and I were talking about earlier! There is seating outside (it is sunny now) but you have to share it with swarms of wasps!
It is raining persistently! And heavily too.

I have filled one flask up and Nicola the other so we can at least have a cup of tea this morning.
The breakfast was up to the normal high standard with everyone enjoying the choice on offer.
We depart at 08:00 and it is very wet. It stays very wet for the next hour as I drive through very heavy rain and it does slow me down a bit.
We also seem to encounter a lot of roadwork’s this morning and they also slow the journey down.
We stop at a nice service area where I sit and have a coffee with Malcolm and Gill. We chat about how nice the German service areas are and how good the food is.
We manage to refill the flasks with hot water here as well.
I wanted to get past Nuremburg before stopping for lunch but with the delays we have had this is not possible so I pull into the service area just before this famous city.
Well, this must be the smallest service area in Germany! There is one very small serving counter where you can order hot food or filled rolls and if four people were waiting it would be busy and make the room look full. We have 47 people! It is too late to change it now but this is not what Malcolm and I were talking about earlier! There is seating outside (it is sunny now) but you have to share it with swarms of wasps!
I park the coach at the coach park close to the cable car which is a short walk from the hotel.

No time for a shower as I quickly clean my teeth and head off for dinner.
Dinner was very good with excellent service. We are staying on an all inclusive package which means local beer, wine, soft drinks and tea/coffee are all free between ten in the morning to ten at night. The good thing is the staff are not shy about handing out drinks and the beers are half litres (about a pint!) and all the soft drinks are also in large glasses. I can enjoy this!
The town is also very busy and has a lovely atmosphere – much different to when I came to see the hotel and it was like a ghost town.
Although we have had a long, tiring and uncomfortable journey everyone is in good spirits and all seem happy.

Austria Saalbach Saturday 13 August 2011

2011-08-21T04:05:00.000-07:00

Off to Austria today, a country I will never tire of going to, and am looking forward to it. I have pretty much a full load with 47 passengers and only one empty seat. I wish they were all as full as this.

We also have a tour going to the Scottish Highlands which Robert is going to do in his own coach.
Before I left home this morning I filled up the two thermos flasks, that are on the coach, with hot water as a back-up to the hot water system. With a full coach it is difficult to serve everyone without the hot water staying hot for 47 drinks. The flasks will help.
I only have two pick-up points – Petersfield and Liphook – so am soon on my way. Another chance to drive through the Hindhead Tunnel! As if I won’t be seeing any other tunnels this week!
We are not leaving Petersfield until 07;00 which has given me a bit of a lie in this morning as we normally leave at 05:30. Being a Saturday the traffic shouldn’t be too bad and I am hoping to catch an earlier shuttle than our booked one at 11:42.
I have tried to change the time to an hour earlier but to no avail. So I will chance arriving early and changing the time at Folkestone, which is never normally too much of a problem.
Nicola has kindly offered to serve drinks and she sensibly waits until after we have stopped at Clackett Lane to come round. It would be tight serving everyone before.
We have a slight problem though, the drinks machine is not heating up the water so the only drinks we can do are those served from the flasks. The problem with this is that the flasks would be okay serving 20 people but they do not stretch to 47! Bum!
I arrive at Folkestone by 09:30 and it is busy. I don’t think I will have much chance of a change.
I don’t! There are no spaces anywhere until 15:00 and the current trains are running 30 minutes late! Bum!
I drive to the terminal and am confronted by a completely full coach park! I have never seen this before. The only trouble is that there is only one other coach there, the rest of the space is taken up by caravans, bloody hundreds of them! And not one lady walking about selling lucky heather!
This could be a long wait.

I give the group an hour in the terminal which you need as the queues are longer than usual. I joined a long queue for a sandwich and a coffee and was pleasantly surprised at how quick it went down.
You are given a letter that represents your train time, T is for 10:26, U for 10:56 etc.
We are C and our train is due to depart at 11:42.
A is departing at 11:38 and they run every 20/30 minutes!
At least the loading system is better now making you wait in the terminal area rather than the loading area where there is nothing to do other than sit on the bus or go to the loo!
By the time our train departs we are about 25 minutes down, which considering the amount of traffic is not too bad.
I now know why we leave at 05:30 on most continental holidays. I am not doing this again.
Our overnight hotel is in Koln tonight and I drive there via Brussels, Liege and Aachen.
I would normally stop immediately before the Brussels ring road but as I approach the service area I can see the traffic running smoothly onto the ring road. Good enough for me! I don’t stop but continue around the ring road taking advantage of the light traffic and stop half an hour the
other side. A bit late for lunch but a chance for the passengers to have a decent stop and to stretch their legs.

It is less than two hours to Koln from here and we arrive at the very comfortable Novotel Koln Centre at 18:45.
As I have said before in previous blogs this hotel makes an excellent overnight stop with good rooms, decent dinner, superb breakfast spread and parking right outside for the coach. The old town and Cathedral are all within walking distance although we maybe a little late tonight for too much walking.
Dinner is at 20:00.
I have showered and dressed by 19:30 and am about to go out the door when my room telephone rings.
“Hello are you the group leader?”
“Yes”
“We have a problem”
“Oh!”
“This is the restaurant here and nobody has told us you are having dinner tonight and all of the chefs have gone home!”
“This cannot be right we only booked the hotel a year ago! I will be down immediately.”
And I was!
I showed the waiter the menu we should be having and explained that the menu choice was sent to the hotel last week and wondered how on earth they could not know we were eating dinner.
I am not impressed.
I am promised dinner will now be cooked and I insist on it being of the same standard as we usually enjoy here and I want something at 20:00 (25 minutes away).
“We will do our best but it may be 5 minutes (he means 15) later than eight o’clock.
I am not happy but it is pointless having a go at the waiter as it won’t cook our dinner any quicker.
We are all seated at eight and eagerly awaiting dinner.

A drinks order is being taken at each table with one drink each free which is not a bad delaying tactic!
In the end we enjoy a very similar meal to the one ordered and seeing as I am the only one who knows what was ordered nobody is any wiser.
Anne Evans got a shock on entering her room to find a couple already in there! Not the hotel’s best night but I have enjoyed many pleasant stays here so I think we can forgive them this once.
Some of the group did manage to walk into town and reported that it was extremely busy with a lovely atmosphere. I am pretty sure there was some kind of celebration going on and that there were a few cooks enjoying themselves!!

Markets, Mills, Trains, Boats and Dales Friday 05 August 2011

2011-08-21T03:59:00.000-07:00

I am up early to start loading the cases at 07:30. They come at me in dribs and drabs but have all loaded in about 45 minutes. Time for a quick change and some breakfast before our departure at 09:00.

The motorway is quiet and trouble free as we drive to the wonderful Trentham Gardens and shopping village.
It has turned out nice and sunny and all enjoy their two hours here with most wanting to stay longer. I can understand this as there is a lot to see and you could easily have four hours here and even that may not be long enough.
Back on the motorway I drive as far as Oxford services for a stop before the last leg of our journey. I call all of the taxi’s from here hoping there will not be too much traffic between here and Guildford, my first drop off.
I have allowed 15 minutes extra just in case.
As we approach the M25 there are signs informing motorists that there is congestion between junctions 17 to 15. We are joining at junction 16 so I hope the time I have allowed will make up for our delay to junction 15 where we join the A3.
As soon as I am on the motorway the traffic slows and then stops and the signs start flashing telling us that the motorway is shut at junction 8! Not good. It will be one long queue now and I have to call the taxi’s again from my stationary position on the motorway.
In the end it is so bad I turn off onto the M3 and head south to Lightwater and then cut across country via Knaphill to Guildford. The only problem is a lot of other people have the same idea!
By the time we reach Guildford I am an hour late.
What a pain but there is nothing to be done once embroiled in the traffic. It is just a relief to be clear of it.
It doesn’t take too long from here although we have a bit of a wait at Petersfield as there are not enough taxi’s to take everyone home in one go. Again not a problem and I’m soon back in the yard.

Brian’s wife Wendy and daughter Lisa have a joint birthday party in Aldershot tonight that we are all going to.

Markets, Mills, Trains, Boats and Dales Thursday 04 August 2011

2011-08-21T03:57:00.000-07:00

After such a lovely day yesterday today promises to be a bit wetter, and it doesn’t disappoint! It is lashing it down when we leave the hotel. The rain does stop for a while and your hopes are raised but then it pours down to dash any thoughts of a good day.

It is supposed to be drier and sunnier this afternoon.
Our first port of call is to Foulridge (check name!) where a canal boat is waiting to take the group on a hour and a half cruise on the Leeds Liverpool Canal.
They all seem to enjoy this gentle start to the day while I stayed behind to do some work sat on the coach.
According to this morning’s weather forecast the rain should stop by mid morning to give us a drier rest of the day. Wrong again! It is raining persistently!
We leave the canal behind and drive to the market town of Clitheroe which is a busy little place with lots of hills and lots of rain.
We are leaving her at 15:00 and they are all back before with the rian putting a real dampener on the day.
It is only twenty minutes back to the hotel and we drive past my new local and new favourite Indian on the way back!
It is nice to have the rest of the afternoon to relax and I spend my time kipping and working.

Markets, Mills, Trains, Boats and Dales Wednesday 03 August 2011

2011-08-21T03:55:00.000-07:00

A much easier day today driving wise. Yesterday was the Dales and today is the Market, Mill and Train.

We once again depart at 09:00 and drive the short distance to Bury. I keep off the motorway which lands me in a traffic jam in Accrington but still arrive in Bury forty minutes later.
I haven’t been to Bury before and the main reason for this morning’s visit is to see the market with its 370 stalls.
The sat nav takes me in to Bury but brings me to the market on the wrong side of the road. Not many roundabouts in Bury! I drive around the block and drop the group off in a bus stop explaining where I will pick them up from later.
From here I again follow the sat nav the short distance to the railway station and once again I am on the wrong side of the road! I am directed into a car park next to the station that is exactly that, a car park. No room for coaches. I have to turn around and manage to do this in about twenty shunts backwards and forwards to face the right way. It is a relief to have managed it. By the time I have turned a guard appears and explains where I should stop and drop the group. At least I didn’t look silly with a coach load of passengers on!
It takes a couple of minutes to go back to the market where I park up and go for a walk. It is extremely hot now on a lovely sunny day.
I am not a market person but I am impressed with this market. It is both indoor and outdoor and there is plenty of room to move about even though it is very busy. The food stands are lovely with lots of enticing local produce. There are plenty of places to eat and drink and it also backs onto the main shopping centre.

We stay here until 12:30 when I take the passengers the correct way to the station! I walk them to the platform to wait for our steam train. It is due in at 12:48 and departs at 13:10. Once they are all sat down I disappear back to the coach and drive to the end of the line at Rawstenstall where I shall meet them.
I fill up with fuel here before waiting for the train to come in.
Once they are all back on the coach we then drive to the wonderfully named Oswaldtwistle Mill, a shopping centre located in an old mill. I have told them that the restaurant is excellent here (it is) with many fresh dishes on offer.
We arrive at 14:20 and are met by a coach parking man and a young lady handing out discount vouchers. Off they go until 16:30.
I drive to the coach park and then walk back to the mill for a look around and something to eat.
The restaurant is closed! Bum! There is a coffee shop that has a small selection of hot food but it is now very busy and there is obviously a bit of a wait for cooked or fresh food. I have a coffee and a scone as I can’t be arsed to wait!
I think the mill was a bit hit and miss with the group, some liking it and others not quite so keen.
From here it is about five minutes back to the hotel.
I am going to go out for dinner tonight and ask at reception where the best local Indian restaurant is. It is in Clayton le Moors and is about a ten minute walk (uphill) away. I know their ten minutes and expect it to take me closer to thirty.
It takes me thirteen and by the time I am at the top of the hill I am ready for a beer. It must be this northern air!
I locate the restaurant (Balti Stan) and then go to a rough looking pub called the Albion. It is as rough inside as outside but the beer is cheap - £2.30 for a pint of lager. It is £3.40 at home.
I then walk for one more beer at the Hare and Hounds and it is 10p dearer here but still very cheap.
When I go into the restaurant there is one other table occupied but they soon leave and I am on my own with half a dozen waiters. I receive good service!

The restaurant is very nice inside and the food excellent. I order a starter and main course but soon wish I hadn’t as the starter is a meal in itself.
My Madras appears in a dish twice the size we have at home and I struggle to eat it all. I make a decent attempt but have to give in eventually or I will go pop! And that would not be a pretty sight!
I enjoy the walk back to the hotel and am back in y room by 21:30 after a very enjoyable night out.

Markets, Mills, Trains, Boats and Dales Tuesday 02 August 2011

2011-08-21T03:52:00.000-07:00

Up at 07:00 to enjoy my breakfast before we leave at 09:00. The breakfast is a buffet with a good selection of hot and cold food. My bacon and eggs are delicious and everything is all very relaxed with people sitting where they like.
As the people give their room number on the way in they are given a menu for this evening to complete. I can see a few not doing this as it is not very well explained. A problem I will leave the hotel staff to deal with.
Just before we depart the lady in charge of the restaurant appears with a handful of menu’s and a couple of pencils. Those that haven’t made their choices can now do so.
I am a bit embarrassed to admit I was one of the guilty few! As soon as I saw the lady with her menus I realised I had forgotten to complete mine! I thought I could slyly get away with it but no, I am seen filling one in outside of the coach!
If nothing else I seem to have gained a couple of pencils!
Today we are going to visit the beautiful Yorkshire Dales, a part of the country I love but have rarely visited in recent years.
It is a damp morning but the forecast is favourable for later in the day.
Our first stop is the pretty village of Grassington where we enjoy some time to explore this pretty village and indulge in a nice cup of Yorkshire tea.
As we arrive the rain has stopped and it has become very warm.
I park in the coach park and once they are all off I go into the National Park Centre to find out about a coach map for the area. I remember having one before telling me what roads I can and cannot drive on and would like a new one. Some of the roads are narrow and I want to make sure I only drive on roads I am allowed to!
From here we take the road north towards Hawes and it is narrow, very narrow in places, and even narrower at times! The scenery is gorgeous with lovely green meadows sectioned off with dry stone walls and old, sometimes decrepit, stone store houses scattered about the fields.
I am a little relieved to reach the main road without too many incidents with vehicles coming the other way. A bit of a dodgy drive but worth it for the scenery.
We arrive in Hawes on market day and see a few old busses running about on some local routes. It is lovely to see and makes me wish I had a vintage coach. One day!
We spend a couple of hours in Hawes hopefully allowing enough time to visit this small town with its market, museums and of course time for lunch. Hawes is the home of Wensleydale cheese and you can visit the Wensleydale Cheese Creamery and museum. I don’t visit the creamery but do buy some cheese as it is one of my favourites.

I have my lunch in a cafe close to the coach park and rope makers and enjoy a superb Wensleydale cheese baguette followed by the nicest homemade scone I have tasted. All not very important but just wanted you to know!
By the time we leave Hawes the sun has come out and it is now a beautiful afternoon. The scenery is stunning with clear blue skies the backdrop to gorgeous green hills (high but not quite mountains!) and shorn sheep everywhere. In some of the fields you will see a pile of wool from the recently sheared sheep and the sheep themselves running about naked!
During our picturesque ride we stop close to the Ribblehead Viaduct, a beautiful arched bridge that carries the Settle/Carlisle Railway and is a famous beauty spot.
I only just stop though as the first lay-by I pull into is full of puddles and I drive over one of these puddles and nearly sink! The bus bangs the ground and I quickly move back onto the road and end up stopping on the road so we can get out and take some pictures. It is a beautiful sight. And we see a train travel across, a freight train, but a train nonetheless! Our happy snappers are happy!
There seem to be a lot of lorries on the road and mostly tipper lorries who are not the most forgiving and courteous drivers on the road. If it’s a narrow bit of the road we meet one and it is always me who slows down. For a very long time I am being followed by one of these lorries and I can see him keep putting his nose out as if to overtake me but he is only trying to bully me into moving over. No chance pal!

We drive through Settle on the way back and I am going to stop for half an hour but there is a market on here too and it is close tov the coach parking area and the road I want is shut so we carry on back to the hotel. Probably just as well because it is now raining very heavily.
I am a little tired today and don’t enjoy the drive back from the viaduct. It seems to be me against all these aggressive lorries and I don’t like it. That’s why I didn’t let the doughnut behind me pass!
We are back at the hotel just before five and the passengers have enjoyed a good day. I hope they have anyway!
Once I have dropped them all back at the hotel I go for a short drive left from the hotel to see what is there and if it is possible to walk one evening. The next village is Rishton and it is a bit of a walk away up and down hills. They must be fit in this neck of the woods because you can walk in any direction and you will be either going downhill or uphill.

Hollie has been to Sorrento with the school for the last five days and is home today after having a great time.

Markets, Mills, Trains, Boats and Dales! Monday 01 August 2011

2011-08-21T03:47:00.000-07:00

Off to the North today on our Markets, Mills, Boats, Trains and Dales holiday with 45 passengers. I wish all holidays had this many on! One day?!
I have had to take Brian’s coach as the one I normally drive needs a couple of jobs doing to it.
I always enjoy the north of England and am looking forward to this five day break that has a lot of content.
My first pick-up is in Petersfield and have told the taxi company that the coach will be there at 09:00 to leave at 09:30.
I get the coach early and am in Petersfield just after 08:00, giving me time for a bacon sandwich and coffee before the journey.
Dave Goodall has dropped his wife Pat’s mobility scooter in the office and I wheel it down to the coach.
It is only just 08:15 and there are two passengers there already! The taxi has picked them up very early. I load there cases and then disappear for my breakfast. I can’t miss my bacon sarnie now can I?!
From Petersfield we pick up in Liphook and then on to Guildford for our last passengers.
It is great this morning as we get to drive through the long awaited Hindhead Tunnel which finally opened last week. It will make a huge difference to some of our trips.
It is also exciting going through it!
It is all motorway today with our first stop at Toddington services before continuing on the M1 to the M6.
As we approach the M6 there are signs warning of long delays between junctions 10 to 11. These signs continue as we join the M6 so I decide to take the toll road and miss the traffic. By the time we turn off the delay is back to junction 8.
I stop at Norton Canes service area, which is on the toll road, and I am not alone! It is heaving with at least twenty other coaches parked up. This will be fun!
Surprisingly for the amount of coaches the actual self service restaurant is very quiet with no queues. It is a different story by the toilets where everybody seems to be milling about and the noise is like a busy school canteen.
The one thing I didn’t like was outside where most of the rubbish bins were full and overflowing.
These motorway stops are okay when quiet but when they are this busy they are not a lot of fun.
The one bonus of stopping here is that they give you a voucher for the toll road saving me about a tenner. Result!
From here it is a couple of hours to our hotel, the Mercure Dunkenhalgh Hotel, in Clayton les Moor.
As I pull off the M65 I come to a set of lights with a choice of turning right or left. I am sure I have to go left but the trusty sat nav is sending me right. I turn right. Wrong! It is a bit of a pain turning round as there are a shortage of roundabouts but I manage it in the end and soon arrive at the hotel.
It is an impressive drive up to it and looks like a cross between a country house and a castle. I pull up outside the main entrance and immediately the staff are out with room keys/cards and menu’s for tonight’s dinner. The luggage is also taken away quickly and efficiently and I am soon parked in the large car park behind the hotel.
My room, and many of the passengers, is in a courtyard with all the rooms looking like little houses. I hope the inside is as nice as the outside.
The courtyard is situated between the main hotel and the impressive looking leisure centre.
My room is big and roomy but does have a musty smell which I deduce is coming from the curtains. It does have Sky Sports on the television and I manage to watch the end of the test match with England thrashing India.

I have a drink in the bar before dinner and am sitting at a table close to the bar. It is warm today and a touch muggy. One of my ladies is at the bar ordering her drink when she mentions the heat to the barmaid who replies that it is unusually warm.
The lady then says she is feeling the heat and it is probably due to being up north where the air is thinner!! I nearly drop my beer laughing. Only nearly mind.
Dinner was nice but extremely hot, my shepherd’s pie couldn’t be eaten straight away as it would burn my mouth.
We are obviously on a cheaper menu which is understandable but the one thing that has annoyed me is the people have to walk to the bar to order a drink. The waiting staff, all lovely and attentive, are not taking orders for drinks at the table. I think it is a bit off to have to leave the table and queue at the bar during your meal. I am sitting away from the group at a table on my own and I’m being served drinks! Or rather have been offered.

Cesky Krumlov Friday 22 July 2011

2011-07-31T03:57:00.000-07:00

Our last day’s journey begins when we depart the hotel at 08:00 and journey back towards Luxembourg, Belgium and then onto Calais.
We have a pretty good run to the Belgian/Luxembourg border but the traffic going the other way is very heavy with holiday traffic. Most vehicles are either Belgian or Dutch and obviously off on their holidays. I must remember not to go via Brussels and take the Lille route.
I remember! And we do not encounter any hold ups.
Arriving at the shuttle terminal two hours ahead of our crossing I am hopeful of catching a slightly earlier train than our 19:50 one.
There are no places on the early trains so we spend the best part of an hour at the terminal which was very quiet. I ask at the information desk about changing and am told once again that there are no vacancies on the earlier trains. This is due to the high vehicles not coaches.
Anyway we drive around early and join a queue for our train. There has been some delay as the earlier train (the one I tried to catch) still hasn’t loaded and in the end only departs a couple of minutes before us.
I was a little concerned with holiday traffic in England but being that little bit later seems to have worked well. Once again the traffic going the other way is horrendous, both on the M26/20 due to heavy traffic and particularly on the M25 due to a serious accident.
The taxi’s are on time and everybody is soon back indoors after a lovely tour.I am really impressed with Cesky Krumlov and look forward to returning one day in the future. The town is delightful and the hotel is in a perfect location. The one small problem was the moody waiters but when I return I will be ready for them!

Cesky Krumlov Thursday 21 July 2011

2011-07-31T03:55:00.000-07:00

I have asked for all the cases to be left outside of rooms or brought downstairs for 07:00 when breakfast starts.
The plan is for the cases to be loaded at the hotel at 07:45 and brought to me at the coach waiting area. I will have a sharp breakfast at seven and the smartly walk to the coach and drive to the pick-up area.
Breakfast is great and Japanese free this morning so plenty for everyone! I had the most delicious scrambled eggs that were a brilliant yellow in colour.
As I finish breakfast the hotel man has loaded most of our cases so I cadge a lift to the coach park and load all the cases there, which is a lot easier than plan A. They have done this before!
Everybody has walked to the coach area and I am away on time at 08:15. As on the way down I have a choice of ways to go but decide on the same way as we came. The reason for this is that we can stop at the border and spend any unwanted Czech Krona in the tax free shop there.
As I’m parking I have to reverse and manoeuvre past a badly parked car and as I’m doing this I catch a no entry sign on the offside rear window. It makes the sign bend and wobble and puts a mark in my window. I am gutted as this is the third little mishap I have had this week. What a plank!
Once back on the motorway I have to contend with what seems like thousands of lorries but the roads are quieter than I expected. Lunch is in a service area opposite to where we stopped on the way down and being so quiet was very relaxing.
Near to Heilbronn there is a hold up due to an accident (I think) and the sat nav has me going on another diversion! Not as pretty this time but with the same result of missing the jam.
We reach the hotel at 17:45 and dinner is not until 19:30.
The journey today has been easier than expected and we have driven 1km more than the way down!
Dinner tonight is the buffet we should have had on the way down and is very good.

Cesky Krumlov Wednesday 20 July 2011

2011-07-21T21:40:00.000-07:00

Our last day in Cesky Krumlov and it is a free day away from the bus. There is a lot to explore here and this extra day in the town is much needed I believe, allowing the passengers to explore at their leisure.
I spend most of the morning working and writing this blog before going out for a stroll to do some shopping and have a last look around.
When I first ventured out I was optimistically wearing my shorts but soon went back to change as it is cold today.
I have a walk and a coffee. I then have a walk and shop followed by another walk and more shopping and lastly a walk and lunch! What a busy man I am!!!
For lunch I return to the bar I went to yesterday with the internet connection and enjoy a couple of beers and a pizza. The pizza was delicious and as Italian a piozza as you could find outside of Italy.
I have a siesta in the afternoon which was helped along with the lunchtime beer!
At dinner I regret eating the pizza as I'm not very hungry but manage to press on!
Poor Evelyn had to wait a lot longer than everyone else for her dinner as they only cook the amount of each dish ordered and as she was on the last table served it became apparant somebody else was eating her chicken! And he was sat very close to me! One of the larger of our gentlemen!
I would normally arrange a basket for people to leave a gratuity for the waiting staff but don't feel it is appropriate tonight as they have been very moody and offhand. They need to learn some customer relations although they were all a lot happier tonight which meant either they were angling for a tip or were glad to get rid of us!
After dinner I was about to go up to my room when Martin asked if I fancied a drink in the cellar downstairs so Martin, Jim, Barbara, Doug and Penny all enjoyed a last drink in this atmospheric bar underneath the hotel.

Cesky Krumlov Tuesday 19 July 2011

2011-07-20T01:20:00.000-07:00

Afters the rigours of Prague yesterday we have a much gentler day today. And the sun is out once more.
Once again we are away at 09:00 and once again Nicola walked the group to the bus. She is doing a grand job.
We take a leisurely drive through the pretty countryside to Lake Lipno, which we then follow for a few miles to a lay-by from where I walk them through the woods to the Devil's Walk! This is a set of very large stones that tumble from a great height down to the river below. All of the passengers manage the walk and we have nobody falling over! It is good fun to get off the bus and do something different. On the way back down there were some keen walkers and cyclists all dressed in there sports gear, looking amazed at some of the ladies gingerly walking down through the woods in their dresses and walking sticks!
Five minutes from here we stop for half an hour for toilets and coffee in Vyssy Brod, close to the river and also close to the monastry. This is one of the starting points for the canoeists and rafters.
It is a lovely sunny day now.
Martin puts 30czk (about £1.11) in a vending machine for a bottle of iced tea and one after one all of the bottles start coming out!
I wasn't sure where the monastry was located and before we depart I read out some information about the town and realise I am looking at and parked outside the monastry! Noe I know!
I take them into the town to visit the market stalls but this isn't the best move as the stalls are mostly selling rubbish and the oriental (Vietnamese?) stallholders are too much in your face.
Mrs Gunner manages to buy a gnome and he proudly sits on the coach with a seat belt around him. Welcome to the group Stanley!
From here we follow the river Vltava to Rozemberk where we stop for lunch. There are now lots of people on the river and it is a fantastic sight.
I enjoy a nice lunch sat by the river looking towards the castle on the opposite bank in a lovely small pretty town. Ideal for a lunch stop.
I really enjoy the drive from here back to Cesky Krumlov as we follow the river all of the way and it is so colourful with all of the boats. It looks to be great fun and we pass many camps along the riverbank where they camp overnight.
I don't know if anybody else enjoyed the ride as I think they were all asleep!
We come to Cesky Krumlov and then I drive on to Ceske Budejovice (the home of Budweiser beer) where I drop them close to the centre before driving off to park the coach.
They are all armed with a map and it is only a short walk into the large main square. I will be back in two hours to pick them up.
It is very hot now.
I go back to meet them at 16:45 and they are all waiting. Susan has sadly been robbed of her purse, in the church of all places, and it contents of about £100 worth of Czech money. Luckily she had no cards or passport in the purse.
Not a nice way to end your day out. She seems ok about it though and puts it down to one of thiose things. Sadly there is not much else you can do as you need a copy of the police report to make an insurance claim and that will take a while to find the police station and then a policeman who speaks English! And when you make a claim the policy excess will take up £50 of your loss.
We are back in Cesky Krumlov within half an hour and I once again drop them close to the hotel with only a down hill walk back.
Once they are all off I make a u-turn in the junction. As I swing round there is a loud clatter and I can see a black plastic object bouncing in the road. I stop and look at a lady watching me and point to myself and she nods! I have knocked off the traffic light shield! I have to move as I am blocking the road and as I complete my turn I look over and Martin has his thumb up and Mrs McQuaid has a black plastic object in her hand! Has Martin gieven me the thumbs up to say don't worry all is alright, or has he had a good day or well done for getting round without shunting. I later found out it was the latter!
Once turned I couldn't stop so I carried on feeling like a criminal. If needed the police will know where to find me, or rather where the coach is.
I fuel up ready for the journey home and then park up until Thursday morning as tomorrow is a free day.
Once again I decide to go out tonight mainly as I want to be on my own and have a bit of space.
I find a bar that is selling Budweiser at 81p a pint!! Happy days!

Cesky Krumlov Monday 18 July 2011

2011-07-20T00:40:00.000-07:00

We are off to Prague today and the weather has turned. It is gloomy and damp with no hint of the hot sunny weather we enjoyed yesterday.
I have an early breakfast and walk to the coach for 08:00. We are leaving at 09:00 from the coach pick-up/drop off point where I can wait for 30 minutes.
All of the group are happy to walk but a little unsure of the way so Nicola will meet everyone at 08:45 and walk them to the coach.
I look at the route and can't decide whether to go via the E55 or E49. The mileage is about the same with the E55 having more little bits of motorway but the E49 looks a straighter road. The dilemma's I have! Whatever way I go is going to take a while due to the lack of motorway and dual carriageway.
The journey is about 160km and I expect it to take about two and a half hours.
I pay the parking, 800czk (£30.00), and drive to meet the group.

Hollie is on her first day of work experience today at Steep infant school so good luck Dopes!! You'll do a great job.

The passengers arrive at 09:00 a little damp and we are soon away. I only have 14 on today as the other 6 have all been to Prague before and want to spend the time in Cesky Krumlov.
It rains, we queue due to an accident involving a car and lorry, we queue due to a very severe accident to a lorry and we queue due to roadworks and a pedestrian crossing being worked by a policemen! We lose time and this is before we have even tried to drive through Prague!
I still wasn't sure which way to go when we reached Ceske Budejevice (half an hour away) and this is where you choose. The sat nav went blank and turned itself off so I decided to follow the Prague signs taking me via the E55.
We arrive in Prague at 12:10 and thankfully the city was very quiet with traffic.
I managed to park where I wanted by the river and walked the group the 10 minutes to the fabulous old town square.
From here they were on their own but I had provided them with maps and pointed out where the highlights were.
Mrs McQuaid is meeting her cousin and other relatives here and the text I received earlier asked her to meet at Wencelas Statue at 14:00.
I feel a little sorry for her as she seems a little unsure of which way to go and cannot leave her to her own devices so I walk her to Wencelas Square and she recognises where she is.
I have told everybody we are departing at 16:30 and make sure Mrs McQuaid is aware of the time.
I have a walk round but it is very busy. I love Prague but am not in the mood for masses of people (seems to be mainly Japanese!)on what is now a muggy day.
I visit Charles Bridge and then have a nice walk along the embankment back to the coach.
Mrs McQuaid is the first back at 16:00 and has had a lovely day. Her nephew is a chef at the Intercontinental Hotel on the opposite bank to the coach and he cooked them lunch.
We are away at 16:30 and I decide to go back on the other road, the R4/E49, but getting to it proves a little tricky!
I drive around the block to be facing the correct way and then join a traffic jam going my way and then see a sign prohibiting coaches from the road I want. I go around another block where a main road is closed due to the relaying of tram lines and rejoin the traffic queue I was earlier in but from the the other end!
Bum!
I then decide to take the road up to and past the castle and try to find my way that way where there is less traffic.
By hook or by crook I start picking up signs taking me in the correct direction and after a couple of long tunnels we are away from the city and driving on the right road. Phew! I think we have only lost about 20 minutes.
This is a far better road with lots of dual carriageway (more than I expected) and when single lane it is all very straight.
We lose a few minutes going through Ceske Budejevice but are still back before 19:30. I drop off at the end of a downward walk directly back to the hotel and go to park up.
Dinner is at 20:00 tonight but I am going to go out on my own for a nice steak.
After a shower I walk up to a restaurant Wendy and I used and enjoyed but that too is full of Japanese. There are swarms of them!
I go away for half an hour and when I return they have all gone and I can sit down to a very enjoyable dinner. The fillet steak must be three times the size we are served at home and it is joined on the breadboard by a jacket potatoe and some veg. Handsome.
I had a couple of large beers, a starter then my steak followed by a coffee and it all came to less than £16.00. Bargain.

Cesky Krumlov Sunday 17 July 2011

2011-07-19T10:27:00.000-07:00

No driving today! We have a guided walk booked for 10:00 until 11:30 and have been blessed with a gorgeous sunny day.
Breakfast is a good spread with a fair choice of both hot and cold food, better than I expected!
We all congregate in the main square at the front of the hotel and await are guide, who according to the voucher is a lady called Karolina.
Our guide is indeed a lady but Karolina has been replaced by Ollie, who does pronounce her name but says Ollie is easier. And she is not wrong.
I explain that we have some slow walkers and Ollie promises to keep the pace gentle and stop in the shade where possible. It is only 10:00 but the sun is extremely hot already.
Two of the group have gone to church and hope to catch up with us during the tour.
Ollie proves a superb guide with a great command of English and an understanding of the groups capabilities. She is also very lovely too.
The tour is entertaining and informative and she gives us some pointers towards where to eat and what to buy or rather what not to buy.
Our tour finishes at the castle where we are told what we can do next or where we might like to visit.
There are three bears (!!) in the castle's old moat but the heat has driven them inside to the shade and we can't see any of them.
I walk back to the square with Ollie where we say our goodbyes and I pop back to my room.
One of the places Ollie showed us was a restaurant on the river side called Marie Marie and this is where I head next.
I am early and manage to bag a seat right by the river. The table I am on would seat eight so I don't anticipate being alone for long, especially with lunch looming large. I settle for a beer and a cursery look at the menu as I will probably eat elsewhere.
It is lovely sat here as I can watch at close quarters the many canoeists and rafters happily going down the river.
There are family groups, groups of men, women and a mixture all having fun. Some of the canoes are towing blow up crocodiles and sharks! What a crack and a great way to spend a sunny Sunday. There are all sorts of bright colours and as you watch them all go by you can't help but smile. A lovely spectacle.
I am joined by another lovely lady but this one is called Elena and hails from Moscow!
Having been to Moscow twice I am immediately fascinated to learn more about this beguiling city.
My Russian is non existant (Well I know the word for beer!) but Elena's English is not bad due to a month spent in Folkestone a few years ago. I know, why Folkestone but that is where she stayed and her most vivid memory is the noisy seagulls! Am not surprised as there is not much else (except the tunnel) in Folkestone. I spent a week there once. My what a long week that was!
My new found Russian friend proved an enjoyable companian over lunch and it was with much hilarity that the waiter wanted to serve our meals together as if we were together! We had the same problem when asking for the bill. Funny.
We bade each other farewell and I made my way back to my air conditioned room and Elena made her way up the 170 steps of the tower.
I stay in my room for a couple of hours but decide to go back out as the weather is so good I don't want to miss anything from this stunning place. The more I see of Cesky Krumlov the more I like it. It really is a special place that has been catapaulted into my top ten favourite places.
Dinner in the hotel is nice tonight. I had chosen the duck and it came with dumplings and red cabbage. It must have been a fair sized duck as the leg I had was bigger than any ducks I know!
It reminds me of the old joke where a man is served a half chicken and asks why only half the chicken.
"It was in a fight sir" explains the waiter
"Well bring me the winner then!"
Old I know but still brings a chuckle.
The waiters in the hotel are a real moody bunch without a smile between them. I know they can be a bit dour but surely when dealing with customers in a restaurant you shouls look at least happy. I get the feeling that we are in the way instead of being the reason they are working. The younger one especially is not a happy bunny.
Just before dinner they rush about clearing the tables outside as the wind has suddenly got up and it looks like a storm is imminent.
The storm comes with lots of heavy rain.
Due to the rain the restaurant is gradually filling up and tables are becoming scarce.
Young Mr moody approaches me and asks if we could start clearing our tables as they are becoming busy.
"When we've had our coffee" I explain
"No coffee today, only first night" He says
"No, we have tea or coffee every evening after dinner"
"No, you have first night the same as the welcome drink"
I could slap him!
I go to reception followed by moody and ask to see my requirements voucher. The young lady at reception starts flicking through some papers very half heartedly when I explain that I arrived yesterday and gave my voucher in then
"Yesterday" she nearly shouts as she throws the papers she has in her hand down and tuts loudly. Another one I could slap! What is going on here.
She finds the voucher and on it very clearly is tea/coffee after dinner for five nights.
This does not impress my mate as he goes back to the kitchen to begin serving our coffees.
We definitely don't get a smile when they are served and nearly don't get any milk either. By the time that has come the coffee is nearly cold. Not good.
I love Cesky Krumlov and am impressed with the hotel up to a point, but they really need to get their customer relations in gear.

Cesky Krumlov Saturday 16 July 2011

2011-07-17T12:01:00.000-07:00

Went down to the coach before breakfast and saw that I had hit one of the concrete flowerpots while reversing out last night and have scratched the paintwork at the back corner. Gutted.
Very sunny once again as we set off towards Nuremburg and then into the Czech Republic later today.
The motorway is very busy and at one point pass a police car with all of his lights flashing reversing slowly up the hard shoulder. This can only mean an accident up ahead.
The sat nav is sending me off the motorway and after the success it had through Rotterdam a couple of months ago I follow it.
Fifteen minutes later we rejoin the motorway a couple of junctions down and have lost only six minutes. I don't understand how but it has worked again today.
At our first stop I top up with fuel and water to save me a job when we arrive in Cesky Krumlov. Our first day is free from the coach and the second day is to Prague and as I park the coach a long way from the hotel I didn't want to be messing about and losing time on the long journey to the Czech capital.
Lunch is also taken on the motorway and while the service area is very busy the restaurant was surprisingly quiet.
I am not sure which way to go (there are three choices) and decide to follow the sat nav's instructions which has me leaving the motorway (the A3!) at junction 114 and continuing across country.
This works out well and after a short stop at the border we arrive in Cesky Krumlov at 18:45 after a very scenic drive through the hills and meadows of both Germany and Czech Republic.
Fifteen minutes from our destination I call the hotel with my arrival time so we can be met by a minibus that will transport luggage and folk.
Nothing arrives and it soon becomes obvious that I am waiting in the wrong place! The minibus man is not impressed as he beckons me to follow him the two minutes to the correct place.
He has got the hump and is moody with me which I really don't need after two long days.
He takes all of the luggage and four people saying he will be back. Seven of the passengers then walk leaving nine to be picked up by Mr Happy.
To give him his due he did apologise for being stressed when he returned so no problems there.
I park the coach not too far away and closer to the centre than I thought I would be.
It is only a ten minute walk back to the hotel.
There was a bit of confusion over dinner as the receptionist wanted to speak with the tour leader (me) but I was busy parking the bus and couldn't reach the hotel until after everyone else. I think a unanimous decision was reached for 20:00 and that seemed to suit us all fine.
Dinner was ok and afterwards I had a walk around this beautiful place which was very lively tonight but felt too tired to enjoy it! So I went to bed. Exciting eh!!

Cesky Krumlov Friday 15 July 2011

2011-07-17T06:11:00.000-07:00

Here we go again this time to the Czech Republic.

I have been looking forward to this tour for a while but it is not the easiest as there is no access for the coach to the main hotel due to the old medieval streets and some walking will be required.

I am up at 03:15 after a very busy week so am feeling a little jaded this morning.

The pick-ups go without too many problems the last of which is in Guildford.

My mum did a pick up for me and told me she was clamped yesterday! She had forgotten to pay the car tax and she was found and clamped! It took the payment of a substantial fine to release her car.

I feel lucky because I had forgotten to tax my old green car and it was six weeks late when I noticed! I wasn't clamped but am waiting for a fine to come through for the month I missed.

We arrive in Folkestone in good time for our 09:20 shuttle and proceed to the waiting area without any passports (usual) being checked and no security search (unusual).

Our 09:20 train has been cancelled and we are now on the 09:43 which departs at 09:48!

Not too late but late enough when you have a long drive ahead of you. We are staying in Kaiserslautern tonight which is about the longest we go in one day (six hours from Calais).

Being a Friday I want to miss the Brussels ring road and it's roadworks so we go Lille way for a change. The road is a bit bumpier but the travelling time is the same.

We have a bit of a hold up driving through Luxembourg and eventually arrive at the hotel at 19:15.

Dinner will be at 20:00.

The man at reception removes the metal posts to allow me to park but only removes some of them leaving me to reverse out of a tight spot and into another.

I have no time for a shower, just a brush of the teeth, before dinner and then it is straight to sleep.

Black Forest Saturday 02 July 2011

2011-07-17T05:51:00.000-07:00

We are away at 09:00 and I still need fuel and sooner rather than later! As we drove onto the motorway I noticed a Shell garage in the distance and wish I had gone looking before we left. The trouble is if I couldn't find any and I am wasting miles.
I am sure I have about 150 kilometres before we run out but it does make your bum twitch a bit! Why do I keep looking at the guage? I 'm sure it is going down quicker than yesterday.
We are soon stopping at a service area so panic over.
I take the pump out of its holder and insert it into the tank, nothing happens.
They must want to see my card before authorising the fuel. I walk to the cash desk only to be told there is a card machine by the pump. I have had this trouble in Belgium before with cards, machines and pumps.
I insert my card in the slot, key in my pin number and then put the pump back in the tank. It starts to give some much needed diesel.
I am filling up on a commercial pump where both lorries and coaches fill up and the hose is much broader than a car one which means you can fill a large tank (this one holds about 450litres) quickly.
At €125 the pump stops! It has only given me 87 litres!
So I go through the whole process again and once again it stops at 87 litres!
Now I remember why we don't fill up in Belgium anymore. I have the hump now and refuse to put anymore in. I have plenty to get home on.
We have a short stop at a very busy service area north of Brussels and rejoin a very busy motorway.
We are booked on the 15:00 sailing and I like to arrive at Calais a couple of hours in advance as passport control can take for ages. When they are busy they check one coach at a time with the passengers having to queue through passport control.
Today it is empty and we don't even have to leave the coach, the passports are checked while everybody stays on board. Why oh why can't they do this when they are busy when it is needed?
What it does mean is that we catch the 13:30 crossing and will be home that much earlier.
I can taste my chicken vindaloo already!
It is a shame I am not on the 15:00 as Peter Fenn was also on the same crossing and it would have been nice to see him again.
I did see him 10 days later and the 15:00 sailing was running 1 1/2 hours late!
We have had a right result.
I am finished by 18:30 and have thoroughly enjoyed the tour.
We have a had a good group on (when haven't we though!) and the tour has gone well. It is always good to hear a lot of laughter on the bus.

Black Forest Friday 01 July 2011

2011-07-03T02:01:00.000-07:00

Sadly we depart for home today.
The cases are brought down to me as the passengers are enjoying breakfast and it doesn't take long to load the twenty cases.
Anne Marie kindly gives me a bottle of wine to take home which on top of the beer I haven't had to pay for is very generous of her. I like it here.
After breakfast and before leaving we have the obligatory group photo taken on the steps of the hotel.
We are away by 09;00.
I am going back a more staightforward way than the journey down (but only 20 miles shorter) as we drive to Offenburg, across the Rhine and into France at Strasbourg. I use the motorway for a few miles before once again coming off and taking the D1004, which used to be the N4, and the town of Saverne where we shall have a lunch stop.
We are here by 11:00 and as I approach the centre I cannot remember where to drop them so I pull over close to the centre, which in inaccesable to coaches, and let them wander off for a couple of hours.
I then carry on around the corner and see a sign for bus parking and all of a sudden I remember! I park up at the other end of the town and go off in search of the passengers to tell them to meet me in a different place! Saverne is mainly one long street lined with shops, cafes and restaurants andas it isn't too busy I manage to see everybody with the new information.
We are all going to meet close to the lock that is on the Marne-Rhine canal that flows through the town.
A very pleasant couple of hours are spent here before rejoining the motorway and our overnight hotel in Liege.
I wanted to fill up with fuel and thought it might be a good idea to do this as we drive through Luxembourg but all of the service areas we pass are about half a dozen lorries deep waiting to fill up. I wonder why?!!
No problem, there is a service area soo nafter the border in Belgium and we pull into there.
This must be the only service area in Belgium without a fuel station! And the next one isn't until we near Liege about an hour and a half away.
As we near Liege the traffic becomes very heavy so I put off fuel until tomorrow.
We arrive at the hotel just as Andy Murray begins his Wimbledon semi final against Rafael Nadal. He loses!

Black Forest Thursday 30 June 2011

2011-07-03T01:08:00.000-07:00

Once again we are away by 09:00 and today could be a bit of a mystery tour as I haven't been to either of the towns we are visiting!
We are going to the north and east of the forest and the scenery is different to what we have seen before which is the whole idea for doing something different. By the time we have finished today we would have had three very different days out.
Variety is the spice of life!
I love going to and exploring new places. I feel a little apprehensive as I don't want to look a fool by not finding the town centres, coach parks etc but sat nav has taken a lot of the worry away. The two towns we are visiting are Altensteig and Calw and I have spoken to both toursit information centres and obtained addresses and directions which is a great help.
There must have been a nasty accident somewhere behind us as we pass ambulances and police cars screaming along in the other direction.
Our first port of call is Altensteig and as I approach the town my sat nav keeps wanting to send me away from the signposts so I ignore the sat nav and follow the signposts to the centre os the town. What was I saying above about sat nav making it easier?! The road name we want has about 14 letters and I think something has got lost over the phone! As we near the centre I come across the car park I am looking for (by the park and opposite Chinese restaurant) and pull in but it seems further than the 100m from the centre I was told. I drive out and drop off in a bust stop in the centre which in reality isn't much more than 100m from the parking area.
Altensteig is an old town perched high up on a hill overlooking the new town, where I have dropped them. Not a massive town but pleasant enough to spend an hour in.
I walk back to the information centre to thank them for their help over the phone and ask for some information about Altensteig. I don't think they have many English coaches here as there is nothing in English amongst all the information.
From here we drive the 40 minutes to the ancient town of Calw. Again it is a nice ride except for all of the interruptions due to roadworks.
Once in Calw I find the bus/railway station to drop off and it is only a short walk across the road to the old town.
I have to go and park at the old railway station, about a ten minute walk away.
The walk back into town is not too strenuous but it is becoming hot again and I get a bit of a sweat on! Calw would look a whole lot better if there were fewer roadworks especially the way I walk in where the road is completely dug up with temporary walkways for pedestrians and the few shops along this part of the raod have had to close for the duration as there is no access to them.
To confound this in the centre of the town they are erecting a large stage that takes up all of the square it is in, in readiness for a Suzi Qautro concert at the weekend. I am writing this on Sunday morning from my notes and Can the Can by Suzi Quatro has just come on the radio! Spooky!
Once you are away from the obstructions the town is gorgeous with all the streets lined with twisted timbered buildings. There are lots of cafes and shops as well as a nice river running through. I decide against having something to eat in the town as there is a self service cafe in the old railway station so I wlak back up the hill to where I am parked only to find the cafe shut! Bum! There is a type os supermarket nearby that has a bakery so I end up with a couple of ham rolls. Exciting eh!
Calw is said to be one of the prettiest towns in the Black Forest, and I can see why, but it would look much better without the building work and Miss Quatro's stage. Glad I came though.
As I am waiting for the passengers to load I strike up a conversation with a cleaning lady and her friend. Well I don't exactly say anything except Gross Brittania and then they are off, chatting away to me but me not having a clue what they are on abouT! We say our goodbyes, I shake their hands and we are off.
We leave at 14:15 and we make our way back via a slightly different route that takes us through the forest itself. You can't see for trees!
On the way back I stop at one of the cuckoo clock tourist shops for any last minute shopping before on final stop at the world's largest cuckoo clock.
There is an entrance fee of €1 and they are quite cute here as you cannot see the front of the clock (unless stood on the main road 100m away) unless you pay to walk through the clock.
It is well worth the euro as a young lady gives a short explanation in English before we are ushered outside to see the clock, which is the size of a small house or large shed. Depends where you live I suppose!
It is now 16:53 and we eagerly await the cuckoo at 17:00. It is a slow seven minutes but I'm sure the young lady speeds up the final minutes because it is 16:55 and less than five minutes later the cuckoo cuckoo's!
I am very impressed with the clock but the cuckoo, well that's another thing.
He was a bit shy as you could only see his beak but he was an unusual looking cuckoo, he looked more like Rod Hull's emu! Probably was his emu doing a bit in his retirement! And the language barrier doesn't seem a problem as German cuckoo's sound the same as English cuckoo's!
We are back at the hotel by 17:15 and I take the opportunity to quickly wash the coach in readiness for the journey home.

Black Forest Wednesday 29 June 2011

2011-06-30T09:10:00.000-07:00

A bit of a cloudy morning with the threat of rain imminent! Where has our sun gone?!
We are off to Switzerland today to visit Schaffhausen and the Rhine Falls.
We are away at 09:00 (no early mornings on this trip!) and drive towards Titisee, around the lake with great views from the road high above, and on through Lenzkirch and Bonndorf to the German/Swiss border at Stuhlingen.
The skies are black around Titisee and we have a few spots of rain but seem to be going in the right direction and away from the worst of the weather.
Colin is once again serving drinks and Pat and Wendy are distributing them as well as the biscuits.
They are running short of cups and Colin asks where they are kept. I explain they are in the big box in the compartment under the drinks machine, which is reached by kneeling on the stairs and bending over to open the roller shutter that gives access to the compartment which is full of drinks and cups.
All of a sudden there are guffaws of laughter coming from the middle of the bus.
I can't see from where I am sat but I know exactly what has happened.
Colin has put his head into the compartment to fetch new cups and has all but disappeared with only his little legs and hairy arse showing!! A little further and he will be gone completely!
And then he shouts back there are no cups in the box!!
"The big box" There are only two, one small one big!
"There's none in here"
"The big box!"
I'm surprised I can hear him through the laughter and I think others are laughing at the people laughing without realising what is happening. It's making me grin!
Eventually coffee is served!
We arrive at the border and I have to visit the German office to pay tax on the mileage I have done in Germany and then to the Swiss office to pay their tax to drive in Switzerland today.
I am registered for, and pay, German tax to their office in Hannover but as we are entering, and later returning, from a non EU country I have to pay at the border. At least I can claim this back in three months time!
The Germans are a happy bunch here but then if they are taking your dough on a regualr basis they are bound to be happy!
We then drive the 20 minutes to Schaffhausen where the passengers have an hour and a half at leisure in this lovely old town on the banks of the Rhine.
I park in the small coach park by the river and go for a walk.
It is a beautiful spot here close to the old town and alongside the river with a railway bridge up above and a promenade below. We seem to have missed the worst of the weather but it is still very muggy.
A short drive away are the Rhine Falls and as we arrive it starts to rain though it is only a quick shower and is over before it has begun and doesn't take any of the closeness away.
The Rhine Falls are simply stunning and are somewhere I always enjoy visiting.
I had a bit of a problem at the ticket machine but on the third go it took €21 in coins and gave me a parking ticket for two hours longer than I wanted!
Our journey back is only punctuated with a visit to the happy Germans to pay them another €28 as we arrive back at the hotel by 17:30.
There is supposed to be an outdoor music event in the park opposite but the heavy rain has put paid to that. At least it has cooled down.

Black Forest Tuesday 28 June 2011

2011-06-28T08:53:00.000-07:00

Another hot day in store today so I decide to wash the coach at 07:00 before it becomes too hot.
The hose I use is on a reel inside the hotel garage on the other side of the road but is still long enough to not only reach the coach but also go right around it!
I have already cleaned the windscreen so only have the rest of the body to do and that doesn't take very long.
Am sweating like a pig by the time I'm finished and even the shower I take afterwards doesn't seem to cool me down. Am leaking at breakfast so end up sitting outside. Can't wait to get going and have some cool air on me.
We are visiting Freiburg and titisee today and the journey to Freiburg this morning was nothing short of stunning. The scenery and colours were out of this world and with not a lot of traffic about it is a pleasure to be driving on days like this.
Not so pleasurable in Freiburg though! I am coming in from a different way to which I have been before so am a little concerned about finding the coach park close to the old town. As I have said before I have stupidly left my maps behind but Anne Marie has given me a copy of a map with the coach dropping off point on it. I put this road into the sat nav.
I reach Freiburg and follow the onscreen instructions only to be led to a road that is a dead end! I turn around and try again. Thankfully almost straight away I pick up the coach parking signs and am directed to a coach parking area on the edge of the old town and just across the road from where the sat nav took me. It is not where I parked before but is close enough to the town and also is on the side of a shaded river bank which today could be very useful.
Once the passengers are off I realise I can't park here without what looks like a parking permit so I go off in search of the signposted coach park. They are a bit frugal with their signs so after a couple of incorrect guesses I finish up in the coach park that is actually the local tram and bus depot located a couple of miles from the centre.
I am parked in the sun and it is 32 degrees! Bloody hot and am glad I decided to wear shorts this morning.
When I drive back to pick them up most are standing or sitting in the shade of the trees. It actually feels hotter than it is.
We are away from Freiburg by 13:15.
Titisee is only about half an hour away and as we approach this very popular resort the sky has turned from blue to black!
The coach park is nearly full but we manage to find a space and off they go to explore.
I have a little walk around and then go back to he bus hoping to get some work done but it is still to hot to sit inside.
Gradually they all come back and a few have been out on the lake for a boat ride while others have just wandered around the shops and eaten Black Forest Gateaux.
The journey back to Schonach takes less than an hour and is still stunning. A good, but very warm, day out.

Black Forest Monday 27 June 2011

2011-06-27T09:44:00.000-07:00

I must have been tired last night as I have just slept ten hours! Feel good this morning with another hot sunny day in prospect.
I enjoy a leisurely breakfast from the buffet before rounding everybody up for our walk today. The tme has been brought forward by 15 minutes so we are now departing at 09:45 and I manage to speak to all to inform them of the change.
Gerd is waiting for us and the plan is to walk to the clock makers, which is about 20 minutes downhill, see a demonstration of how a handmade and crafted cuckoo clock is made, and then walk to a nearby bus stop for a short bus ride into Triburg.
We all have guestcards with the hotels name on them and these entitle us to free bus travel, entrance into the waterfalls at Triburg and a free game of crazy golf near the hotel.
It is my day off today so this is all very helpful.
Gerd leads us on our way at 09:45. Two are not coming and one turns back so there is just 17 going to see the cuckoo clock being made.
The walk is gentle and all downhill to the clock makers. We are shown how the woodwork side of the clock is done - everything is all hand carved by a very talented young man. We are then shown how the cuckoo and mechanisms are made and added to the clock. Again very clever and a real talent.
Then we are shown the shop! Not cheap but when you have just witnessed the work and skill that goes into each one the price suddenly doesn't seem so expensive.
From here four of the group walk to Triburg while the rest of us catch the 7270 bus to this famous town. Gerd tells us to catch the 7270 back and when we reach Triburg I point out the bus stop for catching the bus.
I have a little walk around mainly to see where coaches now drop off and park before catching the 11:55 bus back. It is the same driver as we had on the way in and I sat at the front to see where the coach park is as we drove past. He asks if I am going back to where I got on but I tell him I am going on to the next stop close to the hotel. He seems to accept this and off we go.
Two stops up he tells me I will have to get off here as he is going a different way and not via Schonach! Why didn't he tell me before I got on? I could have waited with a cold beer in the bar opposite the bus stop. I now have a 20 minute wait in the middle of nowhere! Well not quite nowhere but the one pub/hotel/restaurant by the bus stop is in a bit of a derelict state! I start to walk but it is just too hot so I sit and wait for the next bus.
I catch this one and sit next to one of my passengers who seems surprised at where I have joined the bus! A bit embarrasing telliong her I caught the wrong one!!
Back at the hotel I have a nice lunch of bread, cheese and beer and sit outside doing some work before it becomes too hot and I go back to my room for a read.
I don't know what they put in the water here but I end up sleeping again for another hour and a half!
Talk to everybody at dinner and they all seem to have had a good day and are looking forward to going to Frieburg and Titisee tomorrow.

Black Forest Sunday 26 June 2011

2011-06-27T04:47:00.000-07:00

After a nice breakfast we are away by 09:00 and soon on the motorway heading towards Luxembourg.
I would normally like to stay in Reims, France on a journey like this but that proved unworkable when we were booking the holday so had to settle for Liege. There is nothing wrong with the hotel except for its location which adds about an hour to my journey today.
Never mind we are here and can still have a reasonably easy day.
At 10:00 drinks are served! Colin and his harem of Pat, Wendy and Brenda manage to satiate our thirst with a round of drinks which is much appreciated.
We have our first stop on the motorway in Luxembourg about 2 hours after setting off and by now it is very hot and sunny.
From here I drive to Metz and ignore the sat nav telling me to take the A4 motorway to Strasbourg! I go towards Nancy and St Die wanting to stop for lunch in one of the pretty Alsace villages.
This I soon realise is a very optimistic shout! It would be 14:00 before I reach anywhere and that is too late for lunch.
The compromise is to have lunch in a small quiet service area and then press on.
I am annoyed with myself as I have lots of maps and information on the Black Forest and the Alsace but in my haste on Friday I have left it all in the office!
So I went the way I thought would be best but with hindsight (and a decent map!!) I should have gone to Strasbourg and dropped down to the Black Forest.
We went through the tunnel at St Die and from there it was all single lane road. The ride was lovely as the sun is still shining brightly in a clear blue sky and each village we drive through has some beautiful floral decorations lining the streets.
All of this part of France was once part of Germany and many of the towns and villages have very Germanic looking names.
The border is now the Rhine and we are soon at this mighty river. Just as we are about to cross it there is a very large barge waiting high above the road in a lock, so we stop to watch the whole lock process of bringing a boat from one water level to another but on a very grand scale. Fascinating.
On our way once again we are soon entering the Black Forest and I am trusting the sat nav to take me to the hotels door!
We spend about an hour driving through the forest and the ride is gorgeous, it was well worth coming this way!
At one point on a steep road three cars have stopped coming in the other direction and the occupants are out of their vehicles and looking a bit frantic. One young lady looks at me trying to warn me or stop me. I am not sure what they want so carry on and as we round the next bend a fire is taking hold on the dry grass at the side of the road. I can understand her concern now but there is very little I would be able to do. I am sure they will be able to call the fire brigade on their mobile phones.
I can just see tomorrows headlines in the local paper - English bus seen fleeing forest fire!!
We arrive at the hotel at 17:20 and it is boiling hot. We are staying at the Hotel Rebstock in Schonach a small village close to the well known town of Triburg.
I quickly unload folk and luggage and park the bus opposite the hotel.
The cases are taken to the rooms by the hotel staff and one case in particular is very heavy. I point this out to the young man helping with the luggage and tell him it is very heavy. I keep taking cases out and this one case is always left on the side! Eventually he has no choice but to give it a go and looks at me daggers as if it is my case! Perhaps he does think it is my case! Anyway with a grimace and a grunt said case disappears. And no it wasn't mine!
I wash the million flies off the windscreen and make my way to the hotel.
The rooms here are big and have lots of dark wood which is typical of the area. They are also nice and cool without the need for air conditioning.
Within half an hour I am unpacked, showered and sitting on the terrace with a cold beer in my hand! Handsome!
The people who own the hotel have been very pleased to see us and have come up to introduce themselves - Anne Marie and her husband Albert.
Before dinner I am introduced to Gerd who is Anne Marie's brother in law and who will take us on a short walk to a cuckoo clock making business.
He speaks good English thanks to two years spent in Hatton Garden making watches. All of his life he has been a watch/clock maker and seems a very nice man. We arrange to meet at 10:00 in the morning for our short walk and visit.
I have only been here a short while and have a nice feeling about this place already, an instinct I always trust. Probably all go tits up now but there you go!!
Dinner is a buffet with soup, salad and a choice of main courses and all very good.
The beer is nice as well (when isn't it) and is a local brew called Furstenburg, brewed from the waters at the source of the Danube.
After dinner I am feeling very tired so decide an early night is the best option.

Black Forest Saturday 25 June 2011

2011-06-25T22:37:00.000-07:00

Off to Germany today and the pretty area known as the Black Forest.
Our overnight is in Liege which is only 3 hours from Calais so a slightly later start this morning - 06:00!!
Brian and Ray are off to Sluis in Holland for the day and I see them picking up on my way to the yard. They are crossing the channel on the 09:48 shuttle and I'm on the 10:25 ferry.
My pick-ups go well and I'm soon driving down a wet motorway towards Dover which we reach, after a short stop at Clackett Lane services, at 09:30. It seems very busy here with a lot of congestion trying to reach the ticket booth. I later realised this was due to a lot of building work going on on the quayside.
On the way down to Dover I am overtaken by Peter Fenn in his lovely big blue bus! I follow him all the way to Dover as we are bookied on the same ferry.
We depart on time (unusual) as I receive a text from Ray to say they are still sat on a train that hasn't moved yet from Folkestone! They should be driving down an autoroute by now!
The drivers room was busy but I manage to share a table with Peter and enjoy a fatboys breakfast and a chat for the whole journey. Margaret, his wife, joins us later and it is a pleasure to meet them.
If, on the extremely slight chance, Catherine is reading this - CONGRATULATIONS!!
We drive out of Calais (probably still ahead of Brian and Ray!) and stop at a service area just north of Brussels.
The next part is only an hour away and as I'm driving down the motorway from Brussels I can see a Parry's coach looming large in my mirror so I slow a little to let him pass and to see who it is driving and it is a friend of mine, Nigel. It is always a nice feeling when you see people you know on the road.
We arrive at our overnight hotel, the Post Hotel Liege, just after 17:00 and have a couple of hours to relax before dinner.
This hotel is way out of the city but I think it makes a good overnight stop as the rooms are big, there is a nice lounge/bar area, the foods ok and I can park the coach outside.
Am very tired tonight so an early night is called for.

Holland The Hague Friday 20 May 2011

2011-05-21T04:38:00.000-07:00

Up at 06:30 and at breakfast by 07:15. Once I have eaten I walk with my case to the coach and go in search of fuel! I know where not to go!
I put enough in not to worry tomorrow and then do a bit of cleaning before picking the passengers and their luggage up at 09:15 for a 09:30 departure.
For the first time this week I can pick up in a loading bay and not in the cycle lane.
Everyone is on time and we are away dead on time.
We are stopping in Ghent at a restaurant for lunch and I have programmed the address into the sat nav. We are due there at 11:49, which is perfect as lunch is booked for 12:00.
We are on the outskirts of the city at 11:40 and finally manage to drop close to the restaurant at 13:30!!
I have been down roads I wouldn’t dream of taking, been through the centre where it is pedestrianised and on two occasions driven down one way streets the wrong way!! Am not a happy bunny as I will now be much later home and the coach needs cleaning before I finish.
Ghent is a nightmare to drive through and I did have misgivings before but wanted to trust the sat nav but it wanted to send me down strange roads all the time. I wish I hade come in the way I know and went from there because the restaurant is close to the only part of Ghent I know!

Holland The Hague Thursday 19 May 2011

2011-05-21T04:37:00.000-07:00

The group are walking to the Panorama Mesdag which is a 360 degree painting of Scheveningan from many years ago and has real sand next to the painted sand in the picture. It is fantastic as you can’t see where the painting ends and the sand begins. I didn’t go in today but have been to see it a few times in the past.
I am meeting them at 11:00 by the Panorama Mesdag to transfer them back to near the hotel where they will walk through the city and I will meet them again near the Mauritshaus at 12:15. Then we go to Delft and then I take them out in the evening for dinner!
I decide to go for a nice walk this morning and want to see how I get to the front of Central Station! I also want to see where they are eating tonight and see if I can get the coach nearby.
The restaurant is 50m away from where we pick-up at the Mauritshaus so that is easy. I gio in for a coffee and ask about parking and am shown a road not far away that has many free coach bays. This is also the way to the front of the station. I will never forget this now!
The more I see of Den Haag the more impressed I am, it really is a beautiful city and the perfect antidote to the hustle and bustle of Amsterdam. I would love to come back without the bus and have a proper look around. I take a gentle walk back to the coach and drive the couple of hundred yards to the Panorama Mesdag to wait my charges.
They all appear and I take them to near the hotel and they go off for their walk. Seven of the group who don’t walk so well are staying on the coach with me.This would have been a lot easier for me to pick up the non walkers and those walking would have been quicker walking from the Panorama Mesdag than getting on and off the bus for a five minute ride around the block.
At 12:15 I pick the rest up and we make the short journey to Delft.
Delft is a lovely town that is very coach friendly. As you approach the dropping off/picking up point in the centre there is a large round silver bollard blocking your way with a traffic light on each side. If there is a space in the dropping off bay the bollard lowers into the ground the lights turn green and you proceed. There is also the same system for going out.
The coach park is behind the Hampshire hotel which is very close to the centre but there are only 7 bays and when I arrive they are all taken. I go for a drive to another parking area further out of the city but it is full of lorries and apart from a college there is not much there.
I have a quick recce to the Delft Pottery, which I have been to many times, and introduce myself before driving back to the coach park. You drive under a 3.7 bridge which I can just get under then at the end of the road, with no warning, are bollards blocking the way! I’m glad I came to have a look as I have to reverse a couple of hundred metres before I can turn off towards the main road!
Back at the coach park I have a short wait before a space appears and settle down to some work sat in the sun. It has turned into a glorious day.
I pick them all up at 15;15 and we are back at the hotel within 30 minutes.
I have time to park, print off another proof and go back for the coach.
I pick them up again at 19:30 and take them to their restaurant which is about 5 minutes away.
I park the coach and join the group for dinner and enjoy a nice salad and superb fillet steak with homemade chips.
Leaving the table before dessert and coffee, I walk back to the coach and decide to go and try to find some fuel.
I know a Shell garage on the road to Scheveningan close to the Tulip hotel we have used previously so that is where I head for.
I end up in Scheveningan! And I only have 15 minutes before I am due to pick the group up at 10:00!What a rush it turns out to be but I make it at ten on the dot and they all start coming out from the restaurant.
It is a quick journey back and I manage once again to grab my little parking space. Where I park is outside of a magnificent building with guards on duty all day and occasionally you see the guards driving a horse and carriage. I didn’t know what this building was but it is part of the Royal Palace and houses all of the Queen’s carriages and horses and backs out onto the Royal Gardens which are open to the public during the day.
The guards on duty now say hello in the morning!

Holland The Hague Wednesday 18 May 2011

2011-05-21T04:35:00.000-07:00

We have a holiday going to Guernsey going today and Nicola is going as courier for the first time. She has often helped when on holiday with us but for the next 5 days she is working!
The ferry times changed to those planned and we are now on the 06:30 sailing from Weymouth! Some passengers are being picked up at 02:15! I have apologised for this very early start and only hope it doesn’t detract from what should be a lovely holiday.
We are off to the royal palace of Het Loo situated near the town of Apeldoorn, a couple of hours from Den Haag.
Because of all the traffic problems yesterday we are now departing at 08:00 from near the hotel and then will be picking up Nancy from outside Central Station.
I drive from the hotel towards Central Station which we can now see in front of us. Without wanting to we drive into a tunnel and the station disappears from view! This is not planned! Coming out the other side I come unstuck down one road with low bridges at every turn. I three point across the tram lines and disappear back down the tunnel and come out at the rear of the station. Nancy is at the front! Neil runs through and finds Nancy and off we go.
It is all motorway today with the first hour spent on the A12. My sat nav is sending me towards Amsterdam on the A4 and then across country on the N11 to join up with the A12.
I follow this but think I have made a mistake. Too late, I’m committed now.What it has done is avoid heavy traffic on the A12 and sent me another way. The N11 is all dual carriageway and we are soon back on the A12. Clever stuff.
Het Loo is gorgeous with a lovely palace, great gardens and fountains and a museum showing many royal carriages and cars. I have a quick walk around the gardens and go back to the coach for more paperwork! I also fit in an hour’s snooze which I didn’t expect to do but must have needed.
We are away from here by 15:30 and back in Den Haag two hours later.
I am looking forward to a beer and nice meal tonight as I haven’t got to drive until 11:30 in the morning.
I have a couple of Guinness’s in Ned Kellys bar before going to look for a restaurant.
I have seen a small Italian that looks good so after a walk around the city centre I make my way to this little Trattoria called Casa da Toni.
I immediately like the atmosphere and the fact that there is no menu! The waiter explains the choices and you then crack on with it.
There was a choice of two starters, followed by a plate of three different pasta’s and then I chose steak over fish.
All complimented with hot ciabatta and a dip of olive oil.
What a fantastic experience.
Until I came to pay that is! I gave the man my card but his machine wouldn’t accept a pin coded card. And I didn’t have enough cash on me. Toni somehow knew I was staying at the Park Hotel and said pay later. I wanted to pay then so went for a brisk walk to the nearest cashpoint (10 mins) to draw out the cash to pay for my meal.
It was all sorted and I left a happy chappy.
The whole evening was great and I came out smiling.

Holland The Hague Tuesday 17 May 2011

2011-05-21T04:34:00.000-07:00

Breakfast at 07:00 and walk up to the coach at half past. I am more nervous about a parking ticket now than last night! With a rising feeling of dread I nervously walk to the front of the coach expecting a fine. Nothing! Good!
We depart at 08:30 today and are going to Amsterdam, firstly to visit the Rijksmuseum and then the Van Gogh Museum. From here we pick up our guide, Nancy, and do a city tour before an hour’s cruise on the canals.
It takes 45 minutes to do the couple of miles to the motorway which puts us behind a little but arrive not much later than our planned 10 0’clock.
I approach the museums and park in the recently opened underground coach park which is directly under the Rijksmuseum.
We are here for about four hours so I decide to go for a stroll before getting down to some work. I wished I hadn’t as it starts to rain a heavy drizzle and I am soaked, and cold!
The rain does eventually stop and the day brightens up although I don’t see too much of it down below the surface!
I nearly never got back down because you need to put your parking ticket in a machine by the entrance to unlock the door. I had left mine on the coach. I buzzed the help button and explained my predicament and the lady said the door is open. It wasn’t. I think she had opened the other side! I walked round the other side and spoke to her again and this time the door unlocked.When the group returned they were accompanied by Nancy, our guide for the next few days.
The parking cost €50! No wonder the Dutch boys come in, drop off and disappear. I didn’t mind as I had work to do and it gave me some peace and quiet.
After leaving here Nancy gave us a short city tour before they went on the canal boats.
I arranged to meet them in an hour and a quarter and went round at the allotted time to wait in the pick-up bay. I was there for about twenty minutes when a couple of coaches had to pick-up and blocked a lane of the road. A policeman was not impressed and moved them on quickly and told me I will have to move. As soon as I pulled out of the bay they turned up. I stopped but was immediately waved on being told I cannot pick-up now! I shout to Neil that I will be back in half an hour and drive off.
At least it gave them time for a coffee before the journey home.
We are back at the hotel by 19:00 and within 45 minutes I had parked the bus, printed off a proof of both the new day excursion brochure and the Autumn/Spring holiday brochure, showered and was sitting in a pub with a lovely pint!
The music was a bit loud (I must be getting old!) as I wanted to read the brochures with little distractions.
I found another pub run by a Dutch lady and her Irish husband. She did the bar he did the cooking. I only went in for a beer and ended up staying for a goats cheese salad and Buffalo steak! Just the type of place I needed tonight.
I finished with an Irish coffee served in a normal sized wine glass! It looked odd but tasted divine.

Holland The Hague Monday 16 May 2011

2011-05-21T04:33:00.001-07:00

I need my alarm to wake me today as I have slept so well on a beautiful comfy bed and the curtains do not let in any light.
Feeling refreshed I enjoy breakfast before meeting with the group at 09:30 as they walk to the Mauritshuis art museum. I have walked with them so I know where to pick them up from later this morning.
At 11:30 I am at the pick-up point and at 12:00 I pick them up!
From here I drive them to the Keukenhof Gardens where they spend 3 hours at this wonderful attraction. I am normally here at the weekend and you will have hundreds of coaches in the coach park. Today there are only a handful and it is very quiet.
Cold and damp as well!
Dropping back at the hotel I once again run the gauntlet of frustrated cyclists some of who vent their anger at me.
There are roadworks nearby and a road is shut which means a lot more traffic and cycles are using this road.
I manage to get the same parking place and have enough time to walk back to the hotel, shower and then walk back to the coach as we are going out this evening.
At 19:00 I pick them all up again and drive the 10 minutes to the seaside resort of Scheveningan. It is lovely here with many hotels, cafes, bars and restaurants especially along the vast promenade.
I treat myself to a fat boys Burger King burger which was lovely!
They are all back by 21:30 and we are soon back at the hotel. I have lost my parking space and leave the coach in a coach bay that says parking is for coaches between 06:00 and 18:00. I am tired and need to be finished driving due to the departure time tomorrow so decide to take a chance leaving it here.
Back at the hotel I ask the reception and they say it is risky leaving it there. I really cannot be arsed to walk all the way back and move it.

Holland The Hague Sunday 15 May 2011

2011-05-21T04:30:00.000-07:00

Here we go again! Am off to Holland for six days staying in The Hague with another private group.
This time it is the local Fine Arts Society organised by Neil and Janetta Dobinson.
I only have one pick up in the Festival Hall car park at 07:30.
Before leaving the yard I meet Ray who is going to Stamford and Barnsdale Gardens today on one of our day excursions.
I arrive at the car park at 07:00.
We are away on time and soon on the motorway heading towards Folkestone and our shuttle to Calais.
We were originally booked on the 10:50 shuttle but that was changed to the 08:50 and then it was decided that the 10:50 would be our best option. When I rang the shuttle people I was told that the only change I could make was to the 09:20 as all the other crossings were full. I decided not to mention this to Neil as I was confident I could change the time in the two weeks leading up to the holiday.
I rang every day and managed to change to the 11:50 figuring it is better to turn up early than turn up late!
As I said I called every day and the last call was on Friday when I was once again told that all the bookings that morning were completely full.
I will have to take a chance.
We have an easy journey except for one junction on the M20 that is closed this weekend. The diversion is not long and we only lose about 5 minutes.
As I approach the ticket booths at the shuttle terminal I am trying to remain confident although I do have a certain feeling of apprehension.
I choose a booth that is operated by somebody (as opposed to the machines) and ask very nicely if it is possible to change to the 10:50.
“No problem” I am told “Take your pick it is very quiet!”
I asked him why I was told that everything was full and he had no answer.
When I drove to the terminal parking area I was the only coach parked there and there were less than 20 cars! Full my arse!The train departs on time and we arrive in Calais at 12:25 local time. Frome here I am off to Bruges again where the passengers are booked into a restaurant off the pretty T’Zand Square. Only it is not so pretty at the moment as it has a fantastic great fun fair covering every inch and beyond. It makes dropping off a bit of a challenge but they are soon on their way to lunch at the Belle Eppoque restaurant.
I find a quiet lay by to stop in to eat the roll I purchased at the railway station and listen to Chelsea play Newcastle.
Leaving Bruges at 15;30 we have a clear run to the border and even negotiate Antwerp without any difficulties.
As we approach Rotterdam all of the Den Haag signs have a yellow cross through them signifying the motorway must be closed up ahead. It is the A20 motorway, what is it with roads numbered 20?!
I am not sure which way to go but the sat nav has automatically directed me off the motorway and through Rotterdam to the other end of the motorway. Very clever and I promise not to bad mouth it again! We are fortunate it is a Sunday as there is very little traffic about and we only lose 7 minutes.
We arrive at our hotel, the Park Hotel, by 19:00. Well, we don’t exactly reach the hotel (that is impossible in a bus) but we stop nearby in a narrow road full of cyclists wanting to use the cycle lane I am parked in!The hotel has sent out a couple of men to help with the luggage as I walk to the reception to ask about parking.
I am lucky as there is one parking bay close to the hotel (10 minute walk away) and it is free, both in empty and cost.
The hotel is very nice and my room is lovely complete with walk in shower and free internet! The staff are extremely helpful.
The group are all going to a local restaurant for dinner and I tag along to enjoy a lovely meal.

Saturday 14 May

2011-05-21T04:28:00.000-07:00

Up early to clean the coach ready for tomorrow before opening the office at nine! Hollie is in the office helping today and is sat at the main desk taking bookings. She does a good job and helps me a lot today.
Brian arrives in Italy today and haven't heard anything from him so presume all is well. No news is good news!

Friday 13 May 2011

2011-05-21T04:27:00.000-07:00

Office boy again today.
Brian begins his journey home from Italy today. He is staying in Saarlouis tonight.

Bruges Thursday 12 May 2011

2011-05-14T09:28:00.001-07:00

I am at the coach at 09:00 and parked outside of the hotel at 09:30 ready for a 10:00 departure. We have Porterage and the service is very efficient unlike a lot of hotels. The cases appear exactly when I want them and do not take long to load.
We are away on time and wind our way out of the city to join the main ring road at one of the many gates surrounding the city.
As we wait in a queue for a green light I can see about seven boats of varying sizes waiting to come through the bridge we are about to go over. The lights go green and the few cars in front of me move off while I deliberately hesitate to be rewarded with the bridge lights going to red. I stay where I am at the front of the queue, switch the engine off and watch as the bridge is raised and the boats pass by the front of us. What a lovely sight that you don’t often see.
And the sun is shining again.
The drive to Ostend takes half an hour, well 35 minutes by the time I have taken a wrong turn and realised my error!
Ostend is looking particularly pretty today with the sun out and the boats in the harbour and they have tidied up the promenade since I was last here.

Bruges Wednesday 11 May

2011-05-14T09:26:00.000-07:00

After another nice breakfast I spend the morning working in my room. I do have a break when the cleaner appears when I go off for a coffee in the square.
Lunch is a baguette bought on the way to the coach park and eaten once I’m on the bus. I have walked up early as I am always worried it won’t start. I don’t know why, and shouldn’t worry. But I do.
It starts.
I drive to the hotel to pick the group up at 14:30 and take them to Ypres where they will be staying for the Last Post at 20:00 this evening.
I came across country so I could point out a few sights on the way but at one village the road was completely closed so we were sent on a diversion which cost about 20 minutes.
On entering Ypres the road I wanted was also closed but this didn’t pose a problem as there are numerous ways into the centre.
The group are visiting the “In Flanders Fields” museum before having a couple of hours free before witnessing the Last Post.
This moving tribute is performed by the local Fire Brigade at the impressive and awe inspiring menin Gate monument. Apart from the German occupation this has gone on since the 1920’s and is something that must be seen.
I drop them all off close by and retreat to the coach park which has been moved and is further out of town than before.
It is very warm and muggy on the coach so I decide to go for a stroll around Ypres which I enjoy.
I drive back to the dropping off place at 19:00 and wait for them all to come back at about 20:30 after the Last Post has been played.
I have a chat with a Shearings driver who has a lovely coach but is not happy with it! I would swap him tomorrow!They all come back on time and I take the motorway back to Bruges which takes just under an hour.
By the time I have parked and walked back it is 10:00 o’clock and I am hungry! I haven’t had any dinner yet.
It is too late for a big meal so I go to a favourite bar, Rembrandt’s, close to the market square and sit down for a couple of swift beers and a bowl of lasagne.
Where this bar is there are about fifteen buildings next to one another and all of them are either a bar, cafe or restaurant! It is a lively spot as two of the bars are noisy with music and youngsters and flashing lights! I am at an age when it is nice to just sit and watch the world go by!
A large group of men in suits appear having just come from a conference (most still had big badges around their neck!) and were looking for somewhere to sit.
I could see them looking undecided and like a small wave they went one way, then another and back again trying to figure out the best option.
In the end the suits went to the pub/disco bar with the loud music and looked totally out of place.
Not long after another load of suits arrived and did the self same thing!
I hope they had a good night.

Bruges Tuesday 10 May 2011

2011-05-14T09:24:00.000-07:00

A nice gentle day today. No driving at all! Well a bit more than gentle then.
The breakfast spread is good here they even have baked beans!
I stick to coffee and the lovely fresh still warm bread that melts the butter as you spread it on. Delicious.
I am a good boy today and spend all morning doing bookwork in my room. I knew it was going to be an easy few days so brought along all the work I never got round to doing over the last couple of weeks.
When I woke up this morning it was wet outside but the sun has shone through and it is a glorious day.
Lunch is a couple of beers and a baguette in a nearby bar before returning to my room.
After a little siesta I am fully refreshed and manage another couple of hours work before going out for dinner.
See I told you it was an easy week!
I have a nice walk away from the crowds in the lovely evening air as the sun is going down but cannot decide where to eat.
I go back to where I went yesterday but it is full so end up in the nearby Irish bar and enjoy a delicious fillet steak and chips!

Bruges Monday 09 May 2011

2011-05-11T03:01:00.000-07:00

I am off to Bruges for 4 days with a private group - the Phoenix Stitchers.
I am in the yard early to set myself up, have a coffee and quick read of the paper.
I am due at the first pick up at 06:15 for a 06:30 departure so leisurely leave the yard at 06:00 for the short journey to the Festival Hall car park.
Five minutes down the road and I have forgotten my phone, it is still in my car. Bum!
By the time I have turned around and retrieved it I just make the pick up at 06:30. I think I am showing my age as I keep forgetting things (lap top Austria!).
Never mind we soon have our compliment of 23 passengers and are on our way to Dover for the 10:25 ferry.
It is fortunate that we depart this early as we lose 45 minutes between the roadworks at Hindhead and then the traffic at Guildford.
We comfortably catch our intended ferry, the Pride of Kent, and it sails on time.
I am a little bit hungry by now and enjoy a fat boys breakfast! It has got to be done when on the boat!
The crossing time should take 90 minutes but we are docking in Calais after only 75. I suppose this early arrival has nothing to do with the ship being quiet (apart from the school groups) and the fact that there is not much money being spent!
How come when they are busy and running late they can never make up any time and often take longer than 90 minutes?!
I have an easy day today as I drive them into Calais where they all spend a nice couple of hours for lunch before rejoioning the coach for the journey to Bruges.
We arrive at our hotel, Martin's, at 16:40 and very soon after the cases have been taken and the folk have gone to their rooms.
Our hotel is in an ideal position by the Belfry Tower and main Market Square.
I am soon parked up and after cleaning the windscreen am walking the twenty minutes back to the hotel. That is me done until after lunch on Wednesday!
My room is nice and overlooks the main road, the very noisy main road I might add! No problem as the air con in the room is great and keeps me cool when the window is shut.
We are staying on a bed and breakfast basis so the evenings are free to eat where you like, one of the pleasures of staying in Bruges.
I choose a busy restaurant just off the main square that has over 400 different types of beer! The menu is amazing!
I try a couple with my dinner which are lovely but very strong, both being about 8%!
I sleep well tonight!

Italy/London Saturday 07 May 2011

2011-05-11T02:58:00.000-07:00

Brian is off to the Italian Dolomites today while I am taking a private group to London for an Olympic tour and River Lees boat trip.

I have a good day and I am sure Brian has also as I haven't heard from him. No news is good news!

Calthorpe Ski Tonale Sat/Sun 16/17 April 2011

2011-05-11T02:41:00.000-07:00

A free morning before we depart after lunch.
We load the coach during the morning and generally sit about waiting for lunch and then our departure. It is another glorious sunny day.
I go for a walk and end up buying a pair of ski boots! I've only got another year before I can wear them!
Lunch is quiet with only our group and a handful of private guests about.
We are away by 12:40 and the first couple of hours are through pretty countryside before reaching the motorway near Milan and then into Switzerland at Chiasso. We stop at the first main service area where there is a MacDonalds which everyone seems to enjoy before a glorious drive through the Swiss Alps.
We enter France as it is becoming dark and before Strasbourg turn off the motorway to take a shorter route through the St Die tunnel.
Once through the tunnel we rejoin the motorway which is very quiet until we near Nancy when the volume of traffic picks up.
Then we hit a traffic jam that seems to go on for miles. Is it an accident or is it roadworks? It is hard to see but whatever it is there is not much we can do.
We lose about an hour here and the cause is a police raod block! They have shut the motorway and are checking each vehicle individually! When it is our turn I am breathalysed before being waved on our way.
You couldn't imagine the police doing that on one of our motorways but I would think it is a successful deterrent for those who want a drink.
From here it is pretty straightforward up to Calais and our shuttle home.
Well, it is ok until we reach the shuttle terminal and are waiting in the queue for our train. It is delayed by half an hour! How can they be running late at 07:30 in the morning when there is so little traffic!
Once at Folkestone we are met by Ken who takes the coach back to Fleet and Brian and I drive my car back.
With the easy and fast journey we have had we could have done the whole trip within our driving hours but have Ken here just in case.
We also drive back to the school and say our goodbyes to what has been a great trip.

I can't wait for next year, it will be a Wembley tap in!

Calthorpe Tonale Friday 15 April 2011

2011-04-15T10:10:00.000-07:00

No ski-ing for me today but I wish I was as it has snowed overnight and the sun is shining brightly. I am woken at 07:00 by a helicoptor landing and then taking off again from outside the hotel. I don't know why or what it was doing but it was loud. I have a very uneventful morning finishing the brochure and sending it to Bobby at he printers as well as trying to get prices for next year to come here again. The afternoon is just as uneventful as I spend it in the bar doing this blog.

Calthorpe Tonale Thursday 14 April

2011-04-15T09:55:00.000-07:00

A bit cloudy today with the sun trying to breakthrough. Am really up for ski-ing today after yesterday. It is a little icy in places but still very good ski-ing. We have a great morning and ski to midday. That is me finished for the week and I feel really good. Knackered but good! I spend the afternoon in the bar working and am very near to finishing the Autumn Spring holiday brochure. I enjoy a beer upstairs with the boys and girls before meeting Brian for dinner. Tonight is disco night and it seems that all the schools staying here are at the disco. The disco is part of our hotel and is a proper nightclub. Not so sure about the music but then I am getting old! Our group all descend onto the floor at 21:45 and seem to have a great night. It is nice just watching them all enjoying themselves in what is an adult type nightclub. Will is in here and is stood up with his crutches doing his bit. He has a bit of a sideline going helping Anne with her tuck shop and is acting as her runner taking orders from the kids and delivering their purchases to their rooms. He is being tipped quite generously and at the last count was €24 up! It has paid for all of his presents home! What a lovely lad. He is making the most of a terrible injury with a smile on his face. And a few bob in his sky rocket! The disco goes on until 01:00 which is not a bad thing as some of us were just getting in the mood! A few old favourites towards the end of the evening gets the toes tapping and a few dodgy moves are performed!

Calthorpe Tonale Wednesday 13 April

2011-04-15T09:10:00.000-07:00

The sun is out but not in my head! How could they lose. The ski-ing this morning was fantastic and we skied a lot and my legs didn't ache today. No way of hiding today with my lovely yellow jacket! After lunch Paul, Tommy, Jonesy and myself go to the glacier on the other side of the resort where there is a lot more snow. Steve walks down to the gondola while we ski off a drag lift to meet him. It is only a short, low run but it is horrible with the snow very mushy and bumpy. I didn't like it one bit. We go up in the gondola with a couple of reps from Scotland who are working for a ski company here. The older one tells us that she was a rep here 30 years ago and she has seen her former boyfriend instructing still. "That's where I learnt Italian" she say "What about the language?!" Tommy quickly fires back. Probably doesn't sound too funny here but at the time it was. At the top of the gondola we catch a very old fashioned chair lift to the top where the glacier is. There is so much more snow here that you cannot beleive you are in the same resort, it is stunning. We meet at the top of the chairlift and in front of us is a very steep red run that Paul is keen for me to ski. I am not so sure! It is the only time I will come up here this week so I decide to give it a go. What am I doing! The lift to the top is a two man T-Bar which we sit on side by side. This is hairy enough let alone the run down! The run looks a lot steeper from the top than the bottom and I am a little nervous. No I'm not I'm bloody frightened! The trouble is there is only one way down! I gingerly follow Paul over the edge and am thinking I've got to turn soon, I've got to turn soon! Don't look down! What a pussy! I start turning and love it. The last bit is a bit scary as you have to go very fast to get up the slope to the restaurant. Once I had done it I felt really excited and chuffed that I had skied this slope. This is only the second time I have skied without an instructor and feel much more confident now. I'm not going back up there though! Not today anyway. We thyen skied back to the Gondola where we met up with Steve who had come down on the chairlift. Tommy, Steve and I went back down in the gondola while Paul skied the scary looking black run down. At the bottom we waited what seemed like an age for the ski bus to take us back to the hotel before deciding to walk back. It is not very far but is all uphill on tired legs in hot sun. We make it but it certainly makes me puff and pant a bit. I need a beer. The group have a quiz and bingo night but I call it a day and have an early night. What a great day.

Calthorpe Tonale Tuesday 12 April

2011-04-15T08:51:00.000-07:00

All thoughts today are towards tonights Champions League Quarter Final between Manchester United and Chelsea with Chelsea being a goal down from the first leg. We are off ski-ing at 09;00 again and Brian is going to meet us at the restaurant at the top of the mountain. He can walk down to the long chairlift and we will meet him there and ride up together. We all reach the top and as Brian is walking to the restaurant we ski the red run at the top back to the restaurant. Paul wants us to ski the other red run known as Smugglers run because of its close proximity to the tax free resort of Livigno. I am always a little anxious when ski-ing new runs but Paul assures us it will be ok. I don't know why we worried as it was lovely and I found it easier than the other red. Back at the restaurant we all enjoy a beer before continuing with our ski-ing and Brian returns to the bottom without any mishaps. If he had a different surname we wouldn't be worried! I only ski this morning as my legs are aching and spend the afternoon working. I sit in the bar as it is quiet and you can see what is going on outside on the slopes which for some reason seems to help me concentrate. Just before dinner Anne finds the Italian for reserved and writes this on two large pieces of paper which she then puts on the two nearest tables to the television! She is also wearing her Manchester United shirt. Let battle commence! After dinner we cannot get into the television room quick enough to take up our seats. The evening meeting for the children has been postponed until half time and will take place here. Chelsea play well but lose 2-1 and I am gutted, I really thought it would be our year. What a bummer! Feel sick to my stomach. At the half time meeting it is always decided who has to wear the high visibility vest for the next day complete with some funny comment written on the back. It is given to the Dick of the Day!!!It is decided as there are no outstanding candidates then it will be decided on the football result between Anne and I! I will be wearing it as well as a colourful jesters hat at meal times. At full time everyone goes off to bed and I'm left to cry into my beer on my own. Gutted.

Calthorpe Tonale Monday 11 April 2011

2011-04-15T08:05:00.000-07:00

Am up at 07:30 and down for breakfast at 08:00. Have had mornings where I have felt better and less tired but then I am not alone! We are once again ski-ing at 09:00 and today there is the five of us - Paul, myself, Tommy, Anne and Howard. It is surprising how the sun and snow wake you up and I enjoy a couple of hours ski-ing the runs we did yesterday. We are back a little early so Brian and I take on Howard and Anne at table football. We are the blues (obviously) and they are the reds. Anne is a great Manchester United supporter so with the big game coming up tomorrow a bit of tension is in the air!! Come on you blues! During the third game Anne receives a phone call informing her that one of the boys, Will Jones, has broken his leg and is at the medical centre. Will is taken from the medical room to the hospital accompanied by Anne and Howard and once again I have offered the services of the coach to pick them up. I have an hours kip after lunch before receiving a call from Howard to pick them up. It is another sunny day and another lovely drive to Cles and the hospital. I pick them up at about 16:30 and poor Will is in plaster the whole length of his leg. He is wheeled out to the coach and rather gingerly makes it up the steps with Howards help. What is it with these Jones boys? There is one other Jones on the trip and that is Brian! We shall have to be very careful with him! Another lovely drive back. An early night for me tonight.

Calthorpe Tonale Sunday 10 April

2011-04-15T07:37:00.000-07:00

Breakfast is at 08:00 and is a buffet. The only problem is you can't get near the thing for hundreds of Belgian saucepan lids! There are two coach loads of Belgians and they all seem to have come down for breakfast at the same time. The hotel has lockers to keep your ski's in and each room has its own individual key. This is another big plus point for staying here. We are all ready to start ski-ing at 09:00 and once all the children have gone off in their groups we can ski. I am a little apprehensive about the lack of snow but the slopes seem fine as we take the chair lift to our first run. I am ski-ing with Paul, Tommy and Steve. We ski a short blue run to another chair lift that takes us high into the mountains. From here we ski a couple of hundred yards to another chair lift that takes us even higher. From here it is a red run down to the chairlift and then a long blue to the bottom. The sun is out and the snow is good, what more could you want! We rejoin the long chairlift up and as we ski off it at the top Steve goes over with a mighty scream that says he won't be ski-ing any more this week. He is in agony as a stretcher and skiddoo is called for. Anne and Howard arrive to witness his pain as we can only watch as he is loaded onto a stretcher and taken down the mountain to the medical centre. We all ski down to the bottom and finish for the morning. Steve is taken from the medical room to hospital with Tommy going along to keep him company. Anne has given Tommy a bag full of flapjacks to keep him going. We are staying on a full board basis and lunch is a large salad/vegetable buffet with also a choice of starters and a main course followed by ice cream or cake! I try to eat the full menu but just do not have room. I will stick to salad and pasta in future as I'm not used to eating a lot during the day. In the afternoon I do some work on my new brochure before the call comes! I have offered to pick up Steve and Tommy from the hospital if needed and now am needed. Steve is having his x-ray examined at 16:00 and should be ready soon after. I leave the hotel at 15:30 for the 48km drive to the hospital in Cles, a town at the bottom of the valley. It is still very sunny and the journey from Tonale is in the opposite direction to the way we came. The road is very high with lots of hairpin bends but the scenery is stunning and I enjoy the ride. As I approach Cles I stop and buy the boys a couple of bottles of beer each before picking them up outside of the hospital. Steve is on crutches but not in plaster so hopefully not as badly injured as first feared although he definitely won't be ski-ing or dancing this week. The drive to and from the hospital takes an hour each way and it is a pleasure to drive. We are back at about 18:00 and are soon in the Magic pub to see if any of the students are there. Well that is the excuse I was given! The bar was student free. Dinner is very good once again and afterwards I go for a coffee with Brian. Having enjoyed my coffee and looking forward to an early night I bump into Tommy and Anne on their way out for a drink. They kindly ask if I would like to join them and being someone who doesn't like to offend I tag along! We have a great evening in the bar and back at the hotel and my early night turns into a late night!

Calthorpe Parke Ski Tonale Fri 08 Sat 09 April 2011

2011-04-15T06:42:00.000-07:00

Brian and I are off to Tonale in Italy today taking Calthorpe Park School in Fleet ski-ing. This is a job I used to do every year (for 10 years) when I worked for Truemans but haven't driven since 2001. In 2002 I actually went as a passenger for my first ski-ing week. We have a new part time driver called Kenneth who is going to drive the coach to Folkestone where Brian and I will take over and drive through to Italy. We meet Kenneth at the service area just before the shuttle terminal, swapped vehicles and drove to the terminal for a break before our 15:20 train. It is great to be back driving this trip and especially nice to meet up with Paul Edwards the organiser, who is a good friend of mine. I feel comfortable straight away. The other members of staff are Anne (who is also responsible for organising the trip), Tommy, Steve (Jonesy) and Howard. It is extremely quiet at the terminal and we have been alloted a train time of 14:50 which is half an hour earlier than planned. As it is so quiet we can still have half an hour in the terminal and catch the early train. We are late leaving the terminal due to some last minute shopping(!) and end up catching the 15:20. Brian and I have both been issued with our very own ski trip hoody with the school's name on the front and our name on the back. When I spoke to Paul recently I wasn't sure if it woyuld be Ray or Brian driving so Brian's hoody has Ray or Brian on the back! They are also pink! Paul asked me if I would like a pink or blue one and I said pink, which is what I would have received even if I had said blue! We have a choice of ways to go, either through Germany and Austria to Italy or via France and Switzerland. We decide on the French/Swiss route which as well as being a route we are very familier with is also an easier way to drive. So off we go, driving out of Calais at 17:00 and heading towards Metz and the Swiss border at Basle. A problem with the drivers seat occurred last week (too late to be repaired) and whenever you go over a bump the seat bounces up and down at a terrific rate of knots! You can normally set it to your weight and it moves easily with the bumps in the road allowing the driver to stay still while the vehicle bounces. Not any more! Brian was driving and about to take a sip of his coffee when his seat went into tigger mode and he ended up wearing the coffee. A little uncomfortable but very funny. Darkness is here as we continue through France and enter Switzerland. We will need to top up with fuel soon so decide to stop at Gotthard services just before the long tunnel. We pull up onto the commercial pump and unload 43 people all wanting the same thing! I won't be far behind them. I put the nozzle into the tank and press but nothing happens. The pump is switched off. It seems that they are all closed off except one pump which now has a small queue. We decide to stop again at the next service area, well we haven't a lot of choice if the truth be known! We now drive through one of the longest road tunnels in Europe, the Gottahrd Tunnel which is 17km long (over 10 miles). At the next service area we once again pull onto the deserted pumps with nothing open in the service area. I go for a walk and find a credit card machine where you can pay for your fuel. We move the coach over to the pump nearest the machine and after entering the card details fill up. Or rather top up, we can only put in CHF150 which is about 72 litres. So we go through the process again to make sure we have enough for the rest of the journey. I haven't done this before but now I know we could have stopped on the commercial pump as you enter the pump number when paying. Am relieved to fill up though. While here Paul attempts to clean the windscreen with a foot long squeegee that does actually clean where we look out but not high enough for the passengers. Anne has made the tea a couple of times and supplied much needed sustenance in the form of home made flapjacks. Known as Mamma G to the kids, Anne runs a tuck shop during the journey and at the hotel and she seems to have plenty of supplies on the coach. We cross the border into Italy and drive to Milan then turn left towards the mountains. It is now light as we have a breakfast stop on the motorway. We have made good time and are ahead of schedule. The service area where we stop is ok but could do with a MacDonalds! One of the features of a Calthorpe Park ski trip is the playing of a Queen dvd or cd. Paul has forgotten to bring his and all I have is on my i-pod. In the shop here there are the first two Queen greatest hits cd's but they are €20 each. Greatest Hits one is purchased and is soon blaring out of the speakers. We soon come off the motorway and begin our climb up to Passo de Tonale and the Miramonte Hotel. We were expected at the hotel at about midday but arrive at 09:00! We have been very fortunate with traffic and have had a good run through but to arrive at this time is a surprise. To our surprise the rooms are ready and we can settle straight in. The sun is shining and the snow is thinning but hopefully there will be enough for the week. We unload the luggage to find enough sweets, drinks and crisps to feed an army. Mamma G is certainly setting up shop this week. All profits from the sale of these goods goes to charity so lets hope the troops are thirsty and hungry. We park the coach at the hotel and that is it, we do not have to move until we leave to come home! The slopes are just across the road from the hotel. The ski hire shop is close to the hotel as is the ski pass office. I will ski this week and go with everybody else to get my ski's, boots and poles and then go off with the rep to obtain my ski pass which for 5 days will cost me €108. Once we have settled in our rooms and had a drink it is lunchtime and we are both hungry. Rather handy that the hotel has a pizzeria that can feed a couple of fat boys! This afternoon is a bit of a wipeout as I sleep for four hours. Dinner is good this evening with a good choice that included delicious pasta.

Lake District Monday 04 April 2010

2011-04-15T06:40:00.000-07:00

Ray went off to the Lake District today for a five day tour. He is staying in the lovely Burnside Hotel in Bowness so should have a great week.

Smashed Window 30 March 2011

2011-04-15T06:36:00.000-07:00

In the early hours of this morning one of our coaches was bringing a group back from a Daniel O'Donnell concert in Brighton when some idiot threw something (stone/rock) at the coach. This smashed one of the side windows and will cost approximately £600. As well as being inconvenient and expensive for us it is also dangerous and frightening for those on board.

Winter Wonderland Friday 11 March

2011-03-17T07:20:00.001-07:00

Sorry I had copied and pasted yesterdays blog on today!

We have breakfast at 07:00, and then enough time to find a working tap for the drinks machine, before leaving at 08:00.
We load the coach at the far end of the hotel, close to all the rooms, and then hand in the collected room keys as we drive up to the reception area.
Five minutes later we are on the motorway when I suddenly realise that I have left my laptop in my bedroom.
We must turn round and retrieve it! What a doughnut!
At least I realised not too far from the hotel, if we had gone much further then I would have had a real problem as I do so much work on the laptop.
Once we have retrieved the laptop (I am suitably embarrassed) we are back on the road and have only lost 15 minutes.
I check the tea machine as we are driving and there is no water coming out, we have an airlock. Brian stops at the next parking area where we change drivers and he repairs the machine while I drive. I wasn’t allowed to try the repair!
The drive to Calais, which is flat and mostly uninteresting countryside, is forgotten as Jen comes up to the front and recites a poem she has written during the week about the week. It is very good and breaks the journey up.
We have no problems reaching Calais and once we have got our ticket for the 15:20 shuttle drive through to the terminal area for some shopping. Well, it is not quite as easy as that!
Brian is driving and at first we think we have driven past the turning to the terminal when we realise it is all sealed with large locked gates.
They have changed the system (for the better) so that you now go through passport control before going to the terminal. From the terminal you now drive straight to the shuttle. This is a marked improvement, especially at busy times, as you will know exactly how long to stop for without the guessing game of how long passports will take.
At last Eurotunnel have listened to the complaints from coach operators about loading times, dedicated lanes etc.
We are home in Petersfield by 18:00 after a very enjoyable week that had a lot of laughs along the way.

Winter Wonderland Thursday 10 March

2011-03-17T07:18:00.000-07:00

We begin our journey home today and want to load the cases at 07:00 for an 08:00 departure. I had asked the passengers to bring their cases to the coach as this saves us a lot of time and allows us to enjoy our breakfast.
Karl would have none of this and insists that he porter collects the cases. This is ok but if he is not on time, which often happens, and the cases appear in dribs and drabs then we take a lot longer to load and may miss our breakfast. And you can’t have a couple of fatboys going hungry now can you?!
I shouldn’t have worried as the porter is very efficient and we are sipping coffee and eating bread and cheese by 07:20!
At breakfast we do a collection for the staff and everybody is most generous as I pass a basket filled with Euro’s to Karl who is very appreciative.
He hands out a hotel brochure and postcard to everyone as they get on the bus and a big bottle of schnapps for Brian and I.
I normally put a hotel postcard in the mileage quiz but this has blown that little idea!
Karl has been great and has helped make the holiday. The hotel is certainly not up to our usual standards but he has helped everything run smoothly and has been great fun, although I must have a word about the meaning of gala!
It is a bit cloudier this morning, perfect for travelling, as we head towards Switzerland and into France at Basle.
We have a short stop in Switzerland before entering France and stopping for lunch in the gorgeous Alsace wine village of Riquewihr, a lunch stop we always try to make if time permits.
By now it is sunny again and very warm, no need for coats today.
Brian and I walk up the main cobbled street and go into a cafe for some lunch. Alf the coach are in here eating the homemade tarts/quiches or pancakes.
We both have a pancake and mine has cheese and ham in it and is delicious. I rarely eat pancakes and thoroughly enjoy mine as does Brian. The fruit tarts are just screaming to be eaten so we both succumb and have a rhubarb tart with cream. Very naughty but also very nice!
From here we are making our way to Metz and are going to go a different way that should save a little time. There is a tunnel at St Die that cuts through the Vosges mountains and also cuts a big corner off the motorway.
The ride to the tunnel is lovely as we drive to Ribeauville and pick up a small road that climbs up a mountain to a height of 742m and then continues down the other side to the tunnel. I haven’t been on this road before and am always excited about finding new routes and roads. This is definitely a route I will use again.
Once back on the motorway we stop to top up the fuel and look for some water to fill the empty tea machine. The taps are turned off here and I get no joy out of the two ladies behind the counter. A more miserable pair of ladies you would be hard to find! I wish we had bought our fuel elsewhere.
We arrive at our hotel on the outskirts of Metz by 17:20 allowing a nice rest before our 19:00 dinner.
We fancy a couple of drinks before dinner and begrudgingly pay the €6.50 per pint.
Dinner is a set meal but very good.
I am tired tonight and look forward to my bed after dinner, no rocking tonight.

Winter Wonderland Wednesday 09 March

2011-03-17T07:17:00.000-07:00

A nice gentle day today with a visit to Innsbruck and then back to Landeck. Once again it is a nice sunny day as we set off for Innsbruck at 09:00.
The journey only takes an hour and we are soon walking the group into the centre of this lovely Tyrolean city.
We have explained about the old town including the Swarovski shop and museum which when we reach it is shut for refurbishments! You can still see and buy this famous crystal in the nearby tourist information centre.
We walk into the newer part of town and find an internet cafe tucked away behind the main shops. This gives me the chance to check on my banking and look a couple of things up. I don’t manage to do as much as I want as the internet is so slow and erratic. We buy a couple of sandwiches and return to the coach where it is too warm to wear our jumpers and once on the coach I have to sit away from the front because it is too hot!
We spend an enjoyable 3½ hours here before heading back to Landeck. On the way we stop to top up with fuel and the Go Box before arriving in Landeck at 14:40. We park in the centre and tell the group we shall leave here at 16:30 for the short journey to our hotel which we can see overlooking the town. This gives them the chance to walk around Landeck or walk back to the hotel in the still warm sunshine.
All but two come back on the coach as we return and prepare for our Gala Dinner tonight and the torch lit walk.
Every morning we have chosen our main meal for that evening but this morning there was no menu and I was under the impression tonight’s Gala Dinner would be a buffet similar to dinners I have experienced before in the Tyrol.
As we go in for dinner at 19:00 there is no sign of a buffet except for the usual small salad buffet. As we were having a drink before dinner Karl mentioned it would be fish today as it is a religious day (Ash Wednesday) and they eat fish on religious days.
Well our dinner was in fact fish covered in a cheese sauce preceded by a type of coleslaw (?), soup and salad. Dessert was a type of apple strudel and cream. Not really the Gala Dinner we were expecting and I think as there were so few people in the hotel this was a substitute meal as it was probably the worst of the week. Gala Dinner my arse!!I didn’t have any complaints from the passengers but I wasn’t impressed.
After dinner at nine o’clock we went on our guided walk in the company of our guide Louis, who didn’t speak a word of English! This could be fun.
We are all given a torch that is flaming away as we begin our stroll.
Anna speaks a little German and is going to act as our translator and assistant guide. The walk is gentle and flat and only lasts 30 minutes. A nice little stretch of the legs after the Gala Dinner!
Anna is in fits of giggles as Louis explains about a farm shed we pass and she translates that there are 20 cows and only 1 man in the shed!!
On returning to the hotel Peter Sellers greets us with a tray of schnapps and they all get stuck in. It seems to give some of the women wind! You know who you are!!
Anna has a couple of schnapps and Louis seems quite taken with her, even asking if she is married.
Karl (Mr Sellers) explains that Louis brews his own schnapps and it is really good as it disinfects you! All this is described by pointing to his mouth saying it goes in here and tracing a route down through his stomach and coming out you know where, disinfecting everything. This is funny and Karl and Louis find it highly amusing. More schnapps for everyone.

Winter Wonderland Tuesday 08 March

2011-03-17T07:15:00.000-07:00

A long day today but, for most, the highlight of the week as we drive into Switzerland to board the Bernina Express to Italy and back.
We are away from the hotel at 07:45 and I anticipate the journey to take 2½ hours. Our train is due to depart at 11:04 so we have plenty of time for any possible delays.
It is a beautiful sunny day once again, the one day we really want clear weather.
The journey only takes two hours as we arrive in Pontresina at 09:45. I go into the ticket office to pay for our tickets and rather nervously put my debit card in the machine. I am nervous as this is the only card I can use and although there is ample money available I am concerned the card won’t work and it is too early to call the bank in England if there is a problem.
The machine takes ages to process my card before rejecting it! The very nice young man then calls his older assistant over and they process my card by hand which thankfully works. Phew! The cost is nearly £1200 and I didn’t have that much cash.
We are all going including Brian and myself but first there is time for a coffee in a nearby cafe.
Brian and I walk in to find most of the passengers sitting there and on one big table there are Colin, Pat, Jen, Bob, Wendy and Brenda. Pat calls me over to say that she has the money to pay for our drinks courtesy of Gill.
Gill sadly passed away recently and has left some money for us to have a drink on her. What a lovely thought from a lovely lady who will never be forgotten and who has a special place in many hearts. Cheers Gill!!
Our train is due to leave at 11:04 but actually leaves a minute late! A Swiss train late, can’t be!
I have paid extra to have a panoramic carriage and is it worth it. The first hour of this two hour journey is through the snow and mountains before gradually descending to Tirano in Italy.
This first hour is one of the most beautiful journeys I have ever been on. The sky is a stunning deep blue in colour without a cloud in sight while the mountains are covered in brilliant deep snow that glistens in the sun.
It is very difficult to describe the beauty we are witnessing but at least I have my phone camera to capture the stunning scenery.Three pictures into the journey my battery runs out! Bum! Am not impressed. I will just have to sit back and enjoy the ride, which I do.
At 13:12 we arrive in Italy and the small town of Tirano where we have about an hour and a half before the return journey. It is warm and sunny without any snow in sight!
There is a pizza restaurant next to the railway station that we tell the passengers about and the majority of the group end up in there with big pizza’s in front of them. Brian and I also partake in a pizza lunch which we both enjoy.
As we go out to pay the lady in charge shakes her head when I offer her some money and disappears only to return with a couple of bottles of red! That’ll do for me.
Our return journey departs at 14:33 and all of the passengers are back on board early. I think we have scared them by saying if they are late the train won’t wait and it is a long way back to Landeck!
The journey back is again very pretty but not quite as stunning as the journey here mainly due to the sun being lower and hiding behind the mountains at some points and everyone being a little sleepy.
We are back in Pontresina at 16:33 and away by 17:00, arriving back in Landeck at 19:00.
We have a later dinner tonight with music during and after.
I have a little dance to the birdy song (must be the dodgy wine!) before calling it a night. I wish I had stayed up a bit longer as Anna took to the microphone and sang later in the evening.

Winter Wonderland Monday 07 March

2011-03-17T07:12:00.000-07:00

We are due to meet the horse and carriage man in the car park of the cable car in Reschen , close to the lake.
Our first ride is at 10:00 so we depart the hotel at 09:00. It is a bit cloudy when we leave but you can see the sun beginning to burn it away and by the time we reach Reschen we have a clear blue sky. Bloody cold though!
The car park is busy as we pull in and the horse and carriage pull out!
It is a bit tight squeezing through the cars to our parking space and by the time we reach it the man has gone. I have his number and call him, he is on the lake. I can see him as he is going across to the other side and wonder what is going on.
We manage to understand each other and I ask Brian to bring the coach closer to the lake and we will walk the first group down to the sleigh.
It is strange walking out onto a frozen lake and even stranger joining a horse drawn sleigh. The two horses are a beautiful soft brown colour and are called Cindy and Gina.
There is a wind on the lake and it is absolutely freezing although very sunny.
The first group of ten go off on a tour of the lake, 6km one way and 5km back, and are due back in an hour.
It is quite a sight seeing them ride off amongst the paragliding skiers and skaters. We even see a couple of vans driving across the lake!
Back at the coach we take the rest around the other side of the lake to the small town of Reschen but there is not a lot here apart from a couple of shops and a few cafes. We only stay half an hour before going back to meet the first group back and see the second group off.
They all look frozen as they step down from the carriage but have all had a great time on this unusual trip.
We don’t bother returning to the town and stay parked above the lake where we can watch all the action on the lake.
Some of the group go up in the cable car for what sounded like an impressive ride.
By the time the final group had gone it wasn’t as cold and much more bearable, even Anne Evans took off her hat!
We left here at 13:30 and then went to the Swiss tax free town of Samnaun.This is a trip we normally do in the summer and I am pleasantly surprised that the road is open as it does venture quite high.
There are seven tight hairpin bends before a steady climb up with spectacular views at every turn and once again the weather is showing everything in all its glory.
Two years ago I took a group to Luzern in the February and on one trip we got stuck on a mountain road unable to drive through an avalanche of snow that had fallen across the road. To cut a long story short the police closed the road and we spent about an hour trying to get going which we eventually did.
I have a group on board (you know who you are) who were on that trip and guess what comes next!
Yep, another bloody avalanche!
What luck!
Jonah’s, that’s what they are, Jonah’s!We come to a halt behind a queue of stationary cars with most of the drivers standing outside watching something ahead.
We get out to see workmen with diggers picking up snow and ice that has fallen across the road and sending it tumbling down the mountain with the big blocks of ice rolling down like boulders.
We are not kept waiting too long before continuing on our way to Samnaun.
Samnaun looks as pretty as ever and smells as expensive as ever! Booze, cigarettes, chocolates and fuel are cheap here but clothes, perfume and watches are all at the higher end of the price scale.
We sit down for lunch near to where we have parked the coach and are served by a young man wearing a pair of ladies black tights on his head with the legs hanging down like pigtails!
I’ve got to ask him! It is festival time he said but what kind of festival has folk wearing tights for hats I don’t know!
Our spaghetti is good but not cheap. I ask for the bill in Euro’s and am told it is €33.80. I give the man €40 and ask for a receipt. The cheeky bugger returns with my receipt but no change assuming I had left the rest as a tip. I couldn’t quite believe it but left it as that for his cheek. Maybe he can buy a new pair of tights with it!
As we are sitting there a skier who has obviously just come off the slopes asks cheeky tightshead if he is in Austria!
“No you are in Switzerland!”
“How do I get to Austria?”
“Wait here and I will call the shuttle bus and it will pick you up in 10 minutes.” What serviceThe lost skier orders a mulled wine and pays with his credit card, or rather tries to pay. My cheeky mate returns saying the card doesn’t work, does he have any cash.
Skier shakes his head and points again to card.
Meanwhile the shuttle bus has turned up to take the lost skier back to Austria or somewhere from where he can ski to Austria.
With a dodgy card and no cash the skier is told he can have a free wine and have a safe journey to Austria.
All very nice but I think he should thank me as I have just bought his wine!!
Once the sun has gone down it becomes very cold and the passengers are soon back and we are on our way back to the hotel.
No avalanches this time!
There are two bowling lanes in the basement as well as another bar and tonight is bowling night with prizes!
After dinner we have about half an hour practice before Peter Sellers arrives to take control of the proceedings and divide us into two teams of boys against girls.
I wasn’t really looking forward to tonight but it proves great fun and well organised by our host.
We each have five bowls in both of the two rounds and there we some notable highlights.
“Schnapps for Anna” became a familiar cry from Karl as the delightful Anna missed the pins!
“Schnapps for Brenda” also became familiar but for the opposite reason!
Pat also won some schnapps more for what she was wearing than her bowling skills!
I think the boys scored more overall but the prizes were issued to the best three girls and the best three boys as well as a booby prize to each side.
Brenda was the top girl and Brent the top man, well done to you both.

Winter Wonderland Sunday 06 March

2011-03-17T07:09:00.000-07:00

Wake up to a gorgeous blue sky without a cloud to be seen.
Breakfast is a cold buffet but perfectly adequate and the views from the dining room are lovely.
We are having an easy day today and leave the hotel at 09:30.
We drive up the Reschenpass to Nauders and on into Italy, stopping at the Reschensee lake. Here there is a lone church tower standing in the lake as a memorial to the village that used to be here before being destroyed to make way for the reservoir. I have been here many times but not quite like today as the lake is frozen and you can walk right up to the tower.
On the lake are skiers being pulled along by parachute (?), cross country skiers and skaters. A pathway has been smoothed out the length of the lake and also a skating circuit complete with little hut. It is all quite a sight.
From here we drive back the short distance to the cable car in Nauders where we park amongst the hundreds of cars alongside a couple of coaches.
All of the groups want to go up to the top so we buy 29 tickets and off we go. The scenery is a beautiful as ever and at the top the deep blue of the sky makes the white of the snow seem even whiter and brighter.
It is very busy up here and there is a band playing outside the restaurant as many skiers soak up the sunshine.
Brian and I have our lunch and then go back down to the bottom. As lovely as it is here I am a little jealous of all those ski-ing. Last year I had a holiday here ski-ing and it was one of the best weeks of my life.
It is cold out of the sun but sitting in it is very warm, which most of the group seem to be doing at the bottom of the slopes.
Brian walks most of the group into Nauders along a nice gentle path that runs between the cable car and the town while I drive the rest into town and to meet Charly at the Hotel Hochland.
It is always a pleasure coming here and meeting Patricia, Chrystal and Charly again is emotional!Everybody comes in and enjoys a drink with some of them also having a good look around. We will be coming back in 2012 and hopefully today will show some prospective passengers how lovely the hotel is.
I am given a couple of boxes of new brochures in English to help sell the hotel. These brochures are great because the hotel looks exactly as it does in the pictures whereas you often see a hotel brochure and the hotel does not live up to it. I am sure some places use trick photography and some definitely airbrush out bits.
We have to arrange a sleigh ride this week and I am having serious problems sorting this out. I e-mailed Patricia last week asking for help and she comes up trumps.
While we are here she contacts a local man who can accommodate us tomorrow at 10:00, 11:00 and 12:00. He can take a maximum of 11 in his carriage so we will have to do three runs. We will meet him in Reschen by the cable car.It has been great coming back to see Charly and his family and I only wish I was bringing a group out this year.
We are back at the hotel by 16:00 which allows everyone to relax before our 19:00 dinner.

Winter Wonderland Saturday 05 March

2011-03-17T07:07:00.000-07:00

I am picked up by Richard Graver at 05:00 and taken to Gatwick for my 08:15 flight to Basle.
The plan is that Brian should be driving past the airport at about midday and it is only a very short distance from the motorway so he can pick me up. I am due to land at 10:50.
My flight is early and Brian a little late so I have an hour and a half to wait in the sun. At 12:30 I am on the bus heading to Austria.
We rejoin the motorway from the airport and immediately join a long queue to the border. This is much busier than normal as it is unusual to have any kind of queue here. The problem is simply sheer weight of traffic with many people heading for the slopes.
At the border we have to purchase a tax form which allows us to drive in Switzerland. You can pay different amounts depending on how many times you will be in the country and the type of vehicle. We buy a yearly tax that allows us 10 days in Switzerland over the next twelve months. The cost is CHF165 which is about £125.00. I put my visa card in the machine and after a long wait it spits it out with a big red cross on the screen! It won’t work when it should work! In the end Brian and I have to pool our resources and pay €140 in cash.
I call Wendy and ask her to pop along to the bank to make sure my card is valid to use in Europe (it has never been a problem before) and then ring me back.
We are driving out of Basle when Brian’s phone rings and it is Wendy calling me back exasperated that I am not picking up my phone. I haven’t heard it ring. When we stop I have 12 missed calls! I check the ringer volume and realise I have it on silent mode!
I call the bank and try and sort out this mess.
After lunch we continue on our way arriving in Landeck at 18:00.
We are staying at the Hotel Sonne in Landeck. I would normally check out each hotel we use but was unable to do that here although I know other people who have enjoyed their stay here.
The first impression is not a good one! It looks very old and not very welcoming!
We hand the keys out and everybody disappears to their rooms followed shortly afterwards by Brian and I.
The hotel owner bears an uncanny resemblance to Peter Sellers!
My room is ok with modern furniture and an old fashioned bathroom that has a lovely shower. Brian’s is a bit smaller and has his wash basin in the room as there is only just enough room in the bathroom for his shower and toilet!
The only problem I have is the room is cold. A problem I soon find out is affecting a few of the passengers.
Colin and Pat Langrish and Wendy McMullen have rooms close together and their heating is not working at all. They have spoken to Peter Sellers (his real name is Karl) and he has said he will deal with it.
Dinner is nice as is the room we are eating in. Between the bar and the dining room is a smaller room with a lovely warm open fire that is throwing out a lot of heat.
After dinner Colin, Pat and Wendy go back to their rooms to find a small electric heater has been put in each room. You switch the heater on to the first level and warm air comes out, switch it to level to and the lights go out!
I think they had a bit of fun and games with the maintenance man who went out into the hallway and checked the fuses in the fuse box which is hidden behind a picture on the wall. Now Colin knows where the fuse box is he can sort his own repairs out!
I do offer to move them but they are happy to stay where they are and seem to be finding the whole episode hilarious.We do need to change a couple of rooms and this poses no problems.

Winter Wonderland Friday 04 March

2011-03-17T07:06:00.000-07:00

Our Winter Wonderland holiday to Austria goes out today but I am not there! I have an important meeting today so cannot join the trip until tomorrow.
All goes well with Brian and he reaches the overnight stop in Metz without any trouble.

Austria Ski-ing Friday/Saturday 25/26 February

2011-03-17T07:05:00.000-07:00

We are away by 07:30 and at the slopes by 08:05. Today they are ski-ing in Flachau and all their shoes have been collected in black bags to be left in the ski hire shop.
Once unloaded we are away for our 10 hour break before the drive home later.
We once again stop at the services and the water is now unfrozen. Brian connects our hose to the water but the water cannot get into our tanks as they are frozen as well as our pipes and hoses.
We are now concerned that we will not be able to use the toilet or make drinks until everything thaws. This could be a problem especially the loo.
Back at the hotel it is very sunny and David’s father in law says we can wash the coach using water from a tap near their garage. It is a bit tight manoeuvring the coach to the tap but we manage it and it is all worthwhile when the all of the dirt and salt have been washed off.
Back in our parking space we position the coach so that the sun is on nearside where all of the toilet and drinks hoses, pumps etc are. We leave the locker up and hope the sun can thaw everything out.
As we are leaving at about 20:30 we are allowed to keep our rooms until 16:00 which will hopefully allow enough time for a couple of hours sleep before the long journey home.
At 16:00 I am clean and ready to go! We have packed our cases and it is now a question of waiting around for dinner and then the drive home.
The sun has done its job and we now have a functional toilet and hot drinks.
Dinner is at 18:00 and tonight it is chips and Weiner Schnitzel, lovely.
It is nearly none o’clock when we eventually leave with Brian taking the first leg. I do the second and when I stop, in Germany, we fill up with fuel. I go to pay and the cashier’s machine will not accept any of the four credit/debit cards that I carry. I am not impressed as it is the machine and not my cards. The lady behind the cash desk is also not impressed with me as I do not have enough cash to pay the €220. She points me at a cash machine in the shop which does accept my card and I draw out €200. It doesn’t give me a receipt though!
I pay her cash telling her that I thought German machines were supposed to be efficient but this one and you are not!! Well something along those lines anyway!
We press on and reach Calais before 11:00. Our ferry home is at 16:00 but we want to be at the docks for 14:00.
We spend the remaining time in Cite Europe before going for the boat.
I was expecting Calais to be busy but we only queue at passports for a short time. No chance of an early boat though so it is all sit back and watch a Bond film (Goldeneye) while we wait for the boat.
Our ferry is the new Spirit of Britain and it is massive. Having only been in service for six weeks it is still very new looking and the facilities are very good. The drivers room even has its own balcony!
P&O have cut some of their sailings and replaced with one sailing in a bigger boat. This is great if you are off early but if made to wait while unloading at your destination (as coaches normally are) it can take half an hour to get off the thing!
Robert is waiting in Calais for us and after saying our fond farewells he takes the coach home and we take the car home.
It has been a great trip and I hope the first of many with Crookhorn College.

Austria ski-ing Thursday 24 February

2011-03-17T07:04:00.000-07:00

Zauchansee again today and once again we are the first coach here. It is very sunny this morning with the coach showing the outside temperature as -8!
No hospitals today (hopefully) so Brian and I take advantage of the free ski pass on offer to the drivers. It is the perfect morning to be going up a mountain.
Armed with our passes we join the queue for the cable car to the top of the mountain and while waiting one of the men operating the car tries to explain something to us. We catch the gist as being we can’t come down by cable car and will have to walk to another lift to return.
All sounds a bit odd but there you go, we carry on in the queue. As we are approaching the cable car we are stopped by another man who tells us we can’t go up on this car as we will not be able to come back down. He sends us off in the direction of a chair lift.
Eventually we find an eight man chair lift that takes us on a gorgeous ride high up into the mountains. Even though it is cold the scenery is fantastic with the deep blue sky a perfect backdrop to the snow covered peaks. Stunning, I love the mountains.
It is still early and there are not many skiers about as we traipse across the snow to a welcoming mountain restaurant that offers warmth, views and coffee.
The ride back down the mountain was great although I was a bit wary of taking photos with my phone in case I dropped it.
We enjoy lunch in the cafe I went to yesterday and my goulasch soup was goulasch soup today!
Back at the coach I received a call from Chris to say one of the lads had hurt his knee and was in the medical room at Flachau. Here we go again!
There were many calls to and fro and we eventually learn that Hugh (injured saucepan lid) has been taken to Schladming hospital with Sarah. Here we go again!
We depart the slopes at 16:30 and drive to the hospital to pick Sarah and Hugh up. He has injured his knee and is on crutches which makes getting on the coach a little difficult.
From Schladming it is only an hour back to the hotel.
Chips and kebab tonight plus spaghetti. After dinner the group had an awards night where each separate group where given certificates for their efforts. Also some funny stories were told and some of the video footage taken on the slopes was shown.

Austria ski-ing Wednesday 23 February

2011-03-17T07:01:00.000-07:00

We are back in Zauchansee today and are the first coach here. We park in the second bay and unload kids, ski’s, boots and poles.
The children are in the bay next to us sorting themselves out when the second coach arrives. It is another English bus and he has about 25 free bays to choose from and decides to pick the one the children are in!
I shout at him as does Steve as he is about to run over everybody and everything.
He eventually stops and waits for the kids to move, with no hand up to apologise or nothing to say sorry.
“Cock” says Steve and I can’t agree more!
The bay is cleared and Mr Cock reverses back and into the concrete wall and I nearly laugh my cock off!!!
Not a lot of damage is done but it is a sweet moment that will make me grin all day! Steve is quite amused too!
Lot of snow about today and it was a bit tricky for some cars getting to the resort. We were held up at one point by cars that had pulled over to put chains on.
By the time we drive out half an hour later the road is clear of cars and snow. On the way down the valley we do pass a car that has gone off the road into some trees, which have stopped it from going further down the slope.
We are on our way back to the hospital in the company of Stuart to pick up Haydon and take him back to the hotel.
We stop a couple of times looking for water to top up the frozen toilet and drinks machine but everywhere is frozen.
I top up the Go Box as we are being beeped four times! This is the toll box we have in the windscreen for Austrian motorways and rather like a pay as you go phone you can top it up as you go. One beep is good, two is preparing you for a top up, three you need a top up and four you are likely to be shot!! We top up unscathed!
We pick Haydon up and take him and Stuart back to the hotel before returning to Zauchansee, where all of the parking spaces have been taken.As we may have to move the coach we take it in shifts to go for lunch. I go to a quiet cafe and We pick Haydon up and take him and Stuart back to the hotel before returning to Zauchansee, where all of the parking spaces have been taken.
As we may have to move the coach we take it in shifts to go for lunch. I go to a quiet cafe and order Goulasch soup and am served sausage and chips! I couldn’t be bothered to wait so ate the sausage. When I paid my bill the waiter apologised and said he would only charge me the cost of the soup and not the sausage. Very nice of him but they are exactly the same price!!
As well as being the first coach here we are also the last English coach to leave with only a Norwegian bus keeping us company.
Dinner is at 18:00 tonight as it is disco night and is chips and pizza. I notice Elliot (one of the adults) take a large plate of pizza as well as his main dish. He must be hungry.
We drive to St Johann, or rather Brian drives, and turn up at a very shut looking disco.
After a few knocks on the door somebody appears to tell us the disco is closed for refurbishment! This does not help Chris who is holding an e-mail confirming the booking!After a few frantic phone calls to David back at the hotel we can go to a disco in Golling which is five minutes from the hotel.
Chris is clearly annoyed and upset at this and I feel sorry for him because these things do happen however much planning you put in, and you in no way responsible.
The disco in Golling is great and there are three other school parties there.
The highlight for me was some of the dancing especially Jake and Amos. Great fun.
We are back at the hotel by 22:30 which means they can be away in the morning at 07:30.
All of the hotel staff have gone to bed but have left out a couple of crates of beer and some wine.
Brian has gone to bed while I decide to have a nightcap.
The next couple of hours fly by as we chat and play silly drinking games and munch on the packets of crisps that have appeared as well as a plate of cold pizza from Elliot!
I have a bit of a shock as I’m sitting quietly when a portion of flying pizza hits my glasses and deflects on to the floor, leaving behind cheese and tomato on my specs!
Elliot is a little concerned as I was obviously not the intended target but it was very funny and made me laugh.
Manage to get to bed at 01:00.

Austria Ski-ing Tuesday 22 February

2011-03-17T06:40:00.001-07:00

There is more snow today than yesterday and once again the snowplough is about to clear the road.
Once again we are away at 07:30 and today we are going to another resort – Zauchensee.
All of these resorts are in the same area and only need the one ski pass.
There has been a lot of snow and the drive up to Zauchensee is gorgeous along a low mountain pass that is surrounded by snow covered trees and ends up in the great ski-ing resort of Zauchensee.
The coach park is underground at the bottom of the ski lifts. This is all very practical but I personally hate parking underground. If I’m sat on the bus I want to be able to look out and see what is going on and not look at a concrete wall!
This part of the resort is very hi – tech. As you leave the coach park and go into the main entrance where the cash desks and toilets are is like walking into a shopping mall although there is only one shop! They have built an inside like the outside with bars, restaurants and a windmill especially for the hundreds of Dutch skiers. To reach the main cable car and chair lifts is by escalator.
We are not here too long this morning as we have an errand to run.
Sarah has been taken to the hospital by David’s wife Stephanie to sit with Haydon and we are going to pick her up and bring her back to Zauchensee.
It is an hour away and we are back before 13:00, just in time for lunch!
We fill our little bellies up with chicken cordon bleu in the restaurant at the top of the escalators. It is very busy in here but we are served very quickly and the food is lovely.
It is snowing heavily today.
We are away by 16:00 and go back to the hotel allowing enough time for a change before returning to the coach and the local swimming pool which is situated in Golling, five minutes from the hotel.
We drop the children off and then head back to the hospital with Sarah who is going to visit Haydon for an hour.
While she is at the hospital we fill the coach with fuel at a nearby garage. We also need water for the drinks machine and toilet and there is a tap at the garage that isn’t frozen.
After paying €300 plus for our fuel the garage man won’t let us have any water. Am not impressed and wish I had asked before filling up.
We pick Sarah up, then the swimmers and go back to the hotel for our 20:00 dinner. Chips with fish tonight!

Austria ski-ing Monday 21 February

2011-03-17T06:39:00.000-07:00

Breakfast at seven again before leaving at seven thirty. There has been quite a bit of snow overnight and although we have a slope to negotiate to get out of the hotel we should be able to do it without the need for chains. This is soon made easier when a snow plough drives back and forth clearing the road.
Today they are ski-ing in Flachau and once again we are the second coach here.
I spend most of the morning composing spreadsheets for my yearly accounts.
We are once again given a voucher and at lunchtime we go to collect our €7 but are told to come back after 14:00. We do accept two lift passes so we can enjoy lunch at the top of the mountain.
The weather is not as bright as yesterday and has snowed all morning.
We take a very pretty but cold ride up the mountain and join a long queue for lunch. It is heaving but our queue is moving and after about ten minutes we are just about to pick up a tray and order our food and drink. I am day off today and can almost touch the beer I am going to enjoy!
My phone rings.
It is Steve and he is at the bottom of the mountain needing transport to a hospital with an injured child.
We are on our way, lunch will have to wait! I am sure a couple of fat boys can do without feeding for a while!
The injured party, Haydon, is in the medical room at a ski area close by. We take Steve and Stuart to retrieve Haydon and then begin the journey to Hallein hospital. He has hurt his shoulder and is obviously in a lot of pain.
Before going to the hospital we must first return to the hotel to collect some paperwork.
Once we are at the hotel it is decided that Steve will take David’s car and drive Haydon to the hospital.
We return to Flachau with Stuart and have a belated lunch at 15:00.
After ski-ing we take the group into the nearby town of Wagrain where they will have the chance to go shopping for an hour. We join the staff in a bar for a drink. Food and drink seems to rule our life!!
We are back at the hotel at 18:50 and dinner is at 19:00. No time for a shower but time enough for a beer!
Steve is not back yet.
Dinner is chips with curry or chips with meatballs or chips with salad! I think there was some rice too!
Steve is back at 19:30 with the news that Haydon has broken his collarbone and is having an operation this evening. He will probably be in hospital for a couple of days.
We have a quiz after dinner which has been organised by Chris and is good fun. Brian and I join in with different groups and the group I am in are well in front going into the third round of four when we are robbed by a dubious marking decision and end up in third place!
I do learn that the highest mountain in Europe is in Russia and not France, Mount Elbris being higher than Mont Blanc. This caused a stir, not because of any discrepancy in height but whether Russia is in Europe.
It is snowing again tonight.

Austria ski-ing 20 February

2011-03-17T06:34:00.000-07:00

Up at 06:30 for breakfast at 07:00. You can make up a packed lunch if needed but Brian and I decline the offer as going out for lunch will give us something to do!
These boys are serious about their ski-ing and want to be at the slopes for the first lift up at 08:00.
Today they are ski-ing in Alpendorf and the sun is threatening to come out which will make for a pleasant day.
We are the second coach here and within an hour are joined by ten other British coaches, all full of ski-ing saucepan lids!
There are six or seven coaches on hire to a ski-ing company call Snowslippers and four of these are a company called Windy Corner from Wales. One of these coaches has a pump that when put in a barrel of water will pump the water through a hose to help wash down. It takes them 4 barrells of water to wash one coach! It would be a lot easier and quicker doing it by hand. We decide to wash down tomorrow if the weather is good. Today we clean the inside of the coach but it is an impossible job keeping it clean throughout the week.The sun is out and it is a lovely day.
On arrival we are given a voucher which we can redeem for €7 at the cable car cash desk.
Armed with our new found riches we go off in search of lunch and walk up a steep hill to a restaurant overlooking the town of St Johann im Pongau. Makes Brian puff a bit!
We sit outside in the sun and enjoy a hearty plate of Grostel, a local dish of fried bacon, onion and potato topped off with a fried egg and served in the frying pan! Absolutely delicious.
We are one of the last coaches to leave at 16:30 after a great days ski-ing.
Dinner is pork or ribs with chips or spaghetti.
After dinner Steve gives out the days awards for skier of the day, wipeout of the day, quote of the day and big girls blouse of the day! All done with a sense of fun and highly enjoyable.
I have a couple of drinks with the staff – Steve, Chris, Elliot, Shirley, Matt, Stuart, Roy, Phil and Sarah – before bed.
It is snowing.

Asustria ski-ing 18/19 February

2011-03-17T06:32:00.000-07:00

Friday 18th / Saturday 19thFebruary

Am off to Austria today with Crookhorn College, a local school from Waterlooville. I have driven lots of ski-ing trips before but this is my first with Greys and am both excited and a little apprehensive as we are driving through the night to Austria.
Ray is picking the school up and Brian and I are meeting them at Dover.
Ray is bang on time in Dover at 14:30 where we swap vehicles and go our separate ways.
A couple more passengers join us here making the very cramped luggage hold even more cramped! A bit of moving cases and pushing hard and we are fully loaded. I don’t know about the other cases but mine is so heavy I can hardly lift it!
There are quite a few coaches here but it is not as busy as I thought it would be although in an hours time it will be heaving.
Our ferry is due to depart at 16:30 allowing the group half an hour in the service area on the dockside. Burger King seems to be popular as they all come back clutching their little brown bags! We wouldn’t normally allow food like this on the coach but the rules are a little different on a trip like this.
While on the dockside, Steve Eddington (the organiser), is rummaging around amongst the cases looking for something. Ia m soon thrown a blue hooded fleece with Drive A written on the breast and all of the children’s names on the back. Brian has one that says Drive B. I don’t know how he knew our size but getting a couple of drivers XL is never going to be far off the mark!
There are loads of coaches on the boat all full of excited children going ski-ing.
The ferry is away on time at 16:30 and for the next hour and a half we enjoy some dinner and a quiet sit down in the drivers room.
Amazingly we dock on time and are driving out of the docks at Calais by 19:05. Only about another 15 hours to go!
Brian drives this first part while I try to sleep which proves very difficult and I end up with 20 minutes shut eye.
We decide to go via Antwerp rather than Brussels and as we approach Antwerp there is a sign across the road saying the E313, the motorway we are about to join, is closed at Boirs between Antwerp and Liege! I have no way of checking the route as our European map is in the back of Brian’s car! I had asked him yesterday to leave as much room as possible around the drivers area for anything we may take for the journey! We have a German/Austrian map which I thought would be sufficient!
Luckily we join the E314 before the closure and all worries are gone.
Brian drives 4½ hours to a service area on the A61 south of Koln and about 100km from Koblenz.
After a break here it is my turn to drive.
We continue on through Germany towards Munich via Stuttgart and then into Austria.
My big concern with driving these distances is my bladder! I can do two hours before I need a wee but rarely much longer!
So when I pull into Leipheim services past Ulm on the A8 4½ later I am well pleased! A combination of concentration, turkey sandwiches and music from my i-pod seem to have done the trick. There are not many in front of me for the loo though!
The turkey sandwiches are a bit of tradition for me as I used to take a school ski-ing on Boxing Day each year and associate driving through the night with these culinary delights!
Brian does the next stint to Irschenberg services, south of Munich, where we have our breakfast stop. We have timed it well as we find a parking space before many more coaches with the same idea are looking for somewhere to stop.
There is a MacDonalds close by and a lot walk down to it only to be disappointed as they are so busy they have stopped cooking! This seems to make the queue for the Burger King in the services even longer.
I drive the final 1½ hours to our hotel, Gasthof Pension Pass Leug, which is situated all on its own close to the town of Golling. The group have been here before and we are directed in by Steve and Chris, who is in charge of the ski-ing arrangements.
The rooms are not yet ready but we can dump our cases and return to the coach for the children to collect their ski-ing equipment.
Our first port of call is Alpendorf where those who need helmets are kitted out before driving to Flachau where all boots, poles and Ski’s will be issued.
The journey to Flachau should take about 20 minutes but we have a little moment of indecision and for a short while are driving in the wrong direction!
Once back on the right road we are soon in Flachau.
Once we have everybody and everything on board we return to the hotel. I am driving and as we approach our junction there is a lay-by immediately before it and I turn into here by mistake! Must be as tired as I feel!
There are some sandwiches laid on for lunch before our keys are handed out and also the bar is open. We both order a beer and when we go to pay for it David, the proprietor, says the drivers have free beer! We advise him that he may regret that!!
David offers Brian and I two keys, one to a double room and one for a single. Looking at Brian he says he will need the larger room and gives him the double!
We are like a couple of schoolboys trying to pull our cases up the stairs. Brian is on the first floor but I am on the second and it is a real struggle to lift my case up that many stairs. Why have I brought so much stuff?
Once in my room, which is small but perfectly adequate, I switch on the television to find Chelsea’s FA Cup replay with Everton live on German TV with the score at half time 0-0.
By the time I have unpacked and settled down to watch the football the time is 14:30. I started work yesterday at 09:00 and have just finished 29½ hours later!
No wonder I fall asleep and miss the second half. When I hear that Chelsea lost on penalties I am glad I slept!
We are the only people staying in the hotel and due to its isolation it is very safe for the children. The hotel doors are locked after dinner so nobody can escape although there is nowhere to go even if you did get out. Just about right for a school group and a lot less worry for the staff.
Dinner is a lovely homemade tomato soup followed by chicken, veg and chips or a pasta dish. There is also some salad but we normally dodge that!
Dinner was nice but not as nice as my bed felt after.
It is Wendy’s birthday today so feel a bit sad about being away but also excited about being in Austria for the ski-ing.

Wednesday 05 January 2011

2011-01-09T10:47:00.000-08:00

Have had a tax inspection going on since May and today is the day I meet the tax men at my accountants with their findings!
Am a little bit worried but haven't done anything deliberately wrong so I needn't be.
They find plenty of mistakes but nothing serious in my eyes.
Will be fined but am relieved it is all over.

Tuesday 28 December Austria Christmas

2011-01-09T10:44:00.000-08:00

Brian is back today after another successful tour. All went well except for the hot drinks machine freezing up on the first day! This is a pain but in very cold weather a common occurance with many coaches.
Wendy, Nicola and myself managed to take everybody home as I was not too keen on using the taxi company.

Wednesday 22 December London

2011-01-09T10:40:00.001-08:00

Am off to London to visit the Eye, the Christmas Market on the Southbank and then a tour of the Christmas lights.
It is cold today but there is no traffic anywhere.
It is always a pleasure to drive in London when the traffic is this quiet and we manage the lights at rush hour time with no problems.

Tuesday 21 December Austria Christmas

2011-01-09T10:35:00.000-08:00

Brian went off to Austria today for our Christmas tour.
We have had some more snow but not as much as earlier in the month and the roads are ok.
Once again the taxi company I use in Petersfield rang yesterday to say they couldn't pick any passengers up due to the road conditions!
The taxi compamies in Liss, Liphook and Haslemere were still able to operate.
Am not happy!
I did all of the pick-ups in my car shuttling between houses and coach. I managed to pick everybody up from their houses without the aid of winter tyres or snow chains. The roads were ok if you took it easy.
I was also helped by Anne and Nicola who brought Grandad in and picked another lady up for me. Thank you.

Thursday 09 December Bruges

2011-01-09T10:33:00.000-08:00

Off to Bruges today for our annual trip to the Christmas Markets with once again a full coach.
Brian did the pick-ups and I drove the rest of the day.
Expected a cold, miserable day but pleasantly surprised to see the sun. Still cold though!