Tam &Toby do Europe ...Take two

Loneliness or little bit of depression can visit anybody at anytime, a week from now you’ll look back and wonder what the fuss was all about , you have to visit bad to know what is good , it’s all part of the journey

I always push myself to talk to anybody & everybody even if I don’t speak the language, I’m amazed at the paths & doors it’s led me through

Tomorrow’s another day mate , chin up & crack on
 
In at the deep end , I don't think its particularly the countries , its more to do with your mind set . Humans generally are not solitary beings , that's why long periods of it are not allowed in prison. When I was a lot younger , even than you are now , I traveled solo by landrover into Europe , but I got quite a bit of local interaction , that doesn't seem to happen so much now , needing to instigate more . Maybe you need a suitable glass half full , fellow traveler , more interactive cerebraly than dogs . In the end its obviously your decision , but dont rush it . JMHO :)
 
Well at the minute I'm undecided what to do ...I need to give it some thought.
I moved to Milan this morning ...well the outskirts I think I'm roughly 6 km from the cathedral but while it's just a car park it's free and next to a very large park with a few small lakes so good for dog walks. The park is absolutely mobbed today as is the carpark but then it is Easter Sunday so I expected that. Have just spent the day walking in the park and lazing around Toby. I'll cycle in to the city tomorrow but I think I might leave the dogs in the van and just go myself as I don't really fancy towing the trailer in there. ...it's been warm today ...shorts weather :D
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Tam you’ve disappeared off the radar ,was it something we said lol , I know it’s bank holiday sun/mon BUT I’m having withdrawal symptom , I feel like I’ve gone cold turkey, you think it’s your trip & of course it is but it’s now grown arms & legs and has a cult following , as a leader you have responsibilities , please come back

Joking aside , I hope your just to busy having fun to keep us updated

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Scotch mist said:
Tam you’ve disappeared off the radar ,was it something we said lol , I know it’s bank holiday sun/mon BUT I’m having withdrawal symptom , I feel like I’ve gone cold turkey, you think it’s your trip & of course it is but it’s now grown arms & legs and has a cult following , as a leader you have responsibilities , please come back

Joking aside , I hope your just to busy having fun to keep us updated
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Not much to report really ...had a lazy day today except a couple of walks around the lake with the pups.
Didn't go in to the centre couldn't be bothered lol. Bank holiday Monday it's been mobbed here again today.
 
Northernraider said:
Not much to report really ...had a lazy day today except a couple of walks around the lake with the pups.
.
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As @Scotch mist said, you need to tell us about it.
Fill up details with how much milk you put on your frosties, the exact temperature of a beer 25 minutes after coming out of the fridge and registration numbers of foreign vans that get too close to you.

I have 5 days left til i dont have to live vicariously through your travels, so please try harder
 
Slow down Tam.
You don’t have to travel every day, find a nice spot and chill!

When we tour round France we just follow our noses, no hard & fast planning, we find the free Aires, some are really just carparks which are mostly good but we do get to a point where we need a bit of nice scenery and to stay in one place for a few days.

I think, like a lot of others, that you need to slow down, spend a few days here & there, chill out and also think of the dogs, I’m sure they would appreciate a stay in one place for a while specially if there is a beach and some nice walks, but you need time to find these places.
You’re not on a time limit so why the rush!?!?

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I know Tam has told us one of his problems is loneliness and that he is uncertain whether or not to continue with this trip. Many of us have put our five penneth in and made various suggestions, I think now we need to give him a bit of time and space to relax and think what he really wants to do.
All through last year on his first trip he provided us with almost daily postings, masses of beautiful photographs and details of their whereabouts. He has done the same for the first four months of this year. That is a tremendous commitment.
In my opinion he deserves a break and some breathing space. If he doesn't feel like making a post at any point, (it might be that he feels he has nothing new to say) then he shouldn't feel obliged to do so. I'm sure he will update us when he's good and ready. l may be entirely wrong and if so, I am sure I will soon be told. :unsure::)
 
Val 2 dogs said:
I know Tam has told us one of his problems is loneliness and that he is uncertain whether or not to continue with this trip. Many of us have put our five penneth in and made various suggestions, I think now we need to give him a bit of time and space to relax and think what he really wants to do.
All through last year on his first trip he provided us with almost daily postings, masses of beautiful photographs and details of their whereabouts. He has done the same for the first four months of this year. That is a tremendous commitment.
In my opinion he deserves a break and some breathing space. If he doesn't feel like making a post at any point, (it might be that he feels he has nothing new to say) then he shouldn't feel obliged to do so. I'm sure he will update us when he's good and ready. l may be entirely wrong and if so, I am sure I will soon be told. :unsure::)
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Well said Val.
 
hilldweller said:
>>> So I'm in another carpark about 8 miles south of como.

Big free attraction, the Moto Guzzi museum at Mandelo del Lario.

Have you done Peschiera del Garda ? A bit of wild camping and at least two sostas. Sirmioni and the Roman villa is a treat.

Lago di Caldonazzo is a must see.

Then you have the northern escape route out of Italy through Austria and into Germany. Fussen, Heidelberg, the Rhein, Moselle.

Don't throw it all away by heading back to Spain.
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Good advice there Tam on way home from Italy last year I left passing Como up over some mountain passes and stopped at Lake Bodensee
 
Hey Tam go down the east coast and hop on a ferry and get to Crete scope it out for me ............just a suggestion
 
PORKSTER said:
Hey Tam go down the east coast and hop on a ferry and get to Crete scope it out for me ............just a suggestion
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Yeah, come to Crete. We're here now with our motorhome and given that we used to live here permenantly we are pretty clued up about the island..................... however, ferry prices are not cheap - in fact they're blooming expensive! You could cut one ferry out by driving through Albania. We did this 4 years ago and it was very pleasant and no problems.

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There honestly hasn t been much to post the last day or two , it's a nice park I'm parked next to it has 3 or 4 big ponds in it and it has several routes for walks around it so really all I've done is walk the dogs a couple of times a day and spent the rest of the time reading or watching season 4 of prison break lol.

The dogs seem popular in Italy everyonr makes a fuss off them and keep saying bella bella.

I've not made it in to Madrid centre yet ....I had planned to do it today on the bike but it's been pouring with rain since around 3am and still going strong so it may well be another day of lazing around reading.

The Dudess said:
Yeah, come to Crete. We're here now with our motorhome and given that we used to live here permenantly we are pretty clued up about the island..................... however, ferry prices are not cheap - in fact they're blooming expensive! You could cut one ferry out by driving through Albania. We did this 4 years ago and it was very pleasant and no problems.
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I've actually been to Crete on a package holiday and hired a jeep there to go exploring.
It was okay but I preferred zakynthos :p
 
Morning tam , No advice from me as there has been plenty already

I was single for 18 years so have traveled & seen a bit of the world
I find it’s always people that make a holiday regardless of how beautiful the place is , it just takes 1 or 2 chance meetings ,often at the most random places to make a holiday into great memories , life is a numbers game the more you play the more chance of winning
 
I'm really torn with this country ...there's some nice parts , and a good few people speak english.

But the food choice is crap ...the bread us awful , fresh meat is expensive the fruit and veg is of poor quality...can't even get a decent bloody pizza. ...Lidl is shit here . Carreforre is like shopping in marks and Spencer's only without the quality.

Laundaretes expensive and useless as no machine to change notes and doesn't take a card .....who carries €20 in coins around with them.
Fuel is expensive...often more expensive than France.

To stay here a month I reckon would cost me twice what it does in Spain and I'm not sure it's worth it.

And they drive like bloody idiots

So I currentky have 3 bags of washing that I can't get washed.

£60 worth of shopping that I'm not entirely keen on.
And to add insult to injury it's not stopped raining since 3am so I can't get out with dogs without having wet clothes and towels

Bloody country
 
Northernraider said:
I'm really torn with this country ...there's some nice parts , and a good few people speak english.

But the food choice is crap ...the bread us awful , fresh meat is expensive the fruit and veg is of poor quality...can't even get a decent bloody pizza. ...Lidl is shit here . Carreforre is like shopping in marks and Spencer's only without the quality.

Laundaretes expensive and useless as no machine to change notes and doesn't take a card .....who carries €20 in coins around with them.
Fuel is expensive...often more expensive than France.

To stay here a month I reckon would cost me twice what it does in Spain and I'm not sure it's worth it.

And they drive like bloody idiots

So I currentky have 3 bags of washing that I can't get washed.

£60 worth of shopping that I'm not entirely keen on.
And to add insult to injury it's not stopped raining since 3am so I can't get out with dogs without having wet clothes and towels

Bloody country
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ok you have enough advice, but looking at your last few posts it seems the best option is head back to spain as you havnt been happy since leaving. whats the point being somewhere you dont like when you have the wheels to rectify it.

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Northernraider said:
But the food choice is crap ...the bread us awful , fresh meat is expensive the fruit and veg is of poor quality...can't even get a decent bloody pizza. ...Lidl is shit here . Carreforre is like shopping in marks and Spencer's only without the quality.
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Not sure what you are up to a Tam, Italian food is delicious. I'm not keen on Pizza but Italian ones are superb, just don't order a pepperoni one, pepperoni in Italian means peppers so you get a pizza with red, green & yellow peppers but no meat. Guess how I found that out.
Lidl's we have been in have been very good, why not try a proper Italian supermarket.

who carries €20 in coins around with them.
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Me, have a pot in the van with €30-€40 in it, hang over from when most French Aires & German Stellplatz had coin machines for parking charges.

Yes fuel is expensive and drivers mad, ordinary roads can be worse than in Belgium but motorways good & cheap.
 
So what do the Italians ask for when they want a proper pepperoni pizza?
 
Northernraider said:
I'm really torn with this country ...there's some nice parts , and a good few people speak english.

But the food choice is crap ...the bread us awful , fresh meat is expensive the fruit and veg is of poor quality...can't even get a decent bloody pizza. ...Lidl is shit here . Carreforre is like shopping in marks and Spencer's only without the quality.

Laundaretes expensive and useless as no machine to change notes and doesn't take a card .....who carries €20 in coins around with them.
Fuel is expensive...often more expensive than France.

To stay here a month I reckon would cost me twice what it does in Spain and I'm not sure it's worth it.

And they drive like bloody idiots

So I currentky have 3 bags of washing that I can't get washed.

£60 worth of shopping that I'm not entirely keen on.
And to add insult to injury it's not stopped raining since 3am so I can't get out with dogs without having wet clothes and towels

Bloody country
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Turn around where possible. ( said in a sat nav voice)
 
Lenny HB said:
Not sure what you are up to a Tam, Italian food is delicious. I'm not keen on Pizza but Italian ones are superb, just don't order a pepperoni one, pepperoni in Italian means peppers so you get a pizza with red, green & yellow peppers but no meat. Guess how I found that out.
Lidl's we have been in have been very good, why not try a proper Italian supermarket.


Me, have a pot in the van with €30-€40 in it, hang over from when most French Aires & German Stellplatz had coin machines for parking charges.

Yes fuel is expensive and drivers mad, ordinary roads can be worse than in Belgium but motorways good & cheap.
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To be honest lenny I've never been keen on Italian food, with exception to Bolognese and my own creations I'm not keen on pasta , I'm not even a big pizza eater bit I liked in Spain you could pick up cheap pizza of various recipe for a couple of euro and were handy for nights I didn't want to cook.
So I knew I wouldn't be keen on Italian cuisine but I planned to just buy chicken, pork , beef, sausages etc like I did at home and in Spain and just cook what I liked....bit I've found it very expensive here for chicken etc.

I'm not a fussy eater I can eat pretty much anything but I just find buying what I like very expensive in comparison.

Lidl was good in Spain, Portugal and even France really but here it's all bloody pasta lol.


Carreforre was ridiculous in price , €2 for a litre of milk , €2.39 for a half loaf of stale bread lol ....sod that

Haven't tried any Italian supermarkets yet but no idea if they will be different

Maybe I'm just a simple guy with simple tastes I don't know

Or I might just be a tightarsed Scotsman lol


The laundarette is a right pain as no other ones close by without going in to Milan centre and I'm not driving in to there.
I wanted to do my bedding and throws as well as clothes so I've a fair bit . 2 machines worth . Every laibdarettes I used in Spain Portugal and France they all include the powder etc so I didn't take any with me

I saw a machine on wall to pay so I had filled the machines with the washing etc then went to pay and discovered it was coins only or a daft loyalty card thing which I didn't have obviously and only one girl in laundry that didn't speak English and no other shops close by etc to change notes

I had around €6.50 in change on me but each machine €5 and €3.50 for dryer.

So I ended up emptying machine again and walking back to the van. I'll hand Wash my essentials and have to wait till I move for a laundry now.

And by weather forecast it's rain here the next 3 days so I will probably just forget Milan centre and move tomorrow.

Still not decided where too yet.

I still feel I may be quitting too easy if I go back to spain ..but to be honest I'm thinking there was a lot of Spain and Portugal I didn't see and maybe I'd be better just taking a week or two to head back there. Maybe through the French prealps or something

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Tam, I know 'campsite' is a dirty word to you but, if you get really desperate, some campsites have launderettes.
 
Northernraider said:
To be honest lenny I've never been keen on Italian food, with exception to Bolognese and my own creations I'm not keen on pasta , I'm not even a big pizza eater bit I liked in Spain you could pick up cheap pizza of various recipe for a couple of euro and were handy for nights I didn't want to cook.
So I knew I wouldn't be keen on Italian cuisine but I planned to just buy chicken, pork , beef, sausages etc like I did at home and in Spain and just cook what I liked....bit I've found it very expensive here for chicken etc.

I'm not a fussy eater I can eat pretty much anything but I just find buying what I like very expensive in comparison.

Lidl was good in Spain, Portugal and even France really but here it's all bloody pasta lol.


Carreforre was ridiculous in price , €2 for a litre of milk , €2.39 for a half loaf of stale bread lol ....sod that

Haven't tried any Italian supermarkets yet but no idea if they will be different

Maybe I'm just a simple guy with simple tastes I don't know

Or I might just be a tightarsed Scotsman lol


The laundarette is a right pain as no other ones close by without going in to Milan centre and I'm not driving in to there.
I wanted to do my bedding and throws as well as clothes so I've a fair bit . 2 machines worth . Every laibdarettes I used in Spain Portugal and France they all include the powder etc so I didn't take any with me

I saw a machine on wall to pay so I had filled the machines with the washing etc then went to pay and discovered it was coins only or a daft loyalty card thing which I didn't have obviously and only one girl in laundry that didn't speak English and no other shops close by etc to change notes

I had around €6.50 in change on me but each machine €5 and €3.50 for dryer.

So I ended up emptying machine again and walking back to the van. I'll hand Wash my essentials and have to wait till I move for a laundry now.

And by weather forecast it's rain here the next 3 days so I will probably just forget Milan centre and move tomorrow.

Still not decided where too yet.

I still feel I may be quitting too easy if I go back to spain ..but to be honest I'm thinking there was a lot of Spain and Portugal I didn't see and maybe I'd be better just taking a week or two to head back there. Maybe through the French prealps or something
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i know this goes against your wishs , but why not book on to a site for a night they would probably have cheap washers that would take their tokens and probably work out as cheap as staying on an aire.
 
chaser said:
i know this goes against your wishs , but why not book on to a site for a night they would probably have cheap washers that would take their tokens and probably work out as cheap as staying on an aire.
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Looking within a 20km range of me on park4night at the minute there's 2 campsites €32 and €27.50 per night and an aire €25 per night.
I wouldn't pay that Charlie.
Like I said I've plenty clothes so not desperate for laundry I just wanted to do the bedding, throws etc. I think I'll be moving on tomorrow and I'll see if I can find one on route.
 
@Northernraider- I have one of these tucked away in the van. Various online-normally used on a paddle board for keeping things dry hence the name 'Dry Bag', add a bit of washing powder and water- swish away and empty water (You can literally see the dirty water drain away). Not saying ya jeans and hoodies/fleece would benefit. But good for smalls. (y) However, the three days of rain forecast may not aid you
Hope you continue to enjoy your trip. Regards.
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