“It was the best of times, it was the würst of times” Daniel Nuth
That day we arrived in the city of Brugge in time for lunch and a wander around. The weather was melancholy, the indicators still didn’t work and the wobble we had noticed since replacing our transfer box was worryingly present. On the plus side, the architecture was mind-blowing. We pushed on to Brussels and checked into a nice warm hostel to raise morale.
Brussels is a fun and laid-back city. I am continually amazed at how late people go out on the continent, and stay up all night. The locals only start heading out at midnight and everywhere seems open until dawn. What seemed like a reasonable check out time the evening before arrived seemed draconian when it arrived. Nevertheless we drove on to the city of Maastricht. Here we were to experience the splendid hospitality of an old travelling friend of Rich’s.
Andrea and her boyfriend put us up in their living room. The four of us took up a huge amount space. Like a napoleonic army, we decamped over their living room with luggage, damp towels, tools and bedding. Fortunately, the house was warm and there was no need to make a fire. We spent the evening and following day in this charming city with good food and company. With spirits high and the weather clearing we decided to camp in the Eiffel national park in Germany, famous for its sweeping wooded hills and unexploded minefields. It seemed like the perfect place to disappear.
Car preparations had taken on the feel akin to a ship in port, bound for the new world. Songs were sung as men climbed up onto the frame, bedding was flung from the balcony and boxes and bags were ratcheted down. We left our maastricht camp more or less as we found it save for a pair of boxer shorts left in the bathroom.
We drove all day. The sky was beginning to bruise and the temperature drop as we drove up into dense wooded hills. We chose an arbitrary small road and then a track. We drove a long way down this logging track until we arrived at what can only be described as a large stone watchtower. A quick scout around revealed there was nobody around save for two walkers that we spied through binoculars a long way down a track and a lot of deer. We didn’t deviate too far into the thick woodland. This was largely because of the large tracts of unmarked WWII minefields, most of which were the sinister glass mines: Impossible to detect and very effective at wounding unsuspecting walkers.
We made camp. Despite the damp, a fire was soon roaring and we made a mean spaghetti bolognaise and dined around the table with wine. The illuminated pine trees closed in on us and the stars came out directly above. We sat around the fire with some ale and stories before retiring to bed. Two people in the sleeping platform of the car and two in the tent.
We had inadvertently chosen the best time of year for camping in the vast tracts of forest which cover southern Germany. We camped the following two nights in the forests of Bavaria. Autumn was in full swing and the whole country swept by under a canopy of auburns, golds and greens . The area of Germany we transected seemed fabulously preserved. Every town we stopped for supplies had a gingerbread arrangement of eaved houses, clocks and painted gothic churches. The clean streets and friendly people were jealously contrasted with our own dowdy isle. We refrained from using the word ‘utopia’ as this word has inexplicably fallen out of fashion.
There was a sleepy feel to the towns. One particular night, well fed and beered, four figures emerged from the forest onto an alarmingly suburban street. They had merrily strode down from the camp, head torches shining and smelling of wood smoke. They were confident that to find the fun all they had to do was follow the sound of the umpa band. However not a light was on in any house and the only bar was very much closed. The four crept back along their pre-marked path to the hidden camp without beer, song or fräulein.
A further problem had developed. Not only were we without indicators but now our headlights did not work. This limited us to only driving during the shortening daylight hours. We made camp in a forest and began to try and fix our car. In our mossy garage we fixed a door, replaced the oil and changed the oil filter, however we dramatically exacerbated the electrical fault. We suspected that one of the relays was faulty and we set about replacing it. Unfortunately we had acquired the incorrect relay. This sent a huge charge down through the headlight circuit. There was a hissing sound and the car filled with acrid smoke. Dan managed to dive in and tear the relay out but not before the earth wire had fried itself.
Disheartened and with no lights of any description we drove to the stunning cathedral city of Limburg. It was here, whilst looking for parts in an industrial estate car park, that we were to meet a guardian angel. This particular manifestation of a guardian angel had a shaved head, pierced ears and long plaited beard. His name was Eric and he was a landrover expert. Eric lead us in his own landrover to his house in a nearby village. After showing us around his farm house and giving us beer he helped us fix the problem. Not only did we drive off with functioning headlights, he also gave us a whole crate of Bavarian cider in return for a bottle of Betty Stoggs.
The following day we drove the ‘romantic road’ to Munich. The day was sunny as we engaged in an ambitious, efficient 400km of back to back site seeing. Not a single site was left unseen, not a single view Un-photographed and not a single box on our checklist un-ticked as we drove from one breathtaking town to the next. Würzberg, the extravagant seat of the prince-bishops and the fortified town of Rottenbach were particularly impressive.
We were meeting a friend for a drink in Munich so we had to push on. We arrived in Munich late from traffic, wrong turns on the autobahn and some less efficient seeing of sites than I had earlier lead you to believe. We did a rapid turn around before heading out. We met Feli an hour late at Robinson’s bar. It became quickly apparent that our lateness didn’t matter. Everyone in the crowded bar knew each other and the atmosphere was excellent. It was like a house party. Curiously no money ever seemed to be exchanged for the drinks flying across the bar.
That night during the revelry I managed to use ‘eurowallet’. Eurowallet is our collective and only source of money. This hard line communist system quickly developed upon leaving England partly because we opened a joint account with good exchange rates and partly because we all seem need feeding, resting and watering at similar times. Eurowallet has removed all idevidual decisions, as to remain equal and fair, the whole group must share your desires. For example : if one wants a coffee, they must say,
“Do we want coffee?”
If a positive answer is gained the next question is,
“Who has Eurowallet?”
Before we all shuffle of to have team coffee, beer, food etc. It is still working well, to the point that we all had a clothes budget to spend in Munich.
The following day was hot and clear. We checked out late again. As we loafed around the city, we began to realise that perhaps Robinson’s bar wasn’t so unique. Everyone appeared healthy, well dressed, cheerful and friendly as if we were visiting a small town which rarely received outsiders.
As we prepared for departure to Prague, basking in the afternoon sun, we were approached by a film crew who made a short documentary about us. We spent a bleary-eyed hour or so posing over African maps, changing unnecessary wheels and fielding questions before we left, wanting to stay longer in this wonderful place.
Cornwall to Cape Town 