The end is Nigh

On sunday morning we did the final cull of our extensive collection of possessions and left quite a pile of goodies, and not-so-goodies, in the hotel room. Valerie advised the cleaners who were on the job next door that the stuff was for them. We had decided, reluctantly, that we could not get to our terminal by the shuttle train as we still had a lot of baggage and trolleys were not permitted on the train. So taxi it was.
The driver informed us that 80,000 people worked on the CDG airport - astonishing maybe but it sure is huge and confusing.
We got our lot through checkin without any hassles/extra charges and proceeded to the Air France Business Class Lounge (Malaysia have an agreement with them)  This was very unimpressive compared to others we have used, with a very small array of food. Luckily we don't eat a big breakfast normally.
Our 12 hour flight to Kuala Lumpur went mostly smoothly, with interesting glimpses of countries such as Germany, Poland, Czech Republic, Ukraine, Russia, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan (actually I think I missed that cos I was trying to sleep- without success) India and the Andaman Islands before reaching Malaysia. There was quite a lot of turbulence between India and Malaysia, but nothing too severe.
At KL Airport most International flights arrive/depart from a large satellite terminal after which one takes another of those driverless trains to the main terminal for Immigration and Customs processes. As is normal for us we had difficulty finding our Hotel, which was supposed to be "in the Terminal" Well actually it turned out to be a long walk through terminal, extensive walkways to a quite separate complex. Our stay for the day was being paid for by the airline, after a bit of lobbying by Valerie. The Intercontinental Hotel was quite grand, obviously 5 star, and just what we needed. After settling into our room, we took a nap. Some nap! we woke about 4 and a half hours later.
We had time to take a trip or tour into/ around KL but decided it was better to just take it easy and relax.
Don decided to take a walk in the vicinity but soon found that, even though the humidity was not too bad, he was overdressed for it. Shorts and sandals would have been better.
It was, too soon, time to leave for the Terminal for processing and then to the satellite for dinner in another Airline Lounge. This one was much better than the CDG one.
Around 10 30 PM our second flight departed. The 7 hour flight was very smooth and Don enjoyed watching the lights on the ground as we passed over more of Malaysia, Bali and eventually Australia.
There were very few lights to be seen as we flew across from Derby, Uluru, Coober Pedy etc.
Our flight arrived on time at 7 15 AM on tuesday morning. We were finally, and happily, home.

Malaysia Airlines had looked after us well, too well when it came to food and drink. Let the dieting commence.
And, amazingly, Don had not lost, or had stolen, anything of consequence. And Valerie had not broken anything!

PS - After driving 5,425kms sitting on the LH side of the car, Don had difficulty adapting to being on the other side. We thought that was a fair mileage in the 7 or so weeks but met a fellow Aussie who had done over 11,000kms in 8 weeks.

PPS - eventually we aim to attach some of the approximately 1,500 photos taken on this trip.

Last days in France

On Friday we had a lazy morning. After lunch Don went to the super marche in Epernay for a couple of things then stopped over in the hillside village of Hautvillers on the way back. This village, like the one were we are staying is a Village Fleurie, meaning it has been beautified with lots of flower beds, trees etc. I nearly forgot to say that we managed to catch the traveling Boulanger today , just in time for fresh bread for lunch. The day was clear and by afternoon almost hot. Don explored Hautvillers, where the GPS had got us lost on a couple of occasions. There are a number of Champagne houses there and he dropped into Tattingers but without money, could not even sample the wares! He then went for a walk to the Abbaye, famous for a certain Dom Perignon, who is supposed to have discovered the "Method Champagnoise". Back at the cottage we packed as much as we could for an early start on the morrow. We had been invited by the cottage owners, a delightful couple, Delphine and Cedric, to sample some Champagne before dinner. We had a great time - they started with a dash of homemade blueberry liqueur before adding the champagne - delicious! I am afraid it put the Rose Champagne we had brought in the shade. They also introduced us to a delicacy from Reims, "Biscuits Rose de Reims". We so enjoyed their company and son Estaban and their French bulldog too. We have been so lucky to meet friendly and interesting people at our various stopovers. We had been concerned that our luggage would be overweight, so asked Delphine for the loan of some bathroom scales. They had none, but volunteered to borrow some from a friend. Sure enough in the morning some were available. They revealed that we needed to discard some of our stuff. Some foodstuffs and would you believe a casserole which we bought in France, and even our Lonely Planet were left behind. Saying goodbye in the morning we were presented with a package of the Reims biscuits. We got away right on time for once at 8 30. After a nice drive though undulating country with vineyards and lush fields of cereal crops we eventually joined the Autoroute to Paris, a total distance of about 150 kms. Traffic was quite heavy, for it was day one of another long weekend, but not many trucks were around. The GPS brought us to an older suburb of Paris. Don had discovered a place selling parts for DS Citroens and had to check it out. He managed to buy everything that he dared buy, given the weight restrictions we had. We had trouble setting up the GPS for our hotel at CDG airport as it could not recognize the address. So we set it for a spot on the airport peripherique road, hoping that there would be good signage. There wasn't. It took an hour before we got to the Novotel, which itself was poorly marked. We got the impression that they were trying to keep it a secret! Anyway, our room is good and we had an excellent dinner in their restaurant. We took a trip on the driverless airport shuttle train to the terminal, one of about a dozen, where our flight would be leaving from. Tomorrow our Malaysia Airline flight leaves at mid-day. We aim to be on it.

Reims and Verdun

On Wednesday I phoned Renault Eurodrive ( well, their CDG airport rep) to confirm that we would be returning the Scenic as scheduled après-midi on Saturday. We were very concerned that the low fuel warning light was flashing (had started the day before at the next village, about 5 kms away) and the trip computer was was showing a range expected of zero. Although I suspected that we could probably get to the closest fuel station,10 kms away at Epernay, the project of running out on the road had to be considered. Eventually I decided to call the Eurodrive hotline. They rang the Renault dealer in Epernay who advised that we should be able to go another 60 kms, so I went and filled up without a problem. Now we were ready to go to Reims. The locals pronounce it something like "Rance" ! As we turned into the street leading to the famous Cathedral Valerie was surprised to see this large edifice looming ahead. Part of the building has been recently cleaned and renovated and the contrast with parts yet to be done is striking. Don had been here in 1998 but arrived at the entrance just as they were closing for the day. So the interior was new to both of us and very impressive. Especially so was the stained glass, from various eras including late 20thC. Once again we opted to take the Petit Train tour. It was a good choice - this one travelled slower than most so didn't jolt the old bones so much over the usual cobblestoned roads. Near the Cathedral we were charged nearly 9 euros ( about 12 dollars) for 2 cafes au lait, virtually Paris tourist spot prices. We walked a long back down some major shopping streets to our car. It had been another interesting afternoon. On Thursday we got away fairly early to drive to Verdun, about 150 kms east and mostly via autoroutes. We parked in Verdun where the GPS said was "Centre Ville" expecting to find the Office de Tourisme nearby, despite having not seen the usual signs. We did find a very attractive riverside area, with canal boats at mooring and lots of quayside eating places. We decided on which restaurant to grace with our presence. It was busy and and had a long wait before ordering, with a longer wait before our food arrived. Don's was excellent, Valerie's less so. By this time it was getting hotter and more humid, a bit like Sydney can be and a bit of a shock to people from dry old Adelaide. We had asked some other tourists ( you can usually tell ) whether they had found the tourist office. They had not yet but the man played with his mobile and found a vague map of its location. They were from Denmark and staying like us outside Reims. We were surprised to note that most of the moored boats were from the Netherlands, a couple from the UK, with one each from Denmark and France. After lunch Don found the tourist office, with some difficulty and got the usual town map and brochures. By now it was high time to visit the WW one battlefields. Most of the area is heavily forested now, a huge contrast to the wartime photos of a countryside covered in shell craters, barbed wire and a few blackened remnants of trees. We got a village marked as a "village detroyed" but we're surprised to see a number of houses, church etc. It seems that this was the only one of the 9 destroyed villages which has been re-occupied. Next was the Memorial de Verdun, a museum with lots of displays and a 20 minute film. Then we found one of the totally destroyed villages, with a memorial chapel the only building, but with signs showing where the streets were and listing the occupations of the inhabitants. Lastly we got to a major cemetery, overlooked by a huge unusual buildings with a tall tower. This was the Ossuary, built in the 1920s and housing the remains of about 130,000 French and German soldiers. Apparently if you climb the 200 steps to the tower platform there is a great view of the battlefield area. Even Don didn't feel up to it. On the way home we stopped off at one the autoroute service areas and had an evening meal of sorts. Dare I say, again, that it had been a good day? Apart from the sudden hot weather that is.

Into the Moët and Chandon cellars

Today dawned like yesterday - misty and overcast, with the likelihood of rain. What to do on such a day? Let's go underground - the weather won't matter. So we booked a tour with the Moët mob in Epernay, easily found the nearby car park, and were soon waiting in a very elegant room for our guide. She turned out to be Japanese (of course) and we had a bit of trouble with her pronunciation of English inititially. We had been told to wear warm clothing so the cool temperature underground ( about 10C ) was not a problem. After a promotional film about the company we descended into a labyrinth of tunnels. Don had vague recollections of touring the Great Western cellars many years ago. The company have about 28 kms of the tunnels and our guide had been lost 3 times! She explained the whole process, from the picking (always by hand) of the 3 varieties of grapes in the the adjacent vineyards through the stages of blending and maturation to the final bottling. Their champagnes take longer to produce than other companies, which would explain why they are the most expensive. Their Imperial range take about 3 years and their vintage ones (those with the year on the label) 7 years. It was all very interesting and finished with us getting a flute of their Imperial type (or if you had paid extra, a vintage drop) Valerie voted it the best she had tasted. Despite that we resisted buying any in their Boutique. We don't know how many million bottles they hold in their cellars,which are the largest, but our Lonely Planet book says there are about 200 million in all of the districts 110kms of cellars. After all this it was time for another of our main meals of the day - lunch. We found a nearby Brasserie ( a bar which serves full meals, usually a bit faster than the restaurants) Again we ate well! With map in hand we thought we would walk to the Cathedral ( or was it a Church?) those spire we could see. We found it, much closer than expected, then opted to walk on to another church and the adjacent Synagogue. After we found ourselves back almost to where we started Don had to admit that he was losing/had lost his excellent sense of direction. Not being able to see the sun doesn't help of course. One of the features of our cottage is that we are able to phone to anywhere we like - I think it comes as a package with the Internet TV etc. So this morning Don phoned his Doctor in Adelaide and Valerie phoned a friend and also tried to call her daughter in Victoria, who is on a school camp with her pupils. Tomorrow we hope to go to Reims and the following day, when the weather should be improved, to Verdun.

To the Champagne country

On Sunday morning we said goodbye to our hosts of the last 8 days, Jean, Beatrice and daughter Marie-Adrienne. We had been made so welcome, with a large brioche on arrival, a delicious rhubarb tart a bit later and now a departure present of chocolates. Jean had taken me to a doctor in the next village then to get a blood test in Altkirch. Marie-A had phoned the dr.twice, etc. Nothing was too much trouble - a delightful family and it was almost tearful to say goodbye. We got on the road fairly early (for us!) as we had a lot of the slow N and D roads to cover. After about 80kms we arrived at the Chappelle en Haut, on a hill high above the town of Ronchamps. Don had seen this in 1998 and had to show Valerie. The design by the famous French architect Le Corbusier is in stark contrast to the complex detailing of the usual Catholic churches, chapels and Cathedrals. Well,it was built in the early 1950s. It was looking a little the worse for wear. Don still admires it - Valerie wasn't so sure. The views of the countryside are panoramic. Then it was onward, ever onward. At one stage Don was sure that the GPS was leading us astray but it eventually took us across some lovely rural country on minor roads to an Autoroute. After that we were on them for well over 200kms before some more minor roads led to the small village of Nueilly la Foret, our destination,between Reims and Epernay. This is the heart of Champagne country. Unlike in 1998, most small villages no longer have any shops, not even a boulangerie. I guess the supermarches have killed them off. This trip was our first long-distance one on a Sunday. Traffic on the minor roads was very light, and of course nothing was open, except the Autoroute stops, and they were crowded. It had been a good day, with fine sunny weather, but after 430kms of driving we were tired and finally able to relax in a cute little cottage. More of that later. Today, Monday we got up late, did some washing and decided to drive into Epernay,have a good lunch and go to the tourist office. The weather was not good, misty and raining. The GPS got us into the city centre area as requested but then seemed to be taking us out again. So Don decided to go into a car park rather than follow the instructions. Then we could not find out where we were on the only map which we had, in the Lonely Planet, so we voted to have lunch in the nearby Brasserie and then try to find the Tourist Office etc. After another delicious lunch we came out and could see a column nearby with wording about 1940 - 1945. We then let the GPS take us a bit further but stopped near the town market building and decided to take a walk. Using our natural orienteering skills ( or more likely just good luck) we eventually found a large "square" with impressive looking buildings and - that same column. Across the square was the tourist office. We had been originally parked within spitting distance. This was "Centre Ville"! Score one for us, zero for the GPS. The tourist office adjoined the Hotel de Ville (Town Hall) and a magnificent park area. Then we came across Rue de Champagne and the impressive headquarters of Moët and Chandon. We decided to do their cellar tour another day as we were not dressed for the underground cold. Then we drove back, via vineyards in all directions, to our new home. The views from high points along the way would be great on a clear day. Unfortunately,it seems tomorrow will be wet again.

The Juras and the Mulhouse Auto Museum

Don had another blood test first thing and had the results by early afternoon. It was good; down to where it should be. Now to keep it there.
After that we drove south into the Alsacien Jura mountains. These are not so high but interesting. We had a late lunch in a restaurant in the small town of Ferret. Once again the meal was tres bon. Don finally got to try the local speciality - Carpe Frites. i; e. strips of carp with fries and salade. The local version of fish and chips!
Valerie had the nicest asparagus dish she has ever had, with some processed meats and salad. By the time we had had wine, dessert and coffees the bill was quite high but it was our main meal of the day.
After that we motored through pretty hilly farming and forested country to the little village of Lucelle, right on the Swiss border. It started to rain so we pressed on along the border road. Every time we crossed the small river we were in Switzerland. We came to a village famous for its storks, and soon found a stork and its huge nest on a platform on top of the local church. Valerie says it was the highlight of her day.
We got a bit lost following one of the quite common "deviations" and did a bit of backtracking. We kept finding ourselves in Switzerland but eventually got back on track and headed fior "home". The country was pretty and the traffic light but it would have been better without the rain of course.

On Sunday Don drove off early to go to the National Motor Museum, in nearby Mulhouse. By chance they were having a "bourse d'echange" on this weekend, the french equivalent of our swapmeet. Don had difficulty, along, with many others, finding the location of this event, so went for a walk and found nearby the Wallaby Australian bar, where he had a drink. Eventually he found the location; behind the Musee, and looked for some DS parts. There was very little for the DS on sale but he managed to get a couple of bits. That was probably a good thing as it all has to be brought back on our planes.
He arrived back mid afternoon and we went off to the hypermarche to stock up for the next day or two. Our next residence, in a forest near Epinay, will not be near any supermarket.

Time now to pack and get ready for an early start. We expect to do about 400kms tomorrow, and to spend a little time at Le Corbusier's famous Chapel at Ronchamp - one of Don's favorite buildings.

Strasbourg and Freiburg

On wednesday we took the train to Strasbourg. It cost a lot more than when we went on a weekend excursion rate last time. We changed trains at Mulhouse and both trains were fast and smooth. After coffees at the station, a classic old building, now enveloped in a modern glazed bubble, we walked to the old canals area. The buildings around here are the iconic half timbered variety. Many were originally built for the tanning trade. This is a popular spot for the tourists, but we found a quiet area to have lunch overlooking a canal. When it started to rain we had the waitress put up the sun umbrella. Next we walked to the famous Cathedral and admired its magnificent interior. Unfortunately it is somewhat hemmed by other buildings, many of which are quite  interesting though. Last time we were here we took a boat ride around the canals. This time we took the mini train. It gives you a tour of the older areas, which helps rest our old legs.
We took the very modern tramp back to the station and then thyen trains to where we, left the car, Altkirch.
It had been another good day with mainly fine, sunny weather.

For our next act, on the Thursday holiday we drove up past Mulhouse, across the Rhine and into Germany. There is no indication that one has crossed the border, except that the road signs are now in German and sometimes a bit hard to decypher. We went mostly by Autoroute/Autobahn. The speed limit is lower in Germany (120) but some of the cars there flew past at at least 150! Valerie was a bit spooked. She also got a bit stressed when Don drove the wrong way coming out of Freiburg at some roadworks.
We got lunch at one of the roadhouses along the Autobahn. We voted this the best yet.
After finding a parking station in the centre of Freiburg we walked to another Cathedral, as you do, There were lots of buse around,  disgorging plenty of tourists. It was a public holiday here too.
In the Cathedral square we had more coffees and cake (we do eat well) before walking around some more and finding the car again. Don was of the opinion that parking today was free, but after finding that the exit gate would not release us, eventually found where to pay the 5 euros. Just one of those little hiccups that come along when you are a stranger.
Our return was relatively uneventful. We decided not to explore the Black Forest area and perhaps get lost, not having maps of Germany.
Nearing home we were amazed to find that the streets of the nearby village of Illfurth, still had hundreds of cars lining every possible road, footpath, bridge, you name it. They had a street market on - it must have been enormous.
The car has now covered 4 300kms; I expect it will be over 5 000 by hte end of our trip.
Tomorrow Don goes for another blood test and is hoping his levels will be down. After that we may decide to head into the nearby Jura mountain area, with its pictureque villages.