Summer in the UK, & into Autumn

It’s 1 September, blue sky and sun shining on a flat sea, the coast of France once again in sight and I’m starting this post from the ferry taking me as planned across the channel to Calais, from where I will hot foot it into Germany. After an overnight in Ghent, Belgium, I am first of all going to the Dusseldorf Caravan/Motorhome show – apparently much bigger than the Birmingham NEC one – because yes, I am still a nerd for ever more tiny space and vehicle homes design, and this is THE mecca for all things motorhoming. Will see.

It’s been a good interlude between travels. One of the things I’ve been able to do in the time back in the UK is obviously spend time with family and visit some old friends, many of whom I haven’t seen for years. I’m going to continue this with a visit after Dusseldorf to a former au-pair who was with us 20 years ago but now with her own family in Germany,

I split my time in July/August very comfortably between my Mum & partner’s house in Lancashire and extended family back in Harrogate. Despite much coming and going with bags containing equipment to cover any type of activity I might want to do in these various locations, my memory and post-it notes failed only once (at least as far as I’m aware having at least made it through border checks etc) resulting in me driving in the end many unnecessary miles back from whence I’d only just travelled, to retrieve a bag thought left behind, but which was, in the end, at my new destination already. Abit of a tortuous description, but it sort of reflects the idiocy of that event! Now that I’m back living out of the van again for a few weeks, so only one respository of stuff, fingers crossed, all necessary items will remain with me.

Having decided that I still had motivation for business analysis work when the career break ends, I took a professional diploma a couple of weeks ago, so it was a good use of time to be able to do revision in a very relaxed fashion. Got absolutely fed up with it all though so the exam date came around at just the right time. Hopefully I’ll have passed it to add to my CV/LinkedIn if I come to apply for new jobs. At the mo, am feeling that just when British employees are going to become a hassle to employ, I would like to see whether I can get a contract in some European city, doing this only some 30 years after I had the original intention. Evolution of such a possibility to be continued when this journey finishes, which will probably be towards end Oct, when I will take a ferry circumnavigating the globe, or put the van on an earth-orbit-hopping spaceship so as to arrive at Scotland via the Arctic Circle or alternatively, black hole; either will be preferable despite my travel sickness and increasing aversion to flying, to getting caught in the post-no deal Brexit queues.

Having decided that I did not have motivation to do house hunting over the Summer so as not to risk distracting myself from setting off again, and closing down any other options, a house which ticks all the boxes unexpectedly presented itself in Harrogate just a couple of weeks ago, so I promptly put an offer in which was accepted, so that’s now all going ahead 🙂 Plus ca change!

The last objective of the Summer was to achieve the longed-for bop, and last night’s ‘Haven’t Stopped Dancing Yet’ event in south London, which I lingered around in the UK for, delivered. I stayed at the Crystal Palace caravan site some 3 miles uphill from the pub venue in Bellingdon, resisted using Uber for the first time after having checked the prices, and after 3 hours shuffling on the dancefloor with other like-minded 70/80s funk disco aficionados, little rucksack on back, and feet this time in non-birkenstock shoes, managed the cycle ride back by midnight.

I’m finishing this post now in Ghent on a free car park in a really pleasant location along with about 10 other vans – Monte2 feels welcome and at home – about to watch some British tv courtesy of getting the Amazon firestick to work. Autumn touring is already making its difference felt with time being one-hour later over here, so the night draws in even earlier. More hiding then in the van of an evening, playing guitar, typing away, reading, watching some tv.

Tomorrow morning I will seek to be “wooed by one of Europe’s greatest underappreciated all-round discoveries” ?? 🙂 – surely Lonely Planet’s over-egged its billing for the town.

Then, Dusseldorf & Wissenbach here I come, after which head for Croatia. Tschuss.