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A litle of the UK, some of Belgium and a bit more France.

A litle of the UK, some of Belgium and a bit more France.

Old Jul 7th, 2017, 04:25 PM
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A litle of the UK, some of Belgium and a bit more France.

This is my first trip report, despite having been a Foderite for many years, and having undertaken quite a few trips using the excellent information provided in these forums. "We"- MH and I, are now in our early 60s and are no longer in paid employment. Living in Australia means that any sojourn to Europe takes us at least 24 hours. We therefore tend to have a holiday of between 6 to 8 weeks at a time - to make good use of the cost of the flight as well as the length of the air travel! We like architecture, art, history and good food and wine. We tend to be "slow" travelers - not for us 6 countries in 6 days - and often base ourselves somewhere for a week or so and try to absorb some of the ambience. We stay in a mixture of accommodation - hotels, B&Bs, airBnB, gites. We use public transport (love trains) as much as possible, but also hire cars, even though driving on the wrong side of the road and the traffic (in Europe) can be hairy when we first set off.

Our most recent trip took us to the UK , Belgium and France (and 1 day in the Netherlands). We have been to the UK before and France on many occasions, so this trip involved visiting places we hadn't been to previously. The trip report won't be too detailed - happy to answer questions if people want more information.
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Old Jul 7th, 2017, 05:16 PM
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We flew with Qatar leaving Oz on the evening of 2 May and arriving in Heathrow at midday on 3 May, with a 1 hour stopover and plane change at Doha. Can't speak highly enough of Qatar Airlines - best flights we have experienced. The flight from Adelaide to Doha was on an Airbus A350-900 and the flight to London was on a Boeing 777-300.

We usually fly Qantas and arrive at the nightmare that is Terminal 3 Heathrow in the early hours of the morning. This time we arrived at Terminal 4 and there were no queues at Immigration, baggage arrived quickly and straight through Customs.

We recharged our Oyster cards and caught the train to Euston, changing at Leicester Square. I love taking the tube in London - for us it's like playing Monopoly - all the names of the properties are London names. We stayed at the Ibis Euston Station - because we were in London only for 2 days this time - just to get over jetlag and a quick catchup with family members that live there.

Spent our first afternoon trying to stay awake by walking around the nearby area, including down to Kings Cross Station to print out our tickets for the trip to York. Machine was just inside the doors, and the process was a doodle - but you never can tell so better to do it in advance in case there is a hiccup.

Second day in London, we revisited St Paul's, had lunch at Borough Market, which is one of our favourite eating places ( and this was a couple of weeks before the terrorist attack, strolled along the river and also visited the British Library.

Next day we caught the train from KCS to York for 3 nights, staying at Gillygate Guest House - which was great. In York we visited the Minster, the Art Gallery, Railway Museum, Jorvick Centre, walked the Wall, walked the Shambles. We ate at No 8 Gillygate, the Lamb & Lion and The Hole in the Wall.

On the Monday we picked up a car at Eurocar and headed South. First stop was the Yorkshire Air Museum, then we drove to Lincoln, Ely and then on to Cambridge, for 2 nights staying at Arundel House. Managed to see a lot of Cambridge despite most of the colleges being closed to the public due to exams being held. You could still peer through the gates though! Visited Fitzwilliam House Museum and King's College Chapel and basically circumnavigated the town on foot. We returned to King's College later in the day to hear the full choir at Evensong. Had a good meal at Cote.
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Old Jul 7th, 2017, 05:47 PM
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I seem to be writing a lot more than I intended. Will try to be briefer, otherwise it will take people as long to read this report as the trip itself took!

Wednesday we drove from Cambridge to Norwich. First stop was the Imperial War Museum at Duxford(MH likes planes). They have a Concorde that you can walk through, as well as many other older passenger and airforce planes including separate hanger for US military history and planes. Stopped at Bury St Edmund and visited the Abbey and grounds - in glorious sunshine. Then to Norwich - staying at the Maid's Head Hotel - where we also ate. Next day we had a good look around Norwich, including the Markets and Cathedral, then drove to Colchester and then to Harwich - to catch the overnight ferry to the Hook of Holland.

Can heartily recommend the ferry(Stena Line) as a great travel alternative. Very comfortable cabin with a huge porthole looking out over the bow of the ship. We fell asleep before the ship left dock and woke to the sounds of "Don't Worry Be Happy"- our alarm clock via the ship's speakers. No turbulence, no rocking - smooth as.

Caught the bus into Rotterdam (the train isn't running at the moment. Stayed at the Marriott - and although we arrived at 10am, intending to leave our bags, our room was ready. Great service and handy to the train station. Spent the rest of the day and the following morning looking around Rotterdam - managed to visit a couple of Museums and walk over the Swan bridge and view the cube house and market.

Took a train from Rotterdam to Antwerp for 3 days. Stayed in an AirBnB apartment near the main shopping area. Visited the MAS, Cathedral of Our Lady, Diamond District, Sint Jacob, Sint Carolus Borromeuskerk, Sint Pauluskerk. Unfortunately we missed out on Ruben's House and the MoMu. Ate at Restaurant Jacob, Ellis, and a place that was so bad I wiped its name from my memory!
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Old Jul 7th, 2017, 08:39 PM
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Looking forward to living vicariously through your trip report (I love the UK, France and Belgium and can't wait to explore more of them myself)! I concur with your favorite things to enjoy while traveling - architecture, art, history and good food and wine as you wrote
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Old Jul 8th, 2017, 06:23 PM
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Keep it coming Demon22. So far so good!
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Old Jul 8th, 2017, 08:40 PM
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Next stop was Ghent - for 4 nights. Stayed at Alphabed Guest House which is very handy to the main areas. It is worth noting that Ghent has more than one train station - our lodgings were closer to Dampoort than Sint-Pieters, which is the main station.
Over the next days we visited the Belfort, St Baafskathedral, Stadhuis, Design Museum (which is currently being rehoused), Gravensteen, MAS, STAM, St Peter's Abbey, St Nicholas, Graffiti Street. We also did a day trip to Bruges and visited the Cathedral, Groeninge Museum, Stadhuis and the old St John Hospital.
We had some great meals in Ghent and some great beer! Places we ate at were Amadeus (a chain but honest fare), Bodo, Clochard Deluxe, and a great food hall called Holy Food market.

Caught the train to Lille (in France) where we stayed 4 nights in an airBnB apartment not far from the old town. Our first day there was a Saturday and the town was jumping - people everywhere. Not so on the Sunday and Monday - when most of the shops are shut.

Visited the Palais Beaux-Arts, Notre Dame de la Treille, Citadelle, Porte de Paris, St Maurice.

On Tuesday we picked up our hire car at Gare Lille Europe and drove to Ypres to visit the Cathedral and the In Flanders Fields Museum. We stayed there for the Last Post ceremony held at Meninx Gate at 8pm every evening.

In Lille some of the places we ate at were Le Pave Lillois, Pessoa, Beerstro.
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Old Jul 8th, 2017, 11:46 PM
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Nice report so far. We are also Australian and agree with you. Because of the cost and the time it takes to get to Europe, we also make extended trips - 10 weeks last year and already planning for next year. Trip reports are a great way to record your trip and also offer something to others. I have three reports here and I sometimes re-read them just to remember our trips. It is also interesting to read others' impressions about places you may have visited or are considering visiting.
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Old Jul 9th, 2017, 12:34 AM
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on for the ride
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Old Jul 9th, 2017, 09:58 PM
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On Wednesday 24/5 we left Lille and drove to Epernay where we had booked an apartment for a week. Whilst in Epernay we did a number of day trips in the car and also took the train to Reims for another day trip. We did a tour of Moet and Chandon in Epernay and walked the length of the Avenue de Champagne. On one (of many) sunny day we bought some supplies from the market and had a pique nique in the park of the Hotel de Ville. In Reims, we visited the Cathedrale Notre Dame, the Palace of Tau and the Basilica of St Remy.

We have friends from Oz who have an old style barge which they use to cruise the canals of Belgium and France for 6 months of the year. When we were in Epernay, they were "parked" in Compiegne, so we took the opportunity to join them for a day/night. While there we visited the palace and also the church where Jeanne D'Árc attended her last mass. On our way back to Epernay we visited the Armistice Train Museum and the Chateau at Pierrefonds.

We also did a day trip to Provins, and they a scenic route back which included Nogent-sur-Seine. Standout restaurant in Epernay was Table Kobus.
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Old Jul 9th, 2017, 11:27 PM
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Reading with interest..we are also from Downunder so it's a long long way to fly.
The Stena line ferry is on my list for next year's trip.
Did you consider a stop over? I'm not sure I could handle flying from Auckland to London.
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Old Jul 9th, 2017, 11:47 PM
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In 2012 we stayed for a week in a gite in Bouzy which is near Epernay. We also did the Moet tour but ended up buying some excellent champagne for the week from a producer in a small village. We visited his underground cellars and liked his champagnes. The week prior to this week was spent near Compiegne and we visited the places you mention as well as lots of memorials. Thanks for the memories.
For tasmangirl, yes it is a long way to fly. We look at it as one day and like to get it over. Last trip we flew Brisbane to Lyon with several hours in Singapore and a quick change in Zurich. It was still over thirty hours from leaving our front door to collecting our luggage in Lyon. But we will continue to do it while we can.
Looking forward to the next installment.
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Old Jul 10th, 2017, 05:36 AM
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Enjoying the report and looking for to more!
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Old Jul 10th, 2017, 06:56 PM
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Tasmangirl, I agree with rhon - just bite the bullet and fly through. Not sure who you are flying with - but if you do want to break it up all airlines coming from oz/nz will stop somewhere and you could stay over for a day in the transiting country.
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Old Jul 10th, 2017, 09:45 PM
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After 7 wonderful days in Epernay and surrounds we headed off to Nancy. Parked the car in a multi-storey near the station and then walked through the streets to Place Stanislas, which is absolutely incredible and beautiful. So glad we decided to have a day here. We walked all over the city, through the old town to Porte de la Craffe and also visited the Musee des Beaux-Arts, which is an underrated gem. Its collection of Daum glass and crystal is to die for. We stayed the night at Le Clos Jeannon, and also had a lovely dinner there.

The next day we drove to Strasbourg for 2 nights, via the Vosges - very picturesque drive. In Strasbourg we stayed at Le Jean Sebastien Bach - an apartment hotel near Parc l'Orangerie. It is a little further out of the main town than we would have liked, but having a car and looking for easy free parking tends to narrow down choices. The tram line was a good 10 minute walk away and there wasn't many eating places nearby.

We visited Cathedral Notre-Dame - a bit too crowded for my liking, Place Broglie - where there was a wonderful market, Palais De Rohan and the Musee des Beaux-Arts, and spent a lot of time walking around La Petit France and along the Rhine tributaries and canals. We also walked through the Parc which was being well utilized in the sunny weather.
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Old Jul 12th, 2017, 09:13 PM
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The following morning (Saturday) we left Strasbourg and drove to Colmar, arriving just as the Musee D'Unterlinden was opening, so we were able to view the Retable (Issenheim Altarpiece)without crowds. It is wonderful as is the rest of the collection. As we emerged from the Museum, it started to rain. Just a little at first, so we made it to the car without getting too wet, and then the skies opened and it began to pour. We used to live in the tropics (Darwin), so are used to heavy rain, but driving on the A35/36 is a bit different to the roads and traffic we are used to, so it wasn't a very pleasant drive. At one stage the torrential rain turned into hail.

Not sure whether it was the weather, or because it was Saturday, or just normal, but we did experience quite heavy traffic and quite long delays and congestion, especially when getting close to the toll gates. What should have been a 2.5 hour trip (to Beaune) took over 4 hours.

The rain stopped before we got to Beaune and we were warmly welcomed by our AirBnB hosts. Great apartment just outside the walls, with a boulangerie just across the road. We stayed in Beaune for 7 nights, and from there did a number of day trips. The weather cleared after the first night, so we pretty much had sunshine for the rest of the trip.

We, of course, visited the Hotel Dieu, which is quite remarkable and the audioguide is excellent. We had some very good meals in Beaune. Some of the places we ate at were: le Monge, La Table de Guigone, Le Cheval Noir.

Trips from Beaune included catching the train to Dijon for the day. There we visited the Palace of the Dukes and the Musee des Beaux-Arts, which is undergoing huge restorations, so only some parts were open. Thankfully this includes the tomb of Phillip the Bold and the tomb of John the Fearless and his wife, Margaret of Bavaria -they are splendid. We walked around a fair bit of Dijon, unfortunately is wasn't a market day, but we did have a lovely lunch near the market at Caffe Cosi. We also visited the Eglise Notre-Dame and walked back to the station via Square Darcy.
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Old Jul 13th, 2017, 12:36 AM
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You drove past Alsace and bought no wine.....

Rest of trip sounds good, nice write up
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Old Jul 13th, 2017, 02:52 PM
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Ha ha Bilbo - a good reason to return! We actually live in a wine growing area - Clare Valley - renowned for its rieslings. You should come to Oz sometime and try our wines.
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Old Jul 13th, 2017, 10:03 PM
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Thanks Demon, like your Rieslings, very different from my favorite Mosels but still wonderful. I also like the Eden Valley Rieslings.
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Old Jul 15th, 2017, 07:45 PM
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We really enjoyed driving around the local area while based in Beaune, and seeing the towns with very familiar names for those with an interest in wine - Pommard, Meursalt, Montrachet, Nolay, Epinac. One day we went to Arnay-le-Duc and then on to Autun. Visited the Cathedrale St Lazare, which is undergoing some restoration, owever the Tympanum is on view, but not so the relics of St Lazarus. Had lunch in Autun at a place near the Cathedral - La Fontaine - then drove back to Beaune along the Canal du Centre and the towns of Couches and Chagny.

Another day we drove to Louhans, via Verdun-sur-le-Doubs, Mervans and Lons-le-Saunier. Lons is the birthplace of Rouget de Lisle, the author of the Marseillaise. There was a huge market under way in Lons and also the war memorial was decked out in flags and the eternal flame was lit it was 8 June.

Louhans is an interesting town with a wonderful arcaded main street. It is famous for its Bresse poultry markets - we had chicken for lunch, of course - at Le Saint Jean.

On our final morning in Beaune (Saturday) we went to the local market, and then packed our bags and headed to Lyon, via Cluny, where there was also a large market underway. We didn't have time to visit the Abbey - it was only partially open because of some event that was taking place. We shall have to come back, another time.

The trip to Lyon was picturesque - we were avoiding the toll road, and little traffic until we got past Villefranche. Hit a bit of a traffic jam closer to Lyon, but finally found our way into the area near Gare Part-Dieu, and after driving around in circles for a bit, found the carpark for hire cars, dropped the car and took a taxi to our hotel.
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Old Jul 16th, 2017, 01:45 AM
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just found this, Demon, and am enjoying travelling with you very much. I like the way that you interspersed short stays with longer ones - we discovered on a 5 ½ week tour of Oz and NZ that we did a few years ago that you definitely need some "down time" places where you stay longer else you run out of steam.

did you book all your accommodation in advance, or were you winging it some of the time?
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