China

has made us very
recently. (I don't know whose baby this is by the way, sorry if it's yours). If you have a read of Wendy's posts you'll see why. She is now in London having been told residents can only get Chinese visas. The rest of us are in Fuerth still in Germany. I've been trying to confirm our travel and that we can travel to China using the visa waiver for 48 hours. No one tells us the same story so we may have to stay in Germany! Well some parts of Lufthansa don't seem to know about the 48 hours visa waiver so they may not let us on the plane to leave. Hmm Dilemma. So we are now trying to confirm that we will be able to leave.

It also turns out that due to some changes and help that Lufthansa was giving us here we have lost our flights to Auckland on the 22nd. Somehow there was a double booking made and when our travel agent in NZ went to rebook us on they deleted all flights. Hmm.

China's embassies have been generally very unhelpful and Wendy got shouted at yesterday by a Customer service rep in London yesterday. It seems in the end that she didn't need to go to London afterall as we could have got the visa waiver all along. But how to make a big corporation like Lufthansa follow the Chinese rules? The problem is that if they let us on and we are not allowed to enter China they are liable to bring us back here! Hmm.

Henry and Bella are missing their Mum, mostly at night as she always tuckles them in. And in the morning when they wake up to an absence of W power. To top it all off we are all feeling sick. Bella and I had a big sleep yesterday after going out for Weisswurst at Ushi's (Andreas' Mum).
So we are looking a bit...Anyway, today is a new day. Wendy can go visit the Tate Modern rather than mope. Bella, Henry and I are going to Munich for a wee trip. We have borrowed a Tomtom from a friend.
So we can't get lost anymore. We played with it and changed the voice to Ken from Aussie which made Henry laugh and laugh. There is also German of course and lots of other languages. In English for the journey home we might use Lori, the Southern USA woman. Very funny. There are some cool museums to visit in Munich for kids and I'm feeling we need to go see something. Even though we are tired and snotty we have come around the world. We can't just sit here.

We'll update you with more adventures. Must write something about the last 10 days too which have been really fun.

Cavemen

Left, inside a rock house at Haut Castlefranc showing Henry how they built the roofs without any support. (The wood is over the doorway only). Very clever.
Centre, Henry outside the same house.
Right, looking back towards Frayssinet le Gelat, we're feeding the chickens and rabbits.

We're on our last day at Mary Moody's. (Below, it's the three storey one with blue/grey shutters). So we're trying to se up our dwindling supplies of French delicacies. Well I am, Wendy just went shopping, again. Did Cave women shop? How far back does this innate obsession go back?

We didn't find the answer at the Museum of Pre-history 2 days ago. We drove up to Les Eyzies to see the caves and thought we'd see the museum first. Unfortunately once we got going up there and visited a little hill top village on the way we only had time to see the museum. Oh well. It was well done, needed English and other language translations or at least a handheld guide. How spoilt we are! Tomorrow we go back to the area to see a couple of caves.

Some of them are as old as 50,000 years. There are animal paintings all over the area in many caves. One famous one is Lascaux which was being destroyed by the breaths of people visiting so they created another cave which is a copy. Sounds really tacky but it's meant to be good so we might get there tomorrow. Lots of the caves seem to have been damaged when people discovered them, with graffiti, restoration work gone wrong and cave ins once rubble was removed.

It is amazing enough to try and picture the people's lives in the little town and what the town has seen. But seeing the pre-historic caves is mind blowing. Driving along in our airconditioned car we can see caves up in the rock cliff faces and imagine the Cro-magnon people up there.

From Wikipedia: Cro-Magnon (IPA: [kʀomaɲõ] or anglicised IPA: /krəʊˈmægnən/) is one of the main types of Homo sapiens of the European Upper Paleolithic. It is named after the cave of Crô-Magnon in southwest France, where the first specimen was found.

The term falls outside the usual naming conventions for early humans and is used in a general sense to describe the oldest modern people in Europe, though also a specific (but very frequent) subtype among their fossil remains.

(Just so you know!)

We are going to stay 10Kms from Rocamadour, in Gramat. Rocamadour looks amazing from the pictures. We stay one night there then drive back to Montpellier. We might see a bit of Montpellier but we'll see as it might take a while to drive there. We leave the day after flying back to Franfurt Hahn. We're getting a car and are going to try to get visas sorted in Frankfurt for China. After that we're back to Fuerth for Christmas and New Year's.

Here's a cheesy grin for you. I was leaving my face fallow for a while but I've only got a goatee now. It felt a waste to shave off the whole thing. I'm so photogenic don't you think? Wendy can't stand that I always have my eyes closed for photos. I think maybe I have some Chinese ancestry and the camera senses that.

Children

We're starting to think about the future. We've got a month and a half left approximately of this trip. It's gone fast and we've started to think about what we're doing when we go home. We've also started to think about the highlights so far.

I'm reading a book I found on the shelf today. Can't put it down for long as it's getting the brainwaves firing. It's called "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho. The bit I'm reading is talking about being in the present. Meaning living life now rather than worrying about tomorrow or yesterday. It made me think these were the best bits of this trip.

Tonight as Bella and Henry were resisting bedtime they started playing a game. They are so inventive, well without the TV on. I love watching TV but I always notice how it dulls their playfullness, sometimes that's a good thing but mostly it just shuts us all down and makes nice little zombies out of us!

They got the basket from the bathroom which is used to hold the spare toilet paper and brought it into the lounge. Once emptied it was big enough for Bella to get into and have the lid close. Henry was very gentle and she didn't mind being his pet for a while. Hiding from people or being carried onto boats or planes and put into the overhead luggage was very funny. Then they decided they'd go on holiday so they packed all their belongings (cushions, cent coins, soft toys, newspaper) in and said goodbye. I asked them where they were off to and they said "the South of France", good choice. They arrived (in the kitchen, very appropriate) and unpacked. Soon they were back from their adventure and telling us about it. Then they packed up to take the train to Rarotonga under the sea for 118 days.

Henry said "I've got my credit card and another one so we can go to any machine" (they've heard us talking about how one machine will work for our cards and another will not. Next we sent them off to do their boring tasks of teeth brushing and getting changed for bed. They came back out nude and crazy. They are such funny monsters I think we'll keep them for a bit longer.

Another moment I remember is the amazing Undie fish. We were staying at a converted farmhouse outside Siena. It had a beautiful infinity swimming pool. They all thought we were mad as it was only 25 degrees or something like that. Henry and Bella were paddling away splashing around then Henry came up with a game. He took off his undies and started throwing them into the deeper water. They bacame...the Undie Fish...duh da duh da. There was a leaf scoop which they used chasing the undie fish around. Very very funny

Earlier today we went to the local restaurant which has been going for over 100 years. Mary Moodie's husband made a doco about it which is here. The food is good hearty food like your grandmother made. Today we had

1. Entree of rustic bread and alphabet soup,
2. Followed by sauteed cabbage with salami, pate and gherkins,
3. Next the main of mique? pork, potatoes, carrots, cabbage all boiled with a big dumpling on top, served with a slice of dumpling,
4. Next a selection of delicious cheeses: goat; camembert, and two other local cheeses
5. Then a choice of desserts: for the kids ice cream for Wendy cheesecake and for me Creme brulee
6. This was topped off by coffee and of course wine was included! You are given a bottle which must be at least a litre and for a table of two that's a good amount to get through (we didn't finish it!)
   

Phew. It wasn't the most gourmand food and it wasn't all tartily presented but it was good honest local fare which would keep you coming back. It was E12.50 each which is a great bargain. We felt like outsiders initially but once all the busyness was over the lovely staff came and chatted to us and complemented Wendy on her excellent French. I stood quietly in the background pretending I was mute. I didn't want to let the family down after that comment. I can understand quite a bit but not if people talk too quickly. Happily I've found I can speak enough to make myself understood, even if I do get some odd looks until I discover I've ordered a train to Marseille instead of beef.

After, we met a very friendly big dog down the road who just wanted to jump. I nicknamed him Tigger he was so jumpy. Wendy went into fits of laughter when he started racing round chasing Henry and bouncing. Tigger was very friendly and wasn't going to hurt Hen but I was a bit concerned that Hen might get knocked over. Once we'd shaken off Tigger Henry and I continued on our plan to walk back through the pooky woods back to the village. (Hen once said pooky instead of spooky and we thought it sounded funny so it's stuck)

We walked past rabbits, sheep, ducks, geese, chickens and really loud dogs. Into the woods where we practiced our Indian tracking skills. Hen loved following the fresh tracks of a dog and a man. We looked for broken twigs when they had to go off track, leaves turned over and scratch marks. Hen said tonight it was his favourite part of the day. Nice

Christmas

This am we got to bed at 3am, in fact we've done that for the last 4 nights. I don't know why but we've been just slow to go to bed. So our days have been starting late too. I guess we haven't been doing that much as the weather is extreme English . Grey, rainy, overcast with downpours and the occasional blast of cold wind, oh actually just like Wellington in the winter! Oh well at least we have consumed a few bottles of wine and shopped for more while cooking up our soupe du jour consisting of chicken, red wine, leeks etc.

The Alimentation owners told us about a local Christmas fair that was on today so that was our plan for today. It was just a short drive away which was easy. The weather wasn't too bad having briefly stopped raining. We got there and they had some yourts (spelling?) and cut out Christmas characters, decorations and a father Christmas. We were slightly confused though as he was dressed in blue? Hmm. Not sure what that's about.

Of course we wandered around sampling the wares. Wendy had a crepe with some spirit on it, I think. We got helium balloons and everyone was writing their name on a card and tying it to it, so we did that too. There was a market with some really nice local stuff. Saw a car with an NZ sticker. There was an guy giving rides to kids on his very funny train. It had about 10 carriages all getting smaller and smaller towards the back with dollies and bears and Barbar the king (elephant) on the back. Very funny.

He had also set up a stall with potato guns, elastic band guns and a crossbow. The crossbow was wooden with metal pipes to hold the potato and inner tubes to provide the power. It was so powerful that kids had to use two hands for each rubber band to prime it. No one seemed nervous about anyone losing an eye.

In NZ we'd have a perimeter of 10m, a full safety back up system in case of systemic failure, an OSH inspector on hand to write a complete report to be presented to the PM the next day and a guy in a hard hat to go and pick up the bits of potato to ensure no one slips on them. Here people casually watched as kids chased each other around with them, fired them at passers by and stood gormlessly in the way of the firing range (I must admit that was Henry actually). It was all good rural fun. The best bit for me was the funny walking bike thing that had a propeller on the top. Henry and Bella both loved going for a ride with me while people watched.

We then came back and had an entree of smoked trout on toast with lemon and a delicious soup made by myself. It is such a nice place to relax, now all we need is some good weather so we can go for a bit more of a wander. Below is a picture of the church which I can hear the bell of right now, must be 9pm. It's just across the intersection from us, we are right in the centre of town. This picture is off the web cos I just didn't want to go outside.

By the way here's a sign from trip to Cahors yesterday. There's a prize for anyone who knows what the abbreviation stands for.
What the?!?

Cigarettes

Phew, cough cough splutter. We just came back from a bar about 50m away after a quick drink. It was a quick drink because it was so smokey. We've got so used to no smoke in NZ that it's a shock even after all these months to walk into the smoke. It was a bit of a deliverance moment. I actually found myself singing the theme tune, loudly, before I realised. The people turned to look at us in unison and said in French "this is a local bar for local people, we'll have no trouble here!" At least that's what I heard as I checked I had my concealed weapon handy.

You'll be pleased to know it all turned out ok. We managed to speak only French so blended seamlessly and looked like maybe we were from the next village. "Bon jaw er bon sewer, un beer sylvia plat mit einer vine rue ge"

Earlier today we drove, and drove, and drove to Cahors which is a city not too far from here. It was amazing to read in our book that it was set up by the Romans. Also found out that one of it's citizens the son of a grocer became the prime minister of France (he resigned after 3 months). Another citizen became a pope and set up a university. No wonder it seems a bit more developed and prosperous than most of the little places around.

Cahors has an undercover market which Wendy wanted to go to. There were peeled rabbits of course, lots of wine, cheeses of all kinds. One cheese called Sec (dry) which looked interesting but a bit like it had rolled under something and been found during cleaning a few years later. "don't worry love we'll call it Sec, that means dry you know, those Frenchies love it " (said in a yorkshire accent). I must admit some of the cheese here is superb, some I leave to the more adventurous with my delicate constitution. By the way this is what I found when I was looking for pictures of ugly cheese.
Like Italy there are little hamlets and villages all along the roads here. I guess when there were only horses and carts or feet it was a long way to the next village. There are so many stone houses that look really old. I love that! We even managed to get back without using the map by recognising the route back. A stupendous effort for us. Wendy was driving though so that makes it easier as long as she takes the directions ha ha...

Calling Adams party of four

I'm embarrassed to say but we did the walk of shame tonight at Jerez airport. Finally we arrived early to an airport!!! We dropped our Europcar smoothly, had our little picnic in the sun outside, then after we'd checked our bags we relaxed upstairs relaxing and yes took Bella to the toilet three times. My friend Chris would say she has a Woolworths bladder, well she's still just 2.

After a while there was an announcement in Spanish and German something about Ryanair blah blah blah. We started getting it all together and moved downstairs, herding the cats. We put our bags on the X-ray machine and all seemed fine. I'll let W tell you about the flying pig! I had taken off my shoes, and any metallic bits. I hate getting patted down...But the man called me over once I'd picked up my bag, took me over to a table and pulled rubber gloves on. Now I was getting concerned but tried to appear calm and not at all guilty. Thankfully he made me open my bag not my fly and after some rummaging found a camera, a tin of olives, a couple of batteries and some stuffed animals. Phew. We then did our walk of shame escorted by a stewardess across the tarmac and down the aisle in front of everyone else. We then found out that someone else was being escorted off by the police for being drunk and disorderly so we were ok. Still embarrassing.

We're now relaxing in the BB hotel Hahn again. We'd left our winter gear here and are now swapping to warm tops and boots and thick jackets. Tomorrow we leave again for France, we land at Montpellier and grab another Europcar for a two week French adventure. I know it is a bit crazy all this popping from country to country and back but Ryanair makes it so easy. We've booked, well Wendy has booked a little house in a quiet village owned by Mary Moody (an Australian writer).

Yesterday we had a busy day in Guadix and came to really like the area. We'd all like to go back. Henry and Bella as they loved rolling in the dirt and climbing the hill above the cave house. Basically we could climb onto it's roof and up above it to the peak above the next cave house. Over behind us we could see a valley with abandoned caves dug into the hill they go on and on all over the area. It was amazing to look at all the caves around and imagine back 400 years when these were first made.

Cuevas

Cave wall writings from two nights ago...

I'm writing this from in our cave. We're staying in Guadix in a cave house we were told about by an English woman whom we met in Granada yesterday. Like dutiful travellers we took the advice, and it's quite an experience.If I look up to the ceiling I can see pick marks in the stone.When we told Henry this morning that we'd be staying in a cave tonight he imagined dripping walls, spiders, stalactites, monsters with big yucky noses, and bits falling in. Sadly for him it's not like that. The walls look dug out but are painted white and plastered in places. It's not a bad temperature inside, outside it's cold about 5 degrees here. We were told the caves keep a regular temperature and that the ground naturally heats the rooms. It'd be nice to have a bit more fresh air but it is a cave, it's not damp though.

This morning we got up slowly after our cocktail night, dragged Henry kicking and screaming into the day. We're not sure why but he was a monster today. Maybe just tired after all the changes and playing with all the big kids at the hostel. Henry and Bella befriended Josh yesterday, a Jewish American boy from Tennessee who plays the accordian for a living and has been for 3 years. He's only 18 and is travelling the world supporting himself by busking. He left school at 15 and home schooled then travelled. He told us last night he's found a cave and a friendly Polish guy and his girlfriend are going to help him fix it up. He is a mine of hints and tid bits for fellow travellers. You hear all kinds of stories from amazing people being in hostels that you'd never know about otherwise. There are quite a few 18 year old Canadian and American students travelling by themselves or with friends between college and University or jobs. I think they are amazingly brave to take off to Morocco, Spain and other countries to explore. There is so much to see though it's good to start early. It's got to be good for the world to have us travel and see how others live.

We checked out of the hostel after consuming our share of the Oasis's toast, pancakes, jam and coffee. We said our goodbyes to many fun and interesting people from Japan, South Korea, Germany, France, Quebec, Canada, USA, Belgium, NZ, Australia, Spain and the UK. Next it was finally time to see...The Alhambra, a fabled place of which travellers speak in prose. We'd had people recommend it to us in Carcassonne Spain and Portugal. We were a bit worried we'd miss out as they only allow limited visitors each day. You can pre-book tickets online but we hadn't arranged anything. There aren't too many tourists about now, the poor people are back at work or waiting until the warmth is back. It's cold now, we thought it would be warm here and didn't bring jackets but I wish I had. During the day it is nice in the sun but in the shade you can shiver.

Anyway, we dragged Henry to a market just one block off Gran Via de Colon for Tapas for a fill up of his engine then we started trudging towards the hill. There were a few signs directing us to the Alhambra but they soon petered out. We followed our noses and this time it worked soon we were on a very steep street up the the old Moorish remains. Tickets were no problem and we also got audio guides which were well worth it for more detailed history. Henry loved having a guide for himself he found each number on the signs and plugged it in to hear about the carvings. It was funny to hear him telling Wendy things from the guide he'd learnt. "Mummy there was a fire and the roof burnt down".

The Alhambra was an unexpected gem. Despite people telling us we must visit it I still wasn't ready for the beauty, tranquility and intricacy of the palace. King Carlos V's palace there was impressive too but the Nasrid princes made something very special. The view over Granada is spectacular, I could have let my eyes wander over the old city for hours, maybe with the assistance of a Vino Tinto or a few coffees. Wendy possibly may have been able to stay still to take in the view for a few more minutes too. I ran my hand over the plaster wall carvings imagining the people that had done the same about 700 years ago. I've been trying to get Henry to take the time to take in the details. He's patient with me at least.

People have said Granada is better than Seville and to spend more time there but I'm not so sure. The Alhambra is stunning, the old city in Seville is stunning as is the Giralda Cathedral. Seville has more of a European feeling, walking through Granada it would be easy to think you are in a Moroccan street. Tea shops line some alleys, especially near the Oasis hostel. Cobbled alleys twist and turn and you soon learn to go in a general direction. Driving gets really interesting instead of trying to go around the block go back, the blocks can be amazingly confusing with one way streets and changes in contours all of a sudden. No wonder these people were such good sailors and explorers. You need an intricate knowledge of the stars just to get home in Granada and Seville.