“I want to forget that the return is inevitable.” Ella Maillart

The devil greed for this first day of travel, we stop to sample some Bennekom sausage roll and farther Boekel for frikandels. The Netherlands still offer some surprises, like when at the bend of a narrow road we find ourselves facing the river with only a ferry to cross ! Or a few balloons in the sky, background of sunset.

The next day is a new parade of countries : the last kilometers to the border of the Netherlands and Germany, the Belgique, Luxembourg and France finally where we stop in the middle of cows, near a railroad, between localities and Bagneux Bouligny (do not look on the map !) south of Nancy. View of the railway in the deep countryside we did not initially worried… Well know that even in the depths of the most backwater, railways can be very busy ! ! A freight train every ten minutes until past midnight ! Believe it or not, we managed to sleep and we had a good laugh about it !

The beginning of the weekend 22 September we cross departments renowned, one for men the other for its wines. In the Haute-Marne, Colombey-les-deux-churches which withdrew Charles de Gaulle, the birthplace of Diderot : Langres (that by which we pass), Castle Circey-sur-Blaise where refuge and wrote Voltaire, and many others as Albin Michel (editor) or the Goncourt brothers where we enjoy, not a book, but the small area for motorhomes, before lunch at Vaux-sous-Aubigny facing a weird guy terracotta – we can say that a pot !

As to the second, this is none other than the Gold Coast and vineyards of Burgundy. Superb period for the cross because we are in the midst of harvest, hundreds of heads protrude from the vines, tractors or trucks come and go on the road loaded to the brim with grapes. Broch, Gevrey-Chambertin, Vougeot, Nuits-Saint-Georges (nod to my grandfather !) and its area for camper, but we will push to Beaune for the night. Beaune, grand moment, nice town, good wine, but not very rock. Decided to give us a little party, we start to attack the well deserted town on a Saturday night. A group of young tells us two places that appeal we, the first is closed and looks like a private club, the second is a bar instead. But the welcome is friendly, if this is not the music, the bartender brings us back to the first pub to be opened now. It has the appearance of an English pub, inside an English pub, music of an English pub, beers of an English pub… But certainly not the price of an English pub, five euros half, While this is a wine region you tell me. We thank them kindly for having opened, also dry out again without order and expect to be out for laugh.

A final event on the way back, our first puncture motorhome. It makes a nice noise and funny faces when we realize what is happening… and we are Sunday. Ronald fate hardly spare wheel for us to find that there is not jack. Fortunately a couple camper sees us and turned around to lend us their. They too have never punctured and they are happy to see that their strange tool raises difficult our TNT politely its nearly two tons (it took a block of wood between the odd tip of the jack and the underside of the motorhome). Theirs is much heavier and note to invest earlier in a hydraulic jack, so motorhomes, beware of the jack supplied with the motorhome !

We offer one of the bottles purchased in Beaune, ça bien ça Valaite (!), and we leave downwind towards Vienna. A surprise break with my sister, then final stretch to the south with a stop line at my mother (no reason, after three months near the family of Ronald !).

We're back on the French Riviera for the winter, last year it was Antibes, this year it will Mandelieu-la-Napoule… En attendant de nouvelles destinations ! Thank you for having us follow !