Cows from Heaven

 Our fall trip got off to a wonderful start with a visit to our Swiss daughter and partner's home. It was a very short stay as the next day they took us into the Swiss Alps to the Alp Abzug festival in Prattigau (one of many in Switzerland), where it was time to celebrate the cows returning from their summer high Alpine pastures and back to the their cozy winter homes in the valley. The cows were decorated with flowers and wore large, noisy cowbells as they paraded along the town streets. Several thousand people ascended on the small village for the spectacle which also included local food, drink and music. We had an overnight stay nearby where our balcony had fabulous views of the Alps and the valley below us.

Saying goodbye, we left Basel and took several trains into France to the southern region where we rented a small house apartment in Saint-Cyr-sur-Mer (Saint Cyr by the Sea), our base for the week. The Mediterranean seaside cities and towns we visited all had low 20's C temperatures so it was a nice introduction to the Cote d'Azur. Our French is slowly coming back to us and I have stopped responding in Spanish which we have used more often in the recent past. We have enjoyed many meals around the various harbourfronts, eating fresh seafood and watching the promenade activity from our table. Our day trips included visits to Cassis (busy marina area, even in October), Marseille (old port area, climb to Basilica Notre-Dame de la Garde for great views), and Toulon (large harbourfront filled with restaurants, Hotel des Artes for some contemporary art).

Our hosts treated us very well, greeting us with local Provence wine and later homemade vegetable soup (au pistau), while also offering us use of their hot tub whenever we wanted. Saint Cyr turned out to be a terrific place to stay. Beyond the seaside walks we tripped over the popular 20th Alsatian Market festival where food and wine kept everyone in a good mood. It was a wonderful start to our French Riviera adventure and more lies ahead as today we moved east along the coast to Saint-Raphael which will be our next Cote d'Azur base.

Au revoir

The Alp Abzug festival we attended in Switzerland. With their large cowbells ringing, it became very obvious the next herd was right around the corner.

When the parade ended, the crowd moved from the streets to one of two food and drink areas where local musicians (under the tent) entertained those who wanted to listen.

The view from our balcony that our daughter booked for our overnight stay in the Swiss Alps. The base of a ski hill was right behind us, and was busy with mountain bikers using the snowless ski runs.

The marina in Saint-Cyr-sur-Mer which had a population of 15K. There was a nice boardwalk that went all the way to the villages on either side of the town which we walked on different days. 

While out on a long walk one day I tripped over an annual festival in Saint Cyr celebrating food and drink from Alsace, a province in the NE of France. With almost every stall selling wine, beer or Alsatian food the audience was all in a good mood.

The Cassis harbour. Cassis is nicknamed the small Saint-Tropez and the seafront promenade was filled with people enjoying the seafood restaurants or just having drinks and observing the foot traffic and views.

The Grand Staircase outside of the Marseille Saint-Charles train station. The detailed sculpture work on the sides dates back to 1848.

A view of the Basilica Notre-Dame de la Garde in the background overlooking the city of Marseille. Our workout for the day delivered a stunning interior of the church.

A view from the Basilica to some outer islands. The small island in the middle was a former fortress turned into a prison. In the Count of Monte Cristo, the prison was featured as the place where the Count spent 14 lonely years.

One of the many wall murals found in the artsy Le Panier neighbourhood of Marseilles. It is the oldest

 section of the city, first inhabited by the Greeks.

The lovely seaside promenade in Toulon with a statue letting everyone know on which side the water was.

While seated by the water in Toulon we both ordered mussels for lunch and each received a pot

 which had to contain at least 6 dozen fresh mussels. It took quite a while to consume them and we almost required a second bottle of wine to go with them.

Fast and Furious

 From Prescott we moved over to the Colorado River. We stayed in the Parker Strip community just north of Parker and along the Arizona side of the Colorado River. Great state parks exist along the river but we also enjoyed the  Pirate's Den RV park with a popular beach bar (The Thirsty Pirate) and the excellent Black Pearl restaurant next to it. Speedboats and Jet Ski's raced up and down the Colorado River which was entertaining to watch albeit with a bit too much noise. There was also a nice golf course across the road (Emerald Canyon) that we enjoyed several times. We did have some problems with WiFi reception but that just meant more time at the beach bar! 

With temperatures continuing to be in the high 20's C, we decided to head north to St. George, Utah where 20-25C weather was forecast. We had spent time here before but usually for a day or two as we were heading south or on our way back home, with nice golf courses in the area. It was also the gateway to Zion NP, one of our favourite NP's and we did take a day for yet another return visit to this stunning rock wall park with hiking trails for all levels. We made Hurricane our home for the week in an RV park (Willow Wind) filled with trees providing lots of shade for every site. 3 rounds of golf ensued on rock canyon courses where accuracy was critical and the red rock surroundings a treat for the eyes.

Cooler single digit morning temperatures forced a drive back south 3.5 hours, this time to Laughlin, Nevada for 4 nights, which is also alongside the Colorado River.  We avoided the casinos in Laughlin, preferring to spend our money on the golf course where we at least got some exercise and the occasional moment of brilliance. Both Laughlin and Bullhead City, Arizona, which is on the other side of the Colorado River both have seen better times and I doubt we will return again.

Our final extended stay was planned for Sin City with the intent of catching a couple of concerts or shows, plus some golf. Another surprise awaited us, as we arrived at the beginning of Race Week where the Formula 1 race preparation was underway for the 6.2 km track with a Las Vegas strip straightaway allowing speeds of over 200 mph. It also somehow allowed our Oasis RV park to double the nightly site rates to almost $200 U.S., so we shortened our visit, departing midweek after attending an entertaining and very lively Keith Urban concert. I did take in a restricted view of the first F1 practice session, held at night to help prepare the drivers not only for the track but for the neon lights atmosphere which would be prevalent for the 10 pm race on the w/e. Ticket prices were in the thousands ($) so there as no incentive for us to stick around. Unfortunately for those that paid hundreds of dollars for the first Practice session, it only lasted 9 minutes due to faulty road conditions. That made for some furious fans.

We are now back in St. George, Utah for a final golf game and to prep our motorhome for the winter. A dry road forecast should enable a safe drive back home.

A couple of observations from our SouthWest drives. We have noticed an increase in the number of RV'ers boondocking in open scrub desert spaces. Most were older units and with the increased cost of living and RV parks in general, likely aiding this trend. While the land seems unusable for agriculture due to the lack of water, hopefully they are cleaning up after themselves, giving the land back to the wildlife the way they found it. On another note, Nevada had many large Solar Farms viewed from the highways, more than any other state we have come across. Too bad so much of the cultivated energy is used for lighting up Las Vegas beyond imagination.

Happy trails.

The Pirate's Den RV Park beach alongside the Colorado River. It was a nice spot along the Parker Strip to watch the sun go down across the river on the California side.

The Thirsty Pirate Beach Bar which seemed busy no matter what time of the day it was. Within a short walk of everyone's RV site it was a smart decision by the Park owners and paid dividends for them.

The Emerald Canyon Golf Course across the road from our Parker Strip RV park. The course as in good condition with wonderful views so we made multiple visits.

The Court of the Matriarchs at Zion National Park. We never get tired of returning to the park which also means a lunch or dinner stop at Oscars in Springdale.

The Sand Hollow Golf Course near St. George, Utah. The Clubhouse is in the background.

The 13th hole at the Sand Hollow GC. Accuracy was important otherwise you said goodbye to many golf balls.

We took in a Keith Urban concert while in Las Vegas at the Bakkt Theatre (Planet Hollywood). All 7,000 fans  were frequently on their feet while the country music star entertained everyone with a lively 2 hour performance.

While wandering around the F1 track looking for a sneak peek at the race cars during their first practice session I noticed the sound die down and then came across this screen explaining why. A couple of cars were damaged due to an unsecured manhole cover causing the cancellation after only 9 minutes. In the background on the screen is the new MGN Sphere which holds 20,000 concert goers and just wrapped up an opening residency by U2.

Old Favourites and New Finds

I wasn't going to publish a blog for this Fall 2023 campervan trip covering the U.S. Southwest since we had covered the area many times. However, never say never! Since we had no particular destination in mind, a review of October temperatures in the SW uncovered the north end of New Mexico as a favourable landing spot so away we went. We had previously spent time in the south end of New Mexico but never the north end because at 5.000 feet above sea level the weather was cold when we were nearby in the past. As a result I will post infrequent updates to the blog when previously uncovered places emerge or an old favourite resurfaces.

 Our trip began with a return trip to Yellowstone NP. While we had been to the World's first national park (1872) before, we had only covered a portion of the 2.2 million acres that expands into 3 states (Montana, Idaho and Wyoming). We discovered some new features within the park but with only one day spent in the park due to cooler temperatures, it was clear that another return or two would be necessary.

3 days later, via Wyoming and Colorado(enjoyed Pueblo, Co), we landed in Santa Fe, New Mexico for 4 nights. It is the oldest state capital  in the U.S., founded in 1610, with streets lined with pueblo style adobe buildings. The old town was a treat to walk around with the many artisan shops selling authentic Native American items, although at more inflated prices than found at non-tourist sites. Highlights included the Old Town Plaza, the Santa Fe Chapel (1610), the Railyard Arts District and Market, and the Canyon Road art stroll. The Shed was also a hot spot for lunch which earned the long line-ups.

A one hour drive south led us to Albuquerque and our timing was perfect, even though we were unaware of it at the time. The International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta was in full swing upon arrival limiting RV park vacancies but we eventually found a spot due to our ability to change sites on a daily basis. With over 500 balloons in the air every morning it was a treat to watch, enabled by an app provided by a local TV station. I posted some screenshots from the app since they were much clearer than our longer distance shots. But that wasn't all. The 31st Arts & Crafts Festival was also underway with live music and food trucks providing a break from the many covered aisles of beautiful artisan work from across the U.S. Albuquerque is also home to Petroglyphs National Monument, home to over 24,000 carvings sketched into the rocks on the city's west side. We followed a trail to see hundreds of glyphs until the high 20's C temperature took its toll on our energy source. The final highlight occurred at 10:30 am on Oct. 14th when an annular solar eclipse happened. An "annular" eclipse happens when the moon is further away in its orbit, and does not fully cover the much larger sun, creating a golden ring overhead that does not fully shadow the earth below. Looking up for a glancing view of the sun delivered a normal bright sun, but when wearing the special safety glasses being handed out, the golden ring was very visible and also when the glasses covered the lens of our camera. It was an amazing sight to watch the moon start to partially cover the sun until it reached it's perfect spot in the centre, at which time hoots and hollers erupted from the crowds in open spaces.  At the same time it was hard to understand nearby road traffic seemingly unaware of this awesome lifetime sight. We also managed to squeeze in a couple of golf games (Sandia Golf Club recommended) along with visits to the National Museum of Nuclear Science (good and bad use) and the Rio Grande Nature Centre. 

Both Santa Fe and Albuquerque will be trip highlights on this venture and very worthy of our almost 2 week stay. We have now moved on to Prescott, Arizona, an old favourite with it's round boulders a sight to behold as we continue to try and deal with the extreme high 20's C heat in this El Nino year even though we remain at 5,000 feet elevation with higher than normal temps everywhere we have been.

One of the many hot springs at Yellowhead NP. The beautiful colours are created by the various bacteria types that can survive at hot temperatures.

The lovely riverwalk at Pueblo, Colorado where they have recreated the site where the recently diverted Arkansas River used to flow through, eliminating any floods within the city.

The colourful Cultural Art Museum pillars in Santa Fe, New Mexico

Colourful ristras being sold at the Santa Fe market. While stringing drying chili peppers together with garlic bulbs and other vegetables for later consumption was quite common, this artisan took it to another level.

This screenshot was taken on Special Characters day at the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta. You should be able to spot quite a few.

There was an Evening Glow every night at the Fiesta. The balloons did not actually take off, so the packed festival crowd roamed around the grounds for the views. We watched it on TV!

One of the many petroglyphs at Petroglyph National Monument. Many others could be spotted further up the hills but we were only allowed to walk higher up when the paths took us there.

The 10:30 am shot of the annular solar eclipse in Albuquerque, taken with the special glasses in front of our camera lens. Without the glasses on it seemed like a perfectly normal day outside, yet one would not have been able to see the eclipse.

Young flamenco dancers performing at the ABQ Old Town Plaza.

A short hike from our Prescott, Arizona RV park led us through the round rock boulders to Watson Lake.

Back to Where it all Started

Our return trip to Paris took us over 30 years, so it was definitely time to re-visit the City of Light. With light rain all 3 days it was a good thing we opted for a light schedule. Our first target was a 45 minute walk to the Musee d'Orsay, one of our favourite art museums. The museum, known for its impressionist painters (Monet, Matisse, Renoir. and many more) inhabited the former man railway station (1900-1977) and has 6 floors of impressive works. There was also an Edvard Munch (The Scream) exhibit going on, which made it clear that he should be known for much more than his most popular painting. The next day we took a train to Versailles to visit the Palace, which had escaped us the first time. The Palace is massive and features some of the finest French art from the 17th century with multiple paintings in the 50 or so rooms we were allowed to see (2300 rooms in total). Successive Kings enlarged and embellished the palace with every reign. but Louis XIV really put his stamp on the palace. It would take a full day to explore the palace Grand 'Apartments', the vast Gardens area (formerly a royal hunting ground), and the Estate of Trianon (which we ran out of energy to see). The opulence was a bit absurd, but displayed the power of the reigning kings at the time.

From Paris, we took the high speed 3 hour train, westward to Basel, Switzerland. We have been there more times than anywhere else in Europe, and rightly so, with our first born daughter living there with her Swiss partner. We were greeted with fondue dinner at their home, a nice Swiss start. The next day we visited the Tinguely Museum to discover more about this curious artist, who sculpted mechanical objects using recycled materials, mostly metals. His intent was to satirize automation and over-development waste. We had seen his famous Tinguely Fountain and were interested in finding out more about this creative soul. Our final day included a one hour trip to Zurich for a concert by the Irish rock band, Kodaline. They put on a great show in front of a sold out (1,500) crowd in a standing room only venue. A good time was had by all.

After our good-bye hugs, we flew from Basel to Amsterdam, where this journey started 2.5 months ago. At that time we spent our days roving around the Netherlands (south), saving some Amsterdam highlights for our final few days. The first of those was the Anne Frank House, which still needs to be booked in advance in order to gain entry. The former house where she hid from the Nazi's in the annex at the back of the home was crowded in the tiny rooms but like us, everyone wanted to capture every detail of this young icon's short life. It was haunting as visitors moved through the attic rooms in complete silence, with reality sinking in as the walls told the stories. While history is supposed to prevent us from repeating horrific events in our past, it is sad to see racial and cultural divides on the increase in today's world. Perhaps we need to listen to John Lennon's 'Imagine' non-stop for a few years. Museum day was destined for our final full day, as we headed straight for Museumplein (plaza). Rijkmuseum, the national art museum, featuring a vast number of paintings from the Dutch Golden Age (1584-1702). With over 8,000 pieces we tried to keep our focus  on Rembrandt, Van Gogh and Vermeer, but there were many other great Dutch artist's works to be found. Overall, we spent close to 2 weeks in the Netherlands, and we really enjoyed our time there. With it's easily walkable terrain, picturesque canal scenes, cheese heaven and much more, a return visit may be in our future.

That brings to a close our 10 country, 77 day adventure to Europe and Egypt-Jordan. It was a wonderful experience involving many different cultures, and left us a bit weary by the end of it, but we have more special memories that will last forever. We are thankful for the opportunity we have been given to explore this wonderful world of ours.

The interior of the Musee d'Orsay in Paris. built in an old railway station. The art was displayed in rooms on 3 floors, at one end of the impressive structure. It featured art from 1848 (when the Louvre's collection ends) until 1914.

The front courtyard of the Palace of Versailles. With each member of the King's family having their own apartment (each consisting of 4-5 large rooms), they sometimes went weeks without seeing each other, even though they were all in the same palace.

The Hall of Mirrors, inside the Palace of Versailles. Built in the early 1680's, it replaced a former terrace. There were 357 mirrors in the 75 metre hallway were meant to showcase France's capability of matching the Venetian monopoly on mirror manufacturing.

The Gardens area at the rear of the Palace of Versailles, which seemed to stretch on forever. It would have been a lot more colourful in the spring and summer. We did hear some shots being fired in the former hunting grounds on the left side, but we wisely decided to keep our distance.

A smaller version of the Tinguely Fountain, situated at the front of the Tinguely Museum. I'm not sure we will ever know haw this man's mind worked, but his art certainly reminded us of how our 'toss out and replace' mindset is not in the world's best interest.

Moving day from an upper floor. With so many city Europeans living in older apartment buildings, with small rooms and narrow hallways, this was a common scene. Large household items often had to be brought out through one of their large windows and then lowered (or raised) by a crane like this one.

In a city know for its incredible amount of bicycle traffic, this was a lovely Amsterdam street sighting.

The Rijkmuseum in Amsterdam, one of the world's great art treasures. To improve the lighting and feel of the museum, a 10 year long renovation began in 2003. During that time the people fought to maintain the bicycle underpass through the centre of the museum.

Rembrandt's famous painting, Night Watch. It was well protected, with a glass shield 5 metres in front of the painting, and a museum watchdog nearby. The painting was meant to depict a time in history when night guards were on duty to protect the city from raids.

One final canal shot at the end of our trip. This was a typical Amsterdam canal neighbourhood, with narrow one way streets on either side of the canal. Apartment buildings, often with shops on the ground floor, accompanied these scenes.

Salaam Alaikum (Peace be upon you)

 Our 14 guest group swelled to 15 upon arriving in Jordan, with 4 out and 5 more in, including our oldest daughter who flew in from Switzerland. We also met our new CEO (Chief Experience Officer) who provided a bit of humour along with his history lessons. On our first full day, we drove from Amman to Jerash, one of the largest and most well-preserved Roman ruins (2nd century) outside of Italy. It took us a half day to wander around the large site which included 2 main temples, 3 amphitheatres, a main street with shops and much more. After that we drove over to the Dead Sea (430 metres below sea level)  for a unique visit. We floated in the sea....it was hard to do anything else in the heavily salted water. Pails of mud were also available for us to coat ourselves in mud, believed to have medicinal and therapeutic benefits. There was also time to lay in a lounger and worship the sun god, Ra. Unfortunately, the Dead Sea is losing a metre of water every year and could disappear within 50 years if changes are not made.

The next full day included visits to Mount Nebo (Moses' death), Madaba (Byzantine mosaics) and the well constructed Karak Castle (built by the Crusaders and where several battles took place). We finished off the day at Little Petra, allowing us to visit the main Petra site at 6 am the following morning for an 8 hour walkabout. While it was amazing to see the Little Petra's buildings hollowed out of limestone cliffs, the main event was 10 times better. We seemed to walk forever along a narrow, slot canyon with impressive stone  temples, tombs and monuments, carved into the sandstone walls on both sides. The walkway was also used by caravan groups passing through the area who also spent overnights there and goods were traded between both parties. The highlights were the Treasury (used in an Indiana Jones movie) and the Monastery (800 stone steps which took 8 kilometres to reach). Another 15 minute walk led to an observation point where the deep canyon below could be observed. Petra was our Jordan highlight.

From Petra, we drove further south to Wadi Rum. The southern part of the country is full of sandstone and granite mountains with a very rocky soil, making it pretty much inhabitable. As a result over 90% of the Jordanian population lives in less than 10% of the country (primarily in the NW). The Wadi Rum region has a few rocky hills but mostly a desert landscape. That led to a day roaming around the desert in a 4x4 jeep, recreating Star Wars scenes, followed by an overnight stay in a Bedouin camp. Our indigenous hosts baked a traditional underground (sand covered) feast for us, that we thought was our best meal of the 2 week tour. With no city lights around our small encampment, the sky put on an impressive night show for us, with more stars than anyone could ever count.

Our next stop was Aqaba, a Red Sea resort city, that was within 20 km's of the borders of Israel, Saudi Arabia and Egypt......leading to all vehicles being stopped at a highway checkpoint heading north, for a security check. My better half, and daughter, opted for a snorkeling trip to a Red Sea reef. I preferred a walkabout, visiting some of the city highlights, including the Sherif al-Hussein Mosque (visitors welcome), the Mamluk Castle (16th century) and stroll along a popular beach.  On our final day we made the 4 hour drive back to Amman, our Jordan starting point. We made a short stop along the way to visit Safi Kitchen, a non-profit agency supported by G Adventures. Their goal is to preserve the local culture and they use disadvantaged locals to help promote the cause. A farewell dinner was held that night as we bid goodbye to our tiny community that developed over the past 2 weeks. It also meant the end of our second encounter with our first born who was returning home to her Swiss partner and job. Fortunately, we will get to see them both, when we visit them in their home city at the end of the week. In the meantime, the two of us will get to relax for a few days in Paris where we will have a light schedule during our return visit.

Summing up our 2 week Egypt - Jordan adventure, we preferred our time in Jordan over Egypt. While both had amazing ancient history and ruins, Jordan offered more activities diversity. There were visits to the Red Sea and Dead Sea, Mount Nebo, the Bedouin desert camp and even a Turkish bath. Jordan's better economy resulted in less street garbage and much less aggressive touts than Egypt, creating a safer environment for travelers. In the end we were still glad to have experienced both countries.

The well preserved Roman ruins at Jerash. This picture was taken from the Temple of Zeus and an amphitheatre next to it. Beyond the Oval Palace in the centre, the ruins continued for at least another kilometre, with more temples, palaces and amphitheatres.

Floating in the Dead Sea, something everyone can do whether you want to or not. It was a weird experience since it was even difficult to lower your feet to the seabed unless you were close to shore.

The view from the top of Mount Nebo. According to the Bible, it was where Moses lived out his final days and was granted a view of the Promised Land before he died. I hope the 'promised land' he observed had a lot of golf courses and sandy beaches.

The Treasury at the Petra ruins. All of the structures there were carved into the sandstone walls. We were told that they were all created starting from the very top and working down. The masons were definitely underpaid for their incredible efforts which took years to complete.

The Royal Tombs where the Kings were buried. The Urn Temple on the right still had remnants of a ceiling painting. The tombs were situated away from the main road at the bottom of the valley, where caravans traveled between countries, trading their goods.

The Monastery at the Petra site. It was situated high above the ancient city which over 2,000 years ago had 25,000 in habitants. It was a good trek to reach there, climbing the 800 rock stairs. You also had to watch carefully for the donkeys carrying passengers who preferred that method.

A natural bridge in the Wadi Rum desert. Our group climbed on top of the bridge for a group photo. The climb up was easier than the scramble down.

Our Bedouin 'zarb' dinner feast. As we watched, the sand on top was cleared and then a carpet and metal cover, covering the food container was removed.  Two Bedouins then hauled the food up which had been contained inside metal tubing. The original method was to surround the food with stones and palm leaves, and use the earth's oven.

The top deck of the yacht that was used for the Red Sea snorkel and dive trip. The marina was definitely built in one of the nicest parts of Aqaba, reflected by the nearby homes and buildings. Two members of our group did a deep dive to the 'museum' where jeeps, tanks and even an airplane had been planted on the sea floor.

We were taken to a special Amman restaurant for our farewell dinner at the end of our tour. This was the appies platter, intended for 4-5 people. The main platter that followed had just as much food, including chicken, beef and lamb. A smaller dessert serving finished off a meal that left on one hungry.