At last…. we are on the road again! It’s been three years since we were last in Europe and we had lots of plans to cram into just three months.

We left our bikes in sunny Amsterdam

Bikes in Vondel Park

after a fabulous time renewing our wedding vows

The only way to arrive in Amsterdam

Pledging our troth under the tree

Celebrating our love

and we brought our beloved Charlie out of retirement.

Charlie ready for the off

He was an instant hit. This was a note left under the windscreen wiper by a fellow camper – and who could disagree?

Note on Charlie

We wanted to put a few miles under our belt as we had a big date in Lucca, Italy (which we will post more on later) and so didn’t spend too much time sightseeing until we hit the Rhineland region and Koblenz, where we camped at the confluence of the Rhine and Moselle.

The Rhine – castles, vineyards and the river all in one

Fabulous castles everywhere you look

Even the bridges get the full Rhineland make-over

Ehrenbreitstein Fortress, Koblenz

Cruising the Rhine

A typical Rhineland village along the river bank

Charlie heading for his first Rhine River crossing

Normally we opt for low, slow travel – but who could resist the pull of a speed-limit-free German autobahn when you are driving a powerhouse like Charlie!

Charlie powers along the German autobahn

It was full steam ahead for a couple of other travellers too. This magnificent steam train swung rather unexpectedly around the corner.

That was unexpected

We soon swapped our straight, flat German autobahns for our first glimpse of the mountains we would have to climb on the next stage of the journey to Italy, through Switzerland and over the Alps.

Hello Switzerland!

Our first view of the Swiss Alps

Look out for our next story of Charlie “Hannibal” Charleston conquering the Alps like a warrior and our elegant sojourn in Lucerne.

It’s great to be travelling again and we will keep you posted on our journey as we go.