We just arrived for a three night stay in Madrid. Cham returns to Lynchburg on Wed. and I arrive on Saturday. It's hard to believe our grand adventure is coming to a close. We'll never forget this time. Below is a small statistical survey of the trip that Cham put together. Enjoy!
EUROPE TRIP RECAP: Tuesday, June 21 to Saturday October 1, 2016
Total days: 102 / 100 overnight stays
Hotel nights: 65; apartment nights 35
Total miles, including air miles: over 16,000
Friends along the way : George and Susan Leftwich in London ; Andy and Carole Morris in Paris ; Alan and Betsy Towne in Bordeaux ; Lewis and Kay Morris in Siena, Italy ; Chris and Betsy King, Dick and Susan Morris, Frank and Gail Morrison, Declan Pratt and Todd and Diane Vie in Greece ; Nat and Nadine Christian, Sam and Jean Meeks, Rick and Marsha Milam, Bobby and Becky O’Brien and Declan Pratt in Portugal and Spain plus we had wonderful personal experiences with so many people in the various locations we visited
Countries / overnight locations (nights): 8 countries, 31 overnight locations, many more locations visited during the day
England: 15 nights, London (5 +2), Chester (3), Oxford (3) and Bath (2)
Belgium: 5 nights, Ghent (3) and Bastogne (2)
Germany: 2 nights, Baden Baden (2)
France: 24 nights, Paris (1 + 6), Colmar (3), Bordeaux (7), Carcassone (1), Avignon (4) and Nice (2)
Italy: 22 nights, Florence (5), Siena (5), Telese Terme (1), Lecce (5), Sorrento (3) and Capri (3)
Greece: 11 nights, Thessaloniki (5), Kalambaka (1), Athens (2) and Nafplion (3)
Portugal: 8 nights, Porto (3), Lisbon (3), Obidos (1) and Evora (1),
Spain: 13 nights, Barcelona (3 +3), Seville (2), Granada (2), Madrid (3)
Battlefields: Waterloo and Bastogne both in Belgium
Times swimming at beach, 7: Edie at Nice ; Edie at Otranto and at Castro, Saturday August 20 ; Edie at Capri, Saturday August 27 and Monday August 29 ; Thursday Sept 8 Edie at Hydra ; Friday Sept 9 from about noon to 3:00 at Nafplion Greece with Diane Vie ;
Boat rides, 11: London on the Thames to and from Greenwich ; Ghent, Belgium ;Colmar, France ; Bordeaux France on Garonne River ; Arachon Bay, France with Alan and Betsy Towne on date ; boat ride from Metoix Greece to Hydra and return Thursday Sept 8 ; Douro River in Porto Wed Sept 14 and upper Douro River on wine tour on Thursday Sept 15 ; Tagus River, Lisbon, twice, once just Cham and Edie, second time with group on Sunday, Sept 18 ; Guadalquivir river in Seville, Thursday Sept 22 ;
Bus rides : Chester to Northwich, England ; Lecce to Naples (August 24), plus group trips in Greece and Portugal and Spain
Castles, too many to count but including: in England Hampton Court ; Bleinheim ; Warwick Castle ; in Alsace Konisberg ; in France Nicholas Fouqet’s chateaux outside Paris ; Palace des Papes, in Avignon ; in Italy Pitti Palace in Florence ; Sintra palace in Portugal ; in Spain Alhambra in Granada on Sat., Sept 24;
Cathedrals and churches, too many to count but including: St Paul’s London, June 23; church where Nancy Mitford and her sister are buried in the Cotswalds, England ; Siena, Italy August 28 ; ancient Orthodox church (323 A.D. ?) in Kalambaka Greece ; Seville, Spain, Sept 22, 2016 ;
Clothes washed: laundry in Bristol, England; various apts., laundry in Barcelona
Tourist petit train rides: Chester; Bordeaux; Carcassone ; Avignon ; Nice ; Lecce, Sorento (August 25), Porto Wed Sept 14
Ferry rides: Sorrento to Capri, Sat. August 27; Capri to Naples, Tuesday August 30 about 55 minutes;
Cities visited for first time, more than 29, including: Chester, Northwich / Leftwich, Oxford, Cotswald and Bath, England ; Ghent, Waterloo and Bastogne, Belgium ; Baden Baden Germany ; Colmar, Bordeaux, St. Emilion, Arachon Bay, Chateauneuf-du-Pape and Carcassone, France ; Telese Terme, Lecce, Castro and other southeastern towns in Solento area of Italy ; Thessaloniki, Kalambaka, Philippi, Veria, Corinth and Nafplion, Greece ; Barcelona, Granada and Toledo, Spain and Obidos and Evora, Portugal
Flights: Dulles to London (June 21); Naples to (connection Athens) Thessaloniki on Tuesday August 30, 2.50 hours plus 1 hour; Athens to Barcelona Saturday Sept 10; Barcelona to Lisbon Tuesday Sept 13; Madrid to Dulles, Sept 28 Cham and Barcelona to Dulles Oct 1 for Edie
Packages sent back home: Bristol, England ; Paris ; Avignon ; Lecce, Italy (August 23) , Sorrento, Italy
Rental cars, four times: London to Chester, Oxford and Bath and back to London; Paris to Ghent, Bastogne, Baden Baden, Colmar and back to Paris ; Bordeaux ; Siena to Telese Terme to Lecce, Italy ;
Spas: Bath, England ; Baden Baden, Germany ; Aquaperta, Telese Terme, Italy
Train trips: London to Paris ; Paris to Bordeaux ; Bordeaux to Carcassone; Carcassone to Avignon ; Avignon to Nice ; Nice to Florence ; Florence to Siena ; Naples to Sorrento August 30; Lisbon to Porto Tuesday Sept 13 and Porto to Lisbon, Friday Sept 16; Madrid to Barcelona Wed Sept 28 for Edie
Wine tours, 6, including: Cite du Vins in Bordeaux ; wine tour in Bordeauxincluding St. Emilion ; Chateauneuf du Pape / Rhone in Avignon ; Chianti in Florence, Italy ; Barcelona, Spain and Douro Valley in Porto in Portugal, Thursday Sept 15
Lessons learned:
1, be very patient and have a good sense of humor
2, use public transportation, more trains and less rental cars
3, better vetting of apts.,
4, appreciate conveniences of home and living in the U.S.
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