Our trip to Rhodes this year took us through France and into Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and Greece. We drove a distance of 3311 miles through 8 countries, and covered 5961 miles including ferries, making forever memories.
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Route Map
France, Belgium, Luxembourg and France again – We crossed by ferry from Newhaven to Dieppe, arriving as the sun rose in France. We then drove through Belgium and Luxembourg, almost non-stop as we found them to be quite uninteresting with terrible roads! We then went back to France for the enjoyable drive to Kaysersberg.
Arriving in France at sunrise
Belgium
Kaysersberg
Kaysersberg
Kaysersberg
Kaysersberg
Kaysersberg
Germany, Switzerland and Italy – I’ve added Germany to the list, but we drove under it in tunnels nearly all the way. Switzerland on the other hand is a place to dawdle and enjoy the magnificent views, if only we had more time but we had a ferry booked in Italy. This was our third visit to Italy and we really wanted to enjoy it, but we found the north and east of the country to be camper unfriendly with only a few exceptions. At Lake Garda and Venice, we suffered the carnivorous mosquitos, and in general, received a less than friendly welcome from the people too. We did try to drive into Venice City, but the lack of suitable parking, and being turned back by both police and army having ventured a little too far, meant that although we enjoyed the adventure, we never did get to do any sightseeing. We caught the ferry from Venice to Igoumenitsa, stopping at Ancona on the way.
Swiss Alps
Swiss Alps
Swiss Alps
Swiss Alps
Swiss Alps
Melano, Switzerland
Lake Garda
Lake Garda
Lake Garda
Lake Garda
Driving into Venice
Venice
Parking at Fusina Dock, Venice
Our overnight view of Venice
Stopping off at Ancona
Stopping off at Ancona
Mainland Greece – we arrived on mainland Greece after the 28-hour ferry from Venice. The first stop was Meteora again as we felt we had not been able to do it justice during our previous visit, this is a staggeringly beautiful World Heritage site, with monasteries perched precariously on huge outcrops of rock. We then slowly made our way across Greece to the east coast, hugging the coast as much as possible, before arriving at Piraeus to catch our ferry to Rhodes. Piraeus is a chaotic suburb of Athens to drive through, and the loading at the port is almost gladiatorial so we are always relieved to get on the ferry unscathed.
En-route to Greece
Leaving the ferry at Igoumenitsa
Driving, mainland Greece
Camping Meteora
Meteora from our campsite
The pilgrims walk up to Meteora
The pilgrims walk up to Meteora
Meteora
Meteora
Meteora
The third cause of blindness is cataracts. The first two are religion and politics
The third cause of blindness is cataracts. The first two are religion and politics
Paleokarias Ropotou falls and bridge
Paleokarias Ropotou falls and bridge
Roadside onions, Greece
Overnight at Agios Konstantinos, mainland Greece
Agios Konstantinos, mainland Greece
Sunflowers, Greece
Driving into Pireaus, my nemesis!
Lining up at Pireaus
Rhodes – the ferry from Piraeus stops at several islands on the way to Rhodes, the prettiest being Kos and Symi. As usual, our ultimate destination though was Rhodes, and spending 4 weeks with Greek friends and touring the island. And as usual, we had a blast, quite literally when on the last day we experienced an earthquake measuring 5.2!
Tsambika
Tsambika
The charm tree at Tsambika
Haraki Castle
Haraki
Overnight at Haraki
St. Pauls Bay, Lindos
St. Pauls Bay, Lindos
Tight squeeze, Lindos
Lindos, Rhodes
Lindos
Lindos
Lindos
Cave house Lindos
Swimming through the cave at Lindos
Swimming through the cave at Lindos
Swimming through the cave at Lindos
Camping under the Acropolis, Lindos
The Acropolis, Lindos
Cove hopping, Rhodes
Damsel Fish, Rhodes
Unidentified, they hang lifeless in the water then shoot away as you approach
Plaice, Rhodes
Garfish, Rhodes
Spider anenome, Rhodes
Weaver Fish, Rhodes
Pufferfish (Toxic Fish), Rhodes. These voracious predators are killing many of the local species
Ragworm, Rhodes
Ornate wrasse
A shoal of Picarel, Rhodes
Under the reef, Rhodes
Underwater garden
One of several octopuses we found
A monster octopus
A monster octopus
Freshly caught octopus
Blessing the communion bread at Pefkos festival
Waiting to be blessed, Pefkos
Pefkos, Rhodes
One of many sunset swims
Lardos beach
Lardos port
Lardos port
Camping at Lardos port
Mojitos beach bar
Off-grid, St. Georges
Off the beaten track, Rhodes
Mavros Cavos beach
Turtle nest site
Curious optical effect of the evening sun of raised footprints in the sand
An irreverent beach chapel, Rhodes
Where ever I lay my hat…………..
The Old Silk Mill – used as an Italian prison camp after WW2
Dragon flies dry their wings
Prasonisi, where two seas meet
A victim of man? Limni
Another victim of man? Corinth
Overnight at Limni, Rhodes
Overnight at Limni, Rhodes
Sunset at Limni
Monolithos Castle
Monolithos Castle
Souma still, Sianna
The islands of Chalki, Alimia and Tilos
Another track, another sunset
Kopria Bay
Kopria Bay to ourselves for the night
A rare ancient vertical tomb at Kamiros Skala
Kamiros Skala
Another overnight stop, another sunset. Kamiros
Ancient Kamiros
Ancient Kamiros
Chilling, Ancient Kamiros
The late Byzantine church of Ayios Nikolaos Foundoukli (St Nicholas of the Hazelnuts)
Fresh produce to the door
Cricket
Swallow tail butterfly
In the mountains, Rhodes
In the mountains, Rhodes
Sunset in the mountains, Rhodes
Sunset in the mountains, Rhodes
Leaving Rhodes
The Turkish coast
Sunset at sea
Mainland Greece, the return journey – leaving Rhodes is always difficult, made only slightly easier as the storm clouds marking the end of summer start to roll overhead. Our return journey across Greece to catch the ferry at Patras took us over the Corinth Canal and up to Acrocorinth where we were caught in the mightiest of Mediterranean storms, before the tranquil drive along the Old National Coast Road.
Camping Corinth
Over ripe
Corinth
Corinth
The breakwater, Corinth Canal
The submersible bridge at the Corinth Canal
Corinth Canal
Corinth Canal
Acrocorinth
Acrocorinth
The storm over Acrocorinth
The storm approaches Acrocorinth
The storm approaches Acrocorinth
Flooding after the storm at Acrocorinth
Flooding after the storm at Acrocorinth
Above the clouds, Acrocorinth
The Old National Road, North Greece
The Old National Road, North Greece
The famous Rio-Antirrio Bridge
Patras
Migrants overlook Patras port hoping to jump on a lorry
Italy and France, the return journey – our ferry from Patras was delayed by 14 hours which unfortunately meant that we had to put in some long days driving in Italy to catch up, and unfortunately we had to miss sightseeing at Pisa. By the time we got to the Italian Alps, the weather had well and truly broken, and we spent most of the return journey in driving rain which added a manacing touch to some of the mountain passes. Despite the weather, we thoroughly enjoyed the sights and friendliness of western Italy, and plan to go back one day to explore a little more. The sun did appear again occasionally while we were in France, and it was with sadness that our odyssey ended as we drove onto the ferry at Cherbourg with plans already forming to go for longer and go further next year.
Checking the nets at Torricella, Italy
Watchful at Torricella
Tasty treat for a patient cat, Torricella
Italian Alps
Italian Alps
Entering the Frejus Tunnel, Italy
French Alps
Southern France
The Loire Valley, France
The Loire Valley
Camping in the Loire Valley, France
Bizarre giant wooden statue in the middle of nowhere, France
Private agricultural museum, France
Private agricultural museum, France
Overnight near Luant, France
Overnight near Luant, France
Normandy, France
Normandy, France
Normandy, France
Normandy, France
Overnight, Normandy, France
A final walk in the rain before catching the ferry, Cherbourg
A final walk in the rain before catching the ferry, Cherbourg
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