Wood WalkAbout

FEBRUARY (UK - France - Italy)

West Sussex – UK (6 to 10 deg. C)

After leaving Canada on the 11th Feb, we travelled back to the UK. We stayed overnight with Melanie & Johnny and their children, (David & Ellie,) back in Guildford. It was lovely to see them all again. After what had become a routine visit to their attic, we swapped the ski gear for our summer bags for use later in the year. Luckilly, our stay was brief. Five people traipsing around the house with jetlag in the early hours of the morning midweek for too long could really push a friendship.

Our next stop was West Sussex to the small village of Cowbeech, in the English countryside. We stayed in what was known as an Oast House, (a rounded brick building used for preparing hops for brewing, and was built in the 16th century.) It was like living in a beautiful dolls house on a farm. The kids loved the wide open spaces for running around (despite the cold,) and the morning visits to the cows and having a ride on the farmer’s tractor. (A far cry from London or the snow of Canada. ) We stayed there for 5 days, trying to shake off our jetlag and ready ourselves for our much anticipated road trip of Europe.

Our Oast House in West Sussex

Cassi & Mitch reenacting the Battle of Hastings on the actual battle ground site

Mitch & David sharing their passion for flags

Whilst we were there we also made day trips to three places of interest. We attended a regular Sunday church service at the Canterbury Cathedral and were saddened by its neglect relative to St Pauls and Westminster Abbey. Within the small quaint town of Battle, we took in the site where the famous Battle of Hastings took place back in 1066. Its small scale was unfathomable relative to its overall historical importance. We also got to catch up with Melanie, David and Ellie again before leaving the UK, at Brighton. We visited the Brighton Pavillion, (a palacial summer palace built by George the third,) and enjoyed a visit to Brighton Pier for some fun park rides which we all loved. Sheri, Ellie and Julie couldn’t get enough of the Roller Coaster, whilst Melanie was a sucker for the haunted house.

Canterbury Cathedral after the regular 3.30pm Sunday service

The High Street in the town of Battle
Sharing traditional Fish n' Chips with Melanie, Ellie and David at Brighton Pier


Verdun (France) (-2 deg. C)

We set out on our road trip leaving bright and early headed for the Channel Tunnel. This was an amazing experience but not one for those susceptible to claustrophobia. We literally drove the car onto the train and stayed in it for the duration of the 30 minute trip over to Callais in France. We had allowed two days to reach Venice in time for Carnevale. Having driven for half the day, we made a short detour to the town of Epernay, the champagne region of France. We stumbled upon the Moet Chandon head office to enjoy a drop of bubbly and a comprehensive tour of the enormous underground cellars. Late afternoon we continued towards Verdun (France,) close to the site of another well known battlefield, from the First World War. Here we stayed overnight so that we could do a brief tour of the main sites with a guide the next morning. Over 600,000 men died here back in 1916. Steve was particularly interested in the history behind it all and learnt a lot from Ingrid, our guide. It was a very sombre morning for us, seeing the mogul like mounds with adjoining crators from fallen shells, still covering the hillsides. These & the remains of forts and trenches were real present day reminders of what had taken place there not so many years ago.

Steve at Verdun - Memorial Cemetery & Ossuaire
Mitch befriended by French Army Officers at a nearby Fort Douaumont

Julie & the kids at Moet Chandon trying the bottles for size

Como - Italy (10 deg. C)

We continued our journey southwards heading for Como in Italy. It is amazing to think you can start off driving in one country one morning, go through another, (Switzerland,) and arrive in yet another, only a few hours later. Needless to say, we spent another whole day in the car filled with numerous games of Eye Spy, What Animal Am I, and Trivia Quizzes to test newly acquired knowledge from our travels so far. Meanwhile, Steve adjusted to the right side of the road, the new speed limits, & the driver etiquette that accompanied them.

After a tortuous 8 hour drive with side trips, we arrived very weary into Como but found solace in a lovely hotel we’d booked earlier that day, across from the lake. It was exciting to wake up and be in Italy, and observe all the new things surrounding us. We were well before the summer crowds so it was pretty quiet. Como boasted a spectacular backdrop from every vantage point. A one night stay didn’t seem worthy of such a beautiful spot, so we were glad to be coming back for a longer stay in six or so. A short stroll down by the waterfront the next morning, then back into the car, and onwards to Venice.

Venice Carnevale, Italy - (6 deg.C)

After leaving our car, (now affectionately known as, "Madge,") in a secure carpark (we hoped,) we had a very frustrating start into our time at Venice. We eventually found our apartment at dusk, having walked Venice’s maze like lanes for the previous two hours, ladden with luggage. It was not a pretty scene I can assure you. The kids were beside themselves having dragged bags most of the way, and we the parents were ready to eat the next local that incorrectly advised us where to go. The streets were named, (well sort of,) problem was, the ordering of no.s seemed to be non-existent.

Carnivale Characters outside San Marco

Kids with Carnivale Characters

Gondola near Rialto Bridge, Grand Canal

That behind us, we were glad to be there as Carnevale had been one of the main highlights of the year’s itinerary we had been looking forward to. Now we knew where all the crowds of Como were hiding - they were waiting in Venice. We were sandwiched against loads of other tourists as we made our way towards St Mark’s Square the next morning. Our biggest achievement was that we made it, and once there, rewarded ourselves with what must have been the most expensive refreshments available in the western world. It was worth it just to soak up the atmosphere and the crowd. Definitely something you had to do at least once...

Carnivale Characters watching on...
The Wood family soaking up St Mark's Square in garb

Cassi, missing Elmo was lucky to hold a cute dressed up Poodle

People everywhere were dressed up in mainly period costumes with most people sporting a mask of some description. Some of the costumes were unbelievable. So inspiring were they, that we quickly found ourselves seeking out the nearest & cheapest place to rent them so we could join in the party. Julie’s ever keenness for a dress up at the best of times, and the kids unrelenting enthusiasm for their parents to partake, meant that Steve needed little convincing. His sportsmanship and bravery were later rewarded when asked by perfect strangers for his photo, many of them even joining him for their own scrapbook. Such a celebrity! Infact, we all appeared in many people’s holiday snaps, being one of only three family groups (with kids,) dressed up that day. It was a real hoot! The kids loved it and marvelled at literally “stopping traffic” as the tourist paparazzi swarmed!

Julie & Steve incognito

Mitch & Cassi - Double Trouble as if butter wouldn't melt in their mouth

Sheri looking demure

Thankfully we’d only rented the costumes for 24 hours, there was no way we had the stamina to keep up with the mascarade any longer. It was time to assume our normal tourist identities and blend back into the crowd. We visited Murano Island (where we were somewhat underwhelmed,) and enjoyed a gondola ride in amongst the limited amounts of school work. Most tourist spots were just too crowded to even contemplate a visit sadly, so we'd have to catch the Guggenheim and the inside of San Marco some other time. After five days of crazy carnevale, it was time to head to Bologna, the home of Bolognase Sauce.

Bologna – Italy (12 deg. C)

Bologna, was not a huge tourist mecca thankfully, giving us much needed recovery time from our adventures in Venice. We rented a basic apartment for 3 nights which was well within walking distance to the centre of town and enjoyed not doing much besides catching up on school work. It served mainly as a base to visit the town of Modena, which you may have seen quoted on your Balsalmic Vinegar bottle. Steve had pre-booked a factory tour of Lamborghini, (surprise- surprise,) and was desperate to visit the Galleria Ferrari as well, seeing it was there of course. He and Mitch were in their element, and the girls weren’t too disinterested either.

"I like the red one," says Cassi at the Ferrari Galleria

Mitch flexing his muscles with a Lamborghini

Staying on the right side of the Italian Police

We were back in the car three days later. We were keen to escape the hard, concrete cities and looked forward to the beautiful coastal and rural scenery of Italy that we had heard so much about. Next months blog includes visits to both Amalfi and Tuscany...........