And so the story ends...

Our final week and what an ending!

It all started with a drive of 180km to Sun City north of Johannesburg where we stayed in a timeshare appartment with Basil and Penny. The first day we spent wandering around the lush oasis with its opulent hotels, golf courses, swimming pools and lakes. It was 37C every day we were there but a very dry heat and thus quite bearable in the shade. We wandered in to the Palace of the Lost City and saw this amazing statue of Shabu a bull elephant that died in the park aged 80 yrs.

Then we were up at 5am the next day for a dawn game drive through Pilanesberg National Park which is based inside a huge ancient volcano. We saw lots of elephants bathing in the river and wallowing in the mud. There were white rhino around every corner. Giraffes and Zebra mingled with impala, springbok, kudu and many other species of antelope. We saw hippos grazing along the edge of lakes and a large eagle with a snake in its mouth. It was very hot and there were 6 of us and and a 3 month old baby in Basil and Penny's 4x4 which was luckily airconditioned. We drove for about 6 hours before returning to the appartment for lunch and a rest. Then later in the afternoon we went out again and saw more elephants and rhino. The elephants were browsing on the road and we had to wait a long time for them to finish and move away. One elephant didn't like how close we were and decided to charge us so we backed away quickly. The next day was even hotter so we went down the fantastic Valley of the Waves where there is a wave pool that generates 2m high waves to surf on. It was very crowded with young kids as you can imagine. In the evening we went on a night safari with a tour operator and had the highlight of our African adventure.

At first we saw only a few lone bull elephants in the distance but then we stumbled on a herd of elephants on the road and one particular one called 'Steroids' took an exception to us and charged us. Luckily we were near an electrified hide and we took shelter there until he moved away sufficiently for us to break out at high speed. Then shortly afterwards we came across two very large male lions sauntering down the road. We stopped and one went one side of the safari vehicle and the other brushed past us on the other side before disappearing. And then if that was not enough a few minutes later we spotted a leopard crossing the road ahead of us. Our guide told us he had not seen a leopard for 6 months and on the last night drive he had done they only saw impala.

On the way back we were held up by a white rhino grazing on the road and then the guide spotted a spotted genet (a medium sized cat) in a tree. So we had three cats in the safari and our guide told us it was the best night drive he had ever done.

Then it was alas back to Jo'burg to catch our flight to Sydney where David's cousin Cyndy was waiting to meet us and then onto NZ and the end of a great holiday and adventure.

And that our friends is the end. The end of a great adventure through Eastern and Central Europe and South Africa. We will be back again in 2009 when we will head south into Belgium and into France winding by river and canal to Strasbourg and then follow the Rhine and the River Main through Bavaria and down to the Blue Danube before returning down the Rhine to Ossenzijl. If any of you will be in Europe next year then get in touch with Wendy and I, because we would love to see you, and show you the beauty of the European waterways from the decks of Le Fabuleux.

Until next year this is David and Wendy signing off.

North to Johannesburg

This week we have spent relaxing in the Eastern Cape and driving up to Johannesburg where we are now.
After relaxing Monday walking along the beautiful Boknes beach on Tuesday we headed inland on a slightly drizzly day to Addo National Park where we hoped to see some of the elephant herds that are there. We saw our first bull elephant just as we went through the gate and then lots of kudu and warthogs. The terrain is quite bushy and its difficult to spot game amongst the 2m high bushes. We were despairing of seeing more elephants and were heading for the exit when we spotted dozens of elephants near the road and indeed two elephants were blocking the road for some time. Alas the giraffes and other wildlife including lions and leopards were not showing themselves that day.

The next couple of days we relaxed and went for some local drives. On Friday we left for 'The Hogsback' to stay in the house (now a hotel) where Wendy's parents used to live. It is very English like and very beautiful with thatched houses and the most glorious azaleas everywhere.

The gardens of Nutwoods House where we were staying are delightful with roses and Azaleas everwhere and we enjoyed a lovely meal in the old house.


Then we were up bright and early for the long drive to Johannesburg where we arrived late afternoon to meet Penny and Basil's daughter and family who had just flown in that day from England.

Today we have visited Gold Reef City and gone down a gold mine and enjoyed some of exhibits and rides that Gold Reef City has to offer. Johannesburg is a pretty city and the jacarandas are out everywhere. It is hilly and green with a lovely warm dry climate.

This week we head about 150km north west of Johannesburg to Sun City where we will visit the fabulous Lost City there and visit the Pilanesberg Game Park where we hope to spot alot more wildlife inside the rim of an extinct volcano. Then alas the final chapter of this blog will be written in Auckland where we return on Sunday.

The Garden Route

What a week this has been! We started on Monday with a lovely tour along the coast from Cape Town to Hermanus, which is the centre for whale watching for SA. We drove along the side of the sea cliffs with spectactular views across to Table Mountain until we reached Betty's Bay where we stopped to view the colony of Jackass penguins. On the way back to the car we saw our first Dassies or Rock Rabbits. An unusual animal and not a rabbit; it is actually most closely related to the Dugong. Then after another stop for fish and chips for lunch we arrived in Hermanus to see the whales. Unfortunately the only ones we could see were about 1 km off the coast. The ones we saw in Cape Town were closer and more numerous. Over the course of this week we have seen scores of whales all along the coast, sometimes further out, other times just beyond the surf line.

On Tuesday we drove some 400km to Wilderness, a town right smack in the middle of the Garden route that we were to spend the week exploring with our marvellous hosts Peter and Cherie. It was a lovely fine day as we crossed the wheat fields of the Southern Cape to get to Mossel Bay where we stopped briefly to visit the Bartholomew Diaz Museum and see a replica of the boat that he sailed to there from Portugal in 1456.

The next day was wet and misty. Together with Cherie we were headed inside for the day in the Cango Caves near Oudshoorn. Normally they are reached by a spectacular mountain pass called the Outeniqua Pass, but today we could see no further than 20m ahead in the cloud and mist. We arrived at the caves in the pouring rain and elected to do the Adventure Tour through the caves. This was a 2.5hr guided walk through the vast caves crawling through passages just 35cm high on our stomachs and then wriggling up the devil's chimney, a narrow (very narrow) tube going vertically up to another set of caves. How we got up I don't know, but we managed to finish the tour with only one casualty - a broken camera. Some of the caverns were truly spectactular with beautiful stalagmites and limestone formations. There were only six of us in our group which was very enjoyable as in the peak season they can have 40 or 50 in a group.

On Thursday we drove further along the coast to Knysna and its lovely lagoons. We had a lazy lunch at the Knysna Oyster Company. Beautiful fish and oysters washed down with the local Mitchells beer. After lunch we drove up to the viewpoint overlooking Knysna Heads where the waters of the lagoon enter the sea. Dramatic cliffs and rough water.

Friday saw us driving to Plettenberg Bay for another busy day. We drove to Robberg Peninsular which is a beautiful nature reserve defining the western side of 'Plett' Bay and did a short circular walk along the cliff tops. We spotted whales cavorting in the surf. It was a perfect day with hardly any wind at all. Then later that afternoon we drove out of Plett to the Buffalo Hills Safari Game Park. Friends of Peter and Cherie own the reserve and their ranger Jacques drove us around the reserve for several hours as we spotted wilderbeest, springbok, eland, zebra, giant tortoises and giraffes. There had been a problem with the giraffes as one of their number had been captured to be transported to another reserve. It was tranquillised and blindfolded for the road trip but unfortunately escaped from the truck and headed up into the bush still with its blindfold on.
We spent some time looking for it but alas we could not spot it.

At the end of the drive we drove up to a lovely viewpoint overlooking the safari park and had a drink. After the safari we did some tasting of a local spirit called mampoer which is a kind of distilled alchol infused with different fruits or berries. We tried peach, strawberry and chilli! They were strong. The owners of Buffalo Hills had invited us to join them and 4 other guests for a braai dinner and around a blazing campfire we sipped wine and chatted until the meat was cooked. There was kudu (venison), grilled lambs livers, and succulent chicken. The party went on until the wee small hours of the morning.

Then it was time to leave the Garden Route and head to Wendy's home town of Port Elizabeth. We passed the highest Bungy jump in the world at 219m over a river. On the Saturday night some 20 old friends of Wendy met up at an excellent restaurant for a great meal and the next day we met up with Wendy's sister and her husband, Penny and Basil at a braai that was hosted by Kathy and Dave at their lovely clifftop home near Port Elizabeth. From their deck we saw dozens of dolphins surfing in the waves below. Then as the sun set we drove for a couple of hours to Penny and Basil's beautiful beachside home in Boknes where we are staying for this week before heading up to Jo'burg at the end of the week.

A Whale of a Time in Cape Town

Whilst the weather has been variable this week in Cape Town, the scenery has not! It is magnificent. On Monday we drove along the southern edge of Cape Town to False Bay and along the coast as far as Simonstown, the big SA naval base. Along the way we spotted whales cavorting in the sea just 20 metres off the coast. Everywhere we looked we could see whales jumping; whales swimming; whales blowing and whales just swimming. You could almost reach out to them from the land. Amazing! A bit further long the coast we saw a group of penguins walking around on the rocks.

On Tuesday we explored Cape Town City visiting the Castle of Good Hope and the Company Gardens. In the afternoon we took a drive along the Atlantic Coast beaches past Camps Bay (below) and along to Hout Bay.


Lovely sandy beaches and beautiful homes on the slopes of the Table Mountain National Park. After picking up our car we went for a sunset drive to the base station of the Cable Car to the top of Table Mountain to see if we could get up but it was closed so we drove up Signal Hill and watched the sun set from there.

The next day we set off for Cape Point, the extreme South West corner of Africa. It was drizzly as we drove down but cleared up a little at the Cape and we took the funicular railway to the top of the Cape where nthe lighthouse is, and looked out on the stormy waters that stretch all the way to Antartica. We drove to the Cape of Good Hope just around the corner. This is not as dramatic as Cape Point but is the true most south westerly point of Africa. The most southerly is further east and called Cape Aghulas. That is where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Indian Ocean.

On the way back we encountered a troop of Chacma Baboons wandering along the road quite oblivious to the cars stopping to observe them.We were getting hungry by now so we called into the famous "Brass Bell' restaurant at Kalk Bay for a lovely lunch of fish soup and pizza. We had a window seat and from here we could we watch the whales just metres away in the bay and the fishing boats coming back from their fishing grounds with the catch of the day. After lunch we wandered down to the fishing harbour and saw crate after crate of crayfish being offloaded. Then a bevy of seals sauntered into the harbour hoping for some scraps. They were big!

On Thursday we visited Wendy's cousins and Aunt for morning tea. Wendy hadn't seen them for 20 odd years so it was grand reunion for her. In the afternoon we went to Canal Walk, a modern shopping centre on the way to Paarl. Without a doubt it ranks as one of the biggest and best malls in the world. It is HUGE! Then as the sun dropped further in the sky, together with Peter and Colleen we drove to the Cable Car and went up to the top of Table Mountain and as the sun went down we sipped a glass or two of champagne. A magic moment.

Cape Town has incredible extremes of wealth and poverty. Whilst we did not feel threatened in any way you have to be on the guard all the time. All of the restaurants, hotels, car parks etc employ attendants to keep an eye on the cars parked there. Every house has electric gates and security grills on all doors and windows and alarms that when set off will have an armed guard around in minutes. Many houses have electrified fences around the perimeter. Like most cities you just have to be sensible. You don't go walking alone in quiet areas. You don't venture into the wrong sort of suburbs and if you see suspicious characters you keep driving or turn around and walk the other way.

On Friday Wendy was off to a reunion with some of her Port Elizabeth school friends whilst I babysat Rocky, Peter and Colleens's 7 year old golden labrador. Then it was time to leave Cape Town (sigh) and head off to the Wine Lands around Stellenbosch where we celebrated Peter's birthday in an olive farm owned by old friends of Wendy until the wee wee small hours of the morning.

Next day we went wine tasting and called into Fairview Winery where the famous Goat wines are made. The off to Backsberg where we had lunch. Wendy had the Roasted karoo Lamb on the spit (a whole lamb). Then we headed for Franschoek where we stayed the night in a lovely old period house in the middle of the town. We had a lovely meal at the French Connection including the best tagliatelle we had ever had. On Sunday we drove to Somerset West, about 40 km away to visit another old friend of Wendys. This week we head along the Garden Route to Port Elizabeth.

Cape Town at last

This week started off in Holland and ended in Cape Town. after visiting the historic fortress town of Naarden we continued along the Randmeeren, a ring of lakes that divide the new province of Flevoland from the old coast line of the Zuider Zee. Flevoland was created in 1934 by draining a huge section of the Zuider Zee. We anchored wild in a lagoon inside an island inside a lake and then the next morning visited another very old walled town called Elburg before continuing to Kampen on the River Ijssel where we stayed for the night. It is a lovely old town but alas we had to move on as the clock was now ticking for our flight out of the country. So 4 hours later we arrived in Ossenzijl our home base where we spent the next couple of days cleaning and packing.

Whilst wandering around at the boat yard we stumbled on a recently built boat called Le Fabuleux II. It turned out to be the new boat of the person who had sold us their boat but alas when Wendy met someone going on board, it transpired that he had only used the new boat for just 80 hours before dying of heart failure at the age of 67. Carpe Diem!

On Friday our taxi arrived and took us to Steenwijk station where we caught a train to Schiphol and thence to Frankfurt where our SAA flight took off on time and 12 hours later we touched down in Cape Town where we were met by Colleen and Peter.

In the afternoon we went over to Constantia to look around and do some shopping for the braai (South African BBQ) that was being held for Wendy's Cape Town friends the next day. Food was not as cheap as I thought it might be but I guess it is a global market for many items these days.

In the evening we went to the great V&A (Victoria & Alfred) harbour side complex (like Fisherman's wharf in San Francisco) but much bigger and better. We wandered around and listened to the African singers and then went into Quay Four for a great seafood meal. Two upmarket courses and good wine for two was NZ$85.

On Sunday we drove up to Yzfontein which is an hour north of Cape Town and on the way called into Table View Bay for the classic view of Cape Town over the bay. Then up further north where we hoped to see the annual wildflowers that this part of the coast is famous for. They were there but the best was over unfortunately.

In the evening we had the braai for Wendy and 13 of her old Cape Town friends turned up. We braai'd yellow tail and red meats. Yellow tail is a lovely gamey fish with lots of flavour. We finished off with some lovely chocolate cake that Ros bought over.

This week we are 'doing' Cape Town though the weather forecast is not great. It has been a terrible September for Cape Town. We hope it improves quickly.

Amsterdam and the Ijsselmeer

This week has been a busy one sightseeing in Amsterdam and the Ijsselmeer ports. On Monday we got on our bikes and went everywhere around central Amsterdam. It certainly made covering a lot of ground effortless. We went to the van Gogh Museum and saw all of the masterpieces there including 'The Sunflowers' and Crows over a Wheat field'. It wasn't very crowded which made it more enjoyable. There is a free ferry for cyclists across the River IJ that separated the yacht club where we were staying from the main part of Amsterdam. There a few cars in Amsterdam but thousands of bikes. An energy crisis in the future certainly won't hit the Dutch as much as other countries.


The next day we carried on sightseeing and cycled along the ring canals to Leidesplein where we sat in the sun and shared a lovely pizza and a pitcher of red wine. In the evening we went back to the same area and ate a rijstafel btween us. This is a unique Dutch speciality based upon Indonesian cooking and is a huge number of small dishes all served together with rice, hence the name which means Rice Table.

The weather has been superb all week. An Autumnal high of 1038 h.pa has kept the unsettled weather that we had previously at bay and brought bright clear days, crisp mornings and coolish evenings. A lovely way to finish our European adventure especially as it is forecast to continue well into this coming week.

After Amsterdam we locked through the huge Orangesluizen locks and out onto the Ijsselmeer. The Ijsselmeer is huge and in the middle no land is present. I got out my laptop and navigation program that had charts of the area and without any hesitation the boat leapt orward pushing through the light waves for some 40kms until we spotted Marken Lighthouse in the distance. We were heading for the fishing village of Monickendam.

When we got there there was no room at the inn except for very very expensive marinas. So we decided to have a look at Marken and were glad we did because it it is a wonderful place.
We found a free mooring (at least for 3 days) right in the heart of the most picturesque harbour you could imagine and even managed to get free electricity. So we decided to stay for 3 days as the weather was perfect. Marken was formerly an island in the Zuider Zee but with the great Dutch changes that resukted in the Ijsselmeer it has become connected to the mainland by a narrow causeway. Everyday busloads of people trip in and look around. The number of Kiwis, Australians and South Africaners that stop to talk has been amazing. Usually they all start off with the line - " You didn't sail that all the way from NZ did you?"



Then at six o'clock the place quietens down and we and the few other moored boats have the place to ourselves to watch the sun go down over the Ijsselmeer and contemplate life over a glass of wine. Magic!

The day after we arrived we decided to cycle all the way around the island which is easy to do as there is a cycle path on the outside dyke that holds back any storm waters from flooding the low lying fields. Then on Friday we caught the ferry with our bikes to Volendam another very quaint Ijsselmeer fishing village on the coast just south of Edam. We were the only passengers as it was the first trip of the day. We then cycled back the 20km through Monickendam and along the causeway to Marken.

Then alas we had to start heading home to Ossenzijl where we will be leaving the boat for the winter. Its about 120km away. We left Marken on a sea as smooth as a mirror. Not a breath of wind. Our first stop was Naarden which is a beautifully restored medieval town built within star-shaped fortifications.

The next blog will come from South Africa where new internet challenges will no doubt await us. We leave on Friday via Frankfurt for Capetown arriving at 5am on Saturday morning. Can't wait!

Windmills and Clogs

This week started by leaving Gouda for in Alphen a/d Rijn, a short distance North along a busy canal. The next morning was perfect and we bicycled to Avifauna, a lovely bird park which is famous in the area. We saw more toucans than we can ever remember seeing before, and lots of birds or prey. It was very quiet with few visitors. In the afternoon we continue along the Oude Rijn to the lovely Kaag Lakes where we tied up to a landing stage in a remote, peaceful spot surrounded by more birds and the occasional yacht. Unfortunately a thunderstorm struck soon afterwards and the lovely day disappeared very fast and we have had bad weather all week until today, Sunday.

Then onwards along the Haarlemmermeerpolder Ringvaart Canal (what a mouthful). Basically it is a circular canal that surrounds the old Haarlemmer Meer which has been converted into a polder and so is now below sea level. The water that drains in there has to be pumped out into the Ringvaart in order to flow to the sea. In the middle of this polder lies Schiphol Airport so called because it means Ship Hole where many ships perished in turbulent seas in the old Lake (meer). Today it was peaceful with cows grazing, the odd windmill, and more modern pumping stations that replaced the windmills and continuous succession of planes landing and taking off 10 metres below us!

We turned off the Ringvaart and spent the night in one of the most beautiful towns in Holland –

Haarlem. It is the quintessential small Dutch town, but with few tourists, lots of restaurants and outdoor cafes. Lovely churches, narrow alleys and an old world charm that is missing in Amsterdam now as it is overrun with tourists. We found a lovely restaurant that was sort of a mix between Dutch, Japanese and South African and had one of the best meals of our lives, albeit not the cheapest (90 euros for 3 courses and wine). They specialised in Umami or the 5^th taste that is associated with field mushrooms and MSG. For desert we had a Japanese assortment of dishes made from Sesame Seeds incl. Sesame seed ice cream. Lovely!

Then the next day we continued North and past through the Port of Amsterdam and up into the Zaan River where we past the famous Zaan Schans, a group of 5 old windmills and onwards to the best small town in Holland – Alkmaar. The weather was poor but that could not detract from the lovely town, with narrow, carless alleys. Huge cobbled squares and great shops. There was a Culinary festival on while we were there and the town was packed. We stayed two nights and on one of the days we encountered Monument Day. On the second weekend in September all Dutch museums and attractions and town halls etc are FREE. It was a pity we weren’t in Amsterdam to really take advantage of the opportunity but we did visit several places in Alkmaar and saved quite a few euros.

Then today, the weather has improved and under 1038 barometric pressure we sailed serenely down the Nord Hollands Canal to Amsterdam and into the main visitor yachthaven called Sixhaven. It is jam packed with boats from all around the world. In fact so jam packed that it would be impossible to leave if we wanted to. After tieing up we caught the free ferry over the IJ to Central Station where we managed to find some British Sunday newspapers. It was crowded with tourists.

So a few days in Amsterdam with the prospect of good weather for the next few days. Then a few days in the Ijsselmeer before heading Northwards and home.

Down the Hollandse Ijssel to Gouda

This week we have made slow progress up the Ijssel River which flows through some lovely

 countryside from near the Lek River (one of the names of the Dutch Rhine) to Gouda and then to near Rotterdam.  The weather has been grey with frequent showers. In England they say August has been one of the worst since 1912 and that is probably true for Holland as well. Luckily we have been far far to the East for most of the summer.

Our first stop was the lovely old town of Montfoort. We had a great mooring in the heart of the town, just 100m from a large supermarket. We wandered around the town and when got back there was a knock on the window and a lady introduced herself to us as Petra. She was intrigued to see a NZ boat in the town as she had never seen one before. Her daughter lives in Wanganui and she and her husband spend 6 months every year there and have applied for permanent residence in NZ. She invited us over to dinner the following night. And then by a strange coincidence later that day a man stopped to chat with us and said his 3 kids had been born in NZ and he had spent may years there in Papakura and would we like to see his photos of the snapper he has caught.

The next day we watched alot of BBC TV in the afternoon and around 5pm we were picked up and driven to their lovely house on the outskirts of Montfoort. We had a lovely 3 course fish dinner and whilst we were on our main she received a text from NZers who were due to stay with them the following night asking if it was alright if they came that day as the weather was not great and they couldn't find anywhere suitable to stay.  Soon John Newton and his partner Lauren arrived. John is (or was?) the TV One reporter for Wanganui. He seemed familiar, and they had just been on a hire boat on the Canal du Midi for a week with 6 others.

Next day we continued down the Ijssel for 10km to another even more lovely village called Oudewater. 

The weekly market was on that day and we wandered around looking at the cheese stalls, and even tried the local speciality of Stroop Waffle which is two large thin waffles 'glued' together with a lovely caramel syrup.  Both Montfoort and Oudewater have lovely churches with a carillion of bells on the hour.

Next day we arrived in the centre of Gouda and tied up. Gouda is a lovel ancient old Dutch town famous for its cheese.

 We wandered around the old streets, saw the windmills and had a lovely meal out at Brunel Restaurant.  We could walk everywhere and the town centre is only 5 mins walk away, with its beautiful Stadhuis (town hall) and cathedral.

Yesterday we went for a very long bike ride to  the  Reeuwijk Lakes which we circumnavigated admiring the beautifully manicured thatched houses along the shore. The sun came out for the rest of the day (but sadly disappeared for today) and it was like a chocolate box scene around every corner.

It has been raining today so we have stayed on board watching Scrapheap Challenge on BBC2 (except for a long walk in a brief respite to get the Sunday Times). We have free electricity and water in Gouda and mooring is very cheap at just 4 euros per night.

This week we head to Amsterdam and the forecast is a bit more cheery than last week (or so we hope)

On the Mighty Rhine to Holland

After 3 months and 2500km we are now back in the Netherlands. We left Minden in Germany on the Monday and made steady progress down the Mittelland Canal to the junction with the Dortmund-Ems Canal (DEK) where we turned right rather than the left where we had come from many months ago.

We were headed for Munster, in the opposite direction from where we wanted to go, but once we got onto the Rhine we would have no locks and a current of 6km/h to speed us on our way.
It is hard to believe that all of the old town of Munster was destroyed -totally- in WWII and that everything you see including the cathedral is only 60 years old. It has all been rebuilt exactly as it was before the war. In East Germany it would all have been bulldozed and concrete and steel buildings erected in their place.

It was market day in Munster and it was incredible. As good as any French market with the best fish we have seen in Germany. We bought some Kingklip, a South African fish, and had a lovely meal of fresh fish that night. For lunch we had that great Dutch speciality at the market of kibbelings - battered morsels of fish served with remoulade sauce in a box. There were stalls selling everthing including pumpkins, flowers, olives,spices and meats and chicken of all sorts.The next day we continued down the DEK to the junction with the Datteln-Wesel Canal. We turned into this very busy canal and over the enxt two days worked out way down 6 locks until we arrived at the Rhine. We turned out into the wide and busy Rhine and then a short distance downstream turned into Wesel Yacht Harbour where we stayed the night and topped up with fresh water.

The next morning we went for a long walk along the banks of the Rhine to an old railway bridge bombed in 1945 (or blown up) and never rebuilt. There was an small airstrip next to the yacht club where we were staying and there was a constant stream of gliders taking off and landing, with us mere meteres below as they headed down to land.

Then it was time to start the voyage down the Rhine. We headed out and were immediately grabbed by the current and propelled and 18km/h downstream. There were barges to the left of us, barges to the right, barges coming towards us and barges overtaking us. There were big barges over 120m long with three decks of John Deere tractors bounded for Rotterdam. There were scores of oil and gas barges heading upstream as the Rhine is the main route for oil and gas for Eastern France and Switzerland as well as Western Germany.

On we swept constantly looking out for 'blue flagging boats'. These are boats that fly a blue board to indicate that they want to pass starboard to starboard and not the normal port to port. They do this so they can crawl up the Rhine on the inside of corners where the current is gentler. It makes life hell with some boats wanting to blue flag, some wanting to do the normal passing, boats wanting to overtake and little ole us weaving a path through it all.

Then almost before we knew it we had passed the German border and were in Holland. Nothing to indicate the border at all, just a change in the language on the few boards that line the river.
A couple of minutes later we turned out of the river and into a delightful lake (Bijland Plas). It was a lovely day after the 5 days of grey (but dry) days we had just had. The lake was filled with hundred of boats all enjoying themselves in the warm sunshine. We anchored off a small island sheltered from the wind and relaxed in the sun before firing up a BBQ and watching the sun go down (8.30pm at present). A magical place and a magical night!

Today we contined further down the Rhine well into the Netherlands. The Rhine splits into three rivers in the Netherlands and we followed one of them the River Lek for a long waybefore stopping for the night. This week we will explore the area around Gouda and Utrecht.

Back on the Mittelland Canal

The week started with a side trip down the Lower Havel River to Rathenow. It is the most scenic part of the lower Havel and a good days run away. The weather was drizzly as we motored down and arrived early afternoon and tied up at the Town Harbour. It is not a really interesting town, but it had a Post Office and chemist which is what we wanted. There was a restuarant right next to the quay and we ate there that night on local fish. Very good value at 9 euros a plate.

Then back up to the Plauer See at the yacht club where we had stayed many weeks before. They still remembered us and we had a pleasant night looking out over the lake. Next day we left all the charm of the lakes and rivers behind, and with foot down started pushing to cover the 500km across to the other side of Germany.

On our way over we had gone down the Elbe for a way. This time we went through a 20m deep lock and exited out on the fantastic Elbe Aqueduct which took us across 918m , at 25m above the level of the Elbe. It is a work of engineering over 60 years in the making and has only just opened.

Each day we have been doing about 70km which at 11km/h takes about 6.5 hours. Add in waiting time at locks of about an hour a lock and it is a long day (at least compared with what we had become used to). We passed by the VW factory at Wolfsburg we had visited on the way through and made steady progress to Hannover where we stayed the night. The rain came down over night, but in the morning it had lifted to blue sky. We set off early and got to Minden where the Mittelland Canal crosses the River Weser by mid afternoon. We wanted to watch the closing ceremnony of the Games and by now we could receive UK satellite TV once again. So we pulled up just over another long aqueduct and watched the finish of the games. Then we went for a walk ove the old aqueduct and crossed underneath it and came back on the new aqueduct (one on left) that has only just opened this year.
It is good having British TV again after only having news channels like Sky News and CNN for months (and of course the Olympic channels recently). This week we head to Munster and then down the mighty Rhine to the Netherlands.

Last Tango in Berlin

Once more we are anchored on a beautiful lake just off the River Havel near Brandenburg. Warm and sunny and very peaceful. We have left Berlina nd have started the long journey back to Holland.

This week we started by cruising to the Scharmutzelsee, a very big lake south east of Berlin and more famous for the spa town of Bad Saarow. We found a lovely free mooring at the entrance to the lake and stayed there the night before heading out onto the lake the next morning. The wind was blowing strongly up the lake and the waves getting bigger as we ventured further up the lake. We were hoping to tie up on the landing stage of a restaurant at the top end of the lake that looked like it was in a sheltered place. We couldn't find it anywhere and when we did eventually see it it was very exposed to the big waves and strong wind, so we headed back down the lake and luckily our free mooring was still available so we nipped in there and spend the rest of the day there. It had a supermarket nearby so we could get fresh food and bread.
We decided the next day to start back to Holland and go via Central Berlin. It was a lovely day as we made our way back through the interconnecting lakes to Schmockwitz where we had stayed just the week before. Then the next day, a beautiful day,

we cruised slowly once again through central Berlin soaking in all the lovely sights - the Dom, the Bode museum, the Reichstag, the hundreds of trip boats, the remnants of the WALL. We waved to our tramp as we motored past and he waved back. We wanted to stop at our favourite place in Berlin alongside Schloss Charlottenburg gardens. Unfortunately it was full when we got there, but Wendy spotted a yacht that might be leaving and sure enough it was soon and the space was just big enough for us, so we tied up and went for a long walk in the Schloss gardens.

We had a nice Italian meal by the Schloss that night.

For most of the week we had been enjoying the Olympic Games on satellite TV. I had found by chance some hidden 'streams' that BBC 1 Sport use and so we had 7 channels of Olympic games available with full expert commentary in English. It was (and is) marvellous. We managed to see the NZ golden Saturday triumphs in the rowing and viewing it with the BBC was great as there are no adverts and a really comprehensive coverage albeit UK orientated. Still ...
The following day was rainy but we decided to head over the Wannsee and tie up at Potsdam and spend the day watching the Olympics. Coming into Potsdam we got pulled over by the Wasserschutzpolizie and told we had gone too fast under a bridge. They fined us 15 euros and send us on our way. Unfortunately for some reason (probably the rain) we couldn't get those BBC streams at Potsdam though we could get all the German languauge Olympics. We stocked up with fresh food to last us the long trek across the North German Plains and the next morning headed along the Havel in lovely weather towards the Elbe. At Plauersee instead of turning off to the Elbe Havel Canal we decided to continue on the lovely River Havel for a few more days to a place called Rathenow as it has a post office we need to send a parcel off.

That brings us to the lovely lake we are now, sipping wine in the early evening sunshine, watching the moorhens and eagles. I shall fire up the BBQ tonight and cook some pork kebabs we bought in Potsdam and then watch the Olympic highlights.

Circumnavigation of Berlin

The day before we had started on our circumnavigation of Berlin, a journey of some 150km and had reached Potsdam after some delay in Spandau Lock. The weather was not good in Potsdam; not wet but very windy with gusts of up to 80 km/h. We were quite sheltered so we ventured out in the afternoon and went for an hour. When we turned the corner of a lake we really hit Force 6 winds and waves. So we turned back and tied back up at Yachthaven Potsdam and went for a walk into the Sans Souci Schloss grounds.

The next day we headed along the Teltow Canal - the quickest way to get to South East Berlin which has another superb lake area. It was still quite windy but we made good progress. Then in the only lock on the canal while we were tied up, a yacht with its mast stowed on board couldn't tie on to the lock and the mast crashed into our canopy over the steering position, making a large tear in it. We could have cried. We swapped details with the other boat and Nick patched up the tears with some duct tape and we threw on a bucket of water and nothing came through. So fingers crossed we should make it back dry to Holland where we can get it sorted out properly with hopefully the yacht's insurance company paying for everything.

We stopped the night at Schmockowitz on the Langer See in a quiet little basin. In the evening we went for a walk and were amazed to see how little developed everything was, being part of former East Germany. I was thrilled to see my first gaslight on a street with the mantle glowing away. It looked like a scene from turn of the century London.

The next day the weather was much better but we had to return to the Tegeler See for Nick and Monika to pick up their car and return home. We sailed through lake after lake and along the very pretty Muggle Spree lined with lovely houses and manicured lawns with a sprinkling of fine restaurants along the way. Then down the Spree further and soon we were in the heart of Berlin, passing the great sights of the Dom, The Museums and the Reichstag.

We stopped briefly for Cindy the dog to goto the toilet at the spot where we had first stayed in Berlin and where our friendly tramp looked after the boat. He was there with his mates and helped us tie up and was rewarded ith a cold beer for his troubles.
Then back to Tegel and a meal in the yacht club and a lovely evening on the deck drinking wine and watching the boats come and go. The girls tried their hand at some fishing.
The next morning Nick and Monika and the Leslie and Vivienne left for home in Erlangen and we headed through Spandau lock, the scene of the ramming boat just a few days before. We called in at the Shell Bunker Boat and took on board $2000 worth of fuel. Ouch! Then back along the Spree to Schloss Charlottenburg where we tied up for the night. It was the hottest night we had experienced for many years, not falling below 28C.
We continued through Berlin past all the great sights of the day before last and stopped in the Langer See for the night. From there we have headed south into the Markishe Wasserstrasse a magical series of lakes interconnected by the River Dahme (a tributary of the Spree).

We have enjoyed watching the Olympic Games this weekend and NZ winning their heats in the rowing, and losing in the football to Brazil.

I know I have mentioned lakes and lakes before, but the area around Berlin has so many lakes (over a thousand) and a good percentage are navigable and inter-connected, that it is hard to comprehend without visiting it. It's like having the Rotorua lakes multiplied 100 fold and spread out and interconnected over the Central North Island from Hamilton to Palmerston North, with Berlin in the middle of it all.

Another week in this area and then we slowly head back West.