DORIS MAKES IT BACK TO EUROPE!

We’re back in Europe and I couldn’t be happier.

It was only four weeks ago I was living a nightmare with Doris breaking down and having to be recovered from Germany back home to the UK. Now we’re back in Doris and we’re back in Holland.

A little rewind…

We’ve done some bits whilst we’ve been home for four weeks. Like hiking in snowdonia twice, visiting the cotswolds and exploring the jurassic coast.

But being home something just didn’t feel quite right, it was weird and to be honest, not where we wanted to be.

Thankfully Doris made it home unharmed and within good time.

Remember that horrible German garage we had nothing but bad experiences with? Yeah? Well their quote of $2000 and 3 weeks couldn’t have been further from the truth if they’d have tried.

Within 3 hours of work and a £50 part Doris was fit and back running again.

I would say I was relived but I was annoyed, too. Having had to get her recovered and, in essence, lost four weeks of our European Adventure. Especially because it was such an easy fix. Imagine if we’d have been taken to an honest, reliable and trustworthy garage? Doris would have been fixed and we’d have been on our way.

ANYWAY.

We got her fixed on Thursday and headed out to Angelsey for one shakedown and test run.

It’s been really weird because when we left her we only took our essentials, but now that it’s been four weeks, we had forgotten what those things were! So somewhere in between packed and not packed, it was finding what was missing before heading back into Europe.

A little side note, we managed to take to dogs with us for the night and they absolutely loved it. Gems and old girl now, but she and her Sister, Millie, both enjoyed the fresh seaside air, some sniffs and a comfy night inside of Doris.

 

Heading back into Europe

With only 7 weeks left before we fly to America to cycle across the whole bloody country, we thought it’d be best to get back in Doris and do what we do best.

ADVENTURE!

Wrong.

Eat pastries and sleep in till noon.

After a frantic morning on Monday trying to get the last minute bits sorted for the van and double checking everything 8 times, we were on the road and ready for the 300 mile journey down south to Harwich for the ferry.

The route was faster than last time, probably because I was more confident driving Doris, but mostly because the whole way we didn’t come across any traffic.

Once in Harwich and stocked up on tea, we parked Doris up and shut the curtains for a night be the sea.

Today we got up early, mostly because it was bloody boiling, but mostly because the sun was so bright it woke us up. Good luck to us when we cross the Arctic Circle in a few weeks and that thing call the midnight sun is out and about.

We booked the same ferry we crossed with last time. The 7HR journey from Harwich to the Hook of Holland and it was a breeze. A £25 cabin room is well worth the money when you’ve got your own little room with access to a shower room and toilet, alongside a comfy double bed and TV.

7HR flew by, but this time I barely did any work and just watched YouTube videos instead.

Once on Dutch soil for the second time we headed North towards Amsterdam. There’s a village we had planned to see on the way back from Doris’ first adventure into Europe. We’ll head there tomorrow instead.

This time we’re a little bit more focused on seeing Norway, in particular, Northern Norway. The plan is a relatively straightforward one in that we’ll just drive North. Undecided whether to hit Norway on the way up or drive up through Sweden and down through Norway. We’ll likely go for the later as we’ve only ever spent one day in Sweden!

It’s really good to be back and on the road again. Life seems simple again and it’s a huge weight off of the shoulders knowing that Doris is back running, and here’s to hoping for a smooth second attempt at a European Adventure.

Once we’d parked up for the night. Which might I add, next to the cutest of little Hymers, older AND smaller than Doris, which is a rarity.

We got back out on the bikes, cycled to the nearest supermarket, grabbed some Dutch sausage and pastries and headed back in for the night. Remember I mentioned about it being a simple life? Yeah, it really is.

What’s more exiting though is I can get back to writing, which in honesty I’ve really missed. So if you’ve missed the daily updates, I’m sorry for unfortunate incident, but we’re back and I hope you’re here for the journey with us!