Looking forward to your return. Can't wait to hear the next chapter.

Les.

Back home now.... and raring to go!

So, where were we? Oh! Yes.... sat on the ferry waiting to dock in Hoek van Holland.

Let's play catch up with a few pictures.


This was the view from the Premier Inn in Harwich at 5am Saturday morning.


Our lot almost ready for the 1/2 mile ride to the ferry.


Embarkation complete and the bikes strapped down.




Underway and the sun came out. Some of the group opted for a bit of sunbathing or ship counting to pass the time.

That's got us up to date....

The torrential rain had stopped by the time we disembarked so we made our way through passport control and then wait for the car (Simon's missus had just had an operation on her leg so she couldn't ride her bike or even get on the back of his). We waited, then waited then waited some more. The next thing we knew we saw Si walking off the boat.... it seems he'd set the car alarm when he parked it up and the movement of the ship on the crossing had continuously set it off until the battery was flat.

Never, not once did I mention that none of the XJR's had a problem but the only BMW in the group did!

Anyway, the ships crew gave him a jump start and he soon joined us for the trip to Gouda.

We allowed Si and Lucy to lead in the car but it was soon apparent that we were going around in circles. The Dutch had shut the motorway so of course the sat nav kept trying to put us on to it. A quick stop and the sat navs reset to "route excluding motorway" soon saw us on our way to the hotel in Gouda. Arriving later than anticipated we had just enough time to dump the kit in the rooms and get to the restaurant for dinner and a few drinks before bed.

Painkillers continued to sustain me throughout the day.

Monday dawned early. We were up and about by 7:00 getting all of the luggage repacked before a 7:30 brekkie. Strangely, the pain in my right gland had subsided overnight and the left one was much better. I still didn't feel right but a light meal of scrambled eggs and bacon and lots of fresh orange juice improved matters.

We were expecting the party boat crew to meet us at 10am so we reloaded the bikes and took coffee in the warmth of some unexpected sunshine on the terrace.



Text messages started coming in from the party boat crew saying that one of the lads had dropped his bike back in England after losing his footing stopping at a junction. No damage done just dented pride. Thankfully his wife saved the bike by kindly allowing it to land on her!

More coffee was taken while we waited then another text message arrived saying that they were looking for a bike tyre shop as someone else's bike had developed a lump on the front tyre. Their arrival would be delayed so to save wasting more time we had more coffee.

Eventually they turned up at around mid-day.



After meeting and greeting and the usual mickey taking we got back on the bikes and except for two who, incidentally, were heading for the coffee shops of Amsterdam for supplies, we all rode off together on the now re-opened motorway to our destination, Zeewolde.

An hour later we arrived and after checking in got into our chalets and set up home for the week. The accommodation was basic but that was fine as all the bungalows would only be used for sleeping anyway.

We had a quick nose around the park and everything was well kept, clean and tidy. The Brits met up with the Dutch contingent at the bar for drinky poohs before finding out the on-site shop was shut (well, it was Monday after all!) so me and her decided to head off to the town to get some supplies in. It was a journey of around two miles to Lidl's and easily found. No HP sauce or baked beans!!!

Having carried out that little chore I took the scenic route back with SWMBO giving me ear ache. Eventually we found our way back and carried on the ritualistic drinking. The Germans arrived and settled in next door to us. Thoughts of Poland flashed through my mind!

I think we got back to our beds at around mid-night after making plans for a trip to Amsterdam the following day. The "ardcore" carried on dancing and drinking the night away. In the melee that followed one of the lads, Uncle Les fell into a dyke drunkenly taking a "shortcut" back to his bungalow. Thankfully it wasn't very deep but his exit was witnessed by "little legs" who thought it was some kind of bog monster coming after him! That children, is what drink and drugs do to you!!! Be warned!


Uncle Les re-enacts the previous evenings boggy dyke related fun.

Brill. Keep the it coming

Les.

Tuesday, I was again up early and felt fine so set about making brekkie. Bacon, egg and bratworst - YUM (except that I found that bratworsts take longer to cook that proper sausages.... My attempt to give the household food poisoning was thwarted by our housemates turning up their noses at them)

The Poles and Croats had arrived as had the Italians albeit rather late and the French not at all.

At 9am a group of us Brits assembled outside the park reception where Simon and Lucy organised a mini bus to take us to Amsterdam at a cost of 700 quid return Anyway, we coughed up and off we went.



After about an hour we hit the town. The group split into two and me and her went off for an educational tour with Blossom and Si and Lucy whilst the rest of the lads had their own agenda!!



Our group went for coffee where we had a discussion about what to do. Now I've never been to Amsterdam before so the only thing I said I wanted to see was Kanalstraat (the red light district). Incidentally, Si and Lucy are both ex-cops so you can imagine their reaction to that suggestion!

Anyway, we went window shopping and looking at the architecture, which was amazing.


This one reminded me of the Jaap incident!













After an hour or so we had a coffee and Lucy suggested a change in direction.





She suggested we cross the canal and walk through an alleyway onto another road which ran parallel. With coffee consumed we set off and as soon as we got into the other road, guess what I saw!



I tried dragging them in but no-one was having it so I had to retire ungraciously. Lucy suggested we walk on the other side of the canal. I reluctantly agreed but my disposition soon changed.... she'd guided us right into the heart of the red light district!!! Yay!

It was awful.... there were lots of semi clad young ladies all over the place. I didn't know which way to turn

Blossom dragged me into one of those sex shop things... well, I never!!!!!!!!!!!!



I later had to go into more just to make sure my eyes we not deceiving me! They weren't!

Anyway.... after a while, my heart rate returned to near normal and we continued on the cultural tour taking in lunch and a few coffee's and beers along the way. It was soon time to reassemble ready for the mini bus pick up but not before experiencing my first Dutch kebab. Very nice it was too!

Once we had returned to Zeewolde we headed for the bar and continued partying from the night before. We made our excuses reasonably early. The excesses of 'dam had taken their toll.

Wednesday. Our Dutch hosts had organised a "Dyno day" which was to allow you to put your XJR on a dyno to check how the engine was doing. With mine being standard I felt there was no point in riding 60 miles to watch bikes being put through their paces.

I had a wander over to the Brit enclave and had a chat with Pete, Blossoms partner. He was going to do a mystery tour. The basis of which was NO motorways, take two left turns then two right turns and see where we end up. When we had ridden far enough, we'd put the sat navs on and ride home. I like Pete's style! A day on the bikes would be great.

We set off at 10am and promptly got lost. Well, we couldn't actually get lost because no-one knew where we were going! We found some great balls out straights and a few twisties which were mainly poulders (the embankments which kept the sea out). After a while the ride leader decided we'd stop for a coffee in an unknown town after spotting a coffee shop from the main drag.

Unfortunately, the cafe turned out to be a fishmongers which we found quite amusing. A little searching found a real cafe nearby so we holed up there for a sausage roll and a cappuchino (I've become very international in my absence, discovering a more refined side I never knew existed!







Back on the bikes again and two lefts, two rights later found us on some nice open roads and then we found the N302 Houtribdijk at Bovenkarspel. Oooh! I liked that..... a lot!


This is the start of the Houtrindijk. Lots of tall ships spotted in the area.



It's basically a road that divides the Ijsselmeer and the Markemeer. No idea what the speed limit is (don't care really!) 15 miles long and lot of fun. Pete's XJR runs NOS and he made full use of it... front wheel in the air in third then the NOS ran out!

We rode across the N302 into a town called Lelystad which was very picturesque. Lots of boats around and a couple of great cafe's. We parked up and went for lunch where I honestly fooled the local with my Dutch. I ordered mussels and chips with garlic mayo fluently! She then started to ask me if there was anything else I wanted when I had to front up and explain - me Engrish!



The food was great but we were always watched by a flock of jackdaws.... biding their time until the tourists fed them.









Fed and watered we set the sat navs for home but we ignored them and did the N302 once more for luck. You could see for miles so all overtakes could be easily planned and in that respect it reminded me of the Whitby to Pickering road. Good road surface too.

We returned quite wet after a brief but heavy shower to base where Lucy, Si, Debs and others had organised a BBQ for the Brits which was very welcome. Beer / food / bikes..... there's a trend appearing

During the BBQ stories were being told of the dyno day run. Unfortunately, in two separate incidents, one Pole and one Croatian had had an off. The Poles bike was a mess and he had broken his wrist. Fortunately, the Croatians bike fared a little better sustaining bent forks. The guys operated on it at the dyno day venue and untwisted the forks, straightening what they could. He rode it back to base that afternoon and later rode it back home!

With the BBQ over we went back to the bar and partied a little more before bed.

Thursday. Chillax day. I woke to the sound of rain and it stayed much that way all morning so it was a case of stay in and watch Dutch TV and sleep. RTL8 is NOT what I remembered from the days of Eurosat! Oh! well.

There was a ride out to Assen organised but there was no way I was going in that weather! Plenty of others did. Got soaked, paid 20 quid watched two practice laps before it got cancelled. Good call on my part, I reckon!

After lunch the rain stopped and me and her decided to have a walk along the poulder to Zeewolde, a distance of about a mile and a half. We walked up to the poulder and met Freddy and Marj who were walking in too. No sooner had we started it began to pour again so we spent 10 minutes hiding under a tree. Thankfully, the shower didn't last long and the ground dried up very quickly so off we went.







Apart from the amount of water in Holland the first thing to hit you is how clean it is everywhere (well, apart from Amsterdam). It's light years away from the UK.

On the outskirts of Zeewolde we encountered a brightly painted cow.... a bit random but hey! it must have been the drugs!



Somehow, I just knew it was pregnant and the calf was breeched so I had to help it out.




We did a bit of shopping and had a cappuchino and apple cake in a very nice cafe before wandering back.

Our Dutch hosts had put on a BBQ as this was the last full day of the Eurofest. First of all though we had to do a photo call for the bikes and the group.Once the food was eaten it was back to the partying.


Photo call time.

Very good mate. So funny and yet informative too.

Les.

Are you sure you've never written a book :?:
If not, you kept a very good diary
Well, I've only got to Monday, have t go back now and read the rest

Friday / Saturday. Well that was that! Show over for another year. Got up, showered, brekkie, took the laundry back to reception and said our goodbyes. We'd left by 9am.

We had a bimble across country avoiding the E12 motorway until we got to Amersfoort when it started raining. We stopped off for a coffee or two in a truck stop / cafe and put the wet weather gear on. We decided to relent and make headway on the motorway, not wanting to hang about in bad weather.

Within a couple of miles, the sun came out and we headed towards Utrecht, Rotterdam and Hoek van Holland stopping to have a smoke, get a drink and get the wet weather gear off.



We rolled into the port at about 13:30 and made our way through embarkation and passport control before strapping the bikes down for the homeward journey. Most people spent their time sleeping on the way back due to the lack of it during the week. I was no exception!

We docked on time. Text messages started filtering through saying that it was pouring with rain in London so some of us decided to stay in the Premier Inn in Harwich for the night before making our onward journey in hopefully better weather.

On disembarkation Pete found he had a flat rear tyre so rode it through passport control and the half mile to the hotel on its rim. Having got it back to the hotel, Freddy and Marj pulled in with a repair kit and 12 Volt air pump. Ten minutes later it was fixed and Pete ended up riding back to Abingdon on it.

A nice meal and a couple of pints was followed by a restful night in the hotel and we left Harwich after a good English brekkie and proper tea at 09:15 arriving home at 13:15. The weather was good all the way.

Next year Poland.... it'll take me a while to recover from this trip but the women have decided they are going to fly there while we battle the elements once more!

A great week with great people, good beer and decent food.

Back to normality tomorrow though!

Hi matey

Ty so much for sharing that with us cracking stories and photos, fair play cheers

Hope you dont expect the same info when we go to Europe

Regards Strongbow

Just finished reading it...sounds and looks like you all had a lor-a lor-a fun

He may not , BUT I WILL

A good read, very entertaining you should think of doing your memoires (sp?) it might be a best seller.

Les.

well thats our quota for web space used up then looooool , glad you had a good time , loved the piccys )

Have you been & gone somewhere RF?

Oooops I didnt even realise lol

Glad you had a safe trip tho