Benelux (June 2009)
A trip made by friends, five couples on five motorcycles in 16 days! We drove 5.600 kilometers in 9 countries!
We took the ferry from Patras, Greece and after a day underway, we disembarked in the Port of Ancona, in Italy. We drove in autostrada to Rovereto, in the northeastern part of Italy. From Rovereto we had a beautiful view of the Alps. We visited the mighty bell Maria Dolens, which was made of metal of the used weapons in the 1st WW.
The next day we drove west and we passed lake Constance from it's north side to stop for two days stay, in Colmar, France. For some people Colmar is the most beautiful city in Europe... We drove in the Route of Wine in Alcace, and we visited the villages Riquewihr, Ribeauville, Kaysersberg, Mittelwihr and Wintzenheim. Traditional villages surrounded of vineyards!
We continued our trip to Amsterdam, Netherlands! We made a short visit in Luxembourg, in our way to Amsterdam. A three days stay in Amsterdam gave us the opportunity to visit Zaanse Schans, a town in the suburbs of Amsterdam, full of extraordinarily well preserved architecture and traditions.
A tour in the canals of Amsterdam by boat was a must do and it was a very good idea by Vana! Amsterdam Arena and Van Gogh Museum were on our list....
On Friday morning we visited Alkmaar in the province of Noord Holland. Every first Friday morning (10.00–12.30 a.m.), during the months April to September, the Waagplein is the backdrop for this traditional cheesemarket. After the old-fashioned way of the hand clap, traders and carriers will weigh the cheeses. It is one of only four traditional Dutch cheese markets still in existence.
We left Amsterdam for Brussels, Belgium. We drove by the Atlantic coast, over the Netherland dams! It was a beautiful route!
In Brussels, we liked Grand Place and we visited the Atomium. A day trip to the cities Ghent, Bruges and Ostend was perfect. Especially Bruges is a must see city! I think a two days stay in Brussels was ok!
After Brussels, the team split up and Vana and I drove south to Bordeaux, France with a short visit to Paris. I drove almost 1.ooo kilometers and the evening of the same day we were in Bordeaux. We spent three wonderful days in Bordeaux, and we will visit this city again...
Avignon in France, the City of Popes, was our next station. A visit to the monastery of Avignon, was the cause to remember the book "The name of the rose" of the Italian writer Umberto Eco.
At this period of time the Festival of Avignon was on. The city was a madness and we liked it!!!
Our last station in this trip was Bologna in Italy which is an important cultural and artistic centre. We had a very good time in Bologna!
The last day of the trip we drove south, to the Port of Ancona to get the ferry to return to Greece. In the middle of our route to Ancona we made a short visit to the Republic of San Marino. Perched on the top of a 657m lump of rock, the 61-sq-km Repubblica di San Marino is Europe’s third-smallest state after the Vatican and Monaco.
A 16-day trip was over.... We enjoyed every moment and I drove over in some magic places in Europe!!!
