Flevoland to the Mediterranean Sea

Simple campsite, beautifully situated in relation to the historic center of Chalon. You can walk there from the campsite. We did it by bike in five minutes.

For us really only a stopover on the way to the South, but it turns out to have a real historic center that is worth a visit. On Sunday morning there is a large fruit and vegetable market where it was pleasantly busy.

We drove through the Lyon ring road. Not a nice route with the camper. Already busy, and the navigation gave directions that didn't seem right. Somewhere in the middle of that ring, the thing also started reporting an environmental zone. Didn't see a sign, and it shouldn't be an issue for us anyway. But you don't want that distraction when it's busy. Made my own plan and of course got through it well, but a route around Lyon is a bit quieter I think. If you can, make something up!

Quiet campsite. After ten o'clock only the croaking of frogs could be heard in the distance. Friendly camping owner too, who explains the city center without being asked, and in the evening makes a tour of the campsite to take the order of bread. It takes about 15 minutes to walk from the campsite to the Arc de Triomphe. And from there you can reach the Roman theater in 15 minutes.

The sanitary facilities on the campsite are adequate. Our first motorhome trip took us through Denmark; it (obviously) falls far short of that standard.

Impressed with Orange! As the campsite owner said "the theater is the best, it doesn't get any better". That's right, but what a nice place to hang out. That theater is really great. Good explanation during the audio tour as well, which really brings the building to life. More often seen remnants, but here you really have an idea of what it could have been like. Afterwards we hung out and ate in the neighborhood. Relaxed atmosphere here. Orange is definitely recommended. To be honest, we didn't bother to look for any traces of those other Oranges. It was a bit warm too.

The arrival at the campsite was somewhat ominous. “Someone had to stay in the camper” because apparently many cars are robbed during registration. According to the camping man at the barrier. Once registered, nothing crazy noticed. Nice place in the shade selected. Sanitary facilities are reasonable. Will get even better when everything is open. From the campsite you can walk across the bridge to the city in about twenty minutes. Or you can take the free pedestrian ferry that leaves behind the campsite. In the early and late season, the ferry still takes an afternoon break, but it sails every 15 minutes.

Avignon is the city of the popes. What a palace, or rather, castle they have built! It dominates the city, and the view of it. The visit is more than worth it. By means of virtual reality you get a nice picture of how the rooms were furnished at the time. Finally a very good application of it.

After the visit I wandered through the city where the endless shopping streets stand out. By no means seen everything, it is so vast. Lots of clothes, but also books and CDs/LPs. Interspersed of course with nice terraces for a snack and drink. Avignon did not disappoint.

Arles didn't quite deliver what I expected. Visually, the arena has been somewhat destroyed by the addition of temporary stands. The antique theater has been demolished to such an extent that it offers little after seeing the theater in Orange. I knew it had been largely destroyed, and Orange at least gave the remains a place. Finally, Van Gogh… I thought I would stumble upon locations where some scenes could be recognized. I should have prepared myself better, because in the city there is little to nothing marked.

To avoid the crowds and the announced storm, we did not drive to Saintes-Maries-de-Mer, but to Serignan-Plage. A nice, quiet campsite right on the dunes and the beach. To do nothing for two days.

We hadn't thought for a while that the Ascension holiday would also mobilize many people in France. It is not that bad at the campsite here, but on the road it was certainly busy. The urgent tip from the previous campsite "book because everything is going to be full" is not so bad for the time being.

Only a bike ride to the Orpellieres nature reserve. A tidal area that only floods at high water levels.

Walk along the high tide line to Portiragnes. There and back about 6 kilometers. At 30 degrees, there is really no rest day anymore.

I suspect Carcassonne is one of the top five places to visit in France, but it was the board game that gave the impetus to draw the route along here. The creators of the game had a good example. The old town is still intact as an old fortress, and within the walls the streets run like a maze. That after an hour starts to feel familiar again.

In terms of tourist magnet, Carcassonne resembles the Mont Saint Michel, but with a little more variety to save your money. Incidentally, just as well arranged as at the Mont; clearly marked spacious car parks a short walk away also make the visit pleasant.

Definitely don't regret this stop!

We only drive past Toulouse, but if you have time, it is definitely worth spending a day and evening. In the evening you can stroll along the water of the Garonne and on the squares (Capitole, Wilson) of the city. And during the day there is aviation history to discover. For France, this is where the airmail era began. The very beginning of what has now become Airbus.

A campsite that really likes to radiate that it is an American natural park. Great facilities, a bit pricey though. Chosen because it is within walking/cycling distance of the city center. Via a “green cycle path”. That turns out to be a very hilly path. So the bike has to be handled regularly, because we don't drive electrically yet.

Very understandable that Albi, the red city, has been placed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. A very beautiful city. The gigantic cathedral is not only striking on the outside, but the inside is also (still) very lavishly decorated. A little further on, the monastery of Saint Salvi is hidden. You will find the monastery garden through covered alleys, and it is then difficult to leave here again. What a lovely quiet place where it is very good to stay out of the sun (it was 30 degrees today).

Of course you know in advance what you are going to look at, but it remains overwhelming. An entire village that was massacred and burned to the ground by an SS brigade, and whose ruins have never been rebuilt. The walk through the village itself was strangely soothing. The entrance to the village is via the accompanying exhibition and just before the entrance the portraits of all victims are presented. That made the passage about fifty heavy meters.

It remains a bizarre story that was not carried out on a whim, but was well prepared. Unbelievable, intense, and yet good to see for real.

Neat campsite, with a super friendly campsite owner. Very quiet here, the barrier closes for a good night. Plumbing is a bit dated.

We leave the exit on the right, but if you have days left, then Rocamadour might be a nice stopover. A medieval town and a place of pilgrimage, below and at the top of a rock.

One of the famous tourist places of course. Judging by the size of the car parks, it can be incredibly busy here in the summer season. Still fine to do at the end of May.

Building remains more beautiful on the outside than the inside. Although with the modern virtual guide it comes to life a bit more than during our previous visits (still in the last century 😊).

We are tired of driving for today, and look for a campsite nearby. It will be the municipal campsite in Checy near Orléans. Expectations are not high, and finding it is already a thing. We also turn out to be just too late, but we can get up and do the paperwork tomorrow. It turns out to be a neat campsite right on the banks of the Loire. Great place to stay overnight or explore the area from here.

Reims is a city that we have often passed by, and of which we are of course familiar with the image of the “Notre Dame look alike” cathedral. We'll look it up now. We park at the Stade de Reims where the camper fits perfectly, and walk into the city over the bridge. Beautiful cathedral with the angel smiling, and which we had to search for a while. She's in the left arch.

As far as we're concerned, the old theater / opera in art deco style is second to none. It is being renovated, and we are very curious about the result.

At three than the modern fountain; it looks like some kind of charged particle.

Great city of Reims with the necessary relaxing terraces.

Campsite selected at the indicated distance to the highway. About ten kilometers, and they appear to be really away from the highway. In the middle of the campaign on a fishing pond fed by the Somme. Small campsite with excellent facilities and a good restaurant with a daily menu with two choices. Ready for our last leg that takes us out of France again.

Basic campsite near the center of Ypres. Ten minute walk to the Menin Gate.

Close by is industry where it seems to burn around an oven for 24 hours. In the background, the roar of the furnace and the occasional dumping of the next load of fuel can be heard continuously. Not a big deal for one night, but it would get on the nerves for longer. And whether the chimney only blows clean air, we doubt it.

Ypres had been on the list for a long time. Because of the Ypres Salient in the Great War, and to experience the evening commemoration at the Menin Gate. The story of Ypres still makes a bit sad and quiet. But it is a beautiful rebuilt city. And it is impressive to experience the Last Post under the Menin Gate. “Internet” advised to be present half an hour before. But when we arrive at a quarter past seven from our terrace, we are already running late. Unbelievable and unbelievably beautiful that it has been so busy here every evening for more than a hundred years. But it was also quite a bit. Just consider that all the names here on the gate belong only to the missing and only to the Commonwealth.

Looked up to see the Ysertoren live. Very sad how a monument and movement so pure in nature and striving for world peace, after the horror of the Great War, can become so controversial. The sorrow of Belgium.

“Never again war” makes so much sense when you drive around in this region. And it is, in 2022, so crooked.