FOAK: European tour

Exactly. I think the age restriction on UK YHA membership was dropped a
long time ago, certainly never caused me any problem until abroad.
--
Dave
GS850x2 XS650 SE6a

Teach a man to fish and he and his pikey mates will have the
river cleaned out in a day.

 

As other suggest, the weather in the north of Europe isn't that great
and I'd head for the sun.

Czech Republic, though, is amazing as long as you stay away from
Prague, which (while beautiful) is rapidly degenerating into a
'Herewegoherewegoherewego' stag night-fest. Outside Prague, the roads
are good, the beer fabulously cheap, the women attractive, the hotels
excellent value and the locals welcoming once they realise you aren't
German or Russian (if you're offered a menu in German, assume the
prices have been doubled).

Belgium is a shithole, apart from the Ardennes, IMHO. Combines the
worst of northern France with the crowded nature of the Netherlands.
And the worst driving in Europe apart from (just) Greece. Saving grace
is beer, chocolate and chips. Bruges is lovely, but if you're on a
bike you're going to be moving on and up, preferably at high speed.
Anyway, see weather comments.

My pick - Italy, and as far south as you can go. Fabulous weather,
fabulous roads, the best food in Europe (whatever the French say, in
my experience you eat better in Italy these days), and riding a bike
in Italy is something everyone should do.

Dammit, I find myself wanting to go again.

 

For Christ's sake, if you use the CZ motorways, remember to buy a
motorway vignette, like you have to in Swizzland. You used to have to
hunt for some obscure office at the border - how they do it now
they're in the EU, I dunno. But anyway, a favourite sport of CZ Plod
is to nick and instant-fine all the furriners who didn't know you had
to buy a sticker.

 

I know Italy well, although the South more than the North, and I
largely agree (Milan is a dump, though an Italian dump).

The plan currently taking shape is a Hook of Holland-Plzen dash,
followed by a two day bimble via Austria into Alto Adige, some arsing
around in Italy and a two day bimble back up France to Calais,
possibly via Bruges.

 

I dunno what it is about the Frogs, but while they still have more
Michelin-starred places than any other country on the planet (even
allowing for bias), it's getting harder and harder to find really good
cheap places offering cracking home cooking.

Time was when the Relais Routiers system was *always* a guarantee, and
it still is, but there are so few now, compared with, well, 20-25
years ago. That's the expansion of the motorway network, and the
consolidation of the transport industry, that is.

I suppose the fast food industry must take some of the blame - France
is McDonalds most profitable market after the US now, believe it or
not. They may prate about the superiority of their cooking, but they
don't half love their greaseburgers.

But when riding in Italy, you are spoiled for choice when it came to
decent small eateries. Quality seems better, too. I've had some
memorable meals in out-of-the-way places in Frogland over the years,
but they're becoming fewer. (A damn good place in Neufchatel, near
Rouen, springs to mind)

 

The way it works in Italy is that you always get quality except,
possibly, in tourist hell holes. If you pay more you get a different
kind of food---veal cutlet versus spleen butty---or you get nicer
surroundings---sit-down round pizza versus stand-up pizza slice. But
you have to work hard to find bad food.

 

Last year, I found some nice places to eat in Reims. However, there were
loads of themed eateries and familiar brands.

and pizza. You expect to see pizzarias in Grenoble[1] but last time I
was in Normandie there were loads of pizza places. US style shopping
malls with cosmopolitan food courts seem to be cropping up everywhere
too.

Rural Italy is still fab. The urban areas are being Americanized,
though. French supermarkets are cropping up with their US style malls
and food courts. There is a massive Auchan close to the ancient ruins of
Pompeii for example.

[1] there is a "Little Italy" area on the north bank of the river with
several fine Italian restaurants

 

They've got more than 1000 McD outlets in France now. The UK has about
1200, I think. No idea how many Italy's got. It's sad, in a way. Like
French bakeries, and the number that now actually rely on frozen bread
and viennoiserie (I think I've mentioned this before).

 

The previous Italian government had a right wing populist in charge
and Fascists (proper ones) in the cabinet. The food's still okay.

 

So Prodi is responsible for the sudden gastronomic renaissance in Italy,
after the wilderness years of junk food under Berlusconi, eh?

I'm not sure I agree with TOG, actually - I live in France, and
certainly haven't any complaints about the food. I love the food in
Italy as well, but sometimes good restaurants can be mysteriously
difficult to find. Especially in Venice.

 

In its day, the PCI was the biggest outside Communist countries (the
Chinese one was bigger) and one of the things that stopped Italy
sliding into an even worse state. But that was a long time ago.

 

They did at the time, but that might be finished with. Smacked a bit of
the Jugend to me.
--
Dave
GS850x2 XS650 SE6a

Teach a man to fish and he and his pikey mates will have the
river cleaned out in a day.

 

Ignore the iKike

Oh, you can still eat superbly in France. It's just that the good
really cheap restaurant seems to be an endangered species. Cf what I
said about the RR network: I see precious few on my trundles around
the country, these days. A large percentage of the trucks, their core
market, has migrated to the autoroutes and there are fewer of them
anyway.

 

In fairness, the PCF was slavishly Stalinist, while the PCI did show
occasional signs of independent thought.

 

It's odd how the Commies still manage to hold control here and there
in Europe: local government, etc.

That reminds me - in my son's old school (staunchly Catholic), in the
'trophy room', there's a photo of the choir in Rome, and a framed
letter from a government official thanking them for such excellent
singing in front of the country's leader, who really appreciated it.
It's dated 1930......

I don't know how bad the internecine strife was between right and left
wing in Italy, in mid- to late 1940s. Perhaps you can enlighten me?

In Greece, of course, it was outright civil war. I suppose the Spanish
Commies had largely been subdued by Franco. Where's Sweller when you
need him?

The Frogs tend to gloss over the fact that there was a lot of blood
shed between Gaullists and Commies in 1944-45, but then they have some
nasty skeletons in their 1939-45 cupboard, not the least of which is
the fact that Vichy France was the only unoccupied country actively to
collaborate in the Holocaust.

 

Sadly I'm sailing from Split on the 15th, so we won't be at home.

--
_______
..'_/_|_\_'. Ace (brucedotrogers a.t rochedotcom)
\`\ | /`/ DS#8 BOTAFOT#3 SbS#2 UKRMMA#13 DFV#8 SKA#2 IBB#10
`\\ | //'
`\|/`
`

 

Doing stuff.

It could be argued it was Stalin who subdued the Republicans in Spain.

IIRC, the French Resistance was Communist dominated.

Vatican.

 

interesting novel on this subject which I've read recently: "Soldiers
of Salamis".

 

On 22 Aug, 10:41, "Dave H." > Some mates (biking mates) of mine have a
nice gite near Limoges, "La

Coo, Neighbours. Do they know the Eymoutiers to Bourganeuf road?

 

Hm. 'Country' is pushing it a bit, but as it's a separate state I'll
give you the point.