For the previous chapter see Europe Trip June 2016

The basic plan soon came together. After the girlfriend, Christieann, had finished the school year, and before the Somme area went into security lock-down, we would fly to France. We would travel around the Somme region, then mosey on up to the Flanders in Belgium. With a short flight we could hop over to blighty to see my family near Bristol. I could not plan a trip to Europe without seeing my family for the first time since December 2013. After seeing my folks, and doing some more sightseeing, we would make our way home to the USA.

A year before, my friend Stephen had taken a specialized bicycle tour around the Western Front. The topography of northern France and Belgium was quite bicycle friendly. This method of travel would provide a close appreciation of the topography by experiencing it directly. Although he had a great time, I knew that such a bicycle would not work for the myself and Christieann. I wanted to make my own schedule, to go where I wanted to go, and go when I wanted. That also ruled out a heavy reliance on public transport. We would need to rent a car, or two, to make my bucket list trip a reality.

The basic plan soon came together with a rough itinerary, hence it was Plan A.

Plan A

• Fly from LAX to Paris, France.
• Stay a few days in the Somme, France.
• Stay a few days in Ypres in Flanders, Belgium.
• Stay overnight in Ghent, Belgium on the way to Brussels.
• Fly from nearby Brussels, Belgium, to Bristol, United Kingdom.
• Stay a few days with the family, do some sightseeing around Bristol.
• Stay overnight in Weymouth, on the English seaside.
• Fly from Gatwick back to LAX, via Iceland.

With flights booked, hotel rooms reserved, etc I hit an insurmountable snag. As they say, “no plan survives contact with the enemy“, the enemy here was a 300+ Euro surcharge. Picking the car up at Paris CDG, and then dropping it off at Brussels International airport would incur a hefty fee. Why I was not warned or informed of this when I booked the car, I do not know. I found out about it via accident while trawling car travel insurance forums. Thank you Internet. So time to jiggle the plan, I was not going to give the b@&^%$ the satisfaction of getting even more money out of me. This would mean an early start on our last day in Belgium. We would have to travel from Ghent, down to Paris to catch a midday flight. What could go wrong?

Plan B

• Fly from LAX to Paris, France.
• Stay a few days in the Somme, France.
• Stay a few days in Ypres in Flanders, Belgium.
• Stay overnight in Ghent, Belgium. Now completely out of the way for going back to Paris.
• Fly from Paris, France to Bristol, United Kingdom.
• Stay a few days with the family, do some sightseeing around Bristol.
• Stay overnight in Weymouth, on the English seaside.
• Fly from Gatwick back to LAX, via Iceland.

It took a bit of jiggling of the transferable, yet non-refundable bookings, but I managed to move things around to fit. It was then we realized that we were flying into Bristol late on Fathers Day. Great timing Tim! The good thing was that Lynette, my sister, and my youngest niece, Bobby, would meet us while we were staying in France. So it was time for Plan C.

Plan C

• Fly from LAX to Paris, France.
• Stay a few days in the Somme, France. Meet up with Lynette, and Bobby.
• Stay a few days in Ypres in Flanders, Belgium.
• Stay overnight in Ghent, Belgium. Now completely out of the way for going back to Paris the next day.
• Fly from Paris to Bristol, United Kingdom. A day earlier, just in time for Fathers Day.
• Stay a few days with the family, do some sightseeing around Bristol.
• Stay overnight in Weymouth, on the English seaside.
• Fly from Gatwick back to LAX, via Iceland.

Now that we would be there for Fathers Day, my sister got to plotting. She arranged a room in her friends Bed and Breakfast on that Saturday we arrive in England. Fathers Day lunch would be at The Swan Hotel in picturesque Wells the next day. Not only that, but as Lynette’s apartment was being refurbished we could not stay there. Instead, we would be staying with Jade, my eldest niece, in Bristol. Hopefully this would be the last revision.

Plan D

• Fly from LAX to Paris, France.
• Stay a few days in the Somme, France. Meet up with Lynette, and Bobby.
• Stay a few days in Ypres in Flanders, Belgium.
• Stay overnight in Ghent, Belgium. Now completely out of the way for going back to Paris the next day.
• Fly from Paris to Bristol, United Kingdom. A day earlier, just in time for Fathers Day.
• Stay overnight in Wells, Fathers Day lunch at The Swan.
• Stay a few days at Jade’s place, do some sightseeing around Bristol.
• Stay overnight in Weymouth, on the English seaside.
• Fly from Gatwick back to LAX, via Iceland.

The Final Plan

That was only the general gist of the final plan. There were some other required destinations along the way that we had added in the early stages of the planning. Christieann left most of the planning up to me, as it was my trip. I would have to say that she suffered most of my choices with good grace. Although an amount of ‘specific’ fatigue did set in towards the end of the trip. Her resilience was great, but even she did had her limits, we will cover that in a little more detail later.

Filling In The Details

The basic strategy was to be based in a convenient location for a few days. This location would allow us settle into one spot, and to use these as a base of operation to visit places in the vicinity. In between the locations would be travel days where our route would take us past other worthy places of interest. Time would be factored into the schedule that would allow us to spend time along the way, and have enough daylight remaining to see a little of our new location.

Sightseeing Along The Way

As soon as it was clear we were flying into Paris, we had to add Giverny to the itinerary. We could not be that close to Monet’s home without gazing at the lily pond, or strolling around his garden. Christieann would have walked there alone if I had not included Giverny in the itinerary.

We would also include Stonehenge, and Windsor Castle, to the stopovers while we were in England. They just happened to be on the route to The Tank Museum at Bovington, it was as if that was all part of my devious plan all along. Which is was, of course.

The flights were booked, cars were hired, hotels stays were arranged; I am running out of suitable adjectives here. The major determinations were scheduled  were Each day hadans made and remade. In the next thrilling installment we would hit the road and start our trip. We continue in  To France We Go!

Tim

9th June 2017