When we moved to Spain we knew that, technically, we were not supposed to have Sky TV but, there were ways to receive the Sky channels providing you can keep a UK address. Most people use an address for a family member or a friend, and we were no different. We couldn't get all the channels we could in the UK but we got enough to give us the variety we needed.
Not long after we arrived in Spain our Sky+ box developed a problem and wouldn't do any of the Sky+ features, such as record or set program reminders, and so it was just a receiver for the programs. To get past the problem of it not recording we bought a DVD recorder, which worked fine except we could only record the channel we were watching so if we went out and forgot to put the tv onto the right channel, we missed our program.
There wasn't much we could about it in Spain and so we just carried on with the old Sky box.
Now that we are back in the UK it was time to get the box sorted out and finally, we had the Sky engineer here yesterday who installed a new box, an upgraded dish and left us with a brand new remote. Last night we spent all night playing about with the record facility, series links and instant pause - just because we could.
Next week we get our phone line installed and proper broadband again. All this and mobile reception at the house, I really feel as if we are back in the modern age.
Friday, 6 August 2010
Photos for Linda Lou
The Eurotunnel train is effectively a train engine pulling a very long container full of vehicles. I have lifted the following photos from other websites to show you the outside and inside. I cannot take any credit for these photos but they will show you what the eurotunnel train is like.
Photos from:Wednesday, 4 August 2010
Finally, back in England
For those of you outside the immediate area of the channel tunnel, I should explain.
The channel tunnel is exactly what it says a tunnel under the English Channel connecting Folkestone, England to Calais, France. It takes about 35 minutes to cross under the Channel this way and we had never used the tunnel before so I thought it would be nice to use it on our trip. There were 2 main advantages to us, one being how quick it is and the second being that our beloved pups would stay with us in the car throughout the crossing. For any new readers, on our trip to Spain we used the overnight ferry and this is what Brinkley wrote about his experience.
http://2littlepuppies.blogspot.com/2008/05/weve-moved-to-spain-and-its-brill.html
Not one we wanted to repeat.
We had to keep an eye on the electronic boards around the car park which would tell us when we were to proceed to the holding stage of the terminal and we saw the lights change just before midnight. Suddenly there was a dash by all the cars parked nearby. We were happy to follow others as we didn’t know where we were going and we were channelled towards a kiosk where a guy checked our tickets and sorted us into the right lanes, cars, 4x4 cars, cars with top boxes, caravans, coaches and lorries all needed to be sorted. We were behind 2 mini-buses and we all sat there waiting for the time to tick away. Boarding would begin at 12.10.
Finally, the time arrived for us to start our engines and move forward. We followed the 2 mini-buses and then came a bit of a shock, when the marshall at front held up the 2 buses and waved us ahead. We didn’t know where we were going. We followed the lane around a corner and looked for signs of where to go. Suddenly we realised that we needed to drive down a very steep slope. As we approached the bottom of the slope we could see another marshall way in the distance, with a clip board and we headed towards them. As we got closer we could see there was an opening on the left hand side ahead of us and the marshall waved us into it. Getting a car in isn’t a problem but I can imagine some of the larger lorries and coaches having problems. Apparently, they have one chance at it and have to get it right or they can’t get straightened up to drive along the train.
We started our drive along the train and the front seemed so far away I began to think we were actually going to be driving the whole way under the sea. Eventually, we arrived at the front of the train and switched of the engine. Within a few minutes everyone was on board and we set off on time. There is no sense of movement because there are no windows to see out of. There is a little noise but nothing much at all. We could get out of the car and walk alongside the cars if we wanted to but the dogs had to stay in the car, not that it was a problem, the dogs were extremely settled. They had the back seats all to themselves and they had found the whole journey perfectly comfortable. They sometimes slept a little but mostly they stayed alert, not wanting to miss out on any excitement.
Before we knew it, we were driving off the train in Folkestone. We had done the passport control bit as we went through the terminal in Calais so we were straight out onto the roads and off looking for our hotel. This time our directions were spot on and within 10 minutes we were checking in for the night.
We were in Folkestone, back in England.
Tuesday, 3 August 2010
Cats, paperwork and delays!
Q. What happens now?
A. Get a later train!
And that's all there is to it.
What us newbie Channel Tunnel users didn't know is that your booking is valid for anything from 2 hours ahead of time to 2 hours after the time booked. So if you miss a train, you get a later one and if you are early, you can get an earlier train.
Simple!
We checked the schedule and there were 3 more trains listed. 11.45pm, 12.30am and 1.15am
Even with the delays at the Pet office we were hopeful of getting one of the later trains. We both let out our breath that we hadn't realised we were holding!
And so, to the delays. It seems that the couple at the counter had 3 cats and some of the paperwork wasn't right. I think it was an issue with the paperwork for the rabies blood tests which is crucial for entering the UK. The lady behind the counter didn't normally work there and was on her own and was trying to be as helpful as she could, considering the language difficulties BUT she had been trying to sort this out for 2 hours.
Yes, some people had been waiting 2 hours and seen trains leave that they should have been on.
So, even if we had arrived in plenty of time to catch the train we still wouldn't have been on it because the dogs would still be queuing for their tickets to be stamped - approved to travel!
All that dashing had been for nothing, but we weren't to know.
We took a seat and settled in for the wait.
As we waited another couple arrived, dog in hand desperate to get seen as they were late, had driven like demons through northern France only to find - they were going to miss their train anyway. We could explain it all to them, after all, we were experts now!
After a further 15 minutes the couple with the cats were dismissed to go and find a local vet to confirm the papers that were being faxed through from wherever and finally we all started to get dealt with.
The main problem then seemed to be with vanishing microchips. Judging on the number of chips that were proving difficult to locate, we all felt it was probably the machine that needed new batteries but eventually it was our turn.
Brandy, as always, was calm and we located his microchip quite easily. Brinkley is never happy when you go towards with him with some kind of instrument in your hand, scissors, syringes and scanners are all treated with contempt and an immediate need by him to hide behind my legs. We know that Brinkley's chip has moved and instead of being on the back of his neck, it's now over one of his shoulder blades. We know this because a few months ago we discovered this lump on his shoulder and thought he had been stung or bitten. After a few days of applying cream I realised that it wasn't a bite at all, just his microchip on its travels. I had been warned that this sometimes happens.
Eventually we heard the beep of the machine finding his chip and both dogs were verified as fit to travel and we headed back to the car.
We drove through to the check-in machines and entered our booking code and the ticket machine spat out our tickets for the 12.30am train. We had over an hour to wait but we were happy, we would travel tonight after all. I rang the hotel in Folkestone to let them know we had been delayed (not a complete surprise to them as I think they get a lot of Chunnel users staying there) and we would be arriving with them about 12.30am. The tunnel is magic, it makes time stand still, we would arrive the same time we left.
No, of course not. France is an hour ahead of the UK, we would merely be turning our watches back an hour.
We parked up and went for a wander to find a café. It had been a very long day and it wasn't over yet, but at least we could chill for a little while.
Monday, 2 August 2010
Euro Tunnel, here we come.
The scenery in northern France is not as extreme as that in the south, or it didn't seem so to us, but that could be because of the speed at which it was passing by!!!!
Without any stops and with, thankfully, clear roads we approached the channel tunnel terminal just as the clock clicked onto to 10pm. We had 20 minutes to our ticket time. We had to get the dogs scanned and checked in at the Pet office and then through to the tunnel terminal. We might just make it after all.
We pulled into the car park and hurried the dogs to the office............
............only to find there was a queue.
There was one attendant on the desk. There were 3 cats (in baskets) on the desk. There were 4 dogs and 2 more cats before us and nothing was happening.
On the wall behind the desk was a large electronic notice board announcing that boarding for our train was closed.
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!
As Neil was inside the office trying to find out what was happening I started to ask the people outside with the animals. We only wanted the answer to one question
- what happens now?
Without any stops and with, thankfully, clear roads we approached the channel tunnel terminal just as the clock clicked onto to 10pm. We had 20 minutes to our ticket time. We had to get the dogs scanned and checked in at the Pet office and then through to the tunnel terminal. We might just make it after all.
We pulled into the car park and hurried the dogs to the office............
............only to find there was a queue.
There was one attendant on the desk. There were 3 cats (in baskets) on the desk. There were 4 dogs and 2 more cats before us and nothing was happening.
On the wall behind the desk was a large electronic notice board announcing that boarding for our train was closed.
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!
As Neil was inside the office trying to find out what was happening I started to ask the people outside with the animals. We only wanted the answer to one question
- what happens now?
Sunday, 1 August 2010
The length of France in a Day!
We calculated that to reach Calais for our Channel tunnel train at 10.20pm Saturday we would need to leave our hotel no later than 8am. Our route planner said it was 13 hours and 13 mins and we had, of course, to factor in stops every 3 hours for the pups and allow time incase we encountered traffic, especially the closer we got to Paris.
I had asked about breakfast when we had finally checked in the night before only to be told it was served from 9am. OK, so we would need to find somewhere for breakfast on the road. The reception would be open at 8.30am so we would also need to leave before they were open for us to pay!
Mmmmmh!
I had given our credit card details when I checked in and so I wrote a note in my best Spanish to say we had needed to leave early for our channel crossing and would they charge our room to the card and if there were any problems to ring me on my mobile and slid it under the door to reception.
We left hoping we would not be challenged by the Guardia at the border for trying to leave the country without paying our bills.
As we left the hotel complex and started back along the country lanes we came to a junction. To retrace our steps last night we should have turned right but Neil felt we could probably get back onto our route better by turning left. 50 yards along this lane we came to a main road, only to find it was the lane we had used to turn around in last night and if they had put a sign at this junction we would have saved an hour driving around in the dark and had an extra hour in bed.
We called at the first service station to refuel the car and ourselves and then we were on our way, heading for the border between Spain and France.
The border crossing was huge, there must have been 24 lanes and being a Saturday, there was plenty of traffic there. It took us a few seconds to work out which lane we needed and queued behind several cars towing caravans. We had to keep remembering about the top box so we didn't go under anything with a height restriction.
And so we were in France.
By now we were ready for a break and a re-fuel so we pulled into the first services. As Neil went in to pay and to get some coffees I walked the pups around and then gave them a drink. Now, our dogs have a talent for drinking from of a bottle and this saves carrying dishes about. As I was giving them a drink several people smiled at how cute they looked.
One chap stopped to talk to me and this is when life got a little surreal. He was French. I don't speak French. He didn't speak English BUT he was married to a Spanish lady and so we found our common language for a conversation was Spanish. I never expected to find my Spanish studies would come in handy while travelling through France.
I have to say the area that we travelled through in the south of France was beautiful and there was some very striking scenery, huge bridges across ravines and very pretty villages. It helped pass the time as we made our way north.
We kept our stops to a minimum and by the time we approached Paris we were making good time. We were due to take the outer ringroad around Paris and I knew my navigation skills would be tested to their extreme.
There were many road numbers to look for and Neil did a great job switching lanes as we went from 3 lanes to 6 lanes to 4 lanes, as lanes left and more joined. I kept a close eye on the signs overhead and guided him to the right lane for the road numbers indicated on my printed route.
And then all of a sudden none of the road signs had the right numbers on, none of the places quoted were on my list and I had to make a snap decision.
And it was the wrong decision!
Suddenly we were on the inner ringroad on a Saturday afternoon and within minutes we were at a standstill. We then crawled around Paris anti-clockwise. We needed to follow signs out of Paris for Lille and the overhead neon-signs were telling us that we were 45 minutes from the junction and there was nothing we could do but sit in traffic and crawl along with the thousands of other cars trying to get away from Paris.
Suddenly, our channel crossing looked unlikely. As we left the inner ringroad and joined the motorway to Lille our routeplanner told us we had 3 hours 30 minutes drive to our destination and we had 2 hours and 30 minutes to our check in time.
All we could do was hope there were no more hold ups and no police about. Neil put his foot to the floor and I avoided looking at the speedometer and kept my eyes peeled for speed cameras. Instead of arriving with time to spare we would be lucky to make it before the train departed.
We needed some luck to be on our side!
I had asked about breakfast when we had finally checked in the night before only to be told it was served from 9am. OK, so we would need to find somewhere for breakfast on the road. The reception would be open at 8.30am so we would also need to leave before they were open for us to pay!
Mmmmmh!
I had given our credit card details when I checked in and so I wrote a note in my best Spanish to say we had needed to leave early for our channel crossing and would they charge our room to the card and if there were any problems to ring me on my mobile and slid it under the door to reception.
We left hoping we would not be challenged by the Guardia at the border for trying to leave the country without paying our bills.
As we left the hotel complex and started back along the country lanes we came to a junction. To retrace our steps last night we should have turned right but Neil felt we could probably get back onto our route better by turning left. 50 yards along this lane we came to a main road, only to find it was the lane we had used to turn around in last night and if they had put a sign at this junction we would have saved an hour driving around in the dark and had an extra hour in bed.
We called at the first service station to refuel the car and ourselves and then we were on our way, heading for the border between Spain and France.
The border crossing was huge, there must have been 24 lanes and being a Saturday, there was plenty of traffic there. It took us a few seconds to work out which lane we needed and queued behind several cars towing caravans. We had to keep remembering about the top box so we didn't go under anything with a height restriction.
And so we were in France.
By now we were ready for a break and a re-fuel so we pulled into the first services. As Neil went in to pay and to get some coffees I walked the pups around and then gave them a drink. Now, our dogs have a talent for drinking from of a bottle and this saves carrying dishes about. As I was giving them a drink several people smiled at how cute they looked.
One chap stopped to talk to me and this is when life got a little surreal. He was French. I don't speak French. He didn't speak English BUT he was married to a Spanish lady and so we found our common language for a conversation was Spanish. I never expected to find my Spanish studies would come in handy while travelling through France.
I have to say the area that we travelled through in the south of France was beautiful and there was some very striking scenery, huge bridges across ravines and very pretty villages. It helped pass the time as we made our way north.
We kept our stops to a minimum and by the time we approached Paris we were making good time. We were due to take the outer ringroad around Paris and I knew my navigation skills would be tested to their extreme.
There were many road numbers to look for and Neil did a great job switching lanes as we went from 3 lanes to 6 lanes to 4 lanes, as lanes left and more joined. I kept a close eye on the signs overhead and guided him to the right lane for the road numbers indicated on my printed route.
And then all of a sudden none of the road signs had the right numbers on, none of the places quoted were on my list and I had to make a snap decision.
And it was the wrong decision!
Suddenly we were on the inner ringroad on a Saturday afternoon and within minutes we were at a standstill. We then crawled around Paris anti-clockwise. We needed to follow signs out of Paris for Lille and the overhead neon-signs were telling us that we were 45 minutes from the junction and there was nothing we could do but sit in traffic and crawl along with the thousands of other cars trying to get away from Paris.
Suddenly, our channel crossing looked unlikely. As we left the inner ringroad and joined the motorway to Lille our routeplanner told us we had 3 hours 30 minutes drive to our destination and we had 2 hours and 30 minutes to our check in time.
All we could do was hope there were no more hold ups and no police about. Neil put his foot to the floor and I avoided looking at the speedometer and kept my eyes peeled for speed cameras. Instead of arriving with time to spare we would be lucky to make it before the train departed.
We needed some luck to be on our side!
Starting the drive north.
One thing I needed to make sure on this trip was that when we arrived in Sheffield, Neil was not without his golf clubs. When we moved out to Spain, our furniture was delayed by 3 weeks and the golf clubs were with the furniture. Neil was not a happy man.
Using a groupage removal means there can be delays on when your furniture arrives. We had been quoted anything between 5 and 14 days, although they thought we would be one of the earlier drop offs as the storage depot was in Sheffield, one reason we chose this company.
Although we were due to arrive in Sheffield on Sunday evening, the van wasn't due to leave France until the Wednesday and had a couple of days travelling before they got to the depot.
We had the luxury of travelling in the big car going home unlike the journey to Spain, but we didn't have room for Neil's golf clubs if we wanted to take the dogs AND suitcases with clothes in.
Not a problem, we got a top box. Neil's clubs & golf trolley fitted in lovely and we even managed to get some bedding packed around them so we had something to use while we waited for the van to bring our stuff. We wouldn't have a bed, but we we have some bedding! Whilst night time temperatures in Spain meant we were throwing covers off at night, it was still cool enough in the UK to need a quilt.
It was 6.30pm when we finally got onto the motorway and started heading north. Our destination was 5 and a half hours away, not including stops and we would need a couple of stops for the dogs. We had a cool-box filled with sandwiches and drinks so we could keep the stops as short as possible and we knew we would be arriving late.
What I hadn't realised was that I had chosen a hotel that didn't have a 24 hour reception. Fun and games were waiting for us in northern Spain.
We were headed for L'Ampolla. I had chosen the distance based on leaving about 4pm and the hotel on the basis it was right on the side of the motorway so we would not be spending too long trying to find the hotel once we reached the area.
How wrong can you be?
We reached L'Ampolla around midnight and started looking for the hotel as we came off the motorway. We knew we didn't want to be in town or on the sea-front so we took the road away from the town. Within a few minutes we were heading out into the countryside without a building to be seen anywhere. It felt wrong and after a few more minutes we decided we would be better to turn around and try another route. The map I had printed off was not helpful. We found a narrow lane to turn around in and headed back. As we entered the town I noticed sign boards with lists of hotels on them and direction arrows - and ours was listed so we started to follow the signs.
And follow the signs.......
And follow the signs.......
We had gone right through the town and along the sea-front, which, even at mid-night , was buzzing with people. Then suddenly, as happens, our hotel had vanished of the list but we hadn't seen it.
We turned around again and as we drove back I notice a sign-post off to the left with the hotel name on it. We followed the arrow.
Out of civilisation and into the open countryside. We lost tarmac roads and even drove through a large storm drain but we were still following the arrows. Finally, after a few more twists and turns, we saw a large sign at the entrance to the hotel - we have been driving around for almost an hour. It was almost 1am and we were both ready to fall into bed. It had been a long day.
Before dragging the case into the hotel we decided we would check-in and find out where we were going and also give the pups time to have a bit of a walk around. We reached the door to the hotel reception ..... and it was locked. My lack of attention to detail when I booked had failed to notice that it wasn't manned 24 hours a day.
We wandered around the carpark with the dogs and chatted about our options. We could have a few hours in the car before setting off or we could just carry on driving and take it in turns to drive and sleep. In the end we decided we would carry on driving. Before we got back to the car Neil suggested I should ring the hotel number and leave a message to say we arrived but they were closed so we couldn't book in, in the hope that they would not charge us for the room, so I rang the number and instead of an answering machine cutting in, a rather sleepy man answered.
In my best Spanish I explained what had happenend and he told me to wait a few minutes and he would come down and let us in.
And so, we did get to sleep in a bed that night. We needed to be on the road early to make Calais by 10pm the next day but at least we could have a few hours sleep.
A long day was finally over.
Using a groupage removal means there can be delays on when your furniture arrives. We had been quoted anything between 5 and 14 days, although they thought we would be one of the earlier drop offs as the storage depot was in Sheffield, one reason we chose this company.
Although we were due to arrive in Sheffield on Sunday evening, the van wasn't due to leave France until the Wednesday and had a couple of days travelling before they got to the depot.
We had the luxury of travelling in the big car going home unlike the journey to Spain, but we didn't have room for Neil's golf clubs if we wanted to take the dogs AND suitcases with clothes in.
Not a problem, we got a top box. Neil's clubs & golf trolley fitted in lovely and we even managed to get some bedding packed around them so we had something to use while we waited for the van to bring our stuff. We wouldn't have a bed, but we we have some bedding! Whilst night time temperatures in Spain meant we were throwing covers off at night, it was still cool enough in the UK to need a quilt.
It was 6.30pm when we finally got onto the motorway and started heading north. Our destination was 5 and a half hours away, not including stops and we would need a couple of stops for the dogs. We had a cool-box filled with sandwiches and drinks so we could keep the stops as short as possible and we knew we would be arriving late.
What I hadn't realised was that I had chosen a hotel that didn't have a 24 hour reception. Fun and games were waiting for us in northern Spain.
We were headed for L'Ampolla. I had chosen the distance based on leaving about 4pm and the hotel on the basis it was right on the side of the motorway so we would not be spending too long trying to find the hotel once we reached the area.
How wrong can you be?
We reached L'Ampolla around midnight and started looking for the hotel as we came off the motorway. We knew we didn't want to be in town or on the sea-front so we took the road away from the town. Within a few minutes we were heading out into the countryside without a building to be seen anywhere. It felt wrong and after a few more minutes we decided we would be better to turn around and try another route. The map I had printed off was not helpful. We found a narrow lane to turn around in and headed back. As we entered the town I noticed sign boards with lists of hotels on them and direction arrows - and ours was listed so we started to follow the signs.
And follow the signs.......
And follow the signs.......
We had gone right through the town and along the sea-front, which, even at mid-night , was buzzing with people. Then suddenly, as happens, our hotel had vanished of the list but we hadn't seen it.
We turned around again and as we drove back I notice a sign-post off to the left with the hotel name on it. We followed the arrow.
Out of civilisation and into the open countryside. We lost tarmac roads and even drove through a large storm drain but we were still following the arrows. Finally, after a few more twists and turns, we saw a large sign at the entrance to the hotel - we have been driving around for almost an hour. It was almost 1am and we were both ready to fall into bed. It had been a long day.
Before dragging the case into the hotel we decided we would check-in and find out where we were going and also give the pups time to have a bit of a walk around. We reached the door to the hotel reception ..... and it was locked. My lack of attention to detail when I booked had failed to notice that it wasn't manned 24 hours a day.
We wandered around the carpark with the dogs and chatted about our options. We could have a few hours in the car before setting off or we could just carry on driving and take it in turns to drive and sleep. In the end we decided we would carry on driving. Before we got back to the car Neil suggested I should ring the hotel number and leave a message to say we arrived but they were closed so we couldn't book in, in the hope that they would not charge us for the room, so I rang the number and instead of an answering machine cutting in, a rather sleepy man answered.
In my best Spanish I explained what had happenend and he told me to wait a few minutes and he would come down and let us in.
And so, we did get to sleep in a bed that night. We needed to be on the road early to make Calais by 10pm the next day but at least we could have a few hours sleep.
A long day was finally over.
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