Summer holidays (II)

After the initial quiet period visitors started arriving. First Dorien turned up, with four friends from her study. They did some low level activity for novices in the Alpes, and were basically all recovering from a busy year at university. After a week they were changed out for her boyfriend Lars, with two other friends from their Outdoor Survival Club Slopend. Also Paula turned up with her boyfriend Jasper, and all of them started the week full of enthusiasm and energy. After a few long and strenuous hikes it became clear that holiday is also meant fo taking some rest.

Highlight of the week was the arrival of the Tour de France at Alpe d'Huez. Dutch cyclist Steven Kruijswijk passed us with a significant advantage halfway up the climb, but unfortunately didn't manage to win the stage. It was an impressive first for all the visitors. The next day the start was in Bourg d'Oisans, and we managed to see the whole circus a second time.

The rest of the time was spend playing games, cooking, and looking after the horses in the garden, and after a week peace returned, and Mary was left with just Dorien and Lars. As Piet bought a new race bike his faithful old orange Bianchi could be used by Jasper and Lars. Lars, who never rode a racing bike, or used click pedals before, was very enthusiastic, and cycled up several classical cols, a few times joined by Mary (Alpe d'Huez!). In the end Dorien spend 4 weeks in France and they left to go back to take one more exam, and to prepare for the university introduction days. She has started as Chairlady for the Slopend board, which is not a full time role, but will certainly mean a very busy year for her.

 Beau and his summer friend Curly, starting eating of the garden


Dorien and friends from her Civil Engineering study


Paula and Jasper at the start of a 2 day hike


On the way to Refuge des Sources

 Beau and Jasper cooling down in the Sarenne

 Dorien, Sam, Lars and Luuk ready to hike to Muzelle

Paula and Jasper cycled up with Piet

Lars and Dorien riding in the valley

Lars on Beau and Dorien on Curly riding in Robert's garden

Summer holidays (I)

Summer started and Piet and Mary drove to the house in France with Beau. The girls were still finishing university and rowing business, but both are planning to spend part of their holidays in the mountains as well. And as usual Piet will travel back and forth whilst Mary is holding the fort. The first week was spend in usual fashion: on the bike, hiking, in the garden, and taking care of Beau. After a few days a friend arrived for Beau, a mare called Curly, but they need time to get used to each other. This is clearly not such a good match as last year, when Quinaille was stationed in our garden.

Piet and Mary did a few hikes, further strengthening Mary's physique, in preparation for 'expeditions' with the girls later this summer. The weather was perfect, and most of the time was spend outside, and several books were finished during the hottest parts of the day. Holiday is also relaxing!

Our house

First training for Beau, in the garden of our neighbours

Mary in the village of Ornon, during one of the hikes

A col from Piet's bucket list - done

Mary after arriving in Le Mollard

Beau and Curly are getting to know each other

Mary on top of Col de Corbiere


Descending from Col de Corbiere

Beau cooling down in the Sarenne river, behind our house

Family day at Slopend

Dorien, Lars and their Outdoor Survival Club 'Slopend' organised a day for their families to give everybody a taste of their activities. Piet, Mary and Paula turned up at the Delft University sport grounds and spend the whole day immersed in the Slopend way-of-life. As a start Dorien and Lars gave an intro training on their obstacle run; they make it look very easy, but is it much harder than it seems! This was followed by a lesson in tying knots; Mary could teach some tricks as well. After lunch an adventure puzzle race was done, where family teams has to solve some riddles and find spots running around the Delft campus. The next activity was the making of fire in a natural way, wood was collected, and with a fire stick a small fire was started, then a larger one, and an even larger one. Nettle tea was brewed, and drunk by most of us. We all moved to a nearby boat, where dinner was being prepared. While waiting all enjoyed a beer in the sun, and some brave people had a swim in the harbour. After a good dinner Slopend hosted a pub quiz, which was a test for the Lambregts family, who claim to have good general knowledge level (with specialities in cycling and horses!). In the end we came second, but won the first prize as the winners were students without family: so Piet took home a collection of Delft beers! 

It was a very enjoyable day, and we will see some of the main characters in France this summer. We also met the family of Lars, his brother Bob and his parents. And finally: as a reward Piet and Mary had some sore muscles on Monday!

Piet is trying the monkey crawl, supervised by the girls

Mary is being supervised by Dorien

Tying knots

Preparation for the adventure race

Making fire without matches

Sundowners on the boat

France

After a busy period Piet and Mary went to the house in France for a 10 day break. At the last moment they finally managed to align this trip with their friend Jan, after many, many earlier attempts. Jan and his fiancee Gwen have a house in the Pyrenean foothills, near Perpignan. Unfortunately she couldn't make it, as she was stuck in Houston for work. So they drove to the house in Bassey on Wednesday night (in their new car!), and after a short stopover continued further south on Friday morning. They agreed to meet at a winery in the Cote de Roussillon, where Jan, and other Shell friends Ron and Helen, where already tasting. They joined and after a few stops ended up at Jan's house, high on a hill above the town of Ceret. The day was rounded off with a Catalonian dinner. The next day Piet tested his new racing bike with a loop to Col de la Brousse, whilst Mary and the others visited the local market. In the afternoon they did a hike around the area, and the evening was focussed on wine and music, with the Eurovision Song Contest as central theme.

The next day Jan and the others went to Barcelona for the F1 Grand Prix, and Piet and Mary went on a trip to memory lane, to Mary's old fieldwork area near the coast, centred around Banyuls sur Mer. Unfortunately it was very cold and windy, and a planned hike in the area was foregone, and replaced with a short walk around the Banyuls harbour. The drive back to Bassey was a real nightmare; it was the end of the Ascension Day weekend, poor weather, and all French were returning home from the Mediterranean. A drive that should have taken 5 hours lasted almost 10 hours, with all side roads blocked as well.

The next week was spend in the usual French mode: cycling, working in the garden and some short hikes in the mountains, to test Mary's body for the summer. Also Beau's stable and field were prepared for the return late June. Fully recharged they returned home, to Beau and the girls.

Mary and Jan discussing wine at Thunevin-Calvet

Piet with his new bike, after a ride through the Pyrenees


Collioure

 In Banyuls sur Mer, Mary's old fieldwork area

Refuge du Carrelet, in Parc des Ecrins

There was still lots of snow in Parc des Ecrins

Retie

Retie is a small, sleepy town in the Kempen, northern Belgium. The peace is normally only disturbed if there is a performance by Raymond van het Groenewoud, or if there is 'koers', a cycling race. We went there for the latter, to watch our nephew Max participate in a local under-18 race. He is now training with a larger and stronger team than the previous two years, and therefore has possibilities to be selected for classic races: he will race Brabantse Pijl, early May. Retie was a regular 'laps around the church' criterium, with 15 laps of a bit more than 5 km each. 

Max did very well in Retie, as he managed to position himself in the leading group at the beginning of the race, and helped driving the pace so high, that none of the other racers managed to get back. This group of 12 raced the 81 km with a staggering average speed of 41 km/hr, and in the end Max placed 10th. Below are some impressions from the race.

Start of the race, the leading group is being formed

Max is driving the pace

Max is trying to stay with the leaders

Final sprint of the leading group

Wine in 4 countries

Piet went on his traditional yearly trip with his friends from Utrecht, under the excuse of the wine and dine society 'Het Derde Glas'. This time an ambitious program was put together, with stops in four countries.

They left early Wednesday morning from Utrecht with a rented minibus, and drove to the famous German wine region along the Moselle river, for a late morning visit to Sybille Kuntz in Lieser. They are selling traditional white wines, in stylish long and narrow bottles. After a purchase ‘with the handbrake on’ the trip continued to the Alsace, in France, where an appointment with the Kamm family in Dambach-la-Ville was scheduled. After several phone calls the father finally turned up, for a tasting of mediocre wines. The promising ‘vin nature’ (no use of any additions during the vinification process) turned out to be somewhat disappointing, with the conclusion that additives are not so bad after all. Due to the delays the logistics of the arrival in Martigny, Switzerland had to be changed en route by phone, and after some corrective driving a late dinner was enjoyed at restaurant Belvedere, high above the city. The upside was that the anticipated evening walk (300 m height difference in 2 km!) was done by car. The food was good, but the wines were a huge disappointment, strengthening the pre-trip decision to skip any visit to a Swiss winery.

The first tasting at Sybille Kuntz

On Thursday morning they crossed the Grand St. Bernard pass through snow-covered mountains, and descended into Italy for a visit with Ottin, in Aosta. This is a beautiful valley, which looks like Switzerland, but with much better wines. Owner Elio Ottin took his time to showcase his products, and after a large purchase the trip continued towards Alba. An impressive lunch was enjoyed at Marcelin, in Monta, with Michelin-star quality food and presentation (and it has been noted for future trips!). Here a common theme of the trip started: excellent English was spoken by our hostess; this was repeated at all subsequent visits. Something the French winemakers can only dream of! Around the corner the two sons of winery Chiesa, a small family business in the Roero region, received the troops with Italian hospitality as they tried to supplement their wines with more food. Roero is one of the Piemontese appelations, at a level just below the more famous Barolo and Barbaresco wines. As the Chiesa brothers were talkative, and there was a lot of discussion, last minute adjustments had to be made to the program. After a few calls Adriano, just outside of Alba, was willing to stay open in the early evening. Here a combination of Barbaresco wines and hazelnuts was for sale, the latter also supplied to the enormous Ferrero Rocher factory in Alba. In the evening dinner was arranged at Larossa, a promising restaurant with a Michelin star. This turned out to be a huge disappointment, with pretentious food, and likewise waiters. The rockbottom lowlight of the evening was a risotto with an edible gold leaf cover, something they will still remember 25 years from now!

Arrival at Chiesa

The Barbaresco vineyards are explained at Adriano

The next day started with a Barolo morning, in Verduno, firstly enjoying the views from the hilltop, and secondly enjoying the wines from Fratelli Alessandria. The next stop at G.D. Vajra was a lot more commercial, with a proper hostess, a tour and a tasting room with a view. In the end both houses sold nice Barolo’s, and that is the most important! Lunch was ‘valeur sur’ on the terrace of Schiavenza, in Serralunga, with a view of the hills, covered in sticks with leafless vines. The trip continued along winding roads to Ca del Baio, in Barbaresco, which was visited 5 years earlier as well. Business had definitely improved, as a Ukrainian-Canadian group was leaving, and a huge Swiss delegation just arrived. There was no holding back, all the wines were opened and sampled, and a large purchase was made. Next stop was at Borgo Maragliano, in Loazzolo, a remote village to the southeast of Alba. The bus, now loaded with many bottles, had to work hard along narrow, steep roads. They were received by Sylvia, the lady of the house, who kept on stating how bad things are in Italy (bureaucracy), and how good in north-western Europe (Leeuwarden, of all places, and the Champagne, obviously). To attract more visitors they were building a massive viewing platform / tasting room, just outside the UNESCO World Heritage area of the Piemontese vineyard hills. They produce sparkling wines only, mainly using the Metodo Classico (same as Champagne, but not allowed to call it that way). Sylvia was extremely hospitable and talkative, and managed to convince Het Derde Glas, notorious Champagne lovers, to buy a significant number of bottles. Although the distance back to Alba is only 10 km ‘as the crow flies’, it was a long, winding and tiring one hour drive back. Dinner was held at Caffe Umberto, an Enecoteca (wineshop) and restaurant, which was a lot better than the previous night (and with a very, very extensive winelist!).

View over the vineyards from Verduno

Tasting Barolo wines at Fratelli Alessandria

Choice at G.D. Vajra

 Barolo is a beautiful region, even in cloudy weather

View from Borgo Maragliano

True Italian hospitality at Borgo Maragliano

After two days in Italy a long drive back was made on the Saturday, with essential stops at Theulot Juillot in Mercurey, Burgundy, who were also visited in 2017 (value for money white and reds), and two more in the south-eastern Champagne region. The first house was Barfontarc, a cooperation in the village of Baroville (with farmers in Fontaine and Arconville also contributing grapes, so guess where the name is coming from). They had an extensive gamma for tasting, and a marketing influence on their bottles: good for the eye, and a bit pricey. On the other side of the spectrum was Laval, a small Champagne producer in the village of Bligny. No fancy bottles, and very cheap. Close by, at hotel Val Moret, the trip ended, and it was decided to carry out the most important session straight away: the sorting. The van was emptied, and in an organised fashion the nearly 600 bottles were distributed from producers to piles of boxes for each expedition member. This took around 2 hours, and a lot of carrying and lifting. Once the van was reloaded a final dinner was enjoyed; tired but satisfied. The next morning, they drove smoothly back to Utrecht, where Piet left his bottles with one of his friends. And the success of the trip will be concluded in the months to come: ‘the proof of the pudding is in the drinking’!

Waiting at Theullot Juillot, in Mercurey, Burgundy

 Luring visitors inside at Barfontarc

The sorting is starting at Val Moret

Port Harcourt (II)

Piet went to Port Harcourt, Nigeria, with three collegues for a project he is working on currently. It was the second time he visited (see post of 27 April 2016), and little had changed. It was nice to meet up with friends and the social part of the trip was definitely the best. Port Harcourt remained a chaotic, dirty city, heaving with people, motorbikes and Nigerian tuk-tuks, making the Shell camp a peaceful oasis. The main difference was the air quality, which has deteriorated significantly and is a real concern for the people living there. This is apparently caused by the nearby local refinery, forest fires, and military action against illegal oil theft, resulting in a lot of soot in the air. Piet and his colleagues were lucky, as the raining season had just started, and the air was relatively fresh.

Transport was still with mini buses and armed escort, with limited opportunity to take some pictures. Some impressions are shown below. On the way back they landed in a typical Nigerian scene: an electrical problem had caused an issue with the runway lights a few days earlier, and in the end the Air France pilot refused to take off in the evening. There was a lot of confusion, and near midnight they were put in hotel in town, and finally the flight left 10 AM the next day. As a consequence Piet was home Saturday evening late, to start his City-Piet-City half marathon the next day. This was not an ideal preparation, but he managed to finish in 1 hr 54 min, in a personal record (although it was his second half marathon only!).

A horse in the Shell camp, the Port Harcourt Residential Area

The local shop in the Shell camp

Port Harcourt, on the way to the airport

Lot's of little markets on the street

Street scene

All pictures were taken from the mini bus

 It is very lively in Port Harcourt

Piet passing the 10 km point near our house