The Tour Europa is well under way. On Friday we arrived at Chevetogne in
Belgium in a convoy of about 40 cars. We are staying here for three nights
and there is a program of activities from breakfast in the morning to
dancing and gala dinners late at night.
There are a couple of hundred Bambinos at this beautiful camp site. Apart
from our group there are other groups and individuals coming in over the
weekend from all parts of Europe, to join in the festivities. The mix of
languages is fantastic.
Everyone though has an interest in or owns a Fiat 500. They come in all
colours, there are station-wagons, hotted up ones called Arbarths,
convertibles and sports models. Some are towing small trailers, some are
towing mini caravans. Some of the less adventurous owners are doing the
trip on trailers behind larger cars and motor-homes.
We drove from Kolding in Denmark to the outskirts of Kiel on the first
day. There we met with the German group who have organized Tour Europa. On
Wednesday, the official start of the tour, we drove 377 kms to
Drensteinfurt still in Germany This campsite was on a farm and all the
residents of the town had been invited to the "party". They had the local
fife and drum band playing, dancers, a fashion show, then during the
evening we all released red and white helium balloons (huge bundles of 100
balloons tied together drifted straight into the approach path of the busy
nearby Munster Airport!). Food and drinks were served in well set up
tents.
During the day as we came through the outskirts of Hamburg and fellow
Australians Damon Earwaker and Rachael Mulder blended into our group. They
had shipped their car from Melbourne to Hamburg and after the tour will
remain in Europe for a 5 week holiday. So now in the convoy we have two
RHD Bambinos.
The following day with a few more bambinos added we drove 172kms to Roggel
in the Netherlands. Here we stayed in a very well appointed camp site, and
actually saw the sun for the first time on the trip. Again we were very
well looked after by our Dutch hosts.
The convoy is not fast moving as it took 4 hours to cover the 165 kms into
Chevetogne. Obviously as it gets bigger the slower we will be. As it is
not a race we are happy to relax and enjoy the sights and company of the
people.
The European countries we have been through so far are just so clean and
tidy. In Germany in particular they seem to know how to maintain
everything perfectly. Lang has been wondering why they have dining rooms
as it is clean enough to eat off the toilet floors, even at roadside fuel
stations.
Bev
