As we arrived in the evocative town of Avignon in Provence in France on the 13th July after a month and 20 days on the road, we had covered roughly half our estimated total journey:

• 4,600 miles (7450 kms)
• 50 days of travel.
• Average of 92 miles (150 kms) of travel per day.
• 30 campsites.
• Average time spent in each campsite (after factoring in the week spent in Brittany): 1.4 days.

We started off eager to make progress with the journey and anxious not to linger too long in any one place (av 1.4 days). Taking account of time needed to visit towns and cities and catching up with daily tasks including writing the blog, this led to a certain amount of tension and freneticism. Part of it was worry about what lay ahead, how hard it would be, whether we could do it and whether we had completely underestimated what we had undertaken.  Now that we’ve reached what we think is half-way point and we’ve got into our stride, we’re a little less anxious about the unknowns including our own abilities and what pace we can travel at.

We’ve decided therefore that it’s not ‘whacky races’ as Judith says and that we can move at a more leisurely pace without necessarily seeing every town, city or place of interest on the way.  In any case, going to these places often consists of simply mixing with thousands of other tourists and ending up seeing, not the city itself and its people, but what the tourist industry you get drawn into wants you to see – taking all the right photos and ticking all the boxes. Though we can’t presume to have always succeeded, our experience has been that it’s possible to get a better feel for a place by going to the out of the way spots and meeting locals going about their lives. Though of course seeing important sites and understanding their historical significance is fascinating and enlightening.

Other facts we have discovered about campervanning:

• You can live quite comfortably in a van!  Though it takes quite a few bangs on the head to remember to duck in the right places (typically getting in and out), even in a high-top.
• Though we tried, we should have been even more careful about packing.  We needed less than we thought and have ended up sending back two cartons of unwanted clothes etc.
• It’s not difficult to eat well and make perfectly reasonable meals on a 2-ring burner.
• It’s not necessary, nor a good idea, to stock up on food as space is limited, the fridge is very small and food doesn’t last.  So the baguette is strictly for the day.
• Campsites vary enormously – generally, we’ve found that you get a far better experience in smaller, family-run sites than the big, all-singing and dancing 4-star camping extravaganzas.
• Less so than with camping perhaps, but much is weather-dependent. We may be in a van but we spend most of our stationary time out of it.
• Being mostly outdoors, we’re constantly exposed to nature. This means mainly insects who come in a multitude of varieties and often find their way in as well.
• Barbers and hairdressers seem redundant!

Barbers and hairdressers seem redundant!

We’re thankful to Robert, a former headteacher we met when we were camping outside Granada and who has already been mentioned, who reminded us of the great Alexandrian poet Constantine Cavaffy’s poem ‘Ithaca’ a taster of which it would be good to quote at this point:

“As you set out for Ithaka
hope your road is a long one,
full of adventure, full of discovery…

Keep Ithaka always in your mind.
Arriving there is what you’re destined for.
But don’t hurry the journey at all.
Better if it lasts for years,
so you’re old by the time you reach the island,
wealthy with all you’ve gained on the way,
not expecting Ithaka to make you rich…”