After a week on the golden Falesia beach of the Algarve, I thought that it was time to reflect on my amazing European roadtrip and calculate a few facts and figures…….

Statistics

• Days: 50
• Miles: 3855
• Countries: 10 (Wow – must be the only person who has travelled more during a pandemic!)
• Rivers: 3 (well-known ones – loads of small ones) Danube, Rhine, Rhone
• Lakes: 3 (well-known ones – loads of small ones) Bodensee, St Moritz, Como
• Tree-lined avenues: Countless, especially in France
• Beaches: None that counted until I reached the golden sands of Portugal!
• Vineyards: Ooooh……quite a few (hic!)
• Campsites: 3 – yes, only 3!
• Wild camping spots: Countless
• Breakdowns: Technically none, but 3 days of battery problems and 1 day of engine problems
• Breakages: One wing mirror (thanks to Mr French lorry driver going too fast!)
• Parking tickets/Speeding fines: Hopefully not.…so long as there isn’t one in the post!

Time spent on:

• Housework: 5’ per day (hurray!)
• Shopping: 5’ per day (hurray again!)
• Computer: An hour once a week to write my blog
• Park4night App: Probably an hour a day……finding a good camping spot became a priority!
• TV: ZERO!!!!!!!

Best Apps

• Park4night: Simply brilliant for finding all the best “off-grid” spots
• Co-pilot: Saved me from another low bridge (but not the road only 2cm wider than Gloria!)
• Cyclemaps: (love/hate thing with this App…..)
• GPSMyCity: Brilliant to discover some of the cities I visited
• WordPress: Made writing a blog a breeze
• Strava: Fun to record by bikes/hikes (when my battery didn’t die)
• Polarsteps: Great way to keep a visual record of your journey

Before I reflect on my travels, let me fill you in on my last few days on the road. I left you amidst the grapevines of the Alentejo and, believe me, we definitely sampled more than our fair share of beautiful Portuguese wine that night. When I said to Bobby that we should have a white, rosé and red from the region, I didn’t mean all in one night!!!

After a slow start the following morning(!), we headed off for Cascais, for a party thrown by one of my Virgin pilot friends. To say that he’s a bit of a petrol-head is an understatement, so it was fitting that his birthday was celebrated in a very cool underground garage, set amongst all sorts of valuable old cars. A few other Virgin colleagues had flown in especially for the event…..

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Petrol-head Pilot invited us all to join him at the famous Estoril racetrack the following day for a track day. On a previous stay with him, I’d seen his spec’d-out Nissan GTR, but hadn’t fully appreciated it’s power until I found myself being flung around the track, doing 170mph down the home straight with Murray Walker’s voice in my ear as we went through the finish line. It was an incredible 1:55 and I felt incredibly privileged to have been driven at such speed around the former Grand Prix racetrack by such a consummate professional. Thank you Derek!

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Gloria really did feel like a great big Beluga whale at this point and, as I left the racetrack, I took care not to take a wrong turning, as her cornering ability just wouldn’t be up to it!! As a treat for her two month spin endurance test through Europe, she got a good clean from the Waterboys…..

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Staying just north of Sines that night, we found a perfect spot overlooking a stunning, wild and deserted beach – now I know that I am nearly back in my new home!

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After a final couple of hours drive the following day, I was back in Vilamoura – well, not right in town, but just off the glorious 6 mile Falesia Beach. It was so lovely to be welcomed back by friends followed by my mum the next day; her accommodation fell through for the first week, so she bravely decided to give Gloria-living a go and loved her week on the beach, eating under the stars every night. Kudos to my 80 year old mum (and to Wonderful Welcoming Wilza who took the boys in for two nights to give us some space……..thank you!!).

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Mum even came on a roadtrip with us to Sao Rafael beach, as BNB and I wanted Bobby to experience the amazing cliff-jump. Granny decided to sit this one out……

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So, now that I have had some time to digest my big road trip, how do I feel about it and would I do it again?! Well, amongst the feelings there is definitely relief that I’ve finally got here, knowing that I haven’t had any major incidents on the way. Relief also to stay in one place (with a hot shower!!) for more one a couple of days. However, I suppose that the overwhelming feeling is one of achievement and gratitude. Achievement because it all seemed a bit of a daunting prospect when I took off in my nearly 4 ton machine all by myself; however, I have managed to overcome all the obstacles that came my way and even embraced them as, often, those were the times when I met interesting people or had an entertaining new adventure (“escapade”, as I liked to call them!). The trip has certainly given me a new level of resilience, as there were several situations encountered when it seemed like I was out of options, but I just never gave up – for instance, even though I now have 5 (yes, FIVE!!) gas bottles onboard Gloria…..at least I have a nice cold fridge!

Gratitude is because I never expected to get this ‘furlough’ time from work and am so grateful for it and that I grasped the opportunity with both hands; gratitude that I am healthy and strong enough to be able to undertake this journey on my own; gratitude that having had Gloria up for sale, sitting on my driveway for 2 years, no one came along and bought her; and gratitude that I’ve been able to include both children and their friends in my adventure and be able to pass on my love for travel and for the simple things in life.

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As for doing it again, I would say yes in a heartbeat…..maybe that retirement is closer than I thought?!

Final thoughts:

• Europe is extraordinary – all this time exploring, yet I’ve only just touched the surface. Much as I should be encouraging people to start booking flights to far-flung destinations again, there’s no need to go further than a short flight on a rival orange airline!
• Make an outline of a plan, but be flexible and change it – often, especially if you meet someone who recommends a detour, as personal experience is always better than books/online.
• Blogs are a brilliant way of scouting out good routes; I’ve enjoyed reading many fellow travellers’ ones and do hope that this one may inspire a few journeys too!
• Music absolutely made the trip – I have rediscovered some fabulous old stuff and enjoyed some newer beats too; bopping away behind the wheel with Europe unfolding before me made the hours flash past.
• Simple food eaten under the stars tastes so much better than any fancy restaurant!
• I’M GOING BACK TO WORK!!! A350 course starts in November – so, just time for one (or two?!) adventures before then……

One final note: I have been touched and humbled by the number of my friends, family and fellow travellers who have let me know that you’ve enjoyed this blog – thank you for joining me on my journey and for all of your lovely messages of support and encouragement. There are a few people reading this that I haven’t heard from – do leave a comment here or message me privately and let me know what you think!