Devall Travels

If only.... If it wasn't for Covid-19..... The road home  Two long days on the road to cover 591 estimated miles home. Of course in the car it is much easier to knock off mile after mile in comfort and not get too tired. One overnight in Belgium to give us a short day on the 8th... That would have been today folks but Covid-19 doesn't care for our holiday!!! By now we should have picked Reggie up from his holiday at the kennels.  Let's hope 2021 is better 

After a day in Lake Como taking in the sights and eating and drinking we are back on the road Today would have been the Passes day. A whole day of taking in the high passes around southern Switzerland. http://devalltravel.blogspot.com/2019/12/rt20-day-12.html Except of course ...

If only.... If it wasn't for Covid-19! Today a day at leisure around Lake Como. Maybe a boat trip or a visit to the funicular railway? Tomorrow after two nights here we head northwards into Switzerland, avoiding toll roads, we visit a lot of alpine passes to check off the list... Instead today at home I go and get a hired trailer so that tomorrow, I can take my GT to a guy to sort out the engine and get it usable again.

If only.... If it wasn't for Covid-19!!!!! Today we have another relatively short day with the drive from Bologna to Lake Como and a hotel there right on the lakeside. The main event today was the visit to the two Ferrari museums in Modena and Maranello! It's not that far to the north-west of Bologna.  Luckily for us Ferrari like to have visitors in August, whilst the other museums are closed. So we would have been to: https://www.ferrari.com/en-EN/museums/ferrari-maranello https://www.ferrari.com/en-EN/museums/modena-foundation Sadly of course, bloody Covid-19 has pissed on that particular parade. From Modena we would have continued to Como and our hotel  there. The last few nights in Italy and we are already pointing northwards towards home.....

If only.... If it wasn't for Covid-19 today we would be heading for Bologna from Lucca.  I haven't been since 1986 and it would have been nice to go when all the universities were closed and the city a little quieter. The hotel not the grandest but it is one overnight stop..... Bologna was one of the most expensive cities for hotels on the entire trip. But we are at home in Kent instead.

If only.... If it wasn't for Covid-19... Today after our second night in Lucca we would be heading down the road to the station once again. Today a trip to Florence. Tickets pre-booked for the Uffizi Gallery. Here's where the Canon camera would come in handy. Although, being in the car I have room for a collection of cameras and their chargers. Except of course. Covid has put paid to this.

A new month starting and here we are. We should be waking up this morning in the hotel in Lucca. After breakfast a stroll down to the station to buy return tickets on the train to Pisa. It's only about 45 minutes away. But which station to get off at? We will see as we get nearer. The main attraction being the Leaning Tower. I promise u wouldn't have done the lame pretend to hold it up picture.  https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leaning_Tower_of_Pisa Except due to Covid-19 it's not happening.

If only.... If it wasn't for Covid-19. Today we would be heading along the Mediterranean coast with our destination of Lucca.  Our hotel just outside the city walls. The Hotel Stipino.  Our home for three nights and the chance for the car to cool down! Ready for a few days sightseeing in Pisa and Florence and letting the train take the strain. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucca 

If only.... If it wasn't for Covid-19. We would have been up early to have breakfast and get over to the station to pick up the Train des Merveilles for a day on the train up into the mountains towards Italy. Luckily, I had waited before buying tickets. So no refund necessary.

If only.... If it wasn't for Covid-19. Today we would be travelling from Cuneo in Italy, down through the Alps to Nice. Our hotel for two nights is the Durante. City centre with included parking! Hotel Durante, Nice The reason is not to visit Nice itself, but we are intending on going on " Train des Merveilles " up through the Alps on less accessible and scenic routes.

If only.... If it wasn't for Covid-19.......... Today should have been the day we crossed the Alps from France to Italy with our stay at the  Best Western Plus Royal Superga Hotel in Cuneo. It is actually a very short day, 85 miles,  but the route from  L'Argentière-la-Bessée, covers a good few alpine passes including the Vars and Larche. We did this area way back in the 00's on the GS.

If only.... If it wasn't for Covid-19 I toiled over this overnight stop and originally we would have been overnighting in Annecy. However, I wanted to go over some of the alpine passes into Italy and then down on the Italian side of the border. So I chose a night at the Hotel La Gare in    LʼArgentière-la-Bessée. This is across the border in    Hautes-Alpes, department 05. Hotel de la Gare Today would have been about 250 miles but much of it on mountain roads and over some of the highest passes in the French Alps. 

If only.... If it wasn't for Covid-19 we would be in France and for our first night on the holiday I had booked us into a Kyriad hotel in Nuits St Georges.  As we are in the car we could easily knock off some higher mileages and with the Emovis tag in the window, we can easily go through the tolls without any hassles. I chose a chain hotel for the first night as we would be on the road a long time and a hotel that was easy to find, and has a restaurant onsite would be most welcome. May well have used the pool!! But of course.  We are still very much up to our necks in the Covid-19 pandemic and so we had to cancel the whole shooting match!