SofaWolves

Day 113 – Bats and sleep

I was rather surprised when Mia wanted to drive out to Spandau and see the citidel…until she told me it had a bat basement. As it was a highlight for her we were up early and one of the first people in.

You already know I’m not a huge history buff, so I skip through these places pretty quick. Though I do concede the view from the top of the tower is impressive and the ornate cannons puzzlingly beautiful.

While Chris loves history and takes his time reading and photo documenting their time, Mia had signed up for bats with the additional hope of cake at the café. Turns out the bats don’t open until 12 and there is no cafe. Fortunately we had parked close by and I had chocolate in stock so we were able to distract ourselves while we waited.

The fruit bats were adorable and worth the wait. They were flitting around, often hanging on branches near the windows so you could see them close up and Mia was especially thrilled 😊 No photos though as my phone can’t handle the dark.

After lunch Mia and Chris were heading back into Berlin centre to hire scooters and see the victory column, before catching their flight home. Instead my body crashed out and poor Mark was left to walk the dogs on his own until I woke up some while later…turns out sleep is great and very necessary! 😂

We opted to stay in Spandau and had a relaxing afternoon pottering around the food market and trying to find Mark shoes without holes in, which we did in t k maxx of all places.

I was evidently still tired as was a right grumpy arse in the evening. Mark is incapable of saying or deciding what he would like to do and my love and kindness meditation wasn’t pulling muster…so I got in a hump with him and had an early night. He has learnt that if I draw the bedroom curtain, I need some private time. That single curtain is all we have from seeing each other 24/7, unless I go for a run or hide in the toilet…both of which are less comfy options. Ah the joys of compact living. He swears he doesn’t get sick of me, but I’m surely not that great 🤔😂

Day 112 – These legs are made for walking…and bopping 🎶

In planning our weekend together Mia had asked how much she could exhaust me…I said go for it. This disregards my body’s natural clock and so it’s 5:30am I’m awake while the rest of the van is sleeping and I know I have a 21hr day of planned activities ahead…ah well sleep is overrated.

Our first adventure was to visit Spree Park – a disused fairground that closed its gates in 2001 and is slowly being swallowed up by nature. We walked the parameters looking for little ways in as there were no guided tours this week, but realised the guards had dogs and are pretty hot on trespass so it’s not advisable to sneak in. Plus you can see quite a lot from outside. For some reason Jasper decided he wasn’t mucky enough and took after his sister with a roll.

With the dogs suitably tired, and our bellies full of lunch we ventured out again for a long walking trail Mia had created that took in a number of the key sights (east side gallery, molecule man, cathedral, Aquadom, memorial sculpture, Brandenburg Gate, some gorilla knitting and our highlight the tiny disco.

So imagine a phone box with a disco ball inside. You pick your song, step inside and then you are locked inside to dance away and sing along to your heart’s content, and the amusement of those walking past outside who can hear you. Such a daft fun idea.

It’s hard to convey the scale of the city, it really is huge but I love all the creative pockets that you stumble across. I feel you could live there months or even years and still discover new places all the time. It’s also great for vegan food, with a large vegan shopping centre (Vegansk) that made me drool with all the available options.

After walking miles in the day, Mia had excelled herself with her evening activity choice. We went to a wonderful spa called Liquidom which looks like it’s in a circus tent. It was just what our sore feet needed. Total zen in the floating pools and various saunas. I mainly hid out in the Himalayan salt sauna but there were hotter options. My only slight regret was the nudity had put Mark off coming (no bathing suits in saunas and optional in two of the three pools). We will have to be in Europe a while longer before he feels comfortable with that 😂

Day 111 – great friends make memories

Journey: Berlin

So 5 humans and 3 dogs all slept in the van…and we actually slept in! Heike and I were late to warm up, but made it to first class (Handstands – always the hardest physically, and scariest for me the evil bunny hops).

After one class my body was done. I’m such an old lady…one late night and I needed a nap, so I skipped last class and recharged in the van.

Chris and Mia were meeting up with another friend during the day, so we took the pups back to the river for a swim, then met up with Heike for a long walk through Tegel Forest. Obviously Mabel rolled in the dirty gravel…

To meet up with Chris and Mia we wanted to bring the van closer to the evenings planned bar, which meant tweaking the route somewhat to avoid the low emission zone as we had forgotten to get our green sticker for the van. For Heike perhaps an odd insight into Mark and I trying to problem solve – it’s rarely efficient but is eventually effective after much frustrated chatter and googling.

Initially we had thought of going to SupaMolly which is a punk bar in the east of Berlin, but we decided we would prefer a quieter place to chat and drink so instead went to Rummel’s Buche which was perfect.

Overlooking the river, with comfy armchairs, outdoor seating, a pizza shack and great beer – what more could you ask for?!

I’m not used to drinking and after two whisky and ginger ales was whittering on about nonsense about a cow I’d met with a foot fetish, and was adamant Mabel had won best in show at a village dog show (the large rosette has been on our fridge for years). Apologies to Paul who I texted to confirm dog story and thus ‘win’ argument with hubby 😂

I honestly can’t thank Heike, Mia and Chris enough for joining us – it really shakes up our van life and adds that extra element. I’m so looking forward to the rest of the week here. It will be the longest we have stayed in one place in over 3 months.

Day 110 – 5 in the bed and the little one said…

Journey: Berlin

I remember reading on a motorhome forum a post saying how awkward it was when friends presumed they could stay as it was obviously too cramped and not practical….

I’m the total opposite, I absolutely love and appreciate my friends coming out to visit and share in our adventure and so on Saturday our 4 berth van was super cosy with 5 humans and 3 (not small dogs). I’m not saying it was the best nights sleep but we made it work and it was lovely waking up and sharing the day with them.

Heike and I were at the acro festival during the day doing hand to hand, pops and flows. Mark and the pups were trying not to melt in the muggy heat – they don’t cope well. And Mia and Chris arrived late morning and had a wander around Berlin before meeting up with us in the evening.

Followers of my blog might know Mia is the queen of city breaks. She plans every element, always finds quirky things to do and crams as much as possible into a fun filled weekend. The huge perk for me is I can just pop my brain in neutral and follow the plan, plus I’m laid back so can be flexible if things go a little askew.

While Heike opted for acro games, music and performance at the festival. Mark and I got the bus/tram/subway into town to meet Chris and Mia. This is the first hint at how large Berlin is. You soon realise it takes ages to get between places and accept it as part and parcel of Berlin life. Us being us also meant we missed our first bus by a minute and couldn’t run fast enough after it, and also arrived on the platform just as the tram pulled away…but nevermind there’s always another one.

True to form Mia had found a great speak easy bar called Fahimi Bar. These places are tricky to find, this one being upstairs in a old Soviet block, with graffiti and dummy padlocked door. If you do manage to find it, the poster says opens at 7pm, Google says opens at 8pm and the chalk board on the door upstairs said tonight opens at 8:30pm – so yeh it threw our schedule off plan 😂 While waiting we had a lovely iced coffee at The Coffee Brothers (no vegan option) and ate the picnic we had packed. It was a worthwhile wait – Fahimi Bar is like stepping back in time. It’s completely counter to its rougher surroundings. A delicious Strawberry Fields cocktail later and we were meant to be on our way to Monsterkabinet (a surreal robotic monster show), but realised we wouldn’t make the last show in time ☹️ A little bonus though – we saw one of the gorilla stickered traffic lights promoting Go Vegan on the green light and Stop Cheese on the red 😂

So instead it was on to Alexander Platz – basically Berlin’s version of Leicester Square, saw the TV tower and then quickly dashed away again to less touristy parts. We got the tram to Wedding which is known to be quite a nice part, with a street art trail and alternative bars. We headed over to Panke Culture which is definitely striking and alternative in a run down warehouse setting by the river. We only fancied one drink and hadn’t realised it was a gig night with paid door entry. Not being overly keen on drum and bass we decided to wander on, got a few yards, ignored the blood trail, came back on ourselves… followed some people we presumed were going to a bar and ended up in the Tango loft…at 11pm a class was about to start. Hot, sticky and with sore feet we had to concede it was just one of those nights where things don’t go to plan, and rather than tango into the new day we started the 90min journey home.

Heike and the pups were all snuggled up waiting for us. After a mad bounce about greeting everyone, and Mabel clocking pretty quickly it was her old friend Mia not a burglar, we settled down. I know I slept in odd positions, Ernest slept in four different locations, and poor Heike alternated between the driving seats and sharing the sofa bed (we cannow it now know it can fit 3 adults and 2 dogs, though an ability to sleep in contorted positions helps. At one point Heike was wedged between the panels with Mabel at her feet and Ernest sprawled pushing against her tummy – my apologies, you didn’t complain once! Next time, dogs on the driver seats and humans in proper beds. Time will tell if I can lure her back 🤞

109 – The boy can swim!

Ok boring bits first, all morning was spent sorting the van leak out. Are you the sort of person who doesn’t know how to work the boiler/thermostat/dvd player…those random bits of house infrastructure that are obvious…if you know how.

If you are, then like us you will drive 45 minutes to a garage, use Google translate and climb under the van to point at a leak…only to be told you’ve accidentally switched the drain switch on! 🙈😂

So yes that happened and although it meant missing my acro lesson, we were both relieved it was a simple fix with no bill attached. Plus if we ever need to drain the water tank we now now how to.

A second silver lining was that it took us to a new part of Berlin were we saw beautiful murals and had a nice walk around Zittadellengraben (a big citadel).

Back at acro it was lunch break so we took the pups down to the river and Ernest was so desperate to play with an alsatian, he ended up copying him as he chased after a ball and swimming! His little face looked a bit shocked but he was soon chasing a stick, swimming out to get it, and unlike Jasper, he brings it back. Proud mummy moment ❤️

So then Mark had a fun afternoon in the van with 3 wet dogs while I was in acro classes doing Icarian pops and standing hand to hand…well trying to – big thanks to the spotters for catching me as I dived of shoulders once again! Apologies for no photos all hands are engaged in action during classes.

This evening Heike and I had a nice natter by the campfire and Markles is flying through his books.

108 – Sprung a leak

When your day starts by fixing the toilet you kind of hope it can only get better…for the most part it did.

I’m trying a new time management technique so I had to plan out my day and list out 3 priorities (fix toilet/buy bed sheets/defluff -what an exciting insight into my life 😂 So that was my morning… riveting and achievable.

From there it was on to Berlin! We met up with Heike for the acro festival, took the pups for a walk. Jasper pulled me into the river so he could play with other doggies…and now they all smell of river…clean for less that 24 hours 😂

The hiccup to our day was realising our water pump pipe has split and we are ringing round garages trying to get it sorted. We now have quite a long list of little faults that need fixing… inevitable after 10,000 miles. Our fingers and toes and crossed for tomorrow.

My first acro session was great. I’m super rusty but it’s nice to be back at it doing handstands on people’s arms and meeting more lovely people.

Keen to fit my training plan around acro festival, I’ve just done my run and currently sat in a bus shelter trying to get internet to write this 😂

Day 107 – Muckypups

Journey: Chlopy – Gaski – Trzebiatow – Szczecin

It’s funny what a difference time can make. At 7am, I was jogging down round a quiet town and along a pristine beach. On my way back a few locals were picking up bread and pastries from the bakery and Chlopy had a completely different feel.

That said, Mark was still keen to get moving before everyone woke up, so by 9am we were parked up further along the coast at Gaski, and we enjoyed a lovely long beach walk with the pups. Mabels sand rolling addiction is so cute, I’ve lost count of the number of photos I have but I’ll never have enough.

On our way to Szczecin we stopped at the lovely town of Trzebiatow to see the striking church and tower (apologies I forgot to photo!), picked up lots of fruit and veg from the market and found my favourite slippers. A friend had bought me a pair 17 years ago and they are the best #fashionista. Just what you need in 30 degree heat 😂

Given the dogs and hubby were struggling in the heat we drove straight to the campsite – Camping Marina and thought we would make a headstart on all the van chores before our guests arrive tomorrow and Saturday. It’s almost 11pm and we’ve only just finished the mountain of laundry. The highlight though was sweeping the floor and turning round to see this greet me!

Dear god Mabel could you be any muckier! – I had to laugh 😂 So I then spent the next hour trying to wash the three pups. As soon as clean Mabel tried to roll in the mud again so had to go into the newly cleaned van wet…where obviously she jumped on the sofa 🙈 Jasper is good as gold but lazy so didn’t want to stand and instead lay on his side getting muddy on one side while I cleaned the other, and Ernest…oh my god Ernest it’s water…the same stuff you play in at the fountains. He hates baths and I ended up being pulled along the grass, with cut legs (he later licked my wounds but I doubt he put 2 and 2 together). Oh how I missed my doggy grooming van and that there wasn’t several people watching the whole saga!

Still on the plus it tired us all out, we haven’t even made it into town, but chores are done and pups are all sleeping through the collosal thunderstorm that has flooded several of the campsite roads

106 – Sun, sand and iced coffee

Journey: Slowinski National Park – Slupsk – Koszalin – Chlopy

Hands up if you like the sun? In my van I’m outnumbered 4:1 and thus had a moaning hubby and panting pups to contend with.

Still we had the perfect beach for perfect beach weather. Parked at Slowinski National Park at 9am there were already reams of people heading to the beach. We opted to walk to the further point through the forest not realising it would take the best part of an hour. It’s possible to hire bikes or get the shuttle bus, but the dogs prefer the gentle walk. We cut a right through the forest and over migrating sanddunes and came out to pristine white sands that were really quiet. Perfect for a toe dip (the sea is still cold) and relax. Best to bring a picnic as no ice cream stalls this far out…I’d only packed dog treats, water and rice cakes 😂

The van gets very warm and so we like to take regular stops and my reasoning for picking a place can be quite odd. For example our post lunch stop was Slupsk purely because it had a nice mural. Turns out it’s quite a big town, with lots of history and architecture (saw the Witches Tower, museum and church), as well as a nice cafe Herbaciarnia w Spichlerzu, which was fashioned on an old English tearoom, crammed with different teas, tea cups and various jams/chocolate for sale. We spent much of the day praying for iced coffee…and it delivered with a free biscuit 😋 We also nipped into a Decathlon shop to buy protein powder and a foam roller as sadly my cake suppliments are often lacking on the vitamin front 😂

Slightly cooler we drove on to Koszalin to see the Dancing Fountains. Predictably Ernest joined the children in darting through the fountain and I walked Jasper and Mabel through it but they weren’t as keen. Hitting the Happy Cow app again we walked to a lovely modern cafe called Powidoki for yet more iced coffee and vegan cake. It’s definitely been harder sourcing vegan options in Poland but it is possible.

Deciding on our campspot is proving tricky as the Google description doesn’t always match the reality. Tonight we are in the quiet fishing town of Chlopy…which is anything but 😂 Hoards of tourists in a tiny village, seaside arcades, fast food and loud music from multiple bars. Mark is not impressed but we have a feeling all the coast places will be like this, and so I’ve squeezed the van into a tiny space and am waiting for him to brave another manic dog walk trying to avoid the inevitable street food scraps….plus Jasper loves the fish smell. Remember Jasper – got to roll with it, not in it!

Day 105 – The Polish Riviera

Journey: Gdansk – Westerplatte – Sopot – Leba

I’m yet to really love running, but I do love finding hidden gems while I’m out and today’s murals, sculpture, and the stunning Amber Alter were well worth it (I inadvertently arrived for morning service and felt obliged to stay as only 6 people there. I’ve no clue what they were singing/saying but it was beautiful non the less.

On our way to Sopot we visited Westerplatte to view the WW2 memorial and ruins and saw Faloweic which is the longest housing block in Europe – 10 stories high and at least 600metres long, it’s immense!

Sopot is a jewel, it felt just like the French Riviera. Lovely white architecture and sands, crystal blue beaches with restaurants every few metres. It’s a place to unwind and treat yourself.

We had a long walk along the promenade (dogs aren’t allowed on the beach between June-Sep), soaked in the atmosphere, played on the outside gym, paid 75cents for the loo – yes it’s definitely more upmarket lol. I’d researched nice cafes and Las scored well and served vegan cakes/milk…turns out we had parked right outside it. We had a nice conversation with a family, whose kids loved the dogs (Ernest was trying to dig up the flower patch 🙈), and we somehow managed to knock over our iced coffee before taking one sip…it’s always fun traveling with three dogs 😂 #calamity

After lunch we were torn between driving south to Warsaw or both along the coast as we only have the days before we need to be in Berlin. Either way is a lot of driving but we thought the time would be better spent on the coast so after a quick pitstop to refill LPG and wash the van (£1.20!) it was on to Lema via a great forest trail Sciekzka Zdrowia W Luzinie. As a rule the trails aren’t as well sign posted but this had signs and outdoor gym equipment at regular intervals. The dogs definitely prefer forest walks to city potters.

Leba is the gateway town to Slowinski National Park, and has all your usual seaside town attractions…fairground, campsites galore, wax works, market stalls, ice cream, pizza…all the food, especially if you like fish as the fishing boats were landing freshly caught produce, you couldn’t ask for fresher.

We took the pups to the Labyrinth and had a fun hour wandering around trying to get out. I’d bought Lithuanian spicy veg and tofu dumplings for dinner… honestly Lidl is a vegans dream when travelling, it’s always got something. They were delicious 😋

After a bedtime walk around the town where the dogs found copious scraps and melted ice cream, I was really tired so came home and soaked my swollen mozzie eaten feet in a frying pan while meditating with my facemask on…as you do 😂

Tomorrow it’s beach time ☀️

Day 104 – Arrive with empty belly

Journey: Malbork – Gdansk

When visiting the world’s largest medieval castle it would really help if I had a greater interest in history. I know it sounds awful but as impressive as it was (and huge! and skillfully restored), after 45minutes of audio commentary whilst pottering around, I’d reached my limit. I switched it off and continued wandering, just happy to look around: observing if not learning.

It was then on to Gdansk. When I’d first mooted the idea, Mark had dismissed it as a port city but both Mia and a lovely German camper couple had said it’s a pearl not to be missed. They weren’t wrong! Mia thank you again for all your tips and recommendations.

It is definitely a city to visit on an empty tummy, the cafe and restaurant scene is amazing. It’s a foodie paradise. We managed to squeeze the van into a space right in the centre, next to the Amber Alter and 1 min walk from Bunkier nightclub…more of that later. First stop Pyra Bar for some delicious polish potato stodge. Mark went straight into dessert mode and had potato pancakes, apple and cream, I went slightly healthier with a potato, courgette, olive slice. This place is all about the humble potato and with two scrumptious meals and a drink for under £10 who can complain.

Wherever you look there is stunning architecture and a buzzing atmosphere. Tourists are milling around the old town, amber stalls are everywhere, great buskers, ice cream every few yards. We were going to follow a self walking guide but were ultimately just happy to wander and get lost in the maze of little lanes. I’d made a note of all the key attractions (fahrenheit clock, 3 hags, 3 boars, churches galore, river, Neptune and Four Quarters fountains) so nothing was missed but as it’s so compact, you will likely walk the same streets several times and spot different things each time.

On Mariacka we had iced coffee and a slice of cake at Drukarnia Cafe…sadly their ice machine had just broke and the cake was stale (rooky mistake, never go for the last slice as you don’t know how long it’s been there). The pups got a fuss though and staff were friendly. Think we just caught them at a bad time.

For Ernest the highlight was Four Quarter Fountain, for a dog who hates a bath he absolutely adores water fountains and is hilarious (I’ve shared the video of him playing on their insta @sofawolves).

After more wandering, we found the new town, ate an ice cream and then I braved clothes shopping. One shop was all Mark and I could cope with, and I still sought advice from friends before buying but I now have a few staples that actually fit and don’t have pulls/holes. It’s been ages since I bought new, as generally only buy secondhand but it was nice to feel pretty for a change

New gladrags on, we went out for yet more food…it’s a wonder I still fit in them 😂 Manna 68 is a great veggie/vegan restaurant that’s always busy but well worth the wait. Mark had the burger and I had the burrito…they also did cake but I was stuffed.

As a surprise for Mark I suggested a night out clubbing…his face needed convincing but he went along with it. Bunkier Club is right in the centre in one of the last remaining bunkers. Staggered over 6 floors each with unique decor, on a Sunday night at 10pm we had the place to ourselves so had fun exploring, a mini bop and some handstand practice.. I even nipped into the gents loos to see the lady maniquin urinals. After 1 drink we conceded it was a dead duck and went home…still we sort of went clubbing 😂