Day 14 - Etretat to Groningen, NL

Our clock alarm went off at 6:30 this morning and we were not too swift about getting up for the day. The morning temps were in the low 60s and there was a light fog that had settled in the valleys of Etretat.

We made our way to the Dormy House hotel restaurant for breakfast at around 7:45. They had a large selection of breads, cheese, yogurt, fruits, jams and eggs. The scrambled eggs were too runny for Michele so she asked Rob to cook one of the fresh eggs available in the little pot of hot water just for that purpose. Michele also had two croissants with fig jam and mentioned that they would never taste as good anywhere else but here in France. We finished packing, checked out and were in the car by 8:20am. (The black cat from yesterday was out on the prowl, but we learned it is a boy and usually stays outside.)

We drove on small country roads for 50km or so before we got to the highway. We then took a series of toll roads eastward across France before eventually driving a more northerly route. 

As we went further north, the traffic increased as did the rudeness of the drivers. Basically the drivers’ behavior felt more and more like home as the day progressed. Despite this, most everyone stays right unless passing. It is very bad manners to sit in the fast lane here and you will be tailgated mercilessly. We started to see more varied license plates in Belgium, as far as Poland and Czech Republic, mostly on the commercial trucks. Only one other car was from Spain like us. 

By 12:30 pm we were in Belgium and ready for lunch. 

We stopped at a Total gas station. They had two options: one place had sandwiches and hot dogs and the other was more of a cafeteria style spot. We opted for the sandwich since it would be quicker. We got a ham and cheese sandwich which was warmed up to a piping hot temperature. We had to wait 5 minutes for it to cool off enough to handle so we could cut it in half. The sandwich was good. It had a slightly spicy sauce on it.

The restrooms at this place cost .50 Euros. You pay to pee. When you use them, you got a .50 Euro voucher as a discount on any item purchased at the food or convenience store. We did not know this at first since Dutch is the primary signage in the place. Michele took advantage of the voucher and purchased some drinks and snacks for the rest of the day’s trip. Rob said the men’s bathroom had different height urinals in individual cubicles. He said they were from ankle height to face height. This might be a slight exaggeration. And there is no picture. 

We continued north for a few Km and hit a big traffic jam. They look the same here as home. 

Michele looked it up on her phone and it was a one hour delay with a crash near Antwerp, so we plotted an alternate route that was supposed to save us nearly an hour. It took us through some little towns and routed us around the western part of Antwerp versus the eastern side we had originally planned. The architecture is opposite France - it is modern and utilitarian. After the old world flourishes of France it was a culture shock for us. 

This trike was very unique and its riders did not wear helmets. 

We crossed into the Netherlands without realizing it until the sign passed by, and with about 200km to go we stopped to refuel. Rob says this tank had 564km on it and we put in 35.9 liters at 1.46 Euro/liter. (About .10 Euros less than regular gasoline or .40 dollars less per gallon.) It is amazing how much less diesel is than regular gas, anywhere from 10-40 cents/ litre. We only got 37.6 mpg on that tank. 

We saw a lot of windmills today. 

And these giant cement elephants.

We drove beside a huge dike and were technically below sea level at negative 3 metres, and thought it was cool. 

A pretty sight.

Fuzzy little horses in a very blurry shot. We have seen more animals here in the Netherlands than elsewhere. Horses, cows and sheep mostly. 

We arrived at the hotel in the outskirts of Groningen at 7:00pm. It was a really long day with heavy traffic. We are in the northern part of the country with Germany just to our right and Denmark above that. Michele commented how this trip would be so much more difficult by motorcycle. She likes the comfort of the Fiat. We checked in and went down to the hotel restaurant to get dinner. We had a spetzel salad (a type of wheat with other veggies mixed in, it was tasty) and schnitzel that we shared. It came with two types of fries, a mystery dish under cheese and ham, and some pickled stuff with raisins that Michele really liked. The portions were huge. We were unable to finish all of it despite sharing.

We went back to the room and watched World Cup soccer. Today we drove 766km over 11.5 hours. Tomorrow we will spend all day at the TT Assen track just 20 minutes away, watching Friday practice for MotoGP.