Shaun Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 We did La Loire last year and not only enjoyed the experience, but were ready to return this summer for a second tasting. We've always been prodded in the French direction, due to having a half-decent grasp of the lingo and the fact we owned a French property for some years until fairly recently. Then some bright spark suddenly came up with a smattering of schoolgirl German and, armed with a ruler and a map, pointed out that a couple of touristy German rivers were much the same distance from us in the southern UK, as La Loire - so why don't we go there for a change? I reminded my dear wife that when in France it was invariably me who bore the linguistic burden. Yes, I acknowledge that after consuming a litre of cheap French plonk in familiar restaurants, I do have a tendency to practise not only my French accent, but I've even been known to conjugate - something not previously done since a schoolboy, circa 1972. Truth is, in the absence of Dutch-courage when suitably imbibed, the rest of the time I just wished someone else would talk to these people who are rabbiting incoherently at me, just because I sounded semi-conversant in French. Yet, despite my often English discomfort in France, truth is, my foreign comfort zone is France. I suspect in Germany I would be utterly clueless, which would therefore turn the spotlight very firmly on a spouse whose attempts at French - despite years of practice - are still pretty dismal. I know squat about German, but I doubt very much that if we went to Germany - despite her protests to the contrary - my wife could get much beyond hellos and goodbyes. I used to think everyone on the continent spoke enough English for us all to get by. Hmmm.... We were in Holland not long ago, for my son's football tournament. Rumour has it that the Dutch speak English better than we do. Not so. These particular Dutch people spoke no English at all, and only uttered sounds which I last remember as Orkan from Mork and Mindy. Sorry, I digress. For those who've done both France and Germany, is it really worth the linguistic hassles changing from one to the other? Yes, I can see that the Moselle and Rhine have lots of pretty buildings and suchlike - but then so does France. Given that it's me, my wife and a 15 year-old daughter cooped up in a panel van for the trip duration, should I indulge the missus in something a bit different or stick with the familiar? Shaun Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 Do you really have to ask.....The Moselle :D I probably prefer the Loire but you have got to get around haven't you! and you will not be disapoined.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaun Posted May 20, 2011 Author Share Posted May 20, 2011 Yeah, but there's no baguettes and croissants - and don't they serve cold meats and cake for breakfast? Shaun Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeffersonCampervan Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 Definitely travel the Mosel (Trier to Koblenz) then Rhein from Koblenz south to Bingen. A diiferent, but at least equal, experience to the Loire.More of a medieaval flavour (Roman in Trier). Food is great on its own terms, as is the wine & bier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 You have a van: the van has wheels. Go, explore! Then, at the very least, you'll discover if your fears are well founded (I suspect they are not, but hey, they're your fears, to with as you will :-)) If you really want some linguistic fun, try the Slavic nations, or Hungary, or perhaps Greece. At least bits of German are passingly familiar to us Brits: wasn't English once known as "low German"? All those Anglo-Saxons, who came, with their languages, from Angleland, Saxony, Friesland and Jutland. All the Normans did, was lay a veneer of French over the top (and anyway, they weren't "proper" French - just a bunch of trouble-making Nordic interlopers). At heart we're still more Germanic than Latin, especially when we start swearing! :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 Moselle is Motorhome heaven not much more can be said go and enjoy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FRANKP60 Posted May 21, 2011 Share Posted May 21, 2011 Go for Moselle ,we stayed there end of March /Beginning April ,Try to go via Luxembourg with nearly empty tank ,£1.18euros diesel in March ,Head for Trier to start ,good Stellplatze there, Walking distant's into Trier . Then head for Piesport site is right next to Moselle in fact nearly all the Stellplatze are little over 100 yards from river.After Piesport there are Stellplatze all along Moselle some within 10 ks of each other ,but all have different views ,about 7 euroes with electric. There is a large Motor-home daytime park in Bernkastel and also parking in Cochem all worth a visit . We stayed in Trier ,Piesport twice ,Brauneberg ,Enkirch all in Bord atlas (which is in German)we speak no German but easy to understand . If you have bike's take them as the cycle path's follow the Moselle for miles .We had ten days near Moselle and going to return in September this time with bikes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rupert123 Posted May 21, 2011 Share Posted May 21, 2011 Moselle/Rhine differant to Loire but well worth a visit. Language problems almost non existant. How much do you need, my wife and I can count up to ten, say good morning, know what German for motorhome and electric is. We have travelled in Germany quite a lot in last two years and English is so widely spoken you can always find someone if needed. We are lucky in that English is becoming the language of Europe and even the French now are happy to speak it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BGD Posted May 21, 2011 Share Posted May 21, 2011 Shaun - my money is on those Dutch people being able to speak English very well indeed; but deciding to just speak their own language in their own country instead......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FRANKP60 Posted May 21, 2011 Share Posted May 21, 2011 Yes there is Baguettes and Croissants delivered to site in Piesport each morning think it was 8.40am.The breakfast served in Cafes ,are great,Fresh bread and croissants are wonderful ,meats are really good .If you want to try the meats before you go shop in ALDI ,Also try if you go try the Flammkueche with a glass of Piesport white wine .Flammkueche is on offer in Liddi at moment ,actually in French section. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaun Posted May 21, 2011 Author Share Posted May 21, 2011 Yes, it seems I'm too much in my comfort zone. I've done India and the Maldives, so I shouldn't be overly fussy as to what's for breakfast. I think the stroppy 15 year old accompanying us, makes me think twice about everything. She used to complain about our regular trips to France, but I can see it's become a home from home for her, so now she's resisting change when I suggest somewhere else. We have friends in Germany and when we've visited them, they've served us cake and cooked meats for breakfast. The idea of an egg with a bit of bacon and toast was greeted with laughter. I'm glad that this isn't actually a national policy in Germany, so thanks for the thumbs up as to the food variety out there. It's great to see such a vote of confidence for the Moselle region, but to be honest we just lumped it in with the Rhine as they seemed to be the nearby twins where everyone travelled to. But so far no-one's mentioned the Rhine. If this were the Eurovision Song Contest, I'd be viewing maximum points for Moselle and bugger-all... sorry, 'nul points' for Rhine. Is there any particular reason? Shaun Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyg3nwl Posted May 21, 2011 Share Posted May 21, 2011 Hi, For my 2 pennorth, years ago when I was a tugger, A wrong turning aiming to get to the bank of the Moselle resulted in trying to tow a 7 ft wide van down a 6 ft wide street.. Quarts and pint pot syndrome, and a severe test of skills of reversing.. Having said that, I was more impressed by the Rhine valley, Koblenze to Rudesheim, than the Moselle valley. Koblenze to Trier. Each to his own of course, and I am remembering 30 years ago, so doubtless things have changed. As regards Language, My "o" level french (remember that time?) coupled with 4 summer seasons work in France as a holiday rep has inevitably overtaken my German which has been primarily practised in the past when living in Winchester and using Ham Radio to converse with hams in the Twin Cities of Giessen and Versailles. There was a recent TV prog about walking in the Rhine valley (Julia Bradbury walks) which was interesting, but if you are not a keen walker.... Our last year's outing was down the Romantische Strasse from Rothenburg ob der Tauber to Fussen, and knowledge of (some) German was useful while looking for" Ein flasche Camping gas Bitte". Result was Ein grosse oder ein kleine, ...Mittle bitte. Apologies for bad German but you get the idea. Regarding Loire Valley, , Personally I think the scenery is a bit boring, and much prefer the Dordogne or Tarn valleys. Loire is all boring Chateau !!! Not my scene but there are those that enjoy it so good luck to them. Whichever you chose, if you don't like it just drive on and try somewhere else. Dont be afraid of trying your limited language skills, it adds to the fun. Schuss et Bonne Chance tonyg3nwl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff Tuckley Posted May 21, 2011 Share Posted May 21, 2011 Hello All, We are hopefully setting off in three or four weeks for our first motorhome trip in Germany. We were going to go to Koblenz and drive down the Moselle through luxembourg and into France as we have some friends who live in Limousin and have invited us to stay with them for Bastille Day. Reading these posts i now don't know whether it might be better to do Triers to Koblenz and then follow the Rhine and make our way to France that way. Has anyone experience of following Moselle or Rhine right down to france. We too have very little German although we can say good day and order beer. What more do you need? I always find when you wish to spend money a distinct understanding of English becomes apparent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeffersonCampervan Posted May 21, 2011 Share Posted May 21, 2011 Shaun - 2011-05-21 10:15 AM It's great to see such a vote of confidence for the Moselle region, but to be honest we just lumped it in with the Rhine as they seemed to be the nearby twins where everyone travelled to. But so far no-one's mentioned the Rhine. If this were the Eurovision Song Contest, I'd be viewing maximum points for Moselle and bugger-all... sorry, 'nul points' for Rhine. Is there any particular reason? Shaun The Mosel is much more pastoral - but I prefer the Rhein - an intensity of history pervades this region that is absent from the Mosel ( despite the obvious charms of the Mosel - YMMV). We usually base in Bacharach - there you have 3 choices - Camping Sonnenstrand, the adjacent stellplatz (as long as the boules tourney isn't on! :-), or the large parking next to the K-D line dock. All 3 are right on the Rhein. From Bacharach we take the K-D Rhein ferries along the river for day trips. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted May 21, 2011 Share Posted May 21, 2011 I love threads like this.....Its an example of what keeps this forum special :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian0354 Posted May 21, 2011 Share Posted May 21, 2011 Geoff Tuckley - 2011-05-21 4:57 PM Hello All, We are hopefully setting off in three or four weeks for our first motorhome trip in Germany. We were going to go to Koblenz and drive down the Moselle through luxembourg and into France as we have some friends who live in Limousin and have invited us to stay with them for Bastille Day. Reading these posts i now don't know whether it might be better to do Triers to Koblenz and then follow the Rhine and make our way to France that way. Has anyone experience of following Moselle or Rhine right down to france. We too have very little German although we can say good day and order beer. What more do you need? I always find when you wish to spend money a distinct understanding of English becomes apparent. Geoff, Our experience is on the Moselle. We came in the opposite direction last time over, travelling up from Strasburg, when coming back from the Black Forest, picking up the Moselle south of Millery then via Pont a Mouson north through France until meeting the Luxemburg border then into Germany at Wasserbillig, just before Trier (fill up with fuel at the last cheap at Wassabillig, the main road through is one fuel station after another). Millery has a very simple Aire with water and dump facilities only while Pont a Mouson is a lovely place to park watching the boats, with full facilities plus a very nice old town. Once south of Luxemburg the Moselle looses some of it's beauty but still a lovely drive. IHTH. Regards, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rupert123 Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 Shaun - 2011-05-21 3:15 PM It's great to see such a vote of confidence for the Moselle region, but to be honest we just lumped it in with the Rhine as they seemed to be the nearby twins where everyone travelled to. But so far no-one's mentioned the Rhine. If this were the Eurovision Song Contest, I'd be viewing maximum points for Moselle and bugger-all... sorry, 'nul points' for Rhine. Is there any particular reason? Shaun Both are well worth a visit and very differant. Best bit of Moselle is Trier to Koblenz, best of Rhine is Koblenz to Rudisheim. We have done this twice and both times spent much longer on the Moselle, more to see in our opinion. The old towns off Cochem and Bernkastell must be among the best anywhere. Cannot agree about German food though, we rarely eat out there and supermarkets are poor compared with UK or France. The best is afternoon tea, their cake shops now rival France, nothing beats a good apple strudel and coffee. In Titisee, Black Forest, we also had a fantastic Black Forest gateaux. The white wines of both rivers have now regained their reputations and are consistantly good value. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 Just some small details, that may prevent confusion with geography/navigation! :-| The Moselle rises in France and flows into Luxembourg and Germany near Schengen where, for a brief stretch, the river marks the border between France and Luxembourg, after which it becomes the border between Germany and Luxembourg. Below Schengen it is the Moselle on the Luxembourg bank, and Mosel on the German bank. It only becomes the Mosel unequivocally below Wasserbillig in Luxembourg, after which both banks are in Germany. So, with apologies, the Moselle is not in Germany, but in France. :-) More hair splitting. :-| The Rhine is only the Rhine in English. It is the der Rhein in Switzerland, Austria (one bank only), Liechtenstein (one bank only), and Germany, Le Rhin in France (one bank only), and de Rjin in the Netherlands. So, with apologies as above, the Rhine is not in either France or Germany, although either le Rhin or der Rhein may be found in those countries respectively. :-) Oh what the hell! While we're at it, don't confuse la Loire with le Loir (both of which are definitely in France), which lies a few kilometres to the north, and is generally much prettier! :-) It's just that I don't want to think of you lot all getting lost and wandering up and down the wrong rivers in the wrong countries. 8-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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