Wednesday morning. We wake early to hit the road for Dover. Not by choice..... but due to the upcoming Olympics in London, there is no parking after 7am. So we leave Gartoll's gaff early pushing through textbook London weather and work traffic. A good test of driver and vehicle in the tight city streets. Once on the highway it was time to stretch her legs, see how fast Chardy would really go. It wasn't long before we were tearing along at 90km/h.

In no time at all we arrived in Dover. Thanks to our first purchase (NAVMAN GPS) we made the midday Ferry heading to Calais (France). We payed the 100+ pounds to get Chardy on the ferry, then walked the decks to take in the White Walls of Dover and some salt air.

A couple of hours and we are off and driving in France. Easier than expected driving on the wrong side of the road in the wrong side of the car.

We head south from Calais to the Somme river and follow it East to the WW1 Battlefields. After a long day, with waning concentration and the endless vineyards out the window, a decision was made to test both our grasp of the Language and the local produce. We stopped at a little vineyard and purchased a bottle of Red from the cellar door. With more pointing than conversing, we navigated our first interaction with the local dialect. It turns out laughter is a universal language!

We continued a short distance to Arras and looked for a quiet place to spend the night. With no idea where anything was and little enthusiasm to continue driving we drove back out of town until we found somewhere. Not sure of the local laws concerning camping, we decided to roll the dice and sleep on the side of the road. The cork was popped and mugs filled before the headlamps had dimmed. Looking back i am not sure if it was the best wine i have ever tasted but at the time, it sure felt like it. Sleep.

Next morning we woke feeling refreshed looking out the window at a field of canola that went to the horizon, welcome to France! After a morning coffee there was a knock on the door... The local police had come to admire our parking skills or so we thought. An attractive lady in uniform inspected Chardy and took our passports, upon seeing the Australian Coat of Arms the mood lightened. In English she instructed us to "Have a nice day" and waved goodbye. How good is France!

Alright, off to pay our respects to the many know and unknown soldiers that died in our honor.

Pozières. We meet up with Brad and Mikki at the local pub "Le Tommy".

A little pub serving the only food and drinks in town, dedicated to the Allied involvement in the War. The windows filled with Australian flags and the bar accepting Australian currency. Feels like home. We ask for advice on where to go after indulging in an Aussie style bacon and egg roll. We head off for a solemn day visiting all relevant sites, including the trenches (still visible after nearly 100yrs). The weather was appropriately dreary putting into perspective how miserable it would have been for the soldiers trying to survive the chaos. Shear hell!

We walked through the trenches and studied the headstones in the cemeteries, a tragically long process. Just so many!An experience all Aussies should embrace.

We return to "Le Tommy" to pick up Chardy and head for Antibes on the Mediterranean.