All ready to go nice and early, went to reception to pay and ask for the electrics to be disconnected only to be informed that I can not pay until after the electrics are done and the meter read. So that is when I discovered that you pay for the electricity separately. Next it was over to the Motorhome Service Point and had to wait ages for a caravan to fill his water tank it took him forever but Dot used the time to pay at reception, €45.00 total €15.00 per night. On the good side the GPS appeared to be working, we had worked out a route anyway, it was written down and stuck on the windscreen, we had also walked the way to the main road to get over the bridge on our second day.
Well as soon as we set off the GPS froze and we set off the wrong way along the dual carriageway but that was no problem, we just turned off and got back on the right way. The intention is to follow the B9 along the west bank of the Rhine to Bingen then join the A61, so all we have to do is cross the Mosel from the site find the Rhine turn right and drive south. We cross the Mosel ok, this takes you into the middle of Koblenz where the road signs are useless (to me anyway) and we are soon crossing the Mosel again heading back towards the site (on another bridge though). We pull over and recheck the route, we can either do a U turn and get back on the right road, or carry on, along the road we are on and join the B9 outside the town, so that what we do, go straight on.
The above does not happen, we do not get to the B9 but see the signs for the A61 and just head for it, we had seen the Rhine the day before and without GPS we decide just to get where we are going.
So its the A61 to the A5 then A8 to exit 43 onto the B10, here there are signposts for Bad Liebenzell, we should now get onto the B463, the road the site is on. But as we are now in a big town the road signs stop, and we get (did you guess it) lost, the GPS in a brief moment out of its coma suggests we head down a dirt track and then goes back to sleep. We by sheer luck, get on the road we want and even though it is rather narrow in places we eventually get to the campsite
Campingpark Bad Liebenzell
Pforzheimer Str. 34,
D-75378
Bad Liebenzell
Reception ask us to wander round the site and to pick out two or three pitches while they complete the paperwork, the site is fuller than I though it would be but there are still plenty of large marked pitches to choose from, we choose one with a view of the castle. Back at reception I ask for ACSI discount and that's ok, it isn't always, then drive to the pitch and wait for the electrics to be connected.
Its now that I notice that the new leisure battery isn't fully charged and make a mental note to check the connections with the charger. Electrics connected, I decide to check the leisure battery connections, I unplug the charger and plug it back it and it starts charging ok. So then I think (or don't think and this is where the mental bit comes in), I will splay the connection ends to get better contact. So I get a knife and force the first one open slightly, then do the same for the second one, on to the third and suddenly the knife is flying through the air and my hair is stood on end. My left arm is also in a lot pain and on top of this I have to walk back to reception to get the electric reset. They ask if I know why it tripped and I had to admit with a red face (and smoking hair), it was my fault.
Note, with electrical connectors, the male side is usually not live whereas the female side usually is, so do not poke pointy bits of metal into electrical connections, it hurts and can cause embarrassment, not to mention death. By the way the charger is now working as it should.
We were given a pass for the pool complex next door, which you have to produce for entry at the connecting gate behind reception, this pass also entitles you to free transport on the local trains and buses. We also got a key to the back gate, which makes it a shorter walk into town and there is also a Lidl just outside this gate, open 08:00 to 20:00, very handy indeed.
It's early evening by the time we are sorted, we leave the site by the back gate for a walk into town and a quick look in Lidl but even though it is not long after 19:00 the Lidl is closed, not so handy after all. In town most places are also closed but we can smell chips and as we haven't eaten we set of in hot pursuit. In the distance, there is a queue on the opposite side of the road, outside a small kiosk, must be chips we think and make a beeline for it. Imagine our disappointment to fide it selling ice-cream, so our search continued back over the road. Down in a small dark arcade, Dot spots a kebab shop and we go to have a look, it is in fact a small cafe, and when we walk through it opens out into a modern town square. We sit outside and order a margarita pizza, two portions of chips and two hefe weissbiers. The place is quite full and children are playing in the water of the rill that runs the length the square, all very pleasant.
Back at the van, even though it doesn't look possible to get reception, I have a go at setting up the satellite anyway but to no avail, I can only pickup the wrong satellite. Eventually I give-up and we settle down for a couple of drinks by the van, the big bugs are here but do not bother us much this time, we do have the citronella candles on though.
Day Six or Day Four
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