2018-07-12, Vacation 2018 - Day 3, Part 2: Finally Reaching Brügge (Bruges)

As stated in the previous Vacation 2018 post, more random piccies from our journey towards Brügge are due.

The Ghentpoort (Ghent Gate) of Brügge.

Better pic.

And this pic must be this tower.

Before we reached the camping site below, we had tried our luck at another one - and I have never experienced such a behaviour from a camp warden as we were met with there. Luckily for her, I do not remember the name of the site, otherwise ...

We arrived from a direction where the sign at the gate was not visible, entered the driveway and got out to see if they could accomodate us. We found that they had some kind of electronic booking and check-in system, and we did not get very far with that. After a while a woman (I am deliberately not using 'lady') came out from some back office and demanded that we moved our car and trailer from the driveway. As both the driveway and the road were very narrow, flanked with high hedges, I asked her to open the gates so that we could drive around the office building and out at the other side, as I did not want to risk reversing out with next to no view of the road, but she refused - an generally treatred us as some kind of potential violent delinquents.

The I got stubborn and refused to move our vehicles, and after a while she gave in and opened the gates, and instead we found Camping Klein Strand, where we were met with a more normal behaviour.

The evening sky.

The camp with the trusty small awning bought for the old Eccles. As it turned out, it was a good thing that we put it up, as while I was cooking on the small table under it, some kids threw some dried dog poo over the trailer, and it might have hit the stove, were it not for the shelter of the awning.

As you may have guessed, this first day in Belgium did not leave me in the best of moods; I was treated badly by a camp warden, and I had shit thorown at me. Not a good first impression of a country.

C29, Culchan: Carnivorous Bird

This very old Citadel mini is now finally about to get some love, due to my Paleo Diet project(s - plural, because I work on both an African as well as a Pre-Historic setting).

I should be able to get it cleaned and based relatively fast, as soon as I have finished cleaning and basing the three boars I posted a couple of days ago.

I am still eagerly awaiting the Victrix shipment, but until it gets here, I can just continue working on small side projects like this alongside Operation Cleansweep...

Paleo Diet - Rounding Up the Prey

As mentioned, I am going to play some Paleo Diet as soon as I have enough painted animals to hunt, so I have been digging out  some of the wildlife I have amassed over the years (and making sure to find some of the African animals, as I am going to use some Zulus as hunters for a start).

I painted this ostrich from HLBSC (now North Star) some time ago for a Painting Club at the LAF, and I have another couple of those big birds form the same set ready for paint, so I should start on those as soon as I get Lea's SS&SS party finished.

From the same company came the baboon family, and they will be the next animals painted. When they are done, I should have enough for a first game, so I can focus on getting some jungle terrain done (I have loads of plastic palm trees and aquarium plants, so I shall not have to purchase anything to get stuck in).

This bear is from an old blister with a Wood Elf Beastmaster, and the collar/torque is really making it look too domesticated, but I shall probably use it, anyway, at a later point, when I get some proper cavemen painted.

The second bear is from the long OOB MEGA Miniatures of Johnny Lauck, and much more fitting for a wild beast.

Both bears are going to get new bases, I think - I have just ordered some thin greyboard 25mm x 50mm pill shaped bases from Sarissa Precision to place on top of two 25mm washers for mounting cavalry and the likes, and the first bear might fit on one of those, while the second one can probably use a single 30mm or 35mm washer.

Lastly, for now, I have two crocodiles - I think they can make hunting along rivers or in swamps a tad more interesting, and predators should always be part of the conditions to be faced by primitive tribes trying to carve out a place in an unforgiving environment.

Copplestone Penguins

I have no idea, actually, what to use these for, but I thought I'd better get them cleaned and moved along with the snowmen...

For some reason, they make me think of Stirges, so maybe they are a special breed of aquatic bloodsucking critters?

Better not catch their attention then...

Oooops. Too late!

Ostrich Basing WIP

Been trying to bring the bird up to speed with all the other WIP basing projects, and I am almost there.

This concludes the progress shown for today, as the rest of my work was mostly just dull filling of washer holes on the bases I already put some filler on yesterday (no reason to show pics of lying minis with filler sticking out of the underside of their bases, methinks).

I expect to clear about 20 models from the prepping station this weekend, and then work should continue on some of my current painting projects (I really need to get one of those riflemen done for the Big Battalions Painting Club at the LAF done).

Birdy, Birdy, Nam, Nam!

This Honoured Lead Boiler Suit Company mini has been lying around on my prepping station ever since I painted another ostrich from the same pack for a painting club at the LAF.

As part of my plan to get some stuff cleared from the prepping station, I cleaned it up and glued it to a washer.

I intend to get Ganesha Games' Paleo Diet game, and a flock of ostriches would be a viable game objective for a group of Paleolithic hunters.

HLBSC has stopped trading in 28mm minis, but most of their ranges were picked up by Nick Eyre at North Star Military Figures, and it should be possible to get another couple of packs (and some antelopes, or other game).

Vacation 2016 - Day 3: Into France - and Storks!

During the night a gale swept over the region, and I had to take down the small awning and move the fridge inside the trailer. Only damage was a few small indents in the trailer door, probably inflicted by the tarpaulin ring in one of the awning corners, as the wind whipped it around.

This photo is from when we were packing up for leaving in the morning.

While my family got ready for leaving, I took a couple of photos of the lake, and some of the rentable barrel-huts this camping has.

A few more photos of the surroundings. I bet late summer (wine harvest) would be a nice time to visit this place!

Bad Dürkheim is not far from the French border, and to avoid the traffic chaos around Strasbourg, we took the autoroute for a while.

Around noon, we stopped at a rest area (L'aire d'autoroute du Haut Koenigsbourg)
to eat lunch. Much to the excitement of the girls, some storks were immediately spotted on the lawns. I spent the next 10 minutes or so trying to round them up (the girls, not the storks)

As it turned out, this particular rest area is a regular stork haven, with nesting places and flocks of the large birds.

 Anna and Lea could not get enough of the storks, and they would hear nothing of lunch, until I took several photos.

In th emeantime, Marianne had found a shady place for out little picnic. The storks were reasonably tame, and came very close to get scraps from the meals of the rest area guests.

Between the parking lot and lawns and the cafeteria was a very nice water lily pond. I had to capture that with my camera.

We drove all the way down to the Jura region, and checked in on Camping Les Vignes at Arbois (the home town of Louis Pasteur). The camping had free admittance to the piscine, so the girls, needless to say, went straight for a swim!

For some strange reason, I did not take any photos of Les Vignes, but if you follow the link, their website has a lot of photos that look exactly like when we visited (same weather, light, everything, just our car and camping trailer missing 😉).

Very recommendable camping site - calm, shady, and with a fantastic view over the valley. We slept like babies!