Blog

During the week we updated a blog to let people back home know what was going on. A transcript of it is below.

5th August

Get Packing
Only 10 days to go now!!

12th August

3 days and counting
So are you all excited yet??? If you haven't started packing yet - best you get a move on :o)

15th August

The Big Day!
Well the day has arrived. In a little under two hours the coach will be leaving and we will be on our way to Hungary. We have checked the P&O Ferries webpage and there are no delays to crossings (was an hour yesterday due to rough seas/high winds).

So finish the last minute packing, get your uniform on and see you at the Co-Op at 10.30am

A Stowe away
Somehow Monkey managed to get on board! We are on the M25 sitting in traffic so we have come to far to turn round and take him home.

Bonjour
We have had arrived in France after a much smoother than anticipated crossing. We now have two hours before the next stop which will be in Belgium.

Still on the move
We have just had a stop at Belgium and now back on the road again. We have about another 2 hours then we will be stopping for a supper break. The time now is 20:40 here its still daylight with overcast skies - ideal for travelling :)

The Night Shift
We have had supper and are now travelling through the night. The clouds have turned into thunder storms, Clive has had a belly full, is stuffed and the snoring is expected to start soon!!! We won't be able to tell what is him and what is the storm :)

16th August

Thursday morning
Its now just after 6am. The sun is rising and it looks like it's going to be a really nice day here. We are still not in Hungary but somewhere in Austria. We should be stopping for breakfast soon, then non stop to Domos.

In Hungary!!
We have now crossed the Hungarian border where we stopped for about an hour. We are now on the road again with approximately 100 miles to go until we reach our accommodation. It must be well into the 30's here so after unpacking etc we may go for a swim.

We are here
We arrived safely at 4pm, have unpacked, sorted rooms, had dinner and now off for a swim in the danube.

17th August

View of the Danube
After a VERY step climb to the top of the hill we needed a rest and time to recover. So rather than doing the mini golf we visited the castle and fantastic panoramic views of the Danube. Once back you will be able to see these on the website.

Hiking along the Danube
This morning we went on a 5 mile hike to the next town called Visegrad. Some of it was along a beach, through trees, over driftwood and even a man asleep outside his tent on the river bank.

Good Night
Another excellent day in Hungary draws to a close. The Scouts are sound asleep in bed and its just coming up to midnight (11pm in UK). A more relaxing day tomorrow with a lake cruise and site seeing in Esztegom. Hope you are enjoying the blog :o)

18th August

Cruising
We have had a morning of games and now we are cruising on the Danube. It must already be over 30 degrees - so time to top up the tan.

On the way back to Domos
We have been site seeing round the biggest Church in Europe. The weather has been extremely hot so when we get back we may go swimming in the river again.

What a hot Day!!
Its been the hottest day so far here on the Trip and I wouldn't be surprised if it nearly hit 40 degrees!! It was still so hot by the time we got back from the cruise that a number of us went off to the Danube again for a splash about and to cool down. It was a lot lower this time and we walked across nearly half way and it was still only up to our waists!

A late evening meal was followed by time for the Scouts to clean their bed rooms. The girls room was the worst of the 4 and we thought it would take until at least midnight for them to finish it They all worked hard together though and it only took 30 minutes.

With it being so hot and the Scouts feeling tired after a day in extreme heat an early night was had. It was off to bed at 10pm (9pm local time - how many other parents can say they got their kids to bed that early during the 6 weeks holiday).

We maybe able to bring you an Audio Blog of today, tomorrow evening - if any of them can remember what we done after a good nights sleep

19th August

Lake Balaton
After a longer than expected drive to Balaton we have been in the Lake swimming and hired a few boats. Some with slides some without. For those without a boat with a slide on there were a number of flumes too.

The end of another day
The fourth day of the trip draws to a close. A relaxing day at the man made beaches of Balaton was enjoyed by everyone one (listen to the audio blog for more details). We are up early tomorrow as we are spending 6 hours canoeing on the Danube followed by plenty of time to recover. I won't be taking a PC on the canoe so please call back late tomorrow night for a full report.

20th August

The canoeing trip
We Completed 16 miles, which is 2/3rd of the way to Budapest!! Only 1 boat capsized on the journey. At the afternoon break after another hour of paddling that I personally (Dan) had to take a reality check... Here I was in Hungary, in a canoe on the Danube. How many other people can say they have done that? It's something I will never forget - I'm sure the young people taking part will remember it for a long time to come as well.

21st August

GPS
No one really knew what to expect but what we thought maybe a stroll through t e forest ended up being a trek up hills, mountains, waterfalls and really rough terrain.  It wasn't an easy activity, so lots of rests were needed during the 4 hours we were doing it.

A nice Spa
After the hard activity in the forest the afternoon was spent in the swimming pool and natural spa in Lepence. It gave us time to relax and get our energy back ready for the Budapest Trip tomorrow. The leaders spent most of it in the naturally heated spa (through the volcanic rock) while the Scouts/Explorers switched between the two. It was much needed to cool down from the afternoon heat as it must of got into the 30's again today.

22nd August

Day out in Budapest - Part 1
We have spent the day in Hungary's capital city, Budapest. Zolton was our tour guide and told us all about the history of the Buda side this morning, the castle, citadel and the churches...

Budapest - part 2
This afternoon we cruised down the Danube through the city whilst Zolton gave us the low down on the history of the Pest and Buda sides of the river. He then took us to a restaurant where we had a three course Hungarian meal.

Budapest - part 3
After some souvenir shopping (hope you all like the gifts your children have brought you - a few asked me to buy alcohol on their behalf so you have that to look forward to), it was on to the Laser Theatre.

We watched a fantastic light show to the music of Pink Floyd. We are now on our way back to our house and supper :o)

23rd August

Horse Show
This morning we had another early start as we were off to the horse show. We had refreshments when we arrived, were shown around the stables then a horse cart ride across the plains.

We then watched the show which had horses jumping over fire, sitting up like dogs and the riders doing all sorts of tricks. We then had a traditional 3 course Hungarian meal.

Statue Park
After the horse show we stopped at Statue Park on the way back - which is a place where all the symbols of communisms are collected. It was only a 30 minute stop and hopefully the young people learnt a little bit about what it was like during life behind the Iron Curtain.

A hot day
It's been a scorcher today. On the way to Statue Park we saw a temperature gauge - it said it was 38 degrees today!!! It was a good job today we were just watching what was going on not hiking around the mountains and hills. Tomorrow we are off to the Laser Fighting then a night out at a medieval restaurant.

24th August

Final morning activities
We took part in laser games in the woods where we were split into 3 teams and had a number of different missions to complete. The temperature been really hot so the pace slowed down as the day progressed. It was then a short walk back for lunch and to start packing before the Knights Tournament

Knights Tournament
At the show tonight a king and queen had to be picked, so we had King Josh Neve and Queen Keely. Rob Lamb was the Court Jester. It was really entertaining and the Scouts got chance to try some of the weapons at the end.

Banquet
After the show we had a banquet, plenty of food and drink for all in the traditional Hungarian style

That's it folks...
As the meal finished and the King and Queen dethroned it was the sad realisation that its all over. Its the end of a brilliant trip, but I will report more thoughts and feeling while travelling back tomorrow.

25th August

Goodbye Hungary
The Scouts worked really hard this morning and got the building clean with time to spare. We are now on the coach heading for home with many happy memories.

Back in 'Euroland'
We are now in Austria and just had a 15 minute comfort break. It's now back on the coach with us planning to stop again around 8pm for food.

Still on the road
We have just had a 10 minute break just outside Frankfurt. Next scheduled stop is Belgium.

26th August

Well ahead of schedule
We have made great progress through Belgium and France and are now 1/2 way across the channel on the ferry. We will get the home contact to phone round and confirm new arrival time.