It’s been a bunch of long and continuous driving days in a row since we’ve left our spot in Venice, Italy. The surprising thing about camping in Italy so far is they have a bunch of free designated camper spots that include a free water fill and dump. And sometimes free electric too. This spot wasn’t the most scenic but kept us toasty with the ability to run our small electric heater for the night.

Driving the northern Italy to southern France.

Northern Italy is pretty dense with people so the next night, we found ourselves parked at a designer outlet mall with free electricity once again.

Driving the northern Italy to southern France.

We ended up at a coffee shop at the mall to do some work and paid the shop back by buying some drinks. We couldn’t handle another coffee this late in the day so we order tea. Espresso was 2 euros but tea ended up being almost 5 euros each. 5 EUROS FOR HOT WATER AND A BAG! Crazy. But at least we’ll be able to sleep tonight.

Driving the northern Italy to southern France.

The urban sprawl was getting to us so we made our way to a small coastal town of San Remo. Parking at the edge of the cliff overlooking the beach was free. All the other campers were Italian registered which havent seen yet. We were quite the scene when everyone noticed our California plates.

Driving the northern Italy to southern France.

Our front yard for the night. Perfect for skipping rocks.

Driving the northern Italy to southern France.

Perfect spot to keep an eye on the kids from the van.

Driving the northern Italy to southern France.

Coffee time for Dan and me.

Driving the northern Italy to southern France.

Hello, France! Our first time driving here with the van.

Driving the northern Italy to southern France.

And hello, Monaco! The second smallest country in the world.

Driving the northern Italy to southern France.

We ended up just driving through since it was crowded and teeny and didn’t find a spot to park. But we did enjoy the orange tree lined streets.

Driving the northern Italy to southern France.

Back in France, we ended up at a winery that is part of France Passion, kind of like  Harvest Hosts we have in the US.

Driving the northern Italy to southern France.

The reason we ended up here was because our friends of WorldTowning were in the area. We ended up camping next to each other for a late night of chit chatting and catching up before they continue onto their next adventure on a new continent. Safe travels, friends!

Driving the northern Italy to southern France.

The host at the winery alerted us that sometimes she sees Trader Joes labeled products at the Aldi grocery store chain so the next morning we headed straight there. We ended up not finding any US products but some Trader Joes labeled things for the European market, like nuts and dried fruits. Insert sad trombone here.

Driving the northern Italy to southern France.

But we did load up on cheap French cheese so yeah!

Driving the northern Italy to southern France.

These cookies went straight into my belly.

Driving the northern Italy to southern France.

Looks like we are driving straight into a storm cloud.

Driving the northern Italy to southern France.

Our next spot in France made me scream out loud. Do you see what I see?!?!

Driving the northern Italy to southern France.

WILD FLAMINGOS!!!!

Driving the northern Italy to southern France.

Free parking in a public lot by the sea.

Driving the northern Italy to southern France.

The sun put on quite the show as it bid us farewell.

Driving the northern Italy to southern France.

A little video from our time in San Remo, Italy. Enjoy!

Thanks for following along,
Marlene

Categories: Europe

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