La Grande Vadrouille ENG

We hope you’ve all had a good start to the new year. For us, 2026 is getting off to a quiet beginning, wandering around the Kalamata area while we wait for our small technical issue to be fixed. It was supposed to be done on January 9, but it was postponed to the 13th because the garage made a mistake and didn’t order the right part 😒. So these days we’re more in “baby steps” mode than “long strides.” Still, it could be worse—it’s not like we’re stuck in Drummondville or Tourcoing, and we manage to fill our days nicely by discovering new, beautiful places. And we even manage to squeeze in a little swim here and there, despite the rather windy and rainy weather we have these days. It’s also a good opportunity to devote a small chapter to our everyday life in less than 6 square meters. First of all, the days fly by at an incredible speed! Even though we don’t go to work every day, our days are still very full—and not just by playing tourist. There’s always something to do, and some eve...

Here we are, the sun has set on 2025… And what a beautiful and full year it was!! Especially the second half: first the celebrations for my 50th birthday, surrounded by family and friends, then the preparations for the big departure, followed by the first five months of wandering. Here’s a quick little recap: about 15,000 km traveled, 12 countries crossed, one Rugby World Cup, dozens of magnificent sunsets, lots of wonderful encounters, and images forever imprinted in our minds. But also: four new tires, a run-in with the police, a parking ticket, a long and somewhat difficult 3+ weeks of gray skies and humidity, and to end the year with a little cherry on the top, a visit to the Peugeot garage in Kalamata… When the engine warning light comes on, it’s always a bit worrying and it's best to take it seriously. In the end, nothing serious — just a faulty sensor that needs replacing. But a problem between Christmas and New Year also means no chance of getting the part or fixing it bef...

It's already Christmas!  Hard to believe we've been on the road for almost five months! Time has just flown by… The Christmas scenery is very different this year: olive groves have replaced fir trees, and baklava has taken the place of the traditional log on the table. Despite the lovely weather we’ve had overall for the past two weeks, a full day of rain was forecasted right on Christmas Eve. While we had planned to meet up with other fellow travelers for a Christmas on the beach, it all fell through😞. So we adjusted our plans a bit, and they ended up coinciding with those of Sarah and Renaud, a young couple from Rennes (who also lived in Quebec for four years) whom we had met in Nafplio. After a wonderful day walking around the Giavola lagoon, we got together for a small festive evening a little ahead of time. A wonderful day and evening. Since we’ve been slowly but surely exploring the Peloponnese, we’ve crossed paths with many, many four-wheeled nomads like us. We must ad...

 The migration continues southward , we finally got the sun back!!!!  But we had to cross three countries and got soaked again quite a bit before we reached that point… The first of these countries was Albania, where we left you last time, hoping for more enriching experiences. In fact, we had absolutely no expectations about this country we knew nothing about. Albania actually only became an independent state after the Second World War and immediately found itself locked in an ultra-rigid communist dictatorship that isolated it from the rest of the world for 45 years, from 1946 to 1991. So it seemed like a good idea to begin our exploration with the capital, Tirana. From the moment we arrived, we were surprised by how modern it is, with its tree-lined streets and trendy cafés. As we did in Sarajevo, we decided to take a guided tour to better understand and once again, it was a good idea. Tirana is not exactly what you would call a “postcard city,” but thanks to Jani we were a...