286 Recap Oct to Dec 2014. Caravan sale and Berlin.

Oct 2014. It was now time to sell the caravan. We put it up for sale after filling in all the holes in the bodywork and it still sold immediately to the first customer. We were sorry to see it go as it had looked after us for a long time.

Nov 2014. Then it was time to take on the next project. The build of a campervan that we could use to travel in, sleep in and also take to the shops and park in a normal bay. This narrowed the field down somewhat and pointed to a medium wheelbase, medium height (so us oldies can stand up in it) Fiat/Renault/Peugot van. We found a fiat with hight mileage but the body was in good condition and it was only 5 years old so we bought it for £4500.

At around the same time I had to do some work on Wallace's engine. I needed to change the timing chain and its adjuster. Sadly, without realising it, when I adjusted the valves, some dirt had got onto the valve heads and screwed up the adjustment.  A pig of a job and 3 days later all was fixed and Wallace was back on full song and running a lot quieter. However, the valve problem made Wallace run very lumpy at tickover and I had to do it all again. I wished I had looked at this photo, that I took when taking it apart initially, instead of when it was all back together - Doh!

Dec 2014. We wecided to go and visit the Christmas markets in Berlin and took John & Tim with us. We drove there in the Passat and it just ate the miles up. 

We started out at Charlottenberg, where Karen and John lived as kids.

 

The tree stooges on the beer.

 We then moved to a more central location where the Berlin wall was still evident, now as a tourist/historical attraction as opposed to a border.

Then it was time to pay homage to the holy grail of German snacks, the Currywurt Museum. It does not get any better than this. 

No trip to Berlin would be complete without a trip to the Branderberg gate.

 ...and not too far in front of it was the Golden Angel, or the Berlin Victory Column.

 Then it was a quick visit to where Mun used to work, the NAAFI (Navy, Army and Air Force Institute). A Place for overseas soldiers etc can buy British goods that they are used to. They also have a NAAFI bar in most British barracks.

 Then it's back to the Christmas markets for some final alcoholic beverages.

Once home, it was up to Mums in Scotland for Chrismas that included a trip to Calaverock wildlife reserve.