Doh!

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19th April

A stormy night with high winds, the sound of thunder & rain, but it cleared by morning although the wind kept up. A little stiff in the ankle & calf department this morning. Found out that a couple from Blackpool rocked up in a van last evening so I went over to have a chat to them before it got dark, they live near Stanley Park & South Park Drive! Had a good laugh. Small world.

Up, got sorted out & then went down to reception to see Rieca for the police phone call. Didn’t need her as it happened as someone was there with half decent English. Despite us saying we couldn’t go back to give a statement they were expecting us! She said she would try & organise for us to visit the police station in Vila Real, our next destination & would ring back in 30 minutes. An hour later with me about to give up she rang back to say it wasn’t going to be possible, sorry. How about if I send an email with our statements to you? - this the third time of asking since the incident – yes, you can do that. Good grief, they make Cyprus feel organised. Also said goodbye to the Aussie bikers who were also moving on; I told the chap that he looked very much like Wayne Sleep, facially ,build & manner. Fortunately he’d never heard of him....

Discovered also that you can’t use the prepaid toll cards on some toll motorways....oops! Alert Interpol. It also takes so long to update your toll credit balance online that we’ll be in Spain before we know it.

The journey was fine but the wind on the top of the mountain pass at c.4500’ was a tad strong; the turbines were like kiddies catherine wheels on the beach. Down into the Douro valley which is very pretty & every square foot of land is terraced for vines, this the renowned region for wine & port. Quintas or wine ‘houses’ all over the place.

Arrived at the campsite mid afternoon after a quick visit to the biggest L’Eclerc I have ever seen & unfortunately I have seen a lot. They still didn’t sell chemical toilet fluid though...Anyway, we had planned to stay here for 2 nights but have decided on 1, the site is on the edge of this large town complete with high rises half a mile away, up a hill so a bit(!) noisy with traffic. It’s a very pretty site with tall pine trees but a bit like staying on the outskirts of Oxford, next to the A40. The town is the commercial centre of this region & all of any interest to us is a cathedral & the nearby Mateus Manor House. Bye...

Tomorrow, therefore, we are Spain bound & back to the land of Rioja.

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