Yes, the trip back to Barcelona was a back track of our trip north 8 days ago but as this country is so changeable this trip was still interesting. It is great to see all the agriculture active, the small country towns and as you get close to Barcelona all the industrial areas. This evening we meet up with one of Rose’s Spanish cousin for a late dinner (9.30pm), drinks and chat. So good to get to hear about life in Spain from a local.... read more

Today we are heading to Haro, a small town in the Rioja wine region of Spain which is well known for their red wines, also because where is not much else to do in Miranda de Ebro. After a little look around the town we headed to the Bodegas (wine cellar) area of town for a tour and wine tasting at Gomez Cruzado Bodega. This was a great couple of hours with the tasting of 1 white wine and 4 wonderful red wines (and the tasting glasses where not small). After this we headed back over the bridge to the town for a lovely lunch in the sun of the town square. Then it was back to Bodega Roda for a look at their underground cellar and this time tasting of 1 red wine and a ... read more

Today we had just a short 1-hour drive to the Atlantic Ocean and the city of San Sebastian but this time we had to get through a random breath test check point, we were OK with a reading of 0.00. The only difference to Australian and NZ check points are they have a policeman with the automatic gun at the ready (finger on the trigger) for people who try to do a runner, I guess its shoot first and ask questions later. The plan was to spend some time on the beach but the clouds rolled in, so it was a walk to the beach and port area with a late lunch at one of the wonderful seafood restaurants at the fishing port. After this we took an hour’s boat trip around the local bays then ... read more

After a night of lighting, thunder and rain we wake to a clear morning and we are on the road to Pamplona and the festival of San Fermin. The drive today was great due to the lack of trucks for about 50km, they had their own road next to ours. We also drove through an area where on every ridge there was a wind farm, there was probably more Wind turbines than the whole of Australia & NZ together. We have spent the afternoon walking the streets of the old town centre taking in the atmosphere of a festival and get our bearings so we are ready for the big day tomorrow. Today’s great finds where the monument to the Bull Run which is a 11-metre-long bronze monument that shows 11 runners, 6 bulls and 3 ... read more

Today we are heading out on the first leg of the Roberts/Nesdale tour of Northern Spain. We have travelled 3 hours northwest of Barcelona to Zaragoza which is halfway between Pamploma and Barcelona and is the capital of the Region of Aragon. During this drive we have travelled through ever changing landscapes from very cultivated areas and very baron area. Zaragoza is a city of over 2,000 years of history from the Roman, Moorish Jewish and Christian communities that have left their mark on this city. We have this afternoon walked the streets of the city and visit the Roman ruins, Palace Aljaferia, Plazza Nuestra Senora del Pilar then finished up with more walks of the city laneway and visiting many bars and restaurant enjoying the local tradition of tapas. What a great way to have ... read more