last entry from Spain 2012

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Hot and Sunny, just what we came for.

Granada is somewhere we have been to before but its setting in a plain surrounded by the stunning snow capped Sierra Nevada mountains gives it that bit extra over other places. The impressive Moorish citadel “Alhambra” looks out over the city which with its narrow streets and Souk, entice you to stay and spend, so I quickly planned our next move after some very cheap tapas and beers. Good weather had graced us again in Granada but West of us in Portugal the forecast was mixed so we headed East to La Manga situated around a large inland sea with a thin strip of land separating it from the Mediterranean on the other side.

Warm weather and good walking /cycling was the order of the day here with the campsite beach bar serving some good Tapas and beer at dirt cheap prices. Sadly the dog was limited to short walks as I had inadvertently stood on one of his paws which was only partly recovered at the point where Liz sat on it! Well we do live our life in a space no bigger than our bathroom at home.

So as part of his rehab he gets regular trips to the salty sea, dried off and then an old sock put on his bad paw to stop him licking the broken nail. He does also get pigs ears, biscuits, pats on the head and lots of “show us your poor paw”. He responds to the latter request by gingerly lifting up his socked paw as if it had been just been sown back on after amputation.

After a week in La Manga we had an intended pit stop in what we feared might be a bit of a dead end campsite near Oliva. Quite the reverse was the case with a lively campsite close to a white sandy beach with not too many people around. Some of the sights you see at this time of the year are not always of the beautiful people as in the Bounty adverts, here we have lots of elderly overweight folk who should know better than strip off with gay abandon. One not so old lad comes down every day, peels everything off and then builds in the sand his own version of Egypt’s Valley of the Kings for reasons known only to him. However all was not lost as at the beachside lunch spot a young and pretty waitress started the meal off laying the tablecloth and apologising for heaving her more than ample bosom 2 inches from my nose. It was as if we were in a café run by Carlsberg.

We stayed at Oliva longer than originally intended because the weather has been hot and sunny and Bran was still undergoing his seawater therapy, however after 5 days there we moved up the coast a bit to Valencia. The campsite was noisy but well positioned to cycle into the city. Valencia was a delight to stroll around in its parks and old city, but we are kicking ourselves as we missed the opportunity to see the “official” Holy Grail chalice which is in the Cathedral. There is a also a withered arm of some saint or other but not being an Apostle this didn’t matter so much.

About an hour up the coast from Valencia we went to Pensicola which turned out to be a good spot. There is a wide bay with a decent sandy beach, active fishing port and a Knights Templar castle dominating the scene. We intend to stay for a few days in Pensicola, partly as when we arrived at the campsite and its very tight camper spaces with trees touching either side of the vehicle I damaged the Satellite dish and although I have effected a temporary repair it may not last. We have also lost our internet connection as the laptop has decided to stop working so the prospect of losing radio contact altogether might see us back sooner than intended! Sat-Navs, Laptops and Satellites all now are malfunctioning. Is it an age thing perhaps? Answers to Liz’s phone, (if she can remember the password!)

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