The fantastic Salvador Dali

Saturday 9^th March A Dali Day

There was more rain during the night but it was fine and sunny when I got up for a brisk walk through the nature park before breakfast.  Mike and I then headed off for Figueres and the Salvador Dali museum.  We knew we were in for a treat when we came round the corner and saw this building with its roof adorned by giant sized eggs.  The museum/theatre turned out to be a most fascinating place where we spent three hours and could have spent longer.  I am not sure that I understand Surrealism and have never been a great fan but the work in this museum was so unbelievable good that you could not help but be fascinated and overawed by what Dali could achieve.  For example there is the famous Cadillac, which for an additional euro, allows water to spray from the roof of the car watering the plants and snails (real) and model passengers inside. There was a painting, which my camera saw as Abraham Lincoln and I saw as a naked woman until I screwed up my eyes and saw what the camera was seeing. 
More stereoscopic pictures, more paintings, sculptures etc as well as some works by other artists.  It was a fantastic experience.  We walked back to the van reflecting on it all, passing through the market which was now packing up but I was still able to get 5 kilos of oranges for 2 euros.

Gala - his inspiration

We headed back to our parking place near Roses. It had been a beautiful morning but now the sun and mountains were obliterated by heavy cloud, soon it was raining and we had two beautiful rainbows.  The rain passed fairly quickly and we went off for a late afternoon cycle ride to Empuriabrava an area that is a marina resort.  It was a lovely cycle through this national park   and Mike was rewarded by the sight of many fine motor launches in the resort.  When we got back we found that another van had joined us with a GB plate.  We chatted with them and found that they had taken a very similar route out since leaving England but had left 3 months before us – I knew we were moving fast!
The following day we were woken by a mad Spanish man shouting across the bay again at no one or thing (he was doing it last night too!) Today would be our last in Spain and it was a lovely day.  We spent the morning walking round the beach at Roses sourcing a wifi provider as we had booked a skype call with Millie that morning.  Eventually we found a nice cafe by the beach and whilst we awaited our appointment time we basked in the sun (now 25C) and drank coffee.  Little were we to know that temperatures would plummit soon. We dragged ourselves away as we wanted to go to Cadaques and the neighbouring village of Port LLigat where Dali lived for many years. The drive was once again fantastic going over the mountains. When we reached Cadaques we parked in the only place that seemed suitable for motorhomes at 0.44875 euros a minute. Not being sure how close Port LLigat was we took the bikes off and decided to cycle there.  It turned out to be a strenouous uphill cycle but fortunately for only 2.5K and the views were well worth it.  Port LLigat is a real picture postcard place - a tiny fishing cove, azure clear seas with a stunning coastline.  Mike thought it was one of the best views he had seen.  However due to poor planning we did not realise that you had to book in advance to see Dali's house so we continued to soak in the views and then headed into Cadaques and cycled  along the sea front there - another lovely place.
It was now late afternoon as we headed into France along the coast road.  Often the roads were narrow and twisty and Mike knew he had completed a lot of driving by the time we arrived in Le Boulon where once again we took the last camping spot. We were then treated to a fantastic thunderstorm.

Girona, Garroxta natural park and water problems

Wednesday 6^th March Girona

Today we planned to travel to Girona from Sant Feliu. On route we topped up with gas, shopped and I did some Keele work outside Mc Donalds. Mike sent off emails to his plumber and agent giving them authority to install a new boiler etc. into the Old Stables.  We arrived in Girona just after lunch and decided to start wandering around the city. We picked up from tourist information the things we needed: map, place to park the van and where were the best sights.

Girona is an ancient walled city that has been nicknamed immortal as it has been besieged on 21 occasions, surviving 5 attacks from the French in 1809. We started at the cathedral which was set high at the top of an enormous flight of seventeen century Baroque steps and inside it contained the largest single gothic vault in the world, then to St Feliu church which has a blunt tower rather than having a steeple point. We then circled the city by use of the old Wall looking at what else we could visit and we soon ended up on the banks of the river, now fast flowing, due to the recent rain. We crossed a lovely bridge and took pictures of the mellow coloured buildings before walking back along narrow cobbled streets to the van where we found we had a problem with our own water system as there was no hot water coming out of the taps. Well to explain that further, the water was heating up, so no problem with the boiler and cold water was fine, so no problem with the pump.  However if we turned the hot taps on we eventually got water after a lot of air had passed through but then 5 mins later no hot water again.  This was a major concern – no shower for Mike!

Thursday 7^th March Girona to Besalu

Our first job this morning was to try and sort out our water problem.  Eventually we got in touch with a very helpful Caravan Centre in Vila Sacra near Figueres who agreed to look at the van on Friday.  Interestingly the people who worked there all spoke German as a first language, but their English was good too.  With this sorted we set off for a tour of the Garroxta Natural Park, an old volcanic region.  The last active volcano being 17,000 years ago which I guess is not that long in geological terms.  It is now a beautiful fertile hilly region with excellent hiking.  We stopped off for coffee on the edge of the lake at Banyoles.  This area became more famous when it was used for the canoeing events in the 1992 Olympics. We then headed for Besalu.  This was a lovely medieval village that was entered by walking over an 11^th century bridge that crossed the Fluvia river – again in flood. 

Besalu is a charming place, with steep narrow streets and shops built into the rock, like caves.  The sun was shining and with the snow-capped mountains in the background it was beautiful so we decided to return to spend the night here after we had completed our tour of the region. It was also an important village during the Spanish civil war where 120 children were evacuated – a law was passed at this time that towns could not take more than 10% of their population as refugees.  Besalu at this time had 1200 inhabitants.  This was one of the few times on our travels that I saw reference made to the Spanish Civil War.

Back in the van the next place to catch our eye was Castellfollit de la Roca- here there was a row of houses perched high on a sheer basalt cliff ? You have to ask yourself why - it all looks so precarious.  The scenic road continued through tunnels for some kilometres before we came back on a more circuitous route through the Alto Garroxta. More scary driving on narrow hairpin bends, made worse by fallen rocks due the recent heavy rains. We entered the Parc Natural de la Zona Volcanica and stopped for a short walk up to the crater of Santa Margareta. This was one of only 30 craters in this region. The whole area is covered in beautiful woodland, including a large ancient beech forest, and we had wonderful valley views all the way to our next stop at Santa Pau.  This was another delightful medieval village which we enjoyed exploring walking along its cobbled streets.  We then meandered back to Besalu, parking the van just outside the village.  After our supper we walked back into the town over the ancient bridge where we found a nice warm bar for a nightcap.

Friday 8^th March Besalu to Bay of Roses

We were up and off early as we needed to get the van to the Caravan Centre.  We arrived there about 9.30am despite going up and down adjacent roads three times before we found it.  Fortunately there were not too many language problems here and we left the mechanic to diagnose the problem whilst we sat in a café catching up with e mails and marking.  By lunchtime we returned to find a new water pump had been fitted which had helped but not solved the problem. Although the mechanic informed us that we could manage with some air in the system we decided to get him to investigate further.  Whilst he did this we set off with a small packed lunch and our bikes.  Our ride was cut short 1) by a flooded river and 2) by a phone call telling us all was fixed.  Our fears that there was an air leak in the boiler which could have cost us 800 euros was unfounded and we returned to a bill of 160 euros for the new pump, a replaced split hose and a new non return valve.  We were really pleased to have the problem sorted and to have received such help from these people.  It is only from talking to the locals that you realise how much the poor economy is affecting them.  Today we were told of a family who could not take their son to school because they did not have enough money (since both parents had lost their jobs) for diesel for heating or for the car.  Gratefully we said goodbye and headed out to the bay of Roses and a wild camp spot near the wetlands area known as the Parc Natural dels Aiguamolls de l’Emporda.

Sant Feliu de Guixols

Friday 1^st March. Sitges to Sant Feliu de Guixols.

It was still wet in the morning so I settled down with the laptop. Mike went off to Lidl for a few provisions and lunch. He also spoke to a fellow Motorhomer who told him were a launderette was. So that was part of the day planned out. After lunch, homemade onion soup, we headed into town where Mike would drop me off at the Laundrette and  track down the post office as we needed to post the keys from the villa back to Beryl and Jeff. I planned to do a bit more work for Keele while waiting for the washing; instead I phoned Daxa and had a lovely catch up. Once the washing was completed we set off in the direction of the Costa Brava. However we still had not sent off the villa keys as the we keep forgetting everything closes between 2.00pm and 4.00pm. We needed to be on the road to get to Sant Feliu before dark. We left Sitges at 3.30pm and followed the remaining Costa Dorada coastline.
 
We circled Barcelona and headed north following the coast road through Blanes and Lloret de Mar. Blanes looked horrid  but Lloret was better and the coast line changed dramatically as we headed off towards Tossa de Mar. Here the road became very tortuous going up and down hills and in and out of coves. But most of the time we had beautiful views of the rugged coastline. It then started to get very difficult as it became dark. Once again we reached our aire in the dark but we were pleased there was still space for Buster and ourselves, by now all worn out and tired. Thankfully it also was a nice aire with free Wifi.

Saturday 2^nd March. Sant Feliu de Guixols.

Saturday morning was much brighter. After breakfast we headed for tourist information and picked up some town maps including a cycle one and one of Girona.
We walked through the market picking up fruit, veg, wine and bread and then headed down to the beach front. Again out of season this looked a very pleasant resort, although there were loads of cafes there were no high rise blocks. We took our shopping back to the van and had lunch. After lunch we took the coast path to Sant Pol. It was a lovely walk through pine forests with the sea crashing on the rocks below. We walked for an hour and half and stopped in Sant Pol for a beer, watching the surfers do their stuff. Sant Pol was a more up market location with very expensive villas all around. We took the road walk back and saw more of the “real” Sant Feliu, were the locals live.

Sunday 3^rd March. Sant Feliu de Guixols.

Today was another fine day but with a chilly breeze. We had decided that today we would take the cycle path in the direction of Girona, this was, many years ago the old narrow gauge railway line from the coast to Girona.  It was an easy route to cycle, passing the old stations which had been developed for alternative uses.
We cycled for 20 km before stopping for lunch next to a very pretty fast flowing stream and local spa water bottling plant. The water in this area comes through the rocks with its own natural CO2. However, unsure about the waters purity we stuck with drinking the small amount of water left in our water bottle. Once we finished lunch we set of home, another 20km.  Not content with the amount of exercise we had undertaken today we had a cup of tea and then went for a two hour walk along the coastline in the opposite direction, visiting the 'Ermitage de Sant Elm'.

Monday and Tuesday  4^th – 5^th March. Sant Feliu de Guixols

We knew that the weather was going to deteriorate and rather than visit Girona in the rain and repeat our wet Barcelona experience we decided to stay here.  As we had free wifi it made for a good opportunity to catch up with some work for Keele and all the other bits of paperwork that wont go away when you are travelling.  We were glad of this decision because it rained solidly on both nights and there were heavy showers during the day.  The only plus was that the sea had got quite rough and we had a walk along the front just to watch the waves crashing over the sea wall.

Sitges and Barcelona

 Wednesday 27^th February. Sitges

I went for a lovely walk up a mountain before breakfast and did my exercises with the rising sun. I promised Mike I would take him up there as the walk and the view were stunning. But I never did. We cycled into town that morning to seek the Tourism office to get some details on available Wifi. And camping in Barcelona. We came away with no wifi source only local bars and deciding it would be better to stay in Sitges and travel into Barcelona by train and bike tomorrow. We cycled down to the esplanade and had our sandwiches.  Sitges was a lovely place to wander around, quite chic and some lovely bars and shops. We called into a café and had a drink and crepe and used their wifi to locate a LPG garage locally as we had just switched to our emergency gas tank that morning. We found one only, 3 Km away, which was brilliant. After supper we went back to the café again (we were regulars now) caught up with emails and Mike skyped Millie who seemed very happy to hear from us.

Thursday 28^th February. Barcelona

We woke up to a wet windy day. Not the best for our planned day trip to Barcelona. It had eased off a bit by 10am so we cycled down to the station. We took out bikes on the train as we planned to move quickly across Barcelona and use the tourist bus routes. The journey by train was only  3.75 euros each way. When we arrived the rain was relentless. We headed straight to the Ramblas to pick up the tourist bus map. The Ramblas we were both familiar with. We stopped here, had a warm drink and planned our day in the city. Mike had visited Barcelona twice before, once on a stag party, which sounded very entertaining. I had been once and neither of us had actually made it inside the Sagreda Familiar (Gaudi’s famous basilica) due to massive queues. That was our focus for the day but cycling there from the middle of the Ramblas enabled us to see many of Gaudi’s other famous buildings and work. We both found the Sagreda Familiar breath-taking. I loved the way it had such a strong focus on nature and the idea of the interior being a forest. The cathedral is still only 60% complete and due for completion in 2030. So we will be planning another trip then. It was still pouring with rain as we set of back to the station and it was getting dark.  I could not believe we had spent six hours in Barcelona and still had only scratched the surface of what it has got to offer.

Morello to Sitges

Monday 25th February.

We debated whether to continue along the coast to Barcelona or head inland to explore the mountains so Mike chose the latter and we headed for Morella. It was a beautiful drive which took us steadily upwards through lovely scenery. Morella is about 1000m above sea level but we passed snow on the ground and the temp. had fallen to below 2 degrees. A far cry from the sunny climes of Alicante at 22 degrees. We dug out our warm cloths and headed into the town. Morella can be seen from miles around as it is a hill town that rises from the plains that surround it. On top of this mount was a Moorish fortress.  The ancient walls were completely intact and there were also remains of a gothic style aqueduct.  It was a very interesting place that is seeking UNESCO recognition. It deserves it! We were a bit worried that the clouds were building up and would bring snow so at 3.00pm we headed down the other side of the mountain. The road was marked on the map as being in poor state and as most Spanish roads were anyway, we didn’t quite know what this meant. But it turned out not to be too bad and there were signs of the road being upgraded.

We stopped at Asco for the night for no other reason than it was free and it was on route.

Tuesday 26^th February.

We left Asco first thing in the morning. The only town we never explored on either arrival or before departure. It may be because of the Nuclear Power Station or the incessant noise from the passing trains or heavy traffic. Sorry Asco, I am sure you had more to offer. Must admit the glowing cows were interesting!!

We headed to Tarragona. We needed to gain internet access that morning as I had to contact work and Mike was sorting out further problems with his tenants. We stopped at Reus for a few  hours which also allowed us to catch up on paperwork and do  a shop. We drove along the coast to Sitges. The aire was out on the west side of town on the bottom of the hills and our Sat Nav gave up the ghost before we found it. We realised how much we relied on Gemma as we searched for ages trying to find the site using local hit and miss signs and written directions. After we arrived we took off the bikes and road into Sitges. The sun had gone down, we had a little light but it was great to get out of the van and get some exercise.

Castille de Guadalest to Valencia

Saturday 23rd February


We had had a lovely time in Alicante but it was now time to leave.  Although we planned to head inland we could not leave the area without visiting Benidorm to see if it was really as bad as everyone says.  Well out of season and with the sun shining the beach area looked quite lovely.  But driving in through all the high rise apartments made you realise how a pretty area of coastline had been totally spoilt.  We had lunch on the beach and then headed up to Castille de Guadalest.  Mike had visited this hill top town about 35 years ago and was interested to see how much things had changed.  It appeared that it was mainly the roads.  When he visited it previously it was a dirt track that you had to finish by donkey.  Today there was a good road right to the top and with ample parking for vehicles our size.  It was also a good 10 degrees colder than the coast we had just left and we had to hunt around for our scarves and gloves.


We walked around for about an hour, enjoying the tremendous views down to the reservoir. We then continued on the mountain road to Alcoy and then drove on through Xativa to an aire set amongst mountains and orange groves at Hort de Soriano. this was in the real wilds of Spain and the sat nav struggled to find the roads we were using but eventually we arrived just as the sun was setting behind the mountains.

In the morning I dragged myself out of bed because it was only 2C outside and my morning walk was not so appealing.  However I chose a track that went along the hillside from our camping spot.  The track soon became a route that even a goat would struggle with.  It was a very stony track that went upwards through rosemary and gorse bushes, although I also found some tiny wild, white narcissi.  I was a bit concerned about the steepness and roughness of the path and the fact that Mike did not know what direction I had headed out so I turned round to find the downward journey no easier.  

After breakfast Mike and I went up to the Casa to pay for the night but we told it was free.  This had been a really lovely spot to spend the night and had quite a few facilities e.g. large BBQ area, childrens play area, swimming pool etc and although we had not used these it still seemed a bargain.  We headed off back down our narrow roads, picking up some small but very sweet windfall oranges and found the road to Valencia.
 
We thought that arriving in Valencia on a winter's Sunday morning would make access into the city easy but we were unprepared for another of Valencia's many fiestas.  Some of the main routes were blocked off and there was a heavy police presence.  I popped into a Tourismo to get some help and was directed to a free parking place adjacent to the Jarden del Turia.  This was an area where the river (which was diverted after flooding the city in 1956) bed had been transformed into gardens, children's play areas, cycle tracks etc.  We found a great place to park and cycled on this old river bed back into the centre going through one of the old city gates the Torres del Sorrano and onto the area where the Cathedral was located.  Here there was pandemonium - the place was packed with bands warming up and awaiting their turn to process through the streets and with all the spectators. In places it was impossible to cycle.  At the Cathedral we split up; Mike went to see the treasures which included a cup described as 'the Holy Grail'. Who knows if it was, but it was very old and Mike is now a convert! I climbed up the tower to get the panoramic views across the City. From there we moved with the milling crowds to the area of the Town Hall where at 2pm a lot of fireworks were released.  I am not sure why they let off fireworks during the day when you can't see them but the noise was rousing and deafening.

It was quite difficult to get our bikes through the throng but then we headed out on one of City cycle paths which took us out to some more modern buildings, including a concert hall, an oceanarium and a science museum and then we headed back to the van.  We really enjoyed our day trip to Valencia - it is a lovely city with wide streets and a very pleasant feel.

From there we drove to Sagunto which is famous for its Roman remains which have been restored (in our view) unsympathetically and from there to Benacissim where we stayed for a very windy night.