All the wind over the past few days has whiped up a huge ammount of dust. It feels like half the Saharah is hanging in the sky, visibility is 2km at best. Quite a change from the clear blue skys we had travelling down.
We left Irene's parents to pick up some local olive oil under the low grey sky, it feels very muggy and we are sad to leave.
As we drove down towards Granada we passed the Mini-Hollywood wild west village and rodeo show, they filmed a number of westerns in the area. Even knowing it's strange to see a collection of teepees pitched on a hill above a small frontier town while crusing through Spain.
The route i had planned out was supposed to take 2:20 according to google, this was at a moderate 60kph, not something you can easily do in a fully laiden car around hairpin bends. I had stopped at the top of one particularly fun ladder to take some pictures when we realised we where two and a half hours into drive and way behind schedual.
View Larger Map
I had had a huge amount of fun on the roads but the heat and dust was getting to me. Susan was having less fun being thrown around the hairpins. It's at times like this you realise how taking a direct route can be so much easier. We eventually rolled into Trevelez at 16:30 nearly two hours later than planned, not good for a lunch stop. Still we got out and had a brief wander around the place before finding a restaurant still serving. Trevelez is renound for its air cured hams and just about every shop front was packed with pigs legs proudly displaying their certification of origin. It's good stuff, we sampled a plate at the restaurant (their own apparently). It would have been nice to have more time to wander the less crowded streets away from the main tourist drag but time was pressing and we had to move on.
The trip down into Granada was much easier (no silly detours to find hairpin ladders) by this time the sun was starting to set but the murk completely hid the sunset.
Monday 13 October 2008
Saturday 11 October 2008
Rural life
Off into the country to stay with Irene's parents today. They have a beautiful house just outside Sorbas. Top tip in Spain, don't park where the curb has been painted yellow. After getting the car out of the impound lot it was off to Sorbas for a visit to the pottery shops the town is famous for.
At Irene's parents we were spoiled rotten as only mothers can manage, huge slab of lamb cooked to perfection with tomato salad dressed with the neighbour's olive oil.
It's still raining but very peacful here.
At Irene's parents we were spoiled rotten as only mothers can manage, huge slab of lamb cooked to perfection with tomato salad dressed with the neighbour's olive oil.
It's still raining but very peacful here.
Festival days
*Yawn* the 9th of October is a festival in Valencia they opened the celebrations at midnight with a huge barrage of fireworks that shook the hotel windows where we were staying. The explosions seemed to go on for a very long time.
We spent the morning in Valencia before setting off to Almeria to meet up with Susan's friend Irene. Motorway all the way... In the rain...
Irene was working this evening, we found a cafe on the beach front to pass the time. I seem to be getting better at asking for tea, it's that or the locals around here are more familiar with the crazy brits asking for tea with milk.
Chinese food for supper (just for a change.)
We spent the morning in Valencia before setting off to Almeria to meet up with Susan's friend Irene. Motorway all the way... In the rain...
Irene was working this evening, we found a cafe on the beach front to pass the time. I seem to be getting better at asking for tea, it's that or the locals around here are more familiar with the crazy brits asking for tea with milk.
Chinese food for supper (just for a change.)
A day without driving
Now we had a day to explore Valencia on foot, ambling through the city is a much better way to travel here. We followed a walking tour route from the guide the hotel kindly provided where we found the Central market. It is such a shame places like this seem to have disappeared from the UK a huge building housing hundreds of stalls selling fruit, meats and fish. Very busy and lively.
Just the other side of the market was the old silk exchange building which contained some wonderful stone and wood work.
The next destination was to be the Valencia Aquarium in the new city of arts and sciences complex down to the waterfront. We took a scenic route along the diverted river bed which has been converted to a huge ribbon of green space though the city. This turned out to be a much longer walk than we had anticipated.
The aquarium was interesting although it did not quite live up to the expectations we had from their website. Many of the surface pools were in the process of being cleaned and no pelicans were visible (a common theme of pictures there). The dolphinareum was impressive and they put on a good show. The beluga whale enclosure was large but clearly restrictive for its two inhabitants. Other exhibit tanks were fairly run of the mill however they did have some Sun fish in with the sharks.
Long walk back to the hotel, i have the blisters to prove it.
Just the other side of the market was the old silk exchange building which contained some wonderful stone and wood work.
The next destination was to be the Valencia Aquarium in the new city of arts and sciences complex down to the waterfront. We took a scenic route along the diverted river bed which has been converted to a huge ribbon of green space though the city. This turned out to be a much longer walk than we had anticipated.
The aquarium was interesting although it did not quite live up to the expectations we had from their website. Many of the surface pools were in the process of being cleaned and no pelicans were visible (a common theme of pictures there). The dolphinareum was impressive and they put on a good show. The beluga whale enclosure was large but clearly restrictive for its two inhabitants. Other exhibit tanks were fairly run of the mill however they did have some Sun fish in with the sharks.
Long walk back to the hotel, i have the blisters to prove it.
The drive to Valencia
We left Morella behind and headed south and astonishlingly went higher, there are some astounding roads in this area alas they ran out all too quickly and it was flat and straight towards Castellon where we picked up a motorway towards Valencia. I was so glad that I had planned in a detour through a national park, off the motorway to Onda then follow the CV-232 and CV-200 to Segorbe.
DRIVE THE CV-200!
View Larger Map
This stretch of single track mountain road rocks! We encountere just one other vehicle on the mountain section, a cyclist going the other way (-: I had a lot of fun on the hairpin bends, too much fun driving to stop for many photos though.
After all that fun arriving in Valencia was a huge culture shock. From single track roads and the deserted streets of Morella to huge 8 lane monster avenues packed with hot blooded Spanish drivers. Noise! Sounds! Smells! It's a city allright. To add to the fun the hotel was right in the center and they are digging up the roads. With instructions out the window it took us over an hour stuck in the evening traffic to get to the hotel.
*Sigh*
We didn't really feel like going out at this point but forced ourselves to experince the city first-hand. Not a great meal out but ok.
DRIVE THE CV-200!
View Larger Map
This stretch of single track mountain road rocks! We encountere just one other vehicle on the mountain section, a cyclist going the other way (-: I had a lot of fun on the hairpin bends, too much fun driving to stop for many photos though.
After all that fun arriving in Valencia was a huge culture shock. From single track roads and the deserted streets of Morella to huge 8 lane monster avenues packed with hot blooded Spanish drivers. Noise! Sounds! Smells! It's a city allright. To add to the fun the hotel was right in the center and they are digging up the roads. With instructions out the window it took us over an hour stuck in the evening traffic to get to the hotel.
*Sigh*
We didn't really feel like going out at this point but forced ourselves to experince the city first-hand. Not a great meal out but ok.
Morella: the castle
I was up at dawn this morning to take pictues the light was fantastic. It was fun wandering the deserted streets and i was very greatful of having scoped out a few sights the night before took lots of pictures, most of them fairly poor but got a few i was happy with.
After returning to the hotel for breakfast we set off to see the castle itself we paid the 2€ entrance fee and were presented with a guide sheet in english before heading out into the noon sun to climb to the top of the mountain. It was hot but definately worth it.
The whole site is undergoing a huge restoration project to bring back the 800 year old ruin back to life. The fortifications are on three levels with the top level up an agonising flight of stairs the views of the surrounding area are well worth the climb.
Lots of German voices, no other english ones.
After returning to the hotel for breakfast we set off to see the castle itself we paid the 2€ entrance fee and were presented with a guide sheet in english before heading out into the noon sun to climb to the top of the mountain. It was hot but definately worth it.
The whole site is undergoing a huge restoration project to bring back the 800 year old ruin back to life. The fortifications are on three levels with the top level up an agonising flight of stairs the views of the surrounding area are well worth the climb.
Lots of German voices, no other english ones.
Morella
Morella is a very picturesque place and definitely not designed for cars, it took us an age to discover where we could park and book into the hotel. It was pushing 18:00 by this stage, too late to do the castle that dominates not just Morrela but the whole of the surrounding countryside. We walked the town exploring all the narrow streets and steep gradients, lovely in the evening sun. Its Monday most things are closed.
We found a tapas bar for supper, tomato bread, prawns in garlic, house croquettes, choritzo and cheesy ham spring rolls washed down with larger.
We found a tapas bar for supper, tomato bread, prawns in garlic, house croquettes, choritzo and cheesy ham spring rolls washed down with larger.
Across the plain to Morella
As we surfaced in the morning we got the distinct impression we were the only guests in the hotel a huge spread of cold meats, cheese, bread,
cereal, fruit juices and conserves was laid out with just one table set out for just two.
We tried to do it justice.
Pictures are becoming a problem, the plan was to use the N810 to crop and scale them before uploading via email. No joy. The 10 mega pixel images my D80 takes are just too big for the tablet to cope with. I tried using mogrify to scale them down in batches over night but it only the managed the first 10 before crashing the tablet, this is going to take some time.
The road out of the Pyrenees was a fun drive, Fantastic scenery with the hills levelling out in front and the vegetation becoming greener. Just as you think you have seen the last of the hills the road gains a crawler lane and shoots upwards once more through an series of sweeping S bends.
View Larger Map
Once over the top it is down to Huesca and the start of the plains, long straight roads and more sky than you can shake a stick at. We stopped at one point to take pictures of vultures circling over head before getting chased back to the car by a swarm of flies.
We reached Alcaniz in good time where the road started to climb again. Getting hungry by this stage we pulled over at a road side eatery at the junction of the N232 and N420 this really put our basic Spanish to the test. A few tables were occupied by elderly groups as we tentatively asked for a table for two from the waitress she looked confused as to why we asked and just pointed to the closest one. She vanished for what seemed to be an age before returning with a printed sheet that served as a menu. With the help of the dictionary we ordered chicken and lamb with melon to follow. This bought on a barrage of Spanish which we eventually translated to be which wine we wanted (included in the menu price) we must have caused trouble by finally saying water alone was all we wanted. The food arrived, it was good solid stuff that packed the ribs. With the mains out of the way we were presented with a huge slice of melon which was a perfect finish to the meal.
We stayed on the N232 to Morella which just keeps climbing up to well over 1000m through some stunning scenery, well worth the journey.
It may be in two sections but sports tacker managed to log this section of the trip.
http://sportstracker.nokia.com/nts/workoutdetail/index.do?id=464807
http://sportstracker.nokia.com/nts/workoutdetail/index.do?id=464805
cereal, fruit juices and conserves was laid out with just one table set out for just two.
We tried to do it justice.
Pictures are becoming a problem, the plan was to use the N810 to crop and scale them before uploading via email. No joy. The 10 mega pixel images my D80 takes are just too big for the tablet to cope with. I tried using mogrify to scale them down in batches over night but it only the managed the first 10 before crashing the tablet, this is going to take some time.
The road out of the Pyrenees was a fun drive, Fantastic scenery with the hills levelling out in front and the vegetation becoming greener. Just as you think you have seen the last of the hills the road gains a crawler lane and shoots upwards once more through an series of sweeping S bends.
View Larger Map
Once over the top it is down to Huesca and the start of the plains, long straight roads and more sky than you can shake a stick at. We stopped at one point to take pictures of vultures circling over head before getting chased back to the car by a swarm of flies.
We reached Alcaniz in good time where the road started to climb again. Getting hungry by this stage we pulled over at a road side eatery at the junction of the N232 and N420 this really put our basic Spanish to the test. A few tables were occupied by elderly groups as we tentatively asked for a table for two from the waitress she looked confused as to why we asked and just pointed to the closest one. She vanished for what seemed to be an age before returning with a printed sheet that served as a menu. With the help of the dictionary we ordered chicken and lamb with melon to follow. This bought on a barrage of Spanish which we eventually translated to be which wine we wanted (included in the menu price) we must have caused trouble by finally saying water alone was all we wanted. The food arrived, it was good solid stuff that packed the ribs. With the mains out of the way we were presented with a huge slice of melon which was a perfect finish to the meal.
We stayed on the N232 to Morella which just keeps climbing up to well over 1000m through some stunning scenery, well worth the journey.
It may be in two sections but sports tacker managed to log this section of the trip.
http://sportstracker.nokia.com/nts/workoutdetail/index.do?id=464807
http://sportstracker.nokia.com/nts/workoutdetail/index.do?id=464805
Friday 10 October 2008
el Privilegio
After that epic drive through the mountains we are now chilled out in our first stop in spain. This hotel is just what we needed, spa, massage and top notch food (-: just the ticket.
They even laid on entertainment when we arrived.
Dinner was taken in the hotel, we had personal service from the maitre-de as we were the only two guests dining. A starter of goats cheese salad dressed with honey and nuts was followed by venison for me and cod with olive crust for Susan, delicious but there was more to come. Dessert consisted of a "mascapone bread" for me and "Temptation with hopeful orange" these resolved to be crunchy cones of chocolate filled with a light vanilla mascapone and caramel sauce for me and a dark rich gooey chocolate pudding with crystallized orange peal for Susan. We switched puds half way through both were excellent.
I think i have found the problem with sports tracker, it does not seem to like changing networks, will try again tomorrow with it set not to try connecting.
They even laid on entertainment when we arrived.
Dinner was taken in the hotel, we had personal service from the maitre-de as we were the only two guests dining. A starter of goats cheese salad dressed with honey and nuts was followed by venison for me and cod with olive crust for Susan, delicious but there was more to come. Dessert consisted of a "mascapone bread" for me and "Temptation with hopeful orange" these resolved to be crunchy cones of chocolate filled with a light vanilla mascapone and caramel sauce for me and a dark rich gooey chocolate pudding with crystallized orange peal for Susan. We switched puds half way through both were excellent.I think i have found the problem with sports tracker, it does not seem to like changing networks, will try again tomorrow with it set not to try connecting.
To the Pyrenees
We left the motorways behind us today, with the sun in a brilliant blue sky we waved goodbye to Saint-Emilion. The journey started by winding its way through the Bordeaux vineyards before straightening out as we made our way south. We reached Lourdes at about 14:45, took one look at the place and decided to drive on a bit to find a place to stop, eat and refuel. This was a mistake. It is Sunday and most placed shut early, in the end we found a lay-by and dined magnificently on snack bars and apples. No fuel stops.
This was in the foot hills and as the road wound its way up none of the villages seemed to have any garages. Under a 1/4 tank now, easily enough for 100+ miles on the flat and we only have 50 miles to the next hotel, trouble is we have crests over 1700m in between.
Wow, the peaks around us are astounding not to mention the road, climbing to Col Solor was superb although we were stuck behind a Sunday driver all of the way, not good for the fuel consumption.
From Col Solor the road clings to the sheer rock face twisting hundreds of meters above the valley floor. Alas we are in the shade at this time of day but the peaks opposing us are in brilliant sun. Up again to Col d'Abesque, we are above the snow line! After a brief photo stop at the top we started down again through the ski resorts. Spotted an eagle above us at one point. Heading down takes the mind off the fuel for a bit.
Turning off the D918 we joined the D934 with signs for the Spanish border. Still no fuel and we are heading up again. Most borders i have experienced have fuel stops so I'm hopeful we will make it there.
The D934 is a fun road although we found some nutters in souped-up Citroen Saxos who insisted hooning past us before slowing right up and then speeding off. Low fuel light now on, Spanish Audi in front driving very slowly.
We crossed the border with no sign of fuel them I startled Susan by yelling for joy at a 5km for fuel sign at the side of the road. 5km later we have a full tank at 1.15€ a litre. Nice.
This was in the foot hills and as the road wound its way up none of the villages seemed to have any garages. Under a 1/4 tank now, easily enough for 100+ miles on the flat and we only have 50 miles to the next hotel, trouble is we have crests over 1700m in between.
Wow, the peaks around us are astounding not to mention the road, climbing to Col Solor was superb although we were stuck behind a Sunday driver all of the way, not good for the fuel consumption.
From Col Solor the road clings to the sheer rock face twisting hundreds of meters above the valley floor. Alas we are in the shade at this time of day but the peaks opposing us are in brilliant sun. Up again to Col d'Abesque, we are above the snow line! After a brief photo stop at the top we started down again through the ski resorts. Spotted an eagle above us at one point. Heading down takes the mind off the fuel for a bit.
Turning off the D918 we joined the D934 with signs for the Spanish border. Still no fuel and we are heading up again. Most borders i have experienced have fuel stops so I'm hopeful we will make it there.
The D934 is a fun road although we found some nutters in souped-up Citroen Saxos who insisted hooning past us before slowing right up and then speeding off. Low fuel light now on, Spanish Audi in front driving very slowly.
We crossed the border with no sign of fuel them I startled Susan by yelling for joy at a 5km for fuel sign at the side of the road. 5km later we have a full tank at 1.15€ a litre. Nice.
Supper in Saint-Emillion.
The Sun was setting as we walked from the Chateau into the centre of Saint-Emilion searching for supper. It was at this point everything went wrong as we struggled with translating french menus. Eventually we found a lovely little place, les Epicurens, where I tucked into an delicious saddle of lamb with pine nuts while Susan enjoyed the crab and lobster cannelloni. Both dishes came with the most delicious roasted vegetables. To finish Susan had a trio of creme-brule, the chocolate one was intensely rich. I had chosen the apple and pear crunch with chocolate mousse which was exceptionally good.
Good food, good wine... We need to come back here.
Chateau Franc Mayne
We arrived at Chateau Franc Mayne at around 15:45, just enough time to book into the hotel before doing the tour of winery. What a place, we are in the Indian Fusion room with a four poster bed and a view over the central courtyard.
The tour was interesting and took in the fermentation vats in the Chateau its self, a walk through the vines, the limestone caves they use as a giant cellar
to mature the wine and finally a tasting. We were offered samples of both the first and second wine they make from 2002. The Grand Cru (their second wine) had a huge spicy flavour that was almost too much on its own but would have perfectly balanced some cheese. The Grand Cru Classic (their first wine) was far more refined however with our clearly inferior pallets we could not see where the extra cost was justified and both agreed that we would choose the second wine for enjoyment. The tour was fantastic value at 6€, even better for guests who have it included in the room rate (-:
After the tour we took some time to explore the Chateau and its grounds. The house itself is beautifully appointed with some huge chandeliers. The grounds contain a naturally filtered swimming pool set in a perfectly kept garden.
As we watched a number of hot-air balloons drift across the sky we were feeling very content.
France!
I found the ferry was comfortable enough and slept well but Susan found the bunks a little firm and was feeling tired.
Still France was now in sight:
It was an early start as we trudged down to the car, printed directions from google in hand, European road atlas. Two GPS enabled gadgets with maps to hand, what could possibly go wrong?
Once off the ferry we set off through Saint-Marlo it was at this point we suffered our first gadget failure. My cunning ploy to power a USB hub with a car to USB power adaptor resulted in disaster when we discovered that there was insufficient power to drive both the hub and a USB phone charging cable. This has left us with only one charging lead for both the N810 and the N96. This may turn out to be a problem as i have all the maps loaded onto the N810 and was planning to use Nokia sports tacker to create GPS tracks of the trip. Worse than that, as all the maps were stored on a separate drive that shut down the instant the charging lead was plugged in. Stress levels hit the roof as we attempted to navigate the streets of Rennes with a European scale road atlas which at best manages to get the motorways right. This time the N96 and Susan's skill managed to get us out the other side of the town where we found a place to park up and re-arrange the cabling web to get things working. Oh sports tracker managed to record 1.2km before giving up... not sure why will have to investigate.
The rest of the journey down was relatively uneventful, payage all the way to Bordeaux.
Still France was now in sight:
It was an early start as we trudged down to the car, printed directions from google in hand, European road atlas. Two GPS enabled gadgets with maps to hand, what could possibly go wrong?
Once off the ferry we set off through Saint-Marlo it was at this point we suffered our first gadget failure. My cunning ploy to power a USB hub with a car to USB power adaptor resulted in disaster when we discovered that there was insufficient power to drive both the hub and a USB phone charging cable. This has left us with only one charging lead for both the N810 and the N96. This may turn out to be a problem as i have all the maps loaded onto the N810 and was planning to use Nokia sports tacker to create GPS tracks of the trip. Worse than that, as all the maps were stored on a separate drive that shut down the instant the charging lead was plugged in. Stress levels hit the roof as we attempted to navigate the streets of Rennes with a European scale road atlas which at best manages to get the motorways right. This time the N96 and Susan's skill managed to get us out the other side of the town where we found a place to park up and re-arrange the cabling web to get things working. Oh sports tracker managed to record 1.2km before giving up... not sure why will have to investigate.
The rest of the journey down was relatively uneventful, payage all the way to Bordeaux.
All at sea
It was a frantic rush to get packed and out the door, a million little details creep up on you eating into the journey time. Finally the bins were empty, the fish fed, timers set, car was packed and notes to neighbours were written.
We hit the road at 18:30 well into the contingency i had factored into the leg down to Portsmouth. Hindhead was hell into to roadworks which really started to worry me, not a good way to start. Fortunately we made it to the ferry with minutes to spare, drove straight on and relaxed.
*Sigh*
The ferry is at sea now.
We are off!
We hit the road at 18:30 well into the contingency i had factored into the leg down to Portsmouth. Hindhead was hell into to roadworks which really started to worry me, not a good way to start. Fortunately we made it to the ferry with minutes to spare, drove straight on and relaxed.
*Sigh*
The ferry is at sea now.
We are off!
Friday 3 October 2008
Departure preparations.
It's departure day and time is running out fast. We have to be dockside in Portsmouth by 19:45 and that means braving the Hindhead lights at rush hour on a Friday. Other than that the route is all set and we have accommodation at every stop booked so things are surprisingly organised for me.
The plan is to drive down through France to Spain, head right down to the south to see the Alhambra before looping back up through Madrid leaving by way of the Santander-Plymouth ferry.
I will be documenting the trip using my Nikon D80, Nokia N810 internet tablet and N96 mobile phone with a whole spiders web of cables to connect them up and keep them charged.
The plan is to drive down through France to Spain, head right down to the south to see the Alhambra before looping back up through Madrid leaving by way of the Santander-Plymouth ferry.
I will be documenting the trip using my Nikon D80, Nokia N810 internet tablet and N96 mobile phone with a whole spiders web of cables to connect them up and keep them charged.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)