Madrid

Sorry about the delay on the blog... I am only about 2 months behind...

One of our earliest set offs since we first left we left Caceres at around 10am and we arrived at the campsite just after half 2 after a long drive east to Aranjuez we arranged to meet up with my Mum and Dad again who arrived about 15 minutes later.  We had been to the campsite before, but last time it was June and the campsite was swarming with flies. It was so bad that we couldn't eat outside and the van was full of the bloody things.  It was horrible. This time it was fine though, although the flies seemed to have been replaced by cats. Dad's favourite.

 We planned to go into Madrid the following day so all got an early night.

Bright and early the next morning we set off for the train station, situated behind the palace, about a 25 minute walk through Aranjuez from the campsite.  The train cost around €6 (not 100% on the actual price) for a return right into the centre.  For the rest of travelling we walked around the city as I feel you miss out on a lot if you get the underground.

Last time we went to Madrid we went on a Wednesday and stumbled upon a place called Cervecería 100 Montaditos, which can only be described as a kind of fast food tapas sandwich bar. 100 Montaditos means 100 sandwiches and on a Wednesday all sandwiches and drinks are 1 euro. This time we went in on a Thursday so knew that we would miss out on "euromania" but decided to go there again anyway.
We were walking round with Mum and Dad when dad spots a window that he wants to go and look in. Lo and behold its only bloody 100 Montaditos! So we went in.  Its not the same one we went to last time, and Vick and I didn't really realise that there would be more than one!  The sandwiches were full price again (They ranged from 1 euro to 2 euros for the premium range, so still very cheap) Turns out on a Thursday all beers are 1 euro, whatever the size so we got lucky with that one (by we I mean Dad and Vick.)  If you ever get the chance I would give it a try... it's a little bit confusing the first time but for a quick snack its well worth it.
We walked round for most of the day, stopping at pretty much every 100 Montaditos we found. 

 Apart from eating in Madrid we just walked around the city.  Just street walking in the city is a great atmosphere as there always seems to be something going on.   We did pop into one shoe shop which featured some of the most varied shoes ever, I will be getting some of these bad boys for the wedding I think.

 On the Thursday (and I think Wednesday) the Palace is free to EU citizens, the house itself wasn't very interesting for me but the armories were definitely worth the visit, unfortunately we couldn't take any photos but the display they have there is great. 

We are still here.

Just thought we should let you know that we are still here... We are now back in the UK and have kind of forgotten about the blog.  I will be back shortly with a full update. :)

A private toilet!

After an extra day in El Rocio we had to press on and head north towards Caceres.  The night before we left we checked the route on the Sat Nav to which is said 3 hours.  Now I no to never trust the Sat nav so we always add an extra hour to the journey.  For some reason we were very slow at packing away so after saying bye to Luke and Karen we eventually left at 12.  We should have left a lot earlier as the journey took us around 5 hours as the Sat Nav forgot to mention the massive dragging hills all the way.  The weather also took a turn for the worse as the heavens opened and rained for the rest of the night. 

One of the only reasons we went to Cacares was to check out the campsite.  After a lot of people telling us about it we decided we should check it out.  It was for no other reason than each pitch had its own toilet and shower, little things ay?  It was a waste of time.  It wasn't the place I thought it was in mum and dads photos and the private toilet and shower was rubbish.  It probably didn't help the fact that it was freezing but getting into the shower in a cold shed isn't very nice.  It was probably very nice in the summer but its definitely not been built for the winter.  Even so it was nice not having to walk across a campsite for a wee in the night.

The next day we decided to pop into Cacares to check out the old town.  Due to not being handed the bus routes we decided to drive in and park in the centre of town.  For once we turned up early so a lot of stuff was still open so we looked around shops for a change instead of looking through shop windows.  We ventured into the old town and had a look around.  We should have spent more time in there but we decided to go back to the campsite and have a drink.

That night Luke and Karen arrived so after their neighbours had bored them with satellite chat (a thing we are safe from) we popped over for some drinks and chats, and arranged a BBQ for around 3ish the next day.

Cut to the next day, 3 o clock rolls round and we head over, pork steaks and beer under arm. We didn't want to eat anything beforehand as it was like a late Lunch (a typical Spanish lunch really) so we sat down for a drink and a chat before the cooking started. Well, a few beers  and swapped stories later and we realise its 7 o clock, its now dark and we haven't even lit the BBQ. Ooops!

Luke and Karen were supposed to be staying the next night at the campsite but after their toilet flooding they decided to leave the same day that we left. For once we got up early and left before 10! A record for us when we are on our own. So we said our goodbyes and headed on our way towards Aranjuez to meet up with Mum and Dad.

El Rocio

El Rocio was one of our main targets to go and visit on this leg of the journey with no idea what to expect apart from sandy roads.  In my head all I imagined was a single street with a bar on the corner and a sheriffs office, basically the setting of a western movie.  I was semi right, however this place is massive! 
Once we arrived and set up camp a guy from one of the previous campsites walked over and mentioned that there was a pilgrimage on and it may be busy on the Saturday.  We were planning to move on the Saturday so with this in mind we decided to stay and see what was going on. 


This western cowboy film I had in my head was coming to life... The town was rammed with people all rinding horseback or mules pulling carts.  On the Friday it rained and rained so the sandy roads were more dirt tracks.  As soon as you enter El Rocio all road rules seem to go out the window and it's every man for himself.  It works but its mental.  You will have some people who will bimble along but you also have people who get in their car and put their foot to the floor. Throw a couple of hundred horses into the equation and it gets a lot worse.   With not much going on in town apart from people arriving we went back home and got dry.  

Saturday the sun finally came out.  It was a nice change as it had been raining since we left La Garrofa. With the Pilgrimage happening on the Saturday we thought we should try and make it in early so we didn't miss anything happening.  We left the tent at 11.30 which isn't really that early.  The town population had at least tripled.  The squares were rammed and horses were everywhere.  It was kind of scary as horses aren't small so when one appears behind you its quite a shock .

After a walk around town we decided we should stop and have a coffee and beer and watch the madness pass us by.  Minding our own business we were approached by two people who had seen us camping in Cadiz and wanted to come and talk to us about the car.  They joined us for a couple of drinks and a quick chat about themselves and our trip, it turns out we had been to the last three campsites they had been to and we were also going to the next three campsites also once leaving El Rocio.  It was a good job that we clicked and got on with them really!  We met up back at the campsite and both exchanged stories about our bowel movements.  Not really a conversation you have after only meeting for an hour but we got on.

As we were leaving the next day I decided I should go in and see if the town was as mental during the night as it was in the day.  My answer is yes.  Its even more mental when everyone is under the influence.  From what we could see the pilgrimage is just an excuse to get on the beers.  There was even one happening the weekend after just down the road.
It also turns out that this was a very small pilgrimage as in May nearly a million people turn up for the Romería de El Rocío

Gibraltar

After a month of being stationary after such a hectic few days to get to Spain it was a little weird packing up and loading the car again.  We planned to head west as we didn't get the chance to last time.  So we headed towards Gibraltar and found a campsite in the ACSI about an hours drive away from there,  which was nice as I was bored of driving as it was very windy.  Driving the van in the wind is not enjoyable... imagine driving a house through cement,  its worse than that.



The campsite was a very big jump from La Garrofa.  There were camper vans the size of buses with massive  tow cars and caravans the size of a house.  We looked very very small when parked next to them.   We were just sitting down for some tea and then a nice guy came over to talk to us.  He had seen the car in La Garrofa and came to let us know that when it rained the pitch we were in tended to take on all the campsites water and flood, but only in major rain storms and not to worry as it hadn't rained since November when he arrived.  No need to move then if that was the case.  We said thank you and carried on with our evening.  Around 7/8 the next morning it decided to rain.  We woke up in around 5cm worth of rain water.  Now I hate putting the tent away when its wet... but this was just silly.





We arrived in Gibraltar at around 12.30 and headed straight for the cable cars to visit the top of the Cliffs.  There had been reports of very strong winds and so the cable cars had been closed for the weekend.  Just our luck.  For the first and probably last time ever we paid for a tour and took the journey up in a van.  We will probably never go back so we thought we may as well.

The best part was he wasn't even an actual guide.  It was just a taxi driver who knew the tour guide.  Even so he took us up told us a brief history of the place and took us to see all the usual sights.

Vick specifically told the guy that she didn't want to hold a monkey as she doesn't like how unpredictable they are. We were just about to get in the van to go back down when one decided to jump on her head. She thinks it could smell the fear, or it wanted to mate with her, either way she wasn't very impressed. The weather report wasn't lying either.  It was VERY windy.  On some points of the island you could lean into the wind and you wouldn't fall over.  It was a shame the weather was so bad as it would have been nice to have taken in the full view.  It wasn't the same experience when the guide pointed at Africa and said ''its there... its just behind the clouds.''

I don't really like doing the normal tourism stuff when away but seeing as we were in the area we felt we should go into Gibraltar and see the main attraction.  We even visited Morrisons.  Which was a very odd experience.  Everyone speaking in English and using GBP doesn't fit when you can be in Spain within 5 minutes. It just didn't feel right, even so we still bought some pies and onion bhajis.


Because the weather was so bad we ditched our next plan and decided to head inland to a campsite about an hour North.  This was mainly so we didn't take a beating from the coastal winds.  However we still took a beating from the rain.  That night we went to bed in 5cm of rain again but at least it drained away overnight.

The perfect breakdown...

Throughout our eastern part of our journey I was a little worried about breaking down.  I can fix a lot of basic things but if anything serious was to happen it would have been a bit of a disaster.  You cannot describe how happy I was when I drained the battery by leaving the lights on one day and then unwound the gearbox a few days later leaving us with reverse gear only.

 The reason I was so happy is the fact that both Dad and Paul were only a bus journey away and we weren't in the middle of Hungary.  The battery wasn't so much of an issue as we were at the campsite at the time, but the gearbox unwound in the Decathlon car park, and I didn't fancy driving all the way back in reverse.
After a quick text saying what we had done Dad and Paul both jumped on the bus.  After a quick stop off for some lunch, the recovery team arrived.  An hour later we were all in the car heading back to the campsite.  The perfect breakdown if there is such a thing.

Paul's main challenge whilst away was to fish.  Being so close the the sea it made sense.  Once him and Janice had fully set up the camper he was in serious fishing mode.  For Christmas he got all the gear... but had no idea.  He went out a couple of times and tried various types of bait but still caught nothing.  Dad then dug his rod out... the race was on.  Who could catch something first. 

I think I won as within 20 minutes I caught boredom.  Even so I battled on and even went out in the canoe one day which was a bad idea as the waves picked up and by the time I had cast out I was in the rocks.   I decided that fishing is not my sport and the only way I was going to catch anything was with a grenade.
I like to think Paul is still stood there now catching nothing whilst the 2 italians that were at the same campsite are still dragging out metre length sized squid every night right in front of him.

Keep practicing Paul. :)

With only a week until we were due to leave I decided to go exploring and went for a danger walk with Zac (Paul & Janice's dog) We took a walk up the rambla and into the desert.  For some reason when I go for a walk alone I always choose to go the stupidest ways where no one knows I am going.


So once into the rambla I decided it would be a cracking (stupid) idea to walk up a massive hill and down the other side, the main reason being to find some goats to photograph and to find a skull.  I found some, but goats don't like dogs and they have a distinct advantage over me when it comes to a face off on a cliff.  Once I found out that they weren't going to stand down I eventually ran back up the hill and down again.  I decided 'Killed by a goat' wouldn't have looked very good on my headstone when buried.  I also didn't find a skull.



One of the main purpose's of the walk was to go and take some pictures of the 'arrival' who turned up one night during the week.  The Thialf arrived late one night and got the whole campsite talking.  You couldn't miss the thing.  It was mahoosive! This thing was the worlds largest Semi-submersible crane vessel and weighed 136,709 tons and had a combined maximum lifting capacity of 14,200 metric tons with its two cranes.  Everyone was saying it was there for different reasons. Some were saying it was fixing a pipe under the water between Almeria and Morocco, from what we could work out we reckon it is on its way to the crash site of the Costa Concordia in Italy where it is going to winch it out and repair the damage.  It left Rotterdam just before Christmas and arrived in Almeria on the 15th January.  Turns out we were wrong also as its now in Algecerias which is nowhere near Italy.  If you really feel the need to you can track it here. 

For the rest of the week 'Dolphin Watch' was out the window, a new craze was in town... 'Crane Watch'. A small tug was going to and from the ship, causing much excitement.  When another ship turned up and cranes started moving the cargo off it the excitement went through the roof!

It was at this point we decided we needed to leave.

The Kings procession!

Kim and Paddy had to reluctantly leave on the 3rd at 6 in the morning.  I haven't seen 6 in the morning since I left work so it was a bit of a shock to the system when we woke up to say goodbye.  Once they left mum and dad both slipped off back to bed whilst Vick and I for some reason stayed up.  We regretted this decision at about 9.  We were knackered for the rest of the day but struggled through without a siesta.  Mum and Dad on the other hand woke up 3 times that day.

If you're lucky enough or just observant you can pretty much guarantee to see some dolphins at La Garrofa.  It does help when you have a mum that is always on ''Dolphin Watch'' as she stares misty eyed out to sea and then flaps her hands shouting ''DOLPHINS.''  As much as we did take the piss out of her when you see them in the distance it does put a smile on your face.

In the UK we're usually getting ready to take down the Christmas decorations and carry on with normal boring life after New Year.  In Spain it carries on until the 5th for when the 3 Kings arrive and bring the presents to the children. 

There was a Kings procession going through Aguadulce and we were kindly invited to Michaels to watch from his balcony (I say balcony... this place is as big as a tennis court.)  Mum and Dad met Michael on a previous visit to La Garrofa and have been friends since.  When we arrived we were introduced to Lucia, Michael's cleaner/ friend, and her Daughter who's name I can't remember (Sorry).  We weren't really sure what to expect other than a few drinks and nibbles whilst the procession passed.  We were taken outside to the balcony and presented with a feast of traditional Colombian food.  In case you're wondering, Lucia is Colombian, not just a fan of Colombian food.  I'm not sure what it all was but it was delicious.  What can only be described as a  cauldron was filled with seafood and rice, a heap of what looked like bright yellow dumplings, but can now be described as potato heaven and when topped off with the homemade salsa they were amazing!

Once we had eaten, Michael revealed a 'treat' for us to all try.  His description was that it would have last been seen at our granny's house, to which Helen (another friend from La Garrofa) replied in her Geordie accent ''It's not me Granny is it?''  It was bright yellow in colour and looked quite stringy, and tasted like a big dry chip.  After a lot of unsuccessful guesses Michael confessed that we were eating a yucca plants stem which is a delicacy in Columbia.  As far as I'm concerned it can stay in Columbia.

At around 5 the Kings procession arrived!  Everyone ran to the balcony edge to watch the grand passing.  The road below was full of kids with empty bags waiting for them to be filled with sweets.  It was magical.  What actually happened is three guys dressed as kings passed by on three car towed trailers and threw sweets at kids.  That was it. 

If you read this Michael and Lucia thank you for the afternoon, we all enjoyed it and also enjoyed it the next day with the three bags of food we took home.  I need the recipe for potato heaven and the salsa but not the yucca, you enjoy that yourself.