Diary - January 2013

 1^st and 2^nd January 2013.  Heavy showers during the day so we were not inspired to linger anywhere.  We made good progress, doing 300 miles from our house in France, staying the first night in San Sebastian in Spain.  A quick drive around the bay in the morning before we headed off again towards Burgos.   We had planned to spend the second night in a small village in the mountains but it looked so misty up there and a bit grey and unwelcoming, so we pressed on to a campsite in Burgos knowing we could plug into electricity and keep warm. We will take a trip into the city tomorrow as it looks very interesting, hoping the sun will shine.

   

Spot the storks!

3^rd January.  To our surprise Burgos was a lovely city.  It was a bit cold when we stepped out of the van, so when we noticed the women in their fur coats we guessed it was going to be a nice town - very vibrant and a good blend of modern and old buildings - a real pleasure.  We spent just two hours in the lovely city (the car park didn’t allow more time) and it was enough to get to see the main places of historical interest and the shops but we wished we had stayed longer.  A city on the “Santiago de Compostela” pilgrim route.   Next stop Palencia and for a change, driving in the 

warm sunshine.  We arrived in the Aire within walking distance of the town and we were surprised by the number of cars arriving at about 6pm.  Our curiosity got the better of us by 6.30 so took a quick stroll in and found the place buzzing and the shops open.  Christmas lights were still up everywhere and there was a small ice-skating rink in the central square.  Nearby was a nativity, a camel and a twinkling sleigh for photo-posing.  Quite a change from the more sober France we had been experiencing.

Burgos

4^th January.  Overnight was very cold with the temperature getting down to 2°.  We were warm enough in bed but it was difficult to get up until the gas heating had kicked in just a bit.  Mid morning we took another walk into town to do the touristy bit and get some tapas for lunch before moving on to Cuéllar where there is a Moorish castle and where we hoped to spend the night.  The castle was OK but the Aire seemed too near to the road for us so we drove 3 miles into the countryside and stayed overnight next to a Carmelite Convent! a lovely view and of course, very quiet.   

Olmedo Church

5^th January.  We woke to frost everywhere and a temperature of -1°.  Because of the severe weather the water tank had dumped incase it froze – an insurance measure to eliminate a split tank.  We had our gas heating so once the sun was up we soon warmed up and made our way today to Salamanca, promising ourselves a campsite with electricity tonight. One or two coffee stops on the way at the walled towns of Olmedo and Medina del Campo gave us a taste of the interesting Moorish history of this area. 

Medina castle

6^th January.  Very foggy and cold this morning so we have decided to stay another night in the Salamanca campsite so we can go into the city on the bus when the fog lifts - it promises to be another sunny day.  The bus stop is inside the site grounds so very easy.  Salamanca is a very large “golden stone” city with the oldest university in Spain, about 12^th century, countless churches and convents and was on the “Silver trade route”.   Again, “fur coated” ladies were everywhere making us feel a bit shabby.  The cathedral is certainly a work of art although we didn’t go inside the stone carvings on the outside was breathtaking.  We did however visit the Art Nouveau & Deco museum housed in a former private palace and were wowed by the stained glass panels and bay windows, the Christelephantine creations (bronze and ivory sculptures), and Lalique glass.   Coffee taken in the sun in the vast main square completed the day.

7^th January.  We left Salamanca at 10am in the freezing fog making our way to Càceres.  In no time the fog had cleared and we were in brilliant sunshine until we reached the mountain pass at 1180 metres at Béjar.  A magnificent site even in the mist with a little snow on the mountain top but we thought not really enough for the ski resort at Candelario to be open. The road descended for miles so we took a short detour to lunch at the lake formed by the river Tajo before arriving at the hilltop town of Càceres.  The historical walled part of town is well preserved and has numerous towers and palaces now used as regional administrative offices.  Here we chatted to an English guy who told us he was doing a road trip down to southern Spain on a 350cc Royal Enfield.  He had treated himself to a hostel with bath that night after camping out previously in all that frost - brave man - we felt quite wimpish in our somewhat cosy motorhome.

Caceres Town square with Xmas tree

8^th January.  We crossed over into Portugal today passing the Spanish town of Badajoz to Elvas, an area where many battles took place in the Peninsular war.  We knew very little of the history of this area until now and were particularly moved by the words on the memorial stones in the little English cemetery high up in the fortified town of Elvas.  Apparently thousands of British soldiers were killed but only five graves exist. After exploring the town we carried on to another hilltop fortified town, Estremoz, where virtually all the buildings are made out of the local marble. The locals even have marble window frames and doorsteps.

      

 A castle tower stands at the top of the hill, now a Pousada (historical hotel) so we took a look inside,
mmm ….  not a bad view either!

9^th January.  We had stayed in a small campsite last night so enjoyed a lovely shower before setting off to Èvora, another walled city that had seen many historical events since the Romans took over.  

Roman Evora

 With the rain setting in we decided to lunch in town before making our way through the wine growing area to hilltop Monsaraz where we hope to sample some good wine overlooking the largest reservoir lake in Portugal.

Spot makes a comeback !

Our overnight spot - what a view

10^th January.  We certainly did stay at Monsaraz together with four other vans but as we woke to a very misty morning the marvellous view didn’t materialise until we were just about to leave.  No doubt the place is swarming with tourists in the summer as numerous carparks have been built into the ramparts, but today we were almost alone and most of the place was closed.  The local wine had to be purchased in a supermarket in nearby Mouräo.

Monsaraz main square

We did notice a bullring that had been created inside the disused castle! 

 In the evening and overnight we stayed at the Barragem d’Alqueva - Dam.  

11^th January.   Driving through lovely green countryside we stopped at Moura a nice working town with lots going on.  The castle is undergoing some archaeological and renovation work and had good views from the tower.  We travelled on to Beja where, in the museum we saw evidence of Roman, Visigoth, and Islamic occupation but the town was disappointingly shabby compared to Moura.  Staying tonight at another Barragem at Mont de Rocha next to a small café and with three other motorhomes.

12^th January.  Lots of squealing going on this morning after a couple of cars and a white van had arrived!  Upon closer look the pigs and guinea-fowl were out and one pig was being dispatched in the open air– Urggh ….. enough to put you off bacon (well for at least a few days).  A little later on we saw three pigs being prepared for the pot and a big table being laid for lunch – sadly not for customers but for the six or so friends that had helped with the pigs. 

Earlier photo of happy pigs !

1000 miles done since we left the house in France.

13^th January to 19^th January.  It’s turned a bit cold so just as well that we are being looked after for a week by Les’s uncle and sleeping in a proper bed!  It’s good to be shown the area by folk who live here.  I have noticed that the local cinema is showing Les Miserables which is in English with Portuguese subtitles so looking forward to seeing that.  Luckily, just before we were but to leave this area we had a text from Pat and Geoff who are friends of my cousin Jan.  Even better, they are presently staying just a few miles away so we arranged to meet up for lunch in Silves.  They had a wealth of information about the Algarve as they have wintered here for many years and so we can now go off feeling confident (I think!)  

20^th January.  We are now continuing our tour of the Algarve travelling east towards the Spanish border to an Aire Pat mentioned just past Tavira.  It is a really lovely spot next to the beach with a handy boardwalk and cafes nearby.  We will explore more tomorrow and perhaps get our bikes out at last, they have been gathering dust now for too long now …….  so …. hoping for better weather.

 21^st to 23 January.  We have decided not to move from this spot as it’s so relaxing.  We haven’t yet got the bikes out but we have done some lovely walks over to the neighbouring villages.  The small village of Cacela is particularly pretty and unspoilt and luckily we were led there by our new found friends Wenda and Mike who are staying in a nearby van.  It has a very small fort to the sea overlooking the easterly end of the Ria Formosa National Park with it’s sand formations and lagoons where we spotted a kingfisher, a spoonbill and some very large egrets.   The sun is out today but weather is still changeable – nothing like the freezing conditions back home so we feel very lucky. 

24^th January.  Our TV signal is non-existent now and has been for a few days, so unless we are plugged into mains electricity and can make use of our recorder box in the evenings we have to resort to other pursuits! Last night we were lucky to be invited in with Wenda and Mike as they have a sort of Domino game we had never heard of ( Mexican Trains) but which we had been advised by them was very good.  And so it was ! …… we were whupped of course, but now feel we know how to play and are looking forward to meeting up with them some other time for a return match.

We arrived at Castro Marim in the afternoon after a very rainy morning but had time to check the ancient castle out and admire the views from the ramparts before finding our overnight spot in town.

25^th January.  Today we had a good look around the visitors centre in Castro Marim which included an old windmill and chapel with strategic views across to Spain.  From the other direction you can also see the salt pans and piles of salt in the distance. 

Visitors Centre

After lunch we decided to go further north for a few miles towards a village advised to us by the tourist office.  There is an Aire nearby and walking opportunities so seemed ideal.  We tracked along beside the Rio Guadiana which separates Spain from Portugal before arriving high up in the  mountainous countryside and near to the Barragem Oldeleite.

Oh dear…… war nearly broke out at the Aire and it seemed we were not the flavour of the month.  There were several folk who had been parked for weeks and thought they owned the place.  1} We had parked too close to one of them ( loads of room actually)  and 2}  as there were not enough electricity outlets we had dared to plug into someone else’s while they had gone out!  Lots of arm waving ensued with neither parties understanding exactly what was being said.  Another English guy came over embarrassed that he had suggest we use the electricity in the first place and we were invited in for pre-dinner drinks ….so all ended well.

26^th January.  Much better weather today so we have decided to go out for a walk to the village about 2 miles away with a picnic.  We found out the previous night that Pamela and Colin from the next-van-but- one, used to have a boat in the Solent and, as they like walking we decided to go together.   Beautiful walk in the orange and almond trees and lots of assure-winged magpies around. We noticed an historic house opened to the public and where taken inside – fascinating – the family where local merchants who collected fruits and nuts from the nearby farmers for export all over Europe using the river for transport.  The original furniture was inside the house and gave us an insight into Portuguese life.   

27^th January.  Those of you who have avidly read our blog will know that we lost our Cassette loo cap down a drain a while back.  Luckily we got Gill and Rob to bring another one out for us when they visited in November. However, it seems that we might be destined to lose this item regularly. While Les was emptying the loo today it was stolen by a big bulldog called Diesel who thought it was a toy. It was only retrieved by Les after much chasing and begging ( the dog didn't want to know)  – the owner had to intervene!

We are back to the coast now still on the border of Spain to Villa Real de Santo Antonio which was built in a grid pattern by the Portuguese as a frontier town to equal the Spanish town on the other side of the river.  Very laid back atmosphere here and somehow we managed to make several purchases in the “Chinese shop” even though we went in with nothing in mind! Essentials for the van …..you understand. A bit further down the coast we came across an unofficial parking area just by the beach at Monte Gordo which was perfect for an overnight stop and the bottle of Tawny Port found in the local supermarket was another unplanned essential purchase.  Mmm!

Main square in Villa Real Sao Antonio

 28^th January.  We have made our way back to our favourite Aire at Manta Rota today and found that Wenda and Mike are still here and enjoying their stay.  A little further into the site we also found Colin and Pamela who we had met a few days earlier.   The six of us took a lovely stroll up to the next village where we had been promised chocolate cake – (Wenda) but alas, none left by the time we got there. Another  Mexican Train match in the evening back at Wenda and Mike’s after which we were wacked  -  this life is really hard work! 

Parked in the dunes at Manto Rota

29^th and 30^th January.  The sun is here to stay so we have decided to have some lazy days walking along the beach.  We had been told the sea is not all that cold so set off in sandals hoping for a quick paddle and a small picnic.  The light is very good here so we tried to take some artistic shots near  the waters’ edge.  All was going well, a few photo’s taken and camera luckily just given back to Les, when it was suggested that I wash my shoes off in the sea.  Bad move……first wave saw one shoe disappearing into the waves.  Second wave came and I was almost retrieving said shoe. Then, third huge wave started building in the distance and I started running for the beach - but in my haste of course, I fell over my feet and was engulfed by said wave ……still clutching shoes though.  A nice man decided to take the  photo below.  We will have to stay another day now to dry out my clothes.  Shame!