All good things …

We’re on our way home. Our ferry is on Thursday, we have a night with Richard and Caroline Thursday night, and then two with Mary. Back home on Sunday. I’ll likely be in the office on Monday. 

what’s not to like?

It’s been a strange time. I won’t go on again about work-life balance except to say that I work first thing whilst C dozes, the business has a 9 am call (10 am here), after which I tie up some loose ends before C and I head out for the morning, or drive onto a new location. I’ve worked most afternoons and then some in the evening. And most weekends I’ve put in a couple of hours. 

This has meant we haven’t done what we usually do: touristing. We have sat still, pottered about, enjoyed doing not a great deal. The middle bit of the Spanish coast from Motril northeast to Vinaros has some real gems – stretches of unbuilt, a little run down, and at times industrial Spain which is right up our street. Bits are Bohemian, large chunks are very Spanish and the rugged coast line, with the mountains butting the sea, produce some spectacular shows. We are currently at Peniscola, which has a beautiful old town on a prominentary. It’s at the edge of what our is acceptance of ‘been too busy as a tourist centre’ is, but it’s mostly Spanish and the beach is fab. And the white housed, castle-topped hillock surrounded by sea is spectacular. 

we had two suppers out … at least one with picture menus!

We have been more inclined to use campsites (using our ACSI card, where prices have close to doubled in the 10 years we’ve been doing this), but have found, or reused, some fab camperstops (last two were just 9 and 8.40 euros a night respectively), which have everything you need, less electricity. But, again, we’ve enjoyed wild camping and, as always, found some great places. 

We’ve kept ourselves to ourselves, pretty much. Work makes for a dull boy (duller than usual!), but again that has suited. We have had coffee out most days, lunch out a few times and managed two suppers! Most of all we have been served by fabulous weather. Until a couple of days ago the nights were so hot we had to leave Doris’s windows open. I think we’ve experienced rain three times. The temperatures have been exceptional for this time of year, thanks, but no thanks, to climate change. 

heading home

What we have learnt though – and which was forced upon us – we enjoy not doing a great deal. Sure we cycled 20 kms yesterday and we both ran yesterday afternoon (every second day). And we have walked and cycled often, but not with the intensity of previous trips. And that’s been a pleasure in its own way. Is it age? Are we tired? Have we seen so much that another mountain top, or another cathedral, is one too many? I dunno. I don’t. Work’s grey areas have nudged into that, and things may change when I give it up. We’ll see. 

Oh … and we bought a paddleboard! The blow up canoe, which we’ve had for an age, has come with us and remained resolutely in its bag. It’s a pain to blow up, heavy and a further pain to put back. A big paddleboard (ar 11 ft ours is the biggest) takes both of us, is lighter and has fewer moving parts. We’ve only been out on her once, and it was fun. We’ll see – she certainly takes up less room.

And C bumped Doris (you’ll remember that I broke her light cluster earlier in the trip?). There’s no structural damage and the tree survived. But the rear right, top corner fibreglass structure is exposed. I’ll sand it down and paint it. It’ll be fine. That’s Doris for you! To make C feel better (it wasn’t her fault – I was distracted when she was parking), yesterday we saw a large,new Cathargo held together with duck tape. These things happen.

Anyhow, we have to get going. We hope to make it into France today and then three days to Calais. 

The good news is we’re both looking forward to coming back next year. We really hope we can stretch it to 10 weeks and do this part of the coast again. I’d aim to be writing and/or playing the guitar or painting. C will be reading. We are getting old, aren’t we?

Stay safe.