Southern Spain

Wed:  7^th May.  After leaving camp at about 10ish and driving along the coast with magnificent views,

unspoilt by touristy development and passing through a small village, we managed to get stuck in a one way, skinny, dead end street.  My driver did extremely well, with a fifty nine point turn, to manoeuvre our way out of the difficulty without any damage to Boris, or the little car parked in the way or the stone wall or the kerb or the bollard and although the experience was stressful at the time, we can have a laugh about it now.

On then through Barbate to the autovia (motorway without a toll) and a drive through lovely countryside to Tarifa, city of kite surf shops…a very busy town, the southernmost town in Spain with views across to North Africa…we managed to find a place to stop for 5 minutes for a photo taking opportunity and were on our way out again, stopping a few kms up the road at el Mirador del Estrecho bar and cafeteria where we had coffee, admired and took photos of the hazy but still fabulous view. 

Next stop was at Los Barrios and the Leroy Merlin (Bunnings/B&Q) store to buy a barbecue which Mike had seen on their website…but no, they didn’t have any so we are still bbq less.  In nearby Carrefour supermarket, we bought a portable camping stove and a griddle pan which will have to do the job, until we can find a real barbecue.We then had marinated lamb ribs and salad. Yum!

The next destination was Gibraltar but we didn’t go across to the Rock…we were going to but when we saw the queue to go through customs, and the crowds of people milling around, we decided we were happy enough to have seen said Rock and to have taken photos

so continued on to Estepona for our lunch break on the beach, then skirted Marbella to reach the campsite at Cabopino, 13kms down the road.  We settled in, chatted to neighbours Sue & Graham from Wales and spent the rest of the day relaxing with our books.

Thurs:  8^th May.  We strolled down to the beach this morning, an easy walk, to find two cafes, attendants to collect the fee for the hire of the countless deck chairs with umbrellas and the gorgeous blue waters of the Mediterranean. 

After coffee in one of the cafes, we continued our stroll around to the marina, admiring the yachts of the rich moored there and checked out the menu prices in the restaurants along the waterfront.

Too dear for our liking, not that we had any intention of eating there, we just like to look and compare prices.  It was back to camp then to our humble fare, then a swim in the large and lovely outdoor pool (there is an indoor pool as well), sunbathing but not for too long, then back ‘home’ to sit in the shade and read and after dinner, we strolled back to the beach for an after dinner drink while watching the sunset.

Fri:  9^th May.  There was a dark cloud lurking this morning as we set off for the drive away from the coast to Granada.  A visit to Mijas was suggested by our neighbours so we made a small detour up a mountain to this lovely village, not terribly old, but we struck the old problem of nowhere to park.  We had glimpses of the stunning views of the Costa del Sol while searching for somewhere to stop and I guess this is the main attraction.  There were many people about, a few tour coaches and plenty of cafes to choose from for a morning coffee but the village is simply not motorhome friendly, so reluctantly we made our way back to the main road and continued our journey, now in bright sunshine, through scenic mountain and valley farming country

to the campsite at Beas de Granada, overlooking the stunning, snow capped Sierra Nevadas.

Here we met Brian and Wendy, who very kindly helped us out by using their credit card (we did reimburse them in cash) to buy tickets to tour the Alhambra Palace in Granada.  For some unknown reason, our credit card was not acceptable to the Palace online booking web site, nor was it possible to pay in cash so we were very appreciative of their assistance.

In the late afternoon, we decided to walk down the hill to the village, not realising just how steep it was.  Luckily, we met Jean and Brian, caravanners who had driven down in their car and after a couple of drinks with them in one of the local bars, we readily accepted their offer of a lift back to the camp…we weren’t looking forward to the climb back up that hill!  It was considered too late by this time to start cooking, so we all strolled down the drive to the restaurant for a meal and were served by a cheerful, friendly, round faced, dark haired and blue eyed young man, who seemed not to have a word of English but managed to understand our orders.  It was all good fun with good company and we rounded off a very pleasant evening with a glass or two of port.

Sat:  10^th May.  The 11.30a.m. bus at 1,70 euros each, was our mode of transport into Granada, along with Brian and Wendy and six other couples from the camp.  It was a half hour ride into the city, through the lovely little village of Huetor-Santillan and with wonderful views of the Sierra Nevada for most of the way.  Once in the city, we walked in the general direction of the Alhambra palaces until Mike ducked into a hotel to ask directions and was given a map which was a great help!  We did take a wrong turn though and as a result walked a little further than we needed to, climbing a steep staircase up a steep hill

 until we finally reached the ticket office, collected our tickets and began our tour of the palaces and gardens.  An absolutely fabulous place with magnificent architecture

and gorgeous gardens which can be enjoyed at leisure.

The only drawback is that it’s nearly all uphill, but still well worth the visit!  Worn out after all the walking and climbing, we strolled slowly back down to the city, stopping for a refreshing drink at a café/bar before heading towards the bus stop, detouring through interesting alleyways and little lanes on the way.

Although there are several buses from the camp at Beas de Granada to/from Granada on week days, there are only four on Saturdays, and none at all on Sundays so our timing could have been better!  Our timing was perfect when we arrived back at camp, for we met Jean and Brian in the restaurant and shared an hour or so of drinks and laughs, with our happy waiter joining in.  An early night tonight, we’re worn out!

Sun:  11^th May.  Mother’s Day back home and messages from my ‘boys’ made my day.  We said our goodbyes to new friends and set off to the A92, direction Murcia.  After only half an hour, we passed some cave houses so turned around when we could and went back to have a closer look.

Unfortunately, we couldn’t get really close as the track leading up to the caves became too rough and narrow, so we turned around again and stopped at a row of ceramic shops instead.

Hundreds and hundreds of ceramics in about 3 or 4 shops, all reasonable prices and much cheaper than the same things in the souvenir shops in the large towns.  How I’d love to buy up big but my suitcase wouldn’t be large enough to carry it all!  There was a little coffee shop there too so we contented ourselves with a cup each of excellent coffee before continuing on our way.  We had thought that today’s journey may be a tad boring but not so!  The landscape was ever changing, the colour of the earth was at first lush and green, then red, then a pale sand colour, then grey and slate like with very few trees and small scrubby bushes. 

On the plateaus in between the mountain ranges were urban sprawls, some farmland, some orchards, some villages and a few factories.  We found the day’s drive very interesting. 

We stopped to have lunch at the town of Velez Rubio and shortly after, left the autovia to drive along yet another steep, winding road up to a campsite at El Berro, a small old village on the edge of the Sierra Espuna, devoid of tourists other than those staying in the camp, a lovely terraced campsite with an excellent swimming pool, 

a tennis/volleyball court, and a café/bar (and a pensioners club!)

Mon:  12^th May.  Instead of retracing our steps down the mountain, after leaving El Berro this morning, we drove through very dry country (the campsite receptionist said they hadn’t had rain for seven months) and were surprised by the number of healthy looking fruit trees growing in the orchards along the way.

Large, deep red plums, oranges and lemons, apricots and almonds

all thriving in the rocky, dry soil.  

We looked for a stall where we could buy some fresh fruit direct from the orchards but there weren’t any…when we reached Mula, we saw a huge canning factory so assumed that the bulk of the fruit grown in the area goes there…shame…for us I mean.

Once back on the autovia, we headed to Calpe, north of Alicante and Benidorm and took photos of the latter as we passed.  Not our cup of tea!  Calpe is a much smaller town, on the coast and athough a little Anglicised, still retains a Spanish feel and is much more suited to our tastes.  We’re here for a couple of nights, tomorrow is a rest day.

 

 

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