No, not another trip. Just another attempt to write up the last trip. And because I'm lazy I'm going to cut and paste (he he he... not bad for a dinosaur) the start of the first effort again and carry on from there.
SPAIN!
Home of Don Quixote, Picasso, bull fighters, flamenco dancers, guitars, Christopher Columbus, plunderers of the gold and silver of the Incas and Aztecs, ... who wouldn't want to spend a few days there!
I can't remember if I've mentioned it, but we made an offer on Bon Accord just before Easter weekend. The offer was a lot less than the asking price, but the boat needs a lot of work.
Knowing that the owner would probably be in denial about the state of his boat, we decided we'd better have a backup plan B.
In fact we've seen a few boats called Plan B, so this is obviously a fairly common situation.
There is a good looking Formosa 51 ketch, plus a few other similar boats in Spain. Instead of sitting around here biting our nails we decided to make the trip to Madrid, hire a car, and drive to Denia, about 100kms south of Valencia to check it out.
We arrived there in the evening, picked up a little gutless wonder, a diesel VW Polo, and put our faith in "Carmen", the Garmin gps we bought in the US and renamed. She guided us to our hotel on the other side of the city where we had the most expensive meal of our whole time in Spain. Room service for a couple of sandwiches served with chips was just a fraction less than the cost of the room. We had entire buffets for less away from Madrid.
The next day we got going early, not daring to have breakfast until we were well on the road to Denia, on the coast.
The trip was uneventful apart from the occassional huge black profile of a bull from time to time. No words at all, just the huge billboard-like Torro we got used to seeing dotted around the countryside.
By the time we got to the marina it was a sunny afternoon and we immediately felt the warm, casual, happy mediterranean vibe that draws holiday makers by the millions every year.
The sea was a beautiful, pale aquamarine and the marina was packed with boats of all kinds.
We eventually met a woman who'd been asked to show us the boat and after a short walk we climbed on board.
What can I say... you sure have to kiss a lot of frogs...
And they all look so good in the pictures!
Aspects of the boat were good. We saw features of the layout we hadn't seen before, and some repairs we hadn't seen before either.
I opened a locker and saw 4 strange lumps against the back timber panel. They were soft to the touch. A little more examination was a jaw dropping experience. Four screws from the other side had come through by about 30mm. Not a problem. Carefully put masking tape over each one and paint it!
Sandy found the same repair for rot around pilothouse windows. Masking tape and paint.
We spent about an hour on the boat, mainly because we were enjoying the warm sunshine and atmosphere of the marina.
We need not have worried. The Hotel Rosa doesn't own the road frontage and can do nothing about the 'other people's mess'. Although it's old, it is a family business and the warm welcome could not have felt more genuine. A guy in his 30s, probably the son, checked us in and pulled out a local map, marking the places of interest in the town... tapas bars, pubs, markets, shops, restaurants. I pointed to the obvious old fort in the middle and asked him how old it was.
He looked at us as though nobody had ever asked that question. Obviously tourists aren't what they used to be, but with great pride and humour we got a 5 minute Spanish history lesson, starting with the Phoenecian ships calling in to trade a 1000 years BC. Not sure who they traded with, probably various Celtic tribes. They established themselves as did the future invasions by Cathaginians, Greeks, Romans, Moors... I don't think the poor Spaniards have a clue who they are, but they're very proud of it.
The hotel was charming and spotless with just the right amount of spanish cliche to give guests the feeling of being in olde worlde Spain. We took a walk down the short path to the beach, sundowners in hand and looked out over the sea that has seen so much of the ebb and flow of human history.
That evening we couldn't think of any place we'd rather eat than the homely Hotel Rosa, with Mama coming out from the kitchen to tell us what she could cook for us. We weren't disappointed.
Coastal towns have grown into massive concrete jungles, some of them high rise and many more townhouse/cabana type developments. Sometimes the new developements run right up to the walls of ancient forts that have been there for hundreds of years. They just go on for miles.
But the Sierra Nevada mountains were spectacular, some with snow, and the climate made it easy to see why so many people make there way here every year. Some towns had the empty, party's over feel so common in tourist towns, others still had a happy buzz about them.
As we travelled down the coast we came across little restaurants tucked away. One in particular was called Sinbad. At first it just looked quaint and rustic sitting right on the sea shore. But when we got closer we saw that thousands of 'pebbles' pressed into the walls were in fact sea shells.
We were also intrigued by the ancient mini forts, actually signalling towers built so that messages could travel swiftly down the coast, probably by lighting fires.
Across the straights you can clearly see the mountains of Morocco, 25 miles away. It's a truly spectacular gateway to the Mediterranean.
The heavy stone fortification and buildings give a clue to the long and fascinating history of the place. The unbelievably narrow lanes were crammed with cars and motorbikes. The little Polo felt like truck.
Eventually we made our way to the marina where we soon discovered the wonderful, familiar feel of old British colonial life still exists. We were there to meet with Adrian and Vicky to have a look at their boat, Wild Alliance. Once again there was an instant familiarity and the time slipped away in comfortable conversation. Their son, a great kid of around 11, had just come home from school and gave the game away when he came up to the cockpit and said, "Who tidied my room?"
Sometimes you meet people and they're old friends right away. It can happen anywhere. It just seems to happen most often with people who live on boats.
Later that afternoon, more like evening, we were leaving the pontoon to find a bite to eat, and couldn't think of anywhere better then the Waterfront Restaurant right there overlooking the boats at the Queens Wharf marina.
Well, you don't just swing by anything in a city in Spain. You have to plan it like military campaign or it just doesn't happen. After fighting crazy traffic and one way streets in both Seville and Cordoba, we can claim we've seen them both, from a distance, before looking at the time wasted and having to move on. Some things have to be left for the next time.
It was late afternoon and we were feeling frustrated at having missed out on the sightseeing we'd planned, when we saw an interesting old ruin on a hill, about half an hour from Toledo.
With a spur of the moment decision we turned off and made our way to the little village at the foot of the mountain. It was obviously very old because parts of the village still had an old city wall and the church looked like it had been there for hundreds of years. But it was the ruin on top of the mountain that beckoned so we decided to see how far we could get up the steep zig zag walking track before dark.
We'd only gone a few hundred yards when Sandy said "You might get the car up here...".
And she was right. All I'm saying is, don't buy used rental cars!
The fort looked very old and it's been a long time since it kept anybody out. The walls had collapsed in many places, but it was clear that the lower outer wall would have kept all but the most determined out. The much higher inner wall provided an even more secure bastion, and within the main fort there were a few 'last stand' towers. There were holes in the stone walls making them look like lace against the sky. In the late afternoon light the place had an eerie silence to it and the calls and fluttering of wild birds sent shivers down your spine.
It was totally uncommercialised and we clambered around like kids, trying to imagine the human sagas that had taken place there.
We found round stone lined holes in the ground, virtually filled with soil now, storage for food and water no doubt. Others were long and may well have been barracks. If you closed your eyes you could almost hear the sounds of battle. It had a profound effect on both of us.
The icing on the cake was to learn that it is in fact 'La Mancha', Cervantes setting for Don Quixote, written in the 17th century.
Travelling doesn't get much better than that!
It was dark by the time we rolled into Toledo. We knew nothing about it other than in medieval times the very best swords were made from Toledo steel. Even today matadors will use nothing else.
As we made our way up the hill we immediately knew this place was special by the magnificent city gates to the old walled city. We tried to find our way through the narrow lanes that still buzz with activity, even on a tuesday night. It has a magical charm about it. Somehow the city has managed to highlight it's great past, restoring and maintaining ancient buildings with all their appeal for the tourism market, but still function as 21st century city.
We managed to find a very old hotel, grand in it's day, just outside the city walls, and they don't start writing parking tickets until 10 in the morning!
The next morning we headed back up to the walled city and looked through shops that are outlets for the steel, ceramic, jewellery, leather and wood crafts still practiced, and inlets for the tourist's dollars!
I could have bought a fine suit of armour. A bit heavy for checked in luggage, and I just wasn't prepared to take it all off every time we go through the metal detectors...
For anyone visiting Spain, Toledo is a must. But before you spend your hard earned cash, find the shops back off the main roads. You have to walk to do this. A sword selling for $145 was $85 a few lanes back.
Fortunately, we've left plenty reasons to come back. We still need to see the Alhambra in Granada, all of Barcelona, and of course the Grand Mosque in Cordoba and the Cathedral of Seville.
Until next time...