Postcards are Tricky

June 18, 2024June 17, 2024 | Mairead

Tiny ice creams in Vouvant. (Quick, take a photo before it’s all gone!)

Do you remember last year we bought a map of all the Beaux Village de France? And we visited many, many beautiful villages? We decided for our first week back in France we’d start with the beaux village of Vouvant. With less than an hour’s drive and an indoor picnic on route we arrived at the camper parking. All the services we needed and the village just a short walk away. We paid for the night and walked to the village.

The sun was shining and it was 20 degrees, perfect. The village was bustling with people as is the usual for the beaux villages on a Sunday, every shop was open. We treated ourselves to ice creams and wandered around with everyone else. Something we’ve noticed about these beautiful villages, they are almost like film sets, it’s hard to think of them as real. It seems no one actually lives here, well certainly not in the most beautiful centre section. But Vouvant seems different, although the central area is mainly shops and cafes and restaurants, there is also a substantial area surrounding it with pretty houses and gardens.

You can climb to the top of the tower in Vouvant

Next morning I went back to the village on a mission. I had a few postcards from Spain that I had never been in the right place at the right time to post. I love sending postcards but they can be tricky. First you need to find a place that sells postcards and they almost never sell stamps or not international stamps anyway. Then you must find a post office to buy international stamps. Then you need to post them after writing a message. And when you have written on them you will need to find a post box…

At each of these postcard stages I was so excited to successfully complete the stage, I never moved onto the next stage promptly enough. The ideal would be to buy the postcards, write the message, look up and write the address, go to a post office, buy the stamps, put the correct stamp on the correct postcard and pop the postcards into a post box! And do all that on the same day in the same town or at least the same country.

Instead, I bought postcards in Spain. A few days later I found a post office and bought stamps for Ireland. Days later I wrote the message and the addresses but never found a post box… in Spain. I know that sounds strange, there was that one time I found a postbox but didn’t have the cards with me. And then we were in Portugal.

Perfect cafe for postcard writing in Vouvant

Now the Spanish postcards were written and stamped, with Spanish stamps – so I couldn’t post them in Portuguese postboxes… I would need to find a Portuguese stamp but we were never near a post office – we were travelling more than we were stopping. And then we were back in Spain. I did get to post two postcards in the village of Espasante when two guys stopped painting the pride pedestrian crossing to help me find a postbox.

In Vouvant almost everything came together. I had a couple of postcards, I found the post office, bought the stamps. Then bought a coffee, sat to write and address them and returned to the post office to post them. What I didn’t have was enough postcards… and now it was Monday and beautiful villages are quiet on a Monday – all the shops where you might buy postcards are closed!

And now I wonder, even with French stamps on, will the French post office deliver my Spanish postcards?

It’s a long, long way from here…

June 14, 2024June 13, 2024 | Mairead

Some spectacular roads on the Spanish coast

Last Friday we left Foz and drove along the motorways of northern Spain to the town of Zarautz less than an hour from the French border. We would be in France on Saturday. It’s a five hour journey but we took lots of breaks and arrived at the motorhome parking about 7.30pm.

The parking was nearly full and there was a lot of noise coming from the building site next door. A new supermarket was promised for the future but in the meantime there was just noise. There were two supermarkets being built on the street, a Lidi and a Mercadona, which is a modern Spanish chain.

We went for a walk, Denis made Spanish omelette for dinner and we waited for the noise to stop. Surely the builders would be going home for dinner? Yes but Spanish dinner is late so probably 9pm. But 9pm came and went and still the noise continued. Surely they weren’t working in shifts overnight? No, at 10pm the noise stopped and a cheer went up from the mostly Spanish campers. It started early in the morning but we didn’t notice and felt like we’d had a good night’s sleep.

We set off at 10.30am after a coffee at the Eroski supermarket. Most supermarkets in Spain (and Portugal) have cafes included and the coffee is usually good and always inexpensive. But first we had to navigate the motorway. One of the reasons we chose this particular parking was that it was close to the motorway and we could easily get back on the road to France in the morning. But the motorway was between the parking and coffee and we had to walk on the bridge over it. How difficult could it be, you ask? Very.

This is not the first time I didn’t want to walk over a road where you can see traffic passing underneath you at speed. I promised myself I wouldn’t do it again, I’d find another way… there is never another way and I wanted coffee. It was fine, I even stopped to take a photo… while holding tightly onto Denis with one hand and the phone in the other and imagining, what if I drop the phone?

I didn’t drop the phone and we drove into France but it wasn’t as easy a journey as the previous day. We were only twenty minutes over the border when we got stuck at a toll booth. All through France and Spain and Portugal when we have to pay at toll booths, Denis drives as close to the machine as possible and I lean out the window and use the credit card to tap the payment. It always worked. On this machine the tap didn’t work so I put the card into the slot and it said (in French) retrieve your card it doesn’t work, use a different card. But it didn’t pop my card back, I couldn’t retrieve the card – it was stuck in the machine…

Cars and trucks were whizzing by on ether side of our lane. Denis put on the flashing indicators to prevent a queue forming behind us. And I pressed the red button to get the attention of the toll both operator. Fortunately she spoke English and said she would come out to help. Twenty minutes later she still hadn’t arrived so I pressed the red button again. This time the operator didn’t speak English and my French, bad enough in person, was abysmal over a clunky intercom. Finally, a recorded voice said, Someone will be with you shortly.

Ten minutes later the lovely English speaking operator arrived in front of us – I’m guessing she had to walk a long way underground. She asked me my name (to check the card was really mine) but looked perplexed when I told her (I couldn’t pronounce my own name in a French way!) but she opened the machine and mine was the only card in there thankfully. The toll was €4 and I paid in cash – just in case. The barrier raised and we waved goodbye to Madame Operator.

The rest of the journey was mainly uneventful but tiring and hot. We kept driving with the main objective to arrive somewhere cooler than where we were. In hindsight it was probably too much driving two days in a row. We thought we had found the perfect stop for the night but it was closed and we had given up being nice to each other when a group of French men standing near the closed barrier started waving, Irlande!

Turned out one of their friends, who they called over, had just come back from a holiday in Ireland the previous weekend! And he had a great time and spoke not one iota of English! Except for whiskey… But their smiles and excitement raised our spirits and as we drove off we liked each other again. We continued for another 40 minutes to a small town called Prahecq with parking on grass and the promise of a Boulanger in the morning awaited us. Unfortunately there was also a party awaiting us and the music went on until 4am…

The map ran off the page. Might need a new one?

But the croissants were good.

Me Gustó

June 13, 2024June 12, 2024 | Mairead

We stopped at a town on the way to Foz to have a coffee with a view

We moved on from our spot near our new Cork friends in Espasante and for the next three days we stayed in the town of Foz, still on the northern Spanish coast. We’d stayed in camper parking on the outskirts of the town in April 2019 not knowing there was free parking right on the water front in the town. This year we parked on the grass in front of the water. With restaurants, cafes and shops all nearby.

The weather has changed, to overcast and cool in Foz… and I am very happy about that. But I do notice how the photos feel brighter and even happier when the sun is shining. Today the photos feel more sombre I need photos so I will use them. They remind me that not every day can be bright and cheerful. We can’t be bright and cheerful every day either and we don’t have to be.

Can you see the white tiles inside? And the lock and chain on the door? And a hint of red paint on the door?

I had forgotten until we came north how much I love grimy old buildings. I love the broken windows, the rusting metal, the green moss, the hints of colour and a previous life. It’s not the same when the sun shines but when it’s a dull day, these buildings shout out to me – hello look at us, we’re still here, we’ve been though a lot but we’re still here.

The colours, like pistachios and chocolate

They feed something in me. It wasn’t always like this, I used to hate anything old and grimy. But that was before I could appreciate the time it takes to become something old and grimy. The things you have to go through to become old and grimy. Whatever lasts after all that is worth appreciating. Whoever lasts after all that is also worth appreciating.

Being in the town we had the opportunity to try some more Spanish tapas. Maybe even get the right amount? We took a twenty minute stroll to a restaurant with good reviews and enjoyed the exactly perfect amount of food. There was potatoes with garlic – of course. A plate of really thinly sliced ham – three different varieties with cheese. And prawn, possibly from the truck we slept beside at the petrol station?

We had finished all the cheese and most of the ham when we remembered to take a photo. That’s the potatoes in garlic at the back… drool

Or wait, no, maybe prawns from the sea just outside? With seaweed (yes!) and wild mushrooms. Every single dish was delicious. Do you remember our new friend with the cafe in the really hot town before Seville who made me a great hot chicken with garlic roll? No? Ok well he had taught is to say, Me Gustó, if we liked our food – I got to use it for the first time. Might have impressed the waiter because he smiled a lot… or, he may have been trying not to laugh.

The prawns, seaweed and wild mushrooms and bread

Yaa… we remembered to take photos.

Are (y)ou from Cork?

June 12, 2024June 11, 2024 | Mairead

We were off again on Monday (3rd June) morning travelling as far north as we could. We had visited the north Spanish coast in previous winters when it was too cold and snowy to get to Portugal via the east of the country. But it was always very overcast and cold and very Irish. Right now we were very happy with _very Irish _climate.

We spent Monday night up in the hills near a town called Pontedume. The journey there was amazingly beautiful and amazingly scary. The campsite was basic and the data was non existent. Previously if we arrived at a campsite without data we would have to move straight away but now we have another option. Earlier in the year Denis had bought a satellite internet aerial, this would be the first time we needed to use it. It worked perfectly.

Next morning we drove back down the mountain and further along the north coast to the small town of Espasante. This town is surrounded by spectacular scenery. The sun was shining and the breeze kept it cool enough to enjoy. We had run out of food again but google showed us five restaurants in the town. So off we went to find one we liked.

When we walked into the first one there was a card game going on down the back. The owner was involved in the game but came up to the counter to serve us. Thinking we’d start with drinks, we ordered and then asked for a menu. He said, no, no menu. Trying not to feel too let down by google we paid for our drinks and sat down.

Pride! I was looking for a post box and the two guys painting this flag didn’t know but stopped their work to find out for me. Gracias!

The owner arrived back to us with free tapas and the terrible thing was the tapas were the best we’d had in Spain… Oh if we had only been able to order food, it would surely have been great. The free tapas were a cube of pork with the crunchiest crackling I’ve ever seen or tasted. Oh well, we drank up and moved on.

Unfortunately, the next four restaurants were closed. Tuesday might be their closed day – then as we walked back to our parking at the harbour we passed a restaurant that google didn’t know about – Las Palomas.

Nature’s art on the beach near the harbour

Denis approached the counter to check if they were serving food. Of course we were too early but food would start in just thirty minutes. We took a seat and the waitress (who turned out to be the owner) came over with menus. And as she was turning away she asked, Are you by any chance from Ireland? It turned out she had spent two years in Cork and loved Ireland! This restaurant had been in her family for fifty years and had recently been done up, maybe that’s why google didn’t know about it.

I love this… We see a lot of this corrugated siding on houses in the area and it’s always only on one side of the house

And then a different waitress with a Cork accent came over to us. She had come from Cork to work here in Spain for the summer. Her boyfriend was from Bantry and she had been studying in Cork. She didn’t speak Spanish… but because she was from Brazil… she spoke Portuguese. Isn’t it a very, very compact and interesting world? Long may we be able to move around freely… and spread the Cork accent!

The black dots at the very edge closest to Ireland on Spain’s north coast

Super natural Sines

June 7, 2024June 6, 2024 | Mairead

Sorry about the confusion with the catch up over the last few days – almost up to date. This post brings you from Seville, in southern Spain to the town of Sines on the west coast of Portugal. From Friday 24th to Friday 31st May…

We left the lovely man in La Puebla de Cazallla with the cafe and hot garlic chicken rolls early on Friday morning and drove a couple of hours to Seville. We needed groceries and there is a big supermarket in Seville. We also had some calls to make and needed to be sure the data was good. The last time we were in Seville it was so hot I vowed never to return… Yes this going to Seville would bring us deeper into the heat but we had a plan. If we left early enough and had everything done by lunchtime all would be well. And it nearly worked. The traffic around Seville on a Friday broke the plan but we eventually made it to our evening stop at a seafood restaurant where I had fresh anchovies, for the first time and Denis had swordfish. Next morning we left very early again and crossed the border to Portugal where the breeze was very welcome.

We stopped at the border town of Castro Marin to taste our first Portuguese nata of the trip but we didn’t factor in the time difference between Spain and Portugal – it was still only 8.15am – the cafe was closed. Sadly we had to move on. But only as far as a supermarket on the outskirts the town of Tavira. We got the nicest welcome we’d had for a while as we drank our coffee and ate our nata pastries for €4. Go to Portugal: For the people and the natas and the bargains. That night we stayed at a motorhome site beside the train tracks. Next morning we moved on to Albuferia. It was now Sunday and Denis needed to stay in one place for meetings this week. We booked in at a campsite outside the town for 5 nights. But despite the Portuguese breeze this was an unbelievably hot week.

The train is very close to us (from 2022) – Tavira motorhome park

On the morning of Friday 31st May at 8.30am, we left Albuferia. The temperature was already 24 degrees, our air conditioning was still not working so we did what people did before air conditioning was a thing – opened the windows. Yes it was noisy and yes everything not nailed down blew around in the back but it worked. The previous day had been the hottest, we survived with frozen peas, ice cream and finding out the little camping supermarket had air conditioning. We had been going in there every day for groceries or our morning coffee but it didn’t dawn on us to sit inside where it was cooler. We spend a lot of time in there, soaking up the delicious cold air.

The machine on the Portuguese border where you register for automatic toll collection for foreign vehicles

In an attempt to take some control over our heat problem we had searched the weather forecasting app for places where the temperature would be more comfortable. Which led us to the northern Spanish coast. That’s a long way from the south of Portugal – eight hours of driving. It seemed a bit too much.

Here’s the weather app when we arrived at Sines

Then our luck changed and we spotted one place where the temperature didn’t go above 21 degrees. It was hard to believe at first because to its north, south and east the temperatures were soaring but in this town it was a constant 21 degrees. Could this be true? Was it a glitch in the app? It was only a two hour drive so if the app had got it wrong we would keep driving north but if the app was right then within 2 hours we would be blissfully cool. We had to try it.

Special spot in Sines supermarket car park!

And it was true! It was like a miracle, a mirage, the temperatures started to slowly decrease when we were within five minutes of the town of Sines on the Portuguese west coast. We needed to stop at the supermarket before finding some kind of parking near the water – for the breeze. But when we arrived at the supermarket there was a cool breeze blowing there. Heaven. It seemed no matter where you go in Sines the temperature is comfortable. I could feel myself coming back to normal.

In the supermarket I bought a couple of Portuguese craft magazines (impossible to even guess at a translation but great pictures). Denis bought a tape measure with only centimetre measurements – a dream of his for a while and not available in Ireland (ours are centimetre and inches) – who knew? I bought a plastic tablecloth for our folding table, unused since we arrived but now with the potential for cooler weather I was very hopeful for eating/crafting/reading experiences outside.

We stayed at the supermarket parking and opened all the windows to let in the breeze. Everything was going to be alright. Yes there were compressors running all night and yes the delivery truck arrived at 6am but it was cool. All is well.

Hot and Bothered

June 6, 2024June 5, 2024 | Mairead

Hot chicken and garlic roll with coffee – yum

Thursday, after spending 4 nights at the small campsite near Malaga…we left the coast (that might have been a BIG mistake) and made our way to the small town of La Puebla de Cazallla. There’s a great free motorhome parking stop there with toilets, electricity, water but no shade… Instead there’s a tiny booth run by a very kind man originally from Benidorm.

He encourages us when we try to use our terrible Spanish and calls Denis the cowboy because of his sunhat. He tells us he likes the Irish. All along the pathway outside his booth are tables under shade umbrellas and he makes a great hot chicken roll! With garlic (I hear the bugs don’t like the smell of garlic…) and strong coffee and freezing cold ice cream. The necessities.

The temperature in the van is 37.9, Denis says there must be something wrong with the thermometer – it couldn’t be that high. I also think there’s something wrong with the thermometer – it couldn’t be that low.

One good thing about the heat I can appreciate – flowers and trees

They say opposites attract and here we are the optimist and the (pessimist) realist. His way of looking at the world could be right and maybe his way would make for a happier experience. Instead of raising my eyes to heaven when he shares one of his optimistic gems maybe it would make me feel better to imagine he is correct… Hmm.

In this small Spanish town I am in that uncomfortable hell of itchy bites and hot air. Today would be a fine day to think like an optimist but for some reason (my physical discomfort?) I cannot rise up out of this bad place. I walk in the shade for a little because walking helps but then I think about tomorrow and the next day and when will this heat end?

…and tomatoes in an allotment next to the parking

It seems like my thinking is actually the problem. I listened to a podcast about accepting the present moment and it dawns on me that my thinking is leading me to worrying, leading me to dark, dark places in my mind. Listening to those thoughts are bringing me down. I remind myself that I am here, just here and no matter what is forecast to happen tomorrow it cannot touch me, here.

Thinking is not my friend today.

Moving inland in yellow to La Puebla de Cazalla

Trouble in paradise

June 5, 2024June 4, 2024 | Mairead

Sunday, the morning after Granada, we got up early and headed for the coast, the heat was increasing and we were not equipped. We found a small campsite near Malaga with a glimpse of the sea. We were hopeful there would be a breeze and shade.

The restaurant just 10 minutes walk away

And there was both. The breeze was so good there were times I needed my cardigan! The shade was also great but it held a dark surprise. We booked in for one night but ended up staying for four. Again, if a place has what will provide a comfortable stay then it’s not a difficult decision to make to stay longer.

What provides a comfortable stay? A parking spot. Good mobile data for roaming connection. A small shop for lunch supplies and cold drinks. A hot water shower, although cold will do in a push. A toilet. A place to empty and fill grey water tanks and to empty van toilet. Shade. Electricity if the shade is too good to provide solar power. A restaurant or supermarket within walking distance for the times you either don’t want to cook or you have nothing in the fridge. (Depending on the weather walking distance can vary from a ten minutes in hot weather to thirty minutes in cool weather.)

When I write it all down it is a lot and no wonder that sometimes the places we stay don’t have everything but we stay anyway. Then the next day we sort everything out by driving via a supermarket or a camper services (where you can empty and fill the tanks and toilet but not park overnight) to the next destination. We can do without filling and emptying tanks and toilet for a few days and we usually have enough food to last a few days too. Denis can do without data at the weekends but needs it for work during the week. I cannot do without shade if the weather is hot – over 25 degrees. But it doesn’t have to be a lot. Just a sliver… and a breeze also, please.

So this campsite near Malaga had everything, including the strange bugs that silently bit me as I sat in the shade under a tree admiring a distant glimpse of sea. A rollercoaster of emotions and challenges…

The area was called Rincón de la Victoria

One more story from Granada

June 4, 2024June 9, 2024 | Mairead

This is a really beautiful city and with a little pre planning and arrival in the Goldilocks season – when it’s not too hot and not too cold – you could easily spend 5 days here exploring, walking in the shaded parks, drinking coffee, tasting tapas and visiting (inside) the Alhambra.

Remember when we were looking for the bus into the city and we were lucky to meet a couple of other campers, who gave us directions? We had noticed them at the parking site but we hadn’t noticed where they were from.

In case you are wondering how we would know where they were from there’s a thing that all motor-homers seem to do when they pass motorhomes in the parking. We take a furtive look at the registration plates. All vehicles, as you probably already know, in the EU will have their country identifier on their number plate beside the number. For example, Ireland is IRL. These days vehicles from the UK no longer have the identifier on their licence plates but they usually have a sticker saying GB or UK. Vehicles from Northern Ireland vary, some have IRL and some have UK. Vehicles from Switzerland have CH on their licence plate or on a sticker on their vehicle.

Country identifier for Ireland – sticker and license plate

As we made our way towards the bus stop as directed by the man in the parking we passed the woman from the couple, she was in a three-wheel wheelchair. Her partner must have gone back to the van as she was on her own on the path, we all said Ola and carried on. By the time they caught up with us we were on the far side of the road seeing no bus stop. The woman noticed us and explained the bus to the city was further on. Relief to hear that and at the same time definitely not loving walking in the heat. We were quite slow now as we followed behind them.

The woman was travelling on the road while her partner was walking on the path. I would never have cycled on that road, it was busy with cars and trucks and busses. But she was doing it and she looked powerfully in her element. I was already starting to forget that this walk was too much and this heat was too hot. Eventually we got to the bus. It turned out to be the terminus and the bus had to turn around and face back where it came from before we could get on. When it stopped the woman in the wheelchair was on the path beside the door and her partner got on to ask the driver to press the button to lower the floor for her wheelchair.

Graffiti lane on the way to the Alhambra

Unfortunately the bus driver couldn’t lower the floor where he was stopped because the footpath was too high so he moved forward. But now we all needed to squeeze past the bus shelter to get to the door. No problem for us… but the gap between edge of the bus shelter and the bus was too narrow for the wheelchair to get through. She needed to go around the back of the bus… but the wheelchair ramp was now blocked by the bus and
The only other ramp was way back at the previous junction. I have no idea how they kept so cheerful, I was feeling frustrated for them but that wasn’t useful. Eventually they took the front wheel off the wheelchair and maneuvered a way to get around the bus.

When the bus arrived into the city the woman made sure to catch my eye to let us know where we needed to get off. Not all adventures climb to the highest peaks or swim to the farthest shores. Some adventures start at your front door and take you just outside. Sometimes I need a reminder not to take myself too seriously. I got it.

The free bit of Alhambra

June 3, 2024June 2, 2024 | Mairead

Saturday, we left the small hilltop town and drove two hours to Granada. We’d read about a camper parking near a restaurant and a bus to the city. It was hot, hot, hot when we arrived at the parking. A quick lock up and we set off for the bus stop.

The guy in reception didn’t have very good English but I understood we had to walk to a nearby petrol station and then the bus stop would be across the road. Which wasn’t completely accurate. Across the road and twenty minutes walk would have been more accurate. We were lucky to meet a couple of other campers who gave us directions when we looked confused.

They then told us where to get off when we arrived in the middle of Granada. By now we were hungry and tired and needed food and a sit down. We picked the first cool (temperature not vibe) restaurant we passed. We ordered and sat in silence listening to the chatter all around.

The food really helped because when we were finished we had a sense we could do anything, including find our way up to the Alhambra (the old part of Granada) by following our noses. We were eventually successful but all energy reserves had been used up scaling the scenic route. Warning: Make sure you have the shortest, shadiest route uphill when the weather is 10 degrees higher than you are comfortable with.

Path less travelled, with views of Sierra Nevada in the distance, Granada

Eventually, we reached the top (where we saw the buses we could have taken… oh well never mind). We were confused not to be able to see the Alhambra but at least we saw the entrance. Seeing the entrance turned out to be the high point because in order to get inside the entrance you have to book tickets many months in advance… we had not booked tickets.

We spoke to a lovely local guide, asking if there were any tickets available into anything. There were a couple of buildings (including toilets) near a different entrance, free to enter. She directed us towards them via the gardens.

Alhambra (the part where no ticket is required)

It’s funny how grateful you can be for something you’d normally take for granted. Today we were so delighted and grateful for directions to a bus stop, cold drinks, food out of the sun and now we were absolutely ecstatic with gardens. Why? Because they were created to make you feel cool when the temperatures are hot. The city of Granada gets the highest summer temperatures in Europe (and I think it also gets the lowest winter temperatures).

Our temperatures had continued to rise all day and by now it was the hottest but we were fine. There was a forest of trees and stone benches and the best – channels of cold water running down both edges of the road. The Spanish really do know how to do cool.

Oh there was a wedding (with disco) late into Saturday night at the restaurant near the camper parking. Meaning, there was no dinner for the uninvited (us) so we utilized our first emergency dinner rations – a tin of red salmon and a pack of cream crackers – Irish tapas, anyone?