Blimey another month has whistled past - where on earth does the time fly? Still at least this time there are no frightening stories to re-tell, in fact - happy days - we went on holiday😎☀️😎to Spain.
To Competa in fact, in the hills behind Nerja which is half way between Málaga and Motril on the Costa del Sol.
The villa, Terraza de Oliva, was high in the hills above Competa with the most stunning views imaginable. Using the various terraces you could see through 360º with views to the Mediterranean sea in front and views over the mountains to the rear
I feel rather dizzy when I look back to the week in Spain, where did it go?
We collected Sue’s Auntie Brenda and Uncle David from Malaga Airport and during the week stay visited many places on the coast between Malaga and Motril in what proved to be mainly warm sunny weather. We visited the Alhambra and while in Granada detoured to the Sierra Nevada to look at the snow. We need not have bothered as a day or two later snow was falling on the mountains behind the villa, but were we downhearted?
Not a bit of it - the villa boasted a huge log burning stove and with plenty of logs provided we were warm and toasty. Brenda and Sue are wizards in the kitchen cooking up some super Spanish and Portuguese dishes (when in Rome and all that!!) all washed down with very drinkable (Portuguese) wine we bought at €0.90 per bottle - OK so we had to buy a 10 litre box to get it at that price but, ho hay, we are here a whole week and had a slightly dearer, 5 litre box in reserve, and, as the whole of Spain seems to have an offer on Larius Gin - 1.1/2 litres for not much over €12.00 and we managed to get 2 x 24 cases of Super Bock beer at €0.42 per 330ml bottle and of course several bottles of white and several bottles of ruby Port at around €3.50 per bottle so think we didn’t go thirsty.
A visit to The Alhambra should be on everyones bucket list. A UNESCO World Heritage site it actually incorporates several separate areas, one of which, the Alhambra Palace itself requires that you book, in advance, a day and time to visit, this is because only a limited number of visitors are allowed in the palace at a time. Unfortunately this is an area that is under going extensive restoration to some of the courtyard areas, this restoration was well underway during our last visit in the winter of 2011/12 so goodness knows how long it will take to complete. This should not however encourage you to delay your visit - it is still amazing.
After a fabulous week with D & B we were sad to have to take them back to Malaga Airport and wave them goodbye.
We hurried back to the caravan that had remained in Portugal, on the Algarve and within a week had flown back to the UK for another series of hospital tests. Basildon University Hospital again came up trumps with great service by attentive and dedicated staff and no waiting around, a credit to the NHS. Poor Dave and Brenda obviously thought they had done with us for a while, until we turned up on their doorstep requesting a bed for the week we would be back in UK.
At the start of our 25th week in Europe, this winter, and after eighteen weeks on the Algarve we have said a sad farewell to Frank and Rosemary and fellow travellers Ann and John and headed off on the long slow trot homeward - only 2500 km to go, but we have given ourselves ten weeks or so, no rush.