Notes on the way to Granada..

The trip is becoming more and more interesting as we approach Granda. A few headlines…

Spain is BIG , very big even bigger by Bongo, as negotiating hills is not one of the strengths of the Bongo, so the going can be slow at times as we potter up motorway hills with lorries the size of Texas streaming past at speed caught in their slip streams.

The place is windy, very WINDY next time must bring my kite. Walking along the beach with its sun, sea & waves with wind driving the sea, salt, mist into every exposed bit of the body i.e. face and hand. Result sticky hands, sticky face , glasses fogged over over , cameras lens fogged over. But all v very refreshing indeed.

Spent a semi sleepless night as the wind tried to blow the Bongo over, was tempted to put the tent down as the folk opposite us took down their awning . But when I checked the chair and table outside hadn’t been blown away so the wind wasn’t that bad.

Great views and cloudy formations along the beach and noise of the sea, wave and wind a great aural back drop here at Mar Azul.

BBC access at last - the internet access so far has been to say the least rubbish, making it impossible to listen  to Radio 5 or 4 so I’ve missed my daily fix. It’s a delight to be back in touch and as I type I’m listening to the Five in the Eye Christmas Reviews - very witty even if I do say so myself!

Calp to Altea from free to 25€ /night

Moved 11K down the coast in search of hot water and electricity as well as little less full on & built up.

Had a great last dinner in the street - all the best of wild camping cuisine....

Thanks to Rough Guide found Altea with a huge camp site close to a pebble beach v similar to Sandgate! From the beach had a clear view across the bay to Calp with that distinguishing rocky out crop. 

Altea seems to be an idle bid way between Calp and Benidorm - the latter is a 1.5€ bus ride in the number 10 so I'm told. 

Bilboa & the Guggenheim

Decided we'd spend this Christmas in Spain and tick off some Bucket list Items The Prado in Madrid & The Alhambra in Granada.

The first surprise on the trip, apart from the very pleasant ferry trip across the Bay of Biscay, was the Guggenheim Museum in Bilboa. I was taken aback. The cynic in me had always considered this a bit of post modernist  hype summed up in works of Jeff Koon. 

I was wrong! The building and its art where pure WTF art. Everything about the building was extraordinary and seemed to work so well with Koon's works. 

Inside was just as WTF with huge spaces for some great art from Rothko, Warhol and many other international Abstract Expeessionists & Pop Artists including a few local artist. 

The Guggenheim in Bilboa with its Origins in The New York version proves to me Musuem brands such as  British Museum & The Louvre can export their brand whilst maintaining their integrity. 

....another pleasant surprise was the 

Making Africa exhibition a celebration of African Art & Design. 

A interesting contrast to the British Library's West Africa Word Symbol Song...

All in All very much enjoyed the visit to

Bilboa!

Some Surprises on the way...

A Piece of The Wall


You can buy a post card with a blister packed piece of the wall. Looked very shiny & very cheap - the piece of ‘The Wall’ looked like it could have come from my back yard totally unconvincing to my eye and imagination.

Tesco Clubcard

If I’d had my Tesco Clubcard I might have been eligible for points if I’d asked - I didn’t so I didn’t…nevertheless I like the possibility of collecting points in the Czech Republic.

Wild Camping in Germany

Wild camping’s illegal but over night parking is not.
Here’s us overnight parking in a forest on the way to Köln  A forest in between what sounded like two or three motorways

Into Europe with the Bongo

This is the first time on the trip - Karlstadt -  I’ve had the opportunity to sit, reflect & write, as we
travel West across Europe heading back home.

Moving East we were on a mission to reach some good old friends across Europe on specific days and times, unlike us they have work and other commitments to meet so early arrival or late departure wasn’t on the agenda.

Now almost two thirds the way into our first sortie into Europe, time to reflect. Surprised how easy it is driving on the right, the ferry, the traffic, the camping all very easy.

The weather has been really kind to us so far, as have all the drivers both car and lorry - haven’t been tooted once! Have to keep reminding myself to drive in gutter,on turning left  aim for the gutter, keep in the gutter then its no problem. I’m happy on the gutter.

Oh yes, I forgot the Sat Navs - Tom Tom & Google - they have been brilliant couldn’t have done it so painlessly without them. Even when they went mad resetting themselves while demanding that we ’turn around when possible’ we simply retraced our steps to where it went mad, once there invariably it recovered its sanity and took us on our way.

Loved shopping at Lidl especially loved & enjoyed the prices of the Wine and Beer - like being back home but paying 50% less. Oddly my favourite brand of German sausage I buy in the UK is not sold here.

Hirschau stop over on the road to Nuremberg

Campsites have been universally good, some even brilliant , particularly the German ones huge spralwing sites in great settings with heated pools and man made lakes with sandy beaches.
Some had restaurants and all had WiFi (of varying quality - some bad, mostly very bad )

As usual met some great people including Karl Debrick en route, on his own, on a push bike to the Munich Beer Festival - outstanding bloke and character true Brit!

                           

Talking on bikes saw some very odd two/three wheeled transport like things on the journey:

Europe's Highlights so far....

After visiting our friends the highlights , for me , so far have been:

Magdeburg where I visited the 13th Century statue St Maurice in his eponymous Cathedral,  I've written and spoken  about him and this statue , I plan to write more about my visit.

Nuremberg visiting Albrecht Durer House, Nürnberg, Germany to have some sense of how the great man lived. Delighted to spot his coat of arms as a stained glass window , plan to write about this image, only taken me almost five years since I first saw his coat arms.

Zeppelin Fields in Nuremberg where Hitler and his National Socialists held rallies for 200,000 in an arena designed by Hitler’s architect Albert Speer - extraordinary, awesome space - theatrical state management on a monumental scale, absolutely monumental. 

Bit of BongoLand in Abbey Wood

Had lunch in the Sun with the Swans & Birds in the Bongo by Thamesmead  Lake, very pleasant.