OldiesonTour

Friday 30th September

Up and away early before breakfast, but stopped for the usual “empty the facilities” whilst we have the chance!! Then out of a rather quiet Valladolid, probably too early for the locals.

Autovia all the way and apart for a couple of “aborted” stops for gas, it was a reasonable run arriving at our motorhome pitch around 1400hrs.

Lunch was had before we checked in and wandered into the historic part of the town.  We did have a shock when we paid for our two nights though; €59 (including IVA), but we are in a marina car park in the heart of everything.

From our parking spot we can see the ramparts surrounding the old town so when we set off we “marched” straight up a steep hill interspersed with steps.   At the top we wandered around the quaint narrow streets but being a Friday afternoon, rather chilly and rain was threatening, there weren’t many people about, but still enjoyable.  

A Coruna is a small peninsula dominated by the historic centre with much of the original ramparts still visible but the narrow strip of land leading up to it has been completely built on and merges into the old town.    We eventually came across the main square dominated by the town hall, but again not the bustling place one normally finds in Spain.   Today the most active thing going on was the erection of a stage, council depositing dustbins and crash barriers being erected; tomorrow must be a “big” day in A Coruna.   Apart from a gentle stroll to get our bearings, we were also looking for a nice restaurant for tomorrow, being our last leisurely day before setting sail to our new life back in England.  This was quite difficult as all the restaurants were closed so had to make do with a couple of beers instead; tomorrow is another day.

Returning, we couldn’t face walking up and over the big hill through the old town so elected to take the flat way, walking along the harbour and passing two marinas; though longer it was flat!!!

Back in Rosie we settled down to watch a film but half way through the ‘phone rang, it was a very excited Ashleigh, she had been to a graduate assessment centre for a very large international logistics company and out of a roomful of candidates, was offered a placement.   We also had a drink to celebrate.   Ashleigh suffered through her University years due to Covid, she didn’t get to enjoy the normal “life” associated with university and worse, her freshman’s year was spent at home!!!  Under these tough regulations she did well to achieve a law degree, well done Ashleigh, and good luck in your new career.

We resumed the film then hit the sack, tomorrow we’re going to look for the tomb of Sir John Moore and other things.

Saturday 1st October

No rush this morning, sightseeing and a nice lunch is our itinerary for today.

As I stated in an earlier post, I have wanted to come here for a number of yeas mainly due to my time at school.  I was always fond of history and had an interest in the time around the “Peninsular war” and also as a part of English, had to learn Charles Wolfe’s poem,  “The burial of Sir John Moore”; first verse:-  

Not a drum was heard, not a funeral note, 

As his corse to the rampart we hurried, 

not a soldier discharged his farewell shot, 

o’er the grave where our hero we buried 

I could go on with the next 7-verses, but I won’t!!! So great excitement to visit his tomb.

Leaving Rosie we headed out to the “Castelo de Santo Anton”, the 16th century fort constructed to protect the harbour and part of a network of forts to defend the city and the region of Galicia.    This fort was declared a Historic-Ancient Monument in 1949 and since 1994 has been considered a site of Cultural Interest.   Additionally since 1968 it houses the Archaeological and Historical Museum of A Coruna and though there are many interesting artefacts stretching back to Roman times, all descriptions are in Spanish and in their own local language, “Galician”, so short of using Google translate at every artefact which would take months!!! We had to make educated guesses, which we did and enjoyed it.  One interesting commentary was the Spanish “take” on the Armada 1588 and no doubt taught in schools so I did a Google translate and their “take” on the outcome if anyone is interested is at the end of todays blog.

Like many other similar monuments there are the usual medieval lookouts and old cannons, manicured gardens etc., but from the top one had a wonderful view of the bay and harbour; these medieval chaps knew a thing or two!!!   The only issue for us was getting to the top.   We had to climb up this very narrow spiral stone staircase and what with our collective bone issues it was a challenge to get up however, getting back down was worse.   It was a good job it was quiet, we didn’t want to meet others either going up or coming down!!!!

Having done the fort it was time to head up the hill to the “Xardin de of San Carlos”, for me one of the reasons to be here was to see the tomb of General Sir John Moore which is in this park.   Having puffed our way up the hill, we found the gates were locked and chained👹👹 but there was an arrow pointing round the corner, but opposite was Bar, so a rather late mid-morning coffee was had.  

Refreshed we set off, following the arrow around the corner, nothing!!!  Round another corner we did find another entrance but no, the gates were also locked; what’s going on??  So I didn’t get to see his tomb🥵🥵🥵🥵.     Maybe the locals heard me “scoff” at their story about the Armada and had their own back by preventing me entering the aforementioned park 🤔🤔🤔.     Something to do when we return!!

We then strolled through another part of the old town and arrived in the main square.  The good news; today it was vibrant with restaurants opening, so after studying several menus selected a very nice, classy one.   Being the first in I was a little anxious, it’s never nice to be the only diners, the mind wanders and you start wondering what’s wrong. We ordered a bottle and said we would order later, we just wanted to enjoy a drink first.  Our minds were soon put at rest as within twenty minutes the place was half full, so we ordered.   Now we had been recommended to eat fish in Corunna, being a fishing port the restaurants all serve good fresh fish and seafood.   Having made our choices of fishy starters and mains we were apologetically told everything we chose was un-available, they couldn’t get any from the fish market, so we had another go, but again, unavailable.   What they recommended was Merluza (hake) but that didn’t inspire us so we paid for our bottle of wine and took it with us as we left   They were very nice about it and couldn’t apologise enough about the lack of items on the menu.    Maybe they have a cash flow problem!!!

Out we went but decided to give up on the square and headed to the harbour front, bound to find somewhere there🤞🤞.    We walked the full length but nothing we fancied, after all we are in a fish port, we don’t want Italian, Asian, burgers etc., etc., we want fresh fish.  So kept wandering, this time away from the big square and the sea front and, looking up a narrow street “clocked” some tables so wandered up.  This was a small fish restaurant heaving with locals, nothing special to look at but we just had that feeling, so we sat down outside; inside was totally full.

Unlike the earlier restaurant with all the paraphernalia, white linen and smart waiting staff and chandeliers etc., this had paper table cloths on wobbly tables a scruffy looking waiter but the fresh fish in the window said it all.   We ordered another bottle of white, €7 cheaper and just as nice, and the good news everything on the menu was available!!!

We settled for a couple of moderate starters but then for the main course, we ordered a fish parrillada for two; Christine was a little reticent as her last 2-experiences with sharing a parrillada we’re not good, perhaps third time lucky.  

We hit the jackpot with the prawns in garlic, they weren’t the normal sized ones, no they were big ‘uns, and so fresh, yum yum.    Our parrillada soon followed and it looked good but once we got stuck-in, we both agreed it was excellent, very fresh and all the different fish cooked to perfection; yes third time lucky.   It just goes to show, it’s not about the surroundings, it’s about the food and yet again we’ve proved to ourselves that many restaurants in backstreets can be extremely good.

Concluding our meal a couple of hours later, we then headed back to Rosie.   We had an appointment with Channel 4; qualifying for the Singapore Grand Prix.

The other monument we wanted to visit was the “Tower of Hercules”, an ancient lighthouse constructed by the “Romans” about 2000-years ago, and today it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.   The sea around this area is known as “Cape Finistere”, named by the Romans and meaning “end of the earth” in Latin.  Unfortunately time prevented us carrying out this mission today but will try and get there tomorrow as we head out. .

We were a little surprised when we returned to Rosie;  we had parked in an fairly isolated spot but to our surprise others had parked around us, whatever next!!!   Having paid extortionate fees for this site, we both went and used their showers as well as their electric hook-up points.

……………………….

The Spanish view of the Armada

“SHIPWRECK OF THE “II INVENCIBLE ARMADA” 10-28-1596, FISTERRA (A CORUÑA) Invincible Armada is a term of English origin, referring to the Company of England of 1588 projected by the Spanish monarch Philip II to dethrone Elizabeth I of England during the Anglo-Spanish War of 1585-1604.  Felipe II ordered the formation of a fleet that he called “Great and Happy Armada” whose mission was to facilitate the transfer from Flanders to the Spanish Tercios, who would be in charge of invading the British island.  This invasion did not seek the annexation of the British Isles to the Spanish Empire but rather the expulsion of Elizabeth I from the English throne.  Directed by Alonso Pérez de Guzmán, 127 ships departed from Spain, of which 122 entered the English Channel.  The Spanish navy failed in its mission due to the bad state of the sea, the means and the cartography of the time.  However, the tradition, popularized by the Anglo-Saxon world, maintains that it was the English fleet that defeated the Spanish navy in combat, even annihilating it.  But today it is known that most of the shipwrecks were caused by the weather , and that three quarters of the ships ( 87 boats ) returned safely to Spanish ports .  In 1596, a total of 170 ships were preparing to set out for the British Isles with the intention of compensating for the failure suffered eight years earlier by the Spanish Armada.  The so – called Invincible Armada II , led by Martín Padilla , was off the coast of Fisterra in A Coruña , when on the night of October 28 to 29 , 1596 , a strong storm surprised them causing the sinking of around 30 boats and the disappearance of of approximately 1,700 people.  This episode , less known than that of the Invincible Armada , has gone down in history , however , as the largest shipwreck recorded on the entire coast of Galicia.”

Wednesday 28th September 

This morning was the first morning we hadn’t had to rush to do jobs etc, we were “free”, so enjoyed our breakfast with nothing on our minds!!!!!

One very useful advantage of staying in a “free” municipal motorhome site are the services it provides, toilet emptying facilities and fresh water etc., so naturally we took advantage of them.

Our planned drive today is around four hours, heading to Valladolid north north-west of Madrid, somewhere we haven’t visited before, so should be good.

Our uneventful 4-hour trip actually took nearer 6-hrs, firstly we stopped to make use of the  municipal site facilities, then soon after starting it was coffee time and this was followed by a Diesel stop.  Also Waze/Google Sat Nav are for cars and best will in the world, we can’t achieve their speed; Rosie does her best but unfortunately it’s not good enough 😢😢 and our arrival time gets further away.   Madrid also contributed to our delay; driving the west side of Madrid the road spends much of its time in tunnels and of course the navigation system can’t hook onto any Satellite, we then missed our turnoff and ended up in Madrid!!!   Fortunately the traffic was light and we finally caught up with the right road.

Leaving Madrid we headed up into the sierra de Guadarrama mountains passing the tomb of General Franco high up, and tunnelled by hand well into the mountain.  This was his mausoleum but a few years ago his remains were moved elsewhere.   This route was very picturesque and a good old fashioned mountain pass with hairpin bends etc.   as we were descending we stopped for lunch also adding to our journey time.

We eventually arrived at the municipal site in the heart of Valladolid and found a space.   It was a good job we weren’t much later as the place was already quite full but to our surprise we had to pay, 5 euros a night!!!!!

Dinner and a quiet evening followed, tomorrow we are off sight seeing.

Thursday 29th September

Woke up to a dull, and not so warm day but hey, never mind we’ll manage!!

Our first mission after breakfast is to find a branch of “Caixa Bank”, I have to complete the formalities, bloody Spanish bureaucracy;   All I want to do is close my current account, how hard can that be???    Tourist information were very helpful, they gave us directions to the nearest Caixa branch and a map with all the places of interest.

We found the bank with ease, and completed our mission, helped by a very nice man with no queuing!    I’m out of here now😀😀😀😀

After our mid morning coffee and yes you’ve guessed it, a Soberano accompanied by churros we set off and became a tourist and our first port of call, naturally the Cathedral.  What I didn’t know was that Valladolid was the capital of Spain, home to King Philip ll (this was the same king who married our (bloody) Mary 1) and his court and at that time this city didn’t have a cathedral so one was commissioned.  The plan was for the new building to be the largest in Europe as befitted a capital city.     Best laid plans and all that; sometime in the 1560’s King Philip moved his court to Madrid and that’s when it became the capital.   The upshot was the funds to build this enormous cathedral dried up and a much smaller one was built.   Having been inside it hasn’t got the usual splendid gold guilted “everything”, in fact by normal RC standards it’s rather sparse, and the construction was more Rudimentary than most we’ve seen, still it was very solid, it’s not going anywhere.   The plazas around were very decretive and sprouted many statutes etc.    At the rear of the cathedral was one of the university buildings, a magnificent building with an equally magnificent stairway.

The tourist information highlighted many different buildings to visit and they all looked very splendid but information was hard to come by, everything in Spanish, perhaps Valladolid isn’t on the British tourists routes!   Still it was a very nice place to wander around though being the end of September everywhere was quiet, even the main square, Plaza Mayor was empty, mind you the weather didn’t help!!!

Wandering around the historic part of the town we came across the statute of Miguel D Cervantes, the renowned early modern (1547 – 1616) Spanish writer best known for his novel “Don Quixote”

Eventually we headed into a restaurant just off the main square and settled on a nice bottle of “Vino Blanco” but time ran on and suddenly it was “menu del dia” time, so ordered another bottle and enjoyed, probably our last menu for some time😢😢.

Wandering back through the narrow streets and across the River Pisuerga the heavens opened so we sheltered in the entrance to a block of flats along with others until it eased.

Back in Rosie, wet and cold so we had showers but unfortunately the water wasn’t hot; most probably something we’re not doing right, after all this has been the first time we had a shower in her!!!

The rest of the evening was taken up with family chats, after all, everything happened so quickly at the end they all needed “up-dating”

Tomorrow we head to A Coruna, the most Northernly and Westerly point of Spain

End of August to 26th September

A lot has happened since the last published log.

Firstly after the debacle of the Germans sale falling apart, the house was immediately put back on the market and not long after we had an acceptable offer but knowing how precarious offers turning to sales can be, we kept it under the radar.    The potential buyers came whilst we were in U.K. as did the offer, so our paths never crossed; perhaps that was a good thing!!!!!

We took a positive step be taking Rosie back to U.K. full of unwanted winter clothes and other stuff, just in case we sold.   We had engaged the services of “Pinar Properties” , they not only sold this house to the Germans, they also sold our old house in Calle Acebo so we knew Kristian very well and he was very positive of a quick sale.

We had already started the box-packing due to our “first” sale but naturally as time went on we had broken into some of them, but on our return from U.K. it was all go, “again”!!  We  left Rosie at Hope Farm and flew back with a long list of “things to do”.   But nothing really got under way until we had the buyers 10% deposit in our bank account.    If they pulled out now, tough!   So it was all go.   We had to organise the removal company who could also store our goods until we found somewhere, sort out bank finance’s, mortgage etc., cancel contracts with electricity, security, phones etc., sell the car 🥵🥵 cancel our residency, in fact the list just goes on.   The hardest part was sorting the TOR1 procedure, this is most important to avoid paying VAT on everything you are taking to U.K.  Being out of the EU now, everything is treated as imported and subject to VAT irrespective of its country of origin.   Anyway at the eleventh hour, in fact the night before we loaded our chattels onto the lorry we got confirmation we had been successful in our application, so no VAT.

Whilst all this was happening our purchase fell through so back to the drawing board!!!

During this period we suddenly realised we would need “wheels”; our idea of flying back was never going to be a runner as we had things to do, and extras we needed after the furniture vehicle had gone, so a quick dash back to Blighty to collect her was called for.  It was relatively easy to get one flight ticket to Bristol, but the ferries back were another story.   Being early September there were many “snow-birds” heading south for the winter, in fact I was stuck in England for 5-days before there was a place on the ferry to Spain; naturally at premium prices to add salt into the womb.   Still mission accomplished and Rosie was returned.

When one is vacating and moving away there is always a rush to meet as many as possible to say good bye.   On Thursday, Helena and Roger invited us to dinner along with Monica and David which was very kind of them and they had also come up trumps if our “hour of need” had arisen with a bed, fortunately with the return of Rosie, this wasn’t needed.  Thank you for your kind offer Helena. 

On Friday as pre-arranged, two porters turned up to start moving boxes etc., and at the appointed hour the removal vehicle turned up.  We had also arranged for Femi to be there as an extra “pair” of hands.  At the outset we estimated 10 cu m, this soon became 20 cu m then 25 cu m but in the end we just booked 30 cu m and kept our fingers crossed.     Not only was estimating the volume an issue, customs paperwork was equally intense.   We had to item everything plus add the value and approximate weights; real hair pulling stuff!!!!!

Anyway by the end of play on Friday 23rd September the vehicle was loaded and we just squeezed into 30 cubic metres. “phew”. The removal crew were extremely impressed with Femi’s contribution, they couldn’t stop raving about him and each thanked him personally; how nice was that?   We were also impressed with the removal crew and they were a credit to their company, Ambrose Logistics International; so far, highly recommended.

It was very strange, the bar empty of all our memorabilia, no beds to sleep in, and by Saturday night, after Christine had worked her socks off, half the house, cleaned and shut down.    What a good decision to return Rosie to Spain as we had no choice but to sleep in her.   The car went Saturday, in the 61-yrs I’ve been driving, I have never not had a car🥵, so first job on our return, source a car.

Saturday evening was spent with Helena and Roger at Casa Arez, an excellent evening and what better way to have our “last supper” here in Spain with good friends and good food.

Sunday was also another gathering to “see the back of us”!!!!, Monica and David had a Sunday Brunch Party, very enjoyable and excellent scrambled eggs David 😁😁😁, thank you both.

Final sorting on Monday, clearing up the last bits and bobs when we realised we had to print some notes off for the new owners, printer packed!!!   Martin and Jackie next door came to the rescue but instead of popping in for a couple of minutes for the printing, we got stuck into the wine!!!   Several hours later we waddled home; last minute things will have to wait ‘till tomorrow😖😖😖😖

Tuesday 27th September 

Our original plan was to be out for haircuts with Paula at 0900hrs and have a “full English” to set us up for the day, then hit the road; well, the “best laid plans” and all that.   As we had been out partying , unexpectedly I add, we had to have a rethink but instead, Christine emerged from her “pit”, slightly “hung-over” I may add at 0600hrs to complete the final bits and bobs and last of all,  wash the kitchen floor.    When I emerged a couple of hours later, the work had been completed!!!!   I have to admit I was gob-smacked she hadn’t woken me to help, thank you very much Christine; still it was self inflicted!!!!    Still all packed, engine started, doors locked with keys inside waiting for buyers when it dawned on us, we were locked in with the electric gate closed, how do we get out????    This drinking game has to stop!!!   So round to Martin and Jackie to get their keys to unlock etc etc, but we still made our appointment for our hair cuts!!!

One mission we had to do after haircuts was to cancel the internet, mobile phone and land line contracts which we did with zero hassle other than they wanted the router back, so a return journey to home was necessary.  Go and see Jackie again to get keys. After handing the router, in its original box I hasten to add👍 we went to “Portobello” for our breakfast.  As we were leaving we got two calls; 1 from  Avatel wanting proof of who we were!, so back to there office to show passport and the second call was from Martin telling us we had left a hold-all outside the back door, so back home again!! Jackie thinks we don’t want to go!

At last we’re off and out of the village.   First stop to fill up with fuel followed by a quick visit to Mercadona, then onto Autocaravanas in Murcia to sort a minor gas issue we have.

Fuelling up no problem, Mercadona whisked in and out in no time and arrived in Murcia a little after midday.   Our issue was sorted immediately and this time we are off for real!!!!!

We only did a short stint today as there has been a tight lead up to this point so didn’t want to aggravate ourselves with long driving stints, so settled for Albacete as our destination, arriving a little after 1400hrs, in their municipal car park for overnight motorhomes.

Once parked we headed to the centre of town, just over a mile away.

Albacete is the 7th largest town in Spain, rather a modern town with a major university, a big aviation industry and an air base where they train NATO pilots from many of the NATO countries including the U.K. and the USA.  Though we didn’t see many planes going around, we could certainly hear them!!!!

The highlight of our stroll into the centre was the “Pasadena de Lodares” a historic and monumental commercial and residential gallery in the historic centre, well historic is interesting as it was designed by a Valencia’s Architect in 1925!!!!!   

Having arrived we decided there wasn’t much to see and of interest us so after some liquid refreshment headed back to Rosie but this time we walked through the “Parque Abelard Sanchez”; small but very pleasant to be in.  This park also houses the Albacete Museum.

Back at base we enjoyed a super meal and settled down to do nothing.    The only issue with staying on municipal sites is you are crammed in and unless you pull the blind’s across,  you are sitting in a goldfish bowl; still they are free!