17th June 2010, Mendigorria and on to Bilbao

So I went to check out and was worried that the discount I was hoping for would be honoured. In the ACSI book some sites give you a free night for every seven and two free if you stay two weeks. But it could be construed that that was the maximum, I believed otherwise, i.e. we had been here over five weeks so I took that to be five free nights worth €75, so worth fighting for.

Turns up a reception and as I go to get some money out of the ATM the older Spanish lady owner locks up and buggers off!



So back and three hours later tries again, This time it's the nice Spanish lady who speaks a little English. I give her our receipt with the date we first arrived 38 days ago and she looks at the calender on the wall and works out that we owe €90 minus the €6 deposit for the gate key I was returning. I had worked it out to be €489 with the maximum discount so she had obviously thought that we had arrived on the 2nd of June, instead of 2nd of May. Being the honest stupid tosser that I am, I pointed this out to her showing my working out and my total, she was more than pleased and accepted my number but also made me count out the money in Spanish, correcting me each time I got it wrong and then I was out of there. So worked out to about just over £12 a night including electric and wi-fi, not really that bad I guess.



It's funny, but we have been here over five weeks and still managed not to play tennis once and didn't visit a few places we were meaning to, where does the time go?



I had bought a couple of bags of frozen mini pies from Euroski and now was the time to cook them and the two pizzas for the journey and to take on the ferry.

“Why have you got all those pies, you'll end up throwing them away?”



SWMBO's history with pies, on a diet or not, is shrouded in the mystery of time and I have learnt over the years that when we travel, pies, of any kind but preferably steak and kidney, should be in easy reach. There is only twenty of them but I will be more than a little surprised in any of them make the ferry, hence the pizzas. We are also taking a very large bottle of water, they charge £1.50 for a 100 cl bottle, that's £11.50 a litre! Ten times more expensive than diesel! But I will have the full Monty English breakfast on Friday morning which will keep me going until we arrive home.



We were thinking of a short last walk up to Mendigorria where I could stock up on some extra beer for the trip but it's now out of the question, so it's reading and baking is what we are doing.

There's probably no sadder site than a camp site in the rain, everybody sitting in their caravans looking out of steadily increasing condensation on their windows drinking tea and playing cards.

Speaking of which SWMBO has beat the hell out of me in dominoes for the last two nights running, it's going to be pay back time after dinner. She's sitting there in mega reading mode and every time I make a noise, like typing loudly, she tells me to shut up.



Watching “As good as it gets” with Jack Nicholson, no he's not here, don't start that again, probably for the sixth time.



So it's 7:30 pm and I'm baking the pies and pizzas and it's peeing down, I must admit I feel sorry for all the extra new kids and a Dutch rally of about 20 caravans turning up on a day like this, stuck inside staring at the rain.



Thursday 17th June and we are on our way.



Got out OK and the 120 mile journey was a breeze, stopping once, just before Bilbao to fill up with cheap Spanish diesel, then a 2 hour wait and on to the ferry. Decent sized en suite inboard cabin and the ferry was about a third full.



For the first time we managed to see some dolphins! They look quite small viewed high up from the ferry as they swam around the ship's bows, SWMBO was very impressed. Had a good evening meal and watch Holmes & Watson in the movie theatre, which was very good. Next day we watched Clash of the Titans, which was crap, IMHO.



Last off, again, the ferry and made a mistake of using the A29 to get home as I thought it was more dual carriageway than it actually was, some scary moments!



Arrived at home number two and cleaned MS and it is now in it's storage site at Buxted.



Next stop; blog 4.

Monday 14th June 2010, El Molino and we are Jonny no mates again!

At the crack of 7am Derek & Jeanne were finishing packing and were on their way at half past. I still have my gate opener so I cycled to it and let them out, only to see Tricia running behind and waving frantically, the L's had left their roof vent open, obviously not on their 55 point “leaving camp site” check list, like we have.

Must admit packing away a large caravan awning you need either one, a good memory of how to do it (which the L's don't) or two, a degree in origami. When they left with the caravan stuffed full of bits of awnings and cycles, they looked like a set of gypsies buggering off after vandalising a camp site. The ferry sails at 1:30pm and the drive is 120 miles, so worst case 3 hours as it's all motorway, so Derek & Jeanne will be there about 10:30 am, therefore a 3 hour wait. Derek does like to be on time.

Last night the womenfolk went for a walk and I, with Derek's help, decided I should try a practice hitch up as the ground was very uneven and I was worried that the MS had sunk into the grass and it would be too low for the Navara hitch. Well it wasn't too low but the uneven ground was a bastid, thank God I tried it because it took an age and now it's done I'm leaving it like that and have reversed the MS about 6 meters further back on the site, making the exit easier.

One thing, it may stop is the amount of people who stop and stare at the MS, don't see the hitch on the Navara because the back cover is down and wonder how the whole thing works. Well now they can see it, then again it could get worse and attract them even more.

Problem is that we are now on a slight slope and I'm sliding down the bed at night again and the water only heats up on one side of the kettle.

Last night Tricia did chicken in a pepper and tomato sauce with veggies for all of us and after 4 bottles of wine Jeanne finally won at Rummikub, don't ask, it's too complicated to explain but it is a very close second to Battle Ludo when it comes to causing temper tantrums and physical harm.

It's now 8:30 am, overcast and cool, going to be a long day as we now do not have the use of the car, hope it doesn't rain on our bike ride.

Last night the Spanish all went in a convoy and today they have been replaced with about a million kids, normal plan is they stay for a night and then go, so far they haven't and are still here, they are staying in droves.

Went for a walk with the video camera across the bridge to the other side of the river Arga and took some nice shots of the scenery around Mendigorria, it's really quite pretty but although the sun is still shinning and it's OK but the bloody wind is still very strong.

We leave on Thursday morning and arrive back at number two home in Forest Row about 9'ish on Friday night. SWMBO is hoping that crossing the Bay of Biscay will be smooth. We must have used that ferry about 12 times over the last 12 years, either via motorbike or as now the MS. Every time it has been smooth, so the odds, and it will be the last as P&O are scrapping it in September, are very much against her this time.

Trouble is we leave in 3 days but have got about 5 days worth of food in the fridge and freezer, mainly because for some reason we never had much salad or fish while the L's were here. So SWMBO intents to be imaginative when it comes to preparing our meals. Imagine my surprise when I was presented with such delicacies as fish fingers and baby eels, cabbage and grated cheese, chicken omelette (?) and braised apple in a potato sauce. Oh and two 4 cheeses pizzas which I'm sure cannot come to any harm. Lurking in the fridge is half a beefburger, leftover chilli, three broad beans, seafood salad cream and one asparagus, I dread what she will do with that lot.
The other day she told me we were getting chicken and prawn salad for lunch, both from our nearly empty freezer,which is OK by me.
“These prawns are quite tender and the chicken is a bit tough, aren't they Pet, how long did you cook them for?”
“Cook them?”

Then she asked me how much the house was worth and how much we had in savings and shares.

Later I asked her what we were having for dinner that night, “Chicken and prawn stir fry”. I think she is going to try again.

SWMBO tried to talk me into a walk into La Reina, which is about 12 round trip, why? To get two tomatoes for a “creative” salad this afternoon. Er, no, walked into Mendigorria instead and ended up with bananas, cucumber, green beans and some bread as well. It's going to be chicken and prawn stir fry with baked potato.

Tomorrow, Wednesday, our penultimate day is forecast to be very windy with rain all day, so a good day to tidy everything away and go through our 55 point leaving check list.

Just been down to reception to go on line and were warned that tomorrow, there is going to be a storm with an estimated 2.5” of rain falling, that's a lot of water and it will be still raining when we leave, ho hum.

Then that will be the end of the blog until we wind our weary way back to southern Spain sometime in early 2011 or maybe Greece? This is because Heather is 30 this year and Tricia's aunt Joyce is 80, both around December time, so the plan is to be in the UK until the end of the year. Also with Heather moving into her new flat I guess I will be putting up a few shelves and whatever else she and SWMBO tells me to. May pop to Scotland in September though, who knows.


When we get back we will park it along side our drive, which obviously gets the neighbours backs up while we clean it inside and out, including back flushing all the tanks, then after 3 days put the Mothership to bed in the storage place till the next time.

Wednesday 9th June 2010, El Molino and it's raining.

Looks like the plan of Tricia and Heather shopping in Pamplona may be put on hold. The rain is intermittent but looks like it is here for the day, being cloudy, dull and cool, does not help either. Poor Heather, all this way and the weather is better back in the UK, hay ho, may freshen up later.

Should really have guessed that it might be not good today because yesterday evening we got soaked. Although Heather had been here a few days she had not managed to have a look round Mendigorria. So about 5'ish and looking a bit cloudy up there, we decided to wander up, did the usual thing and walked up to the church, round the top paths and then back. Jeanne had asked me to get some “cheap” wine to marinade the steaks for the BBQ that evening. Got to the top and were mobbed by loads of Swifts, where they came from I don't know. Then Tricia suggested that as the café was open why not have a drink, I looked at the now, quite darkened sky and said that we should get back asap, I was outvoted. Whata mistaka to maka!

They had lemonade and I had a 7.2% beer. Picked up the cheapest and most expensive wine the store at the top possessed, €1 and €2, respectively and sure enough on the way back the heavens opened.

Heather ran ahead and the two of us, now wet through, just walked, it wasn't cold rain, Tricia dashed under shelter to join Heather in reception with instructions for me to get the car and come back for them. By the time I had scraped off my wet cloths it had brightened up and they were back.



Still raining Tuesday evening for the BBQ, but we improvised.



Sat around all morning until it was decided that a walk was required as long as the rain held off.



We all went for a walk around Mendigorria and through the local inhabitant's allotments, full of things we did not know and could only guess at, they were well tended though, and quite a lot had guard dogs. About 4 miles with a lot of ups and downs so good exercise.



Got back and sat around again, reading.



As this was getting a little boring Heather suggested we watch a video, Derek was stuck in a book so the rest of us went for it. “City of God” was chosen, which is based on a true story about the gangs in Rio De Janeiro's slums, hell's teeth it was violent! After about a hour Jeanne had had enough and went to prepare dinner for the evening. Which was chicken curry and very nice too.



Thursday 10th June 2010.



7:30 am and it looks like shopping in Pamplona may be on for the girls, weather windy but sunny, just got to get them out of bed, I'll leave it to a little later I think. SSS for me then perhaps lure them out with bacon sandwiches? 9Am and although the bacon was a no go situation because the bread was frozen, chopped apples, oranges and peaches, topped with some Greek yoghurt and honey, did the trick.

So I'm going to drop them somewhere in Pamplona and then me and Derek are going to exercise our drool glands by visiting Lidl (may God bless and keep it), Aldi, Bricomart and the local wineries to pick the odd 15 litre, €17 wine boxes.



Dropped them at the main bus depot and them did my thing and eventually got back to MS and read a book for an hour or so. Just getting ready to pick them up from the same place at the pre-arranged time of 3 o'clock. Heather rings and asks if I can make it 4 o'clock, no problemo says me. So reads a bit more, tries my super hot chilli soup again, throws it in the bin and then gets ready again. As the bus depot is on a busy dual carriageway and not really there for parking I decided to get there a couple of minutes after 4 so they will be there and pick them up straight away and off!

Got there and wait, parked in disabled parking and got out and limped around a bit. Could not find Heathers mobile because by now I figured out that they were on Heather's “English” time. Finally found her number at 4:20pm and gave her a ring, they were just about to go into the “Cote de Inglese” magic store when they spotted the Navarra, thank God because that is the most expensive store in Spain. Admittedly I did not expect to actually see any change from the €90 I had given her but if she had gone in there, no chance. Apparently they had a good time, a nice lunch and got back before the bad weather set in and were now carrying shopping bags.



As it was Heather's “last night”, we had all decided that we would try the site restaurant but my two ladies were still quite replete from their lunch so just the L's went, €16 a head inc. wine and they thought it OK. We stayed in and watched “The Departed” which starred Jack Nicholson, Matt Damon and Leonardo DeCaprio, a pretty good film in which basically everyone gets killed in the end, there, spoilt it for anyone else who have not seen it yet.

Because the weather is so bad here and actually better back in the UK, Derek has been talking about going back on Monday instead of Thursday and I think he has a point as it only costs £10 to change the ticket.



Friday 11th June and Heather goes back, if the weather is good we may stop on the way for a coffee, if not I guess it's straight there. We did stop at Irun which lies on the border, a quick coffee and tapas and then we dropped her off with 1 hour to go until flight time.



Drove in and out of Biarritz, which was OK. Decided to give the old N 121A a miss mainly because I missed the turn and more probably that the GPS and SWMBO had been conspiring together as she had been banging on about giving San Sebastian a visit. So not long later “San Sebastian 10 Kms” and SWMBO suggested that as we were so close we might as well give it a whirl. Now we've passed through the city twice before on the way through France and to home, both times it rained, guess what, today was no exception although not really a downpour. The place was very impressive and although we couldn't get parked, shocker, we gave it a good drive through.



As the GPS is set to no tolls roads when we are not towing, on the way back it whipped us off the A15 and on the Na 7010 at Irutxun and then along a rather large tributary of the river Arga, which leads eventually to Pamplona. It was fantastic, the views were marvellous and we stopped a number of times along the way to take pictures, about 40 of them!



Got back to and Derek & Jeanne had re-booked to go back on Monday 14th because the weather forecast is not good and they may as well be rained on in Cambridgeshire rather than here, with the additional cost of £25 to the Caravan Club.



Saturday 12th June



Rained last night and still raining today, light drizzle really but no sun just cloud.

So for something to do we dropped the girls at Tafalla, a smallish town about 10 miles away for a shopping day out, the boys were off to the nearest DIY store for a good look around. It's just all too expensive compared with the UK, will just wait until we get back for the few things I was looking for. SWMBO bought a €1 grater at a bizarre, or was it a lesser?



Back to camp and I'm supposed to make my cook-house chilli but without as much chilli as last time as I ended up eating it all, it was rather good and hot.

Tonight may watch England play USA in the first world cup qualifying rounds, if we get beaten by them we may as well go home.

It's 4:30 pm and the sun is vainly trying to claw a small hole through the clouds, as SWMBO has returned with a fresh batch of washing to dry that will definitely put the kibosh on any chance of the weather improving. Maybe if we all lay under a layer of chilli we would warm up?

Sunday 13th June

Well we drew 1 all with our goalkeeper Green letting an easy one slip through his fingers.

Today mainly sunny with clouds and Derek & Jeanne are getting packed ready for a early start which means we have to get up as well to feed them tea and toast.
 

Sunday 6th June 2010, El Molino 11 days and counting.

Last night an electrical storm.

We were sitting out roasting in the evening sun with the temperature still in the high twenties when some dark clouds began appearing and the wind started up. “No problems”, said Derek, “it's going to miss us.” How wrong can one person be? He was probably basing this prediction on the weather forecast earlier in the day, which stated no rain and calm. Trouble is, round here in the mountains you get micro climate effects and the weather forecast tends to be more general. SWMBO had mentioned that she thought a storm was brewing which brought on Derek's remark, and she went on to say that animals, especially dogs and more especially our late Max, a German Shepard of large proportions, knew when really bad weather was due. Makes you think what sort of breed she is?



The girls had been waiting in anticipation for the final of Britain's got Talent on Saturday night, starting about 9'ish over here, Jeanne had been following it all week.



So with little Spanish people running around all day, playing football amongst our pitches, Derek's TV dish must have been knocked out of kilter, because when the time came, “no signal” appeared and then the storm started, both of them, one meteorological the other human. “Get it back on!” was suggested by the women folk. As it was coming down in stair rods with lightning flashing all round, neither of us really wanted to stand in an open wet field trying to manoeuvre a large metal object by tiny increments, also we didn't give a monkeys about the program anyway.



Eventually the rain slowed to downpour and with a little skill and boatloads of luck we managed to line it up again, they were happy, bless, and settled down with the help of a bottle of Navara's best and lots of chocolate.



Now some of these shows like “X Factor” do produce people like Paul Potts, Leona Lewis et al but this show basically had one rule, no one over 15 years old can enter. There was a group of lads who did a miniature copy of Take That, but I would rather have the real thing or wait a little while until one of the lad's balls dropped and we got some kind of baritone in there. Another was a 14 year old lad from Croydon who played the drums, very well I give you but you can hardly make a meaningful tune from them, or is it just me? Apparently he had to practice a lot, sometimes he said, until the early hours, I would like to bet that the only people who really appreciated him being there, were his neighbours.



Derek, with the help of a bottle of something, stuck his nose in his favourite book, outside, and slowly settled lower and lower in his chair until all that was left was the grey hair of his head, a page marker and a empty glass.



I watched another “Life in the Undergrowth” by David Attenborough all about ants and termites and their mini civilisations. Then later, with a glass of Rioja, I stood transfixed under the awning, watching the rain die away and the lightening flash against dark satanic clouds, globe and fork lightening silhouetting the Gothic bell tower of Mendigorria on the hill, and later still, the stars coming out in an iniquitous sky. The mountain's perfect reflection in the nearby river Arga, as it flowed royally by, so I could not see where the earth ended or heaven began.

All those moments, now lost in time, like tears in rain.



Apparently a set pre pubescent gymnasts from Worthing,won Britain's Got Talent.



Got up at 7'ish and the weather has calmed down and it's a good day for travelling, which is just as well because today we get Heather from the airport. May stop for a coffee at somewhere along the way and take our time. Stop press, storm is back so no coffee stop I think.



It's 8:00 am and time for SWMBO's wake up call, “I said 8:30 am, nitwit, leave me alone!”. “Make that 9 o'clock!”



9 am, “Do you want a bacon sandwich, 'cos I'm making one?” “No, I'm trying to be a good girl and I'm back on my diet.” Now in a straight battle between a Spanish bacon sandwich/baguette and a bowl of bird droppings in warm water, guess what will win. At the smell of bacon frying she's out of bed and standing next to me. “Where's my bacon sandwich?” Luckily, actually not, it was a foregone conclusion, I had made enough for two.



Last evening a group of young Spanish guys were loitering around the MS obviously intrigued about how it all worked. So having nothing to do I showed them the hitch on the Navara and they quickly understood and then had a quick tour around the MS. They asked all sorts of questions, mpg, weights, costs etc. and were quite impressed with the layout and facilities of the MS, one of the lads upon leaving said to me “I hate you.” The Spanish have a sense of humour after all.



12 noon and off to get Heather.



On the way through called in at Saint Jean De Luc, a small French fishing village just over the border and who do we meet? Derek and Jeanne, who had decided, just after we left, to have a drive out somewhere, can't get away from the buggers.



Arrived at Barritz airport just as RyanAir A 372 was landing and Heather was out by the time we had parked. Nice easy drive back and now it's 7pm Monday evening and she's had a relaxing time so far. Heather, Derek and and I decided to have a lazy day and Jeanne and Tricia, AKA SWMBO, went for a “long” walk, took more pictures of nettles and got back after 3 hours, knackered and just as I was taking the pies out of the oven.



Talked to brother Alan about lending me the deposit money, short term, as I can't get at mine as quickly as Heather needs it. Now normally when we want favours we argue furiously, the more trivial the favour the harder the argument, that's what brothers do. When it's serious, it's a different matter. “Al, I need X £ thousands for Heather's deposit.” “When?” “ASAP”. “What's the a/c number?” and 3 days later it's done. That's what real family are like.



SWMBO announced that the black tank was full, it lasts about 3 weeks depending how often it's used and more importantly, what for, fellow campers will know what I mean. Now the chemical toilets here are not a hole in the ground that you get at some campsites but are just normal things with a stout grill on them. So you have to lift the wastehog to it's level and keeping the top cap on for a slight vacuum and slowly pour out the bottom of the wastehog, slowly opening the top cap to increase flow. (all this sounds rather familiar) What is rather important is not to be over confident and over fill the wastehog because then it will be too heavy to lift to the required height. If two people were involved no problem but the idea of Tricia helping is a non starter, she's doesn't mind the filling process but isn't remotely interested in the emptying part. What this means is about seven trips up and down to the toilet block and if I empty the grey tank, even more. Then usually another shower and change of wardrobe afterwards. I tried using marigold gloves once but the whole thing slipped out of my grasp with disastrous results.



The weather forecast for today was cloudy and 22°C, it's been sunny all day and the thermometer is reading 35°C and it's 7:20 pm. Tomorrow it's supposed to rain, hah!



Tuesday 8th June 2010 El Molino.



Well it's 7:30 am and it could, very well, be a cloudy day, as it certainly is now.

Nice meal last night of beef bourginon, prepared by Jeanne and lots of vegetables prepared by Tricia, when we were all washed up it was 10:30 pm and so time for bed for Heather and Mum. Tricia particularly was dead on her feet after the 8 mile walk in the hot afternoon sun, I'm glad I decided not to go.

By the way I have been turfed out to the rock and roll bed which is actually quite comfortable.

Watched “Life of Mammals” on the laptop with my earphones on before turning in.

Thursday 3rd June 2010, El Molino and things are kinda OK.

First the news, Heather has been credit approved and is now a house owner, her new apartment in Crawley has gone through and it is to be completed end August so all we have to do is “help out” a bit with the deposit. SWMBO and her can't wait to get together when she arrives here on Sunday to talk about how to furnish it.



When SWMBO and I first got here we went looking for the local Carrefore because there are certain things we use you can only get there, but to no avail because when we turned up at the place the GPS said it was, it wasn't. There was a Carrefore sign but only a garage door entrance and nothing else. Derek and I decided to give it another go because if it was shut or had moved, why were blokes putting up new bill boards around the A12 with new products Carrefore were selling? Although I do not think a 50” plasma will actually fit in the MS if we do find it.



So followed the GPS again and guess what? Yep exactly the same place and result, as we drove away however, by a different route, there it was and it was massive! Reason we had missed it the first time was that the garage entrance me and SWMBO had seen turns out to be a pedestrian entrance and also the usual Carrefore sign was more or less at ground level and not on the roof as normal, also the building itself was very grey and not the usual white. So guess where SWMBO and the present Mrs Leadbetter want to go today.​



Last week, that is a week ago today, because Jeanne walks into Mendigorria every day for exercise, she found out that there was a local market there. So SWMBO who normally will sleep like the dead was up like a shot this morning as a visit to the Thursday market AND Carrefore is just about as good as it gets for her.



At the time of writing I'm am trying to concentrate but it is very hard because of the noise from Jeanne's bloody manual cherry de-stoner (see pic) going ninety to the dozen outside the MS, she doesn't half like cherries does Jeanne. I washed it up the other day and the bloody thing is dangerous, six or eight steel pins, I can't remember but there are lots of them, are formed into some kind of device that reminds me of a beaver trap, you should have to hold some kind of license for these things.



I don't know if it is us, but all the loony campers park next to us, loony in the manner of their transport and sleeping arrangements that is. This one is a Land Rover (SWB) with an actual tent on the top, Derek made the case that they use them in Africa, on Safari. I'm sorry but as the tent is only 1.85 m from the ground and is a fabric TENT and not a steel covered hut, lions et al can easily lean against the bloody thing and grab a nice thigh or torso, no thanks.



Jeanne likes cooking which is good because I like eating, she did a Lamb Tagine, a north African dish, the other day and it was superb!



Well the good news is the roof bike racks I put on the other day have been tested and actually work. They are both extendible V shaped steel plates that bolt to the roof rack and an arm, pivoted near the font of them, is attached via a clamp to the diagonal frame member of the bike. Now if you understood and can picture that correctly, you should get out your Haynes car manuals and mechano set because you are wasted reading this.

The only problem is getting the bikes up there!



The roof of the Navara stands at nearly 2 m, over 6 foot in old money, so I have to climb onto the metal covered pick up bed and a helper i.e. SWMBO lifts each bike up to me and I then manoeuvre them into place and lock into position whist trying not to chip the car's paint with peddles etc. Of course this is rather difficult before the bike ride, after the bike ride nearly bloody impossible as your legs muscles are cramping all the time and the paint work is scalding to the touch, still she's happy. So now when we see a bike ride that is simply too far to ride to, we drive to it.



Which we did by driving to Ezcaba, just north of Pamplona where we camped last year and doing the 12 mile river cycle ride to Pamplona and back. Derek & Jeanne enjoyed it, we had a picnic half way and it was flat because it followed the river Ulzama into Pamplona. Derek particularly enjoyed it, as at a number of points on it's twisting path glimpses of the Lidl (May God bless and keep it) at Burlada could be seen between the trees, little things please you know.



On the way back a call into Carrefore was required so Derek and I set our GPS's and promptly drove off in different directions arriving more or less at the same time, but by different routes. However Derek drove straight into the underground car park with SWMBO “asking” why we had not followed them in, I pointed to and through, our glass sun roof. So we had to circle a while until we found a space because she was determined that Jeanne wasn't going to have all the fun. I actually forgot to buy beer on a trip to a supermarket, a first, I must be losing my grip.



Friday 4 June 2010 El Molino and days are going fast.



We will be back in England in less than two weeks!



Plan today is to cook my special chilli vegetable soup but as my cook house chilli didn't go down, if at all, well, I may have it all to myself. The girls tried adding yoghurt and cream to cool it down a bit but it was still a bit of a stinger, although I just ate it as it was but I must admit that the next morning I became alone in the toilet block quite quickly. So I'm cooking and the other three have gone on a walk, although I think Derek misunderstood and thought Jeanne had suggested “a long talk”, so he got suckered. I better put the beer in the fridge now.

When they got back all complained of the horse's tails, like little darts, that get stuck in your clothing, especially your socks, Derek didn't like them much.


Back to yesterday. After a bed sheet washing day it was decided to visit some of the wine factories or “Bodegas” in the Basque countryside, some can be visited and some are even hotels, as it turned out we saw a lot of them but never actually visited any. This meant, or rather turned out to be, a 170 odd mile drive via Logrono, Laguardia and Penacerrada, the last two being villages and Logrono a fairly large town. For Caravan Club members this was via A12, N 124 outward and N 232 inward.



The Navara was being used as a magic washing line so Derek's Land Rover Discovery was the chosen vehicle. A/C consisted of opening the windows and as reported temperatures of 36°C, we needed to open them as far as possible. Derek's Mio GPS has maps on it that Napoleon used during his Peninsular campaign so we stopped quite at lot to look at equally old hand maps that bore no relation to the road numbers we were coming to.
As SWMBO and I both had cameras we took a lot of pictures, she twice as many as me. Some of the views along the route were spectacular and I can only include a few as uploading pictures from the “Free” El Molino site, sitting in reception can be quite arduous. It was a good day out thoughbut and I could not understand, as only a passenger, why I was so knackered when we got back.

Speaking of which being Friday, when we did get back around 7'ish the Spanish had arrived, shocker!

It had started out as a “car walk”, that is drive to a certain spot then a circular walk of about two hours. After visiting the various places the walk was put on a back burner and we never found the start point anyway. Although I have a sneaking suspicion that that was Derek's plan from the beginning as he and exercise don't really mix well, he will do it but usually only at gun point or the lure of a bacon sandwich at the end of it.


This afternoon will be a big shop as second born, Heather arrives tomorrow and all the talk is of what food she will eat, if I know Heather at all it will be anything so long as there is tomato sauce in easy reach. So it's the 75 mile, or so, drive up the Biarritz airport to pick her up and we might go the pretty way via Saint Jean de Luz. The car is beginning to know the way without me.

Just got back from the big shop and in Pamplona it was 36°C and not much cooler here at El Molino and guess what, SWMBO has to do a load of ironing, serves her right for doing so much washing in the first place, say so in the scriptures.
 
 

Friday 28th May 2010, El Molino, is it a holiday?

As we plan to spend ten months of each year “not at home” and although we cannot claim to be “full timers”, we do spend most of our time in Europe. OK, at the moment it's mainly Spain but we are getting there and beginning to understand the basic concepts of what we are trying to do. So Spain for the winter months it's probably going to be for the foreseeable future. Italy, Germany et al will be planned in the fullness of time.



Which reminds me; first born Adam as a Technical Modifier on the Babe station, don't ask, has been transferred to the Psychic channel, “I didn't see that one coming!” he was heard to say.



Anyway, so when the L's arrived, it was the start of their 3 week “holiday”. Now both are retired but live mostly at home so it probably is a holiday for them, but it's a way of life with us. No problem there but, and there is always a “but”, starting to drink earlier in the day than normal, eating prodigious amounts of, very well cooked I must say, food, is knocking me and SWMBO's diets to pieces. I think we can put up with it though.



The local staff have been preparing the bunk houses, close to us on the site. Re-painting the steel bunks, adding new mattresses where needed and giving the whole place a good clean and paint. I thought it was for the up and coming San Fermin, bull run, in 6 weeks time time, oh no. Yesterday, about a gazillion kids, between 5 and 10, turned up and moved in. Of course they all can speak Spanish better than me already, actually being Spanish probably helps of course.



So about 7am this morning they started “making noises”, yelling that is. As we are glass double glazed and well insulated I did not hear them until I opened the screen door, not so fortunate are the L's as they are between us and the kids and also have plastic windows on their caravan. I wait with great anticipation to their comments later in the morning and if these little people are around for a week or so, even more so.



Derek returned from the shower block the other morning muttering about how cold the water was and that he hadn't even washed his hair, what little there is of it. What he did not, as not a seasoned camper as I, realise, is that non adjustable showers do vary individually and so I pointed him to shower #12, my shower, hair washed, job done.



Derek began his usual long drawn out process of tuning in the telly/satellite. As anyone who camps knows, the incessant squealing of these tuning devices can just drive you crazy, especially when it goes on for hours and matches, almost perfectly, the frequency of my 30 year old, tinnitus. So when I set one up, very rarely actually as we do not watch TV, I get the inclination about right for the part of the world we are in and then point it in the general direction of everyone else's. Derek mentioned that there were no others on site, in sight, but what he didn't know is that I remembered what direction the last occupants of the site used.



So I gets the dish, cranks in 36° inclination and points it at some trees in the distance, went inside and with Derek, connected everything up, switched on and there was BBC, ITV etc. all nicely tuned in. Derek very nearly soiled himself with excitement saying that it usually took him four hours and ten bitten down nails to get to this stage. So he's happy and I may get to watch some of the World Cup matches after all.



Just returned from my morning SSS, now I'm not suggesting that that it is a coincidence i.e. arrival of the kids, but of the four sit down men traps we have, two are in a non usable condition due to the fact that whoever used them last, managed to crap everywhere but in the actual bowl. So only traps 2 & 3 are actually approachable. Someone was already in #2 so I took #3. As I sat and pondered the universe I must have heard every variation of “WTF!” in different languages as the men traipsed past checking them out and then wondering off with their fully planned and sometimes already part initiated mission, aborted. As Jean had cooked a very tasty chicken curry the previous night I was glad to get there first and add my very own recipe, to the already spirited atmosphere in there.



Today is looking decidedly iffy wrt the weather and I think hanging around the camp site and having a go at both putting on my roof bike rack and checking the MS batteries will/should be the order of the day.



As it has not yet rained today, we all went for a bike ride to Andelos to see the Roman ruins and this time the museum was open, Derek and I got in as pensioners, full price €1 each for the girls. It was Derek's first time on a bike since he was 15 and I think he suffered a little, especially concerned about his “meat and two veg” and all the pounding they took. When we got back I parked all four bikes along side the main MS hold and locked them together and as I finished realised that the batteries and roof rack bits were in there, so two jobs now not getting done after all.



Sunday 30th May 2010, El Molino.



Yesterday got suckered. There was some music playing somewhere and the girls asked if we, the chaps, would like to go and had a look. I thought it was in the reception here at the site, er no, it was coming from Mendigorria and so it was another walk up the hill and guess what, gone when we got there.



Off to Puenta la Reina with the Leadbetters today, and SWMBO and I actually cycled all the way up into Mendigorria and back up the two hills but we/I am totally knackered and will have to have a beer transfusion asap.

Tuesday 1st June 2010, El Molino.



Well yesterday I managed to do the two things I've been planning for about 4 months, 1) put the roof bike carrier on the Navara, this will allow us to get to some great cycle rides that are too far away to actually cycle to. 2) check the batteries for acid level and power duration, well, had to top up most of the cells, no plates exposed but a bit low. Then I ran the MS without mains hook up, using the 1KW inverter; ran, TV and DVD, all 12v lights and no solar panels. On for about 4 hours with a 25 A drain and the voltage stayed, rock steady, at 12.3 v, so that should be OK for the odd wild-camp then.



The ladies went for a long walk, while Derek and I did this, which is supposed to help them become more “regular”, I just drink beer, works for me. Speaking of such, went down to the block for SSS and some bastid had not quite made it to the men's toilet and there was shit all along the floor. Now there are no kids to blame this time so it's got to be some old codger who is obviously part of the dressing gown brigade who thought, but was mistaken, that that small fart on the way to the traps was just that, unfortunately it wasn't. If he was wearing shorts it would not have made it to the floor, makes sense to me.



News from home, Heather has bought a flat! It's on Haslett Avenue in Crawley, walking distance to the railway station and two bedrooms. Since she is a first time buyer and it's under £250K, no stamp duty and a reduced deposit. It will be a struggle financially at first but that is the norm when you first start out on the housing ladder, so good luck to her.



Tricia took some Dulcolax last night but the results are not good so far and as she took 3 tablets and not one, we may be staying close to the camp site today, so the L's will have to do their own thing.



The rainy days must be at an end as they are using lots of sprinklers all over the place, one was very close to Jean and Derek's caravan and they ended up with some flooding in the awning area so the groundsheet has to be taken up, looks a lot drier this morning though.



Wednesday 2nd June 2010.



Because of Tricia's “condition” i.e. she tends to spend most of her time in the toilet with a hot cup of tea, we stayed close to the MS while the L's went shopping. Planning on driving to Pamplona with the bikes and doing the eight mile river run that we did so often last year. Drive to Ezcaba, the camp site we used then, then cycle into Pamplona, stopping for a picknick.



Of course SWMBO needs to “regular” by then I guess. Mind you it's not stopping her from eating, then again, nothing actually does. So it's 9 o'clock and I've just taken her her second cup of tea and a glass of freshly, by me, squeezed orange juice. “It's got bits in this time, might help”. “So has bacon sandwiches”, was her reply. I stated this before but the bacon over here is like the stuff you had when you were a kid, tasty as hell and NO water at all, cooks in it's own juices and does not shrink, in a chunk of ciabatta bread and tomato sauce, lovely. Back to SWMBO and no rumblings as yet and as we had my “Cook house Chilli” last night I am very surprised.



It reminds me of a conversation I had with my Dad many years ago when he too was suffering from constipation. He showed me the pills he had been taken for a few days that the doctor had given him. “You might as well shove these things up you arse Son, for all the good it will do you.” I had to explain that they were in fact suppositories and that was exactly what he should have been doing.

“That was no bloody good either!” he said the next morning. “I stuck two of them up there last night, gets up this morning and rushes to the bog, “plip” bloody “plip” is all I got!”



A little known fact and some jokes.



The US Standard rail road gauge (distance between the rails) is 4 feet, 8.5 inches.

That’s an exceedingly odd number. Why was that gauge used? Because that’s the way they built them in England, and the US rail roads were built by English expatriates.

Why did the English people build them like that? Because the first rail lines were built by the same people who built the pre-rail road tramways, and that’s the gauge they used.

Why did they use that gauge then? Because the people who built the tramways used the same jigs and tools that they used for building wagons, which used that wheel spacing.

Okay!

Why did the wagons use that odd wheel spacing? Well, if they tried to use any other spacing the wagons would break on some of the old, long distance roads, because that’s the spacing of the old wheel ruts. So who built these old rutted roads?

The first long distance roads in Europe were built by Imperial Rome for the benefit of their legions. The roads have been used ever since.

And the ruts?

The initial ruts, which everyone else had to match for fear of destroying their wagons, were first made by Roman war chariots. Since the chariots were made by, or for, Imperial Rome they were all alike in the matter of wheel spacing.

Thus we have the answer to the original questions.

The United States standard rail road gauge of 4 feet, 8.5 inches derives from the original specification for an Imperial Roman army war chariot. Specifications and Bureaucracies live forever. So the next time you are handed a specification and wonder what horse’s ass came up with it, you may be exactly right – because the Imperial Roman chariots were made to be just wide enough to accommodate the back-ends of two war horses.

When we see a Space Shuttle sitting on the launch pad, there are two big booster rockets attached to the sides of the main fuel tank. These are the solid rocket boosters, or SRBs. The SRBs are made by Thiokol at a factory in Utah. The engineers who designed the SRBs might have preferred to make them a bit fatter, but the SRBs had to be shipped by train from the factory to the launch site. The railroad line to the factory runs through a tunnel in the mountains. The SRBs had to fit through that tunnel. The tunnel is slightly wider than a rail road track, and the rail road track is about as wide as two horses’ behinds. So a major design feature of what is arguably the world’s most advanced transportation system was determined by the width of a horse’s ass.



Why do dogs lick their balls? Because they can.

The Hypnotist

It was entertainment night at Shady Pines old people's home. Claude
the hypnotist exclaimed: 'I'm here to put you into a trance; I intend to
hypnotize each and every member of the audience.'

The excitement was almost electric as Claude withdrew a beautiful
antique pocket watch from his coat 'I want you each to keep your eye on this
antique watch. It's a very special watch. It's been in my family for six
generations'.

He began to swing the watch gently back and forth while quietly
chanting, 'Watch the watch, watch the watch, and watch the watch...'

The crowd became mesmerized as the watch swayed back and forth, light
gleaming off its polished surface. Hundreds of pairs of eyes followed the
swaying watch, until, suddenly, it slipped from the hypnotist's finger and
fell to the floor, shattering into a hundred pieces.

'SH*T' said the Hypnotist.

It took three days to clean up the old people's home.

Why Sentence Structure Is So Important...

The boss had to fire somebody and he narrowed it down to one of two people, Mary or Jack. It was a tough decision because they were both decent workers. Rather than flip a coin, he decided he would fire the first one who used the water cooler the next morning. Mary came in that day with a horrible hangover after partying all night. She went to the cooler to take an aspirin. The boss approached her and said, "Mary, I've never done this before but I either have to lay you or Jack off." "Could you jack off?" she said. "I feel like shit this morning."

After 20 yrs of marriage a was lying in bed one evening when the wife felt her husband begin to fondle her in ways he hadn't inquite sometime
It almost tickled as his fingers started at her neck and then began moving down past the small of her back
He then carressed her sholders and neck slowly working his hand down over her breasts stopping just over her stomach.
He then proceeded to place his hand on her inner arm carressed past the side of her breast again working down her side passed gently over her buttock and down her leg to her calf/ He then proceeded up her inner thigh stopping just at the uppermost portion of her leg. He continued in the same manner on her right side then stopped suddenly rolled over and started watching TV.
As she had become quite aroused by this caressing she asked in a loving voice 'That was wonderful. Why did you stop?'
He replied

'I found the remote'

Farmer Joe decided his injuries from the accident were serious enough to take the trucking company (responsible for the accident) to court.
In court, the trucking companies' fancy lawyer was questioning farmer Joe.
“Didn't you say, at the scene of the accident, "I'm fine,"” said the lawyer.
Farmer Joe responded, "Well I'll tell you what happened. I had just loaded my favourite mule Bessie into the.."
"I didn't ask for any details," the lawyer interrupted, "just answer the question."
"Did you not say, at the scene of the accident, 'I'm fine!'"
Farmer Joe said, "Well I had just got Bessie into the trailer and I was driving down the road.."
The lawyer interrupted again and said, "Judge, I am trying to establish the fact that, at the scene of the accident, this man told the Highway Patrolman on the scene that he was just fine. Now several weeks after the accident he is trying to sue my client. I believe he is a fraud. Please tell him to simply answer the question."
By this time the Judge was fairly interested in Farmer Joe's answer and said to the lawyer, "I'd like to hear what he has to say about his favourite mule Bessie."
Joe thanked the Judge and proceeded,
"Well as I was saying, I had just loaded Bessie, my favourite mule, into the trailer and was driving her down the highway when this huge semi-truck and trailer ran the stop sign and smacked my truck right in the side. I was thrown into one ditch and Bessie was thrown into the other. I was hurting real bad and didn't want to move.
However, I could hear ole Bessie moaning and groaning. I knew she was in terrible shape just by her groans. Shortly after the accident a Highway Patrolman came on the scene. He could hear Bessie moaning and groaning so he went over to her.
After he looked at her he took out his gun and shot her between the eyes. Then the Patrolman came across the road with his gun in his hand and looked at me. He said, "Your mule was in such bad shape I had to shoot her. How are you feeling?"

Monday 24th May 2010, El Molino and the degrees are rising.

A/C now on most of the time because it's bloody hot and will stay like this until it gets hotter.



The Spanish moved out in the late afternoon thank God, as when they cook they switch on all their electric cookers at once and blow our RCD so I am continuously resetting the clock and the fridge. They obviously do this quite a lot because when they pack up it's just like a military operation. Everyone seems to have a job to do, except the kids and the dogs, and know exactly how to do it. One minute they were there and then vamoose.



Good for a wash day though, so I'm filling the MS up again and emptying the tanks. The genius filling funnel is attached and the Navara washing line is up. Then the drain next to us exploded and our pitch was being threatened by a flood but before it became too bad the site handy man showed up and fixed it.



The clock SWMBO bought in Guardamar del Segura to be part of “We must get something for the MS from each place we stay” plan, is driving us crazy. When we first got it it didn't work properly and we could not take it back because the shop had shut down. I fixed it and it would go fine for a week or so then either stop and start or go slow. Tried new batteries, tried non rechargeable batteries, same result, took out the batteries so it would be right twice a day but she complained. So took it to pieces and back again and everything seemed to be OK. OK until the other day when SWMBO decided to use it to time how long to keep her Immac on. It must have started it's old tricks as she now has red patches over her legs, around her bikini line and under her nose, looks like a circus clown and not best pleased, and by the way, it's all my fault.



The Leadbetters sail today and will be with us around noon on Wednesday so tomorrow it's a big shop at Lidl (may God bless and keep it) with extra beer and wine required. Hopefully I will manage to get to a Vodafone shop at last and do the business with this phone of mine.



Planned to go on a bike ride, heading for Larraga then on to Artajona and the back to Mendigorria. A triangular route of about 16-18 miles except when we got to the bit on the Na 6020, it was quite a busy road and very much uphill so we turned back and made it a 11 mile run instead. SWMBO took a lot of pictures of nettles, flowers and cattle. She mentioned that she had never been as close to steers before and started snapping away, of course they became curious and moved as one toward her, and although there was a sturdy fence in the way she panicked and bolted, so much for getting close to them.

There were also a lot of these poles with curious devices on the top, they were water sprayers and the semi circular bit was to stop spraying the traffic!

I am getting worried about SWMBO, either she IS an alien from the planet Zog or she's somehow getting cleverer or I'm suffering the first stages of Alzheimer's. I keep remembering things that she thought of before I did, which never ever happened a few years back. In a past post I mentioned her figuring out how two spacecraft in different obits could manoeuvre and dock, putting the warning triangle either side of the hitched up Navara the night we left Roquetas and lots of other little things like that.

Just recently we were noticing that the hand wash soap dispenser, next to the sink was leaking. Both reckoned it was because it got hot in the sun and some of the soap got pumped out as the pressure built up inside it. I just moved it into the shade but the other day I noticed it had been put back. “Hey, raggy drawers, (not a good opening, I know but I think I had a beer and was feeling heroic) you've put the soap thing back, it will leak all over, nitwit!”

“Oh, I just cracked open the top a little to let the pressure out.”



Bloody hell, she IS an alien



In the evening and for the first time here the BBQ made an appearance and we sat and ate and drank until about 9:30 pm, a quick summer thunderstorm for about 5 minutes and the rest of the evening was lovely.



Tuesday and just got back from Euroski, Simply and Lidl (may God bless and keep it) and now have all the stuff we need for the L's arrival tomorrow. SWMBO is planning the usual, huge garlic prawns with spicy potato wedges (chips in chilli) for lunch, followed by her, now tamed, Moroccan lamb. Of course I'm in charge of anything alcoholic and even gone to the bother of buying wine by the bottle instead of the 3 gallon case although, as a back up, I do have a gallon of Mendigorrian Table Red, a fighting wine which is truly capable of opening the sluices at both ends.

Part of the shopping was my recently acquired taste for Magnum chocolate and nut, ice cream lollies. SWMBO picked a box of the “mini” versions, “They will stop you getting even fatter”. “OK Pet”. I'll just eat two at a time.



We now have a mobile that works! Having finally topped it up at a Vodafone shop, cool.



Anyway, when we got back to the MS, “Where's the bloody prawns and all the stuff we got specially for Derek and Jean? You left it at the supermarket didn't you, you stupid sod, I told you to make sure you picked everything up, didn't I? Can't you do nothing right? You'll just have to go back and get some more, have you checked the car? Well go on do something, don't just stand there for God's sake!”



“er...Pet, they're in that bag you brought in, next to your right foot.” (as my mini magnums were in the same bag, it had never left my sight)



I decided to leave as quickly as I could as she had just picked up the baseball bat we keep next to the door.



She is calming herself down by ironing everything twice, especially my underpants and by the look on her face she is wishing my gonads were in them.



Wednesday 26th May and the Leadbetters, after a very calm, dolphin viewed crossing of the Bay of Biscay, arrived.



Text came first, “Off ship had breakfast and re fuelled, on our way”, my reply, “Beer in fridge.”



So they got here and checked and then decided to maximise the total area we both can take up on the site. As you can see, Derek had brought along his management team, i.e. Jean. A fair amount of shouting ensured as whether to face north, toward the river, toward us, and then Jean told Derek where to put the caravan, better to apply some KY jelly first I think. Then came the awning, hells teeth! You need a bloody degree in origami to understand how to put this up, but up it went and then the workers had to have a reviving beer while management finished the technical “pegging out” and done!

Some beer was drunk.

SWMBO then brought out a lunch of prawns in garlic butter along with lots of bread and, just about cooked, chips. Some nice dry white wine was also enjoyed by all.



L's fridge was not working and Jean had managed to beat a small path back and forth to the main electric supply as no matter what she turned on it tripped the RCD. On advise the fridge was turned off and left like that.



A trip up to Mendigorria, which had Derek wondering why he had not brought his spare oxygen with him. On the way back bought some beers to replace the ones consumed and have a stock in for the rest of the evening. L's fridge was now working so in went the beer.



Then it was time for SWMBO's Moroccan lamb and vegetables, washed down with some fizz and bloody excellent!



Chatted in their awning until dark and cold, then bed, well for SWMBO that is, I fell asleep in the chair again.