Back To Life

After a couple of weeks at home over Christmas, going back out on the road just wasn't the same. Trying to find routes from the Canary Islands and on through Africa was hard and it all felt like more trouble than it was worth. We started to realise that we're just not cut out for the "working things out as we go along" style of travel. WWOOFing and trying to keep to a budget meant that we weren't able to see a lot of the sights we wanted to see. Our taste of home gave us a taste of the things we missed. We simply weren't enjoying it any more. And if we weren't enjoying it any more what was the point of doing it?

We rounded our "gap year" (okay, it was only 8 months) with our big trip around Morocco and came home. We didn't do as much as we planned or wanted to do. Indeed, if we had planned to only go away for 8 months I know we'd have gone further. But we saw a lot of places we wouldn't have otherwise seen and that we'd have never thought of going to. And we met some wonderful people along the way.Instead of being a small part of a long trip our WWOOF hosts became huge parts of a short trip. So before I go any further I must thank Ben and Penny in Cornholme, Francoise and Bernard in the Alps, Brendan and Mandy in Haut-Vienne, Ursula and Victor in Elne, Lluisa in l'Ametlla del Valles, Christina in Monda, Peter and Anna on La Gomera and also to Nabil at Riad Jomana in Marrakech - not a WWOOF host but someone who we'll never forget for the way he put himself out for us. You've all given us memories that we will treasure for the rest of our lives.

My personal favourite excursion was probably at Villefranche du Conflent. The tiny little walled village really found a place in my heart, the scenery was breath-taking and it was the first time I felt I was starting to get somewhere with my French - although I think all my hard work has since been undone! Similarly, Ronda is a small place with a huge amount of endearing character. These are places that I would never have picked out to visit no matter how many times I journeyed to France and Spain. Darren's favourite trip was to see Mont Blanc close up. Re-reading that blog I can see that I didn't do the day justice - I'm sure for those with proper mountains in their countries it isn't that amazing for for a girl from flat ol' Essex it was special!

We certainly haven't lost the travel-bug, but we realised that the planning should be half the fun. When you've got a week to try to find a way off an island and some cheap accommodation it just isn't so much fun. So we hope to tick off all those other places on our list of "things to see" on holidays and short breaks. In the mean time it's back to some semblance of normality. More than anything I'm hoping that a year out of "real life" will give me a bit more focus. I'm the worst person for having ideas of things I'd like to do but ending up watching rubbish on the TV instead. I still feel I have many things I want to do in this life, maybe the last year can give me an extra push into doing them.

Seeing the world is a wonderful thing, but not really having a proper home to come back to can make things quite lonely. I've enjoyed keeping the blog to inform my friends and family of my whereabouts and shenanigans, but I think I'd rather see them in person to talk about it. Whether I keep this blog for my future trips I haven't decided. I'll certainly keep a diary for myself as, no matter how wonderful the experience, I WILL forget things!

Finally, apologies for turning this into an Oscar style speech, but I have to thank my parents for always being there for me no matter what, and my sister and her family for providing a much needed home while I look for a new one. And to Darren, without whom I would never even think of doing such ridiculous things in the first place!!!

Desert Rose

Day One
To round off our trip to Morocco we booked a three day excursion to the desert. Our guide Houssaine picked us up from the riad at 7am and we headed south from Marrakech. Our route took us through the High Atlas Mountains via the Tizi n Tichka pass, 2260m above sea level. We had a great view of the country's highest mountain, the snow-capped Toubkal and even saw some snow at our level. We stopped a few times to take in the amazing views but our first main stop was Ait Benhaddou. Like many Kasbahs in northern Africa, Ait Benhaddou has been used as a film set, appearing in Gladiator, Lawrence of Arabia and Jesus of Nazareth among others. After parking the car we had to get a donkey ride across a river – a scary prospect for someone like me who hasn't ridden any animal for probably 25 years! We then walked to the top of the Kasbah to see get a full view of the valley.
Leaving Ait Benhaddou we continued south-east to Ouarzazate, past two studios where films such as The Mummy and Kingdom of Heaven were shot. We stopped for an excellent lunch of kefta tagine and continued towards the Draa Valley. The land was getting more arid, turning into a barren landscape of red rocks and scrubby bushes. We turned a corner into the valley and everything on our right side changed to a greenish hue. Gradually more and more palm trees appeared and we entered the palm grove which stretches for 100km. We arrived in Tamnougalt and Chez Yacob, our resting place for the night at around 3pm.
We were now deep in Berber territory. The Berbers are the native people of Morocco, recognisable by their distinctive headwear and colourful outfits. After a short rest Houssaine introduced us to Abdul who was to show us around Tamnougalt. Here was another famous Kasbah – it has appeared in Babel and Abdul himself can be seen in the background in The Passion of the Christ. He was an excellent guide, showing us around the Kasbah, the village and the palm groves, and despite the fact that he knew little English and we knew little French he was incredibly friendly with a permanent smile on his face. He paid five young girls a few dirham for us to take their photo and they were very excited about seeing their image captured on the camera. After our evening meal we retired to bed – it had been a long day.
Day Two
When we woke the next morning we found it had been raining. After breakfast we headed east, leaving the Draa Valley. We stopped for a break and noticed for the first time a lot of old Renaults covered in racing decals. Houssaine explained to us that we were passing the Renault 4L rally, a race for students from Paris to Marrakech via the Sahara Desert. The rally has a humanitarian aim with participants delivering school equipment to children in south Morocco. We continued onto to Risani, the terrain changing from the lush palm groves back to the barren rocky landscapes we had seen before we reached the Draa Valley. However the land started to flatten out and after we passed through Risani the deep orange sand dunes of the Sahara came into view.
It was quite strange to see those famous sands for real. We arrived at an auberge had a late lunch and steeled ourselves for our camel ride. Houssaine left us in the hands of one of our hosts for the night who led our camels through the desert. It really did feel like being on a film set! An hour later we saw the first signs of civilisation – a small Berber camp. Our guide didn't speak any English so we thought we'd climb a sand dune to take in the view. Walking uphill on sand is very hard work, and as we reached the top it started to rain. We couldn't believe it – we'd come all the way to the desert and it rained! We watched a few sand boarders for a while and trudged back down, a little disheartened. We were sat in the living area, helpfully lit by solar powered lights, when Houssaine arrived. We were also joined by a French couple and their son, and after we all settled down our hosts brought a few drums into the tent. They showed off their skills and then invited us to join them – all manner of glassware and cutlery was involved!
We were served a chicken tagine for dinner then adjourned outside to sit around the fire. It then became clear that the drums we had earlier been given to play were for visitors – new drums were warmed and these were for the professionals. For the next two hours were watched and listened and occasionally joined in. It felt very natural and inclusive, not at all contrived or like they were "performing" for us. When the full moon shone out from the clearing cloud we all cheered. It was amazing how much light the moon creates in this wide expanse with no light pollution. We decided to turn in at 11pm, and were shown to our tent. Our bed was surprisingly comfortable and the huge quantity of blankets we were provided with meant there was no danger of feeling the night-time desert chill – indeed it was hard to move under the weight!
Day Three
Unfortunately the clear skies didn't last until morning. We woke ourselves at 6.30am hoping to see the sunrise over the dunes. It was difficult to tell whether the sky was cloudy or just dark, but as time ticked on and the skies lightened it became clear that we weren't going to see a show. We had breakfast at the camp before setting back off on our camels. After freshening up at the auberge we set off on our long drive back to Marrakech. This time we took a road further north to Ouarzazate stopping at the Gorges of Todra. Houssaine dropped us off at the entrance of the gorge to walk through and take in the majesty of the huge cliff-faces on foot. The road swayed to the left and right alongside a very clear and very pretty stream until it reached a few hotels built into the rock. Here there was a pool of water of the most incredibly bright blue, filled with fish. It was very beautiful, but we couldn't stay long as we still had a long journey ahead of us.
The sun still hadn't made an appearance when we stopped in Ourzazate for lunch. We were then back on the road that leads through the Atlas Mountains to Marrakech – along with hundreds of cars on the final leg of the 4L rally. A combination of the rain that started to fall, the lack of seatbelts and Houssaine's rather impatient overtaking manoeuvres made for quite an unsettling ride! Still we made it back in one piece at around 7.30pm – back in our home from home in Riad Jomana with a cup of mint tea.
I really fell in love with Marrakech. I was less taken with Fes, but I think that was because of the weather. Everyone is very friendly and hospitable, albeit normally because they want to sell you something! It has been amazing to see just how much you can find out about a different country and culture in just a few days or weeks. Houssaine was a brilliant guide, giving us an incredible insight into his Berber roots. We really felt welcomed into a lot of people's lives. And I can't finish my tale of Morocco without mentioning the staff at Riad Jomana and Nabil in particular. They were always friendly, polite and happy to see us. Nabil just couldn't do enough for us, sorting out accommodation, transfers and putting us in contact with Houssaine. Riad Jomana isn't just the most amazing place to stay in Marrakech. It's a reason to go to Marrakech.

As Time Goes By

I was quite sad to leave Marrakech, even though we are returning in a few days. Our next destination was Casablanca by train. Not somewhere I particularly felt the need to visit but Darren wanted to on a whim about the film, and then we heard that it has the world's third biggest mosque (after Mecca and Medina) – the only active mosque in Morocco that non-Muslims can enter.
After checking into our hotel (basic, but fine for one night) we went out for a wander. Not that there's anything to see. Casablanca is the biggest city in Morocco, the sixth biggest city in Africa and essentially nothing more than a business centre. We walked around the big expensive hotels and Darren got his very dusty shoes polished, but otherwise there was nothing of note. Hassan II Mosque is also the tallest religious building in the world, and we headed towards it to get a closer look. We then saw the other side of Casablanca – derelict and half-demolished houses, the very poor almost living in a shanty town under the shadow of a mosque which cost $750 million to build. We couldn't go in at that point as visitor can only enter on set guided tours so we'd wait for that until the following morning. But we got a wonderful view of it as the sun set and could hear the evening prayers take place from outside the open door.
Walking back to our hotel wondering where to eat, all of Darren's wishes came true. There it was – Rick's Cafe. I thought it would probably be a bit of a dingy, touristy dive, but we thought we'd bear it in mind and maybe pop in for a drink later. Making use of our hotel's free internet we found out it was actually quite a posh (but not too expensive) restaurant, a labour of love by an enterprising American woman who was amazed that no-one had done it before. I could protest no longer and it became our destination for dinner. And it was an excellent choice. The staff were friendly, the food delicious, the decor very tasteful and there was a pianist playing all the old standards, including of course As Time Goes By.
The next morning we arose early enough to catch the 9am tour of the mosque. It was completed in 1993 after 6 years of round the clock work. It holds 20,000 worshippers, has an openable roof, and as well as the prayer hall you can view the ablution chamber and the hassans (public baths). It is grand, elaborate, immense and quite an amazing feat of architecture. It is rare to see such a modern religious building and it's ingenious to see how modern technology has been fused with traditional crafts (especially when they show you how they've hidden the hundreds of speakers!). Although the mosque is used daily, it is essentially a showpiece – the public baths have never been used and are just for demonstration. And as beautiful as it all was, this gave me a sense of emotional detachment which was quite strange.
We then returned to our hotel to check out and catch the train to Fes, the next destination on our Moroccan adventure...

Rock The Casbah

Over four days in Marrakech I think we managed to take in more or less all of the sights. Our first venture into Place Jemaa el Fna was pretty scary stuff. It was quite late so all the entertainers were out in force. Everywhere you go is like trying to run the gauntlet, with people trying to persuade you to take their picture or eat their food. Our guidebook recommended Hassan's with "the best merguez sausages" but it was packed, largely with locals. We eventually planted ourselves at one stall and ate well for 90 dirham (DH) – about £6 for the two of us. However, I still hadn't managed to accumulate much change for the entertainers and we had become a bit weary of being hassled and returned to the riad.
On Wednesday we visited the Musee de Marrakech, the Madrassa Ben Youssef and Koubba el Baroudyn. The Koubba was part of the Ben Youssef mosque which was used for ablutions, but was buried for hundreds of years before being re-discovered in 1947. It was the first piece of Arab architecture that we had really looked at and a great starting point – although not elaborate it is the only surviving structure from the Almoravide period in Marrakech and it's design and decoration have been replicated ever since the 11^th century. From there we crossed the track to the Madrassa of the Ben Youssef mosque. Non-Muslims aren't allowed in all but one mosque in Morocco, but madrassas (where religious students live) are often opened up to allow tourists to view. It was beautifully decorated and I've been most stunned by the deep stucco work on many of the buildings. The open courtyard reminded me a little of the monastery at Montserrat, and you can explore the rooms to see the difference between the bad ones (little boxes with no windows) to the best (much bigger with views over the courtyard). The best thing about looking out of these windows was that it gave a closer look at that intricate stucco work.
Next on our ticket was the Musee de Marrakesh. More of an art gallery than a museum, the main piece on view is the building. Like most buildings in the city there is an open courtyard, although this one had a tented roof which gave the roof a strange, yellowish glow. There were quite a few chairs and benches around so apart from anything it was a lovely place to sit and relax and listen to the sound of the water trickling over the fountains. The art displayed was vibrant and wonderful, reminding me that I'd love to find a nice piece from a souk vendor to take home!
We decided to take a break from the Moroccan cuisine and visit an Italian restaurant recommended by the guidebook. It was early so when we arrived we were the only diners, but Casanova was a very nice restaurant with good food (it's great when you order something you've had before and are served with an excellent version of it). Our waiter was intriguing and determined to practice as much English as possible on us, regaling us with tales of how he hated his job, hated the Spanish and was really a very creative and sensitive soul. His accent was heavy and we often lost track of his musings - as sweet as he was we were pleased when more customers came in to take his attention!
For our final day in Marrakesh we ventured to the south of the city – the Kasbah and the Palaces. The first place we wanted to see was the Saadian Tombs. 66 members of the Saadian dynasty (16^th-17^th century) are buried here, and the most intriguing thing (for us Westerners at least) is that the graves are more or less unmarked. Rectangles of mosaic tiles differentiate one grave from another, and even those housed under ornate roofs are relatively plain. Slightly disappointed we walked to El Badi, a Saadian palace. After the Saadian dynasty fell, Sultan Moulay Ismail stole all the marble that decorated it for his palace in Meknes, so essentially it is nothing more than a ruin that is now owned by the many storks who build their nests on top of the walls. But it is huge! There are a few walls along with sunken gardens, ex-fountains and foundations with good signs explaining how the building may have looked, and you can envisage just how grand the parties there would have been. You can also walk around some of the unearthed outbuildings – the ground was very uneven and you would never be allowed so much freedom on a ruin in Rome!
On our way back we decided we had to eat where the locals at. It was relatively early but Hassan's stall at Jemma el Fna was already doing the business. There was no fussing about with menus, just sit down and eat what's put in front of you. The merguez were indeed very good, as was the slightly random (not sure I want to know what was in it) meat stew and with bread and tea it was no more than 40 DH for both of us! Just shows that the locals (and the guidebooks) do know what they're talking about sometimes!

Where The Streets Have No Name

Today we got lost. After two days in a city that we know quite well, we are in what feels like a completely different world. The cacophony of sights, sounds and smells makes Marrakech everything I expected and I’ll try to put it into words. But firstly, I’m getting ahead of myself...
We had a wonderful meal on my birthday but couldn’t stay up too late as we had to pack and leave early to catch our flight. Our hostel was actually just north of Barcelona in Badalona, but still accessible by metro. It was very nice and clean, fine for a couple of nights. While in Barcelona we thought we’d try to see a something we hadn’t visited before – Montjuic. When we arrived on the funicular we found that the cable car to the top was closed for repairs, so instead we walked to the Olympic Stadium and museum. The stadium itself isn’t that impressive, although we were quite intrigued that it didn’t look anything like other ultra-modern recently built stadia. The museum was very interesting, chronicling the history of sport in general as well as the ancient and modern Olympic Games. We then headed back into Barcelona centre to book a few more future travel plans and buy a Morocco guidebook. We thought about eating in a restaurant but Barcelona on a Saturday night is a VERY busy place and we decided to get a takeaway pizza and rest in our hotel room instead.

Our flight left Girona airport at 4pm. As with all Ryanair flights it wasn’t the most pleasant experience but it was clear enough during most of the journey for us to have a good view. As we approached Marrakech we took in the sight of desert and neatly kept plantations, then the red city came into view. For the first time in my life I was out of Europe – and had to queue up to get my passport stamped. We had arranged a lift with our riad, and it’s possibly the best £10 we’ve spent as there is no public transport from the airport and Marrakech is a mish-mash of unlabelled streets. We’ve not yet found a comprehensive map and even if we did I feel it would be fairly useless!

Having visited quite a few European cities in the past, the main thing that has struck both of us is just how different it really is. It really does match up to your expectations in so many ways. The smells are the most incredible – aromas of different foods and spices, the charcoal that much of the food is cooked upon mingling with occasional whiffs of petrol or sewerage. The local music predominates, with a mix of different languages – Arabic, French and sometimes even English – and the calls to prayer booming out over loudspeakers five times a day. Even in cloudy February the heat is intense when the sun comes out. There are few cars inside the city walls but there are countless motorbikes, mopeds and bicycles with apparently no road rules.

We are staying in Riad Jomana and our welcome couldn’t have been warmer. The riad is in a small alleyway and doesn’t look like much from the outside, but inside is beautiful, comfortable and very relaxing. It only has four rooms so the staff are always on hand and willing to bring us more delicious mint tea. There is a roof terrace where we had our breakfast this morning and an internal courtyard from where I’m writing this. We spent our first evening lounging here as we were a bit scared to tackle Marrakech in the dark!

So yesterday morning we braved the outside world. We found our way to the famous Place Jemaa el Fna (Place of the Dead) fairly easily and entered the souks. Our intention was to get lost - the owner of our riad said it was the only way to experience Marrakech and it wasn’t difficult. It’s almost impossible to orientate yourself as few streets are signposted and directions are few and far between. Everything is so unbelievably cheap that it’s difficult not to buy a bag full (and of course a new bag to put it all in). When you enter a shop you have to intend to buy something, and as Darren wanted to add to his ingredients collection back home we did eventually succumb to a spice stall. We were treated to some tea and got to smell lots of wonderful spice combinations as well as herbal remedies and essential oils. We left with plenty of goods, some freebies and the knowledge that we’d had a good, traditional Moroccan tourist experience!

After a couple of hours of having no idea where we were, going in and out of the souks by various entrances, walking around in circles and being hassled by EVERYONE (fun for a while, eventually tiresome) we found our way back to the “big square” as all the local children trying to earn a few dirham from lost tourists describe it. We had lunch in a cafe overlooking the square as people started to set up for the evening, but decided to have a fine meal in the riad instead.

It really is a place of contrasts, and you need the wonderfully relaxing side – either in the riad, the gardens outside the city or even in a cafe - to balance the frenetic madness that takes over in the streets and the souks. We have spent today relaxing in the Jardin Majorelle botanic gardens and Cyber Park - a big park with Wi-Fi and computers where it seems most of the local youth hangs out. So tonight we feel relaxed and ready to take on the Place Jemaa el Fna with it's many entertainers and street food sellers.

Celebration

After four weeks of living in relatively basic circumstances, it’s nice to check into a hotel. And our first priority in Hotel Taburiente in Santa Cruz de Tenerife was to have a good, hot, powerful shower. We then headed out for a Canarian meal and to sample a little of the Carnaval. We had drinks in a couple of bars and danced for a while amongst the crowd in front of the stage, but headed back at about 11.30pm. Well, we had been up VERY early that morning and wanted to conserve some energy for the next day, even though it seemed to be just at the point when the party was starting!

After breakfast on Tuesday, we took to the streets for a stroll to get a feel for Santa Cruz and try to find out where to watch the afternoon’s procession which started at 4pm. It travels a long way along the coastal road and must have left its starting point a lot earlier than the scheduled time! After 3 hours we felt that there was only so much procession you can watch so we headed back to the hotel to change for the evening and watch the rest on television. Our plan was to head out for the firework display at 9pm, but at 8.30pm we heard a few bangs – this carnival obviously doesn’t run very precisely to schedule! Still we headed out for some food and to have another boogie in the street. It seemed a lot quieter than the night before though, and we got a sense that we’d missed the main party.
On Wednesday we took the tram to the Museo de la Ciencia y el Cosmos. It had lots of interactive experiments, and was much like the interactive section of London’s Science Museum but with far fewer kids running around! We then took the tram back into Santa Cruz to have a look at the magnificent Auditorio. Clearly influenced by Sydney Opera House, it gleams in the sun looking like a wave from the Atlantic Ocean. After our evening meal we joined the crowds lining the street for the Burial of the Sardine. Another key event in Santa Cruz’s Carnaval celebrations, it was a short but rowdy group of many men (and even a few women) dressed as widows (although how many people would attend a funeral in this get up I’ve no idea!) The procession hadn’t got far although it was already 11pm, and we decided to head back to the hotel instead of follow it. At about 3am we were woken by some huge bangs – the “mourners” had clearly reached the sardine and the fireworks sounded much more impressive than the previous evening.
I’ve had a nice relaxing birthday today. We first took the tram to La Laguna, the old town of the north of Tenerife. There we visited the Museo de Historia de Tenerife which is based in one of the many beautiful old buildings in the town. We then had a nice wander around – you can see very clearly where the old town starts – and headed back to Santa Cruz. Our hotel sits opposite the Parque Garcia Sanabria which we’ve walked through a few times but I wanted to walk the full spiral of the footpath that runs to the centre. There are many sculptures and exotic plants, including the banyul trees that were so inspirational to Gaudi when he designed La Sagrada Familia. Most importantly we could sit out in the sunshine in t-shirts, something I’ve never done on my birthday before!
Tonight we’re having a meal in the hotel restaurant – the menu has been taunting us every time we use the lift! Tomorrow we leave early for our flight to Barcelona before flying to Marrakesh on Sunday. Finally, thank you all for the birthday messages. It’s been strange not having any presents or cards to open, but I knowing that people remembered is much more important!

Stranded

We had a bit of adventure in our last week in La Gomera. Darren’s laptop caught a virus while we were in Valle Gran Rey and eventually the entire system seized up. All Darren needed was a Windows Vista disc to repare the damage, but La Gomera is not a particularly large or advanced place – everyone is quite happy with XP it appears. Peter and Anna pulled out all the stops to try to find a copy and found someone who could download it for us. When we went back to San Sebastian on Thursday it still had 3-4 days left to download. Not much use when we only had a couple more days on the island ourselves. The last ditch was to plead if we could borrow a copy from one of the many computer shops in San Sebastian, a plea which was reluctantly accepted. We agreed to meet Peter in a bar as he had a little shopping to do, and after 10 minutes we headed off to the bar with a slightly more (if not fully) functioning laptop.

An hour later we wondered where Peter had got to. Surely he hadn’t forgotton about us? Darren went to check if the car was still there and it had gone! In a panic we headed to a phonebox to call Anna who said Peter had called her wondering where we were as well. Back to the bar where we waited another hour, but still no lift. Another call to El Cedro and Peter had just got home – he’d searched everywhere for us and must have just come passed the bar where we were waiting when we were making our phonecall!

So we were stranded. It was too late to eat, but we managed to get a bed in a hotel for the night. Santa Cruz de Tenerife were selecting their Carnaval Queen on a local TV channel, so this gave us a taster for next week. The next morning we found that the first bus back to the centre of the island was at 11am, so we allowed ourselves a leisurely walk around the town, got some breakfast and sent some postcards. The bus journey was fantastic. It is 15km as the crow flies from San Sebastian in the east to Valle Gran Rey on the west coast, but the road winds for 50km up towards the peak of Garajonay. San Sebastian is a very pretty little town to look down on. An hour later we alighted at Parajitos and braced ourselves for the 7km walk back. It was more or less all downhill and meant we had another chance to take in some more breathtaking views. This was actually a much more picturesque walk than the one we had taken to the top before, and we could see Gran Canaria from some viewpoints as well as some jaw-dropping ravines.

We got back at 2pm, freshened up and headed to work, ever so slightly late. We felt we ought to put in a few hours (otherwise we’d be working all day Saturday!) I was so tired and upset the night before, I found it quite unbelievable that such an amazing day could have come from our little misunderstanding.
Peter and Anna have been excellent hosts. They are both fantastic cooks (which always goes down well with us) and we’ve been treated to many German specialities. There’s only so much seclusion that we can take though and we have a couple of weeks “on holiday” in cities to balance all this peace and quiet we’ve had, starting with Carnaval today in Santa Cruz de Tenerife!

This Ole House

At last I’ve got a chance to give you more details of our current location! We’re on La Gomera in the Canary Islands. Our accommodation is just inside Garajonay National Park which covers a large percentage of the island. To get to the house you have to walk 15 minutes uphill on a public footpath, some of it very steep and quite precarious. That I managed to hike up with my backpack is nothing short of a miracle! The old stone house is pretty basic but it’s nice to be somewhere of our own. It can be very cold at night – we had a petrol stove to keep us from freezing but on Friday (18th) we fixed the wood burner. It was quite exciting seeing the first smoke coming out of the chimney! We’re doing good rustic things like collecting firewood (no shortage when you’re in a forest) and very clean water from a stream at the bottom of the footpath. We’ve also been making excellent use of the radio I got for Christmas and listening to the World Service and a few English language stations from Tenerife.

The farm is 30 minutes walk downhill from our house (which means a 30 minutes uphill struggle home). Our hosts are Peter and Anna, a German couple who have been here for about 10 years I think, and their two daughters, Melanie (16, fostered) and Lea (11). Anna works part-time at a tropical fruit garden on the island. There are two very large dogs, Tronky and Gringo. Gringo is a Rottweiler / Alsatian cross and despite his size and breeding is a real baby with a very expressive face. There are also chickens, goats, cats, guinea pigs, terrapins and possibly others that we haven’t been introduced to. Our hosts are very nice, very generous and full of good humour.

As well as the animals Peter is trying to grow lots of different fruits on his land – he estimates he currently has over 70 varieties and is aiming for over 100 in the next year. He also tries to be as self-sufficient in vegetables as possible, growing many things that the locals wouldn´t think possible. The work has been fairly standard – weeding, digging land, clearing brambles, pruning apple trees. We start at 9am and work through until 3pm with a tea break somewhere in the middle. Then Peter or Anna cook our main meal for the day before we return to our digs.

On Saturday (19th) we climbed to the top of the island. The peak of Garajonay is just under 1500m above sea level which meant an ascent for us of over 600m. The main footpath runs the other side of the stream to our house but the house is too surrounded by trees for us to see any more than the occasional flash of pink from the other side! It was a very well maintained footpath, a lot of which was crafted into steps. 5.9km of steps is a lot of steps! It took us 2½ hours there and 2 hours back and surprisingly we didn’t even ache the next day. From the top we got a good view over the sea to Tenerife and could just make out the top of La Palma. There was also some information about the original inhabitants of La Gomera, including a reconstruction of a sacrificial altar which was found at the site.

We are 7km from the nearest bus stop so going anywhere is pretty difficult. Today, for example, we have taken a lift from Anna to Valle Gran Rey but we have spent most of the day arranging future travels as we have no internet access at or near the farm. This morning we visited the tropical fruit garden that Anna works at which was fantastic. You have to take a guided tour, and as well as explaining about the plants there were also lots of tasters. It is all organic and I would definitely recommend it to anyone who might hop over on a day trip from Tenerife.

Head In The Clouds

This will be a short blog as we have to catch our lift back to our nw place in a few minutes. And isolated doesn't even come close! The farm is in a village of 3 houses called El Cedro on La Gomera in the Canary Islands. We are living in a small stone house a further 30 minutes walk away, where the nearest house is uninhabited and we are right on the border of the National Park. We have no internet access, very intermittant mobile phone signal and no neighbours! The farm is 800m above sea level and consequently has been shrouded in cloud for the last couple of days, but the sun has broken through today. The volcanic soil is bright red and vegetation a lush technicolor of pinks, oranges and the most amazing green you could imagine.

I think I'm going to enjoy the seclusion for a while. I've got a room where I can get back to my yoga and we have a little kitchen to do our own breakfast and evening meal. Hopefully I'll get back online in the next month to update you all!

Take Me Home

Well the Christmas period is more or less over and I've at last got a chance to catch up on the last few weeks. This is where I really wish I'd done this earlier as I won't remember anywhere near as much as I should, but never mind. It'll make for a shorter blog I suppose.

Our journey out of Spain was a little fraught to say the least. We got up early to catch the bus to Marbella on Saturday 8th of December only to find that the bus wasn't going to come as it had been a national holiday two days previously. Our host Christina very kindly gave us a lift to Marbella so we could catch our connection to Granada which was running and we caught without too many problems. As we headed further north and further up the fog grew thick and the temperature dropped considerably. We had the afternoon in Granada so after checking into our hostel we had a wander around the city. The weather made it a little grim and our map not particularly good but eventually we found one of the viewpoints indicated on the map. The fog had lifted a little so we had an excellent view of the Alhambra (we're saving the visit there for another time) and the snow capped peaks of the Sierra Nevada. There was a small market and a couple of restaurants where we ate - the food was good and not overpriced considering it was in an incredibly busy tourist spot.

We had an early night as we had an early flight the next morning. When deciding how to get to Paris, we had two options. Either we could fly early from Granada or from Seville in the afternoon. Even taking into account the hostel and the taxi the cost was more or less the same, so we thought we'd take the opportunity for a few extra hours in Paris. We caught a taxi without too many problems, but when we got to the airport it was fogbound. There was a little confusion as to whether the flight would go or not - at one point it was 90% yes, but the 10% won out and our incoming plane was diverted to Malaga and our flight cancelled. We were given the choice of flying the next morning or (you've guessed it) the Seville flight that afternoon. The most annoying thing being that by the time our coach left the fog had cleared and planes were once again taking off and landing. Too late for us.

So we flew from Seville and had to race to our hotel, change quickly and hotfoot it to La Locomotive. We met up with friends Michael and Siobhan before we went to watch Fish. Last time I saw Fish he was not absolutely awful. I said at the time that I would never go and see him again, much less make a big effort. So here I was having travel a damn long way to see him. And it was a good thing I did because he was excellent. The venue was a bit odd, but we managed to get a spot on the stairs with a good view (the main area was packed). He performed some songs from his new album which we hadn't yet heard but sounded very good along with some of his older material and songs from his last album with Marillion, Clutching At Straws. A fantastic gig by a man who is definitely back on form.

Another day, another journey. This time, a coach to Amsterdam. Not a bad journey and a bargain at €39 return. The only headache was realising that the coach station was a lot further out from the centre of Amsterdam than we had realised. Still, we could get a train and a tram to virtually outside our hotel which was in a great position, just 2 minutes walk from the venue that Marillion would be playing. On the Monday however, we had the evening free so we went to one of our favourite restaurants in the world (so far). The Tokyo Cafe is a Japanese and sushi restaurant that does an excellent all-you-can-eat deal. We were lucky enough to get in on our last visit to Amsterdam and managed to book this time. The best thing about it is you can try lots of things you wouldn't normally try. After we met up with Neil who had also come to Amsterdam for the gigs.

On the Tuesday we did some touristy things, including the excellent Torture Museum (not to be confused with the Amsterdam Dungeon) and the Theatre Museum. We also took a brief trip to see Ajax's Amsterdam ArenA - we might have to have a look inside some time because from the outside it looks like a road runs right over the pitch!

So that night was the first of three Marillion gigs. Somehow, this band just get better and better live. We stood on bassist Pete Trewavas' side of the stage which is normally the most fun (as well as the easiest to get nearer the front) and certainly had an excellent time. Afterwards I caught a plectrum (properly caught it, none of that scrabbling about on the floor) which always wraps a good gig up nicely!

The next day (we're on Wednesday in case you're not keeping up) we hit Museumplein. First up was the Rijksmuseum - not my personal choice but I really enjoyed it. I actually found myself appreciating still life painting - you can see so much more detail when you see it for real. The museum also provided an excellent history of the Netherlands through the art.

Next up was a museum that we had seen in one of the tourist booklets at the hotel. The House of Bols is brand new and attached to a bartending school. For €10 you get to discover a little about the company who produces a most extensive range of cocktail ingredients. There are interactive portions which explore taste and smell and a flair booth where you practise your own bottle throwing techniques. Best of all, at the end you can choose a cocktail to try which is freshly made for you (it's somewhere for the students to train obviously!) AND we had two additional shots each of different flavoured Bols. The Green Banana was particularly nice. At the end the receptionist commented that we'd been in there a long time - clearly a lot of people pay their €10 and head straight for the bar! We staggered back to our hotel to change before heading out for the next gig. We stood in the same place (boring I know, but Pete is a legend!) Another great gig with a couple of changes to the setlist and an amazing atmosphere.

It was another early morning start to catch the bus back to Paris. We got there in plenty of time to meet my sister Vicky at Gare Du Nord. It was fantastic to see her after so long - a couple of days in Paris was my Christmas present to her. We had another quick journey on the Metro to our hotel, to change and to head out for the gig, although we did have time for a crepe before the show. Again the atmosphere for the gig was electric - the band clearly love playing in Paris and I could see why. It's always fun to see the last night of a tour as the band let go a bit more. I wanted to hang around and see if the band would come out and socialise but Darren had a ridiculously early start so we retired to our hotel.

Vicky and I then had one day to "do" Paris. First stop had to be the Eiffel Tower. We got off at Champ de Mars stop and when came out of the station we couldn't see the famous tower anywhere! We walked in what I thought was the general direction and suddenly, behind a building, there it was. It's head was shrouded in cloud but it looked spectacular still. We opted (Vicky's decision) to take the stairs to the second level as it was much cheaper and we didn't have to queue. This was quite high enough for Vicky and we decided that it wasn't worth the extra time, money and queuing to go to the top, especially as the weather hadn't improved much.

For lunch I had to take Vicky to one of my favourite places in the world - Angelina. Angelina is a salon de thé on Rue de Rivoli near the Louvré. It looks quite small from the outside but opens up like the Tardis,managing to be opulent and personal at the same time. The croque monsieur and madame are built like doorstops and the pastries are beautiful, but it was the African style hot chocolate that we'd come for. At €6.50 it isn't cheap, but it is like pure melted chocolate and comes with a pot of whipped cream and a much needed glass of water to wash it down with. Of all my travel tips, this has to be number one!

We then decided to go somewhere I actually hadn't been to on my previous trips to Paris - Pere Lachaise cemetery. Although it was still cold it was pleasant enough to walk around. As well as the large number of famous graves there were lots of very ornate resting places. There were two people we did want to visit however - Jim Morrison and Oscar Wilde. Morrison's was the first we found, a relatively small grave festooned with flowers left by his fans. Oscar was a little trickier to find. We think there were maps but we weren't sure where people had got them from so we navigated by to occasional maps by the entrances. Eventually we found it, elaborate and unusually designed and covered with lipstick kisses.

I insisted that Vicky saw the Notre Dame Cathedral. I'm not sure how impressed she was (especially with me getting lost on the tiny island it sit on) but I love it. Plus it was somewhere we could go indoors for a while to warm up! We then headed for the Louvre - cheaper on a Wednesday or Friday evening. Like the still life in Amsterdam I think the Mona Lisa looks amazing when you see it for real, but Vicky just didn't get it. Philistine!

We traipsed around the Louvre for a few hours, and when we got bored headed for the next sight - the Arc de Triomphe. The Christmas lights on the trees all the way down the Champs Elysée were absolutely breathtaking. We were both pretty hungry again by now, but eating in Paris is really tricky. Everywhere is either too touristy, too expensive (or both) or impossible to find. We walked down the Champs Elysée and took the plunge at a hopeful looking restaurant. It actually turned out to be a good choice. In particular I must mention our very friendly waiter, not something Paris is renowned for!

The we rounded off our day where we began - the Eiffel Tower. This time we approached from the Ecole Militaire at the opposite end of the Champs du Mars. We managed to plan it so we only had a few minutes to wait for the 10pm show - the Eiffel Tower glitters for 10 minutes on the hour every night. It was a special moment to spend with a special person.

We could do no more. Back to the hotel to catch up a bit more on our time apart and watch Sex & The City in French. The next morning we took the Eurostar out of Paris - after 5 months away I was back home.

Spanish Castle Magic

Yesterday we took our second trip to Malaga. Last time we had decided to leave a tour of the Alcazaba and Gibralfaro Castle until we had a complete day to spend, so we headed straight for the Alcazaba only to be greeted by the worst words; "Cerrado Lunes". Fortunately this only applied to the Alcazaba, so we instead to the long trek up the hill to the castle instead.

The castle itself wasn't particularly interesting, but the views over Malaga and the surrounding area were breathtaking. It was built when the city was under Muslim rule in the 14th and 15th Centuries, and was certainly a superb lookout point (the name comes from the Arab for "hill" and the Greek for "lighthouse"). We had a great view over the sea, towards the mountains and of the city's cathedral, bullring and port. It was incredibly hot for a December day, but the wind at the top of the rampart made for a real difference in temperature. Back down the bottom, it was warm enough for us to eat lunch in the sunshine before heading off to the Museo de Artes y Tradiciones Populares.

I had seen an article about this museum in the local English language paper. It is in a building that previously housed the Victoria Tavern and it displays the day-to-day life of the people of Malaga, both working and middle classes. It's very well done, placing as many objects as possible in "room" settings to give them a more realistic feel.

On the recommendation of our host, last week we took a trip out to Ronda. It was a long bus journey and we had to catch the 7am bus to Marbella. As we travelled back inland, the sun rose over the sea making Marbella oddly picturesque! Having spent the last few months in mountains I think I may have started to take the scenery for granted, so I made sure I enjoyed every minute as the bus swerved around the mountain roads.

Our first stop was the Plaza de Toros, Spain's first purpose built bullring still in use. Inside was also a museum detailing the history of the bullfight, although I would have appreciated a bit more information about the fight itself. You could walk almost throughout the whole building, including onto the ring itself and into the paddocks. We watched one girl training a horse for a while with an amazing disply of balance - riding without stirrups or reins. The bullring also had displays of riding gear and an exhibition on duelling with swords and pistols.

Ronda is a town cut in two by a gorge, across which the Puerto Nuevo links both halves of the town. The bridge provides some of the most spectacular views of the trip so far, miles and miles of mountains. It was incredibly relaxing - like Villefranche-du-Conflent, I could quite happily revisit Ronda just to sit out in the sunshine. I'd also like to return to try and find a decent restaurant. After the worst meal of the trip (and I didn't think I'd say that after Marseille) we went in search of the Bandit Museum.

Lots of tourists come to Ronda to take in the views, but the locals obviously want to get in on the act. There are a huge number of museums for such a small place, many of them seemingly set up in people's houses! The Museo del Bandolero is no exception. It's a very impressive collection of bandit memorabilia, from costumes to birth and death certificates to comics and videos. I'm not sure I learnt too much from the museum, but it was good for just a couple of Euros.

For another couple of Euros we visited the museum under Puerto Nuevo. The small exhibition explained how it took several hundred years for technology to catch up to the design of the bridge and how important the bridge has been to Ronda's development as a town. It also gave us a better view of the ravine itself. Then it was back to the bus station and the long journey back to Monda.

Unless I have the time and the facilities in Paris or Amsterdam I suspect this will be my last update until I return to British shores. As much as I am looking forward to returning home, I will miss Monda. It's a wonderful little town in a really beautiful area. It's the sort of place I can imagine living. Maybe I'll return one day.

Picture This

Darren's uploaded lots of new photographs from La Fonda, Figueres, Montserrat, Malaga, Marbella, Gibraltar and Monda for you to view. And Blogger is providing me with a nifty little slideshow function on the sidebar which I'll probably use for pictures of our latest location.

Yesterday morning we went for a walk. Christina took us and Matt - an American WWOOFer who has been with us for the last week - to a spot from where we could walk to a lovely view over Marbella and of the sea. At first the sea and sky blended seamlessly, but eventually we got a very faint view of Gibraltar and Morocco. Tomorrow we are taking a day off to go to Ronda, a town about 60kms away which is apparently a very nice example of an old fashioned Spanish town. It is also home to the oldest bullring in Spain.

Enjoy the photos!

Take The Long Way Home

We spent yesterday on British soil once more! Being this close, we felt the need for a visit to Gibraltar. We caught the first bus out of Monda to Marbella, then another to La Linea. Watching the sun rise during the journey, the big rock came into view. As we got closer the Atlas mountains of north Africa also became visible. Once in La Linea, we walked over the border and across the runway of Gibraltar airport into the territory. We then walked through the town to the cable car which took us to the top of the rock.

For an extra £1.50 (yes, that is good old sterling) we also got an audiotour which gave us a very interesting potted history of Gibraltar. Most importantly however we got to see the monkeys! The Barbary Macaques are famously the only wild monkeys found in Europe, and they were very entertaining. We particularly enjoyed one small ape tucking into a pineapple, and tried not to laugh too much when another stole a tourist's bag, took it out of reach and studiously unzipped all the compartments before leaving it when no food was discovered inside.

Back in the town, we had a pub lunch before hopping on some of the local buses to guide ourselves to the southernmost tip. We alighted at the 100 ton gun where we had the museum all to ourselves to investigate. We then continued south to Europa Point. Unfortunately the weather had really turned against us at this point and we could only just make out Africa across the surprisingly narrow strait of water.

We used our remaining time to peruse the many "duty free" shops on Main Street before walking back over the frontier into Spain. Then we discovered that - once more - we had misread the bus timetable and missed our planned bus back to Marbella. By the time we had gone to Estepona and then to Marbella the last bus to Monda had long since departed. A taxi worked out cheaper than a hotel or hostel would have done, so another €20 taxi fare was spent. I think I'm going to start taking photos of all these bus timetables...

How Much Is That Doggy In The Window?

I like getting a night train. There's something magical about going to sleep in one place and waking in another. There is also something incredibly English about going to Malaga. We had a slight change of plan in who we were staying with. We are in a village called Monda which is a fairly typical southern Spanish village - to our eyes at least! Our host is Christina, an Englishwoman who has lived in Spain for over 20 years, so her opinion is somewhat different. I like it here a lot though. We are staying at her house in the village and travelling to the land each day which is about 30 minutes walk. This is quite a departure for us - firstly the feeling of "going to work" and also being near some civilisation. We can go to the pub at night here! We're also just a few minutes away from buses to Malaga and Marbella and lots of places inbetween.

The land is on several levels and is dotted with orange trees. We've been digging up new plots for the most part to plant in. I think Christina sells some of her produce but most of it is for her own use. We normally get a lift up and walk back when we're finished. On our first walk back we stopped to read a sign about some local walks when I heard a squeaking coming from the nearby bins. I knew it was going to be more trouble than it was worth but I just couldn't resist such a distress call. A plastic bag was writhing in one of the bins - I fished it out and there were two newborn puppies inside. Darren thought he had seen a vets in the village so we carried them back with us.

It turned out there was no vets. We tried to call some local dogs homes - one that spoke English said they had no room and the others we simply couldn't converse with. Christina was unable to help as she was busy. Without any way of feeding them they were not going to make it through the night. We couldn't keep them in the house and unfortunately this story simply could not have a happy end.

On our first day off (last Saturday) we took the bus to the city of Malaga. The city was not at all what I expected it to be. It's probably true what they say - all that most tourists see of Malaga is the airport. Which is a shame because it's a lovely little city. It's nice and manageable to walk around and there is lots to see including 23 (I think) museums. Our main reason for visiting was to see the Picasso Museum. I've never been much of a studier of Picasso's work, but - like the Dali Museum - it was interesting to see some of his less famous work and how he came to Cubism. It makes it a little easier to understand. We had fun improving our Spanish as none of the titles were in English. Not that Picasso always makes it completely obvious what he's painting!

We thought about visiting the Moorish castle grounds but decided to leave it until we had a full day to appreciate them. Instead we went to the Interactive Music Museum. It wasn't bad althoughall of the explanations were in Spanish so we probably didn´t get anywhere near as much out of it as we could. We did however see some of the Rodin statues which are currently displayed on the city's streets including The Thinker.

The weather has mostly been beautifully sunny, but today has been wet and very windy. Instead of kick our heels at the house, we took a bus to Marbella. What a horrible place! OK, it's probably not improved by the weather (which was distinctly drier and warmer than in Monda), but it's a fairly soul-less town. Dali has some good sculptures which was the highlight of our day. You can tell that Marbella is where the wealthier tourists go - it's full of designer(ish) shops and restaurants selling lobster for 75€. We wondered round, got the cheapest meal we could without resorting to McDonalds and came back.

Food Glorious Food

Sorry, I've got some catching up to do haven't I? Let's start with our final week in Catalonia.

The one thing I most wanted to do was visit the Dali Theatre Museum in Figueres. About 2 hours north of where we were staying, we decided to visit on a weekday in the hope that it wouldn't be too busy. If Saturdays are busier than I'm very glad we went on a Thursday! There were a lot of guided tours and school trips which was a particular nightmare when they stood in front of a piece you wanted to view. However, it is a fantastic place to visit.

The entire museum stands as a piece of art. The experience begins with the outside, decorated with Dali's symbolic eggs and bread rolls and the statues in Placa Gala i Salvador Dali. Once inside you are greeted by the open courtyard containing what Dali considered the biggest surrealist monument in the world - it's almost a compilation of pieces by both himself and other surrealist artists. There is then the stage area, dominated by a massive backdrop of his beloved wife Gala. Dali's love and passion of his wife oozes out of almost every room in the museum. The museum also contains the Mae West room - along with the famous Mae West lips sofa, other pieces have been arranged so that, when viewed from high up a long way away (or in this case up some stairs through a concave lens) the face of Mae West is created. There are actually very few of Dali's most famous works in the museum and it's interesting to see where he started and ended rather than just the things you already know.

On our final evening in L'Ametlla del Valles we visited the restaurant we had been working for over the last month. It would have been easy - having looked forward to this meal for 5 weeks and already tasted (albeit in a much more rustic form) what the chef and his staff could do - to be disappointed with the meal. However, disappointed we most certainly were not. Every course surpassed our expectations. We were first presented with appetisers of veal tartare and tuna sashimi. For starter Darren had foie gras cannelloni and I had a wild mushroom stew. My main course was veal cheeks and Darren had the Butifarra - a traditional Catalan sausage which absolutely astounded both of us for it's complexity of taste and velvety texture. We were then served a delicious lemon and ginger drink to cleanse our palettes before dessert - figs and red berries of toasted bread for me, pumpkin pie for Darren. We really were incredibly impressed. This is food which deserves to be eaten and enjoyed, and I really hope that La Fonda goes on to be as successful as it should be.

It was time to move on. The following evening we left Lluisa to catch the night train to Malaga from Barcelona...

The Incidentals

It’s been a bit weird at this WWOOF. I really love the area, being so close to Barcelona, the restaurant, the house and our host Lluisa. But it’s a difficult time for her as the restaurant is not doing good business. This is demoralising for everyone involved, including us. It’s also meant that Lluisa has had to go to lots of meetings and hasn’t been able to guide our work. So we’ve ended up doing a lot of weeding - it’s often the safest thing to do on someone else’s land. Lluisa herself has said the vegetable patch has started to resemble a Japanese garden! But there's only so much weeding you can do, and we're seriously running out of ways to occupy our time. We feel a bit like we're imposing and that we're not earning our keep which is not a great feeling, but Lluisa still seems happy for us to be here.

Lluisa's is quite a cautionary tale. Her original vision was to work in the kitchen and garden herself, but she spends most of her time doing business and trying to promote the restaurant which she doesn't enjoy and doesn't feel she is particularly good at. She recruited a head chef, and he is absolutely brilliant. Maxi is originally from Argentina, and I think he was working with some top, top chefs before coming here, partly for a less stressful life. It’s unlikely I know, but if anyone viewing this blog is in Catalunya over the next few months, come to La Fonda in L’Ametlla del Valles as it’s a really wonderful restaurant with a very talented chef in the kitchen. We can’t wait to be proper paying customers before we leave – every time we go in for our meals with the staff we have another look at the menu. I've really got my fingers crossed that things improve over the next few months as it's a fantastic project and I'd hate to see it close.

We have managed to get a few other jobs done. Last week we harvested the olive tree and got a huge haul. Sorting cut this down to about half, but we still think there is about 10kg. They’ve all gone into a bin of water which we had to change twice (without touching or spilling any olives, not easy) and then changed for salt water. Hopefully they’ll be edible before we leave – I don’t really like olives but I still want to try one! Our favourite job of the week is to collect things for the restaurant on a Thursday morning. It’s surprising just how productive a small piece of land can be. We pick peppers, tomatoes (if they ever ripen), aubergines, courgettes, lettuces, spinach and figs, as well as basil, rosemary, thyme, chives, mint and various flowers (some for decoration, some for cooking).

Last week the weather had turned quite a lot colder - cold enough for Lluisa to light the fire! This week has been warm enough in the sun for us to work outside in T-shirts, an instant indicator that we are English rather than Spanish as they’re already wrapped up in winter coats. It's cold at night though, especially in the caravan. We've got three duvets on the bed, and it's a real struggle to get out of the cosiness in the mornings. And my tan is fading fast!

We've eventually sorted out our final home for the year. After contacting many places in the south of Spain, one person replied to say they didn't need anyone, but that they had friends who were thinking of taking on helpers. I spoke to Natalie yesterday and we're booked in as her and Mark's first WWOOFers! They are based near Estepona in Malaga. We're going to go to Barcelona tomorrow to book our overnight train. It's all fairly mysterious as we could only talk briefly over a bad line so I'm quite excited (and Darren's rather apprehensive!).

Barcelona

Our first stop on our latest trip into Barcelona was to see it’s most famous landmark – La Sagrada Familia. I visited Gaudi’s unfinished temple to the Holy Family a few years ago, but Darren hadn’t been so I insisted that we go. In any case it’s worth returning to see the additions that have been made. It’s fantastic to see such a work in progress – we’ve seen a few cathedrals and churches so far on our trip (unavoidable in Western Europe) but they are all old buildings. We opted for an audio guide which was a wise idea as there is so much detail already in the church and obviously a lot to learn about the project’s past and present. I like the fact that as different people work on different parts they use Gaudi as inspiration but bring their own style to the piece. Darren seemed torn as to whether they should have continued with the building or left it as a tribute, but Gaudi himself spent the last years of his life drawing up detailed plans and making models (many of which were destroyed during the Spanish Civil War) and I don’t think he would have wanted it to remain unfinished. The thing that struck both of us most of all was not just the scale of the completed sections, but how big the thing will be when it is eventually finished! I wonder if we’ll ever get to see the finished article in our lifetime…

We then hotfooted it to our new local pub to catch the end of the Everton v Liverpool match (and a scandal it was too!) We then checked into our hostel just down the road – it wasn’t very secure so we kept our small bag with us for the rest of the evening. Back in the pub we found some decent seats at the bar and stayed there to watch the footie results come in, the Aston Villa v Man Utd match and the rugby. There were again a lot of opposing supporters (are there no Saffy bars in Barca?), but the atmosphere was definitely not as friendly this time around. It was a tense and exciting match though – the South Africans deserved to win the tournament and our boys can be proud. As we’d planned an early start the next morning we grabbed a pizza and returned to our dormitory.

Often when we arrive at a new WWOOF we like to take a peek at our hosts bookcase for any English books. The only English book here is a 10 year old edition of Lonely Planet’s guide to Spain, so I’ve been studying it and one of the first places that stood out was Montserrat. The Serrated Mountain is home to a monastery dating back nearly a thousand years and the Black Virgin, a wooden sculpture of Mary that brings pilgrims from far and wide. It gets it’s name from it’s unusual shape, and on a clear day you can apparently see as far as Mallorca. Unfortunately this view was not for us on Sunday, but it was well worth the trip in any case.

It took us quite a while to get there due to line closures and difficulties working out which ticket to get and how to get it out of the machine (European train stations seem to be a bit temperamental when it comes to British credit cards). We arrived around lunchtime and grabbed a bite to eat before taking a very steep funicular up to Saint Joan. From there you can walk to the top of the mountain at Saint Jeroni, but being short on time we decided just to stroll back to the monastery via the vestry and viewpoint at St Miquel. I’m glad we didn’t choose to walk up as it was very steep!

Back in the village (as well as the monastery there are a few gift shops, restaurants and hotels), we thought we’d better take a look at the monastery, although it wasn’t what had originally inspired us to visit. We were very pleasantly surprised as the church was very beautiful. The courtyard looked quite new and polished – a lot of it has been rebuilt over the last 150 years. We decided not to queue for a close up of the Black Virgin, and instead watched people filing past from the pews. Inside was equally ornate with a lot of small multi-coloured chandeliers. They were preparing for a ceremony so we couldn’t view the front of the church close up as it was cordoned off. On our way out was a peculiar little room filled with gifts sent in thanks to the Black Virgin.

Our combined train ticket included entrance to a multimedia exhibition about the lives of the monks which we had a quick look around but didn’t really have the time or patience to view everything. We had a final look around the gift shop, and left for our train. The journey home was another event. We had to wait for the connection back into Barcelona, and arrived at Barcelona Sants just a little late for a train to catch the last bus from La Garriga. So we took the next train to Granollers to catch the last bus from there. After waiting nearly an hour we eventually deciphered the timetable to work out that the last bus had actually been three hours earlier! It took us another 30 minutes to get a cab, thus negating the financial reason for staying in Barcelona in the first place. Live and learn as they say…

Swing Low Sweet Chariot

Last Saturday became quite a series of quests. First was to see if there by any slim chance was somewhere we could watch the football and rugby in nearby Granollers. Darren found out about an Irish bar but we didn't really know where it was. It was tricky to find because it is an upstairs bar with very little downstairs signage. We eventually found a sign which told us that it wasn't open until 6pm (so no football) and would be showing the Spanish football match that night (so no rugby).

As it is only a few Euros to Barcelona we figured we'd take the train and see if we could find anywhere in there - quest number two. We got off the train at Passeig de Gracia which is usefully on Las Ramblas where we felt our best bet at finding either an English pub or an internet cafe would be. After a bit of walking up and down we found our place - the Jules Verne just south of Plaça Catalunya (which was useful as that was where our last train would leave from). We settled down with our pints and watched the football match, then ventured off to find some food. After a little walking "off the beaten track" and not finding anywhere, we resorted back to the tourist trap of Las Ramblas where we had some very average food (future mission - find good tapas in Barcelona).

After our meal we had an hour before the rugby started so we had another wander and came across the fantastic Mercat de la Boqueria just off Las Ramblas. A riot of colour from the fruit and veg and sweet stalls, and a riot of smell from the fish stalls. It all looked amazing though - imagine that being your local supermarket?!

Back to the pub 30 minutes before kick off and it was packed. I was surprised how quiet the rendition of God Save The Queen was until the French national anthem started - the English pub was full of French people! Everyone was friendly with their rivalry though and it was a really good atmosphere throughout the match with many reprised renditions of the La Marseillaise and of Swing Low Sweet Chariot. Of course it was all the better when we won - I think we may be back there this Saturday! I wonder if there will be many South Africans there though...

So to the return journey. Our host's boyfriend had said that he may be able to pick us up from Granollers but in the event he couldn't. There will be a taxi or two around though, surely? Nope! So we ventured back towards the town chatting with three other English travellers who had the same idea as us. We spotted one cab who kindly called another and waited so that none of us got stranded. We're worked out that we can actually stay in a cheap hostel in Barcelona next weekend for less money than the cab, so I think we'll visit Montserrat on Sunday. Hangovers permitting of course...

The Rain In Spain

It took us a long time to travel not very far, but we have finally made it to another country. True to form, our arrival heralded rain - yet another spectacular thunderstorm in the mountains. We've had a few days of cloud and rain and (shock horror!) cold, but today brightened up considerably and it was wonderfully sunny this afternoon.

We are about 25km north of Barcelona in a village called l'Ametlla del Valles. We are sleeping in a caravan (that's fun during a thunderstorm) in the garden and there is a smallish vegetable plot with a few fruit trees. Our host Lluisa owns an organic restaurant in the village called La Fonda and the garden exists primarily to help supply the restaurant.

Our first day was just the usual weeding, but our second day Lluisa took us up to her family's property called Fontdellops (which means 'fountain of the wolf'). The nearest neighbours to here are about 6km away, and it was a long drive up a rough road up a mountain. No-one is currently living at the house, but it is the epitome of being away from it all. It was incredibly peaceful and very beautiful. We spent the day collecting mainly walnuts and chestnuts, but also apples, grapes, various herbs and a few mushrooms (but not as many as we hoped). The place lived up to it's name when we saw a very tame small wolf (or grey fox, we couldn't decide which). It was clearly quite ill as it had lost a lot of fur from it's back, but it came quite close to us on it's quest for apples. All in all it was a wonderful day's work!

The best thing about this place is the food. On the days the restaurant is open (Thursday - Sunday) we can eat with the staff and the food is fantastic. And after the weekend we get to eat the leftovers! Eating with the staff (just 4 of them) is really good because we get to hear some Spanish (or Catalan) conversation. This isn't the best place to learn Spanish though - the Catalans are far to proud of their own language!

Misty Mountain Hop

Well we had a fantastic weekend in Villefranche de Conflent. It is a walled village in the middle of the Pyrenees - there's only really two streets so you feel quite at home very quickly! After our first walk around we thought we'd see if my French hotel reservation had been successful, only to find that our auberge was shut until 4pm. We decided to take Le Petit Train Jaune further into the mountains to Font Romeu which was wonderful. You can sit in an open air carriage which is especially exhilarating when you go over a couple of rather high bridges! Our plan was to spend 90 minutes in Font Romeu before getting the train back, but when we arrived it turned out that Font Romeu station is actually nowhere near Font Romeu. A 5km hike was out of the question so we meandered around a couple of the nearer villages. There wasn't much around, but we did get to see the world's biggest solar furnace at Odeillo from above. It was VERY impressive!

We sat inside on our return train, and checked into our hotel on our return. Yes it was reserved! We changed and headed out for some food. It turned out that only two restaurants were open in Villefranche de Conflent and I think we were lucky to get in either of them by being very English and eating a bit earlier than the locals. It was the best meal of the trip so far. Fantastic food, beautifully cooked, good local wine and very reasonable too.

The next day we first went to some nearby underground caves, Les Grandes Canalettes. They were pretty good, although we got stuck behind a Spanish tour group and there was a musical section with a "light show" which did nothing to enhance the formations. After a crepe for lunch, we ventured to Fort Liberia. This is halfway up the mountain that Villefranche de Conflent lies on, and was built to further protect the town. It's quite a hard walk uphill to get to though and our first stop at the top was for an ice-cream. We then followed the mapped guided tour around and took in the views. It was certainly a good place to build a fort as you can see down three valleys and you could probably see an enemy from miles away. Alas it wasn't such a clear day for us.

We had a final look around the village and bought a few presents before we were due to catch the train home. It was a marvellous weekend, and all the better because we more or less got by completely in French. I'm definitely understanding a lot more now, although I still think Darren understands more than I do. And we leave France in three days time!

We're definitely ready to move on now. We're trying to plan for the next few months, and it's getting a bit fraught. I've e-mailed a few WWOOFs and not had any reply which is very frustrating. So we don't know where our last stay of the year will be yet...