Category: Spain

It’s always a joy when public transport is so easy to use. Google Maps plots the route, tap n go pays the way. Bus shows up on time. Busy too: people going to work dressed to impress or can’t be arsed; tourists. A kind old lady asked someone to move so I could sit down. Been rude not to, though I am starting to get a complex.

A grand mass of apartments surrounds the old centre. After a flood in 1957 when 81 people died, they diverted the river. The initial proposals was to build a highway. Due to a public campaign it became an urban park, full of life and art.

Started thinking: today we think of a public campaign as something on-line, petitions, angry fb posts etc. In the 60s? Meetings, letters to the editors, public meetings? Was it more civilised? Or is it an example of early influencers influencing?

The old market is full of colour, character and people shopping. Queues at the fish counters. A convent converted to a cultural centre. A manequin store – they are used at a religious festival. Looked pagan to me.

The Arts and Science buildings show what can be done tastefully with adventure in modern architecture. Scale meets ambition. Fantastic.

Tomorrow head out to brave the psychopaths on the cycle paths. Wish us luck…..

Castello de la Plana may have a plan. We need plan A, B and C today to navigate some punctures.

What a great route: cycle paths or roads prioritised to cyclists and walkers mainly all the way. The drivers are 99% great: stopping where the paths cross the road as we approach – no matter how wide nor busy the road. The challenge is the 1% so you can’t take the stopping for granted.

Valencia seems to have thought about Active Travel a lot. You get the feeling they have given powered scooters out to everyone – and the younger you are the faster the model. We tootle along sedately- they cut in from behind, diagonally – I was waiting for one to go overhead. All to set the nerves jangling.

Balazs, one of the tour leaders, did a sterling job today – I don’t usually name names in this blog and today is the deserved exception. Not only did he cycle up with my forgotten water bottles, he helped get us going through a series of punctures.

My fault, I thought only yesterday “great 3000+ miles a nary a puncture have we”. 2 from a thorn – the first time we didn’t find it, so it kindly did a better job the next time to show us the offending spot. The other turned out to be a pinch puncture, aka too much rush on my part. All is well, and a useful reminder things do happen, so deal with them.

Into a rest day tomorrow and to test our understanding of how to catch a bus.

Spain has 3 main costs and 18 Costas. That doesn’t include the coffee shops. Though we haven’t seen that many “obvious” chains, barring Decathlon, Spar (francise?) and AleHop’s distinctive cow.

The concrete factory we passed leaving this morning will have a secure future if the amount of housing along the coast is anything to go by. Inland it’s pretty and old villages. Coastal it’s a large development. Pretty quiet today – if everyone was in it’d be chaotic. Maybe someone has shares in the concrete business.

The old service road we went on was lovely. Fields of oranges, olives, pomegranates, almonds. All in various states of ripeness. The fella knocking the almonds off has a good technique: he needs it to reach that high for a long time. A lived in face – maybe he modelled for the mural we saw.

The land is a lot drier than we’ve seen for a while, offset by stone walls with a great earthen texture. Who built them? Pre concrete days.

The way into Castello de la Plana is on a great rail-trail route. It must have been a lovely wee line. The main line is very active – the goods train carrying 3 decks of cars was 2 or 3 days long.

The clue we’ve left Catalonia is we head to Valencia tomorrow and into a rest day.

After yesterday’s excitement, today looked a lot calmer. Costa Dorada is the destination. Last night the thunder and lightening was impressive. It will all have passed by the time we leave, even though it was hosing it done when we got up.

There’s an impressive petro-chemicals area just outside Tarragona. We had plenty of time to look at it as we navigated the unexpectedly heavy traffic out of town. Going slowly around the floods, the stranded cars and the general debris from the last 24hours. Good to see things being made: looked well run operations from the general housekeeping.

Then into coastal towns. Some looks like a scene from El Dorado, the BBC Series. With lots of infrastructure in place for houses yet to be built. It reminded me of the 2nd series of Gold about the Brinksmat Robbery and timeshare scandals.

Siestas are taken seriously. The streets we pass through look like the benches on a quiet day in the House of Lords. Minus the Ermin.

I forgot to mention the rain. Only 10km worth of the proper stuff.

Afore I forget. It’s good to note the Sagrada Familia is taking longer than HS2 to complete. Off course, this may prove to be wrong in the future.

Today there was a chance of rain, just a chance. Main rain is forecast for tomorrow. We thought. Had we tuned into the USA State Dept we might not have been so relaxed. Turns out they had issued warnings for Tarragona region: major storm, typhoon level winds, serious flooding predicted. Read on…..videos courtesy of Masood, always working!

It held off as we headed out of Barcelona. Busy Monday Barcelona – we were heading against the traffic: the numerous roundabouts (surely a lesson copied from Milton Keynes and East Kilbride) ensure we engage fully with it. Whilst it’s mainly bike paths, the good designers have ensured they switch from the left to the right to the left side. A skill that crosses international boundaries.

Barcelona extends a long way. It’s some 20miles before things quieten down. Ahead you can see the weather front. Good news thinks I, its ahead of us. To the back of the class. A spit, a spot. Then a bucket full. Then bathfull. It’s like the Morecambe and Wise “Singin’ in the Rain” sketch.

“What’s that noise?” raises a dilema. It’s a manhole cover lifting and dropping. Is it someone trying to get out? Is it the volume of water? The fact they are all doing it is the clue.

So the Heaven’s open, the roads flood. We pedal on – it’s always adds a frisson of adrenalin to ride through puddles you can’t see the bottom of. Follow the person in front sometimes works.

After lunch it settled down enough to dry out. Hose down the bikes and feet. And explore the Roman Town of Tarragona.

Photos more limited today. Barbara’s camera objected fatally to the rain. My memory card lost it’s memory (age related probably).

Tomorrow it promises to be just a wet day.