JustGo Italy 2017


Six months ago Kim thought it would be a fantastic adventure to drive a brand new motorhome from the factory in Tuscany back to the hire company in Toddington. Friday is fast approaching and, perhaps, our first motorhome experience should have been a little less ambitious! Our flights are booked and the route is planned.

We have 10 nights to bring back a vehicle that is 7m long, 3.2m high and 2.5m wide without getting stuck down a narrow lane or under a bridge.

There have been numerous discussions about the route. We discounted a drive along the Med, across the Pyrenees and up the Bay Of Biscay. It sounded fantastic until we worked out the mileage. Our ‘shorter’ route is still about 1100 miles.

17th and 18th are to be spent in Siena, 19th and 20th are set aside for Luca and Pisa. We then head to the Cinque Terre National Park for a couple of nights at Deiva Marina.

Our long trek back through Europe then begins. One night at Lugano, the next at Freiburg followed by Ediger on the Mosel. Our final night is at Bray-Dunes before heading to Calais for the ferry home on 27th.

Tamariu

There were no kayaks for us this afternoon. Sadly, it’s the price we paid for taking advantage of a late break – kayaks are only available at weekends.

Our last afternoon was spent with Kim reading on the beach, John reading on our balcony and Matt ‘going on an adventure’. We think his adventure was to buy sweets at the supermarket before retiring to his room to eat them!

Matt declined to come on a family adventure, driving to Tamariu which is the next village heading towards France.

The winding, mountainous roads made the 5k trip seem longer than it was but the village was worth the drive. Very similar to Llafranc but smaller. We did notice that it seemed to have more restaurants open than Llafranc and it would have been a nice place for dinner if we had all been together.

Girona

The sun was trying harder today but not enough to tempt John and Matt into kayaking so it was the 40 minute drive to Girona for us.

As we arrived, the sun came out and finding a car park suddenly became more complicated when the free one was full! We ended up in an underground multi-storey with parking spaces only slightly wider than the car.

We made our way out into the sun and found ourselves just across the river from the medieval city, it looked stunning and reminded us very much of the river front properties in Trondheim just with better foundations. The river was crystal clear and the fish were enormous.

We headed for La Fabrici, a small cafe run by professional cyclist Christian Meier and his wife. It was tucked in a small square away from the hustle and bustle of the main routes. Matt succumbed to a large slice of Oreo cake, washed down with an orange and ginger zinger. John and Kim shared a Nutter Butter – toasted bread covered with almond butter, sliced banana, coconut and nasturtium flowers. It was delicious!!

Feeling fortified, we walked back down to the river to see the ‘Eiffel Bridge’ before walking back up narrow, paved streets through the Jewish Quarter to the Cathedral. By this time, the sun was making up for lost time and we decided to head back to Llafranc to make the most of our last day.

We would definitely come back to Girona. We spent too long in Barcelona but Girona has to be worth a couple of days to fully explore its history and alley ways. We need to do the cathedral properly, the Jewish Museum, walk the city walls and gaze in the river long enough for Kim to see the terrapins that live in it.

Padstow in Catalunya

Well, not quite but there were a lot of similarities between Padstow and Cadaques.

Matthew has a cold and the weather wasn’t great for lazing on the beach so we thought we’d head for the ‘Dali triangle’. Last year we did the museum at Figueres, this year it was the turn of Cadaques.

The roads was quiet and easy driving in the little Fiat Panda until we hit the mountains. Why do satnavs mever warn of steep inclines and sharp bends? We headed through the Cap de Creus mountains, the foothills of the Pyrenees, to the eastern most point of Spain.

The last 15k of the journey reminded us of Norway. Our ears popped but the winding road was slightly kinder to us than some we had travelled on in June.

Cadaques was very pretty and the weather wasn’t bad so we stopped for refreshment in the old Casino. Matt’s eyes lit up at the sight of a pool table and he managed to stop sniffing long enough for a couple of games with John. 1-1 was the final score which didn’t really suit either of them but they recognised we couldn’t stay there all day.

 

We had a wander round the town before heading for the museum which was promoting a Dali and Man Ray exhibition. As seems typical, the museum was at the top of a steep hill which we climbed with very bad grace. Since arriving in Spain we have walked up the equivalent of 160 floors and a distance of 52 miles (according to Kim’s iPhone) and our legs are noticing it. Matt has obviously gone further and higher than the rest of us!

Once at the top of the hill, we found the museum shut and the exhibition finished last week! That was the cue for our return trip to Llafranc!

Palamos to Begur

We woke to a damp and misty morning and decided to take a trip down the coast to Palamos. We’d read that it is one of the best preserved fishing villages on Costa Brava and its only 25 minutes away!

We drove into the town, expecting to see something pretty and we were treated to our first sight of a Costa Brava holiday resort. It was rather a shock to see how ugly a large part of the sea front was.

Undeterred, we headed for the historic centre and wandered round narrow, paved roads surrounded by colourful shops and apartments.  We were impressed by the fresh fruit and veg on offer, we haven’t found anything like it in Llafranc or Pallafrugell.

We stopped for a drink and decided that we wouldn’t wait for the fishing boats to return in the afternoon but would head up the coast to Begur.  Our walk back to the car took us through the port where we were mesmerised by a small boat being lifted out on a hoist. Shortly followed by a period of gazing at the fish in the clear waters of the Marina.  They looked similar to those we’d seen in the Aquarium but couldn’t remember a single name.

The weather was still misty but we could just see the outline of hotels dominating the coast as far as we could see. We really are rather lucky with our choice of location!

Back to Begur to see the medieval town and castle. We walked up a very steep hill, through some very pretty streets to the castle at the top of the hill.

On a clear day, according to the map, you can see for miles around….

We were just about able to see Matt playing King of the Castle…..

As a treat for the long damp walk, we stopped for lunch in one of the main squares. Being British, we sat outside until the damp and cold finally started to penetrate. John was fascinated by the olive tree and we all wondered if we could pick the olives and eat them (we’ll be asking google later).

Our treat on the way back to Llafranc was a visit to a hypermarket where we happily pottered around, checking out what was on offer. John was particularly taken with the pick ‘n mix nuts

We chose the direct route back to the hotel rather than the coast road, the weather really isn’t great today!

Jardins de Cap Roig and a lazy afternoon

A leisurely start on a sunny day, lucky us!
The breakfast choice was just as good as we remembered and well worth the extra cost of the hotel, we might tease you with a photo before we leave!

Today’s trip was the 1.5 hour walk to the gardens at Cap Roig. The walk was just as hard as last year and the gardens just as stunning.

This year we’ll treat you to a picture of the castle built by the Woevodskys form the granite mines on the site.

On the walk back, we stopped for a late lunch at a little croissanteria in Palafrugell. We had a limited choice from the menu – today was the last day of opening before it along with most places close their doors for the winter. Chips and pizza it was!

The weather was glorious so Matt and Kim spent it on the beach while John read on our balcony. Why sit in the sand when you have the luxury of a seaview and a balcony?

We whiled away the afternoon, only Matt was brave enough to go in the sea.

Dinner was in a little local restaurant, the verdict on our meal? Nothing special! We won’t be going back there unless everywhere else is shut. Even then we might choose crisps and chocolate form the supermarket!!

Barcelona to LLafranc

We survived Barcelona without being mugged and headed out to the airport to pick up the hire car in the rain. We were pleased to leave, I’m not sure any of us are in a hurry to return which is a shame. Kim is muttering about a day trip just to see the monuments in Park Guell but she’ll soon forget about that!

We were rather worried, Goldcar car hire gets really poor reviews and pickup relies on a shuttle bus from airport to office. The whole experience was a real reminder that people are more likely to complain to praise. Directions to the shuttle bus were vague but we found the right place and the bus turned up on time. We paid the hidden charges which we’ve come to expect with hire cars and were on our way just after midday.

Our journey to Llafranc took a slight detour past the F1 Cicuit de Catalunya where we stopped for a photo – there wasn’t anything else to do but the boys are considering driving back there tomorrow for a tour of the circuit.

The weather’s been cloudy and cool but Llafranc is still pretty and quiet. We’ve upgraded Matt to his own room while we take advantage of a lovely sea view and balcony!

While we waited for lunch, Matt was off along the beach taking photos- it’s the most enthusiastic he’s been since we’ve been away.

After lunch we took a walk along the coast so Matt could plan his running route and he was off across the rocks in a shot, probably reminded of all those years rock pooling in Porthcothan!

 

Another busy day….

Today started with more Gaudi and a trip to Park Guell. Eusebi Guell intended to create a garden city in the space, having been inspired by those in England. His plan failed because only three of the sixty available plots were sold, we were able to view the park that remains. Having expected a park to be free, we hadn’t bought tickets to the monuments and missed most of Gaudi’s work which was a disappointment.

However we did see a beautiful park with walkways suspended over intricate columns and fantastic views over the city to the sea….. and a small group of buskers playing jazz!

The next stop was another park, this time at Montjuic. This involved the metro, vernacular railway and cable car. The Barcelona Metro has been easy to use, clean and not too busy – a far cry from our experience in New York!

 

The park at Montjuic is huge. It has a fort at the top of the mountain, runs across to the Olympic Stadium, is home to several museums and Barcelona’s Botanic Gardens. It’s also a difficult place to find a public toilet and a cafe for a short break! The views across the docks were unexpected, you can’t see much from beach level but up high you get to see the scale of the working port.

We were only a few minutes from the Miro Foundation so we voted for more culture! Our highlights were the Mercury Fountain (we need one in the garden) and what can only be described as the biggest rug in world.

More Metro for us as we headed to the Las Arenas Shopping centre. The centre is housed in an old bullring and the top floor is a 360 terrace giving panoramic views around the city. I think we have probably seen more than enough panoramic views of the city!!

Finally, we were hoping to see the Magic Fountain of Montjuic this evening but we are weary and have booked dinner at a time that clashes with the show. Instead of music, lights and dancing fountains, we just walked up to look at pools of water and used our imagination.

Barcelona has been exhausting and we’re looking forward to our trip up the coast for a few days of peace and quiet.

Sagrada Familia and a new room…

A visit to Sagrada Familia was the reason for staying in Barcelona and we’ve ticked that off the list! It is difficult to describe the impact the building has, both inside and out so you’ll just have google it yourselves because ‘wow’ doesn’t do it justice.

 

 

We arrived just as a number or local choirs started to sing and the sound was wonderful. There was a real mixture of choirs, from adults to schoolchildren, taking the opportunity to sing for visitors.

The museum was an interesting history of the development of the cathedral with plaster models, original plans by Gaudi and a short film describing his philosophy and approach to design an-amazingly talented man.

We headed back to the hotel to a new room free from the odour of cigarettes and marginally more space, woohoo! The only downside is that we overlook a busy road – fingers crossed for a better nights sleep.

 

We ventured all the way to a restaurant next door for dinner which was a good choice. Lovely food in very pleasant surroundings at a reasonable price before finally calling it a night.

A day of culture or ‘what does a Spanish department store and St Pancras International have in common?’

Before you start reading, please excuse typos and poor editing, the technology (or its operative) isn’t working that well, 😡😡

After a fairly disturbed night we started late.

Matt went for a run along the beach while John and I took our time over a very basic breakfast and negotiated a new room. Tonight’s room is marginally bigger but overlooking the road rather than the internal courtyard. Fingers crossed that it’s not too noisy, two thirds of us don’t work well on disturbed sleep. We’ll leave you to decide which two!

Our first stop was Casa Battlo which we admired from the outside before heading round the corner to a brilliant craft/DIY store.

Over 6 floors, it had everything you could need including the biggest display of coloured  bubble wrap John had ever seen. We also found a terrace with sneaky views over the back of Casa Battlo.

Next on the list was Gaudi’s La Pedrera. What an amazing building!

 

Gaudi’s talent left us speechless and the furnished apartment reminded us of Bagnoles and how much we missed it.

 

Next stop, Sagrada Familia which is the reason we’re here.
To answer the question in the title – both have eco friendly escalators that speed up when you stand on them. We admit we’re easily entertained!

Barcelona1 Hotel 0

We arrived to a warm, cloudy Barcelona and, much to our surprise, successfully negotiated the Airport shuttle into the city. We were very proud of our achievement and then the city started to fight back!

Our hotel is fairly central, about a mile back form the beach and walking distance to most of the Gaudi masterpieces. More about our hotel later…. we’ve stayed in better, the debate is whether we’ve stayed in worse!

A late breakfast fortified us in Cafe Emma and then we were off to the Aquarium.  Matt looked at everything on offer in Barcelona and chose the aquarium!  We walked through Las Ramblas while holding tightly to our belongings. tales of pickpockets ringing in our ears and then the rain started.  The decision was made, we would definitely go and visit some fish!

The marina is a vibrant area with a shopping centre, plenty of restaurants and lots of big expensive boats.

The aquarium was warm and dry and kept us entertained for a couple of hours. Matthew learned that fish come in different colours(!) and Kim learned how to tell the difference between a male and female shark.

The sun had appeared when we left so we headed for the beach and walked along the front before taking the cable car back across the harbour to Montjuic.

Three very weary Brays ended up back in Emma’s Cafe for dinner before adjourning to The English Tavern to watch the football. We were the only English in there and gave up when Man City went 2-0 down. The highlight for Matt was table football and beating Kim 2-0.

Now on to the hotel which appears to be tucked into a couple of floors of a serviced apartment block. We found reception on the second floor which is simply a man behind a desk. Our room is big enough for three beds but not if you want to walk between then or have more than one of us taking up floor space at any one time. And then there is the smell of cigarettes, a real reminder that smoking is still seen as more acceptable in large parts of Europe.  We were tired and forgave the room these issues until we woken by the guys next door coming back. It must be tissue paper for walls, they weren’t being noisy but it was like they were in the room with us. Either a new hotel or new room for us, we think.

According to Kim’s phone, we walked 10 miles. John is disbelieving but Kim trusts Apple implicitly.

Thirteen, fourteen and……homeward bound

An early start to miss the breakfast queues at The Edinburgh Larder and success! We were the first people in there. It’s not often we’re ahead of the rush so a small moment of smug satisfaction.

We debated what to do. Kim was feeling festivalled out while John had just got started.  Feeling fortified by breakfast we headed back to the venue of last nights final show to watch Three Men in a Boot present ‘A Sketchy History’. In post-apocalyptic Britain, ruled by Chanceller Sturgeon, they re-wrote history from the dawn of man. in less than an hour. We learned about the early story of Neanderthals and the Victoria Sponge as well as Trump’s involvement in building the Great Wall of China, Hadrians’s Wall and the Berlin Wall.
With 15 minutes between shows it was a stressful walk down the Royal Mile. Suitcases, huge crowds and lots of Street Performers really don’t mix.
Next stop was The City Art Center for Canvas No. 9…..a satire about modern art.  
We arrived late for the show staged on the top floor. It was already in full flow when we came barrelling out of the lift right into the middle of it. We had officially performed in our own Fringe spectacular!

 

Canvas No. 9 was a satire on art critics and modern art and only lasted 25 minutes. It’s fairly amazing how engaging the short performance was from a small theatre group from Leicester.

Free Fringe to too much Fringe…

We ventured out for dinner and found a lovely traditional Scottish restaurant called Howies and debated what to do to keep us awake until our final show at 11. Booking a show that late had seemed a good idea yesterday!

We thought we’d head for the 99 Comedy Club and take a chance that we could get into the free stand up show. We’d heard queues for Free Fringe could be enormous and the quality of shows poor – we were feeling brave.  We went up two flights of stairs and found ourselves in a cavern-like room with a granite ceiling, not something you see every day…. We saw three comedians who are quite famous, if only we could remember their names!! It was well worth a donation,

 

Our final show tonight was Adrian Gray and his 007 conspiracy theory! Hmm, not sure if we saw a talented young actor or someone with delusions of his own ability. As with all Conspiracy theories the plot was weak and we never did see 007 covered in Cheese. Of course we completely convinced by his theory that Unilever has more than one lever…….it didn’t get better than that!

From book loving to jazz….

We hit John’s magic 10 shows by 5pm so as Team GB are doing so well in the Olympics he feels we should do the same and he’s now moved the goalposts and we’re busily planning more……as long as they’re free!

 

The morning started with breakfast at The Edinburgh Larder and, despite it being only 9am, we had to queue for a table.  It was well worth it, ingredients are organic and the cafe is recognised for ‘slow food’, the cooked breakfast was fanatastic so back there tomorrow.
After breakfast it was a walk up to Edinburgh Castle. The Castle is amazing and it was interesting to see it up close after learning a smidgen of its history on yesterday’s tour. It seems a shame that the event seating created in the  Castle approach obscures the impact. We thought it might be temporary for the Tattoo although it looked fairly permanent up close.
Writers Museum

 

Our first ‘show’ was The Book Lovers Tour, starting outside the Writers Museum, tucked round the back of The Royal Mile (which was heaving at 11am). We set off at a brisk pace to the Southside where tourists don’t go unless lost. Most literary figures were clustered around the Medical School and University. We saw the birthplace of Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson, learned about the rivalry between Walter Scott and Mark Twain. Apparently Mark Twain blamed Scott for the American Civil War.
We wandered past the famous cafe where JK Rowling went to write the early chapters of Harry Potter.

 

Interestingly, we had stopped there for a cuppa yesterday and completely missed the plaque.
The next show felt like miles to walk but did provide our first glimpse of Arthur’s Seat. I’m not sure how we’d missed it before, it towers over the city! We definitely need to come back and be tourists rather than festival goers, there’s so much we haven’t got time to see. We’re here for the Festival so that’s what we’ll do!!
Our second show of the day was in yet another church hall and was a satirical comedy written by Tom Basden titled ‘Holes’ about four people stranded, on a desert island, after a plane crash. Cleverly done with very few props and quite entertaining.
A very brisk walk back to the Old Town for John Hunt at The Jazz Bar. John has been waiting for this all week, and it didn’t disappoint. John Hunt was fantastic, the cellar venue was packed and the only missing ingredient was the fug of cigarette smoke.

 

Our next booked show isn’t until 11pm tonight so John’s dozing in the apartment while I try and find something for us to do to keep us awake until then. The Edfringe app is brilliant at helping us to plan and get us to the venues.
Apologies for rubbish pictures, it seems rude to take them during performances in the venues and we keep forgetting to do ‘scenic’ which is a shame because the city is stunning.

From Knowing EU to Mark Watson….

Our first evening show was called ‘Knowing EU’ a political comedy on the Referendum result. We were treated to a Powepoint show, from an Aussie EU funding expert, educating us on EU facts interspersed with very bad jokes designed to insult every nationality in the EU. To be fair, he warned us about the jokes…..

With 4 hours to spare, we sat in the courtyard outside the Surgeons Hall venue and booked two more shows at the same venue…..it seems very lazy but neither of us fancied the long walk back to the new town.
Next show was ‘Biscuits (still) included’ and they were…. Chocolate chip cookies!   A one woman show from a comedian/writer/poet and a nice gentle way to spend an hour. John’s view: ‘The Fringe at its best’.
This was followed by Kim’s choice – ‘The Cucumber Crime’ a very hammy farce. John declined to comment on it but farcical predictability always makes Kim giggle.
For our final show of the day it was back to The Pleasance Courtyard to see Mark Watson in a show titled ‘I’m not Here’ loosely based on travelling to Australia with an invalid passport. He was fantastic and we both laughed from start to finish. We’d definitely see him again and he’s been the highlight of our trip, so far.

 

Old Town Tour, Arthur Smith and bubble wrap

Our day started with an early breakfast at The Thistle Stop Cafe. We are suckers for a bad pun! John tried porridge which wasn’t a good idea, it was made with water. Kim of course went for a traditional cooked breakfast including Haggis. We had booked a 10am walking tour and met our guide, Gareth the Welshman, at the foot of the castle in glorious sunshine and had a whistlestop tour of the history of Edinburgh’s Old Town.

 

Although, let’s be clear, the Old Town in places in newer than the new town which isn’t that new!  Confused we were…….in fact we still are.

We learned about George Heriot who was jeweller and money lender to Queen Anne – a clever business model to sell her the jewels then lend her money against them. He left the money to found the magnificent George Heriot school to educate orphans and the poor. Now it’s one of the top fee paying schools in the UK. A far cry from its roots. We also heard the story of James Barry – you’ll have to look that one up, it’s fascinating.
The tour ended in Princes Street Gardens, the boundary between old and new. Apparently covenants going back to 1750 mean that building on the south side of Princes Street is forbidden. The wealthy of 18th century Edinburgh New Town didn’t want their view across the valley spoiled. Bad news for Waverley Station that wants to build a couple of retail floors above the platforms. It’ll be interesting to see how long Edinburgh is able to hold onto its Unesco Heritage Site status. Will historic importance or financial greed win?
There are posters and adverts everywhere, the choice is overwhelmingly. There’s also a sense of guilt when you’re handed a flyer for a show, by someone desperately trying to promote it, and you have no intention of going.

 

Just time for tea and cake at the National Gallery before heading off to Arthur Smith and mindlessness. Arthur Smith in a skin tight body suit is an image that we stay with us!

 

We spent an hour learning the art of mindlessness. All you need is to breathe, put your pants on the right way and burst bubble wrap. You just have to love a show that gives you bubble wrap to pop – even Matt would have loved that one!
Three ‘shows’ down, only another seven to go to meet John’s challenge. There is a chance we’ll be counting the Queen’s coach and free fireworks in the tally.

Festival goers! Us? Who’d have thought it!

John has a view that one should arrive in Edinburch by train, reality is that it’s a lot cheaper to fly so Easy Jet it was. We arrived in a beautifully sunny Edinburgh yesterday. A fantastic journey from the airport on the top of a double decker bus but not as good as the train.

We’re staying in a small apartment right on The Royal Mile. It’s down a dark alley with a winding granite staircase. There are lovely high ceilings and big sash windows. Absolutely stunning if you could see further than two foot out of any window! The joys of Old Town living!

 

Pulling the suitcase up the hills to find the apartment wore John out but no time for a snooze, we were straight out to our first show. A Capella group in a converted Church in the new town. The walk there had been lovely, through grand residential streets with views of the Forth. The group, All The Kings Men, were Very clever and full of energy but we were both glad the show was only an hour. We decided A Capella was ok for about 3 songs!
We found ourselves in a small basement restaurant called Belted for dinner, which is recommended if only for the cow on wheels outside! Home grown burgers were on offer with a selection of beers and great friendly service to a backdrop of the Olympics.
We ummed and Ahmed what to do next. John says we need to do at least 10 shows before we come home. One down, 9 to go! Does it count if you walk past venues, Kim wondered?
There are buskers everywhere and The Royal Mile is full of street artists. We saw some clever juggling as well as listening to a very clever guitarist singing satires on American politics.

 

Our evening ended with us joining the crowd at the end of Lawnmarket, waiting for the Tattoo to finish. Not only did we get to see the Queen’s coach, we also had a great (free!) view of the fireworks. Apparently the whole Tattoo leaves past Lawnmarket but we were too tired to stay any longer.

 

Norwegian roads vs Norwegian airports..

We drove 1700km through three sets of roadworks and only waited in a traffic jam for 20 minutes by a fjord.

Our flight was 30 minutes late leaving Trondheim and now we’re delayed by an hour at Stavanger. Stavanger’s a nice enough airport but it would be lovely to see Heathrow.
Perhaps Norway’s so focused on making the roads work that there’s no energy left for airports……….alternatively it could be the weather
Of course, the third option could be the delay is at Heathrow because the UK’s having a sombre day!

The vote is cast and we’re outcasts…..

So we woke up to news that the likes of Boris and Nigel had won the day. The public face of the Leave campaign doesn’t make me proud to be British. Having said that, the Remain campaign wasn’t up to much either.
 
It’s been a hot topic in the dining room this morning and Norway’s not even in the EU. We’ve discovered Americans and Germans have very strong views and neither of us felt ready to join in the debate.
 
There’s no doubt that change is needed but it’s still a sad day. Let’s hope it drives a positive change that improves our public services and standard of living for those that need it most rather than turn us into a nation of insular, inward looking xenophobes.
 
Matt’s talking about emigrating to Australia, we hope to get home before he’s gone.
 
John challenged me to write this in French. The best I can manage, without the help of Google translate is:
Nous sommes tres triste