Here we are a week later at Camping imperium at Villajoyosa. We plan to be here for up to three months, before heading back for the ferry home. But we don’t want to talk about that. The reason for doing it this way this year is, one to see if we save any money, but I don’t think we will, and just to see if we like it this way as lots of peaple do this. As our aim is to get away from the horrible winters in the uk, we are just living in Spain for the winter. But my itchy feet just want to see more and more. My feet don’t really itch, I don’t need cream or anything to make them stop itching. It’s just a saying, you know what I mean. I must admit it’s nice to be back here seeing the same peaple we saw last year when we were here for a month and hearing their tales of what they have been doing since being here. One couple have been here all year, another couple went home and sold everything and came back and are staying here for the moment.

We have used this week to recharge, walking down to the beach, the supermarket, the Chinese shop. The Chinese shop is not a takeaway but a shop where you can buy almost anything, and you never know what your going to find in there so we always go in there and come out with something we didn’t even know we needed. The supermarket we use has had a refurb from last year and looks very nice. One of the wines Nikki drinks is still 99cents and still tastes as good so I am informed. We did a shop there and it cost us €40. When we got back to base Nikki sat in the sun, sorry there’s that word again and did a like for like comparison with what it would have cost us in the Uk. It would have cost us about £25 pound more. So even though the exchange rate is not to good you still get more for your euro than your pound.

The site has a pool, out door not heated and always looks so inviting. Spanish outdoor pools are not heated because in the summer it’s so hot they just get warm anyway. I dipped my toe in one day and thought, that’s not too bad, I am going to go for a swim tomorrow. Tomorrow came we walked down to the pool, Me with my towel and swimming shorts, Nikki forgot hers for some reason. The reason being she has a brain that works. Got to the pool and it was looking so nice, shimmering in the sun, blue sky overhead, no German towels on the sun loungers. So yes of course I went in. Was it cold, yes it was but once I was in and swimming it was ok. Apparently cold water swimming is good for you. I know why, because when you get in you think how cold it is and say sod this let’s go down the bar. The picture below proves I did it, and yes I will do it again.

Another thing we have done this week is have some Spanish lessons. They came round asking if anybody was interested in learning some basic Spanish. When we’re away we always like to try and communicate as much as possible in the language of the country we’re in, even ifs it’s only a simple hello, thank you, goodbye. The lessons are free so thought, let’s go for it. It’s only for an hour once a week. Do we have time though, I think so. The lady doing the lessons, Yvonne speaks five different languages. She is Dutch but also speaks Spanish which is lucky as she is trying to teach us that, also she speaks French, German and of course very good English. It’s amazing how she can switch from one to another if speaking to a group. I was never very good at school and am not very good at learning things now as I get older, but the way she taught it was very basic and we had it all written down so I can practise. Nikki is much better than me. So when we get back to the uk and see any of you and start speaking and it doesn’t sound right to you, please remind us we are in England.

Another good thing this week, our friends Bill and June texted us to say they are stopping in on this site to see us for a week on their way further south. So nice to see them. We met them three years ago and have managed to see them every year at some point. When we went round to say hello, I could smell diesel and said to Bill, you have a leak and started to investigate. He has had a lot of trouble with his motorhome this year so was not too pleased about more problems. I got on the Internet that evening and found a garage just down the road with a English speaking owner who we went to see the next morning and is coming out to have a look today. Then he will get it booked in for when Bill leaves this site.

Just one more thing. I have to tell you about the tilty pole. The way we walk to the supermarket, the first bit is through a cut through, small road, orange groves in the fields and lemons etc. Last year we noticed this electricity pole leaning over and thought then a good wind and that would be gone. Not like in England where the minute the wooden poles get a bit of rot in them they are replaced. Good ol Heath and safety. Well there was the pole still there, a year later but leaning even further over now. I really don’t know how it is managing to stay there.

As the title says 1437 miles after leaving Devon we are at our winter destination, camping imperium at Villajoyosa in Spain. More on that later.

We got to Parcverger campsite and were met by Frank the owner. Had a chat with him. It’s always nice to see peaple you have not seen for a while, catch up etc. He told us what he had been doing to the campsite etc. We got parked up eventually. We were going to spend a couple of nights here to recharge our batteries. That’s me and Nikki not the camper. We use Guinness and wine to recharge, the camper uses electricity. The weather was not good, misty and raining on and off so we never really got out for a nice walk. Another couple who live on the site in a small chalet invited us over for tea in the afternoon which was nice to catch up with them. We often check the weather while we are away to see where we’re going is going to be nice etc. As I said we were planning on moving on after a couple of days, but the weather was set to be gale force winds as in 50/60 mph where we were heading for which was Palamos in Spain. My nervous passenger and co pilot was not looking forward to the journey, so we stayed another night at Parcverger.

The day we left Parcverger was sunny and dry. We decided to use the toll roads because we wanted to get there the same day. It was very windy at one point, but with a firm grip on the steering wheel we were ok. If we had a pound for every cone we saw on the road or a euro we would be very rich. There was mile after mile coned off because they were cutting the grass banks. Or what I really think is they never had room at the yard for all the cones so the boss thought, let’s put some out on the road so it looks like we’re doing some work and solve the storage problem.

Our sat nav has been playing up on this trip and on more than one occasion has been very close to being thrown out the window. At one point we had the sat nav on which was Emily, she does have a nice voice, Nikki had maps on her phone for directions which was a woman’s voice also and of course Nikki with the map. I was thinking, this is great here I am driving along and I have three women trying to tell me where to go. And none of them have ever driven anything bigger than a shoebox.

We crossed the border into Spain and the sun was shining and we were soon at Palamos. The place we’re staying for a couple of nights to recharge again was a cross between a aire and a campsite. All very nice, plenty of space, clean showers and toilets etc. We got checked in by a nice guy who spoke very good English and told us to park where we liked. As we drove in we saw a nice pitch in the sun and guess what. There beside it was another bloody cone. We did laugh and had to have that pitch. The next day we walked off down to the beach which was about 1km away. We sat on a bench in the sun gazing out to see thinking, this is what we work for, to spend winters like this. Well and to buy our recharging sources. There was a group of students setting up some small sailing boats for lessons in sailing. I think they got ripped off because there was hardly any wind, where were they the day before when the winds were blowing a hoolie.

On the way back from the beach we spotted a big bug. A praying mantas to be precise. Fantastic looking bug. Reading up on them later, it turns out that they have sex and then the female eats the male. No wonder he is called a praying mantas. I think I would be praying if I thought after sex I was going to get eaten. Here’s the one that got away or he is still a virgin.

Off we go again after two days, heading for Benicarlo, to a site we have stayed before. Another loverly greeting by one of the owners daughters who actually remembered me which was nice. Pitched up and time to recharge. Saw some old friends there also which again was nice. Washed the camper as it was so dirty after the bad weather and all the miles/ kilometres. The weather again was fantastic, no wind blue sky’s and warm enough to be sat out in shorts and vest top until the sun went down.

We left Benicarlo yesterday at 10am heading for Villajoyosa. The journey is mostly motorway and the miles flew by. As we turned into the site it felt really good to be back. Greeted by Yovonne who again remembered us. Pitched up on our pitch and within ten minutes we had been greeted by three different people, all who had remembered us from last time we were here which was December/January. So after leaving Devon and driving 1437 miles we are here. Time to recharge.

. Had a great last couple of days in the UK, at the Sparkford musuem and a nice meal in the pub for my dads 80th.

And now we’re in France. We caught the 8.30am ferry. Big surprise we never got searched this time. Quite disappointed really I was looking forward to getting patted down by a nice French lady. We don’t normally like to go far on the first day when getting off the ferry, but decided to drive for a couple of hours to a place called Fougeres where we would spend the first night on a aire near the chateau. The sun was shining, the roads clear and we were on the road. Found the aire and parked up.  The sun was starting to go down so we had a quick walk around the outside of the chateau which was very impressive. A good nights sleep and a. Dry frosty morning followed.

We needed to top up with fuel and get a bit of shopping the next morning before heading out on the highway. There was a big supermarket up the road and we could also get fuel there. The car park was busy but we managed to find a space on the end of the row, well two spaces actually as we take up two spaces and being so big it’s better if we can get on the end of the row for getting out. All went well. Off to get fuel and try and squeeze into a gap where a car would normally go for fuel. A bit tight but we managed with me at the nozzle end and Nikki at the put your card end. Lucky we are both so slim. LOL.Back on the road we are heading for an aire by a lake out in the country. Again the sun is out the roads are clear. The speeding laws have changed in France now where now if you get caught speeding now they can access the uk database and fine you. It’s still a bit of a grey area from what I can gather. But the reason I mention it is because I got flashed. Not by a loverly French lady but by a little box on the side of the motorway. Being over 3.5 ton my limit is the same as HGV lorry’s 90kilometers per hour. This is very frustrating as the lorry’s bumble along and so do we normally, but when you want to get somewhere I tend to cruise at about 70mph on clear open roads with hardly anything on them. So we will see what happens it’s done now so no point in thinking about it.

We get to the next aire by the lake after a small detour. Thanks sat nav. The road leading to the village of Boisme is used like a race track it seems as the cars coming towards us are going at motorway speeds except for one ol boy who must have been about 110 years old and in the middle of the road, but we passed by. Parked up, the sun is out the trees look beautiful in there autum colours, so a walk round the lake was what we needed after being on the road for four hours.

A pint in the sun and some tea and as the sun goes down it starts to cool down. All cozy inside looking forward to a nice quite night beside the lake in the country. WRONG the race track is behind us and also the big juggernougt lorries have joined in the race, dogs are barking and the trees we are parked under are dripping on the roof. Plip plop plip plop,pliperdy ploperdy. It sounds like a bunch of sqeurals are having a party up the tree. Would we come back to this so peacefully aire. NO. We move on the next morning for another 4.5hour drive to Parcverger a campsite we have stopped at before for a nice shower and a peaceful night.

When I say we’re off we’re not actually on the ferry yet and no we’re not off our rocker. Well I might be. We left Devon yesterday and drove a couple of hours to Sparkford in Somerset. It’s where the Haynes motor museum is. Have not been there for a while so plan on going there tomorrow. The campsite we are on is Long Hazel, a adults only site but I managed to convince them I am a adult. Met by the owner as we arrived, set up and off down to the village pub for a beer or two. 

Today is chill day. We have worked for eight months with only a couple of long weekends so think we deserve to chill. Tomorrow after the museum we will head for another campsite in south lychett just outside Poole. It’s a great campsite and is only just down the road from the ferry terminal. Oh yea there is also a nice pub down the road. The pub is where we will meet my dad to have a birthday meal. It’s his 80th so I will treat him. So that’s us bought up to speed for now. We are on the ferry on Wednesday the 8th.