Any ideas about what toys are hiding under their cloaks of invisibility?
Yep, that’s right; pretty toys for the girls and boys.
We’ve been out and about on them and have a bit of a tale to tell about new bikes, poor bike dealers, and a puncture, all in the first week of rolling them out of their trailer! Read the next bike posting for all the dirt.
After that, we’ll get on with our Grand Days Out, starting with Southern Spain, then Morocco, followed by …. Portugal? France? Switzerland? …. Who knows ?
There’s a problem with camper buses and a lot of motor homes, let alone back packing with just a burner for your hot meal needs; fuel. We never gave this a thought as mountain walkers and backpackers. In those days it seemed natural to carry a tiny cooker, a couple of pots and a few simple recipe ideas and ingredients. But, later, when we were looking for a motorhome, a HOME on wheels, it was obvious an oven was a necessity, until a salesman said something that was game changing, he said, “You don’t need an oven, you need to change the way you cook.” Suddenly, selecting the a motor home based on it’s kitchen kit became an irrelevance. We had been set the challenge of cooking on only a hob: and we loved it.
All of our ‘cooking’ posts are meals that are very quick to make and can be adapted by you for the kinds of food you eat. From baking to sushi, after the preparation of the ingredients, you can make these meals inside 15 minutes cooking, plus the boiling of about 2.5 cups of water (with hook up and an electric kettle, this is effectively free).
Curry with Couscous and Popodoms
There are a few rules that we follow:
We cook for 2 people. If you have a different number of people, you do the maths!
We eat shell/fish, but mostly we’re veggie. You can add meat and cut up as in no. 4.
Carbohydrates should be no cook, or very quick cook.
Slow to cook foods should be cut into 1cm cubes or julienned (thin strips).
Utensils must earn their keep in the vehicle.
Meals should be wholefood and intenselytasty. We may be on the road for a long time, so eating well to keep as healthy as possible is essential.
Brownish meals? Yes, sorry! This is whole food not processed food – see no.6 above.
Abbreviations:
t = teaspoon
T = tablespoon
c = cup
.5c = half a cup
Here you will find – please give us time to post them – pizza, wraps, pies, breads, hearty soups, stir fries, pasta, noodles, sushi and so on and on and on ………
Not a traveller? Maybe this will save you time and money at home!
Weird ideas/substitutions? Yes, maybe, but taste any food about 10 times and you’ll get to like it!
Travel is about discovering things that are new to us. If you discover a quick way of feeding yourself on the road, let us know. We love to gather in ideas and we try to share as much as we can to our wider community. We will always credit you if you give us a great idea.
The climb to Torre Del Garros is the only true ascent on this walk. Standing 150m above the Mediterranean shoreline the tower commands spectacular panoramic views. The walking is on rough stoney paths and cart tracks with a small amount of tarmac roads. There is some parking at the end of the Care del Mohya les Arantes just past the Mena restaurant. It can also be reached by bus from Denia. This is the start point.
Take the road marked as a walking route for the Cova Tallada and follow the switchback road until you reach the Torre Del Garro. Pass the tower and take the obvious track turning off to the left. The path is well used though quite rocky and continues like this for around 3k. On the right you have the fortress cliffs of Muntgo below which you will see the so called ‘Ghost Town’, an abandoned holiday development.
Settlement
After 3k you pass through a small settlement and join a wide gravel track, follow this until it meets a tarmac road. Straight over leads you to the Moulins (windmills) at Javea, our route leads you along the road to the right. After 500m you will meet the Denia to Javea road which you cross and a woodland track continues beyond.
White and yellow route marker
This track continues until it meets another gravel track. Turn right and, after another 500m, left onto another woodland track. After a short time you again meet a gravel path and turn left. Montgo now appears to rear up in front of you so you may feel the need to make a 500m detour, right, to the nearby restaurant for refreshments. Otherwise carry straight on at the barrier. You can rejoin the route from the restaurant area if you want.
Information board near restaurant
1k from the restaurant there is a finger post indicating the Cova del Camel; take this narrow track. Eventually the track drops into a narrow gorge and at the far side of the gorge, you will see the broad track called the Carrer de la Colonia. Make your way with care and reach the Colonia. After 500m there is a small track dropping away to the right and in the distance a development of whitewashed houses. Take the track until it joins the Cami Vell Alt de Denia A Xabia. At the end of the Cami Vell a right turn leads you to the Denia to Javea road. Denia is within easy walking distance to the right.
Look for the return track here
To return to the car park, walk toward Denia and on reaching the Hotel Poblets, turn right onto the Carre Barrone del Mohya les Arantes. If you turn down the first road on the left, the Cami de Badia, you can make your way to the coast. Finally turn right for a pleasant seaside walk back to the car park.
Note Xavia/Javea are the same place.
From the tower look out for:
Valencia to the north.
Distant Ibiza to the east.
Cap de Sant Antoni to the south east.
Montgo to the south.
You may see:
Crag Martins hunting in the gorge below ‘Ghost Town’
At Christmas the British seem to lean towards excess; too much; food-drink-spending…excess. The Spanish are a quiet and civilised people, they come out onto the streets in large numbers; whole families, to celebrate the festive season. In Spain a few gifts are exchanged at Christmas, but it’s not the main event. In Spain the real festivities take place around the first weekend in January. They commemorate the arrival of the 3 Wise Men and the giving of their gifts to the baby Jesus. This is when the Spanish give their gifts to each other and sit down together for a festive meal, incuding a festive cake called Roscon de Navidad. So in our terms, the 3 Kings Fiesta is like our Christmas Eve and the following day, is like our Christmas Day.
Coming into town on Fiesta Day all was quiet, calm and, well, to be honest, ordinary. For us, Christmas eve is a panic fuelled rush to get everything perfect. The streets are crammed with shoppers, the roads with cars and our heads with images of the perfect family celebration, which we must, at all costs, emulate. When it comes to a British Christmas, there is no serene duck gliding smoothly across the water whilst underneath, paddling frantically; we are frantic personified, as we spend more time and money than we have, or should, making something once so very simple, unspeakably complex.
Now, I didn’t nose about in the homes of Spanish people, nor did I conduct an in depth survey, but from what I saw, this most holy of times is just that. The town has Christmas lights, but the shops barely give Christmas a mention. There’s no hard sell here. Christmas feels optional.
Fiesta Day, the equivalent of our Christmas Eve, saw runners race for festive prizes and fun at the start the day, and just after dark, a carnival style parade showcasing the 3 wise men throwing sweets to the crowds. In between these 2 main events, people came out to stroll, have coffees and lunches and enjoy the sun. It was a family day, with most folks off work. The relaxed atmosphere was palpable. I wondered what had happened to us, the British, to take something so perfectly lovely and make it into what we have now, competitive house dressing and gift giving. And I wondered why the Spanish have not fallen foul of the rampant commercialism that has consumed our festive seasons and made us all the poorer in every sense.
At the start of our travels, we decided to start a video blog. As Christmas was coming we went all extravagant and bought a drone.
The local landmark, Torre Del Gerro, provided the perfect subject on which to test our skills; or lack of them.
These ancient towers, dating from the 16th century, are dotted along the Spanish coast and had the same role as the English Martello towers. Their original use was to spot the Berber pirates as they approached.
The tower is known locally, within the ex-pat circles (and possibly amongst the Spanish too) as The Pepperpot. It’s a popular local walk, as it has a steady incline and is easy under foot.
The ‘Ghost Town’ overshadowed by Montgo
Once at the Tower, face the sea and catch your breath. For spectacular views; left for Denia, and right, for the lighthouse at Cap de Sant Antoni. Behind you towers the rocky face of Montgo, with the ‘Ghost Town’ nestling at it’s base.
The Wandering Wallys 