older possibly wiser

  Sunday 5 th March   Playamonte to Valencia We replan the last week in the quiet of this near deserted new campsite and then head out on a ride. We decided to slow things down. We need to be in Barcelona for the lunchtime flight on Saturday, so we plan for another two base camps, one outside Valencia and the other outside Barcelona. Both have a good cycling routes.   It’s a long drive to Valencia and we’re entertained listening to ‘something rhymes with purple’, a podcast with Gyles Brandreth and Susie Dent, which looks at word origins and vocabulary - lots of laughter! ‘Valencia Camper’ is the antithesis to the quiet of the last site and is possibly my favourite so far. It’s busy, it has a little café and Bar. We have the pitch right next to it, which is a good thing, it’s like an extension. It also right next to the reception office and we hear first-hand the friendly and excellent customer service the hard-working Carlos provides to the never-ending stream of arrivals. Despite thi

  Saturday 25th February  La Granja de Carmella Saturday night communal supper was sublime – home cooking at its best. Sweet-and-sour pork soup with lemons to squeeze, pork loin braised in beer, roasted carrots & green peppers and Patatas Bravas, with figs caramelised figs and yoghurt for dessert, as well as heaps of chorizo, cheese and other Tapas. All washed down with the house Vino Tinto. The company was entertaining too.   Two older Dutch couples, and two younger, both with little children, one Belgian and the other Dutch. Hortensia was such an affable hostess, she had her teenage kids helping in the open plan kitchen and Jacques her husband wandering in and out. Such a lovely way to spend an evening. We swapped campsite recommendations and life stories and manage the Brexit question, which I knew would be inevitable, very well, with a much more nuanced discussion than would be possible at home. The whole experience at this place felt like basking in warmth and friendliness. Ma