Two days in Barcelona

We arrived yesterday morning and as it was a Saturday, we were keen to do a fake parkrun. Unfortunately, I am a bit of a fair weather runner and it was hammering down with rain at 9am.

(Here is the exciting view from our balcony.)

Not to worry I thought, it never rains all day in Spain, so we can go this afternoon. Factual update - it can and does rain all day in Spain.

So we just had a lazy day with no sporting activity, but we put that right today. Paul sent us a 10k route that he ran in Barcelona, so all we had to do was copy it.

Surprisingly, it worked. We didn't take a camera but we saw the beautiful beach, the Sagrada familia, two Gaudi buildings and finished by speeding down La Rambla, dodging tourists as we shot by.

By this time it was raining again and we jogged most of the 3k back to the ship to try to keep warm.

After a hot shower and plenty of lunch it has occurred to me that I have no photos for this blog, so I walked round the ship and this was the best that I could do.

If only that giant cement plant wasn't in way, because just behind it is the wonderful city of Barcelona.

Santa Barbara Castle, Alicante

Approaching Alicante by sea it is impossible not to be impressed by the huge castle on the hill behind the docks.

Bronze age and Roman artifacts have been found on the site, but a castle was first built there around 1,200 years ago.

It took us quite a while to walk up the steep paths to get to the only entrance to the fortress, but then we found out that there is actually a lift from street level right into the heart of the building. We could have saved ourselves 166 vertical metres of stair climbing.

It's a good thing that the lift wasn't there in 1709 though, when the English were inside the castle walls and the French held a 46 day siege to try to get them out. 

It was also abandoned for many years and then opened to the public in 1961.

It is a fantastic place now though and was enjoyed today by lots of our fellow cruise passengers and dozens of Spanish school children.

On the way down we set off along what looked like a small version of the Great Wall of China,

although it was closed part way down so we had to traipse through some flower beds and rejoin the original path to get down to the old town.

Gibraltar

Early morning arrival into Gibraltar, and a sporty start to the day.

Garmin had a few problems picking up my signal as I ran. It is actually quite a narrow running track on the 18th floor and I did about 30 laps, but it is quite a pretty picture, although not accurate.

After breakfast we ventured on to dry land. Having been to the top of the rock before we had no difficulty avoiding the taxi and shuttle bus drivers who were keen to take passengers to the top to see the monkeys.

Instead we just wandered around on our own looking at all of the duty free shops on the Main Street.

We also saw lots of fortifications and cannons.

There are now quite a few entry points in the huge stone walls and this one in particular appealed to me.

I am very aware that I have not provided any interesting facts on this blog for ages, so this was going to be my chance to put that right. My guess was that they didn't provide any nice uniforms for the military, and I took to Google to find out.

After extensive searching the best that I can do is that the Earl of Warwick may have fought and killed a giant using an uprooted tree trunk, hence the word staff as a pole rather than people.

However, there is no conclusion so I don't really know. Sorry.

Lazy afternoon in Vigo

We have survived the crossing and reached northern Spain. We docked in Vigo which is a nice old town with a castle and large docks. It was a nice surprise to open the curtains this morning and see the whole town ahead of us.

Looking back from the shore our ship just about fits and towers above the customs building.

We had a nice look around and the town has invested in some interesting artwork. Unfortunately I don't know why this poor giant has lost his body and only his head is lying on the pavement, but I do remember that he was in exactly the same predicament when we visited Vigo in 2010.

I was very keen on the topiary down the main street.

The castle on the hilltop was small and all of the signs were in Spanish and the best thing about it was the outdoor escalators that took us up to it.

We are visiting more Spanish castles on this trip so I will try harder to get more information next blog .

Crossing the Bay of Biscay

Well, here we are on board the Iona. After turning me away last year after an unexpected positive covid test, they have actually let me get on board this time.

Yes, in the background of this photo are glass doors and we actually have a balcony! With a view!

We have just crossed the Bay of Biscay, and after all of the recent storms I watched the weather forecast very closely. I needn't have worried though because it was all very calm,l. 

The temperature hasn't warmed up yet so few takers for the infinity pool at the back of the ship, but it does look amazing.

On the flight path

After speaking to our neighbours we were surprised to find that our cottage is directly on the flight path of an airport.

I assumed that they meant Bristol airport with planes going over at 30,000 feet, and Darren thought that they were mistaken and actually should have said 'flood plain'.

No, we are actually extremely close to Saltford air field. Obviously, it is not exactly Gatwick, but we set off on a footpath this morning to have a look.

We followed the river for about a mile and passed another lock and weir very similar to our own.

This one had a huge tree stuck on the weir that must have fallen in the river after the storms last week. We carried on uphill and found a windsock.

When we first got there it was surrounded by sheep and their lambs, but once they saw us they baaed angrily at us and ran off, presumably towards the check in counters.

The footpath goes straight across the runway, but not to worry, there is a warning sign saying not to walk across if an aeroplane is approaching. Good call I think. 

The runway is grass, and disappears down a slope almost straight towards our house. 

When we got back I tried to find a timetable online, but there was nothing. The neighbours say that it is used on Sunday afternoons in the summer by vintage planes, and they take off and land very low over the cottages and the river. Apparently it is very exciting and sometimes worrying to watch.

Ps, it said online that in August 2020 a tiny plane misjudged its landing, tipped on its side, hit a hedge and the wing fell off. In the pilot's incident report he said that it is a difficult runway to land on requiring a lot of concentration, and the crosswind surprised him which is how he ended up in trouble. Luckily neither him or his passenger was injured.

Looking forward to the summer.