L’Escala is at the southern end of the bay of Roses, not far from the French border. It’s a low key resort that’s popular with the Spanish. The town stretches for a couple of miles along the coast and takes in a number of good beaches, including a couple of small cove beaches with shallow waters that are perfect for snorkelling.
The area was considered the gateway to the Iberian Peninsula by both the Greeks and Romans and the remains of towns left by both sit just north of L’Escala at Empurias. We wandered around the ‘ruinas romanas’ one sunny afternoon but they’re not the most exciting of ruins. It’s hard to imagine what buildings would have looked like when there’s only a small piece of floor left!
Alex’s Dad was determined that he remember when they last bought him here... in 1975... when he was 3 months old! Apparently they also visited Andorra back then, but Alex doesn’t remember that either. Alex’s Mum remembers Andorra for her own reasons - don’t worry Mum; that story about the gin is safe with us!
Girona is a beautiful city that’s often overlooked. Most people head straight for the coast once they’ve landed at the airport here. But the city has a warren of medieval streets and alleyways and a very laid back atmosphere. The enormous cathedral also has the largest gothic nave in Europe fact fans!
As well as a Lidl, most towns we visit seem to have a tourist train with an amusing commentary. The one in Girona was well worth a trip. When passing a pile of old rubble we were informed that this was a tower destroyed by the French back in 1809 and, ‘as you can see, it has not yet been restored’. It didn’t look as though this would be happening any time soon!
Another place that’s definitely worth visiting is the Dali museum at Figueres. Dali was born here in 1904 and spent much of his later life in the area. Dali himself oversaw development of the museum in the town’s former theatre and it was inaugurated in 1974. At the end of his life Dali moved into a tower adjoining the museum and his tomb is now housed in the centre of the building. A museum is probably the last thing you would call the place. The whole building is an exhibit, from the 3D portrait of Mae West to the 1950s Cadillac. Even if you have no interest in modern art it’s definitely one to see, although you need to get there at 9.30 when it opens. As the second most visited museum in Spain (a prize for anyone guessing the first), the crowds soon get overwhelming.
The best thing about being at the villa was spending time in and around the outdoor pool! Charlie managed to fall in a few times and struggled to get out – the homemade dog ramp made of sun loungers not really working in practice! Charlie was lucky enough to have a professional haircut this week after the ‘success’ that was her first home cut – thankfully the dog groomer didn’t laugh when we took her in.
If you’re going out for a meal in Spain and want to try authentic local cuisine rather than the ‘prepared for tourists’ menu, you only need to seek out the restaurant full of locals. We’ve found they provide the best meals by far and at great value. We enjoyed a fantastic three course meal with wine, bread and coffee for just €8.50 each. In fact there was so much food that not a single course was completely finished! Go with the Menu del Dia (set menu of the day) and you can’t go far wrong. It’s worth knowing the Spanish for tripe though and keeping an eye out for it!
One rather dull evening was spent in front of the TV watching England draw against Algeria in the World Cup. The less said about what happened next the better. Thank god we were too busy sight-seeing in Barcelona to watch the Germany game.
On our last day together we enjoyed a trip along the coast in a glass bottomed boat. It was a shame that the only thing we could see through the glass bottom was rather murky water! But the crew did bring along a tray of fish which they threw out to the seagulls. It was amazing to see hundreds of them flying behind the boat and catching the fish in mid-air.
All in all it was a great week and just what we needed before hitting the road again. We were assured that we hadn’t gone strange (or at least any stranger!) after 4 months with just each other and a dog for company! Although whether this will be the case when we return at Christmas remains to be seen. So with everything freshly laundered and the van cleaned inside and out, we deposited the White’s at Girona airport and set out for Barcelona!
1 comment:
Yes folks, in Spain in 1975 children were going cheap ! (see what you get with supermarket special offers - glad we didn't go for the bogof !!)
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