Mon 26/09/16: Up and time to leave Dali’s car park and head on but not before finishing the lovely coastal walk we had started the day before. In true good Spanish fashion the 3 establishments in total that might have served us our morning coffee or indeed incoming Dali tourists some lunch were all shut on this fine Monday morning and so we held no hope for any refreshment at the end of our walk to the lighthouse. How wrong we were, not only food but Balti curry and it smelt very lovely indeed. We refrained hard as the dishes weren’t a cheap date but we did succumb to a meat samosa along with our norm of sardines and salad. None were a disappointment least of all the samosa- not typical in style or pastry but very spicy plus tasty. Dinner in house was a dull affair of a norm for us –pasta, bacon and pesto. Not brilliant but filling and cheap!
Tues 27/09/16: Malgrat de Mar our new home for last night and tonight and where very dear friends are incoming next week so we were here to check it out. Again another costal spot north of the great, wonderful Barcelona but little old Malgrat doesn’t quite meet with the Big B’s standards. A lovely sea front again but I’m not sure if after working for a Russian company for 10 years (good years!) I’m beginning to imagine Russian people because there seemed to be an awful lot here. But there again we have often confused Portuguese speakers as Russian as well, but Vladimir’s boutique (Euro shop) might be an indication. Nevertheless we had a good €10 menu del dia on the sea front and David had the most unusual but flavoursome chicken with apple dish, for me a lovely piece of hake. Some more investigation will have to be done into eateries for the next week for sure, but we’re hoping to gate crash their morning breakfast buffet!!. (Joke P&J, but if you could put some bread rolls, bananas etc. into your serviettes we would be grateful)
Wed 28/09/16: Time to head back to the site of my demise –Camping Barcelona and where I’ll spend 4 days on my ownsome while David meets up with a golfing group and close friend Neil. It’s a lovely site and I am quite happy at being here for that time. Plus they very kindly took delivery of our new wing mirror and for those of you who know David well you can imagine he was very keen to get there and start the fitting of the mirror. Some 2-3 hours later while I lay by the pool David had the new wing mirror on, wired, fitted and working just like new- thankfully. When I’m back driving after this ruddy cast is off I’ll try so hard not to break it again- honest!. Dinner was a simple affair given David’s next 4 days of extravaganza –chicken fajitas, our new found easy meal
Thurs 29/09/16: Bye, bye D. After some 9 months of continuous togetherness (apart from 4 days in different hotels in June with friends) we are going our separate ways but not before a quality lunch and a bottle of cava in Barcelona. El Xampanyet is a cava bar, the area Penedes which produces this lovely stuff being just on the outskirts of the big B and an area we drove through on our initial drive into Barcelona. We had hoped to stop on a vineyard here on the way in but due to different circumstances never made it- one for the list for sure. I first visited the cava bar with my friend Catherine the other week and in my mind while having a girlie cava lunch the place had white settees and lots of lounging in soft luxury. This bar isn’t like that at all. Yes cava is served in blind bottles and in the lovely old fashioned Babycham glasses but it’s a real bar serving all sorts and very busy. Like most places now, it’s on the tourist map with many just coming in for the photo opp. Please don’t just take the photo, these places need to make money and a free photo isn’t going to help. Pay €10 and have a lovely bottle of cava and soak up the atmosphere and history. After our bottle and a few nibbles I headed back to camp on my own, David safely deposited in his 5* hotel awaiting the gang. No shared toilets, showers, washing up etc for him for the next 4 days but for me life on my own with only one functioning arm, no food and unable to open any wine. What will become of me….
Fri 30/09/16: Great night’s sleep, full English for breakfast and how shall I amuse myself now. A lovely long walk along the beach front-flat, paved and apart from crossing the N11 in front of us no real hazard. I opted to have a girl lunch with myself and the MDD where David and I had done so when here before. At €13.90 it’s a good deal even if you don’t get all the wine we might normally, but with bread alloi and deep fried potato skins added in you can’t complain. The gazpacho I had last time wasn’t an option but some other soup of creamed liquidised snail was and so I had that. Very tasty indeed and one might have thought it was cream of sweet potato or pumpkin so lovely was the taste.
I couldn’t understand the word for the make of soup and so I just hoped it wasn’t my first fear. I think the latter was more likely, although the snails are a supplement to the menu, so who knows. Small plaice was my next choice as directed by the owner, again very lovely but quite hard to eat with one hand and four swollen pork sausage fingers for the other, but manage I did. A quiet night was spent on my part with new found friends arriving up from the last camp site to keep me amused and topped up with wine- theirs in the main!
Sat 01/10/16: Month 10 where is the year going. I’m going to miss the brandy cream butter plus million other options for Christmas that will be in the shops now- life will be fairly Christmas free here I hope until at least the 23rd December. Having been very politely asked not to return to the day before restaurant, perhaps due to my stabbing, slobbering and dangling food into my mouth with one hand I decided to cook a one pot favourite of veg curry. The chopping wouldn’t have passed restaurant standards for sure but flavour wise it was as good as ever and helped soak up the post walk mojito plus wine with Michael and Kate (my carers!). A happy night was spent watching very rubbishy online TV whilst I should have been doing research, writing and banking.
Sun 02/10/16: The weather is now on this coast line becoming a bit less predictable and the day started with heavy clouds and a heavy phone call from David, who was not faring well under a weekend of excessive eating, drinking and who knows what else. A 3pm finish and 9am start didn’t really help his mood but of course no sympathy was obtained from me and with the golf trophy nearly in his hands it was going to be a hard day for him. Not for me, my usual morning hike starting slightly late due to slovenly habits of not washing up from the night before on my part taking their toll, plus then dousing the tea towels in dirty water resulting in me having to wash them I never got on my walk until nearly one. I was tempted on the way back to a lovely Japanese restaurant and sushi, but the deal seemed a bit too much for one person. Plus knowing how fussy the Japanese can be about style and manners I thought my one handed eating habits might cause a bit too much attention or worse still they might refuse to seat me- I also had this weird notion that Japanese people consider lone diners bad luck so back I went and had a quick glass of rose before settling down to one of my all times fav’s, yet to be had here of beans on toast. Not any old beans only those with the H brand name and of course covered in Daddies sauce- it has to be Daddies. Tabasco works at a push but a big push. Another glass of rose which is the only wine that goes with this delight, also the only one I have open and given Spain doesn’t have screw tops my only option until I find Michael and Kate again and get them to open another for me.
Another week gone, another month started and again the delight of having more close friends come out and see us next week. Now how shall I spend my last night of freedom –some TV, a read perhaps or even a little snooze in my lovely motorhome.
David says
You will find screw top wines at your nearest Spanish Lidl supermarket,they have drinkable Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz for approximately 3 euros per bottle. Where are you heading next in your motorhome?
From fellow Motorhomers.
David says
Thanks for that we had some stocks to get through
Gary Grant says
Leaving you for 4 days Karen! The cad!!
David says
Learnt it all from you Gary,