Phil & Barbs "Lightning Tours."

24^th April 2018

We left home around 9am aiming for our 5:40pm Eurotunnel. Even with a 2 hour delay due to an accident before the Dartford Bridge we managed to make it with plenty of time. After leaving the train a fast one hour drive got us to Montreuil Sur Mer where we found the main town was under redevelopment and plagued by diversions. The sat nav went crazy with this and took us down the narrowest of avenues. We managed to gauge our way around a parked van but were then confronted by the tightest of corners. Barbara assessed this and decided we wouldn’t make it. Now we had to reverse past the van and down the narrow street. Fortunately the vans owner came out and guided us around the unpassable corner. Eventually we made it to the Aire about 400yds outside of the town square. All the places were full but it has a large carpark next to it where the toilet is. We parked here overnight. Would recommend this place. The town is nice and it was safe and secure with a good toilet.

25^th April

We drove to Chartres and settled onto the ACSI site there. A delightful walk into the city along the river led us to several good car boot sales. Had a good look around then headed to the Cathedral area where we had a beer. It was sad to see that on every corner of the cathedral French armed soldiers where patrolling in pairs. It was a pleasant 18c.

26^th April

We headed south and eventually decided on the Aire at Objat. We had visited this place about 4 years ago and were impressed with the aire. The cost was £9 a night and that gave us free internet, toilet , shower, EHU and a good hardstanding pitch. There is a decent riverside walk into the unimpressive town centre and the actual aire is sited along the rivers edge. Excellent value.

27^th April

A dreary day, dull with that drizzle that soaks you to the skin in minutes. So we headed off and as we progressed down the motorway we decided to head to the sun. A successful target for as we saw the Mediterranean sea in the distance the sun came out. Not content with this we decided to head for sunny spain and camping Salata in Roses. A good decision it was half full and the weather was getting warmer. After parking up we walked into town and stopped in one of our favourite bars in the sun where the temperature crept up to 19c.We ate out in the nearby Italian restaurant on the promenade with an exceptionally well behaved Jonesy laying peacefully at our feet.

Roses

28^th April

The attraction of Roses is undoubtedly the promenade and we took full advantage of this and the sun by walking along it several times. Along the way we heard shouts from a nearby apartment it was from Lou’s staff. Lou is the welsh terrier we met on the promenade about 18 months ago. Jonesy and Lou got on fabulously and had a little dance together. Lou’s staff made a big fuss of Jonesy describing him in French as Beautiful and Magnificent. So much for my recent hand stripping attempt. Later that evening we bumped into Lou and his mum again on the prom. Our two nights in Roses were really good the weather had been improving with each day but it was time to move on.

28^th April

After stocking up with Campo Rioja (£3.80 a bottle) , Mascaro Brandy (11.95 euros) and San Miguel beer (1 euro a litre) we took the short 20 mile drive to L’escala , again major road works in the town with diversions. Eventually we settle for Camping Illa Mateua in the Montgo area. The site is split in two parts with one seemingly allocated to long stay Spanish, the other for us tourists in motorhomes. A good site about a 100 yd walk away from a charming quiet bay with a handful of restaurants/bars. The temp. was again sliding up the scale and so we walked into L’Escala with temps now peaking at 22c. It’s a good 40 minute walk into L’Escala and another 15 minutes if you carry north out of the town to a lovely bay area with bars and restaurants mainly habituated by Spanish, well worth the walk. The next few days we spent walking the clifftops, walking into L’escala and beyond and on the Saturday we got the match on the laptop. (Crystal Palace 1 Liverpool 2). An enjoyable stay but doubt if we could stay longer than the planned 4 nights.