03/2003 - Just in Spain for Christmas
22nd December 2003
And the ramblings continue ....
Our route South continues. To some extent our meanderings have been shaped by heading for 'Campings' which are open all year round - there aren't so many of those. You may remember we decided we wanted to spend at least our first month staying in designated places until we feel confident about heading more off the beaten track and maybe wild camping. This strategy has had the advantage, though, of taking us to places we might not have gone through, so it has worked out really well.
We came into Spain yesterday (Sunday 21st December) after a fabulous fortnight travelling through France. We'd prepared this bulletin last week then hit the snag about not being able to get a fast enough signal for our internet connection, hence sending a couple of communications in fairly quick succession. So we'll save tales of our somewhat adventuresome drive into Spain for later and give you a flavour of our second week en France.
We spent five days about 35km South of Carcassonne at Alet Les Bains, a fabulous walled medieval village beside the Aude river (as recommended by Caroline and Anne - thanks you two, it's every bit as wonderful as you billed it!). We were tempted to linger as it was so beautiful and - oh joy! - the sun was warm most days. (The fact that it was a lovely little campsite with friendly people there and in the village, clean showers and even a washing machine may also have had some bearing! We still have chores to do too you know! The village also had a little boulangerie moments away for those morning croissants and baguettes, a tiny greengrocers shop three mornings a week and a couple of hours a day post office. Perfection! We're so easily pleased you see.)
We had a number of lovely walks and cycles round the tiny lanes and passages of the village and up into the hills. Incredible old wooden doorways set in the beautiful blond stonework. Sadly the hot thermal waters swimming pool closed for the winter about a month ago, as did the thermal treatment centre. Shame! We got rather excited by the prospect of going native and Taking the Waters! There was, however, a public 'source' for the local mineral water which was always busy with people refilling water bottles and even doing washing, as the water bubbles out warm.
We were actually able to sit outside the van in the sunshine by the river, drinking our coffee, on several occasions. These moments of relaxation were enlivened (?!) by watching an overweight, confused duck flirting heavily with a goose. (Could there be a limerick in this somewhere - goose, seduce ... ?!!) The goose, who seemed to reciprocate emotionally and had apparently fallen deeply in love with the black and white duck, had a habit of shrieking an echo to every chime of the nearby church bells. (Do we dare say that some other British people who had been on the site for some weeks named the pair Sir William Canard and Lady Hilda Honk? No, we'd be far too embarrassed to mention that!)
We discovered, however, why the church bells chimed each hour twice. (Thus giving the goose increased honking opportunities.) We had several theories of our own going, ranging from Alfonse (who's developed a bit of a hearing impairment) not realising that Pierre had already rung the hour and hammering into the belfry to ring the bells again, to trainee bell-ringers being shown how it's done first then copying (and there was a bit of ghostly medieval monkery along the theory-way as well). It turns out it's just as interesting in real life. Dating back to medieval times when the peasants were working the fields beyond the hills, if the wind was in the wrong direction they wouldn't hear how many times the bells had chimed. So when one of them got an inkling of the chimes, they would dash to the top of the hill and get the whole of the next count - thus knowing when it was time to go home for tea! Good eh?
On our first day Jeni also noticed up on the top of a wooded hillside what she took to be some kind of fascinating local parade. People carrying tall white banners - then falling over, repeatedly. Okay, so it turns out it was the blades of a couple of wind generators on the far side of the hill, but it was a good piece of brain-trickery!
We're only 14 days into our trip, 'tis true, but with the four weeks we spent in the van on Sarah's land before we left, it's the longest continuous time we've lived in VeeJay. We're doing fine - better than fine actually. There is an odd phenomenon though, that makes us feel sometimes like we've transmogrified into a double-Dr. Who. It's always been there to some extent since we've had the van - that experience of opening the blinds in the morning to, potentially, a different view every day or certainly a regular change of environment. Now that we are even cosier and more settled inside - it really does feel like our 'proper' home - it's like the Tardis keeps landing in different places and we're surprised when we step outside and - 'Oh look where we are!'. Weird!
On that faintly philosophical note, we'll leave you be for now. We decided to come down into Spain at the weekend, after that sojourn, seduced by the prospect of more sun and warned off the rainy areas of the French coast further East. We'll probably go back along that way in late February/March as we have been given a couple of contacts in southern France for our return. We think we may also go back to the little site at Alet Les Bains as the owners also do B&B (or there are tent-pitching spaces) and there is an airport at Carcassonne with cheap flights from the UK - so it might be a good spot if any of you want to come out for a few days in the early part of the year.
More immediately our plan is to spend a bit of time in (we hope) the relative warmth of the Spanish coast, attempting to avoid the worst excesses of the Costa Grottas. Our first potential visitor is, e'en as we write, researching flights to come out and see us for a few days soon. After that we'll head inland for a bit. Star, who I think most of you know, is luring us with the prospect of being fed and parked up for a while in exchange for doing some odd jobs for her and her sister on their houses/land. The toolbox is on its way!
This comes with our warmest festive greetings. It's very odd feeling and a great relief to be entirely untouched by the pressures we often associate with Christmas - although there are signs of festivities as we go through villages and towns, we've not really been out among it to get caught up in it against our will. We loved the small-town/village French habit of 'dressing' lamp-posts, drainpipes and even balconies with branches of pine, big coloured foil parcels, crackers, bows etc. We only found a few seasonal greetings cards in the local post office at Alet, so if you weren't one of the recipients please take this message as our seasonal wishes - we're not turning into old 'Bah, humbuggers' (!), just that we couldn't find many cards! Given that we've heard reports of cold weather back in the UK, it wouldn't be fair, would it?, to add that the blue sky and sunshine outside also makes it difficult to connect with thoughts of the Christmas season - sorry!
Much love to you all and festive hugs.
Jeni and Dave
xxox