Sun, Sun, Sun

Wow, two weeks in Portugal and the weather has been unbelievable. Clear blue skies all day every day bar two, so both developing quite a tan.
After Seville we had a change of plan and turned right instead of left, or was that just Kath's map reading. Anyway, we ended up in Portugal's Algarve coast. From the moment we arrived the weather has been perfect. We travelled first to Quarteira, where it was so nice we stayed eight nights. We were amazed how quiet the town was though, often being the only people dining in the restaurant of our choice in the evening. Quarteria is a bit down market but three miles alomg the coast is Villamoura, a very upmarket sailing and golf resort, where we wobbled on our bikes in the dark if we fancied a more upmarket meal. The Algarve has a 122km coastal cycle track so we were able to do some biking and see a bit of the area.
The Algarve is also brilliant for wi-fi. All the towns have free wi-fi, which has meant that to compete the camp sites are now providing wi-fi for free too.

After Quarteria we moved along the coast to Cape St. Vincent, see photo above, which is the most westerly point in Europe, and thought to be the end of the world till the great navigators proved otherwise. We spent just the one night there as it was so windy, then moved up the coast a little, where we heard of a wild camping spot at Oberseixe. This was about 2 miles down a single track road, but when we got there it was a wonderfully quiet sea side setting, with about a dozen vans, see opposite. Being a wild camp we were visited in the morning by a whole herd of cattle.
After a quiet day in Oberseixe, we headed on up the coast to stay at Porto Covo, a small traditional Portugese fishing village which is on the verge of being spoilt by going all touristy. We had three lovely nights here, sunbathing on completely deserted beaches by day, and eating in genuine Portugese restaurants in the evening. You should have seen the mess we were in after eating Seafood Cataplan (a huge dish of shellfish and vegetables with very splashy sauce, best eaten with fingers after the shells have been smashed using the pliers and hammer provided). From Porto Covo we moved north to Luso, which is famous as a Spa. Lots of people coming to collect the water which is meant to have health giving properties. As far as I can see it means that it is clean and tastes ok. It is also famous for having a 250 acre enclosed wood with trees from around the world, brought here by the Portugese navigators. The wood also contains a convent and a Royal Palace, now a hotel, where we had a coffee after visiting the wood.

After 2 nights in Luso, we have just driven up to Porto, where we have wi-fi again, and will spend a couple of nights here.

Seville

Staying at Camping Villsom in Don Hernanas, just outside Seville. Great camp site with free wi-fi, which seems to be coming more available, and is great for keeping in touch.

We have just spent the day sight seeing in Seville. Weather has changed from winter to summer overnight and we are overcome by the heat. 1C Friday to 30C today. Had a good run down from Salamanca yesterday, but talk of "deja vue". Needing to stop for diesel we pulled into a remote service area only to find it was the self same one Rachael and I stopped in when we were doing the Banjul Challenge. How weird is that. Uncannily, it was also hot and we sat outside at the same table drinking our coffee.

Thinking of heading off to Portugal tomorrow.

Salamanca

Spent today sight seeing in Salamanca, a beautiful city with buildings from the 14th and 15th centuries. Ready for a day off after 3 days on the road, and 1,100 miles behind us. Today dry but cool, not disimilar to the UK.
Fairly uneventful drive down apart from the diabolical weather. We've had high winds, rain, hail, and snow. Passing south of Bordeaux we saw the damage caused by recent high winds, with mile after mile of fallen trees.
The only moan we have is about the van, not the caravan part, but the Fiat bit. When it rains heavily the wipers sweep water to the driver's side, where it then runs like a river across the driver's side window, completely obscuring the view of the rear view mirror. That makes overtaking tricky! A new trick we have seen for the first time. In heavy winds the wing mirrors get blown in during strong gusts, but this time the winds were actually distorting the front van doors to the point where the interior light came on, expecting we were opening them. What can we say apart from Fiat "touch where it fits" engineering.
Tomorrow heading south again to Ronda or Marbella, hoping for more warmth and sun.