Madre, Padre and everything else

Hola! We have been enjoying a much slower pace this week after our epic drive down the Spanish coast. I'm undecided whether I am impressed with how far we have come by car or whether I think we are crazy!

Our travels in Spain began in the North of Spain, in Catalunya. We visited Dan, Johanna and their family at their olive grove, Finca Slow. You can read about our visit and learn more about the work they do on their website...

www.fincaslow.wordpress.com

We then drove further south to Albox which is where my family are spending their holidays in a villa (complete with pool and hot tub!) I wasn't going to turn down the chance to spend a week chilling out in the sunshine for free so here we are! I am giving up valuable sunbathing time to write this ;) 

As well as spending hours on the sunlounger and in the pool, we have visited some places too. We had a day trip to 'mini hollywood' where they used to film old western films. They also had a zoo which was a random but nice addition to our day out. We spent ages laughing at meerkats, watching cancan dancers and taking silly photos in the western props whenever we could. They had a museum of animal prints and a reptile house too which were both interesting and awesome to look around.

Today was our final full day as we begin our marathon of a drive back to York tomorrow. We spent most of the day in Mojacar looking around the shops and eating plenty of tapas. Ryan bought me a bracelet with an indalo charm on it. In Almeria they are a sign of good luck and you often find them on houses. Sadly he didn't buy me the hat....

9 things we have learned about France (so far)

Our travels through France over the past couple of weeks has shown us a lot of what the country has to offer, in the cities and the countryside. Here is what we have learnt so far, and 1 thing we just don't know!

1. There is a lot of corn growing in the fields.

It's not all sunflowers and garlic! It must be to feed the cows.

2. The birds and the cows are huge.

3. People ignore you if you ask them if they are going to the circus.
This happened in a village in Dordogne. I asked an otherwise nice lady in a village shop, where the circus was visiting, and I was simply totally ignored.

4. The shops sell weird clothes.

5. The cakes and pastries are awesome.
They really are a league above all other baked goods. Almond croissants so full of sweetness, more almond goodness in the form of a Jésuite.

6. The bread is good too.
A baguette is baked well and has the right amount of crunch and chew but there are more great breads across the country, whether poppy seeded or filled with grains, or the Haute-Vienne speciality we found, Le Tourné, which breaks off in swirls.

7. The roads are really long and winding.
Driving through the country from northwest to southeast, the roads are bound to feel long but the roads in Les Gorges du Tarn are something else - twisty mountainside narrow roads with fatal drops.

8. There is fruit growing in all kinds of places.
This is something that particularly stands out from England, every hamlet, village, and city has lots of fruit growing both in the hedgerows, fields and gardens. From grape vines grown over a verandah to fig trees scaling staircases.

9. A lot of the houses have shutters.
They are all different colours. First of all green was our favourite, then the blue ones stood out, now I think we like purple. They keep the sun and noise out and look good.

1 thing we still don't know is what the yellow diamond sign means at the side of the road!? They appear in all kinds of places. Don't worry we are confident driving on the 'wrong' side of the road and totally legal with our two breathalyzers and hi-vis jackets.