We arrived back into Gatwick after the long flight from Australia In time for a good nights sleep at The Hilton at the airport….(if you ever need to stay overnight …Don’t stay here …Stay at the Sofitel or Hampton by Hilton … much better ).

My eyes have finally settled down after all the crying saying goodbye to our loved ones … oh dear it’s sad … I even cried saying good bye to Charlie the dog! Did I see a tear in Al’s eye too ? 😳 no joking !

The next day we had a mid day flight back over to Alicante in Spain where Pinot had been parked for the last month. If you ever need to park your Motorhome at Alicante airport …we can highly recommend …Umbrella parking … 74 euros for a month ! Shuttle to and from the airport included.

Hey home back in our Moho 😊Europe part two here we come …

Well Easter holidays were in full swing when we arrived back and the choice of sites were limited … We found a place south of Alicante … Marjal Costa Blanca …Spanish invasion on steroids … it was a huge site and we think the whole of Spain had decided to stay there too! Loud ? Loud ? Omg if there was ever a time for noise cancelling headphones then this was most definitely it … we were surrounded left , right and centre with them ….fair dues, it is their Country I guess …. balls…bikes , air riders,… heavy duty smokers……( well that one was enough to send Al Pal off 😂) skateboards..hoverboards…scooters … and the worst part … curfew was at 1.00 am to 7.00 am!!!! 6 hours kip if you’re lucky. Lordy Lordy even copious glasses of red wine didn’t knock us out ! Enough was enough and on our last night with bags under our eyes we asked if we could move … thank goodness they had a spot free in a much quieter area and we slept like babies. We are not fans of large sites …and even the receptionist who was Spanish remarked on how seriously loud the Spanish are … especially when they get together in a crowd and there is shed loads of wine imbibed !!!

Our days here were leisurely … walking … riding….trying to get a nanna nap if possible , we even managed a bit of bird watching with loads of Flamingoes breeding and eating.. chilling by the pool … ( the quieter of the two options) and recharging our batteries.

There were some seriously big rigs parked up here and Al had serious Motorhome envy.

On Easter Monday which is not a holiday in Spain, we had to back track down to Mojacar nice and early where the infamous Motorhome part was waiting to be installed on the inverter so that once again we could hook back up with electric. It was five weeks since we were last at the garage there …. the part had not arrived before we left for Australia .. Dragos the mechanic was waiting for us and told us … all being well it should be ready to go before siesta time 2.00pm … Yes please we said …. you have had it long enough. On foot we passed time with numerous coffees …. by 2.00pm no word from Dragos … that meant now the mechanics were sleeping !! Luckily we managed to meet up with Sue, Andy, Barry and Wendy for a lovely lunch which took us to 4.00 pm … whoops I didn’t take a photo !Unfortunately the damn part still hadn’t been found let alone fitted.

Arrived at the garage nice and early the next day to be informed …. they had lost the part !!! ” Good god man You have got to be joking”……at least that’s all I am prepared to commit to I couldn’t possibly print what Allen actually said. !! I am very sorry said Dragos but the man who knows were it is , is away until tomorrow. … lord give us strength … so we in the interim booked into the the campsite just up the road named El Quinto this is where we first took delivery of our lovely Pinot last year and caught up with the equally delightful crew… cannot believe it was 13 months ago we first met them. Needless to say we had a very big night with lots of vino .. singing and dancing involved….Alpal must have been enjoying the crack as he even took the dreaded selfie stick for a run😳.

Back down to see Dragos first thing the following morning… “we have found the part” … yay … apparently he had had to ring the parts manager who was languishing in hospital !! to find out were it was … cannot believe all this for a part that cost 10 euro’s . We had to laugh in the end ,what else could you do. We travelled about 25,000 kms faster than a part from Barcelona to Mojacar. Anyway all sorted and a quiet evening at El Quinto was in order before we hit the road again. Well a visit to Hispavan the next day for a few adjustments …. and a new gas outlet …. which had to be certified the next day by a gas fitter then on our way.

First stop Albir … for more socialising …Lyn and Austin from Soplamo were there and it would have been rude not to catch up with them for a few drinks on our way North.

Great little site set on the esplanade …Cap Blanch…

Another great night … great company and even a little dancing involved later in the night at a hotel with some rather serious ballroom dancers 🤣 go Austin …

Said farewell once again to Lynn and Austin ( it’s the third time now and hopefully not our last ) we then enjoyed another day and night there on our own. Al and I had a brilliant night at a little bar listening to a fabulous duo … Ozzy Osbourne look alike .. but wow he could play the guitar, everything from Santana to John Meyer. A lot of fun for the cost of a bottle of red.

Time to make our way slowly north to Barcelona where we have a ferry booked to Genoa. I say ferry but Al Pal assured me it’s more like a ship….it’s a 20 hour crossing and I think he’s trying to placate me……..he’s even booked a nice cabin so fingers crossed it’s smooth sailing. The first couple of evenings on the Transatlantic crossing are still etched in my memory.

We spent a few nights in Javea … at camping Javea …a great pitch on the edge of the orange orchards .. the orange blossom is out at the moment and it’s smells gorgeous.great day for washing.

Had another great day cycling coastal ride past several miradorsall of which were gorgeous hard to choose which picAfter a day cycling, another hike…….we are trying really hard to get back in some reasonable state of fitness …and the wonderful Spring wild flowers are in bloom …the lavender smelt amazing.and is now in a little vase … on our dash .. well a jam jar but hey needs must 😊Next stop was Alcossebre a small coastal town for a few nights…Camping Ribamar a fantastic campsite … great facilities and the location was just the best … just inside the Parc du natural Sierra D’ Irta worth the 1 1/2 Km’s down an extremely bumpy unmade road ( good job I am an expert now with tea towels in between glasses) … no Al would say he is a proficient caring driver 🤣 located just 150 meters from the beach …where we had many walks, a picnic and vino one of the nights .. a tad chilly .. Jimmy Buffet playing in the back ground …….no not the real Jimmy Buffet, just Alpal with his Ueboom and Ipod.. extremely chilled .. what a great night.bike rides…of course amongst the fields of artichokes and natural park areas. Our few days here flew by… with some serious walking involved.....those wild boar were out again and seeing the earth churned up by foraging wild boar was a little unnerving !!what a great spot for a game of boules.We came across a rally of vintage cars and bikes … but the making of the Paella was of more interest .. well to me anyway.Cambrils was our next stop just for a couple of nights..we arrived here on a Sunday to a really warm sunny day .. the place was buzzing, full of locals enjoying the sunshine and Sunday lunch ......the next day it was deserted and cold … and rainy .. oh well go and have lunch ..Campsites vary along the way some are fantastic .. some good … and some , not many are just plain average … this campsite got brownie points for the wine selection..a taste before hand .. choose your 2 litre container .50 Euro cents … then top up with your favourite tipple for 1.99 litre 😂🤣

Our time in Spain has come to an end … we have spent quite some time here during our travels and we have loved every minute of it. But now it’s time to explore new countries. We catch a ferry /ship …( yes .. please please let it be a ship !) tomorrow from Barcelona to Genoa for lots more shenanigans…

until next time

Love to all xx