Nerja
Trip Start
Jul 07, 2008
1
50
270
Trip End
May 27, 2010
Nerja, Andalusia, Spain and Canary Islands
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Hostal Miguel, Nerja
Sipping a beer on the terrace, watching the sun go down
Just realised it's been 4 days since I last wrote up my blog, that's a record.
So we left Almeria and it was very overcast, but still rather warm. The campsite was on a little peninsula and it was difficult to work out how to get off it, so the inevitable happened, we got lost. Nothing wrong with getting lost but it does take time to recover. Once we found the right road Dave got a puncture, the first of two that day. In the meantime, the clouds were gathering - we were supposed to be riding all the way to Motril, approx 120 kms, which would be the upper limit of my cycling ability but it was looking less and less likely.
As we rounded a corner and a little town called La Curva (I'm not joking) the sky blackened and the wind whipped up like a tornado. Without discussion we both pulled into the first hostal we could find, Hostal La Curva, on the edge of Adra. No sooner had we sorted out registration etc, the first of the rain hit. At that point we were quite glad to be lightweights and somewhere clean and warm. The hostal was lovely, extremely clean and the rooms well appointed. It seems that in Spain a hotel/hostal/pension gets categorised and then the price is decided. However, what it doesn't seem to take into account is the way the place is run. Consequently, some are run very well and others are not.
Talking of being well run, the Hostal we are in at the moment, Hostal Miguel (www.hostalmiguel.com) , is absolutely delightful. For 41E we have a 'suite' of rooms (it's 2 rooms that are used for families but instead of children we have bikes) with a little balcony overlooking the hustle and bustle of the old town in Nerja. There's a fridge in our room, which is a real luxury and they've even got a sun umbrella that you can take to the beach. Jane (the proprietor) and Ian, couldn't have been more welcoming if they had tried. We have been to Nerja several times and in the past have gone to Hostal Lorca, which admittedly we tried first today but they were full. I have to say, I would make Hostal Miguel my first choice next time.
As I'm typing we're sat on the balcony of our room enjoying the throng below. We bought. prawns, chorizo and salad, plus some wine, and have dined in. The best meal we've had for a long time. This really is a delightful spot, however, word of caution don't try this in high summer!
I've completely missed out last night's escapades. We got to Motril and eventually found the campsite only to find it was completely overrun by cats. The kind of cats that think that carrying toothpaste means food. It was a complete nightmare actually, not to mention the cat shit that we could only smell but never find. This morning, however, a pack of errant dogs decided to come visit the cats. Suddenly, there were 4 dogs crashing around the site clearly looking for cats, because the next thing we hear is cats flying everywhere, up trees, under caravans, into toilet blocks. We weren't sure what was worse, wilds cats or wild dogs. Cat shit is generally smaller.
I've omitted to mention why we are staying at Hostal Miguel and that's because Camping Nerja is shut for the whole of October, obviously they've gone on holiday. You think they might have mentioned it to someone (we don't have the book they informed, so that was not good!). So the thinking at the moment is that we cycle to Torre tomorrow to (hopefully) find a campsite that's open all year. Then meet up with Rose on 27th, spend several days with them doing some rides from there, then when Rose goes back to the UK (by which time it'll be November we'll come back to Nerja for a few days to camp before we head back to the UK. It's a fluid thing, this travelling lark.
I've also just remembered the night we spent at Castillo de Banos, so thought I'd better mention it here. Moving from east to west, towards Malaga, the road most used is the N340. Every now and again you can dip onto the N340a, the coast road, and this is a particularly good thing to do when there is a motorway alternative for cars and lorries. The coast road is very windy and up and down, but it's also quite beautiful. It was one of those 'life doesn't get better than this moments'. On leaving Almeria we were told by those that know (snowbirds and campsite owners) that there were no campsites open between Almeria and Motril. Wrong. We were cycling along this absolutely lovely stretch of coastline, little villages nestled on beach, when we came across Camping Castillo de Banos (named after the village presumably). It was such a lovely place, we decided to stop. There were a few Brits but mostly they were Dutch and German. The only blot on the landscape was the fly infestation. We thought we'd had fly problems before but this place beat the lot.
I sat on the beach for a couple of hours (on my own) reading, then along came a father and son (Dutch) complete with snorkel and lilo. They were in the water 5 minutes when they emerged from the sea with a line and hook, and on the end of the line was a fish. I've seen photos of the fish before but I can't remember what they are called. I've got a feeling they are slightly poisonous as they are covered in barbs and this one was wriggling like a goodun. I thought it was a poor show that he didn't throw it back in, but merely photographed it and stuck it in a bucket. I can't imagine it would make a tasty meal.
Laters
PS The big winds we experienced a week ago are called The Calima
