Montblanc (Catalonia), Spain September 2024

We’d journeyed from Germany, through Switzerland and France, to Spain to escape the constant rain which seems to have been a feature of Northern Europe this last year. That was a good decision with the weather in Sitges (Catalonia) proving fine and the forecasts in Galicia and Asturias, in the far north west, looking even better. We decided to make our way to Galicia next (provided the weather stayed fine) by way of Aragon, Navarra, La Rioja and Castilla y Leon. Our next overnight stay would be in the small Aragonese village of Mequinenza, a 2.5 hour drive west.

We were almost halfway to Mequinenza when, looking for a place to stop for lunch, we discovered the small fortress town of Montblanc at the edge of the Prades Mountains. The town was founded by Alfonso I of Barcelona (Alfonso the Chaste) during the 12th century to protect the road between Lleida and Tarragona and it clearly prospered; as is evidenced by it’s huge church and various other impressive buildings. I don’t understand how I could have previously overlooked such an interesting place. It really is a hidden gem.

I parked just outside the medieval town walls close to the Convent de la Serra (on Paseo Josep Conangla) to take a quick look at the large church near the top of the town. There’s a sizeable flat topped mound just inside the town walls which provides views over the city and towards the Prades Mountains but the view of the back of the church (the Iglesia Santa Maria La Mayor) is less than impressive and for a moment I was tempted to return to the Van. I’m so glad I didn’t.

When I say ‘less than impressive’, I actually mean ‘odd’. It’s a mishmash of styles and, well, on the outside at least has a wholly peculiar appearance. The back of the church can be counted amongst the least attractive of any church I have seen. This can all be explained in that it started life as a small Romanesque church dedicated to Santa Maria and as it’s congregation grew, work began on a Gothic style expansion. This expansion was frustrated by the Black Death (the Plague) which devastated the town in terms of the population and money with which to finish the church and so one side of the church was simply bricked up without any ornamentation. When work resumed in the 17th century an ornate Baroque facade replaced much of the Gothic facade, which had never been finished because of the Plague and had also been damaged during the Reapers War, leaving us with the confused architectural structure that is now the Iglesia de Santa Maria La Mayor de Montblanc.

Don’t misunderstand me. The church still has much going for it. It just looks less than impressive from the back. The front of the church, with it’s Baroque style facade with Renaissance influences, is stunning. It also has some beautiful chapels (another sign of the town’s previous affluence) and a bell tower which it is possible to ascend.

I said bell-tower but it is not a tower as such. You actually climb stairs to a roof terrace where a half dozen or so bells are situated. Timing is everything and as I was climbing the stairs, the bells chimed for 11am. Let me tell you, they were loud.

I had stayed too long in the church already but had to see a little more of the town before returning to the Van for lunch which Vanya was preparing (had long finished repairing) and; I might as well get hung for a sheep as a lamb. No, it was a cold lunch and I was okay for a while yet. Thank goodness for cellular phones.

Montblanc’s old town centre is enclosed in some of the best preserved medieval castle walls to be seen anywhere in Spain and the narrow cobbled streets I followed on my way to the main square proved much the same. Higher buildings than is usual for such a rural part of the Region provided yet another example of the town’s previous wealth and, given how hot the day had already become, made for refreshingly cool streets.

There were a surprising number of people out and about; both on the streets, where local women were chatting excitedly with friends or neighbours they had chanced upon while on their way home from whatever it was they were doing and; in the Placa Mayor, where local men (their husbands?) were drinking beer andarguing and laughing loudly together. It was that happy, cheerful time of the day shortly before the afternoon siesta begins and after which the town centre would suddenly and quickly empty. I’m not trying to typecast men and women with that description but, the whole scene simply took me back to my childhood in Cyprus and Kenya where much the same scenes were played out almost every day before us kids were sent off for an afternoon nap. I really hated that time of the day.

It was time to get back to the Van. The return journey took me back past the church.

This was only a short stop but it proved a pleasant surprise and I would gladly revisit Montblanc. Also there is a World Heritage Site, the Monastir de Poblet, just 9 kilometres down the road that could be worth visiting.

Oh, and I don’t think I mentioned that according to local legend, Sant Jordi (Saint George) killed his dragon in Montblanc. It’s known as The Golden Legend in Catalonia. I reproduce below what I read about it:-

It seems that “Saint George was travelling on horseback when he came to Montblanc, which at that time was being terrorized by a large dragon. In order to appease the dragon the townspeople had started to give it 2 sheep each day. When sheep weren’t enough they were replaced by human sacrifices. The king decreed that the person to be sacrificed should be chosen at random. Finally the day came that the king’s beautiful daughter was chosen for sacrifice.

The king tried to bargain with the townspeople but they insisted that the princess should be sacrificed as their children had been. Dressed as a bride, the princess was led to the dragon’s lair when, by chance, Saint George arrived at the town. St George asked the princess what was happening and she told him about the dragon and asked him to leave before he was hurt. Instead of leaving the princess to be eaten, St George fought and slayed the dragon.”

Clearly the people of Montblanc believe this legend because every year during April the town stages a week long Medieval Fair which includes a medieval feast, jousting tournaments, a correfoc and a re-enactment of the legend of Sant Jordi. That would be fun.

Anyway, on to Mequinenza.

Sitges (Catalonia), Spain September 2024 (Tour 10)

I was last in Sitges some 20 years ago for a conference with my then employers and, from what little I saw of the town at that time, I liked the place. It was always going to be interesting to see how much the town has changed over the years and during this visit I would get two chances to check the town out; the first would be during the day on my own and the second in the evening with Vanya and our two dogs.

The day started with me walking some 15 minutes or so past the golf course and through a very pleasant residential part of the town to one of Sitges’ beaches, the Platja de Terramar. There I joined the wide palm lined promenade (the Passeig Maritim) and headed east for a further 15 minutes to the 17th century Eglesia de Sant Bartomeu i Santa Tecla (that’s Catalan for the Church of Saint Bartholomew and Saint Tecla). This route took me past what is often called the Platja de Sitges but it is in fact a series of 7 different beaches (each separated by groins); the Platja de la Barra, the Riera Xica, L’Estanyol, the Bassa Rodona, la Ribera and finally the tiny Platja de la Fragata. There are three more beaches to the east side of the church which lead all the way to the harbour (the Platja Sant Sebastia, the Platja dels Balmins and finally the Platja Aiguadolc) but I decided to leave these beaches to a later visit. For information only, I found out later that there are a few nudist beaches in Sitges and one of them is on the Platja dels Balmins.

The beaches I saw during the walk are all blue flag clean and mostly sandy. They are as good as any to be seen in this part of Spain and at this time of the year are mostly empty. The busier ones, complete with street hawkers selling fake designer handbags and trainers, are at the church end of the Passeig Maritim where most of the restaurant-bars and, of course, the old town are located. Given it was mid September, I was surprised at how busy the bars were but; perhaps I shouldn’t have been with Ryan Air currently flying into Girona from Belfast, Cork and Dublin for as little as £40 return. There were probably more Irish in Sitges during our visit than any other nationalty.

The Church of St Bartholomew and Saint Tecla is Sitges’ most recognisable landmark; so much so it is known locally as La Punta – the Point. The church was closed during my previous visit and it was the same again this time. It’s shame, if only because the views from any one of the bell tower or the clock tower will, I think, be exceptional. I read that the local museum used to run tours of the church which includes an ascent of the bell tower but I don’t know if that is still the case.

While the vistas from the nearby ‘Palau de Maricel’ (the Maricel Palace) don’t quite match those of the church, they do afford some fine views over the Mediterranean; especially from the rooftop terrace and cloisters. The ‘Palace’, by the way, is the ‘must see’ place in Sitges. Built between 1910 and 1918 by artist and engineer Miguel Utrillo at the behest of US tycoon Charles Deering (of the Combined Harvester Family), it was part of a complex which would become home to Deering and serve to showcase his growing art collection. It didn’t quite happen. The two men fell out in 1921 over certain financial irregularities and Deering closed everything down and moved back to the United States. Much of the complex was subsequently dismantled and sold off piecemeal with the City of Sitges buying the current ‘Palace’ in 1954. Inside and outside it is quite spectacular…

After exploring La Punta, I started back along the Promenade but only as far as the ‘A Facundo Bacardi’ monument (Bacardi being someone born in Sitges who emigrated to Cuba and then created the well known white rum which bears his name) and then turned deeper into the old town of Sitges by way of Carrer Primer de Maig. Sitges’ old town isn’t as large as many others (especially having regard to the size of the city – it has a population of about 30,000) but it is equally charming.

The wholly pedestrianised Carrer Primer de Maig de 1838, also known as Carrer del Pecat (Sin Street in English) is one of a handful of streets at the heart of Sitges’ nightlife. The street is not as bad as the sobriquet suggests (well, not before midnight anyway) and during the day it really is a most unassuming street that you could safely take the most prudish grandmother down.

Having said that, I’m uncomfortable with those hotels which openly declare they are open only to gay couples. Sitges has long been a truly cosmopolitan city where everyone is welcome irrespective of their gender or sexual proclivity and I recognise that the LGBTQ community has lent the city a great deal of spirit and colour but if this isn’t discrimination, it is certainly boorish behaviour and should be censured.

Rant over. Back to the visit. I wandered much of Sitges old town for a while longer and then stopped for a quick beer in one of the backstreet bars before making my way back along the Passeig Maritim to collect Vanya and our dogs for the evening sortie into the city.

There are definitely two sides to Sitges. Day and night in Sitges are different as chalk and cheese and, well, as different as day and night. The days, at least in the closed season, are generally quiet, slow and relaxed. It’s as much about lazing on the beach or strolling the promenade as anything. Yes, there is the odd juvenile boozer who seems to have confused Sitges with Ayia Napa but, fortunately, such types rarely have the capacity to last.

Then there’s nighttime. We stayed only until midnight but saw enough to recognise that the city is transformed at night. There’s a wide variety of bars and restaurants (with cocktail bars presiding) and there are also numerous nightclubs, most of which stay open well into the early hours of the morning. Of course the nightclubs are dominated by the gay community but, so far as I am aware, they are generally open to all and they are great fun.

For our part, Vanya and I were happy enough sitting on a terrace outside a bar in the old part of the city; enjoying a bottle of wine, people watching and soaking up the atmosphere of what is clearly a very vibrant city. We had found a place to eat right in the centre where the Carrer Primer de Maig meets the Carrer del Marques Monttroig and is crossed by the Carrer de Joan Tarrida. I’d recognise it again by it’s colourful umbrellas and by the way the seats of all the chairs at the tables are pointed towards the centre of the crossroads This pedestrianised crossroads was a hive of activity all the time we were there and it was a fun place to be. We would have been quite happy sitting there eating our good (but somewhat expensive tapas) and watching the world go by but our evening was further enhanced by a young acrobatic troop and dancers who entertained us at the crossroads for over an hour.

It strikes me there’s an open, accepting and more relaxed atmosphere about Sitges at night. It’s comfortable. I think perhaps the good humour of so many people intent on enjoying themselves has a healthy, positive effect on others. It’s nice to think so.

Of course it may be different during the early hours of the morning, once the nightclubs are in full sway. We were not going to find out this trip. We had our dogs with us and so could not take advantage of the nightclub scene even if we wanted too but; there was time enough for one last leisurely stroll around the quieter parts of the city and that last half hour wandering the silent empty places, away from the busy cheerful bars and clubs, was as enchanting as anything we had experienced in Sitges. A couple of the following photos perhaps reflect that?

And there#s always time for Beanie pictures.

North in the morning but we’ll be back.

Llanca (Catalonia), Spain June 2024 (Tour 9)

It was an hour’s drive to the small town of Llanca on Spain’s Costa Brava. We were to stay a couple of nights and then cross the border into France to meet some friends who live in the Aude Department of Occitanie.

Together with nearby Cadaques and Roses, Llanca was a tiny fishing village until tourism took over. With 5,000 inhabitants it has doubled in size over the last fifty years but, although it lives in the shadows of Cadaques and Roses, it is a beautiful and picturesque little town with many attractive beaches.

After parking the Van at Camping L’Ombra I set off to Llanca’s old town.

There is little left of Llanca’s erstwhile medieval centre, the town having suffered considerable bombing during the Spanish Civil War but, what remains is concentrated around the Placa Major – that’s the 18th century Parish Church (Parroquia Catolica de Sant Vicenc), the tower of an earlier 14th century church, the remaining tower and some of the walls of the 14th century Abbot’s Castle-Palace (the Torre de l’Homenatge) and the ‘Tree of Liberty’ planted in 1870.

There is also a bar with tables set underneath the huge Plane tree which is the Tree of Liberty and I found time to sit there with a beer to both reflect on what I had seen and plan the rest of my route around Llanca.

After a further short wander around the old town and then the port, I made my way back to Camping L’Ombra. The dogs wanted walking and Vanya and I needed feeding.

I mentioned perviously that this part of the Catalan coast is renowned for it’s food (see last years post on Roses) and we weren’t disappointed with the food served to us at a bar-restaurant named ‘El Floc’, which in Catalan means ‘the flake’. A lady we spoke to down at the port had recommended El Floc for it’s food, service and ambience and she was right on all counts.

El Floc is a modern, clean and very popular restaurant on Avenida Pau Casals. It was busy as we arrived but we secured the last empty table on the terrace at the front of the restaurant and, over the next couple of hours, enjoyed a really pleasant late lunch. The food wasn’t cheap but it was good value, being very tasty and beautifully presented. My starter, Scallops with a Trumpets of Death Parmentier, was outstanding and as for Vanya’s dessert of Strawberry Soup… she adored it.

The next day I set off to explore some of the beaches around Llanca. First I headed south from Llanca in the direction of El Port de la Selva to the beach at Cap de Bol. I enjoyed the walk and would have continued on beyond El Port de la Selva to Cadaques but there was insufficient time. Instead I retraced my steps to Llanca and then walked north along the coast taking in the beaches of Platja del Port, Platja de L’Argilera, Platja de San Jordi, Platja de L’Alguer, Platja Sota del Parador and Platja de Grifeu. There are some 23 different beaches in the vicinity of Llanca and they vary enormously but all have something about them.

The Platja del Port is the largest of the beaches visited during the course of the day, measuring some 425 metres (by 30 metres) between Llanca’s port area and the mouth of the River Valleta. Unsurprisingly, the Port Beach is the busiest of all those in the area and it is lined with bars, restaurants and shops. The sand is coarse but, like the water in this area, it is very clean; so much so that the beach has been awarded a Blue Flag. Further north, the smaller Platja de Grifeu with it’s fine sandy beach also has a Blue Flag and it is my favourite. I sat for an hour outside one of the two bars on the Grifeu just sipping beer and chilling. Most of these beaches are small and are to be found in inviting, unspoilt little coves with crystal clear water and mountain backdrops.

One beach that I didn’t reach but will visit in the future is to be found at the remote pocket sized cove of Cala Bramant, some two miles north of Llanca. Platja Bramant is a small pebble beach with a narrow opening to the sea. It’s crystal clear water offers interesting snorkelling and is best visited in the morning when the tide is high and the beach is quieter.


Reading back that which I have written so far it perhaps appears I have been rather restrained with my thoughts regarding Llanca. Let me explain. The facts are that (i) Catalonia, especially in the north, has many pretty coastal resorts and I cannot, in all honesty, rank Llanca amongst the best and (ii) many of the Region’s towns have considerably larger and more interesting medieval quarters whereas; little remains of Llanca’s old town (not least because of damage caused to the town during the Carlist Wars and the Spanish Civil War) and (iii) as good as the food is in Llanca (and with apologies to El Floc and Els Pescadors), Llanca is a small town with nowhere near enough restaurants to compete with the likes of Barcelona, Blanes, Casamar, Miramar or either of Roses or Cadaques (where Michelin Stars abound). Nevertheless, I like Llanca and I will definitely return to the town.

Out of season, and this is a real plus, Llanca is nowhere near as crowded with tourists as the other towns I have mentioned in this post. Moreover, it offers an almost perfect balance in terms of things to do being (i) it’s proximity to other interesting towns and villages in Catalonia and (ii) it’s walking and/or hiking opportunities along the rugged and rocky coastline of the Costa Brava* and (iii) it’s many and varied beautiful beaches** and (iv) it’s wonderfully fresh food and drink and (v) the warm and inviting welcome afforded by the locals. Best of all, it is a great place to chill.

FOOTNOTES to Llanca Blog:-

* Coastline Catalonia has more than 500 kilometres of wonderfully rugged and rocky coastline, 160 kilometres of which form the Costa Brava and include the Camino de Ronda (and not forgetting the GR 92 which connects Porbou on the French Border with the Pont de L’Olivar where Catalonia meets Valencia). The well maintained coastal paths around Llanca provide for a range of spectacular sights (soaring sea cliffs and impressive rock formations, headlands with scenic panoramas, sheltered bays and shady forests, etc).

** Beaches There are 100+ beaches and coves on the Costa Blanca alone, 32 of them with Blue Flags. Many have all the facilities one would expect of seaside resort (restaurants, bars, deckchairs and showers, etc) while others are hidden and often deserted). The beaches and coves around Llanca are a stunning mix of gently sloping golden sands and sheltered rocky coves, all with clear calm sparkling water. I was going to include ‘warm’ in that description but no… not in June. Not while I was there.

And so to France…

Banyoles (Catalonia), Spain June 2024 (Tour 9)

Twelve miles north of Girona and twenty two miles south west of Salvador Dali’s hometown of Figueres, at the western entrance to Garrotxa Nature Reserve, is the small city of Banyoles (Banyoles having been granted city status in 1920). We were in this part of Catalonia four years ago (Tour 4) and stayed at Besalu and Tortella but missed Banyoles. That oversight has now been remedied.

The city is best known for it’s 2 kilometre long freshwater lake, the Lago de Banyoles, which stretches from north to south and has a depth of almost 50 metres. Fed by underground water sources, it is the largest natural lake in Catalonia and recognised for it’s wide range of flora and fauna (including otters, turtles, water snakes and 300+ different species of butterflies) but, it was the 1992 Summer Olympics which brought Banyoles to the world’s attention. It hosted all of the rowing events for the Barcelona Olympics and then again for the World Rowing Championships in 2004 and the Rowing World Cup in 2009 (as well as numerous, lesser rowing events). Going forward, the World Rowing Masters is to be hosted there in September 1925.

We parked up at Camping El Llac in Porqueres, on the south west corner of the lake and just 20 minutes walk from the city which is on the south east corner. Porqueres is known for it’s well preserved 1oth century church (the Eglesia de Santa Maria de Porqueres), consecrated in the 12th century. It is of modest design and contains little in terms of decoration. I read that it straddles a huge Earth Energy Line – an Earth Dragon Line but I don’t pretend to understand what that is all about. The church is, however, a pleasant enough place to visit and it sits in a quite exceptional setting on the edge of the lake.

There’s a flat 7 kilometre path around the edge of the lake but with Porqueres and Banyoles City being no more than 2 kilometres apart on the southern edge of the lake, the walk from the Eglesia de Santa Maria de Porqueres to the centre of Banyoles takes less than 30 minutes (even allowing for time to take photos).

The south east shore is dotted with a number of tiny houses or huts known as pesqueres. These huts were built during the latter part of the nineteenth and early twentieth century and are the ultimate beach huts for wealthy families to use as a base for fishing, boating and swimming in the lake. One now serves as the tourist information office but it was closed as I passed it. It mattered not; there are plenty of information boards positioned around the city and I was intent on exploring the medieval town centre and finding a bar where we could watch England’s second group match of the European Championship Finals, against Denmark. A bar in the old town would serve us well.

It is thought humans may have lived in this area some 80,000 years ago but this is unproven. It is certain, however, following an archaelogical find at nearby La Draga in 1990, that a settlement was formed on the south east edge of the lake as long ago as 5,200 BC. Most of this settlement is submerged beneath the lake but this has worked to the archaeologists advantage because large numbers of different wooden tools (bows, javelins, digging sticks, spindles, ladles, etc) have been recovered, perfectly preserved in the waterlogged soil. Wooden piles, planks and building supports which formed accommodation and storage areas have also been reclaimed and these have facilitated the construction of replica buildings on the site which is just to the north of Banyoles (see below – not my photos).

The settlement was evacuated early in the 8th century (sometime between 711 and 720 AD) when Muslim Moors and Arabs invaded and conquered almost all of Spain but, at least in this part of Spain, the Muslim occupation didn’t last long. Within 100 years Catalonia was free of the invaders (it was centuries later before the invaders were removed from other parts of Spain) and Banyoles began to grow around the Bendictine Monastery of Saint Steven (Monestir de Sant Esteve) which was built in 812 AD. The original construction was destroyed by a Saracen attack in 945 AD but Banyoles survived and thrived on the back of a burgeoning textile industry and the monastery was rebuilt within just 12 years.

It took me no time to find the porticoed Placa Major and on it a lively little bar with a decent sized TV (the Cafe de la Placa) where Vanya and I could eat and watch England play Denmark later in the evening. The football match wasn’t due to start until 9pm which left time to explore the old town.

I didn’t stay long on the Placa Major. It’s a fair sized rectangle filled with Plane trees and edged by numerous stone arches and a few bars. It’s a pretty place and the thought of sitting in the shade with a beer while planning my next move appealed to me. However, a dozen or so school children (part of a brass band I think) were demonstrating their dubious abilities on various wind instruments to doting parents and grandparents. It was the loud applause (wholly out of proportion to the talent actually displayed by the children) which convinced me the watching adults were parents and grandparents but, either way, it wasn’t for me and I took to the streets.

One very interesting feature of the town are the numerous open irrigation and/or drainage canals which were originally designed to both supply the city with water from the lake and provide flood protection. Over time these canals were lost (as one by one they were covered and integrated with the towns sewers) but, more recently (i.e. during the early part of this century), large numbers were uncovered and left exposed as part of a programme towards making the old town more interesting and attractive. They still provide a degree of flood protection but they now also serve as a charming water feature.

Most of the small historic centre is now pedestrianised and it is a joy to wander. I was particularly impressed with how clean it all is. Of course, the open canals may well help in this regard.

It didn’t take me long to find the Church of Santa Maria dels Turers (La Iglesia de Santa Maria dels Turers). Built in the Gothic style and consecrated in 1333, it has been remodelled a number of times (the current facade dates from the 16th century; two aisles were added in the 17th century and; the church’s stained glass windows date from the 20th century) but it isn’t the most handsome of churches and I didn’t stay long. In fact, I returned to Placa Major (the aspiring musicians had left); reserved a table for the evening and; enjoyed a couple of beers before making my way back to the Van.

At around 7pm Vanya and I readied the dogs and I led everyone around the lake and back into town to the Cafe de la Placa on the Placa Major to eat and watch the football. It’s a delightful walk and next time we visit the city I intend completing a full circuit of the lake.

The football match was anything but delightful. It ended in a 1-1 draw (which pretty much guarantees England a place in the next round even though England have one further Group Stage game to play) but, again, England were wholly disappointing.

The return journey to the campsite was pleasant and memorable in that Nala was given free rein to lead us back to the Van in the dark and she did an absolutely sterling job

The next morning saw us depart for the coast. We were heading some 40 miles east to Llanca for our final night in Spain.

Roses (Catalonia), Spain October 2023 (Tour 8)

We decided to drive to Spain for the day from Banyuls sur Mer, taking the D914 coast road to the Franco-Spanish border. From there, well… we were intent on having a pintxos lunch so, almost any town or village in Spain would do. We’d follow the N260 in Spain and make our mind up as to the final destination en route. This trip was as much about the coast road as the pintxos.

The coast road to the border was everything it promised to be. It is a slow route because of it’s many curves and hairpin bends but, except for a handful of motorbikes, it was surprisingly quiet and offered exceptional views along the Catalan coast. The route took us through Cerbere and then up through a series of interesting rock formations to the Belitres Pass and into Spain.

The border is marked on the French side of the Pass by a long abandoned customs post which is now almost completely covered in graffiti and; on the Spanish side of the Pass by the Retirada Memorial, erected in 2009.

The Retirada (the Memorial del Exilio del Paso de Belitres to use it’s correct name) is a pictorial representation by Columbian artist Manuel Moros of the suffering of hundreds of thousands of republican refugees fleeing Spain for France as General Franco’s armies descended on Barcelona towards the end of the Spanish Civil War. And it didn’t end there; a year later, in 1940, this same Pass was used by refugees crossing the other way, from France to Spain, while fleeing from Nazi Germany. I suspect a fair few of those who left Spain in 1939 were amongst those who were compelled to return in 1940. Talk about being caught between a rock and a hard place. Whatever, the photographs on the memorial capture the anguish and despair of the refugees. It’s a sobering memorial.

Once across the border and into Spain the road became the N260. This led us down through Portbou and then two other little fishing villages, Colera and Llanca.

Don’t ask me how it happened but, we soon found ourselves parked up in a place called Empuriabrava. Don’t go there! Reclaimed from swampland by some German entrepreneurs during the late 1960’s, Empuriabrava is a purpose built tourist resort of some 8,000 people (rising to an incredible 80,000 in the summer months). It is built around what I am advised is Europe’s largest residential marina, with some 40 kilometres of canals and more than 5,000 boat moorings. “Naff” is possibly the word that best describes the place. There is nothing about it that is remotely Spanish, let alone Catalonian, and from what little we saw (we couldn’t get out of there quick enough) it appeared to be populated largely by Russians. Vanya likened the place to an ill thought out and awful imitation of Port Grimaud. I thought she was being kind.

And so it was that we arrived in Roses. In a facebook entry on the day we arrived, I described Roses as being to Spanish beach resorts what Waitrose is to supermarkets (i.e tasty) but, looking back, any Spanish beach resort with any authenticity about it would prove tasty compared to Empuriabrava … but that shouldn’t detract from Roses.

In common with most towns and villages on the Costa Brava, Roses was a fishing town. It still has the largest fishing fleet on the Costa Brava but is now unashamedly a tourist town and probably one of the most popular tourist destinations on the Costa Brava. What sets it apart from so many other places on the Costas and what I like about the place is that it is not in the least tacky. The words fashionable and chic spring to mind (but, we are out of season). Moreover, it sits on the northern tip of Roses Gulf and is the only beach resort on the Costa Brava that faces west (which, if nothing else, will make for some great sunsets).

We parked the Van in the south of the town on a wide boulevard in the modern residential area of Santa Margarida and then, with the wide sandy beach and calm turquoise sea to our right, we strolled along the promenade towards the town centre.

Hotels, restaurants, cafe-bars and sculptures line the promenade all the way to the old fishing port. At it’s centre there is little left of the original village; just more hotels and restaurants, large apartment blocks, shops and boutiques and the odd monument and; on Sunday mornings a farmers market with 200+ stalls. There’s no doubt about it; Roses’s focus is towards it’s high quality blue star beaches and there are plenty of them.

Those nearest the town centre (the Platja Nova, the Rastrell and the Salatar) are wide family friendly beaches with fine sand and clear shallow waters and they are very popular during the high season; as is the beach just to the north of the harbour (Platja La Punta). Beyond that and accessible by car and local transport are the smaller, quieter but no less welcoming beaches of Platja Palangres, the Canyelles Petites and the Canyelles Grosses (also known as Platja Almadrava). They too offer golden sands and shallow waters and they tend to be frequented by local families in the summer. Further north, some 7 kilometres from Roses and on the edge of Cap de Creus National Park, is Montjoi Creek (where the world famous triple Michelin Star restaurant ‘El Bulli’ used to be located), Joncols Creek and Cala del Canadel. The sand on these particular beaches is darker and mixed with flat stones but the water is clearer still. Finally, there are numerous other small secluded beaches deeper inside the National Park (Cala Calitjas Creek and Cala Rostella being two of the larger better known ones) but these are stony and rocky and not so accessible and the water at Cala Rostella is considerably deeper. To reach them they require a bit of walking (unless you access them from the sea) and they tend to be the preserve of divers and nudists (or so I’m told).

Beach holidays don’t hold the same allure to Vanya and I as they used to (we can’t take the heat) but, going forward, I could be tempted to use Roses as a base from which to visit some of the surrounding countryside and especially the coastline although, it would have to be out of season. September and/or October would be as good a time as any. I think too that I could be tempted to charter a boat to better explore the coastline. Now there’s a thought.

After a short wander around the town, we set off back along the promenade to the Van, stopping at a beachfront restaurant on the way for pinxtos and a beer.

Oh. I mentioned the restaurant, El Bulli. It was owned by the Barcelona chef Ferran Adria and, until it’s closure in 2011, was one of the most famous restaurants in the world, holding 3 Michelin Stars from 1997 and being voted ‘Best Restaurant in the World’ 5 times in a row by Restaurant Magazine. Not once did El Bulli make a profit in the 27 years Adria was Head Chef but this is perhaps not surprising given they employed 40 chefs and had just 50 covers. It seems Adria’s focus was (is?) primarily towards avant-garde cooking; pushing boundaries and; creating new dishes with the whole menu being completely changed every year. Now that would have been a restaurant to visit.

We’ll return to Roses but for now, it’s back to Banyuls sur Mer and then north to the UK although; we still have a few days before having to catch our train back to Folkestone. It’s booked for Sunday 8 October.

Cambrils (Catalonia), Spain February 2022 (Tour 5)

And so, on our way to warmer climes, we arrived in Cambrils (some 20 kilometres south of Tarragona) and decided to stay for a couple of days. Our reasons were that firstly, it was getting warmer by the day (and the forecast was even more promising); secondly, there is far more to Cambrils than L’Estartit (and for the most part it is open) and; thirdly and perhaps most importantly, we arranged for a local vet to see Nala and Beanie about a Spanish Pet Passport (now that, because of Brexit, their existing EU Pet Passports have been made redundant).

Our decision proved to be good one. The fact is, we needed a rest. Ordinarily we take our time on these tours, driving as little as possible and properly exploring and/or experiencing the places we choose to stop at. That wasn’t the case on this particular tour. Storms and freezing weather across the whole of France had compelled us to head south as quickly as possible. It was time to get back to doing things right and that day’s sunset promised great things…

We stayed at Camping La Llosa which sits on Playa La Llosa and was an easy 15 minute walk into the town. Cambrils could be described as just another Spanish summer holiday resort, albeit one with 9 kilometres of 10 blue flag, golden, sandy beaches but, what sets it apart is it’s proximity to the three mountains of Llaberia, Argentera & La Mussara (water and mountains go so well together) and it’s many fine restaurants, including at least one holding a Michelin star (the Ca L’Estrany).

Ca L’Estrany was not to be but, on the seafront we found a small restaurant (Braseria de Porte) which had an appealing menu and we sat and ate and stayed until they closed. Vanya rated her meal, Crayfish followed by a Seafood Paella, as one of the best of her life. I tried Razor Clams for the first time in my life but found them a mite rubbery. No matter, we would both recommend the Braserie de Porte.

Razor Clams. They were a tad rubbery but I’ll try them again. I’ve seen a Rick Stein recipe which appeals

The next day I went for a long walk along the coast to and from Salou – no reason other than that I fancied the exercise.

During my walk along the coast I stumbled across a rather intriguing work of art which I subsequently learned was created by David Callau Gene in 2011. They are sculptures of three fishermen and two mermaids and were put up to mark the 100th anniversary of a great storm which killed 140 Cantabrian fishermen, many of them from Cambrils.

Yes, we enjoyed Cambrils – as much for the rest as anything. And yes – we managed to get Spanish Pet Passports for the dogs. They now have dual nationality.

Tarragona (Catalonia), Spain February 2022 (Tour 5)

Leaving L’Estartit very early by our standards we set off further down the Catalonian coast for Cambril pausing at Tarragona on the way.

Much of our time in Tarragona was walking to, from and along the lively, wide, tree lined Rambla Nova (the city’s main street) where we also sat and enjoyed some of the local beer and tapas. We saw a few of the city’s sites during our short sojourn but missed so much more. You need a good two days at least to do the place justice.

Walking alongside one of Tarragona’s fine beaches (the Playa del Milagro) to the Rambla Nova, we passed the remarkably intact remains of an ancient Roman Amphitheatre built during the reign of the Emperor Augustus in 2 AD. Augustus wintered in Tarragona, or Tarraco as it was then known, after his Cantabrian campaign. The amphitheatre could accommodate more than 14,000 spectators and in 259 AD was the scene of the martyrdom of Bishop Fructuosus and his two deacons. How on earth any one person, let alone 14,000, could enjoy such a spectacle is beyond me but the amphitheatre is just one of many Roman ruins in the city which, collectively, have caused Tarragona to be designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

Tarragona’s Amphitheatre

Tarragona’s 15 kilometre coastline comprises a number of beautiful beaches and the Playa del Milagro with it’s wide sandy shore is one of the most popular. One of the best views of the beach and it’s palm fringed promenade is from the Balcon del Mediterraneo which is to be found at the eastern end of the Rambla Nova.

Looking down over Playa del Milagro from the Balcon del Mediterraneo

There are some interesting statues dotted across Tarragona. One in particular on the Rambla Nova caught my attention. It sits towards the western end of the avenue and is entitled “Castells of Tarragona”.

The forming of the Castells (Human Towers) is believed to have started early in the 18th century in or around Tarragona and it has since spread throughout Catalonia. Indeed, an annual competition is now held in Tarragona every summer with teams known as ‘colles’ descending on the city from all over Catalonia to compete in building the tallest and most complex towers made only of human beings of all ages and sizes standing on top of each other. As many as 500 people have been known to form a colle and it is not unusual for the towers to reach ten tiers. The concept has attracted so much interest that UNESCO has declared the Castells a “Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity”.

As was mentioned beforehand, this was a brief stop in Tarragona. There is a great deal more to see in the city (principal among them being the Roman Forum and the magnificent 12th century Cathedral of Santa Maria) but we had to move on – our dogs were due to see a vet in Cambril.

L’Estartit (Catalonia), Spain February 2022 (Tour 5)

As we moved along the A9 in France towards Spain it started to rain (albeit lightly) and the cloud cover over the Pyrenees increased but, no problem, almost as soon as we crossed the border the skies began to brighten. It wasn’t yet sunny but it bode well.

By the time we reached L’Estartit on the Catalan coast we had completed almost 1,000 miles in the Van since leaving Brighton and we were beginning to feel very good about the weather. All of the forecasts that we checked promised sunshine for the next week (especially if we were to continue south).

L’Estartit, like so many places on the Catalan coast, is a holiday resort primarily for the Spanish. There’s not so much of the lurid, ‘kiss me quick’ trash that is to be found on the Costas further south in Spain but neither is there much left of the old picturesque fishing ports that used to dot this coast. Fishing and the associated cottage industries have given way almost entirely to tourism and, in winter, the small towns and villages on this coast are now almost empty; with many of the hotels closed and countless villas and apartments (now second homes and holiday lets) all boarded up.

L’Estartit is no different to the other places. I walked almost the whole of the town during the late afternoon and early evening to find that most houses and apartments are locked and shuttered and not a single restaurant was open (or likely to open). I found just two cafe/bars and a kebab takeaway open and none of those three places were particularly inviting. A local I spoke to confirmed that only one or two restaurants in the town ever opens in winter and that is usually at weekends.

For all that, I did enjoy my walk around the town. L’Estartit has some nice cliffs to the north of the town, an interesting island protecting the harbour, a very nice beach front and a smart fair sized marina (especially given the size of the town). I suspect that a significant number of L’Estartit’s summer hordes arrive by boat.

La Seu d’Urgell (Catalonia), Spain July 2021 (Tour 4)

Leaving Montagut we headed off towards La Seu d’Urgell in the Catalonian Pyrenees, just to the south of Andorra. Two stages of this year’s Tour de France are being held in Andorra next week and we have it in mind to visit during the event.

We took our time over the journey pausing at Ripoll (to stock up on supplies) and near Cercs on the Panta de la Baells (to enable the dogs to take their now customary morning swim). There were other stops too but these were just brief photo opportunities

We arrived at La Seu d’Urgell early afternoon and and parked up some 3 km outside of town between the two small villages of Castellciutat and Montferrer. This gave me plenty of time to conduct a brief recce of the town. It’s a small, fairly pretty town of some 12,000 people, sitting at the confluence of the Segre and Valira Rivers just 12 miles to the south of Andorra. This area is all about cycling, white water rafting on the Segre and, surprisingly, cheese – Spanish cheese producers descend on the town from all over the country every October for a major cheese fair.

Having walked the 3 kilometres to d’Urgell in 33 degrees centigrade, I was delighted to stumble upon the cool tree lined avenue of Passeig de Joan Brudieu near the centre of the town. A couple bars on the avenue were open and locals of all ages were simply sitting in the shade and chatting over a beer, wine or coffee. I can appreciate now why such avenues are a feature of so many Spanish towns. They provide much needed relief from the hot afternoon sun.

From the Avenue I made my way to the old(er) part to the town where most of the shops sit in a stone arcade (which, once again, is designed to protect the local inhabitants from the sun) and that arcade led me to the Romanesque Catedral de Santa Maria.

Just a short walk from the Cathedral is the Olympic Park which was built for the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. The white water canoeing and kayaking events were held there in 1992 and while those same sports facilities are now available for locals to use, much of the area has been given over to gentler pursuits. For instance, there are now two very welcoming bars in the complex (not that I had time to use them – I had to get back to the Van for the football – England v Italy in the European Championship Final at Wembley).

And so to the football, after starting brilliantly (England were 1-0 up within just 2 minutes following a great strike by Luke Shaw) it turned into a disaster with Italy first equalising and then, after extra time was played without any further score, winning on penalties. The saddest thing is that Italy deserved their win.

The football was memorable on two counts. Firstly, England lost despite having the home advantage and being odds on favourites. The second was the electrical storm which hit us just after Italy equalised. Strong winds came from nowhere and caused absolute havoc across the campsite. We made it into the Van just before the thunder, lightening and heavy rain struck. We got away with it but some serious damage was caused to the vehicles and tents of people camped both sides of us.

The next day was about my visiting the two local villages of Castellciutat and Montferrer and finding us a pub for lunch. That was easy. Montferrer has no shops, bars or restaurants – absolutely nothing. Castellciutat has only the one pub but it did us proud. Despite it being Sunday (or because of it?) the pub was packed with locals who all seemed to know each other and the mood was lively and friendly. Add that the beer and food was good and inexpensive and we were more than happy to while away a good two hours sitting at a table outside and relaxing.

And so to Andorra…

Montagut (Catalonia), Spain July 2021 (Tour 4)

Day 15 of our Tour saw us visit Besalu and then move on to a very quiet campsite just 13 miles away near Montagut i Oix on the edge of the Garrotxa Volcanic Zone National Park. There is very little of any interest in the area (unless you enjoy walking rough woodland trails up and down hills) but that suited us fine because we had booked in for two days with a view to simply chilling. We did that alright and enjoyed ourselves so much we stayed for a third night.

One absolute must during our stay was to watch the European Championship Semi-Final match between England and Denmark and that was achieved despite the camp having only very weak 3G and seriously poor Wifi. Vanya managed to stream the match on to two different I-pads (don’t ask me how) and while the I-pads took turns freezing one at least would work sufficiently well for us to follow most of the match. It wasn’t ideal but it worked and of course England won!

About 400 metres from our campsite alongside the road to Tortella is a narrow 28 metre high single arch 14th century bridge which crosses the River Llierca. Would you believe, Vanya actually made it to the top of the bridge? It was the river flowing very slowly under the bridge which most impressed the dogs. It became their private swimming pool with Beanie in particular loving the daily swim.

Of course, I cannot sit and do nothing even on chill days and so on two of our three days at Montagut I wandered off into the Garrotxa Park on short walks. They weren’t brilliant walks because (a) many of the trails are indistinct and (b) the tree line in this part of the world is so high that it is virtually impossible to get decent views but they kept me occupied.

My first walk was along part of Spain’s GR1 route and it took me from the Pont de Llierca up to and well beyond the Oratori de Plansalloses which chapel is popularly known as the ‘Saints Bodies’ after a legend that tells of the small bodies of numerous children being found there.

My second walk, the next day, was a longer route which took me in the opposite direction from the Pont de Llierca up to Montsiposit and then on to la Creu de la Ripolla. Absolute waste of time. The Santa Creu cross at the top of Montsiposit was more of a disappointment than the Oratori de Plansalloses. I had to fight may through a mass of thorns which cover the Montsiposit summit only to discover it the Santa Creu is little more than a small trig point with a cross on it. If that wasn’t bad enough, La Creu de la Ripolla proved to be nothing more than a yellow signpost pointing the way back to my start point and various other destinations.

Leaving the walks aside, we still enjoyed our stay in Montagut.