BILBAO/PORTSMOUTH/COLWYN BAY

Mon/Thurs.9th/19th July.
We dropped down to Bilbao on Sunday afternoon ,which is a long and fast Autovia
through the pine forest and into Bilbao then following the signs to the ferry port 10kms to the south where we parked overnight on the quay to wait for the boat on
Monday morning".The Pride of Bibao"is the P/ O ferry that was built in Bilbao to
go back and forth to Portsmouth.We had a super cabin on the 8th deck with free
soft drinks.fresh fruit and a glass of champagne on arrival!The crossing takes 30/36
hours depending on the wind,so we had a snack lunch and booked a table in Langans Brassiere for dinner.The ship has live entertainment and a casino as well as the shopping mall,so we stocked up the wine and champagne as well as some
essentials,Dinner was very good,Brenda had Calves Liver and I had the Rib-Eye steak with Bearnaise Sauce.The trip was not rough and we arrived in Portsmouth
at 6-30pm on Tuesday evening.We then shot up the A34 to Oxford and parked in
a layby overnight.On Wednesday morning we checked into Dudleys of Witney to
leave the Winnebago for its service,MOT and repairs.As we arrived another couple
who were upgrading their Winnebago,Barrie and Sandra from Lincoln had their Smart car and trailer unhooked,and after a short chat we made them an offer and are now the proud owners of a Top of the range,left hand drive,silver Smart car and
trailer. Brenda's first comment was that it would not even be able to fit in her hairdryer! so we have named it "The Hairdryer"!! We also met another couple,
Stuart and Christine Reed from Coventry who were picking up their new 3-slide out
top of the range Winnebago Itasca so we had a couple of bottles of champagne to
christen the Smart car and the Winnebago! On Thursday we booked into the local
hotel and sorted our selves out and went for a swim on Friday morning ,then the full
English breakfast before we set off to North Wales in The "Hairdryer" which was fully
loaded but still made over 70mph on the motorways! Over the weekend we settled
into our best friends house,Tim and Thea are going on holiday to Greece on Friday
so we are here for over two weeks.On Sunday we went out to a country pub for a traditional roast lunch .and have caught up with all our friends Brenda has also been
shopping at the summer sales in between the showers.!Watch out for the pictures of
the "Hairdryer" and North Wales.

MADRID / BURGOS

Sat/Sun 30th June/8th July.
Over our last weekend in Estepona which was very hot we packed away the non-
essentials then on Sunday we went on the bus to the marina for a tapas lunch ,the
beach was very busy but in the afternoon it went quiet as it was too hot.On Monday
evening we went to Music bar on the beach as Vidals and Gissy's guests and had
our last night out with them at one of his gigs-one problem! I had 300 euro's stolen
out of my wallet which was in my back pocket -but they put the wallet back! Tuesday
was the hottest day yet as we went out for lunch with Vidal and Gisela to Caseras on the 10 euro del dia, then called into the hypermarket to stock up with goods for the trip to Bilbao.Videl also helped us prepare the Winnebago for our departure next
morning.We will miss our very good and dear friends who over the last six months
we have become very close with and look forward to meeting up with them later in
the year.Wednesday morning we set off on the Autovia towards Malaga and then up
into the mountains past Granada and Jaen towards Madrid.As I was not showing any ill effects we carried on- with only one stop to find out what the scraping was
under the Winnebago! It was a support bar for a waste tank but after a quick repair
and a call to Oxford we carried on and 8hours later and 335miles we stopped over
night at a lorry stop near Toledo and contacted our friend Rafael in Madrid to ask
him if he could meet us and take us to the LPG gas station and put us on the road
to Burgos.Thusday morning we set off to Madrid which was 90 miles away and
met Rafael about 16 kms before at the town of Gatafe.He insisted we go home
with him to see Gill and the family again,so we left the Winnebago at a large car
park on a petrol station and set off across Madrid.He then took us for a late lunch
in Las Rosas,then back to the Winnebago.We then followed him into the centre
off Madrid at 6-00pm to the gas station and then onto the Autovia to Burgos! We
will look forward to seeing Rafael and Gill again in the future.All the time we have
been using the sat-nav and it has performed very well along with the co-driver and
navigator,Brenda!.As we left Madrid the Autovia climbs up to the high-sierra over
a pass and through a tunnel which is in total over 17kms long,the Winnebago was
in the low gear and pulled us over the top! We then stopped at Boceguillas which
is a small village with a lot of lorry stops and restaurants for the night,then down to Burgos on Friday morning to a site that we had been recommended to by some
people on the site in Estepona-we then got lost in the city of Burgos and with the help of a friendly taxi driver who took us to the site on the river 3kms outside Burgos we arranged to stay till Sunday.As we hooked up to only 6amps! we went to the
generator which is LPG only to find that the gas adaptor had broken again on the road from Madrid,the same as last time on our way to Cordoba befor xmas! The
handyman on the site was very helpfull and called in a gas plumber who over night
fixed the broken adaptor and checked out the LPG gas tank in the morning of Saturday and gave us the OK! We went into Burgos in the early evening and found
out that Burgos is a beautiful city with lots of history and a "Helluva" cathedral as well
as a very busy Tapas bar area and we had supper in a restaurant in the old part of the city and then had coffee and brandy in the oldest Tapas bar which has a tree growing in the centre of it! On our back we also had a dance in a bar with a wedding
party we had seen earlier! Watch out for the pictures which we will blog later of the cityof Burgos which is going to be the European City of Culture in 2012.
On Sunday afternoon we are planning to drop down to Bilbao to catch the ferry on
Monday lunchtime to Portsmouth !!

CAMPING PARQUE TROPICAL - GIBRALTAR

Mon25th/Fri29th June.
Well this has been one "Helluva" week in all sorts of way. Over last weekend I was
able to lay on the bed for the first time and sleep.so this has helped with the legs-
the physiotherapist has been giving me the treatment on Mon/Wed/Fri and I am
now back to normal but the ribs ars still sore and will take a few more weeks to
get right.On Tuesday we had a surprise when Mano and Anna called in at lunch
time with Sally Ann and her two children who had come over on holiday from
Tenerife.We had last seen them in Wales just as we left on our travels so we
caught up with all the news and after a dip in the pool we had a nice lunch which
Brenda had prepared.In the evening we had just started to get dinner ready when
Vidal ans Gisela called in with a large salmon fillet that they had just bought so we
put every thing together and had a "Helluva" late supper and caught up with all the
news of their weekend gigs including Saturday nights" St Juan" beach party which
is one of the special Saint days that is held here every year and goes on all night
long and has fireworks and very loud music! On Thursday we had planned to go
to Gibraltar with Vidal and Gisela as on the last occasion that we planned to go
we had the accident on the scooter the day before! We shot down to Gibraltar
and showed them the sites as they had not been before and it was also a good
chance to check on the legs as it calls for a lot of walking! We went down to the
marina to our favourite restaurant and had a very nice lunch in the hot sun then
we decided to go up to the top of the Rock on the cable car. It gives you spectaclur
views over Gibraltar,The Straits.Spain.Africa and the Atlantic and Mediterranean.
Also the famous "Apes" one of which took the bag of sweet cakes that Vidal had
just picked up and proceeded to eat -see the first picture! The other pictures shows
The Point.Airport and the gang at the top.We then after some shopping for spirits
and other goods set off back but we then called in for a "pit stop"one of many on
a very hot and sunny day at Sotogrande Marina which we had not seen before.
We then set off up into the hills to show Vidal and Gisela the village of Casares
but as we passed through Manilva we phoned Mano and found him and Carlos.
so we joined them for a few drinks in the main street in one of our favourite bars.
Later in the evening we moved on to a tapas bar with spectacular views over the
valley and sea and had tapas and a meal of Steak.peppers.chorizo.fried eggs
and frits!! We followed Mano back to his house and joined Anna and Sally Ann
for a few more drinks and to discuss life and the world! The legs where ok but
the ribs are a bir sore.Friday was a day to make the arrangments for the trip
next week and Vidal is going to help us with the move and un-hooking on Tuesday.
We have also some messages to pass on to various people;
Nigelnews-we will call to see you.
Al/Jan-we need a phone number so we can call and see you.
Penny-we have the tapas dishes and Hazelnut Liqueur.
All our familay and friends-watch out.we are coming!
also to Tony and Kay Turner.Michael and Annie Vankleef,who contacted us on our
new E-mail address-Thanks! and John Nicholls from Alicante who called us on
the Skype phone !
Watch out for the travel reports as we cross Spain to Bilbao for the ferry on Monday
9th July.

GIBRALTAR

GIBRALTAR

GIBRALTAR

GIBRALTAR

CAMPING PARQUE TROPICAL

Mon 11th/Mon 25th June
Well we are still in Estepona! It is sunny and hot every day ( 32o ) and the forecast
is hotter. For the last two weeks I have concentrated on getting back to normal as
the ribs are still hurting and I am still not able to lay down on the bed,so I am still
sleeping on the sun bed with cushions and my feet raised on more cushions ! My
legs are now responding to treatment and the swelling is going down slowly from
my ankles upwards thanks to the physiotherapist who is calling in three times a week,Barbara is a gem and this week as she was away on a course her colleague
Bettina who is also German looked after me.I am also now able to get in the pool
and exercise my legs and ankles and have just been able to swim a few strokes
with the help of a children's float borrowed from the swimming instructor!! The pool
is great and I even use the jets to massage my ribs. In the evening we go for a walk
around the site as the sun goes down.Brenda has been to the hypermarket on the
bus and coming back in a taxi or our friends Vidal and Gisela have picked her up
or brought things in when they are shopping,but as they have a lot of gigs on now
we have not seen them as much.The site has changed a lot in the past two weeks
as all the long stay residents have left for the summer as it gets to hot and the prices
have trebled for the summer season.even Vidal and Gisela have moved out to the
grounds of a friends villa behind the site.We do not see many people now as they
are passing thru to other places, but our Gibralta friends were here last weekend and this week an English couple,Angie and Mike Powley from Great Yarmouth were
very friendly and Mike who is PC literate was very helpfull and spent some time with
me and got me on to all sorts of sites including opening a new E-mail address at
malcolm.sexton@googlemail.com ! The" hotmail" site is still ok but the new one has
more space for photo's etc.Also during this week we had quite a social week,on
Wednesday we asked Vidal and Gisela round for a drink and we ended up having
a Chinese Take away ,then on Thursday Angie and Mike joined us for a drink and
saw in Brenda's Birthday! On Friday we were going out for the first time in four
weeks for dinner with Vidal and Gisela but they then suggested that we go up to
the grounds of the villa and we had a BBQ on the terrace overlooking the pool and
across to Gibralta and Africa,which was rather special.Brenda had a "Helluva"
birthday and received cards and singing E-mails from all her family and our
friends and even from old customers ! I bought Brenda a Hammock on a stand as
she loved swinging on Vidals and they found one in a local store.We have booked
to come back to England on the ferry from Bilbao to Portsmouth on the 9th July,
which gives me more time to recouperate and also cuts the driving back by more
than half,so we will be in England for a month or more during July and August. You
will not recognise Brenda with her short hair and suntan and I have lost half a stone
and have acquired a ponytail!!

NEWSFLASH- UPDATE

Sun/Sun/3rd/10th June.
Well we are still in very sunny and hot Estepona (30*) and will not be heading
home before the 27th June. After the the first two weeks since the fall from the
scooter it is taking longer than expected to get better.The problem is that as I
am not able to sleep on the bed still-because of the pain from the 4/5 broken
ribs, my swollen legs and feet,together with a very bad rash had not improved
and are causing concern.We had a appointment on Tuesday at the hospital
next door for a x-ray and check up with the consultant,at which he confirmed
that everything was ok and gave me ointment for the rash. By Thursday nothing
had improved ,so we called the Doctor back and he went through all the reports
from the hospital and gave them a 98% all right! The scans and tests have shown
a couple of none accident thing to watch,all to do with the Adrenal Glands and
Ferritin levels-both not serious but we will have them checked when we get home.
The Doctor who is German speaks very good English and after seeing the x-rays
he confirmed that the breaks were very nasty and there could even be more! and
that the swollen legs are caused by compression of the Lymphatic Duct by the
bleeding inside the Thorax and not helped by my sleeping position.He advised us
to get help with a physiotherapist who would give me Lymphatic Drainage,so he
called her and we arranged for her to come on Friday.Barbara who is also German
has worked down here for 7 yrs in private practise and started laying on the hands
from the neck to my toes as soon as she arrived !! We have arranged a course of
further treatments this week and over the weekend I was able to lay flat on Brenda's
sun lounger for the first time for a while and also start to walk a little around the site-
as advised by her and the Doctor.Next week on Monday 18th we will see how I am
and will carry on with the treatment if required .We are now looking at the idea of
crossing Spain to Bilbao and catching the ferry to Portsmouth-watch this space for
our weekly update !

NEWSFLASH

Wed/Sat 23rd/2nd May/June.
Today is the first time that I have been able to sit down at the table
and update our blog since the accident on Tuesday 22nd May.The
only place that I have had to sit and sleep in has been the armchair
with the foot rest because of the pain ! By Friday of last week some
problems had set in,my legs started to swell and the pain had got no
better so we had to call the ambulance, they decided that they could
not move me so gave me some shots and prescriptions to help.Over
the weekend it was not so bad and I was able to eat and move a little
with the help of the nurse,Brenda! who has had to also give me armchair
baths as time went on!! Things then went from bad to worse on Thursday
when my legs became very swollen over night,so we called in a doctor
from Estepona and he immediately advised me to go and have a scan
Asap as he suspected a problem with my Lungs and rib cage! We could
have called a ambulance but as it happens we have right next to us the most
up to date and private hospital in Southern Spain ! so we went in a taxi-100
metrs.next door! instead off going 30kms to the Main hospital were I had
been to after the fall.After the consultation and the scan they immediately
checked me in for 24hrs and arranged for a heart scan as they wanted to
check for damage and blood clots! which was a bit of a shock!!So I found
myself hooked up and on drips and being given injections over night to
help.On Thursday morning I was taken down to the heart consultant and
had a scan and ultra sound check as well as blood tests,At the same time
I was given liver and kidney tests.The out come was that there was no
damage to my heart-in fact he said the the exact opposite-everything was
in excellent condition and i was taken back upstairs to the room to await
further results.I had rung Brenda and told her the news before she returned
later in the morning so as we waited for the consultants results.We then had
another shock when a new doctor came in and introduced himself as the
intensive care consultant!!-but he immediately said it was good news not
bad! He had given a second opinion to all the results-my heart,liver and
kidneys are all ok! but the problem was that I had broken four or more ribs,
which had not shown up the first x-ray and had blood clots on the lung and
rib cage ! The bad news was that I would have to have an operation to re-
move the blood if it had increased after another x-ray.The good news was
that after a 2hr wait it would not be necessary to operate -it will go better
over time ,Our first consultant then arranged some new prescriptions and
also for another x-ray next week to check that everything is ok So we are
back at the Winnebago after a very traumatic 24hrs.It also means that we
will have to postpone our plans to leave by another week,ie,17th June to
give the ribs a chance to heal.

CAMPING PARQUE TROPICAL

Tues 22nd May.
Well we had a "Helluva" day but not one we want to repeat !! As the weather
picked up we went out on the scooter in the afternoon down to the Marina
for a coffee and orange juice then went to the hypermarket at about 4.00pm
as it is the quiet time there; As we went across the car park and around a
left and right bend which we have done hundreds of time,the scooter's wheels
shot from underneath us and we hit the car park floor with a" thud" !!! The result
being a very painful broken rib for me, with bumps and scratches for both of
us. We were very lucky as if it had happened on the main road it would have
been a lot worse.People outside picked us up and i realized straight away
that i had something wrong by the pain! Luckily we were not going fast and
we think we hit a grease patch, so no damage to the scooter only to our
pride.The hypermarket staff were very good and attended to our wounds
and offered to call an ambulance but i said no.We called our friend Vidal and
he shot down to us,by then Brenda told me i had lost my suntan and was white
and the pain was bad so with great difficulty a got into the car and went to
the hospital in Estepona,only to be sent to the main hospital in Marbella about
22kms away.They were very good and quick in the Emergencies Department
and gave me the once over and X-ray and Brenda heard the screams as they
put me on the table! The result is that i am out of action for a couple of weeks
and will have to sleep up-right on the chair for the time being ! Brenda seems
to think that i broke her fall and i think i agree!! So we are stuck on the site and
and will have to rely on our friends for the shopping etc. as well as using the
bus and taxi's.Vidal also arranged for the scooter to be brought back to the
site later in the evening by somebody we don't even know,which is very kind.
This also means that we might have to re-plan our date's etc. about our return
to England,watch this space !!

CAMPING PARQUE TROPICAL

Mon 21st May.
We had an at home day as the forecast was not to good,so we caught up
with jobs and just popped out to pick up the papers.In the evening we had
the thunder storm of all thunder storms ! The whole area rocked with the
thunder and the lightening was spectacular. We had planned to go to
Gibraltar on Tuesday with Vidal and Gisela but one of Gisela's friends
who lives just behind the Camp was taken very ill so Gisela went to look
after her as she has no family down here and stayed with her untill the
Air Ambulance took her home to Austria on Wednesday morning.

MARBELLA

Sat/Sun 19th/20th May.
We had a late start so we had brunch then went out later to the "Happy Hour" at
The Mai Tai bar at Luguna Beach as Vidal was playing a set there as his brother
is away in Trinidad-after he finished we started on the" Caipirinha's" and carried
on down to Marbella Marina.Gisela had on her new hat and shawl and looked
terrific as we visited the bars that Vidal plays in. We then went for a late Fish
supper in a Restaurant on the front in Marbella-but for the first time we had an
terrible meal,every thing was wrong and even unedible- we left quickly but it
did not spoil a good day with our good friends!! On Sunday after we had serviced
the Winnebago we went down to Estepona Marina for some Tapas but we had
to jump back onto the scooter as it started raining without notice and we arrived
back at the site wet!!

CAMPING PARQUE TROPICAL

Thurs/ Fri. 17th/18th May.
After our usual start we went out for lunch in the Flower Square in Estepona
and afterwards we caught up with the shopping. When we returned to the site
we were talking to the two couples next to us,one with a small motor home and
the other with a caravan.The motor home couple were English but lived in New
Zealand and the caravan couple were Dutch but lived in Belgium !! Both were
very helpfull and gave us lots of information for the future.On Friday after our swim
we called into the butchers and also bought a Orange sun hat and shawl for Gisela
as a thank you for cutting Brenda's hair.We went out for dinner to the" Pink"bar
across the road and had a lovely supper sat out side overlooking the sea across
to Africa; just before we went out a large American Motorhome pulled in and we
spoke to the owner-who was from South Wales and has been everywhere and so
he was very helpfull and even showed us how to fix our on-going problem with our
LPG gas-its all to do with Adaptors and Regulators! So we will try again on Monday
to solve the problem once and for all!

CAMPING PARQUE TROPICAL

Wed 16th May.
Well it started off as a usual day and ended up at 2.00am the next day! We went
into Estepona to the dentists to make an appointment and got one for 4-30 pm
in the afternoon.As we came out of the pool in the morning Gisala called in and
offered to cut,style and colour Brenda's hair later in the day.As we got back in
the early evening the Winnebago was turned into a" Hair Salon" with me acting
as the assistant,ie folding the Tin Foil etc.During the session we both had face
masks applied,made with Avocado,Olive Oil and Lemon Juice! On the TV the
UEFA cup final was on so i asked Vidal around for a drink-he turned up at 11-
00pm with his electric Wok and his famous Spicey Fish ,so we had a late supper
with our cold Spit Roasted Chicken ,Gisela's salad and fried Plantin all washed
down with bottles of the local Rosado and more drinks.The football was very
exciting, i rung Mano who is in North Wales with Anna as his team Espanyol
were playing and whilst i was talking to him they scored ! The picture below
shows Brenda at 2.00am with the new hair cut and colour !!

CAMPING PARQUE TROPICAL

CAMPING PARQUE TROPICAL

Sun/Mon/Tues/13th/14th/15th May.
As the weather is so nice we are taking full advantage of our last month here
to top up Brenda's tan! and to keep my tanned spots up to date !! We went
for our swim and went down to the marina to the market and had a light Tapas
lunch.the marina was busy as it always is on a Sunday.We then came back to
the site and watched a film on Spanish TV in the evening-our Spanish is getting
better by watching the news and sport all the time - we even follow "Who Wants
To Be A Millionaire" and some times get the answer's correct! On Monday after
we serviced the Winnebago and went for our swim, we then went into Estepona
to make an appointment at the dentists for Brenda and had a glass of fresh
orange juice in the local bar,then we came back along the front in the hot sun
shine to the hypermarket to pick up some essentials.For supper we had Lamb
Chops and Potatoes" Bravas" Today,Tuesday Vidal came round in his" Handy-
Man" role and fixed all the little jobs on the Winnebago. We were going around
to Vidal's and Gisela for supper tonight but he has picked up a Gig at the last
moment so its a "Sun-Check " !!

CAMPING PARQUE TROPICAL

Sat.12th May.
The temperature today reached 31c so our swim at lunchtime was very welcome
after we had gone out to the English Butchers before he closed. In the afternoon
we went to Laguna Beach to see Felix and Martine,Vidals brother who were
playing at the Mai Tai Bar; as the happy hour started Vidal and Gisela joined
us after their gig in "Heaven" so we went onto the cocktails-Caipirinha's being
my favourite! We then came back to the Winnebago and had a "Eurovision"
party-with a Chinese take out delivered to us and Rosado to wash it down,
then onto Brenda's famous G/Ts and B/Cs- we ended up feeling no pain and
staggered to bed !

ESTEPONA

Thurs/Fri 10th/11th May.
After our morning dip we went into Estepona and found a market hall in the
old town which we had not seen before so we bought some fresh farm veg.
and home killed pork chops; the tapas bar next to the market was a real
locals haunt and we had a Fresh Prawn mini brochette for 1euro! We had
lunch in the square at our regular bar and as usual had a wonderful meal,
with Tinto de Verano.We then went for spin along the coast road on the
scooter as the weather is very hot and sunny as forecast.On Friday we
serviced the Winnebago and had our swim ,then we went on the scooter
to the hypermarket for the weekly shopping and spotted in the household
department a collapsable table which we had been looking for;we then
came back on the scooter with it tucked under Brenda's arm and my elbow
to the site!! We then went back and did the shopping that we had gone for
in the first place.! In the evening i made a Tortilla for supper,which proved
a great hit with the local Spanish Receptionist,we gave him a piece to try
and also Vidal and Gisela who called in after a gig for a chat.

CAMPING PARQUE TROPICAL

Tues/Wed,8th/9th May
As forecast the weather is very hot,with a high of 31c so we are taking things
easy. After our swim we went out on the scooter to the English Butchers and
to the English supermarket to top up with essentials then we went to the hype-
market in Estepona.In the afternoon Brenda sat out for a while and i started
to check the paper work and make some phone calls on the Skype Phone
to England; it looks like we will have to be back by the 11th July for the MOT
and then spend about four week's on the grand tour as the Winnebago is
repaired and serviced ! Wednesday is even hotter so Brenda has used the
new sun lounger to help with her tan as we have an at home day on the site.