28th January 2017. Journey to Las Negras, Spain.

There was a terrible storm all night, the motorhome rocked like a boat on a stormy sea, I had got out of bed at 2 a.m.  Our neighbours to the right  of our van had their lights on and when I looked out of the opposite window Steve was just turning their outside light off (I found out later that their washing line had been flicking against the side of their van so they’d had to go out and untie it, not something you want to be doing at 2 a.m. AND in the middle of a storm!)  At 4 a.m. I took the opportunity to write a reply to my sister in law’s email.  I finally went back to bed and slept around 5.30 a.m.  unluckily for me we had an early start and the alarm went off 2 and a half hours later, boo hoo!

We all looked like death warmed up as we did our leaving chores before we left Vera.  Darren had picked the short straw and led the way.

We arrived at Majaca which was the first stop on the list that the man on the beach had suggested.  We weren’t sure where to park but Darren found enough space at the side of the road for both the vans to stop.

He hopped out of the van while I was still looking for my shoes, it’s an annoying habit that our boys and I share, we take our shoes off as soon as we get in the car regardless of how long the journey is going to be and it drives Darren insane because he then has to wait when we reach our destination while we put our shoes back on again!  This time he had company while he was waiting, in the form of an elderly man with a  frame who stopped for a chat regardless of the fact Darren couldn’t understand Spanish (he knew that because he had asked him when he started talking!)  He was a very happy man and Darren gathered that he was telling him he used to own an much smaller van years ago.  He seemed even happier when we all said “Hola” to him as we passed by on our way up the hill.

We were very confused about Majaca, it appeared to be a village which had been built on an extremely steep, very high, hill.  We couldn’t find any information about where the village centre was, there were a couple of shops at the bottom and because we could see a huge white hotel part way up the hill we couldn’t be certain whether the white houses were in fact a holiday village.

What confused us even more is that the man from Villaricos had told us that a lot of hen and stag parties came here because the Lady Mayor had encouraged them but the local people were very unhappy about it so the Mayor had since made a law which said that no one was allowed to walk around the town wearing fancy dress costume (in the hopes it would discourage the hen/stag parties perhaps?) We had a short look around and then drove on to our next destination, passing through the seaside resort of Majaca as we drove along the coast road, apparently THAT is the area that the hen/stag parties frequent.  I think we all need to put a bit of effort into the planning of this trip which is currently non-existent.

The next place on his list was called Carboneras, on our way there we passed some stunning beaches where I kept suggesting we might like to pull over for lunch however Darren was a man on a mission, he had said he was going to Carboneras and that’s where he was going!

When we arrived there he drove around trying to find somewhere to park, he was hoping to be able to park near the harbour but we ended up having to park outside of the town and walk back in.

None of us were that enamoured by what we’d seen as we’d driven through so we used the walk to stretch our legs, stopped for coffee at the first open cafe we came to by the beach then returned to our respective vans and hot tailed it on to Las Negras, this time with Steve in the lead at our request.

We were all blown away by the change in the scenery  as we drove into national park, the landscape had changed from a barren landscape of rock and sand to one covered in vivid green grass.  It looked like we had suddenly been transported to the lush Welsh countryside! As we continued through we twice encountered  shepherds herding sheep and further along a mixed herd of goats and sheep.  The sheep were wandering all over the road as we drove up but as soon as the shepherdess saw us she made a strange call and they wandered slowly to either side.

We were a bit disconcerted when we arrived at Las Negras, there was a small car park full to bursting with motorhomes like ours and a much larger area of rough ground beside the Rambla which had a number of more interesting vans in it.  We had stopped for a conflab and decided that we would park in the larger ‘car park’ for a night and then leave in the morning.

We parked and got the vans ready for our overnight stop.  While I was turning the gas on I happened to look out of window just as a car reversed into a car parked on the opposite side of the road and  I heard a horribly loud crunch.  The driver got out of her car, went to look at the car she’d just hit where she rubbed her hand over the damaged wing then looked furtively around her before she jumped back in her car and sped off!   I couldn’t believe my eyes.  Not long afterwards Jane and Steve said they were going to walk down to the beach, I was feeling very tired having not slept much the previous night so we stayed behind and I prepared the evening meal but before they left I mentioned what I’d just seen further up the road.  As they walked past the car there was a look of horror on their faces as they saw the extent of the damage the lady had left in her wake!  I wish I’d been close enough to get her registration number.

Whilst I was preparing the dinner Darren very kindly pointed out naked man who was standing on his balcony looking enjoying the view, unfortunately I can’t say we were enjoying ours at that moment.

When they came over for dinner later that evening Steve and Jane told us they’d bumped into the young couple that we’d met a few days previously.  Paulo was juggling on the beach and Gabriella was in a cafe getting coffee, the young couple were very excited because they were going to be staying in a cave overnight.

We had another lovely evening together and another late night.  Our plan for the next day was to take the advice the security man from Villaricos and Paulo had given us and walk the coastal path to the bay at San Pedro.