We were up and on the road in good time. We wanted to call at the Lidl we had seen on the way in. Half an hour later we were still looking for it. Sean, our new Irish travel consultant who had Lidi's all over Europe in his database hadn't got this one. We finally found it unaided and did our shopping. We also had a look round the aire next to it and added it to the searchforsites.co.uk website as it wasn't listed. Out good deed for the day.
We were off again and covered the 57km to Peniscola just in time for lunch. We checked into Camping los Pinos which had fellow travelers from all over Europe judging by the different number plates on the vans. After a bite to eat we took the bikes off the rack and cycled the 3km into town and locked them up in good order on the Marina. According to the Rough Guide, the top site is the Castillo de Peñíscola and after a look round the docks, that's where we headed.
It's a small Castle built by the Knights Templar and its also been used as a set in the Game of Thrones. The area around the Castle has been used in many film sets and there were information boards listing the various movies the most well known being El Cid. It was a beautiful spot with lots of tiny streets and alleyways. We stopped to admire an oldish lady doing a flamenco dance to the sound of a Spanish guitar. She had all the moves and seemed expert with her castanets. She looked to be in her fifties and was rotund round the middle to say the least but she was having great fun.
We had a good walk along the promenade which was busy with families out and about on a Sunday. The temperature was in the low 20's but the sun was gradually going down. We found a bar in a sunny spot and called in to celebrate our first day as landlords with a few beers and some tapas dishes which were delicious.
After that it was back on the bikes tatting back to the site just before dark and enjoying a nice hot shower before settling in with a book and some good old Kev music as we couldn't be bothered to unpack the TV and switch it on. Happy camping landlords.
Camping los Pinos: €12 - 40°22′44″N 00°23′19″E
1 November 2016
After a lazy start to the day we finally got on the road before 11:00. Our first stop was to visit an old church in Alcalá de Xivert which was just off the N340. We took some photographs from the outside and then explored its inside. I couldn't believe how stunning it was in the middle of a run down village. So much opulence.
We were back on the road within an hour and heading towards our home for the next 31 days. We had a choice of pitches as the site was reasonably quiet and parked up with a bit of shunting backwards and forwards to avoid trees.
We made sure the van was level as we were staying for more than a night and then erected our pop up tent which we hadn't done for a while. It takes less than 10 minutes to get it up but then there are the carpets and the pegging out. By the time we had finished I was ready for shower number two.
We had an hour in the shade as it was so hot in the sun. The website I looked at said 23° but it felt much hotter. When it finally started to cool we went for a walk to get some bearing. It took us about 20 minutes to reach the promenade in the quiet part of town taking the long way round. We could do it in much less, and in no time at all on the bikes. We'll have a better look round tomorrow.
When we got back we had a game of boules. There is a small pitch just down from the van. After taking a 5-0 lead Val came back to stuff me 11-9. I'll have my revenge tomorrow, maybe.
We didn't go down to the bar as United play Thursday, we'll give it a go then. We had a nice meal in the van and a bottle of fizz to celebrate being landlords for two whole days. The wifi signal is good so Val managed to watch Pointless early evening and we FaceTimed Lisa just before dinner. We can pick up Netflix and anything that streams. There is the odd drop of the signal but we can put up with that. First impressions of the site are good. We are in the quiet part of the resort but close enough to get into the bustling restaurants and bars when we feel like it. Happy campers.
Tauro Private Campsite €11 per night low season >30 nights - booked with CC&C Winter Sun Brochure
40°02′11"N 00°02′27″E
2 November 2016
We had a lazy morning before finally getting down to the local mini market and buying a baguette and some tangerines. Then back to the van where I mistakenly signed up for an Amazon Prime 30 Day free trail, dipstick.
We went out after lunch exploring our new home for 31 days. The cycle track runs from Castellón to the south through Benicasim and on to Santa Maria del Mar to the north. The large town of Benicasim is broken down into three areas. South where our site is. Central where the municipal market is held and North. It's a grid system of three main streets with a cycle track running parallel, making it easy to get around. It probably took us about 25 minutes on the bikes to get to the other end of town.
We picked up the beach there and gradually made our way down the promenade to the centre. The sand was was quiet but there were still some people sunbathing and swimming in the sea. It's probably busy and very hot in high season but perfect for us at this time of year.
On the cycle track we went past the rear of the prominent campsite where the MCC and the CC&C organise rallies called Bonterra Park. We had a ride in and around the site which was much bigger and more salubrious than our spot. On first impressions I think we picked the right site for us, although they do have a large Mercado Supermarket on their doorstep.
We did a bit of shopping and got back to the van with time to sit out. As it got cooler we got the boules out for round two. We seem to be the only ones on the site who play so we have the pitch to ourselves. After a hard fought battle yours truly won two straight games to become the current championi, the crowning ceremony has yet to be arranged.
After Pointless which is an hour later here we got stuck into some dinner and sampled some of the beer we had bought at the Mercado. At €0.25 a tin it tasted tickety boo. We'all be stocking up after our supply from Andorra starts to dwindle. We also bought a bottle of Cava at €1.25 which tasted nice. Happy days.
The wifi signal is so good we can watch TV and Netflix over the net so we had an episode of Suits for the evening entertainment. Sleepy campers.
3 November 2016
I set the alarm for eight bells but we were up and Val was already showered. It is market day on a Thursday in Benicasim and we needed to be back for 1:00 as we had booked a paella lunch with the site.
We rode down to Benicasim Central and spent a couple of hours shopping round the market. There was tat on one side of the street and fruit and veg on the other. It was difficult to order things because a lot of the stuff wasn't priced, but it's a learning curve. We came back with various fruits and vegetables and used the universal language to communicate. We stopped at a sausage stall and bought some chorizo. The lady who sold it to us was trying to tell us something, she turned to the guy next to her who said 'non zizzzzzz' which we took to mean don't fry.
We gathered round the communal table for the paella which was delicious and met a Dutch couple with the wife being able to speak English and the husband who seemed a right character hardly able to say a word. There was a lady travelling on her own with no sat nav called Dee and a couple from Newbury called Bob and Avril who were great fun. It turned into a boozy afternoon which is not good as I'm going back to watch the footy at 7:00pm local time. C'mon u reds.
We managed to get away and have some dinner and then watch Pointless before I went down again for round two. The lass said about that, Fenebache scored an amazing goes in the first minute and United were on the back foot for the whole match. The only disappointing thing in the whole day.
Val was reading and sending emails when I got back to the van. We managed another episode of Suits which we watched in bed and I tried to read some of my Jack Reacher novel but tiredness kicked in and I was in the dream-zone instantly. Relatively happy campers.
4 November 2016
We had a little bit of a lie in and then found an overcast morning. After a shower we lazed and checked emails letting the time march on. There was another market but it got to late to go and we ended up doing very little.
After lunch we decided it was time to spring clean the van so we stripped the carpets out and gave them a good cleaning. We bought a battery operated small hover a while ago and it got put to good use. when we had finished we put all the carpets back, cleaned all the plastics and put the hoover back on charge.
It was mid afternoon and still overcast, there was the odd tiny droplet of rain in the air but we needed ton get out or go stir crazy so we jumped on the bikes and rode down to Castellion. We got to the outskirts of town just by the airport and then turned back. we paid a quick visit to the tiny supermarket just round the corner from the site and bought an expensive bottle of red at 2.80 euro's.
Ba to the van for a quick game of boules before Pointless where Val claimed revenge for her beating the day before yesterday. She is now level at two games each with all to play for in the next round, its tense.
After dinner we had a couple of hours with Netflix and the got in the scratcher with a book. It didn't take long before I'd read the same line about 10 times. Sleep Campers.
The beauty about the Andrew Marr Show is that it starts at 10:00am in Spain so we were up in plenty of time. A shower when it finished and the the Sunday Politics in the tent with some music in between, life can be hard.
After lunch we went out on the bikes. Someone suggested going down to the main campsite in town and having a look on their notice board to see if we could pick up a cheap Spanish Gas Bottle. There was a gas bottle for sale but it was Calor. However, the lady selling it told us where we could pick up a free Spanish bottle and only pay for the gas. It pays to ask around. On our way to the Bonterra Park we had another look for the restaurant we were searching for yesterday. We had a bit more info today and bingo we found it no bother. We'll be paying it a visit sometime this week.
Thought we'd have a round trip so we got onto the promenade and cycled back down to the van with just enough time to oil Val's chain before the United match. I watched it on the net and the quality of the streams out here are so much better than in the UK.
A quiet night in with a couple of beers, some dinner and a bit of Netflix to keep us entertained and hey presto, happy campers. Another week over, wow.
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