Back to normal

Very windy last night - the Tramuntana blowing down from France has cooled the temperatures down to about 25 degrees today.  As you can see from the photos, the beach is back in business again despite the slightly cooler weather.

It's our last night in Llançà - tomorrow we head into the mountains for five nights, in the village of Camprodon. The route will firstly take us inland to the town of Figueres, before climbing into foothills of the Pyrenees. It's not far - about 50 miles, and should only take about two hours.

Platja de Grifeu

The Cap de Creus in the late afternoon sun

Thunderstorms...

Some thunderstorms ambled down from the Pyrenees this afternoon. The deteriorating weather brought a swift end to the beach party :-O

Heavy rain shower over Llançà...

...and one empty beach

Llançà

It's a little cooler this afternoon. There is a stronger breeze blowing down from the north, and we can see there is quite a bit of cloud towards Perpignan. Last night, a thunderstorm passed overhead during our evening meal and we had to retreat inside. There is only so much protection a pine tree can offer!

The restaurant has open air seating round the back of the hotel, on a terrace overlooking the sea. We've used it every night except Monday when it was raining in the evening.

We've paid for a half-board service, so it's basically breakfast and lunch, or breakfast and dinner.  The breakfast is a buffet, offering a selection of cereals, pastries, cold meats, breads and cheeses. The lunch and dinner menus, for guests who have the half-board package, are the same, although they change every day. The menu consists of a full three-course meal, with three options for each course.

So far, we've had Pesto Pappardelle, Serrano Ham & Melon, and a Goat Cheese & Walnut Salad for starters. There was also another curious dish of creamed mashed potatoes, with crisped Serrano, topped with a very lightly poached (slightly undercooked?) egg. It was actually a lot nicer than it sounds.

The main courses are all typically Spanish.  On Monday, it was Poussin served on a bed of flavoured white rice, very much like a risotto.  We also had Fideuà  which is a Valencian paella made with pasta instead of rice.  And last night, we opted for Arroz Negro, a paella dish coloured with squid ink to give the rice a distinctive black appearance.  The paella dishes included a variety of seafoods such a mussels, prawns, squid and octopus.  All of the mains are ceremoniously wheeled up to your table on a trolley, and then served by your waiter onto separate plates.

Dessert courses tend to be light and simplistic, such as sorbet, cheesecake, ice cream etc. It's all that's needed, since the mains and starters are quite filling.

Terrace outside the hotel

Colera & Cap de Creus

Another hot day today with the temperature around 30 degrees. The Costa Brava fortunately has a very gentle sea breeze which provides some relief from the heat during the afternoon.  A quick walk into Llançà this morning, and then out in the car.

We drove up to Colera, a small town wedged in a ravine in the coastline.  Whilst the back streets are nice enough, the promenade and beach area is a bit tired, with graffiti plastered over the exterior of a run down hostel building. We didn't stay long, so it was back into the car and then back to Llançà, to find the road to the Cap de Creus.

The cape is the most easterly point on the Iberian peninsula. It also has national park status protecting both the plant and animal life. The plan was to drive down to Cadaqués, a picturesque seaside town on the coast. But it seemed that most of Catalonia had the same idea and we ended up in a slow moving queue of traffic for about 45 minutes. Once inside the town, all the car parks were full and the local police were directing traffic away from town.  With no knowledge of the local car parks, we decided to turn around and head back, which lots of others were also doing.  It was a nice drive, but the town itself will need to wait for another time :-)

Colera

Our Ford Ka...

Driving across the Cap de Creus

Llançà

There were some electrical storms in the distance towards Barcelona during the night, but they never reached here. By morning, the light rain had cleared and I managed to capture the sunrise about 0630. After breakfast, we walked along the coastal path into the port of Llançà. It's a small town, but busy with the usual chaotic and congested streets, typical of many Spanish towns. There is an old town further up the hill which we've yet to explore. After buying some souvenirs, we headed back for some lunch.

The sun hits our balcony in the morning, but after lunchtime it passes overhead. It's not a bad thing, since there is no temptation to sit for hours in strong sunshine. The room is also kept pleasantly cool in the afternoon.

This afternoon we walked back up the coastal road towards Colera and Portbou. Whilst there isn't anything up there apart from villas and apartments, it does provide a nice view over the bay looking south. In the distance, we can see the Cap de Creus with the town of El Port de la Selva. On the other side of the peninsula, although out of view, is the Bay of Roses.

Tomorrow, we plan to take the car out and head up to Colera, and then out to the Cap de Creus, to explore the seaside town of Cadaqués.

Looking north from the balcony

Looking towards Llançà in the evening

Sunrise

Our hotel

Llançà

The Catalan Highway

Woof!! This is the Costa Brava at its best - 30 miles north of the touristic pap you'll find in any holiday brochure! We're staying in Llançà - a small fishing town set within a bay, right at the end of the Pyrenees mountain range. Sunshine and 30 degree temperatures this afternoon have given way to cloudy skies and, believe it or not, some rain. But it makes little difference to the holiday atmosphere.

We picked up our rental car this morning in Montpellier - a silver Ford Ka... with air conditioning :-) After heading out onto the autoroute, it took about three hours to reach our destination. We're in the middle of the French school holidays so the traffic was a little heavy. But apart from a two-lane section outside Perpignan, things moved pretty quickly. We passed Sete and L'Étang de Thau where TV chef Rick Stein and his crew ended up in their French Odyssey canal journey. It's quicker to grasp the geography of the area by looking at a map, than for me to explain.

The Languedoc-Roussillon region of France (vineyards on both sides of the motorway as far as the eye can see) gives way to the Spanish border at Col du Perthus. Whilst the traffic is slowed to 50 kph at the frontier, noone is remotely interested apart from a couple of Guardia Civil casually watching the proceedings. No passports are required and the traffic moves on south without stopping.

We're over the Pyrenees now, albeit only reaching an altitude of 1200ft. After another 20 minutes, we leave the A7 and settle up the tolls. The journey from Montpellier has cost about 18 Euros - which can be paid either in cash or by credit card on the exit slip road. A further 20 minutes on the N260 takes us to Llançà. Our hotel is just north of the town, in a small bay graced with a sandy beach. There are no Brits here - only Spanish and French, perhaps escaping from the vast areas of their respective countries that are not fortunate enough to have a seaside nearby.

The hotel is classically Spanish - you won't find any luxuries here such as lifts, TVs, radios or air conditioning, but the staff are friendly and the service is fantastic. Rooms are spacious and clean, with a massive balcony looking out over the sea. The hotel boasts a beautiful terrace overlooking the beach - photos can be found in the Picasa link at the top of the page.

Heading south on the A9

El Frontera...

Welcome to Spain