We had to go to Cartegena to collect our race numbers (Dorsals) and so on a lovely day what better excuse to visit this beautiful city for a wander round and to sample some food and drink.
There are plenty of interesting things to see, but to make a good photograph sometimes takes a bit of effort and/or luck. El Zulo here is a case in point. El Zulo, a sculpture in bronze, by Victor Ochoa. It’s situated on the esplanade. The statue is almost 16ft tall and weighs 2 tonnes.As such an imposing sight, it is usually surrounded by sightseers and today was no exception. It was also surrounded by candles and posters (making some protest, I didn’t read them). However with a bit of patience and some magic fairy dust from Lightroom, the finished picture is clear.El Zulo is We focused on the harbour area, where you can sometimes see the cruise ships in the dock but today there were only the usual sailing and fishing boats. The weather was very pleasant with warm sunshine and it was a pleasure to walking around the harbour and taking photographs.
As such an imposing sight, it is usually surrounded by sightseers and today was no exception. It was also surrounded by candles and posters (making some protest, I didn’t read them). However with a bit of patience and some magic fairy dust from Lightroom, the finished picture is clear. We focused on the harbour area, where you can sometimes see the cruise ships in the dock but today there were only the usual sailing and fishing boats. The weather was very pleasant with warm sunshine and it was a pleasure to walking around the harbour and taking photographs.
It can be quite boring to follow someone taking photographs, so Lesley sat and enjoyed the sun while I went off to be “creative”. However, after a bit of creativity, you soon feel the call for nourishment.
As we did last year, we travelled over to Chris and Gaynor’s in El Escobar with Derek and Anne. We all take some part of the Christmas dinner, which, with careful planning we each cook in our apartments, bringing it all together for our Christmas feast. This works really well, and after rehearsals last year we were confident that there would be no problems. Food for Christmas Eve was a buffet again prepared by all of us. 
There’s a great restaurant in La Puebla, Meson Galindo, that is very Spanish, in terms of the food they serve, the fact they only speak in Spanish and the customers are predominantly Spanish. Lesley and I love it and decided to make it a destination for today’s bike ride. 
Sometimes the colours here are so vibrant that I feel compelled to take photos. Today was a lovely day to enjoy a run. Near the end, I met up with the local Shepherd, his dogs and, of course, all his sheep.
Well, I have to confess that Lesley found and booked this hotel, but what a great choice (the 
The journey was straight forward, about 150 miles of mostly easy driving on dual carriageways. We were very pleased to see our room, large (2 tvs), fronted by a large glass wall and a bath in the middle of the room. The bed was so big that it covered two time zones. The panoramic view of the beach was stunning. 
Our second consecutive year of running of the Torro Pacheco Maratón. We like to arrive early which means getting up at 6:30 for our tea and porridge. An easy drive taking about half an hour gets us to the race start area where we are able to park near to the start finish area. We had to pick up our chipped numbers (Dorsals) before settling into the nearby tennis club where we were able to get a coffee. 
