It has been a while, but today, at last, we had proper windsurfing wind. Mostly used my 6m sail but for a while I was on my 5m, that means conditions were pretty good. Not many on the water at this time of year, but I had good fun with Chris. I have no chance of keeping up with him, he probably weighs 30 – 40kg more than me and was on an 8m sail and big board. Very enjoyable though.
Category: La Manga 2015/16
New Year’s Eve: 34th San Silvestre Race Cartegena
This is a great race and attracts lots (2000 last year) of runners, many in fancy dress. Lesley and I ran it for the first time last year and we both came second in our age categories. The course is advertised as 5.2km, all I can say is that it’s over 5K and it depends on where you start, how much over.
We were both blocked by fun runners at the start but we managed to finish on the podium again for the second year running. (Pun intended).
Cartegena: Collecting race numbers
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.
Christmas Day in El Escobar
With two thick duvets and an oil fired radiator we were warm and cosy and had a good nights sleep, setting us up nicely for the big day ahead. It seems that lots of cooking and preparation were going on in the different apartments and the main house, but I was left to do my own thing. I wanted to get some pictures of us all sat down together enjoying our Christmas lunch. I set up the camera ready for later making sure that everyone at the table was in focus, so like Goldilocks, I tried each of the chairs and took a photo.
The whole day was great, lots of food and drink as you would expect, followed by watching the 1946 film – “It’s a Wonderful Life” starring the one and only James Stewart.
The day was a blur of food, drink, TV and games. Just what a Christmas day should be.
Christmas Eve in El Escobar
[Heavy bit - sorry. I guess Christmas means different things to different people. It does concern me that many people get sucked into the commercial traps laid by the profiteers, but, for us, Christmas is about people and enjoyment and I don't think these things are mutually exclusive.]
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. Continue reading “Christmas Eve in El Escobar”
Long bike ride
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. Continue reading “Long bike ride”
Run 211215
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.
Lesley’s birthday
Well, I have to confess that Lesley found and booked this hotel, but what a great choice (the RH Bayren, in Gandia). The idea was to have a relaxing break and enjoy some time running and using the gym and spa facilities.
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. Continue reading “Lesley’s birthday”
Torre Pacheco half marathon
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. Continue reading “Torre Pacheco half marathon”
Alcazares
We had to change our car today, which was just as well because it was dirty. We swapped it for a clean Fiat 500, we quite like it, it’s comfortable for two and drives well.
While we were out we decided to have breakfast (desayuno) at Hotel Balneario La Encarnacion. Continue reading “Alcazares”