Chasing the sun and the perfect road for cycling
- Thread starter Cervelo
- Start date
The boat Journey was grand, The Connemara is a basic no frills service it's there just to get me from A to B for €637
The ship its self is as I said basic rooms are clean and functional after that there really only is the sitting/dining area and a self service restaurant
The food IMO is poor there's a breakfast menu "A full Irish" and a lunch and dinner menu which are the same but different prices????
It wouldn't take much to improve it but maybe that's what people want and I can never understand why so many restaurants have coffee machines that just make god awful muck
One pet hate of mine is where businesses charge you for things that in this day and age should be included in the price
And on Brittaney ferries it's WiFi, you shouldn't have to pay to have good WiFi all over the ship especially during a pandemic where they advise you to stay in you cabin as much as you can!!
Regarding the crossing I was asleep by the time the boat left Rosslare so when I woke the next morning we were at Lands end and it wasn't rough but there was a good swell, enough to give you the drunk walk as your moving about, had taken my sturgeon so was grand
by the time we were close to Bilbao it had calmed down and was as smooth as glass
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Unfortunately I would have no idea about that, as I'm still a good few years away from the OAP so don't look at those things
But I'm sure our friend Lep would have a better idea of those things
Not discounts , but free travel ...if they apply for it.
The short answer is No. But, occasionally, I chance my arm on the local bus service and I travel free 50% of the time. Just flash your passport and Irish Free Travel Pass (nothing wrong with trying).
SoylentGreen
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Do Spanish pensioners get free travel?
The Spanish 65 card is that available to Irish people?
The Spanish 65 card is that available to Irish people?
SlugBreath
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Cervelo. How is the new accommodation in the town working out compared to the previous choice?
Are you local to supermarkets etc.
What's the weather like?
Are you local to supermarkets etc.
What's the weather like?
The new place is really nice and I'm liking it a lot, I would say it's a typical old Spanish property with it's unique quirkiness but has all the mod cons as well, though it's not as quite as the other place but by no means is it noisy either
Lubrin is a small village with about 500 people living in the village and in the municipality area there is about 1700 in total but you wouldn't even know there was that many people here
When I go out for a walk I'd see at most fifteen to twenty people out and about doing their thing, the only time I'd see more is if I go to one of the four pubs/restaurants at the weekend that are here
Shop wise there are two small local supermarkets but I travel down to Mojacar or Vera to do the weekly shop in Mercadona or Lidl and would only use the local ones if I was short of anything.
It may be a small village but when you go looking you'll find a Hairdressers, a Barbour's, a Hardware, a very basic electronics shop, two banks, couple of solicitors, estate agents etc etc and on Wednesday there is a market that comes to town with about thirty plus stalls of local produce and other things. And I forgot to mention there is also two small bakeries one of which is next door to me and just outside the village there is also an Olive oil processing plant and a Honey manufacturer all of which is sourced locally
Weather wise during the day up here it's high teens to low twenties but the forecast is for it to get a bit cooler over the the next few days especially at night where there expecting temps to drop to low single figures but once it's dry and sunny when I'm out on the bike I don't really care what the rest of the day is like
On a side note it nearly all came to an end on Wednesday as I had a very close call with a car while descending from the "convent"( Puerto de la Virgen) took a blind corner to fast and went wide straight into a car coming up the climb, luckily no real damage done except to my ego but it was a good wake up call for me not to be so cocky until I've familiarised myself with the area again and that my reflex actions need to go to the right instead of the left!!
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Do you post your rides on Strava or other apps, so other envious cyclists on this forum can follow your progress
Yes indeed I am, it's both a blessing and a curse to be on Strava. If you PM me I'll forward my Strava name to you
Weather wise it's been a bit of a mixed bag for me, temp wise its high teens to low twenties most days which is perfect for walking about or sitting out in a café or bar but on the bike is slightly different as there has been a constant northly cool breeze that really cuts into you when you pick up a bit of speed so I've been wearing arm warmers on bright warm sunny days which is a new experience for me!!
Now having said that we had three to four days of solid rain last week it doesn't often happen like that normally. From my experience it's a couple of hours maybe a day but not three non stop raining days in a row in Europe's only desert region, had to put the emersion on to heat the water as there was no sun for the solar panels to work. The thing about here that I like when it comes to the weather is that it may rain or be cooler on some days even had snow here the first year I was here but I know in a day or two the sun will start shinning and the good weather consistently returns
and it's that consistency that allows you to make plans not just for tomorrow but for days/weeks in advance.
My day to day life would probably be classed by many as boring and most days it's "Eat, Sleep, Ride, Repeat" but when not riding or after a ride what I really love about this place is the peacefulness and how stress free I become as the "Manana" attitude starts to kick in and time seems to slow down and I do question why I spend most my time back home buzzing around like a blue arsed fly.
Strangely enough Covid doesn't seem to be an issue here, from what I've been told there was only one family with Covid in the Lubrin area to date.
And from what I have seen people seem to have their lives back to normal, yes we have to wear masks in public and observe social distancing where possible but other wise life seems to be going on as normal. I've been out for a few meals with people I know including our very own Leper and most places have been fairly busy but not in a uncomfortable way but what is refreshing is the conversation doesn't focus on Covid or restrictions but rather on the normal stuff of conversations that we used to have
Because of the current covid numbers back home we've decided not to travel home for Christmas this year but instead Mrs C (Smaug) is coming out here on the 13th of December and we're gong to spend our first Christmas outside the country which should be interesting as I've been told the Spanish don't celebrate Christmas like we do at home, not quite sure what that means but we'll soon find out!!
Bronco Lane
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Cervelo. How are things Going in Spain? Is there any sign of Christmas over there yet?
I'm sure Cervelo will give his take on Christmas in southern Spain but I'm just back in Ireland having spent four weeks in Andalucía. Christmas in Spain is different from Christmas in Ireland but has some similarities too.
Many Spanish towns would have their Christmas lights up and running at this stage with blue probably the main colour depending on where you look. For most Christmas Even is the start of Christmas/New Year festivities. Most Spaniards would have a fairly big meal on the night of 24th where most businesses would already have closed early. For the children this is no big deal as there are few if any gifts given. Christmas Day will see all Spanish businesses closed for the day and the day has Bank Holiday status only. St-Stephen's Day (26th) would be the same but with more family visitation than the day before. Somewhere between 27th Dec and 30th Dec (inclusive) there would be a kind of childrens' Fools Day and usually another day devoted to a local saint. The latter would see Spanish businesses closed (including supermarkets ).
New Year's Eve would see many Spanish businesses closing early and perhaps even some buses running fairly sparsely too. Again a fairly large meal would be prepared and as usual not eaten before 9.00pm. Fireworks displays start in most towns/villages approaching midnight where the kids would be allowed to see. New Year's Day would be a Bank Holiday where no Spanish businesses would open. From 2nd Jan to the evening of 5th January much of the time would be spent with family visitation etc. Most Spanish businesses would be open but would close on a whim usually around 4.00pm. Brits living in southern Spain would have their New Year's Eve celebrations at 11.00pm Spanish time waiting for Auld Langs whatever to be belted out on the BBC.
You might be thinking Spanish Christmas Day - no big deal. And you'd be right. For the children the night of 5th January is hugely important and many towns would have a parade of the Three Kings prior to their arrival on the 6th. The kings would be paraded around the town with them raised up on movable plinths where they would throw millions of sweets for the local children watching. After the parade the children would go to sleep early in anticipation of the exchange of gifts on 6th January. The festival of the Kings (6th) is the Spanish "biggie" - the Spaniards dote on their children/grandchildren and the day is spent with excellent food prepared at home and of course loads of tinto.
For the record most shopping centres would have a huge display of the Nativity story (not just the crib), but the flight into Egypt also. These displays are usually excellent and take an amount of preparation. Christmas/NewYear is a beautiful time to be in Spain and even if you're a pagan you can't fail to be moved.
(I'm using the above ignoring whatever day 24th,25th, 31st December, 1st January, 5th January, 6th January fall on) - I'm just trying to give a flavour of the Christmas and New Year periods in southern Spain.
- - - - - - Ahora, yo espero al todos leyendo por aquí - Feliz Navidad - - - - - -
Many Spanish towns would have their Christmas lights up and running at this stage with blue probably the main colour depending on where you look. For most Christmas Even is the start of Christmas/New Year festivities. Most Spaniards would have a fairly big meal on the night of 24th where most businesses would already have closed early. For the children this is no big deal as there are few if any gifts given. Christmas Day will see all Spanish businesses closed for the day and the day has Bank Holiday status only. St-Stephen's Day (26th) would be the same but with more family visitation than the day before. Somewhere between 27th Dec and 30th Dec (inclusive) there would be a kind of childrens' Fools Day and usually another day devoted to a local saint. The latter would see Spanish businesses closed (including supermarkets ).
New Year's Eve would see many Spanish businesses closing early and perhaps even some buses running fairly sparsely too. Again a fairly large meal would be prepared and as usual not eaten before 9.00pm. Fireworks displays start in most towns/villages approaching midnight where the kids would be allowed to see. New Year's Day would be a Bank Holiday where no Spanish businesses would open. From 2nd Jan to the evening of 5th January much of the time would be spent with family visitation etc. Most Spanish businesses would be open but would close on a whim usually around 4.00pm. Brits living in southern Spain would have their New Year's Eve celebrations at 11.00pm Spanish time waiting for Auld Langs whatever to be belted out on the BBC.
You might be thinking Spanish Christmas Day - no big deal. And you'd be right. For the children the night of 5th January is hugely important and many towns would have a parade of the Three Kings prior to their arrival on the 6th. The kings would be paraded around the town with them raised up on movable plinths where they would throw millions of sweets for the local children watching. After the parade the children would go to sleep early in anticipation of the exchange of gifts on 6th January. The festival of the Kings (6th) is the Spanish "biggie" - the Spaniards dote on their children/grandchildren and the day is spent with excellent food prepared at home and of course loads of tinto.
For the record most shopping centres would have a huge display of the Nativity story (not just the crib), but the flight into Egypt also. These displays are usually excellent and take an amount of preparation. Christmas/NewYear is a beautiful time to be in Spain and even if you're a pagan you can't fail to be moved.
(I'm using the above ignoring whatever day 24th,25th, 31st December, 1st January, 5th January, 6th January fall on) - I'm just trying to give a flavour of the Christmas and New Year periods in southern Spain.
- - - - - - Ahora, yo espero al todos leyendo por aquí - Feliz Navidad - - - - - -
Yeah what Lep said 
Afraid I've not much else to add to Lep's post except the street lights are on and done tastefully as in not in a Griswold way
Heard my first Christmas songs while shopping the other day in Mercadona and an announcement in English that I had up until the 23rd to place my order for Christmas dinner, not sure what were going to have this year, might have a change from the usual turkey and ham
My Masseur is talking about having a barbeque on a beach down in Mojacar on Christmas day so that might be an option
Weather wise it's getting a bit cooler most days are mid to high teens now but starting off cool in the mornings and only getting up to temperature by mid day.
Cycling is going good, had to take a week off due to a skin irritant down below which led to me meeting up with Lep again for a long walk and lunch, he really is a total gentleman and a fount of knowledge especially about the area and its history.
I'm off today for a hilly cycle with Lewis, My Masseur's son and boy can he climb so it's going to be a painful day but in a good way
Had a go yesterday at my first goal 40K in under an hour, knocked 2"17 off my previous PB so now I'm 1:01:35 for 40K
Afraid I've not much else to add to Lep's post except the street lights are on and done tastefully as in not in a Griswold way
Heard my first Christmas songs while shopping the other day in Mercadona and an announcement in English that I had up until the 23rd to place my order for Christmas dinner, not sure what were going to have this year, might have a change from the usual turkey and ham
My Masseur is talking about having a barbeque on a beach down in Mojacar on Christmas day so that might be an option
Weather wise it's getting a bit cooler most days are mid to high teens now but starting off cool in the mornings and only getting up to temperature by mid day.
Cycling is going good, had to take a week off due to a skin irritant down below which led to me meeting up with Lep again for a long walk and lunch, he really is a total gentleman and a fount of knowledge especially about the area and its history.
I'm off today for a hilly cycle with Lewis, My Masseur's son and boy can he climb so it's going to be a painful day but in a good way
Had a go yesterday at my first goal 40K in under an hour, knocked 2"17 off my previous PB so now I'm 1:01:35 for 40K
Bronco Lane
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Thanks for the update. This year in Ireland we will not have a turkey for Christmas. Finally decided that they are pretty dry and tasteless. We will have chicken or roast beef.
I would take that.
I would take that.
Maybe we could increase the group. Sounds nice.
Well done. Keep up the good work.
Thanks to Cervelo for the compliments. I'd like to add that Costa Almería is nearly as far south as you can get in Spain with only parts of Costa del Sol being further south. C. Almería has its own desert complete with a variety of cacti, more desert plants and wildlife. The Clint Eastwood spaghetti westerns were filmed there and so was Lawrence of Arabia. The desert area (Cabo de Gata) is extensive and contains many a surprise for the visitor. Parts of this national park extend to the shores of the Mediterranean. For the record C. Almería has a drier and warmer temps than any other area of mainland Spain including C. del Sol.
I haven't cycled in Spain since the onset of Covid. I wouldn't be doing too much cycling there anyway. But, there are serious cyclists present every day especially from Netherlands, France, Belgium and many teams have good back-up facilities. "Cross Country" cyclists use the area too and are particularly visible because of their wider and thicker bike tyres.
You may not be Chris Boardman and intend using C. Almería to improve Personal Bests or to get in some better training made impossible by Irish conditions. If you intend using the area for several weeks you should consider the needs of anybody accompanying you. Not everybody is a serious cyclist. There are many walking clubs in the area. These are mainly retired Brits resident in Spain. They are serious walkers and the minimum requirement are good walking shoes and Nordic poles with head-wear optional. There's plenty of golf too. English is spoken throughout.
Accommodation is cheaper than most other Costas. Access is easy too with flights all year round to Alicante. Almeria and Murcia airports operate usually between mid February and the end of October. You can drive by using the ferries.
The over-riding message in C. Almería is COME. There are no Santa Ponsas, few high rise buildings and wait for it . . . . . . visible Stag/Hen parties are banned. The mayor of Mojacar is a lady and has improved the area over the past few years and even drinking alcohol outdoors outside of bars/restaurants has also been banned.
If you fly into Almeríá airport you'll notice thousands of acres of plastic buildings especially in western Almeríá. They are an eyesore, but produce more fruit and vegetables than any other area in europe. The further east you travel there the fewer plastic buildings you'll see. I say this merely as a warning. You can enjoy the white mountain top villages, markets, Mediterranean, mountains, scenery, easy Spanish way of life, healthy living etc.
Covid will eventually pass - Life is for living - warm Costa Almería awaits now especially if you are retired.
I haven't cycled in Spain since the onset of Covid. I wouldn't be doing too much cycling there anyway. But, there are serious cyclists present every day especially from Netherlands, France, Belgium and many teams have good back-up facilities. "Cross Country" cyclists use the area too and are particularly visible because of their wider and thicker bike tyres.
You may not be Chris Boardman and intend using C. Almería to improve Personal Bests or to get in some better training made impossible by Irish conditions. If you intend using the area for several weeks you should consider the needs of anybody accompanying you. Not everybody is a serious cyclist. There are many walking clubs in the area. These are mainly retired Brits resident in Spain. They are serious walkers and the minimum requirement are good walking shoes and Nordic poles with head-wear optional. There's plenty of golf too. English is spoken throughout.
Accommodation is cheaper than most other Costas. Access is easy too with flights all year round to Alicante. Almeria and Murcia airports operate usually between mid February and the end of October. You can drive by using the ferries.
The over-riding message in C. Almería is COME. There are no Santa Ponsas, few high rise buildings and wait for it . . . . . . visible Stag/Hen parties are banned. The mayor of Mojacar is a lady and has improved the area over the past few years and even drinking alcohol outdoors outside of bars/restaurants has also been banned.
If you fly into Almeríá airport you'll notice thousands of acres of plastic buildings especially in western Almeríá. They are an eyesore, but produce more fruit and vegetables than any other area in europe. The further east you travel there the fewer plastic buildings you'll see. I say this merely as a warning. You can enjoy the white mountain top villages, markets, Mediterranean, mountains, scenery, easy Spanish way of life, healthy living etc.
Covid will eventually pass - Life is for living - warm Costa Almería awaits now especially if you are retired.
You're more than welcome to join us anytime we're getting together or we can travel to you as I have the car here
The next village over from me is Uleila de Campo and the "Shoot the Donkey" scene from Patton was filmed there!
If anybody is interested here according to wiki is a list of films and shows shot in the Almeria area
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_films_shot_in_Almería