We arrive in Portugal...

It’s New Year’s Day! We set off just before 9 to try to reach a little place called Alarcon approximately halfway between Barcelona and Elvas. Ross drove all day, 698 kilometres in all, until we reached a small roadside servo at Torralba de Calatrava. There was nothing there except the petrol station but my iPhone gave me the location.

To start the day, we had dramas getting OUT of Barcelona. I missed just one little turn, and the GPS took us all round the suburbs until we could join the motorway again. It’s a trial I can tell you, but I have to follow it because I have absolutely no idea of these places. Back on the motorway, we looked for a McDonalds using the GPS. We found one 16 kilometres off the motorway. It was not open until noon (it was only 10am) We managed to use their wifi to contact family to wish them Happy New Year. However, we did stay well away from the drive-through! We had difficulty getting back to the motorway; the road that we were supposed to drive on was actually blocked!

We pulled into a garage for some breakfast, and foolishly chose an English breakfast of eggs, bacon, sausages, grilled tomato and beans. Nothing was hot; and was dripping with oil, but I woofed it down anyway. I was famished! Haven’t I learned never to order an English breakfast anywhere but in England??

The roads were brilliant, and after a few hours, we pulled into another garage for a coffee, but the coffee section was closed, so I made us a coffee in the camper and attracted a million flies. Well, maybe not a million, but lots! The first flies we have seen since leaving Australia! And bloody hell, they hung around all the way to our final stop.

When we reached Alarcon, Ross said he wanted to keep going so he drove for another hour or so, until I suggested we pull over for the night, as garages were becoming less common along the roadside, even though the road was still a double-lane highway. Ross drove all day without complaint, and to keep him amused and awake we played “I Spy.” Both of us spied things that kept the other guessing for ages! The most exciting thing that happened today was I managed to regain Kate as our GPS voice. I’ve been making all of the mistakes on my own without any of her help!

Out camping spot in the middle of Spain was surrounded by open fields and was a beautiful spot to sit and enjoy the sunset. I even ventured out for a little walk to take some photos; I had been sitting all day.

After a delicious dinner of pan-fried meat and cheese baguettes, a bottle of cava, and some peaches from the biggest jar of peaches you have ever seen, we slept…until 8.30 the next morning, when we headed off for Elvas.

Well, it was very fortunate that we stopped where we did, because Kate took us the strangest route on bumpy country tracks; I think some might have just been cow tracks; over an old stone bridge beside a ruined stone building- I even videoed some of it in case I wasn’t believed! After a few kilometres of this, we reached what we assumed was the road to Portugal, but it wasn’t a double lane as you would expect; it was narrow and winding and rough as well, and every village we drove through had innumerable pedestrian crossings that had been speed bumped. We drove over mountains and through valleys and mountain passes- very pretty really- until we reached the motorway- well, not really a motorway, but a double-laned highway anyway.

I was using up the last of my Spanish internet before we reached the border, so wasn’t paying attention to the road until Ross came off the motorway. Why, was my immediate question, as most of my kittens have appeared when we are driving through narrow village streets. He said he saw a sign for petrol and coffee and assumed it was a servo by the side of the road. I wished I had been looking, because instead of a garage where all he wanted to do was stretch his legs, we were taken through the little down of Merida, and of course to get back to the highway, Kate took us through the narrowest of streets, (Meow! Meow! Meow!) until eventually getting back to the highway. And as soon as we got back on the highway, we saw a garage where Ross could have stretched his legs and bought a coffee as well! He didn’t stop though as he was now making a beeline for Elvas, only 74 kilometres away!

Elvas is a walled town and has two star forts; one north and one south of the town.  Stacey, Max and I visited here at this time last year when it was very cold and so foggy we could see only a few metres in front of us; this year, it’s 20C and a clear, sunny day. Amazing!

Ross shopped at Lidl while I had a shower and got dressed. (Yes, I had come the whole way in my jammies!) I walked up to the Forte de Santa Luzia, while Ross chose to drive. I need the exercise more than he does. We met at the top, and explored the Fort, taking a multitude of photos of the buildings and the VIEWS! You could see for miles and miles and miles! We could even see the Forte da Graca on the hill on the other side of town.

After putting our watches back an hour, we headed to the Forte da Graca only to be told by security guards at the bottom, that the car park was full! We decided we’d come back early in the morning and be in the carpark when they opened ay 10am! Why have all of the not so well known places I discovered years ago become major tourist attractions? I feel somehow cheated! Last time we were at Forte de Santa Luzia, Max sat by himself in a deserted carpark while Stacey and I explored the fort on our own. This year, there are people everywhere!

We decided to spend the night in the carpark of the Forte de Santa Lucia overlooking Elvas. I cooked up some bacon ribs and “saucissson de Toulouse”, with mushrooms which was the saltiest meal I’ve eaten in a while. Even the red from Borba did nothing to modify the saltiness. We played cards with my cape as a card blanket and crashed about 10pm.

Up early, we had a quick cup of coffee and headed over to Forte de Graca, arriving at 7.30! We drove to the top carpark, which was not flat, so had difficulty cooking scrambled eggs for breakfast. They ended up being more like a “sloped omelette” but tasted delicious! (We were hungry!)  As it was impossible to wash up on an angle, we decided to continue playing cards until the Forte opened at 10.

I was the first one through the huge iron gates, and the sheer size of the place took my breath away. I had not imagined it to be anywhere near this huge. It was a LOT bigger than Forte de Santa Luzia, and the crowds were lining up even before 10.

Usually, when I have looked forward to something for a very long time, when I actually experience it, I feel a sense of disappointment; it being not as good as I had imagined it. Not so with Forte da Graca. It surpassed all of my expectations and left me with a feeling of euphoria. That doesn’t happen often to me. I was so glad we had waited for it to open!

I made my way through cavernous rooms and up many staircases until I reached the very top of the Governor’s house, where Ross found me. I couldn’t believe he had found me inside this huge structure! He said he knew I’d head for the topmost point! I could have spent all day here, but alas, we had to move on to Evora, a mere 88 kilometres away and to a Orbitur campground we were hoping was open.

On the road, we pulled into a garage for coffee. There was no coffee in the garage, but there was a building behind the garage, which looked like it might possibly be a restaurant, but it looked closed. There was not a car nor person in sight. We walked up to the door and pushed it open, to be confronted by a cafeteria full of Japanese tourists! What a surprise! We waited until they left to get a table and ordered coffee and Portuguese tarts- my favourite.

It started to rain as we were entering Evora so we headed straight for the Campground, just out of town. Caloo, callay- it was open! I really needed to have a shower and wash my hair. Pure bliss! I had the shower block all to myself so spread myself out. Feeling like a new woman, I took all of our dirty clothes, which Ross had collected while I was luxuriating in the shower, and headed to the laundry. Completely knackered by this amount of activity, I came back to our camper to have a little nap. Ross showered and shaved and finished the laundry process in the rain. Poor Ross!

I stirred to make us some kebabs and salad for lunch/dinner. It was 3.30 and still raining. We have wifi here in our camper so I posted the photos of the past couple of days, and then I got back to losing at the card table. We had some tiramisu for dinner, then some cheese and crackers. Our meals are all topsy-turvy here, that’s for sure.

We’ve replanned the rest of our trip. I’ve realized I’ve bitten off more than I can chew; in other words, I’ve planned much more than Ross can drive. When I planned the route a few months ago, I was sure I would be able to drive some of the way, but it just hasn’t happened, and the longer I go without driving, the more apprehensive I become.  So those of you who have our itinerary, it’s changed! I’ll keep you posted.