A premature return to reality

So, it's been a while since my last update and for those of you wondering what hapened, things have taken a significant turn....we are now back in the UK.

In the weeks running up to our return, we were having significant problems with our tenant.  We continued our travels north and stopped off in Germany to see some friends before our planned onward journey to Scandinavia.  Unfortunately, the tenant problems didn't desist and after some soul searching, we decided that the best solution would be to return to the UK, fix the problems then continue our travels.

We headed back to the UK for what we thought was going to be a month of DIY and catching up with family before jumping back on the ferry and resuming our euro travels.  Turns out the tenant had left the place in a bit of a mess, in addition to having left with substantial rent arrears and once we'd cleaned up that mess, there were more underlying issues with the house that we needed to fix before we could re-let.  That was in May...

We made the decision to do what needed doing and to postpone our travels to a later date.  After spending so much time and effort sorting the house out, we were really quite loathe to let anyone else live here and risk someone else trashing it.  Probably sounds like a cop out to some people but this house was always intended to be our home and not just a temporary investment.  If we'd had a reliable tenant, we'd have stayed on the road, but I firmly believe that everything happens for a reason.

We probably won't get back on the road for a few years now, but time is on our side and we still have Dora, so we'll still take short holidays when we can.  It's not quite what we'd planned, but we're actually enjoying making our house a home.  I've yet to secure employment, but I've applied for jobs so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Since we returned, it's been home improvement central here!  Pete's in his element as there's so much to do.

As much as we do miss life on 4 wheels, we're loving being back in the UK and having our own house on no wheels is still a bit of a novelty.

Obviously there won't be any more updates on here for a good while, but if you're on Facebook, we''ll see you there!

Back where it all began

Well, today marks 6 months on the road for us.  I can’t believe how quickly it’s gone.  We’ve so much left to see and time just whizzes by.  We knew it would, which is why we’ve picked up the pace considerably this week.

Decisions, decisions

If indecision was an Olympic sport, we'd be serious contenders for the gold medal.

We're still in Foz Do Arelho, but will be leaving early tomorrow morning. We should have left today, but a couple of beers round at Callum and Issie's last night turned into dinner and a lot of wine.  We both feel fine today but it was a very late night, so we've had a lazy day today.

Summer days and long drives

Summer is here, even if it is only temporary!!  We left Portimao on a balmy Tuesday morning, having decided to head north to Monchique.  However, sticking to plans has never been a strong point of ours and after stocking up on food and gas, with the temperature pushing 27 degrees C, we decided we'd try and cool down on the coast and we were soon on our way to Sagres instead!

Almost Northbound

After leaving Lagos on Monday, we headed east again back to Portimao Marina.  The intention was just to stay a couple of nights and start heading north.  However, as the weather still wasn’t great, we decided to hole up here for a while longer.  We also figured that after a budget busting (but very enjoyable!) few days in Lagos, we’d be as well to stay here for the rest of the week as it’s only 2.50 a night, to balance the books and wait for the weather to improve.

Update from Portugal

Pete has invested in a body board.  It's the next best thing to surfing (although I'm sure some would debate that!) until his wrist is stronger as the body board is much smaller and lighter.  After his shopping trip on Thursday, a weekend of surf hunting ensued, starting with a day at Praia do Beliche on Friday.  I don't recall seeing Pete catch any waves, but plenty of waves caught him; it was a bit like watching him in a giant washing machine...!!  He had fun though, so the main objective was achieved!

Laid back in Lagos

I don't know where the time's gone since my last entry almost two weeks ago.  Since then, we've moved from Manta Rota and following a couple of nights in Portimão, we're now in Lagos.

Portugal, land of beautiful beaches and giant strawberries

It’s been a week since our last update and we are now blogging from Portugal!

After deciding to stay another day in Seville, Friday saw the three of us explore the area on foot.  First stop was the Parque de Maria Luisa.  I’m not particularly well versed on the history of it, but from what I can gather, the park was created for an international fair in 1929 and contains a number of examples of Spanish architecture from different periods, culminating in the magnificent Plaza de Espana.  Needless to say, Powell loved the park, but more for the ducks than any of its architectural merits.

Super sunny Seville

This morning, we finally headed back to Ronda for Pete's final appointment.  After a considerable delay in the hospital, with me waiting with baited breath back in Dora, he returned with good news and we set off down the road.

Magical mystery tour

On Wednesday (18 Feb), we took a day trip to Jerez.  It wasn’t a cultured one though, but a mission to purchase goods for Dora (and Pete).  First stop on the agenda was Ikea, for some rugs and other bits to make it even more homely than it is already!  They were all necessary purchases of course...

Tarifa, Conil and Sanlucar de Bring a gas mask!

On Thursday, after bacon butties (thanks Mr Morrison!) and a quick walk with Powell in the rain, we emptied the grey, paid our €12 overnight fee and set off to find some LPG en route to our next destination; Tarifa.

Back on the road and a little bit of home

After 6 weeks and 2 days, we finally left the campsite in Ronda today!  It felt great to be back on the road, despite our first stop being fairly uninspiring; but after 6 weeks of not moving, we didn’t really care!

Life goes on

So we're nearly 5 weeks into life in Ronda and we've been rather lazy lately.  In all honesty, we did have a spell of pretty rubbish weather and it actually SNOWED here last week!  Carmen informed Pete that it doesn't snow in Ronda, but this year it did, just for us.

Standing Stones

It’s almost a fortnight since our last update and 5 weeks on Monday since we arrived in Ronda.  What have we been up to, you may ask...not much really!  They say a rolling stone gathers no moss.  In our case, it’s true and we have found ourselves growing more mossy as the days go by.  Being here so long has also got us pondering our future in the UK and just how soon we should return.

5 more weeks...

It’s been a while since my last update so I figured one was probably about due.

Tomorrow sees the beginning of our 4^th week here on the campsite and I would love to tell you that we’ve had lots of adventures, but we haven’t.

Pearl Jam and Pot

Pete again, It’s only a quick update and not as good as the title would have you believe I’m afraid.

Today marked the occasion of my return to hospital here in Ronda for what I thought was my pot removal and “stitches” out. Sue and I have been counting down the days to the time I had a little more freedom. Clearly I’d still be restricted after the pot comes off but at least I’d be able to scratch an itch and put my hand in my pocket.

Post Op Pete

Happy New Year!!!

Well, as I’m out of hospital and as I'm not allowed to much at all I figured it was my overdue turn to update the blog.