Today in the words of Stuart was to be our Grand Day Out.
The weather was beautiful again as we had breakfast again on the balcony before preparing for the day. Karen finally finished her CBT as well.
We met in reception at 11am to start the first part of the walk to Old Town. Our happy mood as we enjoyed the sunshine was tempered when we saw police car actually parked on the promenade. As we walked around it we were horrified to see the policeman were standing next to a body that was just covered head to waist by blankets with their feet sticking out. There was a police photographer taking photos of a pool of fresh blood. We have no idea what had obviously just happened but were shocked by the sight and so walked on sombrely. It took sometime for the mood to lift but by the time we reached the marina in old town we had all tried to forget what we had seen.
It was almost lunchtime and as planned we walked up to the Mardeleva restaurant for lunch. It was so warm just sitting there and we all ordered some cold refreshing drinks whilst admiring the view of the marina below. Then we ordered some light lunch which were unsurprisingly all fish dishes as it was a fish restaurant. I had crepes filled with salmon and cream cheese which were delicious whilst Karen went for Scrambled Eggs with prawns and mushrooms. We were in no hurry and sat for a while whilst contemplating whether it was actually too hot to complete the rest of the Grand Day Out. Stoically though we decided to go for it.
The next part of the walk was the more challenging part. It involved going up the cliffs and following along the cliff path to Puerto Calero. The path was well defined although for much of it was across roughish rocky terrain. There was also no respite from the sun which was burning down. It also involves a descent down a ravine and back up again. We passed a few other walkers going in same and opposite directions and they were all British. It is true what they say about Mad Dogs & Englishmen…
Apart from a short water stop we kept on and with lots of chatter, the Marina at Puerto Calero finally came into sight. The sea looked stunning from the cliff tops as it shimmered in the sun. However we couldn’t see places too far away as they were in a haze that apparently was being caused by sand blown from the Sahara although we never felt or actually saw it. After making the descent down to the marina, the girls went to a bar whilst we went and purchased tickets for the ferry ride back to Puerto Del Carmen. When we joined them in the bar they had already ordered 2 large jugs of Sangria which we sat and drank slowly. The time passed very quickly despite Glenn telling us some really awful jokes!
The ferry ride back which cost us 8 Euros each was lovely. We all found seats on the top deck and were glad when we started moving to try and get some breeze as relief from the sun. The short journey was relatively smooth and made even better by young crew member who thought she was a bit of a comedienne. Her description of one passenger as being ‘wibbley wobbly’ from drinking was very funny but you had to be there to appreciate it. The walk back from the marina to the apartments was slower than the mornings walk but we all managed it albeit the other 5 decided that they had earned themselves an ice cream about half way.
And that was the Grand Day Out. We arrived back just before 5pm having been out for 6 hours. We had walked 7 miles in quite high temperatures. It was harder work than it should have been but it was a really good day. I was pleased Karen had made it with no trouble from her knee. We are now wondering if the Physio is making it worse and not better as she had not done since it had gone again two days ago. Only time will tell.
After a couple of unsuccessful efforts to book other restaurants for tonight and the next couple of nights we ended up going back to Pizzeria Napolena which we had all enjoyed a couple of nights earlier. The staff were delighted to see us again. The food was again top notch. It must be one of the oldest restaurants in the New Town having been established since 1981 but until this trip we have not visited. It is a family run place and you can tell by the care they take they they value the custom and take pride in the food and service.
Karen & I had planned on joining the others in a music bar tonight but the truth of it was that we were both really tired from the walk. So instead we all went to The Diamond Lounge after the meal and had cocktails (Karen had an Irish Coffee). At about 10pm the others went off to get a taxi to Old Town whilst Karen & I retired back to the apartment where we had a cup of tea on the balcony.
Today was good day. In fact it was a really good day. The weather was terrific for February. We have only been once before in February when I think then we just got a duff week weather wise. That could happen anytime of year though. When the weather is like this there really isn’t the need to go anymore more exotic to get the sun (like Buzios in Brazil!). Though we love the long walks we were all looking forward to a more restful day tomorrow.
