Return from that Place in the Sun!

Well, we are back from our travels now ... the main reason for our visit to Spain was to look at property and get a bit of a feel for the place.

On the day we arrived we investigated the pool and the beach ... and forced ourselves to have a drink at the beach bar !



On Friday morning we were met at our hotel by Will Norris of 'Town and Country Spain' for a guided tour of the area plus to show us examples of what we can buy for our money.  We met Will at the 'A Place in the Sun' Show at the Birmingham NEC a couple of weeks ago/  Will knew that we wouldn't be buying for at least 6 months or longer but still gave us half a day of his precious time with absolutely no pressure, just good facts.  He is a really great guy too - thanks, Will !



Will showed us around the general area plus we went inside a couple of villas that were vacant.

We liked this one, which you could buy, including all fees etc (plus it was fully furnished) for about £150,000 ...

Three bedrooms, private pool plus plenty of parking for a motorhome ...

There are loads to choose from, in all price ranges ....

The further from the coast you go the cheaper they get.  This one was 15 min drive to the beach. To be closer to the beach you pay a premium.

So now we have a good idea of what is available but we will look at a few more areas ... another time !

On Saturday we went for a drive to Mojacar ... the roads are amazing!  They are absolutely deserted and in pristine condition.  We could not believe the money that has been spent on roads, hospitals and general infrastructure.

Mojacar is in two parts ... the first part we visited was on the hill slightly inland

Very Spanish....probably because we were in Spain.

 

This is the outlook from the hill!  Now I thought Australia was barren in the outback, but it just doesn't compare with this ... it's like Mars ... not pretty at all like England, just so harsh. Then again we wouldn't want to live out in the barren part!  The other part of Mojacar was by the beach which was a lot more pleasant.

Outlook from Mojacar

We had a good look about the beach area of Mojacar and headed back to La Zenia, where we were staying.  This is one of the streets by our hotel ... it is deserted because the villas are owned by very, very wealthy Russians, Spaniards etc. and are only occupied in the summer months.  It reminded us of  Port Isaac in Cornwall which we visited last winter ... it was deserted because the houses were all holiday homes, meaning the village had lost its heart and soul. 

We had a nice mini break though, the hotel we stayed at sits right on the cliff top ...

Also, the beer was good and cheap...

We arrived back at Manchester last night - funnily enough the 'Desperate Housewives' (referred to in our previous post) were on our plane ... although this time they were all very subdued ... but very, very brown!  The head slapper wasn't with them, probably cooling her heels in a Spanish cell. We spent the night at the cheapo £39.00-a-night airport hotel, in Manchester, again.  It is such a great hotel for the price, with everything you need in place.

Elaine had an appointment in Manchester this morning hence the night's stay in the hotel ... it saved going back to the boat last night and then driving up to Manchester again this morning.

This afternoon we drove back down the M6 to Stone ... we passed these huge brand new Terex dump trucks on the M6.  There was a hell of a tail back as they hogged two lanes so all the traffic including the trucks had to overtake on the outside lane.

 

We picked the dogs up from the kennels this afternoon ... poor old Bombo just wouldn't stop crying ... he misses Elaine so much!  We keep promising him we won't leave him, but needs must sometimes.

such a happy Bombo boy ... what a big smile

In the early evening we picked up the cats ... who are all still going strong ... much to the relief of the cattery owner.  So, we are a 'full team' again this evening ... all the animals look very tired and I think they will sleep well tonight.


So in summing up our trip, we loved Spain, especially the weather and beaches.  We didn't like the barren interior and some of the 'urbanisations' were a bit too 'suburby' for us ... but we have a lot more planning and checking out to do ... we may even rent for a while anyway, just to be sure.


So now we are back in the land of reality!  Without going into any greater detail, Elaine is going to be spending the next six months or so undergoing treatment at a hospital in Manchester, which is why we will be staying aboard Caxton, moored at Aston Marina.  The NHS have been absolutely amazing at every level.  Elaine's GP has run her 4 times to see how she is and the Specialist Nurse at Macc has called her several times to check on her ... she even rang her while we were in Spain ... for no other reason than to check that she was OK.  The people in Manchester have been brilliant too ... nothing is too much trouble and they have been so helpful and supportive.
What a system!