We’ve been home a few days now , the car totally unpacked all the washing and ironing is done and we’ve caught up with all of the news .

We were away for 35 days we travelled down through the centre of France then down nearly all of the Mediterranean coast of Spain . We also drove up into the beautiful Sierra Nevada to visit Galera and on our way home we travelled from the far south up to Northern Spain .

Spain is a vast country with hugely contrasting landscapes and we enjoyed it all .

We didn’t get to see as much of France as we planned but Bayeaux and the Normandy beaches were a definite highlight and we really enjoyed the last day of our trip in Cherbourg.

We drove an incredible 3391 miles and the Evoque did us proud . It kept us comfortable and air conditioned at all times and didn’t miss a beat 😍

Time now to get back into daily life, catch up with family and for Chris it’s back to work 😐.

We are hoping for the weather to improve here so that we can all enjoy the summer and then it will be time to plan the next trip.

We hope you’ve all enjoyed reading about our grand tour and thank you for all of your lovely comments xxxx

We have just left Cherbourg on the ferry to Poole

We had 3 days of driving from the southern most tip of Spain up to Cherbourg not sure how many miles but well over 1000 😳. We stayed overnight in Burgos in Northern Spain on Thursday a lovely modern city and enjoyed an amazing 3 course dinner plus wine all for 22 euros 😊.

Early start again on Friday and we drove up through the rest of Northern Spain past Bilbao and over the border into France. So very mountainous and green and not like Spain at all it was more like Switzerland . This is Basque region and it definitely looked and felt like a country of its own . We rattled up through France and navigated ourselves around Bordeaux and pushed on towards Nantes for our overnight stop .

Up and on the road again on Saturday morning and we passed through Rennes and through a bit of Brittany and into Normandy. We visited St. Mere Deglise by Omaha beach and enjoyed a bit more of the D Day celebrations. This village is known for the English soldier from the 505 parachute regiment who got his parachute caught on the church tower during the D Day landings and the village have kept a parachute and figure hanging from the church ever since . It’s quite a moving story

We arrived at our hotel in Cherbourg by 2pm and wandered around the town until it started to rain 😳😳😳 so Chris remembered a bar that brewed their own beers so we had a fun hour in there avoiding the rain and tasting the beers .

The sun reappeared by early evening so we finished our walk around the harbour and town.

Up early this morning to check in at the ferry by 8am. Sea is calm and we are both looking forward to seeing everyone. I

When we are home we will let you know how many miles etc .

A great few days here meeting up with Shiv again and helping her celebrate her 50th birthday We were joined by Di an ex work colleague of Chris & Shiv @ Japan airlines .

We also visited old town of Estepona and the port of Sotogrande

We hoped to play a bit of golf but the course right beside our apartment appeared deserted so we went walking instead 😂

Tomorrow we pack up for the last time and head north and homeward a week earlier than planned but things at home are calling .

We will miss out on visiting Jerez Cadiz & Seville this time but we will come back here again

We have 3 long days of driving ahead but we will see lots of northern Spain and more of France along the way 😊

While we were staying in Calahonda we visited the White mountain village of Mijas. Although a real tourist attraction it was well worth the visit. Pretty narrow streets of white washed houses all decorated with pretty flower pots overflowing with colourful plants and flowers. We bought some souvenirs and enjoyed a coffee in a cafe with the most amazing views .

Our apartment had British TV so we were able to watch some of the BBC coverage of the 75th anniversary of the DDay landings. We are both so glad we got to visit the Normandy beaches and the cemeteries on the first stage of this trip.

On Friday we packed up again to move onto our next destination. On our way we drove through Marbella 😐 and stopped off at Puerto Banus for coffee. It was exactly as I thought it would be full of bling, designer shops, posh cars and flashy boats and lots of Russians . It was good to visit but wouldn’t hurry back 😂

We arrived at Dequesa early afternoon and we have yet another lovely apartment on a golf course with sea views . The port here is very pretty and we went on Saturday evening to enjoy a G&T in a lovely bar and people watched . We are here for a few days hoping to meet up with friends of Chris from his Japan airline days 😊

We spent a lovely couple of days here wandering through the pretty narrow streets and along the beautiful coastline. The weather was very warm and we enjoyed a couple of evenings sat outside until late people watching 😂

Our hotel was another great find lovely room with sea views and a roof top pool which was a great bonus.

We are now down in Calahonda near Marbella for a few days . We have a lovely apartment again with sea views we spent 2 weeks here last year and so it’s nice to return .

It’s difficult to know where to start with this part of our blog. We decided to visit Galera after seeing it featured on a C4 program . The drive up from the Costa Blanca was stunning and we arrived at Hotel Galera and instantly felt like we were part of their family. We enjoyed lunch and dinner on their beautiful terrace and chatted to Jack the owner for ages. After a great nights sleep in the most comfy beds we went exploring the village of Galera.

Wow wow wow. Most of the houses are built into the mountains as cave houses and the history of the village goes back over 4000 years . We visited the museum and saw the second oldest mummy in Europe along with the timeline of history of the region from the copper and Bronze Age the Romans then the Muslim occupation taken over by the catholic kings is the 15th century and the development of the area since then with its Roman Moorish and Christian influences Absolutely fascinating

We then stepped straight back into the 21st century and Live streamed the Exeter Chiefs v Saracens rugby final on my phone. Exeter sadly lost but were by far the better team.

We drowned our sorrows with a beer on the hotel terrace followed by dinner .

We then strolled around the village and found a pizzeria/ bar showing the European football cup final and had a great evening with both the local Spanish and expat community watching the football. Chris was happy again as he is a Liverpool supporter and our drinks were served with free tapas . We met a lady from Cornwall and her hubbie from Exeter plus a Geordie and loads of people from the South East. All in all a great day and evening despite Exeter losing .

We reluctantly checked out from hotel Galera this morning and enjoyed the most amazing 2 hour drive through the Sierra Nevada . Stunning scenery with snow still on the highest peaks despite 28+ degrees temperatures this week .

We have just checked into our hotel in Nerja very different from Galera but so far so good . Weather perfect and looking forward to a couple of days here ☀️☀️

After 10 restful days at Rosie & Martins house we pack up and are on the road again. It’s been great coming back here

we walked pretty much all of the coastal path from Playa Flamenca around to Pilar de Horadada over the time we’ve been here. So much to see on the walks from pretty little harbours beautiful boats amazing coastal properties and stunning sea scapes. We even found a property that would make an amazing renovation project 😂😂

Wednesday evening we enjoyed a lovely evening at Rianxeira Restaurant which included flamenco dancing an opera singer and Spanish version of Delilah!! I’ll include the video for you to enjoy Fiona and Sophia it was a great fun evening

Today we pack up and drive for around 2 hours up into the mountains of Grenada to a little town called La Galera. The hotel featured in a channel 4 program and looked so nice so we booked to stay here 😳. Temperatures are forcast to be 34-36 degrees thankfully the hotel has a pool and air conditioning 😊

A chilled few days just enjoying the comfort of Rosie & Martins lovely Spanish home

We’ve done a few coastal walks and enjoyed some lovely food cooked by the in-house chef – Chris 😘

Today we found a little hidden cove with just 6 people on it. We paddled in the sea the water is warm already despite it being only May weather is perfect ☀️☀️

A lovely day strolling around Moraira

We walked to the port and saw some amazing boats then re visited the places we used to go to all those years back

The town hasn’t changed that much other than a little more built up but has not lost its charm it’s a hidden gem between Javea and Calpe

Day 10 we set off for a shorter drive to Rosie & Martins house on the Southern Costa Blanca. We passed Benidorm on our way 😳. Don’t think the photos really show how big this place is

We arrived by midday and immediately set about unpacking the car and put the washing machine on. It will be nice to be in the same place for a while We are here for 10 days so will be nice to give the car a rest too 😂. We hope to do some walking and maybe play a bit of golf. The weather forcast looks good too ☀️☀️😎😎

Day 7 was a long drive from Carcassonne to Tarragona

We left France over the Pyrenees and into Spain. Beautiful stunning scenery all the way and bright sunshine passing by Barcelona on our way.

Arrived at our hotel in Tarragona by 3pm and what a gem it was. Built in the 1970’s and totally unchanged full of retro furniture and with stunning sea views. Family run with it’s very own Manuel who looked after us so well . We enjoyed a couple of hours in the beach bar eating pizza and then back to hotel for a lovely chilled evening drinking coffee.

Day 8. We’ve been travelling for a week now and have clocked up 1010 miles so far

Today we had another long drive to the Northern Costa Blanca passing by Valencia on our way. Beautiful drive again in great weather and arrived e at our hotel in Moraira by 3pm

Another gem of a hotel caught in a time warp but fabulous staff and great location by the beach . We enjoyed a late Tapas lunch before chilling by the pool . We are here for another day so looking forward to revisiting this lovely place. I last came here in 1999 & 2000 with the family and it hasn’t changed that much