Up early on a Friday morning.
TaiChi.
TLC and first parade on the bike. Well, it has been standing for a week.
Packed.
Had a cafe con leche, with a chocolate croissant.
Rode off.
Blues skies. Sunny. 9degC. But bound to get warmer. Sure did. I stopped and took this photo of the bike on the Mediterranean coast……
Things went well for the first 150km. Despite the blustery winds.
Then the skies turned grey. Temperature dropped to 7degC. And a gentle Scottish mist developed.
So I found a petrol station. Pulled in. Filled up. Put on another jacket. MUCH better.
Arrived at BMW in Tarragona. Closed for lunch.
Gave the bike some TLC.
Popped over to CityWok for my own lunch. Here’s my first course……
Followed by baked salmon with a salad……
If only they’d stuffed the olive with garlic 🙂
Next came ribs.
Then various rice dishes.
And finally fresh fruit. With chocolate from the fountain 🙂
All washed down with real tea 🙂
IMHO a Mandarin-type restaurant with a Spanish twist. You can select your own meal to be “wokked”. There is a huge wooden BBQ doing ribs and more.But stay away from the baked items that look as if they came out of a freezer.
Staggered back to BMW.
No oil.
But they did try to sell me a larger windshield. Unfortunately, they did not have one in-stock. Looks like I shall have to go to Barcelona, or Madrid.
Good news. Whilst I was having lunch, I missed the rain shower.
Bad news. Temperature had dropped to 5degC.
Rode the 6km to the hotel. Motorcycle parking, right in front of the main door 🙂
No one at the desk. Pity. After placing a second call, the hail started. I kid you not! Southern Spain? Someone has got to be kidding me.
Xavi(er) showed up. Apologetic. Had to run an errand to the bus station. Booked me in. He too has a BMW, but the super-fast version, the HP2 Sport.
Good chat.
I unpacked.
Covered up the bike
Xavi gave me the skinny on the city.
NOTE: this hotel is between the market and the beach. So very convenient.
So here I am.
Nice comfy place.
Xavi donated a bottle of rioja to the cause.
And I feel so tired. How tired? I’ve already had one nap. Whilst sitting in a chair. My excuse? Was a hard 3hr ride, with the low temps and blustery winds. The winds demanded very high levels of concentration, especially with the heavy traffic and winding roads. And I haven’t ridden in a week. Yeah I know. What a wus. hahahahaha. I agree.
NB: Really enjoyed Valencia. The city is nice.
Certainly the most practical accommodation I have stayed in. A 20min walk took me to anything I wanted to see. There was a kitchen, dining area, study area, comfy sofa, wifi that never quit, etc…….
However, I was begining to take root there. So glad to be out.
Meanwhile, it was late as I headed out of Pigal (my Tarragona hotel) Alex (the night manager) gave me a map with an autoparts superstore details. And we talked horilka, salo, etc! Gotta love immigrants. They are the only ones driving a country forward!
Then out for a stroll.
Ending up at the cathedral, as you can see…….
The drink is a ‘Blanco Reserva’ vermouth, from Padro&Son.
Then back to the hotel, with a stop at the bar across the street. The bar is straight out of Queen West West!
Did I mention that I like Spain?