South Spain

After my night in the truck stop.. I decide to continue my way through Spain on the back roads to Madrid.  

I found a great property for sale... should I??  ;-)

Bull fight advertising in a village.. wasn't sure but they seem to still be popular!

I love the back roads.. it appears that life is good out here.. and definitely more authentic than the toursity areas I was just at in Palma and Barcelona, however not taking away from how much I loved those places as well!

I have a host coming up in Madrid.  Alberto had given me his address for the gps.. and from the direction I arrived, I managed to navigate quite a busy highway system around the city.  Welcome back to the big time! ;-)

Alberto met me at the driveway electric gate and we went in.. What a lovely home!  We went into the back yard to have a chat. 

Then he tells me after a while of talking… “My wife is not real keen that I have a strange lady at our house”..  I’m like “What?”  Heck,  I can understand that, thank you for inviting me, but I don’t want to make anyone uncomfortable, and I can move on now.. no problem.  He says, “No, just meet her first and let’s see how we go..”  I sort of agreed, but really, it must be better that I go.

Other than the fact I am a strange woman in the house.. (?!ha!?), she was concerned that she doesn’t speak English.  Well, I took Spanish in school.  It’s been over 20 years since I’ve had a chance to practice, but I’ll do my best.

We had a little tiny chat.  I was able to say a few things and then went back outside.  I think there was a small approval, so Alberto set me up inside, I took a shower.  More chatting, Alberto grew up in Australia so we had plenty of stories to share.  He had lots of ideas and things he wanted to show me on the bike.  PLUS!  HE had just sold his KTM 690, same as mine, the week before I arrived!  Gee whiz did he have really bad luck with his, super bad experiences!  Part of wanting to meet me was to see how the heck I’ve gotten so far on my bike without it breaking down! ;-)

However, the next day, he needed to go to work, he has a great business, making and distributing eyewear (www.veroptic.com).  Anytime you see photos of Alberto in this post, he has a different pair of glasses on.. all very cool ones at that. 

Alberto is very keen to show me around, but he has a business to run and my first day he must go to the office and work.. Just as well for me as it gives me the chance to stay around the house and work on my blog. We’ll head out to explore tomorrow.  Feeling uncomfortable around the house as I know that I must still make his wife uncomfortable.  But little by little we had more little chats in Spanish.  I  was amazed I could still get some of the words out that I did, but when I screwed up or completely forgot, Susana always helped me. 

She was really great for me.  I needed the practice really bad as I have got a lot of Spanish countries coming up.. Mexico, Central and South America.  Susana and I ended up getting on really well and she joined us on the ride the next day.. yay!

They took me through some beautiful back roads surrounding Madrid and met with a couple more friends at a very special authentic Spanish restaurant in a small town.   

I could read some but not all of the menu, and Alberto says I must try the local “delicacy”, baby pig.. I laugh at him and say “NO WAY!!”  Can’t eat a baby pig no way no how.  So we continue down the menu, nothing really jumps out and he explains more to me about this baby pig and how he thinks I would love it.  It’s certified and grown under controlled organic setting and is not a new born, but several weeks old needing to reach a certain height and weight before it is “ready”.   They worked hard at selling me on the idea of eating this, I still wasn’t keen but agreed.  It’s that funny line that I try to decide if I should experience this culture by saying yes and worrying about offending their culture if I say no.

The kooky waitress brings me my section of the pig.  Only the one side of hind quarter, thank goodness, it’s not like eating an entire piglet!  

Alberto, Primi, Susana and Pauli

And I have to say… “Lord have Mercy”.. it was DARN good!!! Guilt guilt guilt!!  But good good good!!!  Gee whiz, however they cooked it, was perfect.  So tender that meat, and a flavor that is truly different in a good way.. I'm so sorry little pig, or anybody else I might be offending by trying this.

I’m not a vegetarian but could be easily.  I don’t eat much meat normally, but on this world trip, you can’t avoid it.. a lot of the countries are mostly meat eating, including breakfast, lunch and dinner.. 3 times a day!  In my real life, I’d be lucky to eat any meat in 1 meal once per week.

I honestly pass up a lot of meat, especially at breakfast on the road, don’t usually eat much lunch if anything at all, but I admit that I’m eating more at dinner than I have ever included in my diet before.  And like this little pig, it is a dish this region is particularly proud of, and it will be something I will always remember.  

I ran out of business cards, and she wanted my website.. written on money.. okay!
After that amazing lunch, we set off for another town nearby to see a very large and famous Roman aqueduct.. gee whiz!! Those Romans gets around! 

Anyway, this freestanding aqueduct in Segovia is evidence of the medieval periods prosperity and was built long before there was a town around it. Alberto tells me it stands today without ever having a need for re-build. That amazes me, as it looks like something that could come down easy in an earthquake or war! Could we do the same today??  Even with modern machinery??

It was a great day all around, seeing a lot of this area and learning the history, experiencing the culture, good friends..this is what I love the most!

Ducking for cover during a little rain shower!

Now for another day.. Alberto and Susana keep talking me in to staying!!  There's more to see!  They want to show me the city of Madrid, just a quick look around in their very cool convertible.  Nice little change!

Beer on the square..

Entertainment on the square is.... entertaining!  This one made me scream and jump (too many people saw me and laughed).  The head in the middle is the real guy, I wasn't sure, and then he abruptly pushed the box up at me with some weird scary noise.. I screamed.. he turned his head like this in the photo and says.. very loudly.. "Besame!!"  (Kiss Me!!)  Oh my gawwdd...  I sat with my beer and watched this guy quite a lot.  He truly was disturbing on a continuous basis.. Could he be that good of an actor is this his way of being who he really is and making money at it.. ???

Not sure what this is really?  It's teeth chatter for money.. part kangaroo and part antelope?

And a quick look of the old city.. very impressive clean city.. despite all the upset in city centers at the moment!~  All of the cities so far.. A lot of protests due to unemployment.

They are reporting 5 million people unemployed in Spain.  I'm not sure what protesting would do to create jobs.  Plus the country is on the verge of bailout from the European union.  A real mess and Alberto explains to me that the country as a whole has very little industry to rely on compared to other countries.   And he doesn't see any change to this situation soon.

And a look at the new Madrid! These high rises are built on the old Madrid Real (soccer team) site.. which if I understand was sold when they bought "David Beckham"!  They've since relocated.

I love Spain.. Love it love it love it!  Besides these great people who took me in from a BMW forum!!  Who'da thought!?  They are the best hosts and I really got a lot out of my stay with them.. To live in their home for 4 days!!! and experience their family life, super yummy Andalucian food.. Susana!!  Regions are different, and she is originally from Andalucia..  I felt like I was actually was staying with family.. lucky me!!  I do hope they come to Australia someday so I can return the favor..

Riding the Croatia coast to Zadar

At this point and time in my journey, most of my travel decisions are based on the weather.  I am watching the forecasts and seeing so much rain, so if there is a patch of just fairly good weather I go for it.  Yes, I can ride in the rain, no worries, it's all part of the adventure.  But I was recommended this coastal route along Croatia and anyone who said so, points out how spectacular it is... but not in the rain! So make my way to Zadar... now!

It is a very nice road for sure.  No question as to why it's so popular, and I can see how much of it I would miss on a full rain day.  The road literally hugs the coast line all the way, making it a continuous slow curvy ride.   I never did get full sun, but this sunny haze will have to do.

It's well past lunch time.  After exploring old town Krk with Nikola and his family, I lost track of time.

And again, being the off season, most places are completely closed and boarded up.  I finally found this little village and an open restaurant.. hallelujah!!  Not a soul there, except the lady who runs it.  She was sitting outside smoking and reading a magazine, so I hated to disturb her.  But she was kind and seemed pleased enough to help me figure out what I can have.  There were some pictures on the wall inside the restaurant.  Again, I don't read the menu, I pre-decided what I would like to have well in advance, and then set the challenge to explaining this to a Croatian woman who speaks zero English.  I wanted a salad sandwich (lettuce, tomato, cucumber and cheese) toasted, and french fries.  She went over and over the details, and through the translation, she did an excellent job.. it was superb!!  I'm in the land of olive oil.. I love french fries cooked in olive oil....... ;-)))

I am so happy... and full!  But I see the weather rolling in.. I must continue.

I learned very quickly how slippery the roads are here when wet.  I later was told by every motorcyclist I met in Croatia to take special care because their roads are especially slippery from being mostly limestone. With as twisty curvy as these roads are, and quite often having no guard rails from going overboard into the rocks and sea below, I want to finish this before it gets dangerous.

You see the van parked in the photo above and a man on the other side of the road?  I didn't!!  Until I heard him start howling like a wolf!!  I was trying to take some pictures but he kept howling, so I got nervous. I tried not to look scared, and calmly as possible, repacked my camera, put on my helmet and gloves again and got on my bike.  Thank goodness he didn't move.. But the howling continues!  What do I do?  Nobody else around, should I turn back towards Krk?  The only way through is between Wolf man and his Big van!! God only knows there might be more of them in there! I finally heard a car coming, and decided to ride past him FAST at the same time the car coming from the opposite direction.  I was afraid if he was howling like a wolf, he might try to jump the bike like a wolf as I rode by.  Thank goodness, he didn't.  My heart was racing though.  Who stands on the side of the road howling like a wolf.. and for that long!! Doesn't matter, just happy to be able to continue...

Finally get into Zadar, and start tracking down the place I organized to stay in for a couple days.
 
I like this one, my kind of fixer-upper!!  But it's not the house I'm looking for..

Is this it??

No... but I always like to see how things are built in different countries.  You can see why this house will last for hundreds of years compared to others.. people around here are still living in dwellings built over 500 years ago..!  Not much of the western world can say that!

Okay, by the looks of those clouds I have got to stop looking around town and get to where I am supposed to go..  luckily, the house I need to find is just around the corner from here.  A good room to hide out while the rain comes through for a couple days again.

There is a lot more to my Croatia adventure, so this will be continued!
 ;-)

Welcome to Croatia!

Since every moment in Slovenia and Croatia last night was riding through the dark and the rain, I had no idea where I was... and I woke up to this!  Hilarious!  Yesterday I was in a small snowy mountain town in the Alps, and today I am on the "Sea.. not See".. just to be clear to Austrian readers that it's not a lake out there.. ;-)  And warm enough to only wear a t-shirt!!!  Hallelujah!!!!!  What a difference a day makes!

This is like a huge reward for the last several weeks.. but looking at the forecast, it only reports rain, rain, rain and more rain..  so I enjoy the view while I can..

This is Rijeka, Croatia in the distance.. My location is called Lovran.  I set out on foot on my first day, but still with my t-shirt.  A very well dressed for winter man stops me on the street, and speaking Croatian, I indicate I don't understand... "Engleski ... Ja ne razumijem hrvatski".  With a worried look, he points to my t-shirt then rubs his arm to enact cold??  I say No..!  He shook his head and walked on.  I've been in very cold for a while, so 15 degrees Celcius was like summer weather to me!!  After being aware I'm the t-shirt girl, I look around at others walking on the street, and yep, they all have on winter coats and hats.  Oh well!

We had this nice little break with some sun, but I ended up staying here the next 4 days through non-stop rain.  It was a great feeling that I didn't have to push and ride through it, I could just stop.. have a look around this small Croatian town, and catch up on my blog and photos.  It was nice and exciting at first to rest!  But by day 2, I was like, okay, you can stop raining now, I would like to continue.. but I didn't.  The family at the hotel was so nice, they made great food, and I was dry.. it is their off season, so I really got looked after as one of two guests at the place.  I'm actually very very lucky to have a place to stay.  This area is SO TOURISTY in summer, and NOBODY in winter, the majority of the nice big hotels are completely closed.. chains and locks over the doors..  This place however, the family lives inside too, so might as well rent a room when you can, hey?

My bike was happy and secure too..

Now, it's finally a sunny day... I can escape!!! Can't wait to explore Croatia!  In Australia I have a couple friends who are from Croatia.  One of them suggested I call in to visit an Auntie somewhat close to where I was.   So I follow the coast road on my way to a town called Pula.  I was loving the view and the gorgeous little church on the hill.

Can't help but to stop a few times.. such a pretty day and a very long time since I could ride along any coastline in decent weather for months!

So I ride into Pula.. and actually need to figure out where I am meant to go.  All I know is my friend's Auntie works in an archeological museum, but no idea where as of yet.. Humm Humm, riding around and I literally just run into this!  I'm like, "What??  Did I fall asleep and wake up in Rome?"  This big beautiful colesseum here in Pula is amazing!!  And I just pull the bike right up and park!  No big tourist busses, no big long lines to get in.. what's up with this place? (I didn't research where I was going again... but I get a kick out of surprises like this!)

 I must find out more...

Actually more officially called the Pula Arena, I found out it was built between 27 BC and 68 AD.. For real??  That is incredible!!  And I pull up to such an "in tact" part of history on my motorcycle in 2010, no worries??  Far out... I never fail to be completely and thoroughly surprised on this journey..

It is built by the Romans as you might suspect.. and a testament to their construction talent, to this day, they still have events inside, seating up to 5,000 people.. mainly concerts..

I must move on to find Auntie, but wow... wow, wow, wow!!!! I also learned about the underground tunnels for the animals and the Gladiators. Can you imagine.. being here at that time?  And would they have imagined a girl riding her motorcycle from Australia here at THIS time? ;-)

Well it made sense that the archeological museum was not far from here, and I found it.  Auntie came out to greet me and had me park behind the building.

There are broken bits of stone history all over the back lot.. there is so much, I understand, what to do with it all?   I enjoyed my visit.. but while i was looking at the map, I came up with a brilliant idea.  I notice I am so close to Italy, why not go spend the night in Italy... literally, "Because I Can"!!  So on around the coast I make my way toward Trieste.

That ended up being a bit of a boring ride, and when I arrived Trieste, it was a huge city full of traffic large smoke stacks puffing out serious amounts of sh _ _.  After breathing clean air for several days, polluted city air really hits you.  I did check on a couple places to stay, and they were not only a little out of budget, but way out.  Hmm, I didn't like it here, the sun is going down, and I don't have a plan.  I decide I would be far luckier to find something cheap in the hills outside of town.  Wandering around those curvy roads in the dark was producing nothing.  I finally found a small town with 2 hotels.  One is closed... very closed, like dead and vandalised.  The other one was small, basic, but again not even a consideration in budget.  I rode around in the dark to check out the nearby campgrounds that showed up on my gps.  They were closed for winter.. as all I have seen have been.  I went back to the hotel because the man spoke really good English and I asked for ANY other idea.. luckily he knew of an old lady that rents rooms, but wasn't sure if she would be at this time of year.  He called her on her mobile for me. She wasn't home, but would be in an hour, and agreed to let me stay.

I decide to find dinner while I was waiting.. The restaurants in this town won't even open until 8.. It was only 7, so.. as I was rummaging through a very small disorganized grocery, picking up a tin of tuna and a tomato, the owner recommends I go down the road 3 km to SLOVENIA!!!!  As they would be open now and far cheaper food with bigger plates.. sold!!  How funny is that!!  He says, you don't want to eat in Italian restaurant.. too expensive.. and he is Italian!  but I took the suggestion and had a really huge cheap Slovenian meal (As ususal, I couldn't read the menu, and it is not a touristy place, so nobody speaks English.  I find my new habit is to just decide in my head what I would like to eat tonight as if I were home and explain best I can.  I happened to be in the mood for simple grilled vegetables...and that's what I got!!  An awesome massive plate of a gorgeous variety of veggies.. perfect!) And then rode back into Italy 3 km to the house!  Hopefully this map will help.


View Larger Map

It turned out to be a wonderful old Italian home, and as soon as I pulled into the gated driveway in the dark, I hear "Mama Mia!!"  and I get off the bike and I hear "Mama Mia, Mama Mia!!!"  She's a little butterball Italian lady with blonde short bob hair cut, and sweet as could be.  She couldn't believe a woman riding a motorcycle, she says, I usually only see men... Mama Mia!!  I got a wonderful room, and she laid out all kinds of good food for snacks and hot water for tea.  Ahhhhh... I can rest now.  (I know it's irresponsible for me to have done this without a plan, but I got to explore Croatia today, eat my dinner in Slovenia, and stay the night in Italy!! I couldn't have planned that anyway.. love it!!)