spring in sitges

I’m having a bit of time away after the winter, partly holiday and also a bit more of a nose into the possibilities in Spain.  I have mentioned my ideas in previous posts from last autumn.

For this trip I have decided to HelpX again, It’s been a while since I gave a hand to folk and decided that it would also be a better way of getting to know the area in a bit more detail.  Thankfully I had made arrangements in advance, as Percy was still in the garage, waiting for a new wheel bearing to be fixed, when I was due to leave.  

I am away in my new, old Golf, a great vehicle and a joy to drive.  Nippy, easy to park, more economical and much less stressful than the van for the journey I am making this time.

My first stop was in Sitges, with a german family who relocated to Spain many years ago.  It was good to hear the stories of settling in and integration into a new way of life and to marvel at the flexibility of languages, with the family speaking german or spanish together, the two boys tended to use catalan between themselves and everyone spoke amazingly good english whenever I was to included in the conversation.

I painted for them, firstly the front facade of the house, which wasn’t at all difficult, just the distance from the ground in some instances, the house is built into a steep hillside so it feels high up even before climbing a ladder.  It was great to make such a fast transformation to a property and the results were immediately appreciated.  Then, after, refreshed one of the guest bedrooms in the house.  I discovered quite how poor low cost paint can be, it was taking five or six coats to give decent coverage so it was soon replaced with a higher quality product and progress was much faster.  I easily got everything done within the week that I was staying.

I made full use of my free time, heading to the beach most days to soak up a bit of sun and for a glorious swim in the sea, I spent much time touring estate agents, checking property websites and heading out to visit potential properties.  It’s interesting to see how different planning laws have affected housing here and how the enthusiasm (greed) of the last property boom has changed the landscape, particularly as it was stopped in full flow when the most recent financial crash hit the shores.  There are unfinished estates of houses all over the place, strange zones of cramped housing where the city folk once had allotments and a tiny shed that have since been developed, often without permission, over the decades, leading to fairly smart, pricy properties squashed together with completely inadequate vehicle access and an almost shanty feel.  Not cheap either, until you discover that there is little other alternative in many places without being completely out in the sticks.  I found nothing that fitted my criterion during the week that I was there, so headed off, as planned to my next host an hour or so further south.

woody, my golf on holiday in the sun

the sun setting over the catalan hills

freshly painted facade 

days off without much snow

On my first day off I had expected to be heading for the slopes to ski, but with the beautifully warm weather, blue skies and sunshine, I decided I would rather enjoy a good hike instead.

In the view from my front door, I can see across Saint Lary village and the valley across the other side and away towards the mountains in the distance,  There is a road pass that rises to the lowest part of the valley over there with stunning 360 degree views at the top.  that was to be my destination.

The road and then hiking trail that I joined, part of the Atlantic to Mediterranean Pyrenean GR10 trail, took me in exactly the right direction to reach the pass, col d’Azet and I spent a very enjoyable day hiking up through quaint mountain villages, past miniature working farms, through patches of woodland, through fields of pasture, over babbling streams and, nearer the top, across more open moor type land rising to the ridge and view on the other side.  

Strangely, for the end of December, the vegetation remained lush and green, insects and even a butterfly or two whirled about in the air and tiny lizards, basking in the warm sun, darted to safety as my foot steps warned them of my approach.  Violets flowered under hedgerows in places and catkins plumped themselves, imagining that spring had already arrived, in preparation for wind blown pollination that doesn’t usually happen for another three or four months.  I marvelled at the power of sunshine and warmth on our natural vegetation and prayed, at the same time, for cold winter weather to arrive promptly and put a stop to the untimely advance of the season before it was too late.  

I had already had a conversation about cherry blossom that someone had seen in a neighbouring valley and feared that if things advanced too far before the real winter set in, we would see disasterous harvests of fruit next year.  If the flowers open and are then frosted, they come to nothing, the resultant fruit, that usually takes the better part of spring and summer to ripen, has no time to form and there is no chance for flower buds to be created again before winter real sets in.  The trees are then in a weakened state through this unnatural effort and start up again in the following spring  less able to protect themselves from disease and insect attack.

I averted myself from dwelling on such possibilities and concentrated on the majesty and grandure of the landscape, marvelled on the immense power of bye gone glaciers that carved the landscape millions of years ago, the constantly changing scenery, that we will never see, over millennia, as the iberian peninsula constantly pushes against the rest of europe, forcing these ancient mountains to resist the ever present attack of natural erosion, whilst, on the surface, we busy ourselves with every day life as if it is the most important thing in the world.  To be outside in such amazing natural scenery can put everything into perspective, even if it only lasts an afternoon or a day, it’s a joy to behold and something to be remembered on other occasions.

On the third picture, Vignec, where my flat is, is visible in the distant valley.

clay render on a straw bale house

Anaig is a specialist in clay renders and I have worked along side her on a couple of straw bale build projects.  Here was slightly different, it was her project.  For years she has put her time, energy and expertise into building houses for others and now it is her turn.  I wasn’t sure how the experience was going to unfold.  Either there was going to be stress, angst and aiming for perfection or else a very laid back attitude.  Thankfully it was the latter.  A great team of volunteers, mainly there to gain experience before their own builds and some just for the sheer heck of participation and in return for the great work they have already received.  I think that once you’ve done some clay rendering there is always a hankering to do a bit more.  It gets into your blood so to speak.

I’d missed the first week, where they’d concentrated on rendering the outside of the building and arrived just as the interior was commencing. There had just been raw bales of straw at the start, which need to be promptly covered to protect them from the elements and rodent attack.  We worked at an unpressured pace, achieving a huge amount of work within the allotted time.  Just a small section upstairs to complete at a later date and a couple of patches that needed quiet, undivided attention to get right.  I got stuck in to some of the more challenging tasks such as corners and getting the two sides of doorway and window openings to match.  It was great to be given the opportunity, wonderful to have advice and guidance of a professional within the field and a proud moment to be told that my work was ‘superb’ by someone as exacting as Anaig.  

The week flew by, we never left the building site, dining in the adjacent barn or outside when it was fine, showering in a makeshift shower room with camping showers hoisted up by a pulley system and spending the evenings discussing our various projects and plans for the future.  

I’ll have to pop back again later in the year to see how work is progressing.  The site stops and starts as Anaig is still working on other projects to fund her build. 

what a beautiful setting

waiting for windows, doors, cladding and a roof

core render complete

straw walls before render

now that's a picture frame

some of the tools we used

panoramicos fantasticos

from overhead

Annoyingly, most of the video footage we took is too long (large) to upload onto blogger and I don't have the software to edit it down.  So here are a selection of arial photos that show most of what we saw.

from the west, the dots are fruit trees that I planted in November, including some within the huge bramble
patch, the paths really stand out.  Over the road, the new drive, veggie plot with raised beds to the right of the drive.
Huge oak tree still with bronze leaf cover and the village of Vieuzos off to the left in the distance.

from the east

from the south east

right overhead, that's Me and Tom on the left by the chalet, my new wooden panel pathway and a
big store of lovely clay under the tarp.

there you/we are

chartres in an hour

I stopped off at Chartres for a quick look and to stretch my legs.  Sporadic showers kept me on my toes as I explored the old town at lightening speed on my bicycle:

I must return for a better look round some day.

Lou Rider in summer

Pierre, my friend from skiing, has become caretaker to Lou Rider for the new owners.  They plan to use the chalet as a second home, rather for accommodating guests and will only be there from time to time.  They came to an agreement that Pierre could live there and look after the place in return for a peppercorn rent, he jumped at the suggestion and is now comfortably installed.  He called to say that a quantity of furniture was being disposed of and was I interested in rescuing anything before it headed to the skip.  Of course, was the answer, so I spent an enjoyable yet damp couple of days in my old winter haunt of Espiaube, amongst vibrant green, flower filled, alpine pastures, catching up with Pierre, hiking the abandoned ski resort and enjoying the peace and quiet of off season mountain life,  I filled the van with bunk beds, mattresses, a table and benches and various other useful items in exchange for strimming around the chalet and moving a few items of furniture inside.  We celebrated our new abodes with a curry feast, in true chalet style, and I left content that my links with Lou Rider are not yet over.

Lamastre

Another week has passed with no news from the Notaire, it must only mean that everything is going smoothly!!!!!  I tried to phone last Thursday, but it was a public holiday, forgot my phone on Friday and on Monday they are closed anyway, so I’ll give them a call tomorrow and find out what’s going on.

In the mean time, along with the continual work on the building site, I’ve had chance to explore Lamastre, the local market town a bit.  An old mining town from years ago, a bit grim and grey but pre most industrial action, so the coal was shipped out and the area is now quite and calm, the mines closed years ago.  It reminded me somewhat of Dartmouth, from the steep narrow streets lined with granite houses, though miles from the sea and rising on both sides of the valley.  It’s remote here, three quarters of an hour drive to the nearest large town of any note, so it’s similar to Dartmouth in that respect too.

Spotted an interesting fence, rather a fun idea that creates a bit of character to an otherwise bland back street.  

As time is moving on I am becoming increasingly anxious to get my garden planted before the summer gets underway.  A challenge, I know, being hundreds of miles away from a property that is not yet mine, but I’ve done a fair amount of seed sowing this last weekend in preparation.  My mad february purchase of thirty or so packets of seeds in Aldi one evening has come in handy at last, rows and rows of tiny plants are starting to appear from the compost, a mixture of vegetables and flowers, that’ll be ready to transplant within the next couple of weeks.  Hopefully they won’t get too large to untangle or too stretched by being planted so close together.  The whole thing is a bit of an experiment so we’ll just have to wait and see.  I keep reading my permaculture gardening book and have some interesting ideas to try out once things get going. Less work and more produce - can’t be such a bad thing to try.

mountain free

stunning sunset

if you park in the right place, the morning view can be amazing

blueberry bushes with their autumnal hues

time for reflection

sorry, can't remember,  but it's above Hautacam

madrid in a day

Madrid was two busses and a metro ride away.  By the time we got into the centre the temperature was already more than warm.  Joy’s thing was to stop and have a cappuchino ( I never checked how to spell one) and a cigarette whenever she needed to take stock of the day, so, on arrival that’s what we did.  Not having a guide book or even a map by then, we decided to wander through the streets and discover what we found.  Not a plan that would work in London, but within twenty minutes we’d stumbled into the main square, past a pasty shop selling the most delicious looking wares and found the main tourist office.  Equipped with touristic map we continued, checking out the shops and sights as we went.  I’m sure that all the tourist gifts are made in the same factory in China, I’ve seen the same things available on three continents, all minorly modified to be seemingly local.  I didn’t need anything but it never seems to stop a good browse.  A great shop with a window full of crisps, loose crisps in a huge container. I expect you could buy them by the sack load or individually depending on your immediate requirements.  We followed the map, cappuchino by cappuchino, taking in churches and bridges, buildings or architectural note, housing galleries and museums, bridges and views highlighted on the map.  We never found the pasty shop again so lunch was from a back street bakers, some interesting and tasty savory and sweet pastries eaten in a shady park below the cathedral. The temperature moderated our going in the afternoon, it was hot, and the botanic gardens a welcome calm after the busy streets and arcades of the city.  But we had to continue, by late afternoon we had had enough so we stopped and had a meal,  the spanish probably thought we were having lunch, but it was easily late enough to be an early dinner, it was still hot and there were still a metro and two bus rides back to the campsite.  Followed, at the other end by a longer than short walk through some dark woods to find the campsite and Percy again.  Madrid was great, a tidy, small capital city with beautiful buildings and a swanky upmarket feel, I liked it and would go back for another look, but definitely feel more at home in the more arty and relaxed Barcelona.

street art magic

choose your pasty here

impressive town hall

crisps by the kilo

cathedral, completed only twenty or so years ago

Joy posing outside a large and fancy building

neptune doing his stull in the middle of a roundabout

the calm of the botanic garden

vertical gardening in the city