25. Oct, 2021

25. Oct, 2021

25. Oct, 2021

MONDAY 25-10-21

Last night was the quietest night we've had here at Bonterra Park Resort due mainly to all the coughers, smokers, and insomniacs having left the site.

Again we were down the bathroom in good time. It would be lovely to have the odd lie-in but the trouble is we'd then be rubbing shoulders with all the maskless coughers, snorters, farters and sneezers............ whilst next door in the mens bathroom..........

There was a lot to be done today. My first task was to do a few bits of hand-washing as this is our last chance to do that sort of thing. Once sorted we set out to return our free hire bikes. What a great service that is to provide for visitors. We pushed them part of the way and rode them when we reached the cycleways because we deliberately left our cycle helmets behind, the reason being that having returned the bikes we were going for a nice walk along the beach. This is what we'll miss. The lovely blue sky, the blue sea and that lovely warm temperature. Memories of today will have to last us through the winter back home. I've put together a short video of us walking along the beach, so on a cold wet miserable day back home this winter you can sit and watch it and hopefully share that warm glow.

On our return The Chef set off ahead of me while I popped to see a couple who we've met the past two visits down here. They really are nice people and they come down here for the weather to help her husband's medical condition. We bumped in to them three days ago outside the campsite and they remember us leaving them sanitiser, masks etc the last time we were here before we legged it north to the French border as the effects of the pandemic became an issue in Spain.

Now my ears heard the word 'pink' when the wife was telling us how much she liked a product we'd left them, so much so that she uses it for a number of things. Today I took the rest of the 'pink' product we had onboard to offer it to them. It turns out it wasn't that, it was the 500ml bottle of clear sanitiser I'd given them as we'd left. I said I also had some of that if they wanted it, but she said they were fine because when they got home they found it online and have bought five litres of the stuff with them. I was pleased about that as the 'pink' product we carry is a urine neutraliser which I spray around the inside surfaces of the exterior toilet cassette compartment to clean it.

With perfect timing having been spending time chatting I arrived at the supermarket across the road just as the Chef was ready to leave with her shopping and two large bottles of water.

This afternoon was very frustrating as I was keen to make a start on our preparations for returning to the UK. First I had to book our 'Day 2' lateral flow tests with a company approved by the government. Not surprisingly of course, this being half term the cheapest companies offering the service had all sold out, so I just pitched it at a mid-range supplier which luckily had stock and I ordered two of them for a total of fifty pounds to be delivered to our home address, and in return got the reference numbers we needed to quote on our PLR form for the UK government.

Meanwhile today's Brittany Ferries email told us what we needed to have for our booking in at Santander. This included a printed copy of the Passenger Locator Form (PLR). So I sent them an email telling them that we were travelling in a motorhome, so how was I to produce a hard copy of the form. Very helpfully they bounced a reply back telling all us punters who contact them that they are very busy and hope to reply to us within the next ten days. Don't you feel so sorry for them?

Luckily, though not for my bank balance, just before we came away I bought an HP portable printer which works off mains electricity or its built-in battery for just such an event. I try not to remind myself that it cost me over two-hundred pounds. I wonder if I'll ever get to use it again after this trip.

Then we had to update our QR codes on the NHS app. Typically The Chef had a problem and in the end she had to use my laptop to get a file version which she emailed to me and I was able to print off, again they want hard copies.

The final part of the jigsaw falls in to place at the very last moment. The Passenger Locator Form has to be filled in within 48 hours of our arrival in the UK, so take away the twenty-seven hours of the ferry crossing that leaves just  twenty-one hours before we leave Spain, which is cutting it a bit fine. Thank the lord I blew over two hundred pounds on that printer.

After this afternoon all I can honestly say is that I hope that 'Mr Receiver' a couple of mornings ago down at the shower cubicles was a UK Civil Servant or politician, and 'Mr Giver' was using a rather large cactus plant.

We're almost ready for the road in the morning. We're going to be using the barbecue for the last time this evening to burn some chicken drumsticks and sausages which will be used for this evenings meal and meals along the way to the north coast. When we leave here tomorrow we will be totally independent until we board the ferry which will be something like four nights (with our luck at the moment I'm trying not to think about it).

We need to leave here in good time, as tomorrow we head north towards Barcelona then turn left for a little activity in the afternoon The Chef is up for, which surprised me as she's not keen on heights.

24. Oct, 2021

24. Oct, 2021