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Diapers & Detours
  • Marnie Elisabeth
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  • Marnie Elisabeth
  • Nickels

Diapers & Detours

Our first trip as parents.
The apartment is rented out for the next three to four months and we’re back in our home on wheels. Let’s see where those wheels will take us! Lue lisää
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  • Diapers & Detours
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    Meereen - or Peñíscola

    29. huhtik.–1. toukok., Espanja ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C

    Despite the fact that this town (regardless of English or German language) sounds really funny - it has more to offer than you might assume.
    Peñíscola is depicting the city of Meereen in Game of Thrones. It seems like it is built on a peninsula (oh, yes, maybe that’s where the name comes from?) and has a big fort in the middle. The fort and the city’s wall have the same stones and structure, whereas the houses around it look different.
    We arrived in the evening just south of Peñíscola at the entrance of a nature park and spent two beautiful nights at the sea.
    During the day we took our bikes (including the carriage for Jaro) and had a look around the old town. I think we’re (again) lucky to have seen all this during low season. ✨    Lue lisää

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    Tallat coffee
    Tallat coffee2Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciènces2Former Túria river, now a large park (Jardí seo Túria) around Valencia's old town1Puente de las FloresRoof the central market

    Valenciana, Valencia 🍊

    1.–4. toukok., Espanja ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

    Dear Valencia,
    You grew on us!
    We got an overnight stop recommended by fellow travellers where we arrived around midday. I’m not sure if it was the weather or the big city, but somehow I was a bit sceptic on how we’ll feel here or if it was safe to park the van and leave it all by itself.
    Turns out: great spot to stay for a couple of nights and Valencia is a very enjoyable city!

    All three days we’ve been in Valencia we did a bike tour and as far as we know Jaro likes it (at least no complaints and he even sleeps in his carriage).

    The first tour wasn’t laid out to be that long: we went to get coffee at the Tallat coffee roastery. It didn’t seem far - just the other end of the city’s beach - but it was about 4 km. From there we saw a park on the map that seemed to have bike routes. So we took one of them to go into the old town and check that out a bit. Then we made our way back home. 20 km check!
    The second tour was only to get into old town for our walking tour through the cities most popular ancient sites (7 km there and later back again). The walking tour was worth its time and we really learned a lot about Valencia*!
    The third day we (again) went to have coffee (same place as the first day) and then took a closer look at the Ciutat de les Arts i Ciencias, which turned out to be again about 14 km.
    Valencia has great bike paths and we loved exploring it that way!

    *things we remember from our walking tour through Valencia’s old town
    - the Túria river got redirected to protect the city from flooding ; the former riverbed turned into the park we rode our bikes through the first day (Jardi Túria) - we guess it’s about 10 km park with separate walking-, jogging- and biking lanes & nice fauna
    - Agua de Valencia is far from agua (it contains vodka, gin, cava and orange juice)
    - Paella originates from south of Valencia (see next footprint)
    - Valencia was one end of the Silk Road —> this made the city flourish until around 1492, when “the americas were discovered” and the economic focus shifted west
    - Romans were everywhere —> Valencia was a retirement place for Roman soldiers
    - the Cathedral was originally a Mosque from the Moores, then turned into a church when the city became Christian (the king who turned it catholic didn’t have the money to make it more of a Christian church which is why he looked for investors and all seven families who sponsored the redesign have a picture of themselves a window above one entrance)
    - Valnecias Mercat Central is the biggest indoor market of Europe
    - more than 300 days of sun per year (and most of the rain in October)
    - there are some wild festivities one of them is I think in March when everyone turnes crazy about a week of all-day-fireworks    Lue lisää

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    Albufera

    4. toukokuuta, Espanja ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    Not to be mistaken with “Albufeira” (in Portugal), we spent our day here.
    Albufera means “lagoon” and it is just a bike ride south of Valencia. Jaro and I went be car, Nickels by bike. It is one of the places to escape from the city, especially in Valencia’s summer. Therefore all these small towns seem quite dead at the moment. A bit like “half ghost towns”. Nonetheless it was nice to park within the dunes and enjoy this emptiness.

    Around the lagoon is also where the rice is grown for the Spanish families paella-dish, which is typically consumed on Sundays for lunch (a bit like the “Sunday roast”). Well, we had it on a Monday for lunch - and as we learned on our walking tour: we made a reservation and pre-ordered and shared our paella (you order a paella for the table, not as a single dish). One thing that wasn’t as original as it could get: our paella was with seasonal vegetables instead of rabbit and duck.    Lue lisää

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    2

    Elx (pronounced Él-che)

    4.–5. toukok., Espanja ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C

    What a surprise you’ve been! We only stopped here because it was on the way and we needed a spot to rest and sleep. Turns out Elx is quite a nice city! We went to have some delicious coffee (at the ”Otherside” cafe), where we met two people being super happy to hear some German (one was a language teacher, the other one just learning German).
    We got to know that Elx is #2 in “highest palm-tree-density within a city” (#1 is supposedly some Arabic city).
    Was a stop - better than expected!    Lue lisää

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    Granja La Carmela

    5.–7. toukok., Espanja ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    After stopping in Elx we went to a campground called Granja La Carmela. It is comparably small, within the mountains, lots of people from the Netherlands (it seemed as if there was some sort of “camper reunion” from some people stopping there every year) and so much mosaic pieces and painted stones (we forgot to take pictures) - very lovely!
    We stayed two nights, relaxed, went shopping at a market and got to know another family from Berlin traveling with their one-year-old. It seemed for both kids super exciting to have another baby / toddler around. 🥰    Lue lisää

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    Sea view overnight stop

    7.–8. toukok., Espanja ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    First, it rained. Then the sun came out and we loved it.

    I got a recommendation by a colleague to stop in Mojácar. The town itself is on a mountain, but spreads out down to the sea. It was beautiful to drive though and find a spot for us to a bit further south to spend the afternoon, night and morning.Lue lisää

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  • Diapers & Detours
    There were so many of these - it liked like a agave-forrest!
    There were so many of these - it liked like a agave-forrest!22Beginning of the "mar plastico"All the grey in the back is vegetable farms

    Another surprise

    8. toukokuuta, Espanja ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C

    And another recommendation! A friend of ours traveled around here just last year and told me “go to Cabo de Gata”. Little did I know it was a whole national park (I thought of it as a town on the sea - which it also is). So while driving towards the town along the coastline we stumbled upon the entry of this national park! I already found some interesting looking beaches on google maps before that I thought we might stop, but wasn’t aware of them being in the park.
    While driving there we took some back roads leading us through beautiful scenery, but also (as we got to know later) the first of many large vegetable fields. It sounds way more romantic that it is, because all of them are in, well, not growing houses, but some plastic-fabric-constructions to keep bugs out, maybe some humidity in. This area is also known as “mar de plastico” which says a lot I think.
    Seeing this makes me way more aware of where my capsicum comes from and how romanticised food production is. It also makes me value our own veggi garden even more.    Lue lisää

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    Just before the highest too accessible by car - only 10°C and windy

    Sierra Nevada

    10. toukokuuta, Espanja ⋅ ☁️ 5 °C

    For some reason I never think of mountains when hearing “Sierra Nevada”. I hope from now on I will remember; since this is the highest mountain range in Spain (just some meters above the altitude of the Pyrenees).
    We decided to take a detour from Cabo de Gata to Granada and took the scenic route.
    Hidden behind one of the first hills a valleys appears which is obviously part of the “mar del plastico”; so many vegetable farms! We got a little more curious to when we saw them last and got to know that most of them are actually small private farms making it look a lot more “patchy”. Many people work here during harvest season coming not only from Europe, but also Africa and Asia. Already yesterday driving through the first bit of farm land we wondered if there is enough water for all these plants and - surprise! - there is not. But this is a whole other story.
    Back to more natural scenery.
    It’s so astonishing: all those flowers in quite dry landscapes and then, just behind the other mountain it is lush green. All of this crowned in the background by snowy peaks of the Sierra Nevada. We drove through the Alpujarra, a picturesque region with a some pretty white towns, unfortunately known their smoked ham) to the highest point reachable by car - Jaros first time ever > 2.000 m above sea level. We were in the clouds!
    And although it is only a three hour drive it took us nearly a day. But! We went for a little hike eventually just at the end. There was some rain recently and some landslides, but we managed and it felt great to move after all this driving. Ending the day in Pampameira - a cute little town within the mountains - we were super happy we took this detour.    Lue lisää

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    Damn!

    10.–11. toukok., Espanja ⋅ ☁️ 14 °C

    We arrived late, stopped here and had a beautiful spot to wake up. Nick and Jaro went for a walk along the damn while I worked a bit. Then we made our way into the city of Granada.

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    No ugly street lamps in Spain!Was steeper than it looks

    Granada

    11.–13. toukok., Espanja ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    We like you!
    Granada seems to be a nice city we could spend so much more time in. We explored everything by foot as the city has quite some steep hills*. The first day we spent walking around the old town and then up the hill to the Alhambra. Since you have to have tickets weeks in advance we “only” walked through the parts available to the public; but I think that was just the right amount. We made our way back to the van and went to a nice overnight stop just north of Granada.
    The next day we decided to spend some more time here Nick and Jaro explored the old quarters of Albaicin and Sacromonte while I worked for a bit.
    Unfortunately (here comes the *) our beloved Cruise (🚐 ) had some trouble while parking im the morning (we’re still not 100 % sure what it was) and luckily he magically fixed himself while we were out to explore. And yes, we were super nervous the whole day. The street we parked in was super steep and all three of us were relieved once we got back to driving.    Lue lisää

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    Olive country

    13. toukokuuta, Espanja ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    The drive from Granada to Seville took us one day - we had a long lunch break in Estepa.

    Nick and I worked on a really big olive farm in Australia with around one million trees.
    It is a small farm compared to what’s going on between Granada and Seville. The whole time (roughly 250 km) we drove through olive groves. The whole time! And now you might think of flat land olive groves. Far from! It’s hills! So many uneven surfaces and quite steep. Not harvester-territory as we know it. I’d really love to come back and see what harvest season looks like over here.

    PS although it looks more beautiful than the “mar deal plastico” with its vegetable farms, it is a huge monoculture with olive trees.    Lue lisää

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    2Café: Banana Coffee and brunch
    2Café: Banana Coffee and brunch4Seven months 💕

    Relax.

    13.–15. toukok., Espanja ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    A nice free camper area to relax and re-organise. We stayed here two nights. The day in between we had breakfast in a town close by (which we liked that much that we came back the next day) and do nothing! Just spending the day “at home”, in our van. 🤗Lue lisää

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    2Churros Sevilla Style

    Ze-Villans

    15.–16. toukok., Espanja ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

    Okay, dad joke incoming. But “Sevillans” (meaning people living in Seville) if pronounced in a very German way sounds like “ze vilians” aka “the villains”. I laughed a lot about it. The people here are very nice though!
    We parked quite central that day and did a bike tour just along the old cities walls and along the river. Once we had enough we parked the bikes and walked a long those narrow streets of the old town. And again - marvellous! It is so pretty.
    I have been here (as well as in Granada) before and I have seriously only very little memory of that trip. To bad! It’s all so beautiful. We enjoyed this day in Seville and did our best in trying every typical Spanish food we haven’t had yet: Empanadas & Churros were on top of that list! And we found some. Eating your way through a town is definitely a way I enjoy while exploring. ✨    Lue lisää

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    The saltA region where flamingos live 🦩

    Óla Portugal 🇵🇹

    16. toukokuuta, Portugali ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    Our first stop in Portugal was Cabanas de Tavira.
    We found a spot right at the promenade and of course, went for a stroll through town. Cute!
    Since our next stop was supposed to be Tavira I said something like „so cool if one of us could bike or walk there“. And Nick said „well, you could!?“
    So we checked the route options and found out the Euro Velo 1 passes by and connects not only these two villages, but you could follow it right along the coast to the North of Portugal.
    Having Jaro in the carriage I walked those three kilometres to Tavira through some salt lakes (beautiful scenery again!) and Nick got the van. 🚐    Lue lisää

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    Wild Flamingos

    Tavira

    16.–18. toukok., Portugali ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    My friends in-laws recommend to go to Tavira, since it is not as touristic as most of the Algarves other cities. We were curious to see.
    I walked there from the neighbouring village and luckily the camp spot (motor home park) was on this side of the town. Tavira is quite small so we could ride our bikes into town.

    Since arriving in Portugal the density of German people on vacation grew immensely. Here, in Tavira, the density of families with a young baby seemed to be similarly high.
    We found some nice cafes and it is really beautiful to wander around here. You could take the boat to the outer beaches (we didn’t, but I’d recommend it if you’re here) or bike to the next town.
    Before leaving we took a small detour driving though the salt lakes to the beach - to see if the first flamingos have arrived (we heard that). And they did! We found some! They’re still quite white but I was happy we’ve seen them. Plus it was a really nice drive that ended up at a small beach and Nick went for a swim.    Lue lisää

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    What you can't see: we're surrounded by storch-familiesNot a bad view from the vanMarnie took the skateboard for a ride

    Jaro in Faro

    18.–20. toukok., Portugali ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    Faro is the city you usually fly to when visiting the Algarve. The city itself is a nice town with - exactly - some nice cafes, restaurants and shops within the old town, but we preferred to spend the day at the beach. There were some spots where you could stay and see the beach and sea from the van which is always a plus when traveling with a baby and being in constant search of shade. But it was still street parking and cars would pass by.
    Nevertheless we enjoyed our stay here. 🏖️

    Within the town of Faro we were at a wine shop (that also had non-alcoholic wine) and is just next to one of the many stork-nesting-places. What we didn’t know is we were just entering the stork-territory and I’ve never seen this many of them at once in my life.    Lue lisää

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    2View from the cliffs

    Praia dos Tomates

    20.–21. toukok., Portugali ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    Something this region is know for are the cliffs leading to the beaches. This beach does not only have a huge really nice parking lot (yes, we’re thinking in nice parking lots here), but also cliffs and access to the ocean.
    We had a beautiful afternoon at the beach and spent the night. The camp spot was so nice that we could have stayed longer (right on the beach, not too crowded, vans in different sizes and colours and families with kids running around and free of charge) but the next morning it was quite windy so we decided to leave.
    We hiked a little along the beach and the cliffs and then continued on to our next destination.    Lue lisää

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    Marnie struggling with the steep streets of Silves
    Marnie struggling with the steep streets of SilvesCastelo de Silves

    Granada of Portugal

    21.–24. toukok., Portugali ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Silves - a really small, maybe forgotten town in the Algarves hinterland. It’s cute, has a nice castle and everything is within a walkable distance. Since there are many river beds around it is perfect breeding territory for storks. There are SO MANY STORKS! They’re breeding on every roof and fly in circles like birds of prey (aren’t they in a way?).

    But why Granada of Portugal?
    Back around the Middle Ages Silves used to be as important as Granada; a cultural centre and capital of Al-Gharb, the moorish region (where probably the word “Algarve” comes from). Due to many wars it’s lost its cultural importance and is now a little less touristy and way smaller then Granada.

    We spend two night just outside Silves on an orange farm (no, it’s not orange season anymore), did a bit of a clean up + laundry and checked out Silves, and Marniah beach. All worth a visit! It was super hot ans we were happy the farm had a functional community space.    Lue lisää

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    Lagos

    24. toukokuuta, Portugali ⋅ ☀️ 33 °C

    If I’d ever just come here to visit the region, Lagos is a great place to stay. It’s quite central, there are super nice cafes and restaurants, a nice old town and access to beaches and boat tours. We enjoyed spending the day here.Lue lisää

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    Burgau

    24.–25. toukok., Portugali ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    Perfect little town with quite an Aussie (Australian) surfer vibe. We spend the day at the beach looking at the ocean and the people surfing, walked along cliffs and had one of the best coffees in Portugal so far at horizons4lovers. Plus they also had really delicious pizza there and an ocean view. We’ll come back!Lue lisää

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    Praia de Monte Clérigo
    Praia de Monte Clérigo

    Aljezur - Surfers paradise

    25.–27. toukok., Portugali ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    We spent two nights on a spot just outside Aljezur.

    Due to strong winds surfing was not an option for us and we had to make new plans.
    One day we checked out some other beaches (Monte Clerigo and Amorea), went to one café (KOYO) in Aljezur (both recommended) and spend the evening with another lovely family who is also traveling on their parental leave. It was so wonderful to see both kids interact and play with each other. 💕
    Jaro had the chance to play with some water in a bath tub and he seemed to enjoy it so much!
    Well, and the other day we traveled to our next destination, but will be back here in a couple of days. ;)    Lue lisää

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