Week 110 of Gibraltar Diary

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Sunday 18th April 2010

We have left in such a rush that I have forgotten my razor and just about everything else too. But the miniature razor bought in W H Smith is pretty good ...

We leave Bordeaux with great regret - it is right up there with Prague and Paris. Just amazing.

Actually, I think this bridge may be in Spain ...

Finally, we arrive in Salamanca which is dire beyond imagining - think Salford only worse. This photo is extremely un-representative.

As we are leaving the town we spot a nice hotel and since we are very tired we decide to stop. It is extremely cheap but has no restaurant. The nice man explains that there is an excellent restaurant just around the corner. He shows us this with elaborate hand movements. Later we discover it is shut as today is Sunday. We tell him this and he makes elaborate signs of having forgotten.

When we come down stairs he is explaining to some new mugs, with elaborate hand movements, how there is a nice restaurant round the corner.

We set off over the bridge into the old town where we find somewhere to eat. It is all right but my lamb has so much salt on it you would think it was a road. Maybe this is where the expression "hold the grits" comes from?

Monday 19th April 2010

Finally, after almost 2,000 miles of driving we arrive in Gibraltar where the block of flats next to Aqa is growing like crazy.

Clearly, the UK air closure is ludicrous - there is a huge difference between sitting on a bonfire and having one a thousand yards away. Typical bureaucratic arse covering gone very badly wrong - you are gonna get sued guys - and lose your Knighthoods.

Tuesday 20th April 2010

Talking of big screw-ups, my front door pass had a hole in it when I was given it but the hole split so I tried to mend it with a flame from a match - which made it worse. I then decided to punch another hole in it which stopped it working completely. The new one cost £10.

A series of seemingly logical steps really can screw everything up. Darn.

Wednesday 21st April 2010

Some pretty girls come round to see us.

Thursday 22nd April 2010

A mystery ship far out in the bay - looks like a mobile drilling rig of some kind?

Friday 23rd April 2010

In the morning HMS Kent arrives - v  e  r  y   s  l  o  w  l  y.

The wealth of nations comes from concrete, not warships but it is hard to summon the same enthusiasm for concrete mixers and dumper trucks. Mind you, dumper trucks are great fun to drive but I still remember my first attempt - standing with horror on the brake while it jerked closer and closer to a parked car. The trick is to put it into neutral as you slow down but I didn't know that.

The other problem with dumper trucks is that they have rear steering so you can't just swerve away - if you do, your rear end will swing round and hit whatever it is that you are trying to avoid. And yes, I did hit it - v  e  r  y   s  l  o  w  l  y - which made it worse, in a way.

Saturday 24th April 2010

HMS Northumberland has been here for some days but is obscured by buildings so we go down to the waterside to get a better look.


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