Heat

Another hot day ... after breakfast and a chat with our friendly host Carmen, we passed by the garden of the town hall to look at the Mediterranean tortoises enjoying the hot sun. There was a pile of very cute babies (well ... two-year-olds) about 10 cm long, sunning themselves in the corner of the enclosure, as well as some more serious looking adults.

We'd decided to take the scenic route home, over the Col de Banyuls (one of the routes used by refugees in 1939). Our host Narcis had confirmed that the road is tarmacked all the way, with only one small section of flood damage. However, by not looking at the map carefully enough we found ourselves back on the rocky road to Sant Quirze. Hmm, some mistake here. We retraced our steps wheels back to Espolla where we had managed to miss perfectly obvious road signs pointing to the Col, just yards from where we'd parked.

It is indeed a very well maintained road on the Spanish side; it has clearly been used in a stage of the Vuelta in the recent past. At the top of the pass, mountain bikers were resting in the 30-degree heat and I found a swallowtail feeding on thistles. See the view from the pass in the extra photo. There's a tiny whitewashed refuge for walkers there, which S duly checked out; it was remarkably well appointed and non-vandalised given its situation. On the outside a plaque commemorates a local man tortured and killed by the Guardia Civil in ... 1978, three years after Franco's death. Even after the arrival of democracy, some old habits in the face of dissent persisted.

The state of the road on the French side was in stark contrast. The surface had been washed away by floods in one section, but even the rest of it was narrow and potholed. Still, we made it to Banyuls, where we had lunch in the form of a giant and very good ice cream each, eaten sitting on a bench watching the world go by; we didn't want a real lunch since we were invited out this evening.

Continuing the failed tourist theme, we then did a detour via Elne, where everything was of course closed because it was lunchtime. So we looked briefly at the outside of the cathedral before the extreme heat drove us back to the car and home rather earlier than intended. Maybe we need a bit more practice at holidays.

Back home, and a pleasant evening chez A and B, who fed us a lovely meal featuring a lamb and pomegranate tajine, most welcome after our gastronomic experiences of the last couple of days ...