Dalí is everywhere!

After having climbed the highest mountain in Andorra, Comapedrosa, and coming back smelling like a sheep, the plan was to keep driving on to Figueres that afternoon. About one hour into the drive the skies opened and visibility was suddenly reduced to around 30 meters. Which brought me down to around 30km/h. We had to go through a few tunnels and were hoping that it would be better on the other side. No such luck, quite the opposite. 

Javier had told us about a nice little town with a volcano crater, which was on the way to Figueres. So we decided to stop there, spend the night and see what the next day would bring. It didn't stop raining for another two hours after we arrived. By which time I was totally steamed up, because my human had cooked dinner. After having a nap. I told you, she was quite knackered. 

The weather was back to normal in the morning, meaning hot and sunny, after the fog had lifted. The crater is less than spectacular, really, but the view you get from up there is really nice. And then we were on our way to Figueres, Salvador Dalí's birth- and burialplace and city where he lived until his late teens, when he left to visit the School of Arts in Madrid.

The "Museo Teatro Dalí" is the main attraction in town and that's where we went first. Already from the outside it's a very curious building, with giant eggs perching on the roof and facade full of what looks like small heaps of poop. Just driving by I was confused.

See what I mean?

Inside, you can see some of Dalí's largest paintings, many smaller ones, interesting installations and some of the jewelry he designed as well. It's a shame there are no explanations to any of the pieces, nothing written next to them but the name, no audio guide. Would certainly help to understand the world one is walking around in.

This one is called "Self portrait with fried bacon"                                                            

Love this one!

After the museum my human walked around town a bit, had lunch, bought some fruit and vegetables at the local market and in the early afternoon we headed out of town towards Cadaques, which is said to be the most painted village in all of Spain. Must be nice, right?

He is just everywhere in this town

With this being his unspectacular birth place

But before that, the idea of a pool sounded even nicer! So that night, for the first time in a long while, we stayed on a campground. One with a very nice pool! At the check in we asked when we would have to leave the next morning. Usually that's around eleven or twelve. Whenever, it doesn't matter, was the very welcome answer.

The rest of the day my human spent at the pool and I was chilling in the shade of a tree, dosing a little. Until this disgusting bird shat all over my windscreen! And I mean all over! Not sure what that animal had eaten, but it obviously didn't sit well. Dude, that was gross! My human wasn't too excited either, when she got back in the evening.

A nice German couple had parked next to us by then and the next morning we spent a couple of hours sitting with them and having a nice chat about traveling, early retirement, caravans and bird poop. Then it was time for another swim in the pool, before we headed off to Cadaques.

What can I say, more serpentines! But the view you get when you come around the last bend? Pretty amazing, I won't lie! The "road" that led down to our parking spot for the night gave me the shivers. I'm not all that big, but I didn't have much fun. Not sure how the really big guys felt, which were parked down in that cove. They were still shivering too much to speak.

There is another Dalí Museum in Cadaques. This was his summer house where he spent a lot of his time with his wife. Many other famous painters and personalities were drawn to this litle fishing village, like Picasso and Miró. Unfortunately the museum was booked out for the next four days!

My human had reserved a table in a fancy restaurant called "Compartir" that night. Which means "to share". As happens with her when it comes to food, she didn't share but ate it all herself. All I got to see of it were a couple of photos. But to be fair, they were not exactly portions of sharing size. Rather of nibbling size. But, although she got out the cheese and pretzels when she got back, she was wildly enthusiastic and happy about her dining experience. 

I don't really fancy people who always take photos of their food, even if it's just something ordinary.

But I think, I can make an exception here.

In the morning she headed off for another little hike to the Cap de Creus, just some 7 km away. On the way she passed a few little coves and some beautiful anchorages for private boats. The views from the Cap are quite awesome, too, with Spain stretching out to the North and South for a long way.

After a quick dip in the ocean, we braved those streets again, the only way to get out of there, and headed for Gerona, some 80km away. Having read about a lot of car break ins on the App we use to find parking spots, we had decided to just stop over and head out of town to spend the night.

We parked at a large spot underneath a bridge not far from town. It was a rather tight fit and I wasn't really sure whether I would get out of there again. Neither was my human, apparently, because she was back after a couple of hours. She couldn't stop thinking about the break ins and the, literally, tight spot I was in.

So we didn't do Gerona justice, really. But it wasn't exactly love on first sight, either. So I guess that's OK. There are a couple of very old churches, the largest Jewish quarter in Spain and some very well preserved town walls. And bridges. Many bridges. One of the designed by Gustav Eiffel. Yes, the Eiffel Tower guy. I think, it's fair to say that the tower is of more significance that the bridge.

"Game of Thrones" fans would have  field day in Gerona. There are many filming locations in and around town. As for my human, she has never seen a single episode and tried the first book a couple of times but didn't get past the first 30 pages. 

The Eiffel bridge. not to be had without people

Just 15km out of town is where we found our parking spot for the night. We are next to a kind of ranch with cows, sheep, donkeys and what not. It being Saturday and what seems to be this village's entertainment center about 100 meters away, there has been something going on ever since we arrived.

First it seemed to be bingo, then a teeny disco, now an old folks dance night. I'm curious to see what comes next. It's only eleven o'clock, after all. In Spain that's like midday in Germany.