(The picture above, is how I felt this morning)
Today’s ride on Komoot
Minus one this morning. Brrrr. Outside it looked really crisp, so I stayed in my room and had a leisurely bowl of muesli and coffee. It gets warmer fairly quickly so I didn’t have to wait too long. I find that if I start slowly, then I dawdle along until I leave. That was the case today but I was finally out the door at 10am.
I rode through the old town on the way out and it looked like the whole place had only just got going. It’s your usual beautiful, picturesque European town that I really appreciate. It would be easy to be blasè about them after a while, but they’re all different and they all have their own history.
Yesterday, I wandered around the old town and visited the Jewish quarter and the museum dedicated to Girona Jewish history. Then I did some work on the bike, hoping to solve my seat post squeak (Note from future self … I failed). I also checked spokes, wheels and tyres and pulled lots of small pieces of glass from the tyres. They had a few decent cuts in them too so I’m grateful that I’ve had no punctures in the last 6,000kms.
As I left the town area, I got a call from my brother, Paul – which proves the rule that when I’m running late, people call me. The only time pressure I had was the Salvador Dali Museum in Figueres was closing at 5pm and I wanted plenty of time to look around.
That’s why I was going to Figueres. Otherwise, I would have gone closer to the French border, but this has worked out very well. Tomorrow, I’ll have 60-70kms into Perpignan, France.
I’m ready to be in a country where they eat dinner at a normal time. I have to say, after riding all day, it’s frustrating that most eateries are closed when I’m hungry. It’s a first world problem and even then, it’s only a problem because I’m living it up and staying in hotels rather than camping during winter and not cooking my own meals.
Anyway, back to the ride … It took some time to escape the industrial area around Girona and then I was in some lovely farmland, rolling hills, forests, dirt roads, … the list goes on. It was bliss.
The only village I stopped in had a supermarket and a cafe / restaurant. I opted for the supermarket and a bowl of pasta from the deli section. To be honest, I’m sick of eating in cafes and having people prepare food for me. It’s too easy. I’m thankful that I can do it, but I’d rather have cheese on a bread roll beside the trail. I’ve got to get back into the rhythm of doing that.
The last part of the ride was spent on a generous shoulder of a fairly busy road, but there was so much space, the cars simply weren’t in play.
Figueres was surprisingly nice. I say that because I try to set my expectations very low and be happy about wherever I go.
I found the hotel – The Hotel Los Angeles which is reasonable l, nice and very central – parked the bike, got changed and went straight to the Dali Museum.
Wow… He designed everything here. He was born in Figueres, and spent years sorting out this space. It was one of my artistic highlights of Spain and there have been a few – the Guggenheim in Bilbao, Gaudi in Barcelona … I’m so glad I came here too. Until a few days ago, I didn’t know it existed.