Overland with Kids

We’ve been away to Tarragona in Spain and are not long back. Unfortunately, we didn’t get a chance to bring CSW due to time limits (didn’t want to rush and end up just driving for the sake of driving) and also because the CSW is a bit poorly (can’t get above 55mph) and it’s in desperate need of a service.  Every time we find time to go and have a look at vehicle ourselves (our effort at trying to familiarise ourselves with the vehicle and diagnose and possibly remedy the issue ourselves), it is pouring with rain here, in the UK. We’ll get there in the end as in no real rush at present.

Re: Tarragona - we did manage to do a tiny bit of of reconnaissance while we were there, such as, places to stay, weather effects on children & travelling, importance of first aid, familiar toys, driving on the right hand side of the road, driving at night, clothing, language and annoying habits of being together for some 21.5+ years and the important reminders of being able to ‘get along’!!! especially when cocooned for long periods together without any escape!!! Will add anything useful to the Hints & Tips section but here goes meantime:

Places to Stay

We stayed in an incredibly old,  tiny Spanish only speaking church village called la Torre de Fontaubella within Tarragona province about 30 minutes away from Reus airport which, apart from a couple of ex-pats in the mix, is devoid of any tourists excepting other Spanish holiday makers who have holiday homes there or who grew up there and return annually to visit family.  The village is like stepping back in time -’wild-west’ almost, especially the route there from the airport which brought huge smiles to our faces.  The area is very mountainous and very popular for walkers and hikers who are spoilt for choice with several challenging steep rugged routes and directions - and could not be more different or diverse from the grid system, rich buildings and Gaudi culture that Barcelona, approximately 1.5 hours away, has to offer.  En route, you begin to see many wind farms dotted high up in the mountains. The mountains are lush with years old stone terraces everywhere containing olive and almond trees, many left to go wild and entwined together with the more refined and plentiful black grape vines continually cultivated. Every so often during our stay we would see huge fortress like water butts used to gather the rain water for crops in places and the mountains would often change dramatically from black rock to red rock to almost sand-like texture depending on the route we took. Fountaubella village can only be accessed through another village en-route and you will not find it by accident - instead you would need to seek it out. Both the villages buildings, some tall narrow tenement types, look very old and some very dilapidated in places but you soon become accustomed to the fact that this is not the case - there are in fact some new buildings, some traditionally restored buildings and some lovingly patched up and you need to train your eye and acclimatise to the environment and textures and take time to breath these in.  The area is dry and arid yet rich with all kinds of trees and wild hawthorns. In the village, you will find unexpectedly clumps of rich plants lovingly tended like roses and passion fruit flowers draping over makeshift gardens. Looking at some old black and white photographs you can see how poor and isolated the villages once were to what appears quite a rich and refined state in comparison today. Each of the two villages has a huge church at it’s heart. We passed a  railway station on the way through both villages that looked so desolate and isolated, it was as if no-one has visited or used it since the Spanish Civil War period. It reminded us of John Wayne and cowboys and Indians type films of old except, here it would have been fights between the Moors and the Christians. We are told that the train station is still operational and in fact, a rail trip through the area is a real experience even for those that live and work in the area.  During car trips or walks through the mountains ourselves, we often saw what looked like agricultural trains steaming through the mountains to an unknown destination - a feeling like stepping back in time. Fountaubella is set in a valley surrounded by mountains and overlooked by the de rigeur wind farm behind it (each windmill looks smaller and and not as forbidding as the ones in the UK - maybe because these ones are set so high up in the mountains) and just adds to the village’s attractiveness and appeal. You can climb to view the windmills and the beauty of the surrounding area. The windmills can be seen from all directions and they become a map-point or milestone to mark the way home from a trip out of the village for the day.  The area is rich in the history of the Spanish Civil War and the bloody Battle of the River Ebro.  Since returning to the UK and performing further research of our future route plan through Spain, we have discovered that Tarragona the capital city of the province is in fact a UNESCO listed World Heritage City site - unfortunately, we didn’t know this or get the chance this time to visit.  Back to Fontaubella - the area is about half an hour from the beach (Mont Roig) which is really sandy, calm, clean and perfect for families and is accessed from where we stayed through really rugged, tarmac steep winding roads - often dropping to single lane (we tried to envisage excitedly how we will manage a re-visit with the CSW and Jurgens in tow). Within the village itself is one tiny shop which is open for only 2 hours a day for certain days of the week - you need to place special orders for e.g. meat to be brought in; there is a local bar mainly for the residents (always quite empty) which sells beer, spirits, coffee and children’s sweets; The centre piece of activity within the village is the extremely popular and excellently maintained communal private pool owned and run by the villagers themselves. Each member resident is allowed to bring up to 5 guests to the pool so we kindly accommodated this rule by accompanying Andrew’s sister and her boyfriend who have lived in Spain (Barcelona) for some 20 years (they have had a second home in this village for 5 years where we stayed). We could go along to the pool each day as long as the member (Andrew’s sister) was present.  There is a campsite area there with barbecue facilities - excellent as a picnic stop point for walkers, hikers, workers or visitors like ourselves passing through. We were told that the villagers do not like to advertise the campsite area (a patch of not easily accessible grass anyway, for vehicles) for fear we think of uncouth sorts being attracted and also due to wanting retain some aloofness within the village though we may be wrong.  We need to seek further information regarding the campsite and will enquire about this later if we need - also - as isolated - we’d be better off staying in more mature, secure, accessible and purpose campsites in the area.

Around the Mont-Roig area we discovered a Monastery set high up in the mountains where you can also stay the night. Well worth a visit and the views are spectacular.  The Monastery is built on red rock there are lots of cave like crevices the children loved exploring and climbing into and they also provided excellent respite from the searing hot sun. 

To the west of Salou, we discovered the fishing port Cambrils with excellent beaches, restaurants and shops. We thought this madean excellent area for a family travelling to base themselves from or nearby, especially as a change from the quietness and solitude of the mountains - a welcome change with something for everyone. It has a beautiful port, a pebble beach where you can snorkel and see some pretty fish, great restaurants (excellent fish restaurants) and ice cream. In the centre is a very pretty park. PortAventura - a theme park is about 10km away and there are cycle routes available as well as a campsite we are pretty sure, nearby. For something more inland, we visited Falset town, the nearest major town to where we were staying in Fontaubella and bought some quality olive oil from a specialist shop to take home. 

It has been 6 years since we last visited Spain, where we had stayed in Vilanova i la Getru (about 30 mins by Renfe (train) from Barcelona) and this trip really whetted our appetite further for a subsequent more detailed visit of Spain which we are now busily researching and listing sites, areas and provinces -  with renewed enthusiasm, in preparation for our next visit there.

Weather effects on children & travelling

This is the bit where we get to a place, it’s really hot, dry and sunny and the children just want to be children - ie play out, get to meet other children, play in the communal swimming pool owned and managed by the locals there and just ‘chill’. The adults (us) however, drag their children away in the car in a bid for discovery - along windy roads to varying other small villages in the mountains of Tarragona to find e.g. a restaurant to eat but which is closed without explanation when should be open - until we eventually find one 4 villages later! Between each attempt, we got to enjoy the sights, parked the car, made the children get out and walk about etc. but the weather was really hot and having run out of drinks - the children well and truly wilted! Worked out OK and wasn’t actually that bad an experience but it just put us in mind of the need to amplify the need to allow good time between planning events like these so the children’s feet touch the ground properly and they are not simply being dragged about the place unnecessarily. In our case, the beach was promised and promptly delivered following our afternoon restaurant visit.

First Aid

We packed last minute a small pack of plasters, antiseptic cream & wipes and also tape and bandage. The pack came with us every where and the wipes and plasters were very well used. We had no major disasters but this trip brought home the important reminder to us to ensure we are properly trained in first aid and adventure medicine (both of us adults) and that we have the right kit for the right circumstances always, to hand.

Familiar Toys

We did bring Nintendo DS Lites which were great and a couple of books but had we stayed or being travelling for the longer term felt that some ’scary skeleton warriors’, ’soldiers’ and ‘cars’ etc. would have been an added benefit for our son particularly who is a real ‘home boy’. We think not only a ’special’ toy but a ‘personal’ box for young children, such as ours, essential for any ‘big’ or long duration trips.

Driving on the Right side of the Road and Night Driving

We didn’t do any driving and left this to Andrew’s sister while we were there - not because we didn’t have the opportunity - more because we were just being lazy in our holiday mode. Being in the car however provided ample reminders of preparing ourselves for foreign travel requirements generally and any paperwork required - particularly night driving along unlit, winding and unfamiliar roads/areas - advice is avoid if possible and do any driving during main daylight hours - early as possible allowing plenty time to settle camp at new destination.

Clothing

We brought 5 days clothing including what we were wearing. This included one pair of trainers, one pair of sandals, one warm pullover/cardigan and one pair of jeans each plus a couple of extra t-shirts. The rest being practical shorts or 3/4 trousers, swimgear, sun hat each, sunglasses, suncream and underwear. Plus a lightweight rainjacket each for the children.  Also socks! as our little boy is a sock monster and loves the routine of wearing socks - he was a real ‘tourist’ giveaway.  We tried in vain with many sock bare and foot naked persuasions, without success. We also brought  2 pairs pyjamas for the children.  We decided on return that this clothing kit will be almost perfect for the big trip - didn’t take much room (excl. towels) and in fact we could comfortably refine this further if needed as we know we can buy stuff en-route when we need to.

Languages

As part of our education program - phrase books and preparation for the children a must, which we feel we can do as we enter each country - will be more real and use-able and unlikely to be forgotten. We will all benefit. Thoughts are that we could build an ‘essential’ phrases dossier e.g. how to count to ten, how to say hello, thank you etc. just as or just prior to entering each country.

Annoying ‘marriage’ habits

We have been together since teenagers and married for some years but every now and then we get agitated with each other. Being together on holiday accentuates each others bad habits (such as, snoring loudly after a bout of unplanned alcohol and having to be evicted from the ‘marital’ bed, or not cutting unacceptably long toe nails etc.). Anyway, these minor irritations just add to the reminder list of love and communication and how important it is to be able to ‘get along’ together and ensure our relationship bank is full of positive and healthy attitudes and actions. We do not get much time together alone at the best of times due to the nature of having children and full-time jobs so when we do get the opportunity, there can sometimes be fireworks. The message being to others (and ourselves!) of how important it is to at least ‘like’ you travel companion, if not ‘love’ if you are married or in a serious partnership of some kind. It is important that you are able to share and distribute roles & responsibilities as well as your likes, dislikes and any concerns etc. clearly and be able to have fun, time and laugh together - all these and more are needed as part of any big trip!

Diary (Blog)
Europe