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"There's always a plan, but unexpected things happen and we just go with the flow. Though I do believe that fate and destiny often play their part"
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The city of Cartagena has been our home for over a week now. The place is perfect for an extended stopover if you like grand marbled boulevards, authentic Spanish architecture, great bars round every corner, not to mention a huge fresh fish market. Rick Stein would go into raptures if he saw it!. Oh, and the fashion shops are a bit tasty too, says Nicki ! There's fascinating history all around you as you wander through the city.....as I do most days. Cartagena has been a major port and trading centre since Phoenician times. It was also an important Roman city, as evidenced by the many archeological sites still being excavated. The spectacular Roman theatre below is a particularly good example of how they entertained themselves. Then you get all the military history going back to the times of Spanish galleons doing battle with such dignitaries as Sir Francis Drake and Lord Nelson. Indeed, Drake rocked up here one day and stole the entire arsenal of guns and shipped them all off to Jamaica, which more than miffed the local top brass. The old Arsenal buildings are still here, but today they are part of the huge modern naval complex just over the bay. You can see warships, submarines and all manner of naval hardware coming and going on a daily basis. Is there a war on nearby that I don't know about? In more recent times Cartagena was a major stronghold of resistance against General Franco in the Spanish Civil War. He bombed the place to buggary, but the locals waived two fingers at him by building a giant air raid shelter that housed thousands of people. It's yet another site that's been preserved for all to see. Finally, you've got a whole selection of different museums to choose from. So far, I've done the Ancient Maritime Museum (preserved parts of Phoenician/Roman ships, urns galore, coins, artefacts etc.), the Military Museum (guns, tanks, missiles, uniforms, strategic maps etc.) and the Naval Museum (models of every spanish ship ever built from way back, more guns, more bits of ships, more uniforms etc.). The weather forecast is telling us that next week could be rather windy, meaning there's every chance we'll stay a while longer. It would be impossible to get bored in a place like this, so we're not at all anxious to move on. We really love the vibrant atmosphere of the city and the marina is very pleasant. I've circled our mooring in the pic below - it's the shortest walk into town and very near the showers. As I write, the Spanish National Dinghy and Windsurfing Championships are being held here, so the place is full of young surf dudes looking very cool. Cartagena is definitely a velcro port and a good deal of will power will be needed to tear ourselves away. However, we have an important date with Mark and Angie (Cygnus III) in Puerto Denia in two weeks time. We plan to sail the not inconsiderable distance to Ibiza in convoy with them.......safety in numbers and all that !
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A FEW PICS OF COMINOClick a photo to enlarge and use side arrows to scroll through.
COMINO IS CURRENTLY HEREDID SOMEONE SAY SEAFOODOn our journey from Portugal to Greece we enjoyed amazing seafood almost everywhere we stopped. Finding the local fish market was always a priority because seafood was so plentiful and so reasonably priced. And, the displays were a feast for your eyes.
Locating a market sometimes meant pounding the pavements in searing heat, but if you kept your eyes peeled, you often came across a little clue. The pic below was a rather less than subtle advert for a fish market - it was eight feet tall.
Freshly cooked onboard, a plateful of giant prawns, baked in wine and garlic, washed down with a few glasses of local vino, was like heaven. Watching the sunset on the boat eating a meal like that was the epitome of "living the dream".
Now we're in Greece we've another favourite to savour. I'm talking about fried Calamari. It's usually good, but every now and then it's off-the-scale fantastic. At Natalie's Taverna on Kontokali Beach in Corfu, it was nothing short of epic.
We're based in Lefkas now and It's been a bit of a mission to find somewhere just as good. And we have. Rakias is a mere ten minute walk from the marina and this little fish market, with its very own taverna attached, is quite sensational.
Oh...and it's also worth mentioning that, on occasions, a bit of barbequed Octopus is on the menu at some of the tavernas we frequent. Can I resist....no. SUNSETS AND DRAMATIC SKIESNo filters, or any other monkey business, have been used to enhance these images.
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