How old?

Sunday 18th November 2018 - Almeria.

We found a lovely place to stay for the night.....on the end of the harbour wall at Almeria.

We do have to pay a parking fee of 6 euros for 24 hours but that's not too bad.  There were a couple of cruise ships in the harbour and in the photo you can see some of the Moorish Alcazaba fortress in the background.  The van doesn't look too bad as I gave it a bit of a wash yesterday.

Some rain had been forecast for today and tomorrow but it has only just started as I write the blog, around 4.30pm but didn't last long.  So, we have managed a good day walking around the city.

The main highlights of the city are the Cathedral and the Alcazaba.  

The Cathedral is built a bit like a fort, with thick walls and a height that isn't conspicuous above other buildings around.  This was to avoid a bombardment from the sea.  There was a charge to enter but we felt that it might be worth the 5 euro fee.  I was pleased the lady on the desk had made a mistake as she had given me a euro change from the 10 euro note I gave her.......however.....

I later felt insulted, when I checked the receipt.  We had been charged as Seniors, 65 years and over!!  Janice has an excuse that she was away from the desk when I paid, I'm sure she would have had to pay full rate.  I am going to have to be more conscientious about moisturising in future.  I think this is the first (and hopefully the last) time that this has happened.  Anyway, I am not taking the euro back.  I think I will apply for my free bus pass when I get home if I look that old!  

The Cathedral was very lovely and it gave me a good church fix.

The Alcazaba was free to enter.  Janice said it might just be free for over 65's, but I am sure it is free for everyone.  It is a large hilltop fort built by the Moors dating back to 995AD as Almeria was an important port for the Caliphate of Córdoba.

If anything, we felt it had been over restored and sanitised, as it gave no impression of how people lived or of the history of the place.  You will be surprised to know it was restored with EU money.

The city was pretty quiet as it was a Sunday afternoon but a few of the bars and cafes were open.  We treated ourselves in a tea shop.  

We had one of the cakes on the top shelf, on the middle.  I don't know what they were called but they were only 50 cents each.  The tea shop was pretty posh.  I thought about trying to explain that I had been to Betty's at Harrogate and see if they knew of the place but thought the chances were slim.  They played some stirring music in the cafe, including the March of the Torreodores and Land of Hope and Glory (maybe they want the UK to stay in Europe and we're giving us a subliminal message by playing a patriotic English song).  Then it was back to the harbour for our night in.

The first of the cruise ships came right past us and later the second....

All very exciting.  Many locals came out to watch them go past.  It coincided with a lightening display out at sea.