June 16, 2004

Hi everybody!

As you all (Canadians that is) debate the debates, I wasn't even aware that they were going on...what are they debating for? Is there an election going on? It's nice sometimes to be blissfully unaware of what's going on in the rest of the world (please don't grill me too much for that comment). All I read now is my Lonely Planet Spain and the map that I'm using to get to my next destination.

Speaking of which, let me fill you in on what I've been up to the last few weeks. I wrote last from Salamanca I believe. After three nights there, I finally left, having sent another 3.5 kgs home, and thrown out about 1.5. My bike is finally reaching a manageable weight for climbing mountains, and contrary to what people say, Castilla y Leon and Extremadura (two 'provinces' of Spain) are not flat. The crossing into Extremadura was beautiful. I followed a valley between two mountain chains, snow-capped on the left, with the odd ancient fortified village on the crest of a hill. Soon though it flattened out into a slightly hilly flat plain, very hot and dry. I made the mistake of choosing the hottest day so far to have my longest day of riding...starting at 11 am. By 3 or 4 I was being cooked alive, and since Extremadura is a very sparsely populated region, water stops were not plentiful. Half of my water I drank and the other half I poured on my head and my shirt. Some might say riding that day was stupid, and I would have to agree. On the way to Caceres, the biker-friendly road I was using magically and unexpectedly turned itself into a major highway...with no way out! Apparently the road is being turned piece by piece into a high speed freeway. Unfortunately they failed to tell me that. The old road was still there, only blocked off with a fence and a dirt road and terminated in a roundabout! I removed my luggage from my bike, and lifted my bike over the fence to use it. Of course, I had to do the same when the piece of highway ended as well. Another example of weird Spanish road design. I made it to Caceres, albeit with a headache for the rest of the evening (from the heat), and found a cheap pension. Caceres has an incredibly unchanged and well-preserved old town, dating from the 10th to 14th centuries. Ancient towers and castles all concentrated into a very small area...very cool. That night I slept on the floor beside the window, the bed was too warm.

The next big town was Merida, a city full of beautiful Roman ruins, which I didn't see because they were all closed. It's a place that I'd go back to some day. There are tons of dutch people camping around there...in fact they're everywhere.

The next two nights were pretty uneventful, little whitewashed towns with confusing streets, and then I came into Andalucia, via a national park. There were tons of low-lying trees, and in the early morning sunlight with the mist still rising from the grass it was pretty neat. Castles are scattered about in that area as well. I saw my first orange trees: they use them as decorative plants down here! I was tempted to eat an orange, but heard they're inedible. This brings me to Seville.

After an average of 103 km per day, I finally arrived in Seville...An amazing city. Palm trees everywhere, flowers blooming all the time...it's got to be the nicest smelling city I've seen so far. The historical and nice city centre there is about the same size as the other 'big' cities I've been to so far. In Seville I saw three nice things: the arabic-influenced Cathedral, the fortress-palace Alcazar, and some extensive Roman ruins a bit outside the city. All three incredibly well-preserved. I met a bunch of Canadians and some British and Australians at the youth-hostal, with whom I visited all these things.

Three nights later I left, and while trying to leave the city realised that it is impossible by bike. There are only major highways. It was also getting quite late, around 11 am, so I gave up and decided to cheat! The bus from Seville to Malaga was very quick.

I had a bad experience with a restaurant owner on the beach soon after I arrived, so I decided to leave Malaga pretty quickly, and headed to a puny little train-station town north-west of the city called El Chorro. I finally got the chance to use the rock climbing gear that I've been lugging around this whole time! That place is heaven for outdoor sports people...mountain biking, climbing, hiking, swimming in small lakes, kite surfing...and all for the measly price of 7 euros a night (that is, 7 euros if you down mind camping in your tent on a campsite that tilts you off your mattress a few times per night), which includes the use of a pool, kitchen, table-tennis, laundry, stereo system. All the people there were really great as well. A place I will definitely return to some time.

After five relaxing days there, I made the short (50 km) journey back to Malaga, and hopped on another bus to Granada, where I am now, ready for another few days of city sight-seeing.

I hope everyone is great, and enjoying the summer so far. Let me know of any interesting things going on wherever you are!

Hasta luego,

Marc

PS: oh yeah, i forgot my 'thoughts of the day section':

The key to riding long distances:

- if you can, don't work too hard. The only problem is you can't get anywhere fast without working hard unless you've already worked very hard in the past, thus making working somewhat feel like you're not working hard...I think that could have been said more simply, but whatever.

On observing the wildlife of a region:

- The predominant wildlife in an area can often be judged by the kind of roadkill seen (sometimes in excruciating detail). In Castilla y Leon there were mostly hedgehogs and cats, while in Extremadura, large eagles and snakes.

On leaving a city that you really enjoyed:

It's often difficult to leave a city after you've enjoyed it a lot, especially if you've met some really nice people. You quickly forget how nice it is to be on the open road, and how satisfying it is to finish a tough climb, and tend to think only about the bad parts of cycling around, and how easy it is to live in a city.

On staying short times in each city:

There's never enough time in a given place to get to know the people you meet as much as you'd like to. There are too many people and too many things to see.

I wonder if you've made it this far in reading this email. If so, congratulations, and I guess I can count on you to read the next email, a couple of weeks down the road.