Moose on the Move!

For Chris' birthday last year we went to Wales. This year we decided to kill two birds with one stone; go somewhere nice for his birthday and visit our friends Mark and Sharon in Spain.

We spent three great days there. This was the first trip to Spain for either of us and we had a great time. We flew down on Friday night (3rd November) and were met at the airport by Mark and Sharon in their new car. They live about an hour north of Alicante (direct flight from Exeter).

The next day - Saturday - we headed a little further north to Valencia (think oranges) to explore the city a little. Despite stunning weather in the previous weeks the last couple of days in Spain had been rainy and we discovered that the rain in Spain falls heavily in the city and not, in fact, on the plain - although it might have been raining there too... So consistent was the downpour in fact that we were forced to cease sight-seeing activities for a time and hunt down an open shop selling umbrellas.

Valencia (Val-en-thi-ah) was a lovely city, we visited the old town and saw lots of tiles, we walked past the bullring and viewed the Arts and Science centres by night. These are a series of amazing new buildings. I have often associated Spain with interesting architecture and this row of buildings did not disappoint.
Very modern in their design and quite nautical they sit amid shallow pools of water. I'm sure on a clear blue-sky day the white looks stunning, as it was we visited on a cloudy night and they were equally impressive. The surrounding water creates the most wonderful reflections. Evidently this it the place to have your wedding photos taken in Valencia - we saw no less than nine separate couples there in the short time we were watched.

The next day we stayed closer to Javea where our friends live (It's pronounced Hav-ee-ah). It's a nice little coastal town with a pretty old-town area, a harbour area and the newer part where our friends live. Mark and Sharon suggested that we could start the day by climbing a nearby 'hill' know as Montgo. It's huge and would have been great to climb but the rain had made things a bit slippery so we walked to the base and watched the clouds scrape over the top of it and promised to come back and climb it when the sun was shining.

Instead we went to walk out to the Javea lighthouse. Then we went to have a look at the old town where we drove down some incredibly narrow streets and ended up in a pedestrian area by the church before getting ourselves locked in an underground carpark! Who knew there could be so much excitement in a little Spanish town? That night we went out to dinner with some of Sharon and Mark's new friends - after seeing how much alcohol was consumed before some of them jumped in their cars to drive home I have this advice for you should you visit Spain - walk on the shop side of the pavement.

Chris' birthday, Monday 6th, we stopped in Albir on our way back to Alicante and walked out to the lighthouse there. It was a gentle walk with some amazing views back over the town, bay and hills. I think Chris and I were both surprised at how barren this area of Spain is - the hills are sparsely covered and quite rocky. I'm not sure exactly what we had expected but it sure makes for dramatic landscape! We really enjoyed our visit and would like to go back sometime - perhaps in summer when the sun is shining. Luckily for us Mark and Sharon seem happy there and set to stay for a while.

The day after we got back into Exeter I started at Ladysmith Junior School, again. This was the same school I taught at for two weeks in September and I was back in the same Yr 5 class for another 6 weeks while the teacher was off. Scary and exciting at the same time? Definitely! I almost didn't make it though - our late night flight into Exeter was delayed leaving Alicante and was almost diverted to Manchester because of heavy fog. If this had happened we'd have been put on a bus for the five hour journey back to Devon - eeep!

A week and a half later, I went with Ben and Dayna on the annual pilgrimage into the city to see the Christmas lights get turned on. In a clever move this year they gathered the waiting hoards in the the right area - last year we all waited in the cold by the Cathedral while they switched the lights on in the High Street! It was nice to see so many smiling people out in the city - there was a fireworks display off the Debenhams building and long-legged fairies on hand to grant wishes to passers-by.


We'd had some lovely clear weather recently so Chris and I made the daring decision to get up before first light to go out to Dartmoor and take photographs of the sunrise. Luckily in winter the sun gets up quite late so we didn't have to get up too too early. It was a cold, drizzly morning - harumph! However, we did get to see some ponies feeding by the tor, they didn't hang around for us to get very close though. To our delight as the sun came up a little higher and the drizzle passed away we were rewarded with a beautiful rainbow coming down over Bell Tor. I guess we know where the pot o' gold is hidden now.


Towards the end of the month we got a lot of rain in Devon and the River Exe rose quite high. It was up over the footpath in many places and the weirs were rushing. The medieval bridge at the bottom of Fore street usually spans a grassy ditch but the saturated ground meant that for a few days there was actually water below the arches. The lights at night made for a stunning picture and Chris and I took several shots. We love this city!

The last morning of the month began with a most amazing sunrise over the Cathedral in the city. The colours were bold and stunning and I just had time on my way to school to stop and grab a couple of shots. It really lifted my spirits to see it. Sometimes I'm really pleased that I always carry the small camera in my bag!!