Chris comes out to play...

My brother came out to visit this week, a brief jaunt to celebrate a final few days of freedom before his new job begins! He wanted to see some "cool mountains" so we headed up to Montsant and scrambled up to Les Barrots, a wide but exposed ledge which runs across the whole cliff...

On the ledge up at Montsant (Barrots) 

Nice views :-)

Relaxing with a beer at the Siurana Refuge

We stayed a bit closer to home on the second day, and scaled our local "cool mountain" El Molar before the obligatory trip to the "hanging church". Our area is renowned for its wind, and it was out in full force today! The numerous wind turbines that grace the mountains around us are not just there to look pretty...

Admiring the majestic wind turbines on the way up to El Molar. Chris tries to pretend they aren't there.

The path becomes a little rocky, Chris now taking in the beauty of the wind turbines 

Hace muchissimo viento! A very window summit plateau...

Signing the visitor's book 

Taking shelter in the ruins of a hill fort 

A big scary monster tries to invade the fort!  

More lovely wind turbines from the fort. 

A lovely spot for alfresco dining if it wasn't so damn windy!

The "hanging church" a classic local monument which still impresses me despite numerous visits :-) 

Food glorious food

Although we're in the middle of a cold snap (we've actually had some flakes of snow in addition to freezing temperatures over the last week!) the trees around us have been groaning under the weight of all the oranges and lemons which no-one seems bothered about picking. So we've helped out by picking a few - waste not want not!

We've also now got access to BBC iplayer and are completely hooked on masterchef! This has inspired Ali to get into the kitchen, some results of which are below...mmm! Hopefully his enthusiasm for baking won't be a "flash in the pan!"

Vitamin C!

 

Perfect moist & tangy lemon drizzle cake

A monster quiche lorraine - pastry made from scratch and no soggy bottom!

We almost had roast pigeon...but somehow he survived and flew away!

The leisurely start to the year continues...

This week has continued to be fairly sedate, with less climbing than normal! Nevertheless, we had a nice day up at Montsant last weekend checking out "El Camell" which, while not being a classic sector we'll be rushing back to, offered some lovely views of the sea to one side and the snow-capped Pyrenees on the other!

Ermita de la Mare de Deu, above Albarca, with the Pyrenees behind.

Ulldemolins village, again with the Pyrenees in view across the Lleida plains.

We also had a morning at Mont Ral, where in between climbs we were kept company by this little chap. Unbelievably tame and happily posing for photos!

On Saturday morning we woke up to grey skies and it looked grim over the mountains :-( Not psyched for a day in the drizzle, we shelved our climbing plans in favour of tea, honeymoon planning and local bimbling - God knows how we'd cope in the UK these days now we're such fair weather climbers!

By late afternoon it had cleared up nicely and we went up to Castell d'Escornalbou, a short drive from the house. And on the way back 'acquired' some more free oranges and lemons - the trees are groaning under the weight of them at the moment so it'd be rude not to help pick them!

Castell d'Escornalbou - you can see our flat down on the plain if you look very carefully!

The first tentative steps away from the sofa...

It’s been pretty quiet since we came back from Jordan, with this week mostly devoted to chores, catching up on sleep and fighting off a pesky cold (don’t you just love January?!).

But today we decided to prise ourselves away from the sofa and kettle and get some fresh air. It was a gloriously sunny day after all! So we headed up to Llaberia for some exploration, we’d heard about some climbing being developed here and it’s a lovely place to walk.



Lots of new climbs for us to try!

The sleepy village of Llaberia - not another person in sight!

A stop to admire the views on the way home, overlooking Pratdip and out to sea

Pratdip in the evening light

We also collected some free medicine for our cold from the tree around the corner from our house!

Jordan - Petra

It was pictures of Petra in the National Geographic that first prompted our interest in Jordan, and it was as spectacular as it looked in the magazine! It was definitely the most extravagant part of the trip, as the tickets were pretty pricey but we spent two days here to get our money's worth. There was so much to explore, enjoying sunrise and sunset for the best colours on the sandstone and the scale of the site, a maze of tombs, houses and caves carved into the rock, has to be seen to be believed. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves!



The Grand temple.



More modern use for the Nabataean caves!



Toilet block in Petra!

'The Monastery' - second most famous building in Petra and well worth the walk up.

Overlooking the 'Monastery' - wondering where all the crowds are!

The Royal tombs (from L-R the Palace, Corinthian, Silk, and Urn tombs)

Not known as the red-rose city for nothing!

Making a friend at the Silk tomb.

Palace tomb

Palace tomb again

Pottery stall at the Urn tomb.

Columns at the Urn tomb.

Lanky shadows at the end of the day inside the Urn tomb.

Dinner after a long day exploring. Rice, falafel and the best kebabs in town.

The Siq - pretty spectacular entrance to Petra!

Trying to recreate the National Geographic photo at the 'Treasury'

Alone at the 'Treasury' - it pays to get up early!

The theatre - seating painstakingly carved out of the rock!

The 'Treasury' facade.

A bit busier now.

The 'Street of Facades'

Amazing rock houses - some with two or three storeys!

Renaissance tomb in Wadi Farasa

Sunset over the royal tombs after another long day of exploration.

Moon rising over the Obelisk tomb on the long uphill walk out from Petra.

Proof that the trip's over...back to reality via a night in Gatwick airport and connecting flight to Spain.