LaManga, Spain
Published 21.Feb.08; backdated to dates of visit: 10.Feb.08
GPS coordinates of campground: 37.62806N 0.74589W
Note: if you find this post a bit cynical, recall we just came off a week of beach-front bliss. =)
Going off the recommendations of some Swedish folks we had met way back in Heidelberg, we arrived at Camping and Caravaning LaManga in pursuit of a great campground and warm weather. Apparently, we are bringing the Seattle gray along with us ... the weather was nice (60's F) but overcast, windy and threatening rain. This campground is huge - it's basically a rectangle 1 km long and has a bit of everything (playground, beach, church, supermarket...).
Lesson 1: Book ahead
I knew I should have a reservation. Alas, was too lazy or otherwise distracted to pursue one. Honestly folks, we have no schedule. We don't know where we'll be one minute from the next. We arrived to hear they had only one spot for us for a max of 3-days. Fine. I'll take it.
Lesson 2: Always point out the obvious
The receptionist had a birds eye view of our RV. She knew how big we are. I assumed she would assign us to an appropriate spot. Wrong. We were directed to a spot that is 80m(2) with hedges along the path to make turns really fun. I knew, looking at the map, that we were in for a fun ride. Well, I showed them! We fit. (If you can call all but mowing down a hedge and sticking out to the bitter edge of the pitch "fitting.")
To add insult to injury, we had quite the crowd watching us get in. All of them helpfully pointing out that we really needed a bigger pitch. "Isn't there something available in the "J" block?" they'd ask. Or, "You really shouldn't be in this block."
Lesson 3: Just because you're paying a premium, doesn't mean anything is close (or included)
To our chagrin, LaManga was about a 10km bike ride away. We thought we found it, but I think we really only found the main road for the peninsula. The majority of the stores and restuarants are closed for the winter. The peninsula is really just a 12km road running through the middle of the peninsula with condos and closed shops on the left and right. We finally gave up looking for lunch and stopped for snacks at the local grochery store. Trust me, it beat whatever it was they were dredging up out of the freezer and frying at the nearby "cafeteria."
Feeling defeated at our attempts to explore, we went looking for the "covered" pool at the campground. Luckily, I went by myself and didn't mention it to the kids. The campground charges an additional 4 EURO per person for the covered pool. AARRRGGGHHH.
Lesson 4: Mass transit in Spain works differently
Determined to have an adventure on this leg of the journey, we set out for Cartenga. I knew they had Roman ruins, but didn't know anything else about the city. (Taking Internet connectivity for granted again, are we?)
The bus stop was immediately outside the campground, but was defaced and had an entirely different schedule than what was available at reception. Adding to it, it was on the corner of a pretty busy highway. Here we are, being stared down by everyone driving by, a family of four, waiting for a bus that was 20-minutes late. It literally pulled up as we were about to give up.
Without incident, we were delivered to the "Estacion de Autobus" in Cartenga, which was all but deserted.
Lesson 5: Just Visit the Darn Tourist Office
Don't get me wrong, we had a nice afternoon. Cartenga IS quite a beautiful city, a mixture of old and new. But, we came to see Roman ruins. We saw them, we just didn't know how to get to them. We spent the afternoon wandering, admiring the architecture and the plazas in the city. We tested our sense of direction and tried to find the MediaMarkt that was supposed to be nearby (never did find it). We finally entered and experienced a Carrefour store (think Fred Meyer). Then, we gladly called it a day and headed home for RV-land. The only hic-cup was that we were supposed to buy tickets BEFORE getting on the bus (funny that, they sell tickets on the us at each stop). The driver finally took pity on us and let me pay for tickets at the bus - otherwise we would have been stuck at the bus station for another 1.5 hours.
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