Well I have arrived and I have done a bit of walking.
Apart from my Lidl experience it has been a good day.
I got to Tarifa in really good time. Straight of the plane, my rucksack was the third item on the conveyor, and then down the road and onto a bus to Tarifa. Absolutely perfect day, clear sky but a breeze which kept it was nice and fresh.
The final thing that struck me is just how close Tarifa is to Africa. Tarifa is the point along the coast where the Mediterranean ends and Atlantic begins but with everything so green at the moment it could be a large Scottish loch rather than a sea crossing. Looking back to Tarifa, across the huge beach, the mountains you see behind the town are in Africa.
Apart from my Lidl experience it has been a good day.
I got to Tarifa in really good time. Straight of the plane, my rucksack was the third item on the conveyor, and then down the road and onto a bus to Tarifa. Absolutely perfect day, clear sky but a breeze which kept it was nice and fresh.
What I didn't know is that today is Andalucia day, a bank holiday, and all the shops are shut. Because I didn't know, I went on a wild goose chase following signs to Lidl. The signs were confusing and when after about a hour I eventually found myself in the Lidl car park I was the only one there. Thought it was something to do with thesiesta but no it turns out every thing is shut.Also shut was the island of Tarifa, connected to the mainland by a causeway, and technically the most southern bit of Spain. Because I couldn't get in so I started my walk at its gates.
Although Tarifa looked like a nice place, apart from the Lidl car park, I'm actually staying about 7 kilometres along the trail at the end of the beach at a small, but on bank holiday Monday, very busy surfing hotel. Tarifa is particularly famous for its wind and kite surfing and today there was a least 100 people flying about, it looked great.
The final thing that struck me is just how close Tarifa is to Africa. Tarifa is the point along the coast where the Mediterranean ends and Atlantic begins but with everything so green at the moment it could be a large Scottish loch rather than a sea crossing. Looking back to Tarifa, across the huge beach, the mountains you see behind the town are in Africa.
