Ready to go

Lake in La Espuna

Climbing the hills

Parade of ATV's

SKUBA diving....not a spectator sport!

Family in the water

Nelson, pre-dive

John, pre-dive

No one could call what we are doing “Adventure Travel” but while Alison was here we tried to step things up a notch with SCUBA diving and ATV riding. I have to admit that I did not participate in either and I can say from first had experience that SCUBA in particular is not a spectator sport. It’s not because I did not want to join in the fun and games, but because my ankle is still in a brace and I don’t want to spend the rest of my life hopping around on one foot. Nelson keeps telling me to slow down and let it heal, and this time I agreed with him. That aside, both excursions were quite successful.

The dive was billed as an “Introduction so SCUBA” and Nelson, Alison and John all got to put on tanks and swim around under water in a small cove just outside the harbour. Each of them had a one-on-one instructor to lead the way. Nelson took SCUBA lessons when we lived on the Sunshine Coast, so it was a refresher for him. Alison said she’s always wanted to breath underwater and John was thrilled by the fish and the view up from down-under.

The ATV adventure started from a restaurant/hotel in a village at the edge of La Espuna nature reserve. We got lunch, and then they left me to enjoy the wireless internet and the view from the balcony of the hotel while they suited up in helmets and gloves and took off into the Spanish wilderness. The ride was not a wild one, but they learned a lot from the guide about the landscape and the rural lifestyle of this area. John got a chance to drive, which made it a lot more fun for him than just sitting behind Nelson all the way.

Both the SCUBA business and the ATV riding tours are run by ex-pat Englishmen who say the best thing they’ve ever done is move to Spain. From the outsiders point of view they seem to personify the saying that if you get a job doing what you love to do, it’s not a job it’s a life style. It is interesting to observe how people who choose to stay here find ways to finance their lives. I wonder if other parts of Spain have such a pervasive English presence of if it’s just here in the Costa Calida. We have heard a lot of German people on the promenade in the port. I wonder if we were German speaking would we find ex-pats from Berlin and Munich running businesses and restaurants? We’ve seen more Germans than anyone else in RV’s, maybe they like to move around while the Brits like to settle. Who knows?