Trip Down - Day 2

Arriving at Santander more or less on time and with the ferry filled to bike capacity, it seemed to take ages before the access to the lower deck was opened and we were able to disembark.

Then, with only one rather fussy immigration person dealing with them, it took ages to get clear and start getting the two bikes off the van. Ian then had the same remote control problems as had been experienced in France, probably caused by cellular radio interference, and it took a while for his bike to be disarmed and get going again. Sue had other ideas and went her own way at the first roundabout and had to be chased by hubbie Craig. Petrol was then required, Jacquie's bike then had the alarm problem, and it was hot hot hot! Over 1.5 hours and we hadn't gone more than mile or two, had 200 still to go and it was mid afternoon! Groan!
However, we finally got clear and enjoyed some wonderful rides over mountains at over 1,000m, which brought cool air and great scenery. We even had time for a coffee stop before getting to our first Paradore at Tordesillas. The Paradores de Turismo are state-owned establishments that have been converted into hotels and can offer quite exceptional accommodation as were to discover. This parador used to be an ancestral home and was quite grand, which is more than can be said for the restaurant service. Maybe they just weren't very happy in their jobs, but the bread being delivered like a frizbee to your plate by an unsmiling waitress set the scene. The food itself was ok and the prices of these places is very good overall. It was welcome, however.