Missing the beach!

The view from our hotel window this evening ... a stone's throw from Valencia airport. The only place I could find that was open and accepts animals. A phone pic as I left all my cameras in the car and couldn't be bothered to fetch one. Edit: extra, extra! See what it looks like after dark!

Up early, packed the car, said goodbye to neighbours and Bea, and hurried off trying not to look back at our lovely garden. It was quarter to eleven by the time we left, and we drove across the centre of Spain during the hottest part of the day ... the thermometer reached 37C for a while. 

Thank goodness for air conditioning. When we stopped for food or coffee we didn't dare leave Mystère in the car for even five minutes, even in the shade. So we picnicked uncomfortably in the car, engine running for the aircon.

We got here about 6:30 ...  Mystère was not happy, but he cheered up when he found the rooftop view with eye-level birds. We left him to it and went down to the bar for a meal that was as good as you'd expect in an airport Ibis, served with a smile (as far as we could tell behind the obligatory mask) by Luigi, a quadrilingual Italian who seemed to be doing all the jobs ... checkin, serving at the bar, taking orders, and even doing some of the cooking.

PS one-year anniversary of my dangerous Irish adventure with freespiral!