Airstreaming with Sally & Betty

This was our first true boondocking experience and it is a good thing that we did it before we left the general area of the Airstream dealer.  Boondocking or dry camping is what you call camping without any supplemental power or water and is typically what you find in National and State Parks.  It is a really good idea to test out your capabilities to boondock before you really need to!  We had previously determined that the propane hot water heater does not work.  This trip we learned that there is some sort of issue with one or both of our batteries.  We have been miserly with our usage of water and electricity since we are not hooked up to any facilities.  We stopped at Camping World on the way and bought a Honda generator (Jeff will tell you more about that later).  Jeff set up the generator with no issue and we watched a DVD on the TV before 8pm when you are required to turn off your generators.  They are noisy and even though we boug...

Jeff arrived at Jay’s on June 22 nd .  This gave him all day on the 23 rd to ride his motorcycle to San Diego, pick up Sally, pick up Betty from storage and then set up camp at Los Coches, which is just outside of El Cajon and still a San Diego suburb.  I am quite impressed that he can do all of this on his own.  Perhaps I thought I had a more important co-pilot job, but as it turns out, he doesn’t really need me.  I was thankful when he picked me up at the airport at about 8:30 at night and we drove the 30 minutes or so to our campsite.  Rancho Los Coches is my favorite campground so far!  We estimate that it is about 50% full timers and maybe more.  The parking spots are level and graveled.  We had plenty of room for our smallish rig and they had a great laundry facility that I used to clean up my fancy clothes from my trip to Europe.  They also have a pool and hot tub which we may use on our next visit.  This camp site was ...

My Rig One of the things I love about having moved to California nine years ago is that I am able to see my brother Jay on a regular basis. This is something I missed when Emily and I lived in the Netherlands and was going to miss when we hit the road in our Airstream. So prior to hitting the road with Emily, Jay and I decided to take a 2 week motorcycle tour. We selected a route through AZ, CO and UT which provided a nice assortment of roads, climates and sites. I did want to stop in Flagstaff to hike up Humphrey’s Peak and also visit three of the National Parks in Utah, I had not been to before: Capitol Reef, Canyonlands and Arches. We of course wanted to stop and visit Emily’s sister Paula’s family in Golden and had planned to go to a Samantha Fish concert in SLC. Unfortunately Jay could not make the trip. I know he feels very badly about this because on my return he gave me a leather coat and sandals he said didn’t fit him, but I think he was mostly motivated by gu...

I continued my circuitous route from Malaga, Spain to San Diego via Amsterdam and Reykjavik - please don't ask me why.... After Marbella, I flew back to AMS.  I am still not sure why I booked such difficult and arduous flights.  When in Amsterdam, I was so thankful to hook up with a former co-worker for dinner.  Sousann Mobasser is a fantastic female role model and I enjoyed catching up with her after 4+ years! After dinner I stayed at the Yotel in the AMS airport.  It is quite an interesting little place.  You pay by the hour and sleep in a shoe box, but that is really all you need!  It was a good experience that I would repeat if I have the chance.   other side of shoebox Airport sculpture of a bird emerging from its shell So, I got teased into an overnight stay in Iceland based on the prices and Scott and Paula’s experiences.  Apparently, things have changed between 2013 and 2017!  I got a very inexpensive ticket for tr...

Many years ago in college, Paula and I had traveled to Marbella but it was the shoulder season and I honestly didn't have too many fond memories of this area.  Obviously it was over-shadowed by Seville because Marbella is truly lovely!  I intended the one night stop as an opportunity to just relax at the beach, but it was more than that. The drive was over mountains just bypassing Rhonda, where Jeff and I had visited in 2013. As you get closer to Marbella, you start to see amazing and enormous villas hugging the mountainside.  I could live here! Top of the mountain Beautiful Views Lovely Villa This was my favorite hotel of the trip in Spain!  Wow!  I had low expectations due to the only picture being that of a tiny pool, so maybe that makes a difference.  My hotelier owned multiple properties in Marbella and I was lucky enough to be staying in the hotel lobby house just upstairs from the main entrance.  You can see the bougainvill...

Olive Groves After Granada, the adventure kicked into high gear!  The drive to my next stop was absolutely amazing!  I was delighted by the scenery and found the landscape to be very much like home.  There were olive groves as far as the eye could see and every turn of the road seemed to peak my enthusiasm and excitement for the region.   View from pool Thankfully, I spent several hours in Granada translating the directions that the hostess, Esther, had given me to Cottages of The Algarrobales.  I had paid 2X the price of the car for a Tom Tom GPS which was utterly useless.  I have had bad experiences with Tom Toms in Europe before and this was no different.  I had my backup Google Maps which turned out to be all I really needed.  Still, I can’t believe where I had to drive to my next location!  As it turned out, the directions from the owner were spot on.  When I took the right hand turn toward the cottages, I was...