What happened to the weather!!!!!

So before I set off this morning I did two things, I checked the weather and I researched a campsite. 

So looking at the weather front it was moving from SW Portugal to North Portugal.   I worked out I could follow it up staying in the sun.   Great roads on the way up.  There is hardly any traffic on the roads as the population density is quite low and I am staying off the main roads.  But, you have to watch out for the drivers coming the other way as they have a tendency to cut the corners.  It's all manageable though. 

Some great roads and views going North.

I stopped off at this castle town on the way through for lunch.   I am surprised at the number of castles all along the Spanish border, they are everywhere.

So, spent some time researching campsites before setting off as I did not want a repeat of the nightmare last night.   So found this really nice campsite with an average review score of 9.3.   So I headed off to it.   Ok, the clouds came in and it started to rain and rain and rain and I know things do not look their best in the rain and with grey skies,  but it was a dump.   Looked like it had not been cared for for years.    I am starting to think that I had been spoilt on my first foray into camping, staying at campsites in Germany, Sweden and Holland.   I stayed in those countries in campsites that were 9+ and they were all amazing.   Portugal has a 0 - 10 rating system, but I now think that a score of 10 means that it is barely adequate.    So I now understand when I turned up at the 9.3 score site today and it was just below barely adequate............    I think I may kip over to Spain tomorrow.

SO, again, I turn up at an underwhelming campsite in Portugal and make a hasty exit.   Fire up Booking.com and.................. I am in the middle of nowhere, no hotels for miles and miles and miles.........    Find a traditional Portuguese hotel, Deal of the Day, and book that.    Zoom across and find a really nice isolated small hotel along a private drive.    Book in, time is now 18:15 and the chap says the hotel is empty and the restaurant will close at 19:00.   Ho hum.  Pouring with rain outside, so decided to stay.   Sandwiches or omelette!  So I go for the ham and cheese omelette and a glass of red wine.   Both actually quite nice.   I say thank you and start to leave the restaurant and the chap says he has lit the fire in the lounge for me.   Very nice of him, a nice fire with logs is there to greet me and my second glass of wine.  So here I am typing this blog in front of a nice log fire.

Re-injuries: Left arm hurts a little and I get a bit of a pain still when I breathe in deeply.  Disappointingly no bruises visible still.   However, I did sustain the first serious injury of the trip today.

A cracking lump is developing.    And how did I suffer this head injury?  I stood up while I was unpacking and the bag that was under a window and the wooden shutter was slightly open, caught the corner of it.  It hurt, a lot.  I said some very very bad words, repeatedly.  

So, the quest for tomorrow is finding the sun, I know it's out there somewhere, and a nice campsite that is better than barely adequate.