This morning we woke up early with excitement and headed straight for the local tourist info office, armed with a long list of questions about the area. After grilling the poor staff for half an hour, we came out laden with maps, Spanish school leaflets and brochure after brochure on things to see and do. Next stop was the Eroski supermarket, to stock up on provisions – oh to have a fridge! We managed to resist the ‘British’ aisle on this occasion, but I wonder how long it will be until we’re buying custard creams and the like!

Having filled Yoko full of food we drove her the short hop to Decathlon to check out their range of bikes. After his recent ‘re-learn to ride a bike’ experience, Dave is very keen to acquire a set of wheels on which to explore the area. Unfortunately, a quick scan of the local papers and message boards has left us thinking that second-hand bikes are hard to come by, so a cheap new one is the next best option. Or so we thought. Even in Decathlon they’re not that cheap, so the hunt is still on.

Exhausted by the evening, we enjoyed the luxury of curling up on the sofa to read the free local English newspapers and had a giggle at the expat news. Typical stories included tales of woe from readers trying to get cable TV installed and articles on the difference between clementines, mandarins and tangerines. Just in case you wondered.