I’m in the market for a new tripod. I did have a really old one that was crazy cheap. Bought it from a company called Index a while back, but it finally gave up the ghost when I accidentally dropped it and the handle snapped. Then since then I never really used it, and just binned it because it was sharp and dangerous, and only cost me like £15 lol.

So I’m currently looking for a brand new tripod as I now need one for the type of Photography I’m currently doing and will continue to be doing. I am doing a lot of Landscape and Nighttime Photography, and that will continue as I have a fair few projects that I’m slowly working on, which are in the planning stage.

The Tripod must however allow me to pan on it’s axis, be very flexible and sturdy. I guess I will see what’s around and get some ideas.

Spain Day 15

After a really late night at the bar, which we left at 2.30am! We all had to get up at 7am; well needless to say I was first up, even after 4 hours sleep!

After setting the first load of washing we continued to pack and tidy up. Once the washing was done we set the 2nd lot and went out shopping. Mostly for any bits we needed for the trip home. We then all had a late breakfast before loading the cars up and setting of at 13.30 for England.

The first leg of the trip is on the AP7 a really useful cheap toll road. We finally reached the Pyrenees Mountains at around 20.00, which is when I took over. I drove the Pyrenees via the tunnel route. When we reached France we were greeted with rain and snow as well. So I got the full weather whack. Come out of tunnel get snow and ice then drive a bit more and get rain. Driving mountains roads in rain and around dusk is challenging.

The further I drove into France the bloody worse the rain got. You could hardly make out the road markings; it was made worse because of no street lights and on coming lights from cars dazzling you. However it was made really worse by the fact you literally went blind into sharp corners and any corners. You literally could not see, even with wipers on max! Bloody France!

At around midnight we pulled over and got some sleep.

Spain Day 16

The day began rather bloody cold! I believe the lowest we had in the car was 3 degrees! The highest was 6 degrees! So needless to say “I was frozen today!”

After getting around 5 hours sleep we set off towards Bordeaux. While driving we came across a vineyard covered in mist, it was really awesome to see.

However an hour into our drive a major massive issue had happened which caused massive arguments. Basically Ben was following the GPS speed limits, and might not have seen the road side speed signs. He went through a speed camera at 110 in a 90 and got flashed. This caused massive arguments mostly going on the assumption of if we never took this route it would not have happened etc. Then more arguments over who had the map as well.

While driving on the N10 we had some very interesting thick fog which went on for miles. Looks like France never disappoints in weather!

While driving through France we had an Oh Crap moment. We were running out of fuel and all the stations were closed and only a few were card only. I wanted to avoid using my card. So when the fuel warning light came on we really started to worry, and annoyingly all the petrol stations we passed were closed! It got to the point where the needle was now 2 notches before empty. A petrol station was near and lucky for us it was open and even better it took cash!

After filling up we continued on our way to the Eurotunnel. Once there we parked up in City Europe and sorted out the beer etc. Once done we headed for the tunnel. We got there early and they let us check in an hour early as well! As normal when going for the train we get probed by French customs then again by British customs. Funny thing was they never asked us for any alcohol. It was even funnier as we went passed French customs clanking because of the alcohol bouncing around! I finally got home at around 19.30.

Today is the last full day in Spain before doing the boring drive back.

We spent the morning doing a massive booze shopping trip, we basically filled the car up with booze. The wine and beer were so cheap it was amazing what you could get for insane cheap prices! I saved a fair amount!

After shopping we decided to spend the afternoon at a restaurant on the beach. The reason being because of the thunderstorms in the morning. We had proper Spanish paella, nice bottle of red wine and desert. Bill came to 86 Euros for three people. So the bill came to about 30 Euro each.

On the way back from the restaurant we decided to take the back streets as we wanted to go to our local beach. However as we did the police who were doing random stop checks on residential roads, and pulled us over. The worst thing was we had a slight drink before driving! It was an OMFG moment, the policeman could see we where English and spoke no Spanish and just waved us on. It would have been more challenging to explain the boot load of booze as well! The funniest thing was the policeman who waved us over, instantly came to the left of the car and was confused. Mostly because English cars are right hand drive! The worst thing was we where expecting to be told to get out car for checks etc!

Once back at the villa we chilled out a bit before heading to the bar for one last time.

Awsome load!

The day began as normal; weather was a bit windy and cloudy. So we decided to visit two beautiful towns in the morning.

Even when doing above the speed limit on a main road, Mike still got overtaken by a woman in a blue Citroen C3! Oh the Spanish really do love to overtaken then barge into small gaps.

We drove to the town of Altea which was really nice. The town was situated on the coast near the mountains. You could see lovely views of the sea and the mountains from the harbor. While we were there a massive British boat had moored out at sea in the bay. It was stunning. As we walked around the town we came across a massive Spanish art exhibition showing off photos from 1986 to 2010. The photos were mostly of the major events throughout that timeframe.

Later in the evening we went for a drive to find a nice restaurant to eat at. As we were driving around we went through a massive police road block. They were pulling random drivers over. The restaurant we wanted to go to had shut in the afternoon. So we decided to go to a German restaurant.

While on route a massive thunderstorm kicked up, lightning striking around 200 meters to 1 km away and overhead. The roads flooded and turned to rivers. You could hardly see where you were driving. It was really fun to watch, but at the same time scary.

We spent the rest of the evening eating out and chilling out.

The day began earlier than normal. Mostly because there was a Spanish market in town which started at 10am. We all decided to visit the market and browse stuff for sale. However before we could, we had run out of gas, so we had to go down the road and get a replacement bottle. Then have fun and games getting it to work! So we left it till after the market.

At the market I managed to track down some really nice traditional Spanish fans. We also had some fresh Churros as well.

After browsing the market we went for a walk along the coast and out towards sea on a massive stone built pier/tide break. The view was amazing and I managed to get a few decent pictures. We had decided to browse the sea front for places to get some traditional paella for later in the week.

Once back at the villa, we sorted out the gas issue and then spent the rest of the afternoon chilling by the pool and relaxing overall before heading to the bar.