It seems we´ve got a little bit behind again so let´s catch you up quickly.

The weather in Granada meant our last day was mostly spent drinking sangria and playing cards. We just about managed to get ourselves up the next morning to get the bus to Lanjaron, although we ended up missing it and waited an hour.

We went to visit Maia´s cousin, Charlotte, who lives half way up a mountain just outside the town of Lanjaron (about an hour south of Granada). Charlotte lives with her bloke Pete and their brand new babby Ruby.

The place was absolutely amazing. Pete drove us up the terrifying track from town to the house. We arrived to find the perfect little escape from the rat run. There was a swimming pool with goldfish in it and a plethora of olive, nut and cherry trees. They only have a little bit of electricity which they get from a solar panel on the roof, from where you can sit on an armchair and admire the absolutely stunning views through a valley between the mountains stretching all the way to the sea. They´ve got an alfresco bath which you can light a fire under to heat up the water. Unfortunately I think it was a bit too chilly to be trying it whilst we were there. A pity, because with a view like that you could´ve had some seriopus eureka moments. The toilet was really quite spectacular aswell. You follow a little path from the house (lit by solar powered lights at night) and reached this wooden shed. It´s a compost toilet which actually smells alot fresher than most loos and it had the most beautiful views.

Charlottes sister (Maias other cousin) was also visiting with her boyfriend Darren and her little son Luca. We went for a walk with them following the mountain streams and lapping up the natural beauty now we were finally out of a city.

On our second day we donned some overalls and got to work for them, painting the toilet shed with linseed oil to weatherproof it. We ate some good food (including some home grown olives), shared some good conversation and enjoyed the beauty of the place. Apparently the lifestyle has become pretty popular with Brits, Charlotte found out about the place from some friends who live on the next mountain.

The next morning we dragged ourselves out of bed, sad to be leaving so Pete ciould drive us into town. We got a bus back to Granada for some delicious tortilla and jamon serrano sandwiches followed by chocolate con churros from the bus station cafe. Apparently its known for its food and I´d say its justified. That set us up for another day of serious travelling. We lugged our bags all the way to the train station, got a train to Sevilla and then another to Zafra, Extremadura, for the start of a long quiet week and a bit...