OH MY GOD!!! The drive into Barcelona was one of the most stressful things we've ever done. Jud drove the 620km from El Escorial to Barcelona - I've yet to do any driving - just too freaked out!! So the drive was exhausting - huge full day - then at the end of it when everyone was tired, hungry and frazzled we had to deal with the madness that is Barcelona traffic. We had to find our accommodation in the middle of the city at peak hour and it took over an hour. I...

Hi again everyone - we are back in Spain. We have wifi access but still no access to a computer and for some reason we haven't been able to send emails from iPod so apologies to those of you we haven't responded to - we'll just have to communicate through our blog for now. Spent 3 fantastic nights in Portugal. We loved where we stayed - the Quinta das Quintas - it was so relaxing. Kids had a playground and indoor maze and loads of animals - ducks, swans, geese, ...

Hi all be sure to read the entries prior to this. I´ve posted a couple of blogs while we´ve got internet access that I´d already typed up. I´m still trying to get the photo thing worked out and I don´t want to be to much of a nuisance to Maria´s family. Anyhoo we are having an awesome time and the weather has been spectacular. We´ve seen some amazing sights and I know I´m including lots of detail but this is also my ongoing diary so I remember all the det...

Sorry about the delay folks - we've been without internet for days. Anyway, our trip from Madrid to Tui was epic. Started the morning early and made our way to the Peugot car leasing depot. Brand new beautiful station wagon with leather interior and sunroof and amazingly we managed to squeeze all our luggage in. Getting out of Madrid was a challenge but we got there and on the road to Tui. Great highway, diverse countryside ranging from rocky, dry mountains outsi...

Hola! And greetings from Spain. We've finally arrived safe and sound. Oh my Lordy we'd forgotten how exhausting that long haul flight is. The first leg was a massive 15 hours overnight to Dubai. No- one really slept - however the kids were well behaved. Dubai airport was a bit of a spin out - absolutely massive. We met Grandma and Grandpa and various aunts and uncles at the airport. Two hours in Dubai and then onto the next leg - 8 hours to Madrid- we were so no...