Cycling B&B in the foothills of the Pyrenees

[Bonus]

Either Google Translate failed me, or piojo is Spanish for louse, and el piojo is "the lice"?
Is there another interpretation I missed?

No, you're absolutely correct. The "Meson de Piojo" translates as "the Lice Inn"!

Apparently it stems from the fact that when it was open - many many years ago - the beds were so close together that if one person had lice you'd all have lice by the morning.

Now it's just an abandoned ruin. . . . . Can't imagine why the business failed :-)

 

[Shut Up Legs]

No, you're absolutely correct. The "Meson de Piojo" translates as "the Lice Inn"!

Apparently it stems from the fact that when it was open - many many years ago - the beds were so close together that if one person had lice you'd all have lice by the morning.

Now it's just an abandoned ruin. . . . . Can't imagine why the business failed :-)

 

[Bonus]

Mrs Bonus and I have moved into a new phase of our "Adventure".

At the end of May, after a lot of consideration, we moved out of our rented apartment in Ainsa and into a wing of Ramon the Friendly Farmer & Rosa's Farmhouse - which is very close to our own property in Guaso.

They have been on at us for ages to move in with them - I think they've actually adopted us now. I expect the paperwork is in the post. . . .

It will be very convenient when building work finally starts on our Project (I'll cover that point in a separate post) and in the meantime it is convenient for me working on the Bike Park that we are building on Ramon's land next to our house.

It was less than a 10 minute drive from Ainsa to Guaso but by the time you get from the apartment down to the car etc etc it makes "popping over to do an hours work" very inefficient. This will be much better . . . Plus it's nice to be close to our own place :-)

 

[Bonus]

On Friday myself, Angel, William (from France) and Matty (from Argentina) accompanied as usual by Golfo, Lili & Lolitta, cleared & repaired an old trail between Morcat and Castellazo.

At its highest point it is around 1200m above sea level and from up there the views are stunning. It was a hot day and hard work - but it shouldn't need doing again now for quite some time at least :-)

 

[Shut Up Legs]

Nice! How's the weather there at the moment? I'm looking forward to seeing the Pyrenees again from the start of next month. I'll be there for 5 days, riding up various cols.

 

[Bonus]

Nice! How's the weather there at the moment? I'm looking forward to seeing the Pyrenees again from the start of next month. I'll be there for 5 days, riding up various cols.

Currently Hot in Guaso & Ainsa. Topped out at mid 30's yesterday.
Mornings and evenings are great though - and not dark until nearly 10pm at the moment.

Thunderstorms predicted further up towards France over the next few days. . . . .

 

[Bonus]

There are free Spanish lessons every week on a Tuesday up in Ainsa old town, for people wanting to learn the language.

Last week was the last lesson of the term and instead of meeting in class we met and had a picnic at a place Andrea and I suggested. The abandoned hilltop village of "Muro de Bellos". As with all these local places there are spectacular views and our teacher, Roberto, was able to point out loads of local landmarks to us.

Roberto bought with him a home-made guitar that held a secret . . . . :-)

 

[Bonus]

We're suffering a mini pre summer heatwave here this week. 39 degrees yesterday.

Thankfully it's cool at night and lovely in the mornings until around 10 ish. Phew.

 

[Bonus]

A week or so ago Jack and his mum & sisters were moved from the "Nursery" to the "Junior Barn" where he will now stay for a 6 to 8 weeks - until he is around 6 months old.

For the first few days after the move he was too busy playing with all his new friends (all the babies & mums were moved from the nursery pens over the space of a week) to pay us any attention - but for the last day or two he's been snuggling up to us again.

Our pet - Jack the Lamb . . . .

 

[Bonus]

I had a little accident a fortnight ago. Not my fault - woman pulled out in front of me without looking. I needed four stitches to a cut on my face and there was no damage to the bike. I'm all better now but the accident highlighted some important things that people coming here should be aware of. I'm sure we'll put this little list up on our website when we build it but we'll also remind people when they arrive here.

1) The number to use for all emergencies (road traffic or otherwise) is "112". Then ask for the appropriate emergency service. Police, Ambulance, Fire or Mountain Rescue.

If anyone else at the accident says "they've already made the call" don't be afraid to do it yourself anyway. Two calls are better than none.


2) Normal rules apply if it's a traffic accident - don't move anything, don't leave the scene, do swap details etc.


3) Seriously consider holiday insurance. I had no intention of crashing and the accident wasn't my fault, but it still happened.

UK citizens can apply for a "European Health Insurance Card" to take on holiday with them and so should be covered by their UK National Insurance number abroad. In this case I would have gone to the local emergency clinic 5kms away for free. (This situation may change after Brexit . . . .) I suspect other EU countries will have a similar agreement with Spain regarding healthcare.

 

[mjr]

I had a little accident a fortnight ago. Not my fault - woman pulled out in front of me without looking. I needed four stitches to a cut on my face and there was no damage to the bike.

Glad the bike's OK. Keep those brakes covered and hedge your bets - You might like to share your story with your local cycling campaigners and see if it can help get local politicians to actually tackle the perpetrators of motoring violence instead of inflicting useless so-called "safety" equipment on the victims. This is why I've no intention to cycle in Spain again any time soon, so am not a potential tourist for your business.

 

[Bonus]

Glad the bike's OK. Keep those brakes covered and hedge your bets - You might like to share your story with your local cycling campaigners and see if it can help get local politicians to actually tackle the perpetrators of motoring violence instead of inflicting useless so-called "safety" equipment on the victims. This is why I've no intention to cycle in Spain again any time soon, so am not a potential tourist for your business.

Thanks mjr

Thankfully this sort of thing is very rare around here. Everyone I talk to is shocked at my bad luck. In my case the woman was in a hurry to get to work at the restaurant that she and her husband own - isn't there always a reason why someone HAD to jump a light or a stop street?

Down in the coastal areas it's another story. more traffic and less tolerance, combined with drink & drugs. Over half a dozen cyclist have been killed down there this year so far. Today it was a 50 year old cyclist hit by a lorry.

 

[mjr]

In my case the woman was in a hurry to get to work at the restaurant that she and her husband own - isn't there always a reason why someone HAD to jump a light or a stop street?

Not always. In many parts of England now, it seems to be sheer brainlessness of a "there's no traffic police or cameras any more" attitude. I'm glad it's rare around you and long may it remain such!

 

[Bonus]

Last night Mrs Bonus and I had my first "Post-Accident" ride along the river bank from Margudged (the village I had the accident in as it happens!) to Ainsa and back
:-)

Seems I'm ok. Just need to reclaim some fitness after three weeks off :-(

 

[Shut Up Legs]

I was on the Col de Tentes (2207m) in the Pyrenees only 3 days ago, and thought of you. I was so close to Spain, but the dirt track from the Col to the border isn't suitable for road bikes, so I had to skip that bit.