Hallelujah!

New engine finally arrives

Shiny new Volvo D1-30 engine

Finally, after nearly three months, we received the email from Volvo Spain we'd been patiently waiting for: "If you wanna go organizing space in the boat it is a good time. According hear, in the distance, engine installation is imminent." My mum, rather conveniently for me, was in need of some help so the Captain was left alone to deal with the chaos that ensued. He took them at their word and got to work. Both back cabins had to be completely cleared and soon the saloon had disappeared into a sea of bags, cushions, bedding, clutter etc. An hour later the lads arrived to start the job of dismantling the existing engine. The following morning the boat was towed to the superyacht harbour and moored alongside the quay ready to take delivery of our shiny new Volvo D1-30 engine. The old engine was lifted out by crane and the new one squeezed into place. We were towed back to our berth in the afternoon and the next few days the boys either turned up to continue with the installation or frustratingly didn't as is the  case  with  tradesmen  the  world  over.

Old engine waiting to be taken away

Of course the three day job turned into a two week marathon but at long last we were ready to leave Valencia. I returned just in time to pick up diesel and fill up with water before setting sail for Aguadulce, just west of Almeria, which was to be our winter destination on the Costa del Sol.

Ride of a Lifetime patiently waiting next to the crane for the engine to arrive

...and the new engine is lowered in

The old engine is lifted out...

Red sky at night...

Approaching Aguadulce by the light of the supermoon...

We had originally hoped to cruise slowly down the Spanish coast but it was now mid November and the weather was not on our side. The nights were becoming chilly and the winter gales were starting to show themselves rather too frequently for our liking. We needed to head south as quickly as possible. No time for a leisurely hop down the coast but instead we decided to break the 250 mile journey in two. A small weather window appeared with favourable winds to help us on the 150 mile overnight passage to Cartagena. As soon as we arrived the winds changed direction and we had to wait a couple of days before embarking on our last passage of the season to Aguadulce. Another gale was brewing but we just had time for the final 100 mile journey. We had fair winds, following seas, and the night was lit the entire way by the spectacular November supermoon, the biggest since 1948.

Ride of a Lifetime finally in her winter base, Aguadulce

Killing Time

Valencia street

A month later and we are still in Valencia without an engine. We rejected the rebuild option and have gone for the hugely expensive sparkly new Volvo D1-30 engine. We are not sure why but it worked out thousands of euros cheaper to buy it from Volvo in the UK and have it shipped to Valencia where Volvo Spain would finally fit it. That decision, frustratingly, came with further delays but meant we had plenty of time to explore more of Valencia, Spain's third largest city.

The modernista Mercado Centrale

Inside the bustling Mercado Centrale

Valencia cathedral said to be the home of the true Holy Grail!

Anyone for a Jamon?! Mercado Centrale

La Lonja

Valencia has some of the most striking modern architecture in the country, adding to the wealth of elegant art nouveau and gothic buildings that line the streets of the city centre. First we hopped on a bus for a taste of the older Valencia. We put on our sightseeing legs and set about discovering the old town. We started with the colourful, bustling and very atmospheric Mercado Central, a vast Modernista covered market constructed in 1928. Across the way we visited, La Lonja, another architectural masterpiece. It is a 15th century Unesco World Heritage site and was originally Valencia's silk and commodity exchange. On the edge of the old town we climbed the Torres de Quart, the grand 15th century city gate which still displays the damage caused by French cannonballs during the 19th century Napoleonic invasion. We spent a morning in the Palacio del Marques de Dos Aguas which dates back to the 15th century with an over the top 18th century Baroque alabaster facade. The fascinating palace also houses the

Paella dishes for sale - Valencia is the home of Paella

National museum of Ceramics. We stopped for a well earned tapas lunch near the Cathedral which dates back to 1238. It is said to house the true Holy Grail but we decided to give it a miss! Away from the hustle and bustle we visited the Botanical gardens which have an important collection of palms and cacti. The rest of the gardens looked like they could have done with a spot of water but it was a nice peaceful escape from the tourist trail.

Inside the Palacio del Marques de Dos Aguas

Tiles by Salvador Dali, National Museum of Ceramics

Torres de Quart city gate

On top of the Torres de Quart 

Cacti in the Botanical Gardens

The Botanical Gardens looking a bit like something out of Jurassic Park!

The Umbracle - a huge open access garden

In 1956 Valencia diverted its flood-prone Turia river to the outskirts of town and converted the riverbed into a wonderful green ribbon of park winding through the city. In one area of the Turia park are the strikingly futuristic buildings of the Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias designed by the local architect Santiago Calatrava. I'll let the photos do the talking!

The Umbracle

Opera house, 3D cinema and Science Museum

Opera house and 3D cinema

Science Museum, Assut D'or bridge and the Agora

Thatched farmer's cottage or Barraca

Heading towards the Albufera lake

For something completely different we took a bus trip to the Albufera Nature Park about 15km south of the city and home to the largest freshwater lake in Spain which is almost as big as Valencia itself. This nature reserve and national park is an oasis of tranquility nestling next to rice paddies and separated from the Mediterranean Sea by a narrow strip of sand. It supports a diverse ecosystem of birds, fish and plant life and is an important wetland that attracts tens of thousands of migratory birds. We hopped on a traditional flat bottomed boat and became twitchers (or is it birders?) for a morning. As well as spotting the odd heron we also saw the traditional thatched farmer's cottages, barracas, made from mud, reeds, cane and straw with a design that dates back hundreds of years.

A traditional boat on the Albufera lake

 

I spy with my little eye something beginning with H!

Inside the Bodega La Peseta bar

We are now running out of things to see! Fingers crossed the engine arrives soon...meanwhile we have found a rather wacky low tech retro bar to chill in and take our mind off engines. The Bodega La Peseta bar was once a chemist and they have kept the old display cabinets. It just happens to be on the 40 minute walk to the supermarket and provides a glass of wine and plate of tapas all for the princely sum of 1 euro!

 

Bodega La Peseta bar

Maritime Valencia

View over the MRJCI superyacht basin

Port side bar opposite the superyacht basin, MRJCI

In addition to the intermittent clunk noise the engine made when it was refusing to start it was now puffing out white and blue smoke when it finally roared into life which then refused to dissipate. Not only did we need to find a reasonably cheap marina fast, a rare commodity in August, we also needed a Volvo Penta engine agent. Valencia, on the east coast of Spain, ticked both boxes. We set off in the afternoon for the 90 mile passage from Ibiza and thankfully managed to sail most of the way only starting the engine at dawn for the last few miles to the Marina Real Juan Carlos I (MRJCI). It is a huge modern marina with a superyacht basin as well as two marina basins for yachts. We soon discovered that it took about 40 minutes to walk from our berth to the superyacht area not to mention the shops/bars/restaurants which were further still. When we were feeling lazy our dinghy or the marina RIB came to the rescue! The Volvo guys promised to visit in a couple of days so we set about exploring our neighbourhood.

Rotating swing bridge MRJCI

Our dinghy dock in front of the Port Clock building, MRJCI

Alinghi, the 32nd America's Cup winner

Alinghi V, the 33rd America's Cup runner up

The port area was revamped in preparation to host the 32nd America's Cup in 2007 and the 33rd America's Cup in 2010 and also includes the European Grand Prix Formula 1 street circuit which was held in Valencia between 2008 and 2012. We checked out our free laundry facilities hidden away at the back of the south marina and across the road we spotted a rather large hulk lying on the concrete. On closer inspection we discovered the monohull, Alinghi, the Swiss 32nd America's Cup winner and the monster multi hull Alinghi V, the 33rd America's cup runner up. For anyone interested click here to see Alinghi in the very exciting deciding race. How sad to see these once incredible boats abandoned. We continued along what was once the F1 race track imagining Massa racing to victory at the inaugural event. Unfortunately the 140m rotating swing bridge across the port, also part of the F1 track, is left open so crossing to the other side was impossible. 

Abandoned Alinghi V

Tinglados, most recently used as the F1 pit stop!

Tinglado

Inside the King of Aragon's shipyards

The Royal Marina is one of the city's most important landmarks, not only due to the events that are held there but also due to its unique buildings. The quayside of the superyacht harbour is also the home of large impressive modernist warehouses or Tinglados, which were originally built in 1911 to store unloaded materials, mainly vegetables and grain. Of the original six, only three are still standing. They have been refurbished and two of them were used as pit stops during the F1 days. We also passed the elegant early twentieth century Port Clock building which was originally built to serve as the Maritime Station and entrance to Valencia. Just back from the port, but once on the water's edge, we discovered the King of Aragon's shipyards. The five huge sheds with Gothic arcades were originally used to build and arm the King's galleys. 

King of Aragon's shipyards

Passing the Veles e Vents building in the dinghy

Walking up to the Veles e Vents building

Valencia's huge beach

Game of Thrones on Valencia beach

The Port of Valencia is the largest in Spain and in the Mediterranean basin. The marina is not just surrounded by the vast cranes of the port and reminders of the past. The Veles e Vents (sails and wind) building, designed by David Chipperfield and Fermin Vazquez for the America's Cup, is an innovative minimalist architectural statement. It also offers restaurants and bars with wonderful views over the marina, beaches and city. Valencia is also known for its huge expanse of beach lying right next to the marina, the start of which is marked by two enormous flagstaffs flying the national and Valencian flags. Next to the beach the Paseo Maritimo is a popular walkway for both cyclists, joggers, skateboarders and promenading pedestrians and is flanked by restaurants all serving the ubiquitous paella of which Valencia is the home.

Busy Valencia beach

Meanwhile back at the ranch the engine has been condemned. The pistons are worn, the compression is down, the sea water pump is leaking again and the list goes on.....RIP!!