Tuesday 3rd September

Well, the Spanish weather gods were certainly unhappy with the thought of us leaving Spain so soon after arriving! They threw thunderbolts and cried torrential tears which continued all morning. It was too wet to drive safely so I made do with catching up on a bit of blogging and then joined the others having coffee in the bar.

Late in the morning the rain eased enough for us to rejoin the infamous N260, who had now promised to behave and began to climb up and up, in 3rd gear most of the way through stunning scenery until we broke through the clouds at the Coll de Canto, a not insignificant 1720 metres above sea level.

We entered Andorra though the customs sheds. We were not stopped, there was no passport control, there was not even anyone around. The sheds were Andorra making a statement that they are not in the EU. From there it was just a hop step and a jump to Andorra la Vella and our campsite for the night Camping Valira.

Andorra is a place where flat land is at a premium. It really is just one very steep sided valley surrounded by incredibly high mountains. (Little did we know but these were going to be a navigational hazard tomorrow.) Almost all the buildings are four or more stories high. Our campsite was steeply terraced and we overlooked the community sports ground that consisted of an astroturf soccer pitch surrounded by a six lane running track. A little further away was Andorra’s national football stadium that didn’t look much bigger.

Andorra la Vella is the capital city of this tiny principality, and we went off in search of its heart. We walked through the heart a couple of times before realising that was all there is; a collection of high-end shops, plenty of banks and just a handful of bars and cafes.

It pains me to say that Andorra la Vella is a boring place with little sense of identity, it is a nondescript, slightly shady feeling, tax haven. The most exciting discovery was finding I had been wearing my t shirt inside out all day and having to strip off in the town square!

Thanks to the rain this morning and the journey, the dogs hadn’t had much time off the lead, so it was back to the campsite to enjoy their grandly named Dog Park. Dog Park! It was hardly a Dog Corridor! It measured one-and-a-half metres by five metres, and it was a challenge for both Bryn and I to get through the gate at the same time. It was pitiful.

As Andorra is proudly outside the EU (does that remind you of something?) it is also outside the roaming area for our SIM cards and we had to pay to use the campsite WiFi. By the way, campsite WiFi had been free in all the Spanish sites; not always fast, but free. 

Andorra la Vella, probably not worth the stop?