DHG was here last week. A very cultured gentleman unlike your esteemed blogger. Day out to Margate, anyone? HP sauce on your chips, love? I digress. It works quite well. He takes me to churches, museums and art galleries and I take him to beaches, villages and places with views and sport going on. On restaurants we tend to agree  😀

We decided that during his visit we would do two days out at distance and 3 in the surrounding area. He liked the look of Murcia and Elche. I had a look at the map and took a fancy to a squizz at the ruins in Cartegena and he agreed to the add on. Was I mad? I only drive on holidays, it’s not something I particularly enjoy doing  and Cartegena is further away than Murcia ( 200km each way, 2hrs 15 mins drive time , motorway all the way ). Share the driving I hear you cry. Not possible with this car as it has been lent to me.

We decided to go straight to Cartegena and then break up  the journey back with stops in Murcia & Elche. Elche’s big attraction is its gardens full of palm trees, some of which are 200 years old. 

Cartagena was a treat. Amphitheatre, Roman Theatre, Marina, Open Top Bus Ride and plenty of good eateries. We came across the filming of a Spanish period drama on the seafront . DHG informed me it was almost certainly for a Spanish drama series called Grand Hotel . I told you he was knowledgeable. No need for Google.

We could have stayed there a lot longer.

In the end, we never got to Murcia ( so many ruins, so little time ) but we did visit two of the gardens in Elche. Thanks heavens for Enrique ( #satnavman ). Without him we would never have got through the narrow streets so quickly.  First we went to the Palmeral and then to Jardín Huerto del Acura ( The Priest’s Garden ) which was declared a National Artistic Garden in 1943 ( I was reminded of the RHS )

CLICK HERE TO SEE IMAGES OF CARTAGENA

CLICK HERE TO SEE IMAGES OF ELCHE

BTW, we never did find Mary but she knew we were looking   😉