Spain 13,

Oct. 1, 2026,

Hi Everyone,

I have had great luck in choosing my hotels during this trip. Last night and this evening the hotels are once again exceptional with great atmosphere and reasonable pricing. I booked a table later in the evening after a shower and a brief nap. Riding a motorcycle is wonderful, adventuresome, tiring and of course just a little bit dangerous. I met a lovely couple from England and we had discussion of my recent volunteering for 4 months in Israel. They showed interest in my blog and hopefully will purchase my book. Dinner consisted of a 4 course meal including an entree, a main course, a salad, a dessert a beer and a glass of wine. I was definitely full at the end of the meal and will perhaps decrease my consumption tomorrow. (Or perhaps not)

I awoke well rested and partook of the morning buffet breakfast. The problem with buffets, is that one tends to overfill several plates and consume more than is necessary for a breakfast. I formally checked out of the hotel, but was permitted to remain at a table in the garden for the rest of the morning and the greater part of the afternoon. It took me 3 hours to catch up on my emails and another 3 hours to book the remainder of my hotels and train tickets in France. I gave up trying to book a hotel at CDG as I refuse to pay 400 to 1000 euros for 1 night in an airport hotel. I will take a TGV from Reims to CDG, check my baggage overnight at the airport and take an RER to Paris. I booked a ‘reasonably’ priced hotel in Montmartre allowing me some time both to visit with Remi and Marie-Christine and to spend the evening in a wonderful arrondissement of Paris.

Later in the afternoon, I rode to the Dania port. I proudly lined up with the motorcycle guys and gals waiting in line to board the Baleares ferry boat to Ibiza. On the boat, I stayed on the back deck to view the port of Dania and the town. A rough count allowed me to estimate the number of motor yachts and sailboats at over 1000. I love to watch the swell that a ferry boat makes coming off the back of the boat. We arrived in the port of Ibiza 2:15 hours later. I drove off the boat with the bikes and continued down the Main Street to my hotel.

My 1st impression of Ibiza is that this is a real party town. The Main Street, which I will explore tomorrow is filled with high quality shops. There are people walking everywhere. The population resembles the population at the triathlon. In Pontevedra there were 4500 athletes and tens of thousands of onlookers. As I have mentioned before, there were 29 athletes in the 75-79 age group with 3 from Canada. The tourist population that frequents Ibiza is no different. If I look around me, I am definitely the oldest here. The island definitely caters to the 20-30 year olds. Great, I feel really at home here.

My hotel is situated less than 50 meters from the beach. The beach area has a long boardwalk boarded with cafes, bars and restaurants. The atmosphere resembles the board walk in Tel Aviv but the beach is much more narrow here. I am sure that there are other more secluded beaches in other parts of the island which I will check out tomorrow. I am sitting at a bar/restaurant overlooking the beach, drinking beer, eating tapas and writing my blog. The weather is pleasant permitting me to wear only a tee shirt and shorts.

Love,

Brian