Day No. 122 - World Braille Day - Area El Picacho

As I always say, "among the blind, the one-eyed man is king" - have you ever asked yourself what it would mean for you to be blind? - I had to ask myself this question. - Because after my eye accident, I was blind for several days. Only then did I regain my sight, at least in one eye. Of course I have a handicap, e.g. no spatial vision. But never being able to see the sun again, never being able to read a "normal" book? - I can't and don't want to imagine that. So I have all the more respect for people who have learned to deal with this handicap. 

That's why I find the occasion of today's commemoration day exciting. Surely you didn't know that today is World Braille Day in many countries, did you? - Otherwise, chapeau! - At least I didn't know it until recently. 

This day refers to the birthday of the Frenchman Louis Braille, who, at the age of four, injured himself with a tool in his father's workshop and went blind. Braille was someone who made the best of his handicap. At the age of just 16, he developed his own writing system. By combining tactile dots, he enabled himself and thus all blind people to read again. - Have you ever tried what Braille feels like? - I'll just say thank you for making it feel like one. 

Sometimes we get upset about insignificant things and forget the important things. I can only say thank you for letting me see. 

Today we wake up by the lake. It's time for a swim. - The water is clear, but cold, really, really cold. - Nevertheless, I swim a few lengths. Quickly dry off and into the van. - Coffee please, quickly, thank you! - After the coffee, Torgit wants to get into the water too, or sees the need to. - I'm sure there will be another comment on this! - In any case, she doesn't look happy at all when she gets back on board. - The days when we made fun of hot showers are over. We have to admit to ourselves that we are occasionally envious of the yoghurt mugs with their heated bathrooms and, above all, hot water.  

Hector and, in future, Spector are and will remain compromises. On the one hand, we are definitely more flexible with a small van, you can get to places that I wouldn't think about with a motorhome. On the other hand, you have to accept compromises with a bus in terms of comfort and tidiness. With the new model, we gain a little more space, but we will still have to move certain things back and forth. (Note from Torgit: Marc promised me today: You'll have plenty of space in the new van. I've made a note of it. In the calendar. Red. ) 

As soon as Torgit is warm again, we have the feeling of being under fire. Shots are constantly being fired nearby. Have we been caught up in a hunt? We'd better pack up. 

We are halfway through packing when a Spaniard arrives in his car. We are right between him and his fishing spot. Was it a mistake to park Hector across the lane? Torgit says yes, I say no. So we quickly move the car. A quick breakfast and we're back on the road.

We stop in the next village and at least try to get hold of some bread. - A launderette would also be nice. But our research shows that the nearest launderette is about 25 km away. On the other hand, we have a functioning radio network here in the village. In the last few days, the network has been, how shall I put it, very patchy. So first we upload the photos from the last few days and three videos. The whole thing takes about 1 hour.

We decide to drive into the mountains again. We want to do some hiking near the place where we saw the vultures. We now know that the mountain we have already seen in the last few days is Picacho. The peak is located in the Alcornocales Nature Park. A marked route leads up from the access road. The landscape is beautiful. Somehow it looks as if a couple of giants have been practising throwing stones. - Because we are walking through a kind of oversized rock garden. We follow a hiking trail from the road. After just a few meters uphill, we reach the Picacho lagoon, a small lake surrounded by rocks and trees. The path continues under cork oaks and pine trees, interspersed with heather and scrub. The trees are covered in lichen and moss. - As we walk parallel to a small stream with several miniature waterfalls, we can always hear the gurgling and splashing of the water in our ears. Although the path is easy to walk, we only make slow progress on the stony ground. Or is it because we stop every few meters to explore something new? - Be it the various birds of prey in the sky or unknown plants, flowers and shrubs.

Torgit had to learn the hard way that you shouldn't hold on to every bush. - Because what looked so nice and cozy and green was actually quite prickly on closer inspection. - When we arrived back at the van after about 3 hours, we were looking forward to some warmth. Our sleeping place from two days ago is only a few hundred meters from our starting point. First of all, we cook a warm soup. Then we read a little.

Insight of the day: You can look at everything, but you can't touch everything!!!