I arrived at Stanstead Airport all set for Spain but I suppose it wouldn’t have been right unless I had some kind of a small world experience. I was about to go through passport control and I saw a face I recognised from myspace and someone I had only ever met in cyberspace. I was sure she was travelling in Russia but decided to call her name and risk making a fool of myself…… It turned out to be her and we had a brief embrace in front of a long line baffled passengers!

I arrived in Jerez on the Friday evening and as soon as landed I headed for a place near Cadiz called El Puerto De Santa Maria to play my first show. The sound tech guy was from Cuba and a really nice guy but didn’t seem to know what he was doing. Then with the audience waiting with anticipation my guitar (for the first time!!) decided not to work!! After 15 minutes and some “gentle” persuasion it decided to work and the show was under way. I was trying to remember all the Spanish I used to know….one word I was never going to forget…..cerveza. The next day I played my second show this time my guitar was behaving itself, the sound guy found his form and everything clicked! At the interval I even had one local girl say “I want a C.D from you and dinner with you” obviously as you can imagine I turned a lighter shade of Rojo ; )

After a day of rest and some sunshine I headed to Gibraltar. On the way there, there were “NO” sign posts for it anywhere even at the border which is a subtle reminder that Spain wants “The Rock” back! Gibraltar is a bizarre slice of Blighty in the med. The locals speak a strange sort of Spanglish or as the locals call it “Gib-Spanish”. One of the great sights of the rock are the other locals….the monkeys! They are last primates in Europe and some say when the monkeys leave Gibraltar the British will follow.

After visiting the rock I headed to Morocco. Two things it has in abundance: Men and Mercedes, but a real gem of a country just waiting to be discovered! I went to the famous Café Hafa and like when I was in Ireland sampling the local black velvet…but this was a slightly different type of black velvet…; )

So back to England on Sunday and I was welcomed home with delays at the airport, delays at the train station and a London cab fare of £22!!! The next day I had my gig at the Half Moon in Putney which was a success and it was topped off by the seal of approval from a Mr Newton Faulkner : )