Day No. 192 - Farewell to Ibiza

„Männer brauchen Frauen, damit sie beim Schnupfen nicht sterben“

Saturday 14.03, this is a very special day. - Not because we're already on the ferry from Ibiza to Denia at 9:48. - But simply because this is our wedding anniversary. - We've been married for four years today - the best thing that's ever happened to me. - Where would we be without each other? - What would men be without women? - What would women be without men?

How do you spend a day like this? - We pack up, leave our riverbed for the last time and drive to the beach. Unfortunately not to spend a day in the sun, but to say goodbye to paradise. - I jump into the water one last time. - Then another cup of coffee. - It's very peaceful here. We have the bay all to ourselves. There is only one sailing bay at anchor. But everything is still very quiet on board. So we enjoy the view. 

Then we set off via Santa Gertrudis towards Ibiza Town and the port. We do our last shopping on the way. The store is already full shortly after eight in the morning. The mood is slightly tense, but much more normal than on the previous day. We now have everything on board, so we could manage a good 14 days. - It's strange to leave the island. But we want to see that we get to France. - Good health to you all!

„Frauen brauchen Männer, damit die Spinnen sie nicht töten.“

PS: Es ist 21:00 Uhr – Torgit und ich haben gerade mit einem eiskalten Radler auf unseren Hochzeitstag angestoßen. – Obwohl wir ein wenig traurig sind, unsere Insel verlassen „zu müssen“, sind wir froh diesen Schritt gewählt zu haben. – Auf der Fähre war eine seltsame Stimmung. – Bereits in der Schlange zur Rampe wurde ich von einem älteren, türkischstämmigen, deutschen Paar angesprochen. Sie erzählten uns, dass die Fähre angeblich völlig überbucht sei und Freunde keine Chance mehr gehabt hätten drauf zu kommen. Die Einweiser hatten sichtlich Mühe alle Fahrzeuge an Bord zu bekommen. Die Wagen standen so eng, dass dazwischen kaum ein durchkommen war. An Bord konnte man sich am leichtesten Platz verschaffen, in dem man sich mal geräuspert hat. Wenn jemand nieste, sah man überall erschreckte Gesichter. – Ich habe noch nie gesehen, dass auf einer Herrentoilette die Männer so brav ihre Hände gewaschen haben, wie heute. – Wenn dies nach der Krise so bleibt, top! 

When we get off the ferry in Denia, we are excited to see how things are going north. - We receive reports from various camper forums of campers heading north in convoys. - Because more and more places are closing. - Denia itself looks like a ghost town. And then, to our surprise, we discover on the highway that the road is relatively clear here too. There are mainly campers and trucks in the right-hand lane. But cars are in short supply today. - The warning signs „Coronavirus – Ausflüge vermeiden“ as well as „Du bleibst besser zu Hause“ are clearly having an effect. - We also think these measures are good. - As soon as we get home, we will go into voluntary home quarantine. - Certainly a measure not only for self-protection, but also for others. - So things are progressing much faster than expected.

On the way, we hear that Ibiza Airport is supposed to close tomorrow for two weeks. - We have no idea whether this is true. We don't hear much good news from friends in Murcia either. - But the mood on board is consistently positive. - Torgit says sarcastically that if we get caught, we will have done everything right. - That's probably true, we both agree. The last six months were simply priceless. The best winter of our lives. - We listen to various old playlists and sing along loudly at times. Thank goodness it doesn't ring out. Or to put it in Marius' words „Möcht wieder singen, nicht schön, sondern geil und laut“

We cross the Spanish-French border around half past eight in the evening. Contrary to our expectations, there are no restrictions here. - We leave the highway and head towards Ermitage Saint-Ferréol de Céret - 42°31'05.4″N 2°44'31.6″E. Just above the chapel, we find our spot for the night. 

But even now and here, the news does not stop. Due to the coronavirus crisis, French Prime Minister Philippe has announced massive restrictions from midnight. He is currently announcing the closure of public institutions.

Grocery stores, pharmacies and town halls are allowed to stay open - everything else has to close. - It remains exciting.

Nachtrag: Achtung, mit dem Grenzübertritt wechselt unser Blog in die Kategorie „Auf Kurs in Deutschland“! – Denn auch der Aufenthalt in Frankreich wird kürzer, als wir heute glauben.