Alex and I went rafting on Sunday in the Pyrenees. Drove out on Saturday - post his big fat German hangover - in the little Smart car. Had a funny drive past Montserrat and then kept on heading west and north until we were completely lost following some dumb tour bus.

Montserrat?

Being idiots we decided that the tour bus must know where they were going so we ventured that direction for about 45 minutes in the rain. Happened by some amazingly beautiful resevoir before discovering that we were indeed lost. Ended up driving for about 4 hours to get to our destination - Sort - which oddly enough translates from Catalan to English as Luck.

Indian Summer Camp

Had a lovely little dinner and passed out in our hotel - Pessets.

Alex a la din din

Woke up early - 8.45 to pouring rain. The river that we were going to raft down was rampaging outside our hotel window and the wind was freezing. You can guess my enthusiasm at the prospect of getting into an icey river to paddle down some rapids. Yes, I was complaining just a wee bit….

Finally we found the tour group that we were with and were handed some slimey wetsuit that smelled of funky body odour. I was getting really excited at this point. Mmmn, all the things I love in life. Body odour, cold and wetness. Alex and I grabbed our seats at the front of the bus (why do nerds sit at the front?). We also noted that we were the only English speaking losers on board. The bus arrived upstream at our location and we all hopped off. By now I had resigned myself to the fact that I would be miserable and that I was decidedly not an “outdoorsy” girl. The groups were forming quickly and Alex and I were left standing like big dorks that had been chosen last for dodgeball. The instructors made us do some bizarre teambuilding activities that ended with Alex crawling under a pyramid of large men’s testicles dangling by his ears. I have to admit that things were getting a little bit better at this point. Did our quick drill of safety and learned that we would be paddling to the commands - ATRAS, DETRAS, BLAH BLAH. Took one final photo and we were off!

imagine me in that water!

Wow. The river was a colder bitch than even me during a bad bout of PMS! Hit our first rapid and we were bouncing around, screaming and laughing our asses off despite not being able to feel our fingers. Our instructor was a very nice guy that was Mr. Xtreme Sports who explained most things carefully to me in English. OK, the one thing that he missed was when he was asking the crew in Spanish if they wanted to capsize the boat. Everyone - including Alex who didn’t have a fucking clue what they were saying - screamed SI! Next thing I know my ass is floating down a polar river with a paddle in my hand. Fun factor back down to about 1 1/2! Ended up back on the boat and took in a few more rapids. The scenery was breathtaking complete with snowcapped hills and little furry forest creatures. Somewhere during the route I was kidnapped by another boat that held me hostage and then chucked me back into the river. Bastards or karma is the thing that I had to ponder at that moment…

Then, sadly, it was all over! No more rapids, no more freezing. By the end, my fingers were a scary shade of blue and I could no longer discern my feet from my ass. With all that said - it was actually - and against all Stephanie odds - a fantastic adventure that I would gladly do again. Maybe I am well on my way to being a “outdoorsy” girl afterall!

Turisnat
The rafting company we went with…

Fogony
Avda. Generalitat, 45
Tel. 973 62 12 25

Really great restaurant. The best in town. Had some wonderful starters, fantastic duck and beautifully served desserts. I wish it were in Barcelona!

Hotel Pessets
Diputacio, 3
Sort
Tel. 973 62 00 00

Our hotel - Cheap and cheeful. Actually a good bargain at only 33€ per person with breakfast. Cute little balcony.