Cambrils before the tourist season starts

    Cambrils, like Salou, has a great beach on the shores of the Mediterranean. During the summer months it is so crowded with tourists that my friends in Reus complain there is almost no room to put a towel down so they can catch a few rays. Unlike Salou - which is flooded with restaurants, gift shops and all manner of stores - Cambrils is a small place and it does not attract a lot of tourists during the cooler months. When I went there a few days ago, in fact, the mile-long beach, which is a couple of football fields wide at least, was empty. Out on the Med there were a few sailboats taking advantage of a strong breeze and the boardwalk was fairly busy with walkers, runners, skaters and a few folks on bicycles but the beach, with its vast expanse of cafe-au-lait sand, was as empty as the Sahara at high noon.
    I brought a book with me, as well as a notebook because I can't seem to break the habit of a lifetime, and spent a couple of hours reading and jotting down a few notes as well as a couple of haiku. I have no idea what use the notes will be but, as I said, it's a lifelong habit. Maybe one day they'll find their way into a novel... or not.
    I won't be spending any time there this summer because we're due to leave for New Zealand on June 15th but that's okay... I'll be back just after the tourists go home to London and Paris, Prague and Munich and, then, I'll have the boardwalk and the beach all to myself once again.