We went to Competa as one of our included trips. We drove down the Coast Road and turned toward the mountains. We quickly left improved roads and were on a narrow, winding road wending its way into the mountains. Climbing several thousand feet, we quickly realized the bus trip would be, to say the least, the most exciting part of the trip.

The road had been washed out in several places during the winter rains (which were very heavy) and it was with some consternation that we crossed those places. We finally arrived and the trip was truly worth it.

The first visit on the trip was to the Wine Museum. Now, I am not a wine drinker normally, but after the first glass, I had three more. At 75 pesetas a glass ( about 50 cents US) it was a real bargain. The grapes are grown there and they make their own wine.

After we left the Wine Museum, we visited some of the local shops and bought a set of wind chimes. We were surprised to find the owner of the shop speaking English. He was originally from Michigan who went there on vacation 20 years ago, and liked the place so much he never went home.

There was a Baptism going on in the local church and we "peeked in" and it seemed like the entire village was there. As usual, the Church was at the center of the town square and was also very beautiful.

Well, finally it was time to go back and we all got on the bus. We could not go back the same way we came in as the road was to narrow to allow two buses to pass each other. The turn the driver had to make was too tight, so he had to back up the bus to get a better angle. Now, we couldn't see where he was going when he was backing up, but could only see a severe drop to the valley below on either side of the bus - and then the bus stalled - we started rolling forward and it seemed we would go off the cliff in front of us, which we could see. One woman started to scream, and the guide in an attempt at levity, said "Don't worry, we've only lost two buses so far this year". The driver got the bus stopped and restarted the engine. He started to back up again (apparently going off the cliff in the other direction) and the screaming started anew. People were actually praying out loud. I stood up and looked out the rear window of the bus and what we couldn't see was an access road right behind the bus.

Well, we finally got back to the Hotel and there was a mad rush to the Cocktail Lounge. That was the subject of discussion for a few hours.