Blogs from Castile & León, Spain, Europe - page 12

Well, we didn't get bedbugs, so I figure the blurred red marks on my sheet may have been an 'inconsistent ' part of the floral print pattern rather than stains; I hope! I slept pretty well and was on the road again at 6.45. The day was meant to be hot and it was, so it's better not to be wandering around in Spain in the heat of the day with no shade in sight. Today we walked for extended periods on tracks next to highways but I don't think it affect the peaceful nature of the walking and there were numerous villages to have a break at, or just pass through. Yesterday I rebought all the toiletries necessary as I thought l had left my toilet bag at Nájera. The bag was the only item ... read more

Ondertussen hebben we alweer de hitte van het binnenland rond Madrid verlaten en koelere oorden opgezocht, maar wat voorafging was ook zeker de moeite om te onthouden. Stilaan komen we in ons gekende ritme. 1 a 2 dagen ergens blijven en dan weer verder trekken, zou boekten we ook voor 3 nachten op een camping een 40km van hartje Madrid. Zo konden we de Madrileense pracht en praal ontdekken, maar evengoed de ruime omgeving van de Spaanse hoofdstad. Zaterdag rond de middag vertrokken we naar Madrid. Wegens de hitte en de welgekomen airco in de wagen, namen we deze maar in de hoop parkeerplaats te vinden om daarna al wandelend verder de stad te verkennen. Een plaatsje vinden was geen probleem, geld in de parkeerautomaat steken ook niet. Het juiste parkeerbewijs afdrukken was des te problematischer. ... read more

A friend and I day-tripped to Ponferrada last weekend. It’s over the border from Galicia in Castilla y Leon, but only around a 2-hour train ride from Ourense. The small city itself is along the most popular Camino de Santiago route, the French Route, and when we were there, I was surprised by the numbers of pilgrims. When I say ‘pilgrims’, you might imagine dirty people dressed in rags and leathery, almost-disintegrated shoes, but today’s pilgrims tend to be a cleaner-looking set, generally white, middle-aged people with traveling backpacks and walking sticks. Ponferrada seems to be heavily-reliant on the pilgrim-tourist trade, but not overly so. What was concerning is that we encountered more locals who seemed to be down-and-out. Ponferrada’s main attraction is a castle built by the Knights Templar. I’m still not entirely clear on ... read more

Wikipédia nous dit : l La vieille ville de Ségovie constitue un des ensembles artistiques et architecturaux les plus riches d'Espagne, dont la beauté est soulignée par la majesté du site sur lequel s'établit la ville : un promontoire rocheux faisant face à la Sierra de Guadarrama. La ville est sur la liste du patrimoine mondial de l'url=https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organisation_des_Nations_unies_pour_l%27%C3%A9ducation,_la_science_et_la_cultureUNESCO depuis1985. De l'époque romaine subsiste un aqueduc dont l'état de conservation est remarquable. Il s'agit de la construction de ce ty... read more

Remember there are more pictures after the end of the blog. In our hotel we see a sign in the elevator that says on Dec 24 and Jan 5 that the elevator is reserved for Santa Clause and the 3 Kings. Kings day here is the big day to give presents….. Nicky, Tim, Susan and I took off to grab a quick breakfast, get some money out of the ATM and find a present for Hector. I suggested a Smart Box. I love these and sure wish the states had them. You buy a type of book, like lodging, food, adventure…. And in it are a list of places all over Spain where you can get hotel nights, food or whatever the books says, for free. We bought an adventure book and a food book for ... read more