Points mean prizes!

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We are currently enjoying being jammy and cheapskates whilst relaxing in 5* luxury! It is still raining in case you are thinking we are getting everything our own way.

Last year when we did our 2 week holiday to Spain we stayed in quite a few Paradores (luxury state run hotels that tend to be in historic buildings such as castles and the like). We became Friends of the Paradores as it meant free parking and more importantly a free glass of wine when we arrived at each Paradore. We also collected Paradore points. Due to various bits of luck such as collecting triple points a lot of the time and being able to cash in our points when you only needed half the number of points, we have managed to get a night in a 5* hotel. Not only that we got free valet parking and a glass of wine and lots of free nibbles! Our car kind of gave us away and made it clear that we are not usually 5* clientèle! Unsurprisingly we seemed to have the only citreon C2 in a mass of Mercedes and BMWs.

We are in Santiago de Compostela which as well as being a lovely Spanish city it is also an important pilgrimage site. It is at the end of the Camino de Santiago de Compostela which is collection of old pilgrimage routes that cover all of Europe. The most well known one is a 780km trek which starts in the Pyrenees (French side). A surprising number of people walk this and there is a constant trickle of pilgrims arriving in the main square. Our hotel, Hostal de los Reyes Catolicos, was originally built as a hostel and hospital for the visiting pilgrims.

We spent our time wandering around and sheltering from the rain. There is good reason that this bit of Spain is so green. Unlike all the other Spanish churches and cathedrals that we have visited over the years, the one here is unusual as there is moss growing all over it.

Whilst we were here we had some interesting food including pulpo which is octopus! It is a very popular dish here. It was good although I could not bring myself to eat the suckers! We also ate queso de tetilla which translates as breast cheese or nipple cheese! It gets its name from its characteristic shape.

Santiago de Compostela was the last stop on this whistle stop tour of Northern Spain. I am sure we will be back to Spain soon as we like it so much.

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