Decided to leave Porto by 8am, which was 9am in our
Spanish destination of Salamanca where we were staying for the night. The drive
was uneventful but could sense we were gaining altitude. Got to Salamanca
around 1pm, driving through the town was no different in terms of dwellings,
high rise apartments on either side of the road with very few cars on the road,
siesta time. Found our accommodation within walking distance of the main
attractions without any hiccup, where we were warmly greeted by Rosa our
delightful host (and her pooch, Paco) who could not speak a word of English. We
got by with Ursi’s knowledge of Italian and the little Spanish that she has
picked up in Spain. We had full use of her lovely home and a private room all
to ourselves. She lived there with her son (who was at work), Pedro, a
delightful young man we met in the evening. Off we went to explore the old town; what a town it was,
It had a lovely square,
the usual cobbled stone pedestrian lanes full of
restaurants and shops sprinkled with some incredible monuments.
We even climbed
one, the tower of the cathedral. I managed to get up and down it but not
something that I like doing anymore; being in a confined space.
There was quite
a buzz in the old town with locals and tourists having a good time, in spite of
the freezing weather.
Even came across three touring cyclists and got talking
to them (as you do), this was the first day of their 600km ride; hope the
weather improves for them. We came to a point on late arvo, where we had had
enough of everything and needed our space so made our way back to Rosa’s home.
Just as well that we were walking as I can assure you that it was cold! Rosa
was out, had forgotten to ask her about where to grab dinner; since we were
hungry, went to the nearest café and it was disgusting. Don’t want to say
anymore than that. Lesson learnt, time to move on. Back at Rosa’s place we just
chilled, surfing the net as you do before going to sleep. One more thing, I am
now up to date with “This is Us” on Channel 10 and “The Good Fight” on SBS on
demand. Ursi is up to date on all the IView current affairs and some
Scandinavian thrillers on SBS. Where would be without wifi
J? About Salamanca, we really enjoyed the charm of the
place in spite of the weather; would love to come back here in a warmer climate.
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