Vicki talking from Spain...
Set off after breakfast to look at a couple of towns, one being an old medieval one with a castle. Jeff loves castles. We think we saw at least one inhabitant lurking in the shadows. A big change from the city life we have been used to. Also, found a monastery built in 1524 which still has seven nuns living there. The church had great acoustics.
However, today was all about exploring La Rioja wine country. Jeff was quite disappointed in the way they provide for tourists wanting to experience the wines of the region. In my view, the Spanish are not maximizing their opportunities that tourism should provide. You mostly have to book ahead for a wine tour of a winery which costs a lot and takes a long time and yet only provides a tasting of one two of their wines. It is that, or you have to purchase a full glass of wine. This, of course, only works if you can find any of them open.
The Spanish businesses are often closed during the main part of each day. However, we did find one that provided a selection of several wines but then left you to it with the tasting notes. One thing we did realize is that there are a lot of wineries (Bodegas) and some very large ones. So, we spent a lot of time trying to find wineries that we could taste at, but little testing going on.
Did call into a hotel and winery that was designed by Frank Gehry - the same bloke who designed the Guggenheim in Bilbao. You can see the similarities.
Dinner was Jeff and Diane's treat from Maria, our hostess. She did very well and even provided a birthday cake. The duck was especially delicious.
More delights from La Rioja...
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