We headed off fairly early and looked for a place to stop off en-route for a Spanish breakfast. Simancas fitted the bill nicely, with another beautiful castle and easy parking hear the main road!! We strolled down to the Plaza Mayor and had freshly cooked tortilla and coffee before wandering down to the bridge. We popped into the bakery on the way back for bread and cakes – ensaimadas this time.
The route was beautiful, with swathes of poppies and lots of vineyards. We filled up with diesel and got to Camping Riberduero in Peñafiel at about midday. It is in a beautiful, quiet location about 20 minutes walk from the town centre and 45 from the castle. It has electric hook-up and good facilities, including a restaurant on site.
We walked/ scrambled up to the castle.The castle overlooks the Duero and Duratón rivers. The castle’s origins dates back to the 10th century and its current appearance to the 15th century. It is visible for miles around.
In the south yard of the castle is a wine museum which overlooks the vineyards of the Ribera del Duero region. Its location is in the heart of the DO Ribera del Duero. (Denominación de Orígen = designation of origin, which is a guarantee of origin and quality of a wine) We had a look at the museum first ( in a feeble attempt to educate ourselves about wine!) and then joined a Spanish guided tour, which was worth it as you couldn’t get into the castle otherwise and there were brilliant views from the top over the surrounding countryside.
The walk back down the hill was much easier and we headed for Plaza del Coso which is a square that dates back to the Middle Ages and used to be primarily where bullfights took place. The houses have unique wooden decoration and the square still becomes the location for two public events each year, namely the Fiestas de Nuestra Señora (when there is still a bullfight) and the Bajada del Angel. (In Easter week) It was deathly quiet when we got there and there were also a lot of businesses which had shut down along the streets approaching it, giving a generally depressed feeling to the place.
We headed off in search of a bar as we both felt the need for a cold beer! Luckily the Plaza de España had a bit more of a buzz about it so we had a sit down and then bought a couple of local bottles of red wine in a nearby shop.
We then headed back to the campsite and had a simple dinner in the campsite restaurant.
Words of the day:
Bodega = winery
Denominación de Orígen = designation of origin, which is a guarantee of origin and quality of a wine and is also used for certain foods.
Thanks it all looks interesting but does nobody live there , the streets aren’t really packed was the wine good?
It was a bit sad as it was pretty empty and obviously quite a lot of poverty. I think these northern towns struggle. Just testing the wine…. Yes very nice
Gorgeous breakfast, beautiful poppies
Fab scenery, very different of course to Spring in England.
It is hard to take in-your information as it is packed full of interesting bits and pieces.
How can you type so much each day, it is overwhelming .