We headed on to our next stop at Covarrubias to what sounded from the reviews like a fairly dodgy campsite. There were some gorgeous countryside views on the way. When we arrived, we discovered it was so dodgy that it had shut!(1) We retraced our steps to a place that we could park for the night, which had an equally dodgy feel to it (2). We then crossed the river to an alternative parking point and hit the jackpot(3). This place was free to stay, right by the riverbank by a nice picnic area. with stepping stones all the way across and we had it entirely to ourselves.
As we headed back towards the river to visit the village, we saw a decorative cross which turned out to be the structure from which offenders would be hung in times past. This was the first of several gruesome tales, including various beheadings and the miracle detailed later in the church. As we crossed the bridge there was a cacophony of noise, which turned out to be mating( I assume) frogs. It is a very pretty place and very well kept.
We then went to see the main attraction in Covarrubias, which is the gothic Colegiata de San Cosme y Damian. The current church structure, dating back to 1474 houses a 17th century organ (Spain’s oldest still functioning church organ) and the tombs of Fernán González, the 10th century founder of Castile and of Christina of Norway who was the first wife of Felipe, son of Fernando 3. The 16th century cloister houses many works of art, including the famous triptych of the epiphany which mixes sculpture and painting and is estimated to date back to 1510. This triptych is attributed to ‘El maestro de Covarrubias’ as it is not know specifically who created it but the quality of workmanship reflects someone at the height of their profession. We also saw many other artworks. If you want to know why the man in the painting of the miracle has different coloured legs, you can find out here!! : https://www.bridgemanimages.com/en/noartistknown/title/notechnique/asset/345907
The village itself was very picturesque, with half-timbered houses and cobblestone squares. Some of the houses had letter boxes which were models of their house. We stopped for a coffee in a local bar which was a lot more buzzy and busy than the ones we had seen yesterday. It even sold good bread, which we had for lunch back by the river.
In the afternoon, we went for a walk straight from where we were parked along the route of El Cid (from the medieval epic poem ‘Cantar de mío Cid’) This is a tourist route which crosses eight Spanish provinces and is some 1,700km long. It was very picturesque with vines, hills in the distance, and paths flanked with poppies, cornflowers, wild, honeysuckle, dog, roses, and broom. The silence was broken only by the sound of cowbells or the occasional shot from the nearby hunting area!
We chilled in the van for a while and then went into the village again and had dinner in the main square. It was very nice because it was just us and a load of locals. Dave had morcilla (black pudding), which is supposed to be particularly good in this region and I had albóndigas (meatballs). We both had two glasses of wine, and the whole thing came to €30, which was really good value.
Words of the day:
Albóndigas = meatballs (one of my favourite words in Spanish! 😃)
Morcilla = black pudding (one of Dave’s favourite foods in Spain 😃)
Lovely flowers
Chubby Jesus — he died that we may not die ?
Lovely weather here today
Thanks
That explains it all… 😀