Zafra

October 26, 2013

Sleeping over in a museum

The rains ended in the night, and we awoke to a bit of fog. Better than rain for sightseeing though, so after breakfast we went on a short walking tour of the neighborhood before departing for Zafra. We found it much more attractive and interesting today (odd how that works) and wished we had more time to spare. This was one of the times it would have been nice to have a looser itinerary. The highlight of this stroll was encountering another pair of storks, our first since Faro. Beautiful, dramatic birds, and great fun to watch and listen to the clatter of their beaks.

A bit later, packed up and ready to wheel off from our hotel, I was alarmed to hear a serious creaking noise in my bike. We worked a bit at locating the source, finally concluding that it was in the hub of the front wheel, which did have some play in it. We were fortunate to be only a few blocks from the information center; not fortunate that they spoke no English there; fortunate that they understood me enough to map out the route to a nearby bike store; very fortunate that this was Saturday AM and shops weren't closed for the weekend yet; not fortunate that they spoke no English at the bike shop either, but then the wheel spoke for itself. And, most fortunate of all, they agreed to take it in even though they don't do repairs on Saturdays, and did a great job. They had to tear the hub apart and replace several shot bearings.

On the road again with a very healthy sounding wheel, and amazed at the continued good luck we have experienced so far, we headed off for Zafra. Since we didn't leave town until about 1PM, we shortened the day's route a bit and took a fairly direct route south to make up some time.

We began the day's ride by crossing the remarkable Roman bridge over the Guadiana (here we are on that river again!). It is really a massive affair, having 60 arches. At about a half mile long, it is the longest bridge to have survived since ancient times. It remains in great condition, and does service as a very dramatic foot and cycle pathway.

From the west side of the bridge we picked up the N360, the same national highway we rode into town on yesterday. This looks like it must have been the main north-south connector only a few years back, but has been made redundant by the new freeway. Now it is almost totally unused and feels more like a 60' wide cycle path. It's not the most scenic option, but a great one for making good time. We followed it to the pretty town of Almandrelejo, where we stopped for lunch and were delighted to find a decent creperie. It made a nice change of pace to our usual lunch fare.

After lunch we left the highway for a quieter route, first to Fuente del Maestre, then veering unnecessarily westward to around Feria (navigation error), and then eastward again to Zafra, rolling in about 6. This leg of the ride passed through beautiful countryside - rolling hills, vineyards, with the hint of mountainous country appearing on the horizon. With a full week of sunny, 65 degree days ahead, we anticipate a string of wonderful day rides ahead. At one point we stopped in wonder to watch a cloud of about 100 huge vultures circle the sky above us.

Zafra, another place I'd never heard of before planning this trip, is yet another wonderful, small historical city rich in history and character. At its center is one of the most charming central squares I can recall. It was filled with people enjoying the end of the day, and very animated - children running and playing everywhere, boys swinging Tarzan-like on the low-hanging fronds of a palm tree. The plaza didn't fully quiesce until about 3 AM. At one memorable point, there must have been a score in a soccer game because the square erupted in a spontaneous cheer, the children all raced for the nearest TV, and a man surfaced right beside me, apologized sheepishly, and then let off a blast from an air horn.

Tonight we splurged a bit and stayed in Hotel de Los Balcones, on the central square. It is a real museum piece, and a wonderfully evocative place - especially because the host speaks some halting English and seems to view himself as a curator. He explained the deep history of the place to us and gave a brief tour. It's about 2000 years old, and was originally a Roman villa - a few of the original columns still stand. Later, it became a pilgimage waystop on the route to Santiago. It has some history with royalty connections that I didn't quite understand, and until a few years ago the 2nd floor was the huge, ornate, spectacularly furnished dwelling of some dignitary. Since then it has been sealed off and kept more or less as a museum. Our room, on the top floor, has a large balcony overlooking the plaza, and was used in the past for viewing bullfights directly below.

And if that wasn't enough for the day, dinner was awesome - maybe the best of the tour. Rachael had this amazing helping of delicious tuna, and I had a wonderful chicken/raisin dish.

Fine weather, beautiful town, good company, great meal, healthy wheels. Life is good.

Elevation log: 2500 today, 28,500 total.