This is part of the sixteenth section of our
around the world trip.
Complete Trip Overview &
Map
Coming from France or read our previous visit to Spain
18/1/10 Gone are the French flatlands and as we
moved up onto the Spanish plateau snow again appeared roadside and
temperatures dropped, fog rolled in and by the time we stopped mid
afternoon, at Burgos, it was quite cold. Spain is a late country. The
sun rises late, and lunch is eaten late, so late that our arrival time
in the restaurant at 3pm was still an hour before lunchtime closing.
The evening
meal isn't eaten until 8 or 9pm. Menu del Dia, meal of the day, is a
great institution for a country with
a long lunch hour, usually from 2
to 5pm, and we enjoyed our first restaurant meal in a few days. In the
evening it was a wine and olives in a local tapas bar. Eating and
drinking out here are better value than in France and it was a great
start to the country.
19/1/10 Burgos to Salamanca,
just 250km's, we are
starting to slow down and look around. More open plateaux of
cultivated fields absorbing the morning's rain, and awaiting the spring
to yield a crop. Just settled into our inner city hostal and down came
the heavens again, a lucky end to the day. We are booking our next
day's
accommodation each day on www.booking.com. By choosing a town near our
expected destination, punching in a 30km radius, Booking.com lists the
cheapest accommodation in that area, and if suitable we pay on line,
the hotels usually have wi/fi, advise what is check in time, whether
there is
parking, so each day we head out knowing where and how much we will be
paying, too easy really. 
So far all accommodation has been between 32
and 40 euro a night for a double, averaging 36, not a bad price
considering that campgrounds are closed, and it is good quality
accommodation.
20/1/10 Stayed another night to check out the city
better and catch up on washing and jobs. The historical centre is just
five minutes from our accommodation. Its lively university and two
cathedrals had us occupied for a couple of hours and later it was a
visit to one of the many cafe bars that dot the city. Business seems
sluggish though, it being winter and Spain is having a difficult time
with the economic downturn.
21/1/10 With no fixed destination or time frame,
just a general direction, we checked the internet weather yesterday
before booking our cheap accommodation in Covilha, Portugal, just
200km's down the road, ain't the internet great, too great, too easy.