Salamanca!

Time to leave wine country on Thursday and head further South in Castile y Leon towards Salamanca. On the way, it was difficult to drive past Burgos, so we decided to stop for a visit.

Burgos is a beautiful city with trees lining the streets in the centre with many pedestrian areas. We walked through the magnificent cathedral and then found a cafe in the cathedral square for lunch. We could have spent much more time in Burgos, but Salamanca beckoned.

Hotel Alimeda Palace was a very pleasant surprise with its ornate foyer and beautifully decorated and spacioius rooms. All only a short walk to the old town and Plaza Mayor. We simply wandered around the attractive wide streets, filled with fashion stores, bars and restaurants; found our way again to Plaza Mayor and choose a good restaurant in the square for dinner. The light show was spectacular as the square lit up after dusk – around 9pm.

On Friday, after a breakfast of coffee and pastries, we caught a taxi to Torreón Ibérico for a guided tour of their jamon factory. This was a fantastic experience as our guide, Carmen, took us though the process of how the acorn fed pork becomes the amazing jamon and chorizo we tried at the end of the tour. This was a really worthwhile experience, but may spoil our future tasting of jamon that may not be the black label, 100% Ibérico we tried at Torreón.

In the afternoon, we walked back through the centre of town, past the magnificent cathedrals to the Museo Art Nouveau and Art Déco. The collection housed in the old three level house is unique. There is a huge collection of figurines made with bronze and ivory from the 1920’s and 30’s – obviously priceless; as well as ceramic statues and figurines, a doll collection from the early 1900’s and glass vases and lamps from the same period. No photos were allowed so I have copied some from their web site.