Leon, Spain Two-Day Stay - Saying Goodbye To A Good Friend In Avila

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We made a stopover in the small town of Avila. An excellent place for a day and a night.  We actually stayed on the outskirts of the village of Vicolozano.  The total population is 27 inhabitants.  The big attraction is the restaurant La Venta.  The owner also has the Airbnb we stayed at.  

We made a stopover in the small town of Avila. An excellent place for a day and a night.  We actually stayed on the outskirts of the village of Vicolozano.  The total population is 27 inhabitants.  The big attraction is the restaurant La Venta.  The owner also has the Airbnb where we stayed.

The big attraction is this old school from the 1800s but nobody really knows much about it.  We arrived around 2 p.m. and the heatwave in Spain was slowly drawing to a close.  It was 39C when we arrived at and a chilly 16C in the morning before heading to the Madrid airport to turn in the car.

After relaxing for a while, we headed across the road to the restaurant.  We had purposely run out of food.  Once we were back in Madrid we would no longer need a cooler so we finished what we had for breakfast.  A wonderful egg and cheese omelet in a croissant.  Just as we arrived and ordered a glass of wine, we got a message from Kevin, Ruth and Cameron asking if we were up for a video chat.  We were, it's always good to be in touch with them.  They're having a blast with their grandson Cameron who is there for a short summer vacation visit.

With no more food in the cooler, we decided to say goodbye to our friend Neverita!  This is a picture of her as we left the apartment in Vicolozano.  She was good to us providing us with three weeks of storage and good eats in the car and most of our meals.   She'll be missed but I'm sure she will find her way into someone else's car!

Before heading to Vicolozano we had a two-night stay in Leon.  We did see some interesting things and Juan took me out for my birthday on the 22nd.  We had a great dinner at a rooftop restaurant overlooking the city.  As we came into the restaurant a waiter said to take a seat wherever we wanted.  Then, Suzy sad pants came along and said if we had no reservation we couldn't have dinner.   We were allowed on the outside rooftop for drinks.  That waiter knows how to pour vodka.  In fact, I babied that glass for the two and a half hours we were there.  It was huge.  Juan snuck back inside to ask just in case there was a reservation and lo and behold we had a great table.  Service was very good and Suzy changed her attitude.

The next day we took a tour of the city.  Of course we had to visit the church and museum.  What a fantastic place.  We walked 15,543 steps that day, down along the river and to the center of town.  The Monastery San Marcos has a museum that contains stone sarcophagi and headstones from over 1000 years ago.  They have information on each one included in Latin, Spanish, and English.  

The monastery/convent was used as a weigh station and hospital for those walking on the Camino a Santiago.  The original structure was considered unsafe and was demolished and rebuilt in 1514 by King Ferdinand but the new construction took place under Charles I.  The walk began after the discovery of Apostle Santiago Mayor's tomb in 813.  A sad and disturbing part of the museum is that the monastery was used during the Spanish Civil War in 1939 to house political prisoners and pretty much was nothing more than a concentration camp.  The photos from that time are much like those we see from the Holocaust.   

I had a feeling he was pointing at me so I just kept walking.  I did look back on several occasions.

Grand staircase going up to the hospital and hostel rooms.  It's not available for viewing.

The main chapel with a statue of the bishop praying before the altar.

Leon Museum of Art.  I was pooped out on museums.   We did go to the main cathedral but they were charging 14 Euros for seniors.  Way too much and at this point pretty much finished with museums although I am sure in Madrid we will go to the El Prado.  That museum is worth the price.

This section of town is known as el Bario Humedo or the Wet Neighborhood because of all the taverns and outdoor cafes that line the streets.  As you can see, it was lunch hour so again, everything shuts down from 1 p.m. to 4 or 5 p.m. depending on the establishment.  Truly amazing that it is still a strong tradition.   In the two pictures below you can see the before lunch and during lunch.  Imagine at night what the place must be like!

The Casa Botines Gaudí Museum.  Built by and named after the famous Spanish architect Antoni Gaudí. 

We really enjoy being out during lunch hours.  No one on the streets and very little traffic.

Rotundas are very common in Spain and very few street lights.  It makes for easy driving.  I took this picture after our dinner out.  It was about 10:30 at night.  Spain is a very safe country.  I'm not sure that I stated it in the last post but the murder rate in Spain is .63 to 100,000 versus Mexico at 26.6 per 100,000.

There are so many differences between what we have seen in Spain versus my trips to Mexico, Central and South America.  I will be doing a short blog on those after we return home.