Europe 2026 - Forte Luiza and the amazingly beautiful Salamanca

Tuesday 7^th April

A nice quiet night, which is always a bonus when we are parked in a car park!

We walked up to Fort Santa Lúzia which was just a hop, skip and a jump from Kiwi.  It cost us €1.50 each and was completely dog friendly!  

First, we walked the walls and were fascinated by the amount of ant armies trudging to work and home again. It seemed quite appropriate in a fort!

The fort was born out of necessity during the Portuguese Restoration War (1640–1668), a conflict where Portugal fought to regain independence from Spanish rule.  It was built using the Dutch system of fortification, characterized by its "star" shape. This layout allowed defenders to have a 360-degree field of fire and eliminated "blind spots" where enemies could hide.  The fort was considered defensible by 1644 and fully completed in 1648.  There were a series of tunnels and a "covered way" originally linked the fort to the main city of Elvas, allowing for the secret movement of troops and supplies.  It housed two massive water tanks and barracks that could support up to 400 men for several months without external help. 

The fort saw a few battles but the most legendary moment came during the Siege of Elvas in late 1658.  Spanish forces, led by Don Luis de Haro, surrounded Elvas and Fort Santa Luzia. Despite being cut off, the fort's garrison offered heroic resistance for months.  On January 14, 1659, a Portuguese relief army arrived. The resulting "Battle of the Lines of Elvas" was a decisive Portuguese victory that forced the Spanish to retreat and proved that the bastioned defences were nearly impregnable.

We left Elvas and headed north again.  Our drive was through farmland and cork trees with animals grazing in the fields, before finding mountains.

I had set the Mrs Google to take us to Portelegre where I hoped  there was somewhere we could top up our lpg. The first place wasn’t even a petrol station, it was a Campus Dormitory!  The second one was self service and we couldn’t work out how to pay for any gas!  The next one wouldn’t serve motorhomes!  We will have to try again tomorrow.

Our stop for the night was a private aire just north of Castelo Branco.  I had messaged earlier to make sure there was a space. We got a very warm welcome from Eric (a Frenchman) who showed us to our pitch.  There are just seven pitches all with electricity which was very useful.

I asked Eric if it had rained a lot as we found wet roads but no rain. He went to a little hollow and picked up a handful of large hail stones. He said an hour before everywhere was white!  We did get some rain later.


Wednesday 8^th April

I'm afraid that there aren't many of today's photos and they aren't good!

The weather forecast for the day was not good, so we changed our plans and decided to head to Salamanca.  Sightseeing in the rain didn’t appeal to us at all.  We were all ready to leave but the engine wouldn’t start. I double and triple checked the immobiliser, but Kiwi wasn’t having any of it.  The battery must be flat. With no jump leads on board (they are now on the list for when we are home!) I walked up to see our host, Eric, who rang the local mechanic. 5 minutes later the said man arrived. The battery was not flat, so what was it?  I rang the immobiliser company who were extremely helpful and sorted the problem out. Apparently, it was something to do with a bad internet signal - we don’t really understand but the lady remotely sorted the problem out and we were off.

We needed to continue the search for lpg, and also get diesel and Portuguese supermarket goodies, as we were leaving Portugal 😢

We finally got some lpg having had to turn around because of a road closure in the middle of town.  The diesel there was €2.20 so we moved on to an Intermarche where it was only €1.89 (£1.64) - the cheapest we had paid since March 15th. I also got my wine (Vino Verde), cheese and sauce packs.  Thank you Fundao for having everything we needed 🤗

It was a long drive to Salamanca, 135 miles. It was motorway all the way which was good though it did keep raining.  Last year I commented, when we crossed the Portuguese/Spanish border, how the Spanish road surface wasn't as good as Portugal's - it was the same today.  We also lost an hour as we crossed the border.

We arrived at our aire but the barrier wouldn't go up, we pulled forward then back so that the camera could see the registration plate, but nothing happened.  Eventually I rang the emergency phone number, and a man suddenly appeared.  He asked to see my booking confirmation, that's when I realised I had made another cockup!  There are two aires in Salamanca and I had booked the wrong one!  I had gone between each one earlier making sure it was the correct one - only it wasn't!  I was so cross with myself.

We headed off to find the right aire and the barrier lifted as soon as we drove up.


Thursday 9^th April

I am so cross that I booked the wrong site. The other one was in a much nicer location, by a river and also wasn’t near a motorway with traffic noise ☹️

We set off on foot to get the bus into Salamanca. We found, what we thought was the bus stop but no bus came so we walked to the main road and then saw the bus going past the stop, it was about 15 minutes late.   We walked back to the stop and waited for the next one - they only run once an hour!

Once in Salamanca we walked to the Plaza Mayor, another wow moment for me!   The square is widely considered one of the most beautiful and grandest squares in Spain. Built between 1729 and 1755 in the 18th century Baroque style. It was originally intended to be used as a bullring, a function it served until the mid 19th century. The square is famous for its "Golden Stone" (Piedra de Villamayor), which gives the buildings a warm, glowing hue, especially at sunset.  The square is an irregular quadrilateral, meaning no two sides are exactly the same length, which adds to its unique architectural character. (Richard asked me if we had a tape measure in the rucksack!). The Royal Pavilion on the eastern side, was the first part to be built and features a bust of King Philip V, who granted permission for the square's construction.  The Ayuntamiento (City Hall) is on the northern side, this building was designed by Andrés García de Quiñones and stands out with its ornate facade and five granite arches.  We had lunch at one of the many restaurants surrounding the square, we chose it as it was in the sun as did most people.  It was busy but everything was very efficient and the food was good.

We then went to find the public library which is famous for its facade which is decorated with over 300 shells, the symbol of the military Order of Santiago, and the coats of arms of the Maldonado and Pimentel families.  It was built between 1493 and 1517, and after centuries of use as a private palace and later a prison, it underwent extensive restoration in the late 20th century to open as a state-owned public library in 1993. 

I went into the cathedral while Richard and Rio waited outside at a local bar!  This was another wow moment for me and I hope you like my photos.  The cathedral is unique because it technically has two cathedrals that are joined together: the Old Cathedral (Catedral Vieja) and the New Cathedral (Catedral Nueva). Instead of tearing down the older building to make room for the new one, they were built side-by-side, sharing a wall. The old cathedral was built between 1140–1236 with the new one being built between 1513–1733.  By the late 15th century, the Old Cathedral was considered too small and "out of fashion" for a city as important as Salamanca. The original plan was to demolish the Old Cathedral once the new one was finished, but since construction took over 200 years, the "Old" one remained in use and was eventually preserved as a historical treasure.  The choir stalls are a masterpiece of the Churrigueresque style (an ornate, late-Spanish Baroque). Primarily designed by Joaquín de Churriguera in 1727, and carved between 1730 and 1740 from walnut wood - these were another wow moment. There are two tiers of seating (high and low). The backs of the stalls are intricately carved with reliefs of saints, apostles, and local religious figures.  The "misericords" (the small wooden shelves on the underside of folding seats) often feature whimsical or grotesque carvings intended to support monks during long standing services. 

We missed out the Puente Romano de Salamanca, a Roman bridge.  We got fairly close but the road was just too steep for our knees!  The bridge was originally constructed in the 1st century AD, likely during the reigns of Emperors Augustus or Vespasian.

The Convent of San Esteban is a Dominican monastery which is open daily though I didn’t realise it, until now as I write the blog.  As it is an active monastery I thought it would be closed.  At least I took photos of the outside.

We found our way back to the bus stop, which was an improvement on the morning and didn’t have to wait long for our bus.  However, we missed the stop we were supposed to get off at!  I didn’t worry as the bus went to the end of the line, turned round and went back the same way.  We managed to get off at the right stop on the return journey and walked the 5 minutes back to the aire.

All three of us were shattered, Rio more so and he slept all evening.

Salamanca had been on my bucket list since I was around 17.  My father had a curtain making company and the design name of my bedroom curtains was Salamanca!  The curtains were basically orange and I had a wall painted orange too.  Strangely enough my son-in-law’s favourite colour is orange and I’m sure he will never believe that it was mine once! 

If you haven't been to Salamanca, then do put it on your bucket list - you won't be disappointed!

Europe 2026 - A Canal, a Birthday, a Hanging House and a Rock Hugging Tower

Friday 10^th April 

I got it right today!!

I bought some postcards in Salamanca yesterday. I asked where I could get stamps and was told at a tobacconist. We didn’t see one. I found a Correos (Post Office) 5 minutes from the site, so off we trundled. I had to wait while two ladies either taxed their cars or similar. When it was my turn I was told they don’t sell stamps and I would need to go into Salamanca to get some!! 

It was motorway almost all the way to Villamuriel de Cerrato. I managed to find a Carrefour supermarket which was just off the motorway at Valladolid. I could see on Google maps that one entrance had a height barrier but the entrance at the other end of the car park didn’t.  That doesn’t make sense to me, the car park either welcomes vehicles over 2.3 metres, or it doesn’t 🤔

We came off the motorway and were going round a roundabout when we saw a man lying in the road tangled up with an e-scooter!  I had seen him as we approached the roundabout and wondered what on earth he was doing on such a main road.  He got up and as nobody seemed very bothered about him, we drove on!

We found our aire, a concreted area on the edge of the town - it even had FREE electricity 🥳. We parked at the far end with our door opening onto a large grassy space - Rio couldn’t believe his luck and enjoyed some zoomies. He hadn’t had a good run around for a couple of days. He walked 3 miles yesterday in Salamanca, but it’s not quite the same for a little dog!!

We walked to the Canal de Castilla which was only about 300 yards from our aire.  It was about 28 degrees and hot!  We walked alongside the canal until we reached Lock 33 which only appears to have one set of gates. There is a derelict building beside the lock which used to be a flour mill which was strategically placed to use the water drop at the lock to turn massive turbines or millstones, providing a reliable energy source that didn't depend on the wind.

We walked back through the town so we could take advantage of the shade from the buildings.  The town has a lovely church, the Church of Santa María la Mayor, which is a stunning 13th century monument that blends Romanesque and Gothic styles. Originally associated with the Order of the Temple (Knights Templar) and later serving as a summer residence for the bishops of Palencia. 

You can see from these photos how the trees alongside the road are holding hands.  It’s really sweet and clever.

It was a fairly hot evening and night.


Saturday 11th April

My birthday 🎂 🍾🥳

I started the day with croissants 🥐 in bed and I didn’t drop any crumbs!  I had birthday video calls with both Robert (+Laura and Bobby) and Victoria. I’m not sure what time I got up but we didn’t leave until 11.45!

The saga of the stamps continued!  I found a Tabac and, yes, they did sell stamps but only for inside Spain. I would need to go to, wait for it, a Correos and they were closed on a Saturday! 

It was mainly motorway all the way to Frias which we drove in the dry, then we turned off and started to climb up into the Montes Obarenes Natural Park which, Jem told me, is a massive natural wall between the Cantabrian Mountains and the Ebro Valley. There should have been some lovely views, but the weather deteriorated and we couldn’t see very much. We passed some pretty spectacular rock formations.

Our aire for the night was a Campingcar Park, a French company who seem to be expanding into Spain. I like them as you can book and have to have either a membership card or a code number to enter. This one cost €6 (£5.23). For that you got services but no electric. The bonus was the view of Frias 😃

Frias, despite its tiny population (usually hovering around 300 residents), holds the title of city. King John II of Castile granted it this status in 1435 because of its strategic importance.  It holds the title of the smallest city in Spain, and in Spain, once you are a "City," you stay a city, regardless of how many people leave. Most places with 300 residents would be called a village.

From our aire my eyes were drawn to the hanging houses then suddenly I saw the Castillo de los Velasco.

The Casas Colgadas (hanging houses)are built right into the cliffside, maximizing every inch of the rocky terrain.  They largely date back to the 12th to 15th centuries.  Most of the houses in the historic centre are very narrow and have four or five floors but each floor might only be about 450 square feet.

The Castillo de los Velasco is a 10th-century castle perched precariously on a rock formation called La Muela, a jagged rock needle. It looks like it’s balancing precariously over the town. Because of its fragile foundation, parts of it have actually collapsed three times in history—most recently in 1830, killing several people in the houses below.  While its roots go back to the 9th century defensive lines against the Moors, the current stone structure was mostly built in the 12th and 13th centuries.  It is one of the most striking castles in Spain due to its daring architecture.

It rained almost all of the afternoon, but we donned our raincoats and went for a walk.   Richard’s knees wouldn’t take him up to the castle, but we walked through the “lower” village and kept looking up!  The perspective of the tower kept changing and at one point I felt that the rock looked like it was hugging it.

Richard offered to cook dinner, but as I had planned macaroni cheese, I ended up doing it!

When Richard took Rio out for his final wee, he saw that the town was lit up. It looked stunning.


Sunday 12th April

We were up early and away by 9.20am. We said goodbye to Frias, but we will be back, there is so much more to see.

We had a lovely drive alongside the Embalse de Sobrón (The "Gorge" Lake) is a long, narrow reservoir created by a dam where the Ebro has carved a massive canyon through the mountains.  At one point we were in and out of short tunnels which had been blasted out of the rock. It was almost a wow moment but not quite. I think if the sun had been shining then it would have been a full wow! 

We entered the village of Salinas de Anana where we saw an extraordinary sight. Richard thought it might be a large archaeological site, but Jem told me it was one of the world's oldest salt factories, where salt has been produced continuously for over 6,500 years using traditional evaporation methods. The site features a complex system of wooden channels and thousands of evaporation platforms (eras) built on stone and wood stilts to harvest "white gold" from natural brine springs. Añana Salt which is produced here is highly regarded by world-renowned chefs for its purity and mineral content.

We suddenly realised that we must be in the Basque region as the road signs were in Spanish and, what we realised was, Euskara (Basque).  It is one of the most fascinating languages in the world because it is a language isolate. This means it has no known linguistic connection to any other living language (like Spanish, French, or English). It existed in the region long before Indo-European languages arrived and is the oldest language in Europe.

One of the reasons for leaving early this morning was to try and get a space in an aire in Pamplona that had electricity.  We arrived about 11.30am to find that at least half the spaces were empty, so we chose our spot and moored up.  By 2.30pm all 33 spaces were taken.  I guess though, that I shouldn’t be surprised as €10 (£8.72) a night with electricity in the middle of Pamplona, is bound to be popular.

We took Rio for a walk in a park opposite where there was an off lead area.  We couldn't quite understand though, why there was a children's play area where off lead dogs go.  Then, the lightbulb moment when we realised it was a dog agility area!!  Rio was not impressed but managed to go up a ramp, jump 30 centimetres but when the see saw banged he wasn't having.  I don't think he will be at Crufts this year - or in fact any year!