DAY 8 SUNDAY, 11 JUNE 2017 bADAJOZ DAY 2 OF 3

DAY 8, 11 June 2017 Sunday BADAJOZ DAY 2 OF 3

On Saturday afternoon, Paul took a photo of the bride walking through reception hallway she said she was living in  Spain but her home was Cartwright, Indiana no less!! Mission accomplished for this trip. At least one (1) bride photo and at least one (1) rabbit meal for Paul. Next up that rabbit meal!!

I forgot to tell you about the bar where we had lunch yesterday in Aberquerque. It was in the corner of the square and I did not notice the name of it. I went in to the lady’s room and my jaw dropped! There was a dome and arches and panels it was amazing! When I came out I noticed the name, La Ermita. The bas/restaurant was housed in an old  hermitage. It looked very similar to the nunnery next to the Parador Lerma. The things you find when travelling!

At Sunday morning’s breakfast buffet  the NH dining room was abuzz with the horde of folks who were Saturday night guests an American family here for a wedding had a 3 year old red head dressed in red/black flamenco dress and shoes and she knew that she was cute her mother said that she had not taken it off since purchased, even sleeping in the dress!!!!

Bright and sunny at 0930 and forecasted to reach 104F this afternoon. Planning on an indoor museum day to keep cool. Good breakfast and then off to sort out the car to drive into the center of old town Badajoz, no chance to get Paul walking all the way into town, TWICE  on the same trip!!

Plaza de Espana is not the most remarkable of Plazas but pleasant enough it is  the second of 3 major plazas in Badajoz. Our aim was the Museo de Bellas Artes which was excellent! A lot of really good local artists and sculptors many of them prize winners. A good way to while away a couple of hours and escape the extreme heat. Then we headed up to the Plaza Alta which is next to Mooorish Alcazaba. Jane found her next museum with about 40 minutes to spare! It was approaching 2PM and as you know everything shuts down at 2 and the next day was Monday and most public buildings, museums are closed on Mondays. It was a race to beat the clock! I turned around triumphant…I had 40 minutes, it would be a quick dash through prehistory to Moors being driven but I could do it, …. Where the heck did Paul go? In the blink of an eye he had vanished! He never moves that fast!  I sent a snotty text and entered the museum. It really was quite remarkable. I started at the top with pre historic Visigoths, 4,000 years BC with  bronze age steles showing burial places of warriors who were interred with their sword or spear and oddly enough, un espejo, a mirror! Why, I asked myself? No one to ask so I must speculate they were either vain or used it to reflect sunlight to start fires. Now I couldn’t keep all of the dates straight so I kind researched a little and jotted some stuff down. Obviously it is not exact but here goes, 1^st the Visigoths and the bronze age, now where did they go? Not a clue but the Romans came barreling in, as they were wont to do, around 218 BC and left presumably after the fall of the Roman Empire and in the 8^th century came the Moors. They built the amazing Alcazaba and walls around the city and presided  over the Taifa de Badajoz. Alfonso XI of Leon captured the city from the Moors in 1230. The reconquista had begun. However war was not over for Badajoz because then they were warring with Portugal over border towns for several centuries. Many more battles followed, too many to recount here. What is my point in telling you this? I have several travel books and let me tell you, this area of Spain is sorely neglected. There are blank areas where, it seems no travel writer has been, or at least was not impressed, which is one of the reasons we decided to visit. You can tell that tourism has not spoiled this place, no touristy shops or little kiosks selling crap! Its history is fascinating, the Rio Guadiana is magnificent and the people delightful. I am glad we came.

Anyway, after my snotty text and phone call to Paul telling him I would meet him later I  closed the Provincial Archeological Museum after listening to a lady explaining to the museum guards how they restore mosaic floors. The dyes and stones and sometimes semi precious stones they use! Just great stuff! They locked the doors behind me!

I wandered down the stone steps to the Plaza Alta to find the hubs sitting at a table in the plaza. The place was empty but I think the extreme heat had something to do with that. Man, it was hot! Over 100 F so Paul was entitled to his beer, rehydration was definitely in order. Very few cafes open and no people. The Plaza is quite lovely and is obviously Moorish in design, with the red and white stone arches. Very pretty. We decided to eat there and enjoyed some amazing huge shrimp and steak. All the olives around here are outstanding.

After siesta, well deserved as we are rushing around like souls possessed, at least I am, Paul is mostly drink canas and waiting for me. He doesn’t seem to mind and so it goes! We drove towards the border, only 8K away looking for a dinner spot. We didn’t really want to go into the old quarter as it would have been unbearable with all those buildings absorbing the heat and found an area along the border road just short of the big hospital that had bar, after bar, restaurants,  more bars all in a row. Did some people watching and settled on a place to eat. This was obviously the neighborhood spot for bars and restaurants. I cannot remember what we ate, ( which is why we have to write these things promptly) but I bet Paul does (we each had a plate of pork, different cuts/type of port both with potatoes, we came to realize that given the portion size we could have easily shared just one dish, to late—but lesion learned! He never forgets a good meal or where he ate it!

We headed back to the hotel for a nightcap but the hotel bar was not open so we have to go up to the Casino but we need our passports to enter. Where are the passports, you may ask? In the safe in our room.  I volunteered to go back down and then up to the 4^th floor via the other bank of elevators. By this time I am seething, what a stupid system. Then Paul has to check his camera, which is fine but why didn’t they tell us before I went back to the room? I let loose a torrent of Spanish which I did not realize I had. I apologized afterwards of course and they were very sweet and forgiving. It was not their fault of course but the lack of service at the hotel. I don’t think I ever saw that damn bar open once. We decided to go in so Paul could have a cigar on the terraza and enjoy our nightcap. He played 10 Euros on a Stargate 1 2cent slot machine machine. That reminds me of how much I loved that show, I will have to see if I can find it somewhere! That 10 euros lasted an hour and it was so damn boring we couldn’t wait to lose it and leave. Not a lot of people in there but lots of dealers standing around with little to do.

Well that was a busy hot day, time for bed. Hasta manana!