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Monday, February 27, 2017

Really looking forward to this!

Yesterday, we drove about 38 kms (24 miles) north to the city of Osuna (pop 17,800). It had been recommended by our AirBnb host as a daytrip. We did some research on the internet, but it didn't appear to offer much of anything special. Still, we headed on up there to wander around.

We got there around lunchtime and parked at a grocery store on the outskirts of town. In Spain, the majority of stores are still closed on Sundays. So parking at a grocery store for a few hours is no problem at all.

Helen and Tony leave on Tuesday morning, and we wanted to have one last meal out together. So instead of having lunch in the motorhome together, we set out looking for somewhere to eat.

Walking into the center of town. 

Old church steeple.

Palacio de los Cepeda. Now the town's courthouse.

Osuna, Spain.

Not sure what this was about. They were obviously musicians. Nice socks!

We wandered up the the big the hill to one of the university buildings.

We're obviously getting all churched out. Not much ambition to go into any more churches. Unless we're looking for a toilet, and most of them don't have facilities. Speaking of which, some towns could sure learn something from the South Koreans, where public toilets are clean and available everywhere. We couldn't find any public toilets in Osuna, and the tourist office was closed. 

There was a fancy hotel just below the Church of Nuestra Senora. They usually have decent toilets!

And, they had a decent restaurant. We figured it would be above our price range, but we had a look at the menu it turned out to be pretty fair. We decided to eat there.

Hospederia del Monasterio.

We decided on the meat plate for four. We had a bit of a communication problem in that we were trying to ask if the meat plate came with potatoes or rice or veggies or anything. But we couldn't seem to get our point across. They even sent over a guy who spoke some English, but his English wasn't much better than our Spanish. Our Spanish is good enough that we don't normally have problems like this in a restaurant! Anyhow, we ended up ordering an extra plate of fries just in case.

Then, of course the meat plate came with potatoes buried under the meat. But, we still managed to finish it all up, other than three or four pieces of potato.

We were stuffed! That was a lot of meat!

The bill for the four of us was €43 ($61 CAD, $47 USD) including two beers, a glass of wine, and an orange juice. And tax and tip. Not bad!

We saw some commotion going on over near the top of a nearby hill. Tents were set up and there was obviously something going on, so we headed that way. Also, there was some kind of stone auditorium in that direction as well.

El Coto de las Cantaras.

El Coto de las Cantaras is actually an old stone quarry dating back before the Roman times. Now, there is a magnificent natural auditorium that is used for weddings, celebrations, and concerts. Unfortunately the gate was locked and all you could do was sneak a photo through the fence.

The event was some kind of mountain bike race.

The ruins of an old church.

The ceiling was still in not bad shape.

Ruth and Helen.

The bull ring in Osuna was used in a couple of episodes of Game of Thrones. 
Many of the townspeople were used as extras in the filming.

Street in Osuna.

Not a bad place, but nothing special. I guess after being to Setenil and Zahara, Osuna was a bit uninspiring.

Today, we're off to do the Caminito del Rey trail. Obviously we'll have lots of pics for you tomorrow. Really looking forward to this!

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12 comments:

  1. Looks like an interesting town to explore, not too touristy.

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    1. The town was just ok for us, it lacked the charm that the last few had!

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  2. Finding a restroom in many places is a pain. We are always pleased to see public restrooms in any town we visit. Not sure why all towns can't provide this facility for tourists and locals.

    You say nice socks...I say nice shoes...lol

    Not a bad price at all for all that food and drink. Much better than here in the US.

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    1. Generally speaking we definitely can find public washrooms in most of the small cities and big towns here in Europe which is nice. Yes, North America could learn a thing or two from the towns and cities here!

      Lots of food for sure and at a decent price but we think the prices are more expensive here for meals out than in the States for the most part.

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  3. I remember years ago traveling in France and knew that I wouldn't make it back to the Motorhome to the toilet and no toilet in the village. A little old lady standing in her doorway and I asked if I could use her toilet and I know that she didn't understand me but knew by the way I was pointing and holding my tummy that it was the toilet I wanted. She showed me in and I was very grateful...... lol

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    1. Too funny! I have to admit, if I had got desperate enough that thought had crossed my mind. :-)

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  4. It's funny how certain things pop out at you when looking at photos. The Coca-Cola sign. Admiring the wind vane on top of the church steeple - so neat! Not only the lots of meat & tatas plate but all the ketchup on those French fries!!!! Wishing Helen & Tony safe travels back home tomorrow. Great memories!!!!

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    1. I had to go back through the pictures to find the Coca-Cola sign, I hadn't even noticed it before.

      They have some really pretty weather vanes here. It's funny, that's something you don't see very much of in Canada or USA.

      The sauce on the french fries was actually called a spicy sauce (sorta like BBQ sauce), it wasn't too bad.

      We just dropped them off a the airport! :-( It was sad to say good-bye, we had a great time with them.

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  5. Wonderful day trip. The pics are fantastic and it looks like a place with a lot of history. I wonder what the confusion was with the food. You guys have done well with Spanish in Mexico although I know it varies from Spanish-speaking country to country.

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    1. Thanks Chris, we had a good day and a nice lunch despite the confusion. We can't figure it out, except that the guy just didn't seem to listen to us. We tried in Spanish and then we would try talking to us in his English (I think our Spanish was better than his English) and even then we couldn't get him to understand. We just shook our heads and went ahead and ordered a plate of potatoes and spicy sauce to go with it. He had mentioned that some grilled veggies came with the meat dish but didn't mention the potatoes. Oh well, life goes on. :-)

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  6. I absolutely love those wide shots of the towns all dressed in white. Each is a nicer shot than the last.

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    1. Thank you Barbara! The white towns here are certainly pretty and really stand out.

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