So, let me ask you... what do you think about Roman Villas???

Tuesday: The storm didn't last long and the power came back on. Yay. We had yummy Mexican food for lunch. Yayx2. It was nice all day, and then started to rain again. -(Yay).

Wednesday: Today though was a really awesome day. I got up and had some herba matte and my usual bread, then in an effort to not sit around all day Rebekah decided to organize a small daytrip to go check out some Roman Villas and Romanesque churches. (pretends he's his countryman Roman Polanski all rolled into one)

We headed out in the furganeta (misspelled Spanish for the kind of truck they have) and while we drove through rain and muddy roads I sat in the back reading my Europa Guide to see where I wanted to go in Greece and Italy. I also got carsick for the first time in my life. General queasiness, but I opened the window for some fresh air and felt almost immediately better. (Yay)^2

So we arrived at the museum for the first Roman Villa and it was closed! And it's been closed it seems since last summer. How odd. Things here in Spain move so slowly, regardless of how efficient the Romans themselves were!

So we carried on to San Pedro de Moarves where we found a church that wasn't bad, but slightly disappointing given we thought it was supposed to be much more wonderful. Realizing that it much be the next town, Moarves de Ojeda, we drove on and low and behold - wonderful Romanesque-ness! This church had a great arch and facade around the door - which was pretty groovy in and of itself - and inside was a great basin as well as several holy statuettes, including the widely adored St. Isidro. He's the man for farmers, let me tell you.

After the visit here we went on to a monestary that was tucked away off on a side road behind a bunch of poplars. Things were shut down while we were there so we were unable to check out the cloister - a map on the information board showed it to be a huge part, but sadly it was closed off - but we did wander around freely and alone for about a half an hour checking out the things we could see.

Next on our adventure we came to Herrera de Pisuerga where we thought we'd try and find some lunch. Parking the car and wandering around town in the drizzle, we found a pub, The Convent Garden - great decor, awful green lighting - and had a drink. Leaving town we accidentally came upon a restaurant called El Roble, which means "The Oak." We waited several moments for a server to clear a table, and had one of the best Menu del Dias I think I've had yet. Pallella with rabbit and a variety of seafood, followed by stewed rabbit, and a baked apple for dessert. The wine was excellent as well, and all for only 10.50 Euros!

We left Herrera and drove past where I left Carrion de los Condes while walking the Camino. It's odd seeing these places - also drove past some familiar locations on the way up to Oviedo and IKEA - now that I'm not a pilgrim anymore. It's almost surreal. Past Carrion, and just before Ledigos is this location where an ancient Roman Villa was discovered and protected. It's now open for tours, and for 2 Euros (if you're a senior or a student, 3 if you're not) you can walk along scaffolding above the ruins and marvel at the mosaics, underground heating system, baths, and former wall structures of a once grand mansion. Seeing it was truly remarkable. The mosaics were often huge wall to wall themed and extremely intricate designs. Each tile used, while only being about the size of a human finger nail, was brightly colored - red, blue, yellow, black, and white - and we were told that the color was completely natural; no pigment or paints were used on the works. I guess the materials were brought from multiple locations where they were able to excavate stones in these amazingly vibrant colors.

So that was damned spiffy. There was a certain energy, or vibe if you will, that you could feel walking around the place. I definitely got a very strong impression of the former inhabitants walking around on these beautiful floors. It was a little eerie.

After this stop we headed back to Moratinos, which it turns out, also according to the villa tour guide, is built around an original Roman road that runs across Palencia. "Cool-o Dool-o," as Rebekah would say.

It rained some more after we got back, and it'll probably continue to rain. But after a day like today, who cares. Here's to Roman Villas!

PS: I've finally planned the rest of my itinerary. Check it out in one of the boxes to the right.