picked up the N260, which passed by the Parque Nacional de Ordessa, we had the delightful experience of seeing some truly grandiose mountains and gorges, along with numerous tight hairpin bends to test our riding skills. El Pont de Suert is a small picturesque town similar to many in the foothills of the Pyrenees. Our hotel for the night was the Cotori, a small family owned hostelry set in a delightful little piazza. By comparison with the Tres Reyes it was rather rustic, but its charm more than compensated.
The next day, we continued our progress through the mountains, with their almost endless panoramic views and challenging roads, to the town of Manresa and a reunion with Graeme & Sally; and we were also joined by Paul & Sharon who had travelled from their home in Torrevieja / Villamartin near Alicante. Manresa is an unremarkable town in Catalonia, with an obvious industrial heritage, some 50 miles west of Barcelona. However, it does contain a majestic basilica set upon a hill and, after being sacked by French troops during the Napolionic invasion the town had to be completely rebuilt. Our hotel, the Turo de la Torre, which is more accurately designated as a‘ hostel’ is set on a hill behind a modern industrial estate. The rooms were of variable standards of comfort with the majority being best described as basic but adequate. By contrast the food was good and the hospitality was even better.
The day after our arrival, our group travelled into Barcelona by local taxi and started our visit in the traditional manner with a walk down Las Ramblas. It is a sobering thought, writing this article, that we were there only a fortnight before the terrorist attack. It just goes to prove that nowhere is immune and anyone can be in the wrong place at the wrong time. On the advice of those who had visited the city before, we boarded a tour bus, which over two routes provided a comprehensive overview of the main attractions. It enabled those on the bus the chance to identify which places they wanted to visit, and there was much we had wanted to see but did not have the time during our one day excursion. Our return journey to Manresa was something of a challenge as we had decided to go by train. With the assistance of a helpful hotel doorman we were directed to
a subterranean railway station in the centre of Barcelona. With the guidance of some of our fellow travellers we boarded a train that seemed to be going the right way, and after a change en route, we made it back.
With our confidence boosted by the success of that train journey, we decided to try our hand at a trip to the monastery at Montserrat. It proved to be a good choice as we were able to buy tickets for both the train and the cable car. It was very hot day and we were pleased not to have to don our biking gear. The monastery, which is most interesting both historically and architecturally, is perched on top of a mountain 4055ft above the valley floor with commanding views of the local countryside. The Benedictine monastery houses the statue of the Virgin of Montserrat( the Black Virgin) the most popular icon of veneration in Catalonia and, by Papal decree, is the formal patroness of the region. As was the case with Barcelona, we ran out of time to see all that we wanted of the points of interest on the mountain.
The following day, we departed on the longest leg of our planned tour of Spain with a ride to Madrid of some 350 miles. As the area we intended to cross is mostly flat and featureless, and with the heat beginning to rise daily, we opted for the motorway to cut down the travelling time. The temperature rose gradually on the journey and by the time we arrived at the outskirts of Madrid it was about 40 degrees, 102 degrees in old money. Not for the first time on the tour, the group were separated and Paul & Sharon ended up doing a two hour detour before arriving at our hotel. A problem caused by the fact that the co-ordinates set on the sat nav were for a remote field some 20 miles away from the hotel destination. I wonder how that happened!
The hotel H10 Tribeca is located on the edge of the city centre about a 10 minutes walk from the Real Madrid football stadium, which was on the city tour bus route. As with Barcelona, it provided a very useful introduction to the geography of Madrid and its principal places of interest. Having done one of the two routes, we changed buses at the stop outside the Madrid Hard
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