On our drive back from Granada, we decided to take a different route. We headed straight north into the traditional "Old Spain" of La Mancha. On the way, we drove for over an hour through olive groves and passed through the town of Jaén. According to our book, nearly 10% of the world's olive oil is produced in this area. The topography began to level out as we drove out of Andalucía into La Mancha and began to resemble the rolling plains between Sweetwater and Snyder, Texas.
The olive groves gave way to the vineyards of Valdepenas. Valdepenas is said to contain the largest
acreage of wine grapes of any D.O. in Europe but the wines are generally not too exciting. Our destination was the famous windmills of Don Quixote in central La Mancha. I've always been a big fan of the book and sometimes feel as if I'm following in the footsteps, however unintentionally, of the protagonist.
I'll have to say it was worth the drive. The windmills are spectacular and the views are lovely. We passed through a number of quaint small towns that most tourists would never see. I've always felt that the true soul of Spain lives in the rural areas. The windmills are in really good shape and it's possible to get a guided tour if you plan ahead. We picnicked in the shade of a windmill and continued east toward the province of Valencia.
By late afternoon, we reached Requena. Susan found a hotel in a guide book and it was very comfortable. There was a church nearby but they stopped ringing the bells at 11:00 p.m. I noticed that someone had shot the heads off of all the statues on the front of the church but I'm not sure if there is any connection. Our room looked out on a plaza and we had tapas for dinner in a café next door. We met an Irish gentleman who owns a bar in the Canary Islands and hope to visit there someday. It was just a four hour drive home the next day and we stopped for a light lunch at our favorite beach, Hospitalet d'Enfant.
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