Esapana Part II: Zaragoza, Carinena and Fuendetodos

[CentralGrad258]

After starting our trip to Spain in Madrid, my girl and I took the high-speed train (AVE) to Zaragoza, for a 2 night visit before moving on to Barcelona.

We decided to stay in Zaragoza for several reasons. One reason was that it seemed to be off the beaten path, compared to the more well known cities/attractions. Another reason was that it was about halfway between Madrid and Barcelona. Coming from a city that is in the shadows of NYC and DC, I felt like I may be able to relate to this place. Anyway, Zaragoza is the capital of the Aragon province in central Spain. It has a population of around 700,000, a dense old town dating back to Roman times and a strong bullfighting culture. I thought it was a well made side trip.

Can I haz ur infrastructure?


Arrived in Zaragoza at the Nuestra de Senor Pilar, a magnificent church in the center of town, by the river that cuts the city in two:




Views of Zaragoza's main plaza:




I am guessing this is a big deal


Streets coming off the main plaza


Reaching the end of the plaza


Ruins of the wall that used to encircle the city


Some panorama-ish shots from an overlook in the tiny visitors center


The more modern side of town on the other side of the river




Looking back at the main plaza


The river seemed pretty calm. It's a dry region, so I'm guessing the width of the river tends to vary:


The promenade was quite nice


Down at water level


Yeah, I dug this bridge


Somewhat modest, but nice, no?


We kept calling this "the other side of town" never made it over, but looked lively, though somewhat marred by concrete apartment blocks:






Into old town we go:












Zaragoza's main theater:


Shade structure and street surrounding the Roman Theater






Inside the theater:






Some grit?


Some night shots of the temple:


Might've had a few at this point




Plaza De Espana at the edge of old town and the business district. The business district was surprisingly (to us) large, active and rather impressive. For some reason we were talking about Zaragoza as a town instead of a full-scale city. Getting out of old town set us straight:







View from the rental car:








Pedestrian promenade leading to the main plaza:


Golden hour baby!




Outdoor tapas and cheap alcohol. Good combo


Bullfighting ring. Just missed the start of the season. I was bummed:


View from our hotel balcony. That's it for Zaragoza

[CentralGrad258]

During our stay in Zaragoza we decided to rent a car and take a day trip to the wine country around Carinena. A word about driving in Spain. The freeways and country are absolutely fine. Driving in town is a whole separate story though. Not for the faint of heart:

Leaving Zaragoza:


Outskirts, not exactly suburbia as we know it


Arid landscape


Spanish army apparently uses Nissan Trucks


Windmills are a recurring theme


A little sidetrip to a windmill access road. No way would that be accessible in the States








Approaching Carinena


Wine tasting! Carinena is known for it full bodied reds, including a local varietal called....Carinena


Entering the town, population around 4,000




We got there right around the siesta, hence the empty streets. Siesta is no joke around there:


Density




Seriously, the place was practically a ghost town due to the siesta


Plaza de Espana/ City Hall








Vineyards outside of town. With Carinina dead due to the siesta, we decided to take a 20 km drive to Fundetodos, the birthplace of Francisco Goya




A town along the way


Aaand we're there


A bit of the village






And the museum:


That's it for our Zaragoza visit. Barcelona is all that's left, not that pics could ever do it justice.

[Lipani]

Nice tour! Hitting up a city like Zaragoza is definitely more exciting than a place like guiri-overloaded Benidorm.