Albarracín is said to be the most beautiful village in Spain.
From google map, it says driving from Montserrat to #albarracin is 444 km, takes 4 hours 24 minutes. Today, I slept well. I came down to have a dry breakfast, coffee, bread in Spanish style, then went to check out and return the room key, brought my stuff to the car, and wrestled with the new Navigator. This time, I started to understand more. I checked with google map on my phone to make sure that I didn't set it wrong. I left around 09:00.
Both sides of the road were dry, almost like a desert. The road was 2 lanes, running in opposite directions, but there weren't many cars, mostly large trucks. I wasn't in a hurry, so I just followed the truck until it turned away by itself. I didn't stop to eat anywhere. I drove on. When I was hungry, I ate fried meat that I had prepared from Thailand, bread, candy, and lots of snacks. When I got close to Albarracin, there were trees, houses, and a canal along the road. The way up to the hotel was a narrow road up a steep mountain. There was a parking lot in front of the hotel. There was just one empty space. It was a hotel that was converted from an old house. From the outside, the hotel should have about 2 floors. I walked into the hotel and didn't see anyone. I saw only a sign in Spanish. I guessed that it was a number to call the owner. So I tried calling. A man answered the phone immediately. But we couldn't understand each other because he didn't speak English. He hung up. This time I tried calling from my mobile phone to the number provided in the booking app. It was the same person who answered again. We couldn't understand each other. So I went out to find someone to help. I saw tourists walking by. I went to talk to them. Asking for help. Many people passed by. No one spoke English. Until one person spoke a little English. I asked him to talk to the person who answered the phone. After he talked, he told me to wait. He said that someone would come to pick up. He was also waiting. After a while, someone came. The interpreter told me to follow him. He would take me to get the key. So I thanked him. And followed him inside. Take the elevator down to the 1st floor. It turned out that the floor I parked in front of the hotel was the 3rd floor. The hotel has a restaurant on the ground floor. And the reception in front of the hotel also has a tour bus parking lot. He called a female staff who could speak English to help. She told me that I had to move my car to the public parking lot downstairs. Or I could park in the hotel's paid parking lot. I didn't have to pay. But it looked quite far from the hotel. The parking lot I parked on the 3rd floor is a private parking lot. No public parking is allowed. Then he took me to a room on the same floor as the parking lot. I moved my bags to the room. Then move the car to park in a public parking lot not too far away.
After everything was done, I went to find the restaurant that the staff recommended. I was starting to get hungry. There was a sign in front of the restaurant saying it was a recommended restaurant. When I went in, I could hardly find an empty seat, even though it was already late afternoon, around 3 p.m. The staff spoke good English. I asked them to recommend the food. It was delicious and tasty. The price was reasonable and not too expensive compared to the quality. If I remember correctly, it was around 1,500 baht. I gave a tip of around 10%, which is the norm.
After I was full, I went out to walk around the city. Now I was feeling more like a cat. I started to take pictures with my phone. Before, I really wasn't in the mood. I had to pee and go to the bathroom. I was going to use the bathroom at the hotel, but it took me a long time to get to my room. I had to move my parking spot. I was hungry too. Now I'm super happy. Everything I see is beautiful and nice. 👌😂😘
Recently, El País, a newspaper in Spain, which has the largest readership, held a poll to ask Spanish readers to vote on 250 cities with a population of less than 10,000 that are not well-known to tourists. Which city is the most beautiful in the eyes of the readers? With around 5,000 voters, Albarracín, a small town in the Aragon region in the east of the country, received the most votes.
This small town with a population of only about 1,000 people, is located between the Sierra de Albarracín mountain range and the Guadalaviar River. In addition to its beautiful landscape, tourists who are fascinated by medieval culture will love this town. The houses are still preserved as they were, with cathedrals, fortresses, stone walls, and alleys like an ancient city that has not changed.
It is an ancient city on a hill, still in its original condition, where the town's residents actually live. I walked all over the city, walked to the city walls that are still in their original condition, walked around, took pictures of almost every house, almost every street, almost every corner. It is a very impressive city. I walked until my legs were tired because the city is a city with slopes all over the city, going up and down all the time. There is only a little flat area in the middle of the city. It is the center of the city like in old movies. When I was exhausted, I walked back to the hotel. If I wanted some fruit, I asked in a shop and told them that I would leave the ancient city before crossing the road to the new city. After walking a short distance, I found a medium-sized supper market with quite a lot of products. So I bought some fruit, snacks, and food to stock up on in the car so that I wouldn't have to stop by often. Back to the room around 8 pm. The sky is not very dark yet but I am exhausted. The weather is getting colder and colder. Better go to bed. It is a room without air conditioning again, but it is cool and comfortable. Another day has passed. I am starting to love #Spain more and more. 🥰 #Europe #Spain