Cubillas Santa Marta

Don Quixote sculpture in
Valoria La Buena
photo by Dave Greene

Our second stop, between Palencia and Valladolid was Camping Cubillas which, although being almost right on the A62, was quiet. The site is a mix of touring pitches, permanent caravans, and statics. Some of the little gardens created around the permanent caravans and statics were wonderful, hedges and arbours, little wooden gates and paved patios. We had the place pretty much to ourselves on the Monday so took the opportunity to peep over several hedges!

We didn't see much in the way of walking opportunities so chose to take a drive on the Sunday morning instead. There are several bodegas close to the campsite, all of which appeared to be closed, and three little villages. We spotted this cool sculpture by the road into Valoria La Buena and, having recently seen the wonderful ROH ballet of Don Quixote, couldn't resist stopping to take a few photos. On the other side of the A62, the Canal Castilla passes close by so we did get our walk after all, over two hours along the towpath which was picturesque, but judging distance was deceptive as it is dead straight for miles. Almost deserted, we only met three other people - two fishermen and a Spanish man who pointed out a large dead snake in the grass by the path. It was about a metre long and a pretty green colour.

Monday had light rain for most of the morning. We did get to play tennis in the afternoon - my first attempt in nearly thirty years but fortunately Dave was encouraging. He only mentioned once that he wished Kim was there instead! The evening was spent reading The House of Rumour by Jake Arnott, a great novel that incorporates many conspiracy theories from the 1940s. As a previous X-Files fan, I knew most of the back stories and like how Arnott has entwined them around his own narrative. I'm planning to leave the book in Salamanca somewhere later this week as my first Spanish BookCrossing release if I can find a suitable place.