Trafton’s European Tour 2022/2023

Greetings from beautiful Logrono, Spain!

Easy six hour drive through France, skirting the beautiful Pyrenees mountains and then into Spain. Up and over the Pyrenees through the beautiful Basque Pyrenees mountains.

Beautiful green countryside and then down into the valley of La Rioja. Very dry and brown in the valley, but full of vineyards and olive trees

Ok, arriving in Logrono

We found Logrono through an article in the WSJ about hidden wine areas. We were so lucky to do so. Easy check in with a wonderful Spanish couple who helped us park the trusty Peugeot safe underground.

Wow, score! Wonderful apartment, newly remodeled and opens to Plaza del Mercado ✔️

When we booked our stay here we knew it was Halloween weekend but didn’t know the Spanish have a three day holiday party here. Halloween, All Saints Day, then The Day of the Dead

Ok, let’s take a quick walking tour.

Logrono is about 200k in population and is the capital of the La Rioja district. It has the usual European history, war, conquest, Romans, crusaders and trade. The main business now is wine and tourists (mainly Spanish tourists)

The El Camino de Santiago is a famous walking route from medieval times still used, both for hiking enjoyment and faith. Bicyclists also use the trail. I prefer the trusty Peugeot 😜

The food scene here is quite interesting. Several interesting factors

Tapas bars are interesting, they are open from 12:00 till 2:30ish than siesta and then they reopen at 8:00 till 12:00 or so!

The Spanish culture is very late nights. Dinner at restaurants start at 8:00 and runs till 12:00

Ok, let’s get to the vino

The La Rioja valley is a very popular Spanish wine producing area. The valley is located between two mountain ranges, so it’s protected from the ocean air and valley heat. The results are a delicious white and red wine that is incredibly smooth.

Unfortunately, with the holidays, the winery’s we wanted to visit were either full or closed. We were lucky enough to visit one.

We really, really enjoyed our visit to Logrono. Unfortunately, with the holiday it slowed some things down, but provided some interesting entertainment on Halloween 😜

Off to Salamanca, Spain today, a five hour drive. Going to try and stop by Haro on the way for wine tasting. It was on the list, but was closed on All Saints Day.

FYI, we pounded out 42,000 steps the last two days 😅

Adios Amigos😎