Social Saturday

Saturday, 10 January, 2015:

After sleeping in for the second consecutive Saturday morning after a night of colas at the Don Gomez III, I dragged myself out of the sack for a good day with friends both old and new.

 Arroz con Pollo

I enjoyed another great meal at the home of friends Oscar and Rosa. Their son, Alberto, is our Junior team QB.

While Rosa is a fun hostess, Oscar is a great chef. His arroz con pollo was incredibly good!

It was fun to sit down with Alberto as well as he wanted to talk football and hear his thoughts for increasing our Junior team's audible game for the contest at Mallorca next weekend.

After this great lunch, Oscar led Alberto and I to a nearby café to meet with a former Cobra lineman who now plays for a DIII team in Cartagena.

Pepo is his name and he definitely has the look of a very fit lineman. I don't know if we can legally do it through the National Federation, but I would certainly welcome having Pepo back in the Cobra fold for our fast approaching DII season.

With Pepo and Alberto

On the walk home to La Hacienda I, as usual, saw some things of interest.

The Conde de Floridablanca

This monument was erected in 1848

One Church/Day Rule:

Iglesia de Santa Eulalia

The X-shaped cross threw me, I always associated that style of crucifixion tool with St. Andrew.

Santa Eulalia's Cupola

One Museum/Day Rule:

Museo Muralla de Santa Eulalia

This little museum again offered free entry and was located right next to the Santa Eulalia Church. It shows some on the archeological remains of the ancient Murcia city wall.

What the City Wall looked like

many centuries ago

Before signing off on another good day in Spain, I would like to say a few words about Spain's Renfe train system.

 The AVE Trains

These are the state-of-the-art, high-speed trains that are both comfortable and a boon to travelers in Spain short on time. A few years ago we took one from Madrid to Sevilla that was simply a great train ride.

Unfortunately, the AVE trains do not go to Murcia as of yet.

Damn.

Renfe Cercanías
Local trains that run short routes

Thus, our Travel Tuesdays/Thursdays are done with an assist from less frantic Renfe trains that are still comfortable and affordable.

With the aid of my Tarjeta Dorada (Senior Citizen Discount Card), I have been able to take the non-AVE trains from Murcia to:

1. Valencia - 33 Euros/280 miles Round Trip

2. Cartagena - 7.40 Euros/70 miles Round Trip

3. Lorca - 6.90 Euros/90 miles Round Trip

I find train travel scenic, relaxing and inexpensive.

I highly recommend it the next time that you are in Europe.