Manresa

Looking at the practicalities of holidaying we needed either to find a laundromat soon or pay ridiculous prices for the hotel to do our washing. According to our valued friend Mr Google the nearest laundromat was some 20km away at a town we'd never heard of called Manresa. We decided to head off, both to save some money and to see the countryside.

One thing which made us think twice though was the amazingly dense fog we saw when we looked out our window. No way were we willing to drive in that. Fortunately by the time we finished breakfast the fog was gone.

Retracing part of the road we'd driven in the wee small hours of the morning in an unfamiliar car to reach the hotel was quite scary. Some of the roads are steep and narrow, and there are a couple of hairpin bends which almost require a three point turn to navigate. The scenery which we were seeing in daylight for the first time is quite beautiful.

We reached Manresa, a historic town which now seems to have a large university, and eventually found a parking spot which Brian could drive into. He is still a long way from mastering parallel parking in a left-hand drive car. We've always found laundromats to be great places to get to know the locals, as invariably one has to seek help to master the peculiarities of the local machines. Laundromat protocol varies greatly from place to place but provided you don't tread on anyone's toes too hard it's possible to strike up some excellent short term friendships, as we did on this occasion. .

After the hour or so of domestic duties we set off on foot to explore the place. It wasn't the most spectacular town we've ever been to but it certainly offered interesting views and some beautiful old buildings.

One of its main claims to fame is the Cave of St Ignatius. We trudged up a couple of steep hills to visit it but everything was closed. The aforementioned Saint Ignatius of Loyola headed there in 1522 and spent eleven months meditating in a cave. For the devout, this is a pretty big deal which has put Manresa on the map. At least he had the benefit of a great view from his chosen spot.

After being spoilt the previous night with our dinner we decided this time to go more downmarket and look for something to eat at the local village of Cardona. Experience had shown us that Spanish people eat quite late with many places not opening up for meals until at least 8 o'clock. We set off just before 8pm for the five minute drive, found a tapas place and ordered our drinks and food. Just before 9 o'clock we tried to order a couple more tapas dishes only to be told by the surly waitress that they were about to close. Sure enough, they and all the other nearby restaurants simply shut up shop. It was a cheap night out for us but we didn't exactly feel that we'd overeaten.
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