Arriving in Santiago do Cacem
I had a lazy morning; I woke up early but decided not to do anything about it, so I just turned around and took 3 hours more in dream land. I decided to get up around 9am; had a shower and went for the hotel breakfast which was a early high light. I checked out and took a small drive in a totally empty Sevilla.
Already the day before, when I drove into the city I met the caravan leaving Sevilla for the coast going south. This morning I found out that all inhabitants of Sevilla was stuck on the motor way going east towards Huelva; after reading the signs and being stuck for 20 min without moving I decided that this would be the wrong way to go.
I turned off and decided to go north anticipating that this was not the directing preferred by Sevillians and right I was. The road to Merida was new and wonderful to drive. The landscape in Extremadura is beautiful but hard to live in. It is extremely warm in the summers and cold in winter time. It has always been the poorest part of Spain but the wonderful sweeping countryside with its olive trees and huge empty and dry areas is like watching a picture.
In Merida I turned towards Portugal; the motor way here is nice I have been driving it a couple of times. When you enter Portugal you enter some of the best roads in Europe. They are fantastic in the way they are built into the landscape and they are completely empty. You can drive fast here and some Portuguese do and a Dane too once in a while.
The last 20 km to Santiago do Cacem was these fantastic roads where you have a corner every in every 100-200 meters. I arrived at my usual hotel which I had not visited in 2 years. Everything looked the same even the receptionist was the same looking as charming and being as friendly as ever. The hotel was quite booked she said but I managed to get a room for a week. From now on the trips will be concentrated around this wonderful area of Portugal.
