Portugal River Cruise Day 5: Salamanca, Spain

Friday, May 29: Our First Time in Spain!

Last night, the ship arrived in Vega de Terron, which is on the Spanish side of the Douro, so my pre-workout morning walk was in two countries! I got off the boat in Spain and then walked across a short bridge to Portugal and back again. 

We had an earlier start today with an 8am departure for our full-day excursion to Salamanca, Spain, which helped to accommodate the +1 hour time difference between the two countries. The drive to Salamanca took just under two hours and started off with some very winding and narrow roads, and the landscape eventually changed to become less hilly and flatter. Mr. E and I both agreed that it reminded us of parts of NorCal in Sonoma or Napa wine country.

We had a short restroom break at a hotel on the outskirts of Salamanca before arriving in the city center to meet up with the local guides for our two-hour walking tour of the university, cathedral, and Plaza Mayor. Salamanca is a beautiful city, with light-colored buildings, steep cobbled streets, and a very lively student population. Our guide was very informative, and we particularly appreciated learning about the “lucky frog” and the local stork population that nests in the bell tower and other places around the city. We enjoyed our tour despite the very warm temperatures and particularly appreciated the cool interiors and our guide’s efforts to stay in the shade as much as possible when we were outside.

For our buffet lunch, we met up with the rest of our group at the Casino hotel next to the Plaza Mayor. We sat with our usual dining companions along with a few others from the English-speaking group. The lunch had sufficient variety for everyone, although it would have been nice if there were labels for each item to help with any allergies or preferences. Then we had about three hours of free time to explore Salamanca. If only the map they had given us included the key to the numbered sites! Luckily, I had followed along during our walking tour so was able to easily orient us. We started off with a quick stop by the tourist office to ask about posters and then paused for a bit at the nearby Starbucks, where Mr. E and I shared an Americano and added another mug to our collection, a unique design of overlapping the blue shells to remind us of the casa de la concha and the distinctive shell symbol that marks the Camino de Santiago.

After making a few stops in local stores for wine, candy, t-shirts, and magnets, we ended at the Casa Lis museum that features a lovely Art Nouveau and Art Deco collection. L decided to rest in the café, which features panoramic stained-glass windows, while Mr. E and I explored the exhibitions.

Mr. E liked the paintings, and I really enjoyed the decorative art items such as the blown glass lamps and vases, sets of porcelain, and animal figurines. We saw many other passengers from our boat at the museum, since it was a cool spot to spend some time before returning to the nearby bus parking spot for our 5:30pm departure to meet up with the ship at Barca d’Alva, back on the Portugal side of the Douro.

Thanks to gaining back the one hour we had lost earlier in the day, we had a little time before dinner, so we could all get refreshed after the long, warm day, and I fit in my yoga practice as well. Dinner was Spanish-themed and featured an impressive paella with an impressive amount of seafood (octopus, prawns, fish, mussels in shells). The dish also included chicken and lots of small shrimp, shelled mussels, sausage pieces, and fresh pieces mixed into the saffron rice. My special preparation included just seafood with peapods and tomato sauce over pasta. The meal was accompanied by the special Mateus rosé wine, which was a little too sweet for me, but Mr. E appreciated how it complemented the paella. After dinner, Mr. E and L enjoyed the flamenco dance entertainment in the Lounge while I caught up on email and relaxed in the cabin.