Navarrete

our first break of the day found us in Navarrete, just a handful of kilometers outside Logroño. just outside the town stand ruins of a hospice — Hospital de San Juan de Acre — founded in 1185 by the mother of a bishop. it flourished through the Middle Ages and well into the 16th century, but, as with the walled fortifications of nearby Navarrete, it was destroyed in the 16th century in battles to incorporate the region into the rest of Spain.


in modern times, the town became known for its wine and mushroom industries. most prominently, the hulking Bodega Don Jacobo loomed over the ruins of the Hospital de San Juan, advertising to passing cars on the autopista. elsewhere scattered across the hillside, however, are several other bodegas, which take advantage of the caves carved under and behind the town to store and age wine (or cultivate mushrooms).

while the church of the Ascencion is reputedly spectacular, neither the allure of retablos nor wine tasting caught our interest. after a pair of bocadillos (one with cheese, the other with a Spanish omelet) we continued on our way.