Descanso.

Descanso.

Rest. 

Our next stop was more of a stopover, a brief respite in Murcía. Murcía is the capital of the region of the same name. And, I'll be honest, I had no idea what we were going to do there... 

We arrived hungry and went to the tavern opposite the bus station. At this point I should mention that Katherine is  vegetarian and Sarah is a vegan, and that Spain is a country not built for either diet. After managing to obtain a basic salad in what was a very Spanish establishment (flags, bull fighter photos, dark wood paneling, etc.) we sat and ate lunch. Things soon got very Spanish and un PC while we were eating. The landlady began smoking behind the bar, while she and her husband drank wine and then the chef appeared, downed a glass of, I hope, wine, grimaced and marched back into the kitchen. 

We proceeded, via the customary wrong way, to our hostel. Our hostel despite being only 10 minutes from the city centre and cathedral, was in the campo, along a small, dusty road. It was very idyllic; the lounge area was cosy, complete with 2 resident cats and books, the bar next to it had a charming patio area and we're pretty sure it was just us and a couple staying in the whole place. We were in an 6 bed room; I don't know how they broke even that week..

It also had a very small swimming pool out the back, in which we spent an afternoon. Oh and they did weekly yoga classes, had free breakfast and had a small market of 2 stalls to browse. 

La Casa Verde, Murcía.

Demonstrating a handstand for Katherine.

We didn't know what to expect from Murcía, but we were pleasantly surprised. We visited an exhibition featuring figures from the Easter procession floats and the cathedral was beautiful! We ate at the same vegan friendly pizzeria 2 nights running, enjoyed the views over the river  and had ice-lollies on the still warm cathedral steps at night.

The cathedral!

Plaza del Cardenal Belluga, opposite the cathedral, in the evening.

It was all quite perfect during the day, until we went to bed at night.... 

On the first night, we put the big ceiling fan on using the switch  by my bed. In the early morning Sarah decided the room was cool enough and went to turn off the fan. A large, loud fan has a large, loud switch. The noise awakened me, who apparently sat bolt upright like I was possessed and ROARED. In Katherine's words, it was 'unearthly' and 'like something out of Dr Who'. Sarah thought I was going to attack her and shouted 'It's ok' and flapped at me, and then shouted 'It's ok, Katherine' to Katherine who thought everything was a vague dream ending and wasn't that bothered. Luckily, it was just us in the room. But there was another more sinister monster in the room that night. We awoke, intentionally and calmly this time, to find ourselves covered in mosquito bites. I had about 20 or more on my legs and feet, and thus began the agonizing itching and swelling and 'Claire DON'T touch it, STOP it'. On the second night, I could hear one circling and it being legitimately early enough to get up, I left the little vampire and watched the sunrise from the hostel rooftop. 

Murcía was the surprise stop on our trip, I had no real knowledge or expectations and I would have happily stayed another 2 days. I would highly recommend the hostel and the city. Just bring mosquito repellent.

Or a net.