La Rioja, Spain: land of extraordinary Wine & amazing food

took the bus from Madrid for a 5 hours journey to Logroño, although most of it highway once you enter la Rioja region the landscape changes completely. It almost seems like it is preparing you for something GREAT! :)
We reached Logroño quite late so we jumped into the car for another 27 km till a small city called Najera. The city has a very special charm, it gives you the feeling of a very cozy place. It looks to be very typical for the mornings to go at the nearby bar for "un troce de tortilla" and a coffee. ​

The next morning we woke up quite early to go abseiling in a nearby even smaller town (Anguiano). I did not even know what abseiling means .. so once i found out I was a bit stressed. (...anyway all turned out to be excellent and now I even go doing climbing and abseiling on my own...always cool to discover new hobbies). 

There seem to be 2 main things about this place called Anguiano. 
First, it is famous in Spain for the Fiestas of Anguiano, where some crazy guys go down a steep road dancing on a sort of wooden sticks (you can see the sticks in the picture above). These guys are called Los Danzadores de Anguiano and it is totally impressive to watch.
And second, the beautiful nature with the cliffs and the river that make the place quite popular especially for people that enjoy sports like climbing, abseiling and canyoning. 

After such an intense day what is best than go for the very special and very traditional couple of pintxos. Being so close to the Basque country there is quite some influences in the cooking style. They even have competitions of which bar makes the best tasting and looking pintxos, it's is a very big deal to win the first place at these contests. Here food is not only tasty but also looks amazing...it's simply art...and of course each pintxo comes also with the local Rioja wine...that's what I call "GOOD LIFE".  

Next day we woke up quite early as there was a very special place my friend wanted to show me before going back to Madrid. For this we had to pass in the Basque Country, at the entrance we were welcomed in Euskera: Ongi etorria...aka welcome. Interesting cultural experience. Btw.. if interested in finding out more about the basques, the book "The world History of the World" by Mark Kurlansky gives quite a good and detailed overview. 

Being in a wine region you could find wine cellars (Bodegas) at every step. The most famous one is Marqués de Riscal in Elciego and is completely (outside and inside) designed by the famous Canadian architect Frank Gehry, who also designed the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao.   

Finally we reached LaGuardia, the small village who was built in the 10th century as a protective fortress for the kingdom of Navarra. The medieval village is so so beautiful that I totally fell in love with it. Have a walk around the small streets, take a moment to look at the vineyards and the Cantabria mountains and stop for a glass of wine and some pintxos in one of the bars. You will love it! 
​We left back to Logroño as we had to catch the bus later on in the afternoon. Before leaving La Rioja we went to eat something on the street called Calle La Laurel. This street is quite special as it is the "home" of 102 tapas bars". It is a great experience...just take care .. as most of the people end up drunk at the end of the street ;) Finishing eating we went to the train station got the bus and went back to Madrid. 

#ILoveToTravel