Zaragoza - between Madrid and Barcelona

The breakfast at Hotel Velada was good and after that, we checked out and went on our way to Barcelona by coach. (We were to return to Madrid later to visit the other tourist sites before our flight home.)

Here's the coach at one of the rest stops before reaching Zaragoza, the half-way point to Barcelona and also a scenery of the countryside along the way.

Zaragoza is Spain's fifth largest city and the capital of the Aragon region. It is located about 310 km east of Madrid and about the same distance west of Barcelona so it is an ideal transit stop for travellers between Madrid and Barcelona. As we enter the town square, the skyline is dominated by the towers of the Basilica de Nuestra Senora del Pilar (Our Lady of the Pillar Church).

Below are the views from inside the square and also the interior of the Basilica.

The main tourist area is around the town square or Plaza de Pilar.

The main shopping street just outside the square.

We had our lunch in one of the restaurants inside the square. The main dish was seafood pasta served with Spanish wine and while the dessert was being served, the waiter accidentally spilled the desert onto two of our lady travellers and they had to purchase new clothes to make a change of clothing. The waiter was very embarrassed and really apologetic. Was this another warning sign?

My wife saw a rosary that she wanted to buy but decided to make the purchase only after lunch after visiting more shops. However, when she went back to the shop after lunch, the shop was closed. So when you are in Spain, remember that many shops close for their afternoon nap or siesta from 2pm to 5pm.

From Zaragoza we continue our journey to our next destination, Barcelona.

Ronald Kwok
http://cbpirate.com/s/cbp/ronaldkwok