21 November 2022 - Peniscola
Miles driven today = 103
Total Miles to date = 3,699
We never did get to see the birds which were making so much noise on the Albufera lagoon. Despite driving to the lakeside town of El Palmar we only caught glimpses of the water between the 10 feet tall rushes and with the wind having got up again the water was very choppy so we moved on. We drove past the space age buildings of Valencia's "City of the Arts and the Sciences" and negotiated the eastern ring road with only one minor U turn when I momentarily misunderstood Google Maps' instructions.
We followed the E-15 coastal route past the heavily industrialised Castellon de la Plana and the high rise tourist hotspot of Benicassim, and around the mountains of the Sierra d'Irta before dropping down to the coast at Peniscola and finding our way to Camping Eden. There are a huge number of predominantly French and German rigs here with massive awning extensions, who are obviously set up for long term stays. Some of them already have Christmas decorations up. They probably do massive price reductions for anybody staying for a month or more but for us it's €20 for a fully serviced pitch on the ACSI Card plus a €0.50 supplement for having one of their larger pitches. Unusually we could plumb straight into their wi-fi for free but we don't have the required 2 pin adapter for our onboard 3 pin sockets. So I'm making a note to myself here to add one to the packing list spreadsheet for the next tour.
The campsite is about a 15 minute walk along the beach from the fortified old town, which sits on a rocky peninsular.
But before we got there we popped into one of the few restaurants along the front which were actually open, for a spot of lunch. From their "tourist menu" I had mussels to start whereas Lisa had peppers stuffed with cod and mashed potato, then we shared a big bowl of monkfish stew as a main course. €14:40 a head with coffees, bread and a complimentary salad. They did try to get the England v Iran World Cup game on the telly for us but to no avail.
Onwards to the old town. We clambered up the steps past the outer ramparts of the impressively fortified citadel.
Looking north there are great views, between the date palms, along the coast to the Sierra de Montsia.
We continued to climb up through the narrow cobbled streets of the old town.
At the top of the hill is the Knights Templar Castle which was built between 1294 and 1307 on the site of a previous Moorish fortress.
As the Knights Templar were arrested and disappeared from the history books shortly after the castle's completion it effectively represents their last stronghold.
As we have seen so often on this trip, due to its prominent coastal position, the castle doubles up as a lighthouse.
This is the main entrance hall to the Castle with steps leading up to the main courtyard and doors leading to the barracks and the stables
This long arched hall housed the castle's stables. There were lots of interesting information boards around the castle but unfortunately not all of them had English translations.
The castle's artillery battlements have been converted into gardens but one tiny solitary cannon remains for good measure.
This is looking down onto the main courtyard. You can see why the castle is often used as a location for Game of Thrones and other films and TV series. El Cid was born in Peniscola and a lot of the film about him was shot here.
These stairs lead down from the courtyard to the Conclave Hall (which was also used as a wine cellar) and also to the Castle's dungeon.
From 1411 until his death in 1423 the Castle was home to Pope Benedict XIII aka "Papa Luna" and he made it his Papal seat after he was booted out of Rome as part of the "Great Schism" in the Catholic Church.
The Castle's Church has Cistercian austerity and is almost entirely undecorated.
The rooms which Papa Luna would have used as his private quarters have been mocked up to show how they might have looked when he occupied them.
From the ramparts at the very top of the castle there are fantastic views over the old town and the harbour plus the newer parts of Peniscola and the hills of the Sierra d'Irta beyond.
We could see some very threatening looking clouds approaching so we scuttled back to the van as the rain started to fall, but we both agreed that of all the various castles we have visited on this trip Peniscola is definitely numero uno.
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