Tales from the Tower
Iberian Magpies and Spanish Light
April 27, 2020
Cava and the Cave
June 5, 2020
Mounting the stone stairway to the 2nd floor, I can sense we are all thinking “can we navigate this after a few glasses of wine and a long day of adventures?” The depth between each step is made for giants. The tallest among us is 6 feet, the smallest 5ft 1inch. The steps, chipped with centuries of use, are wide so reassuring. We won’t be skipping down for a midnight fridge visit in bare feet, but slippers would be perfect.
The second floor opens up into a castle sized sitting room with Spanish armoires, an oversized plush linen yellow sofa and red armchairs offset with cream and red chintz curtains framing narrow long windows. Cylindrical logs, cut in half form wooden beams that brace the ceiling. The floors are a soft terra cotta ceramic. Coffee tables invite books and leisure. Doors to bedrooms and a bathroom are evident. And so the fun begins. 1 bedroom has a luxurious modern ensuite complete with jet bathtub and another has a balcony with a medieval view of the village that is priceless. We’ll be drawing straws for rooms after a couple of glasses of wine. Next…the third floor is expansive and full of light. Lounge sofas in white Spanish linen bookend a wall mounted big screen tv. Through sliding glass doors is the terrace. 12 people can easily partake of tapas in this outdoor room. Lush views of the countryside, farmland, vineyards, a hilltop medieval village, other terraces and local red clay and wooden rooftops are spectacular. We can’t wait to climb the 3 floors with an overflowing charcuterie board, cava and wine to welcome the sunsets.
A couple of steps up you find yourself in the tower. 2 single beds, a chair and a 3 drawer dresser are snuggled in the enclosure. The walls of the square tower are so thick, chicken wire has been installed on the inside and out of the slat windows to prevent birds from nesting and wildlife entering the haven. The heads of the beds rest under these windows. Bed time stories come alive in our head. Our tower is 1 of 2 in the village and functioned as the town perimeter lookout, passing on warnings of invaders or Mediterranean storms to the other 2 villages. The other is the bell tower for the church. Steps to the enclosed lookout are Spanish cedar, the corridor narrow and steep. To reach the top is close to 2 flights. The reward is other-worldly. The observatory is 10 by 10 feet, the walls stone, the floor wood, the space roomy. Rocking and straight back chairs are positioned in front of 3 ft square windows with countryside views of an incredible distance. Standing in this space, you can feel the chairs rock and the energy of history and previous storms. You don’t feel threatened, but you don’t feel alone.
And what do our grounds offer? Unpacking and settling in can still wait though proper introductions and wine call our names. Can we barbecue? Entertain moonlight dancing after sangrias? We venture out the huge doors and cross the square in front of our haven. To the right are steps down to a pebbled tower garden, enveloped by a 7 foot stone wall, 30 feet by 20 feet, canopied with gorgeous olive and fig trees under which lay a dining area for 12. There is a Weber charcoal barbecue and settee seating under the fig tree. We feel like we are in a movie or about to make one. Time for introductions and welcome cava. ..
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The second floor opens up into a castle sized sitting room with Spanish armoires, an oversized plush linen yellow sofa and red armchairs offset with cream and red chintz curtains framing narrow long windows. Cylindrical logs, cut in half form wooden beams that brace the ceiling. The floors are a soft terra cotta ceramic. Coffee tables invite books and leisure. Doors to bedrooms and a bathroom are evident. And so the fun begins. 1 bedroom has a luxurious modern ensuite complete with jet bathtub and another has a balcony with a medieval view of the village that is priceless. We’ll be drawing straws for rooms after a couple of glasses of wine. Next…the third floor is expansive and full of light. Lounge sofas in white Spanish linen bookend a wall mounted big screen tv. Through sliding glass doors is the terrace. 12 people can easily partake of tapas in this outdoor room. Lush views of the countryside, farmland, vineyards, a hilltop medieval village, other terraces and local red clay and wooden rooftops are spectacular. We can’t wait to climb the 3 floors with an overflowing charcuterie board, cava and wine to welcome the sunsets.
A couple of steps up you find yourself in the tower. 2 single beds, a chair and a 3 drawer dresser are snuggled in the enclosure. The walls of the square tower are so thick, chicken wire has been installed on the inside and out of the slat windows to prevent birds from nesting and wildlife entering the haven. The heads of the beds rest under these windows. Bed time stories come alive in our head. Our tower is 1 of 2 in the village and functioned as the town perimeter lookout, passing on warnings of invaders or Mediterranean storms to the other 2 villages. The other is the bell tower for the church. Steps to the enclosed lookout are Spanish cedar, the corridor narrow and steep. To reach the top is close to 2 flights. The reward is other-worldly. The observatory is 10 by 10 feet, the walls stone, the floor wood, the space roomy. Rocking and straight back chairs are positioned in front of 3 ft square windows with countryside views of an incredible distance. Standing in this space, you can feel the chairs rock and the energy of history and previous storms. You don’t feel threatened, but you don’t feel alone.
And what do our grounds offer? Unpacking and settling in can still wait though proper introductions and wine call our names. Can we barbecue? Entertain moonlight dancing after sangrias? We venture out the huge doors and cross the square in front of our haven. To the right are steps down to a pebbled tower garden, enveloped by a 7 foot stone wall, 30 feet by 20 feet, canopied with gorgeous olive and fig trees under which lay a dining area for 12. There is a Weber charcoal barbecue and settee seating under the fig tree. We feel like we are in a movie or about to make one. Time for introductions and welcome cava. ..
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