Thursday 4th January 2024.
Today has been a day with a range of changes. We started off by driving to Onda, the route was a bit of a maze and following the route wasn’t easy. The route wasn’t scenic as both side of the road was lined with factories many of them producing ceramics. Finding parking also wasn’t easy but we eventually found a spot on a piece of waste ground not far from the castle which was our aim for the visit.
As we walked to the castle there was plenty of evidence of the local industry.
Onda Castle known as the Castle of 300 Towers is of Muslim origin and built in the 10th and 11th centuries and in the 12th/13th century was the most important enclave in the north of Islamic Valencia. At the beginning of the 14th century under Christian rule it was still a very impressive fortress and it was then it became known as the “ Castle of 300 Towers”.
As usual Layla wasn’t allowed in so Michelle and I took it in turns to visit the interior grounds, sadly no buildings were open. We noticed some strange brightly covered birds flying around and whilst in the castle I came across a man feeding a flock of pigeons that looked as though he dyed their feathers.
I wanted to travel to our next stop of Morella by taking small roads through the mountains, it wasn’t easy at first but Michelle guided us superbly. The road took us from countryside with oranges growing everywhere to areas where there were hectare upon hectare of olive groves. The road at times twisted and turned up and down steep inclines but Homer never struggled and I found it enjoyable driving, eventually we popped out onto a main road not too far from Morella.
Morella is an ancient walled city located on a hill top in the province of Castellon in the Valencia district. As you approach the town it is visible from a long way away as it sits atop a hill with massive walls and imposing towers.
The town was well supplied with shops for the tourists and I could imagine it being very busy in the summer.
You could walk up a steep path towards the castle but we wended our way through the streets of the town gradually gaining height, we passed some impressive buildings and wonderful views.
When we reached the entrance to the castle it was still a haul to get to the top and we took the decision not try. and we walked slowly back to Homer and then drove about a mile to where we are stopping tonight.
taraabit 