The unexpected saint

 It is a day for appreciating the rolling road and the magnificent hills.  We will try to squeeze all the excitement out of what is to hand such as La choza del santo Manuel.




Saint Manuel has taken a bit of putting together because most sites seem to suggest you already know about him, so why explain.  It seems that Mauel Rubio Sanchez turned Venta del Molinillo into a pilgrimage site in the last decades of the 20th Century, claiming the spring water bought about miraculous healing.  A month ago Miguel wrote ‘I had never been to a saint's shrine other than a church. Entering that sanctuary, all filled with flowers, you feel an enormous peace and tranquility. I recommend you go and visit Saint Manuel.’  Sandra reported ‘This is the farmhouse where Saint Manuel del Molinillo lived. He died in 2001, and his followers still maintain it. It has three shrines, a living room with a lit fireplace. You can visit both the exterior and interior without any problem. CASH IS NOT ACCEPTED. People often bring non-perishable food and leave it there.’  Victoria wrote ‘People come from all over the world; it's truly miraculous. If you go to see him, bring him oil (a small or large container), some food, bottles to fill with his miraculous water, and white flowers. There's always food available. Before you leave and make your request, you should eat something, as he liked it when people ate. You'll be filled with peace. I highly recommend it, and it's free.







From the sublime to the secular.  We aren’t going there but there is little to review today so we might as well remark we are near a trig point.  This being Spain it is the Punto Geodesico Calabozo. It looks like a specialist piece of Lego.  It has one review. It has a single, wordless, four star review.  What would make it five we will have to wonder at.





We have risen again, now to 1356m.




Time for a superstition.   Beware the evil eye. It’s evil you know and optrex won’t sort it. What you need is a red ribbon.  Attach it to your wrist, inside your wallet or place it on the push chair of your offspring. Maybe a shopping trolley will work as well.  That will do the trick.













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