It has a castle and a bridge and they are both very nice

We are heading for Molina de Aragon. It is going to be very exciting. It has a river and a bridge and a castle and everything.

Let's do climate. Molina de Aragon is famed for having recorded the coldest temperature in Spain - a chilly -28.2oC on 28thJanuary 1952.  We are 1062m above sea level. It was almost beaten on 17th December 1963 when they made -28oC.   The hottest was 38oC - on 14th August 1987.  and the average max in July is 30oC.  January sees an average of 5.2 days of snow, February 4.2 and March 3.6.  The most rain to fall in one day was 70mm, which fell on 30th July 1970 - More than three times the average for July and more than the average for any month.

People surely lived here for sometime. I am sure Neolithics farmed away.  Copper Aged people may well have stopped for a bit. Romans romaned.  The Caliphate did its thing. Wiki Spain is almost silent until Alfonso I of Aragon turned up took the place for… well, himself. His brother, Ramiro II, gave the place to the Kingdom of Castile, who sent keen Christians to settle the place.

Having been Christian, the Almoravids turned up and retook the place. In 1139 Manrique de Lara captured the place and became Lord of Molina. He kept it independent between Aragon and Castile until Henry II of Castile gave the place to his chum, Bertrand du Guesclin. The locals were unhappy, rebelled and threw their lot in with Aragon - hence the name, Molina de Aragon.  Castile got in back when Eleanor of Aragon got it as part of her dowry when she married Infante John of Castile.

Despite being burned down by Napoleon’s troops the place had 3453 people dwelling in it in 1842. The population has wandered around this  since. It hit its lowest in 1920 [2510]; rose to 4014 in 1981 and is currently 3266.

Walking into the town we pass the Monasterio de San Francisco.  Jesus wrote seven years ago ‘Founded in 1284 by the fifth Lady of Molina, Doña Blanca Alfonso de Molina, the monastery was burned down by French troops in November 1810 during the Peninsular War. Later, in 1836, the religious community was expelled due to the Mendizábal Disentailment. In 1886, the Sisters of Charity of Saint Anne founded a hospital for the poor, which eventually became a nursing home run by the same nuns. The tower dates from the 18th century and is topped by a unique weathervane known locally as the Giraldo, depicting an archangel carrying a banner. ‘  

The Museo de Molina occupies the site today.  The web link is broken so I will let Bruce describe the place. ‘This simple title of 'Museo' does not do it justice! It's much more than a just another museum: it's a Museum of Natural & Human History and it has a series of amazing collections.  It's divided into 4 main sections: paleontology/mineralogy;  entomology; the natural environment and human evolution. The museum is run by an association of knowledgeable enthusiasts. Well worth a visit for all ages.’

We are going dodge down a narrow road or two to cross the river by the Puente Romanico. The reviews can be summed up by ‘it is a nice bridge.’

We need a rest. The Cerveceria Jamoneria Arca Iberica shall be our place of respite. It opens 10am-4pm & 6pm-11.30pm Tuesday-Saturday.  Sunday they don’t open in the evening.  Two weeks ago Isabel was impressed. ‘We had some beers and some delicious torreznos (fried pork belly). Crispy, perfectly cooked, and truly excellent. With each beer, they brought us some tasty tapas of Spanish omelet. The place was clean, quiet, and pleasant. We'll be back. The price: 3 beers and 2 torreznos for €15.’

Zig-zagging through the town we come out opposite the castle.  The Celtiberians built a hill fort here. The local Muslim lords built a fortress. The current structure was begun by Alfonso I in 1129. 

The castle was used by a barracks in the 19th century. In 1875 the castle was stormed by Carlist troops. The military gave it up in the twentieth century. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molina_de_Arag%C3%B3n 

We are going to end by heading out of town.