SPECTACULAR. All in key caps twice.

October 07, 2026

We are going down today. About 300 metres in all, and will end next to a reservoir - but we will leave that until tomorrow.

Down, down, down passed the Ermita de San Roque. It is one of those tiny little wayside chapels that you can imagine travelers sheltering in during a storm, a level 1 cleric being given it as their first cure of souls or the place someone had really upset the local bishop was sent to consider their life choices.

Budia may be a veritable fleshpot of steamy vice, but we will only get second hand reports of it as we are passing by in it, as the road doesn’t go through it. The honest scribblers best chum, the GSD comes ever to hand.

BUDIA: town with town hall in the province of Guadalajara (6 leagues), : situated at the foot of a hill called Cuesta Cabeza, and surrounded by others that protect it from the winds, particularly from the North and East; it enjoys a pleasant temperature and healthy climate , and its most common diseases are tertian fevers: the population consists of 450 houses ; the town hall, which with the jail occupies one of the 4 facades of the Plaza de la Constitución, has arcades, and above the building there is a tower in which the public clock is placed; complete elementary school, endowed with 2,600 reales and the remuneration of the 100 attending students, which consist of 2 and 3 reales per month, and 2, 4 and 6 maravedís weekly; 3 public fountains with abundant water, 3 hermitages (St. Lucia, La Soledad and San Gregorio); a hospital without funds and a parish church (St. Peter the Apostle), served by a priest and a vicar, appointed by ordinary competition, and by a chaplain of souls: the terrain is extremely rugged, and has a small orchard that benefits from irrigation by 3 streams that cross the district, called Soledad, Val de Picazo and Barranco de la Fuente Larga, whose waters, gathered near the town, after having provided this utility and that of powering a balance and 3 flour mills, flow into the Tagus River which passes a short league from the town; there are 4 hills covered with holm oak and divided into several sections, in which considerable cuts are made for charcoal production, and their custody and conservation is the responsibility of 2 guards appointed by the town council. Roads : those leading to the neighboring towns and those to Brihuega and Guadalajara, all bridleways in fair condition; mail is received at the post office in Brihuega by a courier who arrives Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays and departs Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Products : wheat, although not enough for consumption, barley, oats, legumes, and plenty of oil and wine; sheep, mules, donkeys, and horses are raised, as well as all kinds of game birds and fur. Industries.The aforementioned flour mills and fulling mill, a factory of ordinary cloth and tanneries, a soap factory, and 7 shoe shops. Commerce : 18 shops of all kinds of articles and consumer goods; sale of surplus produce and industrial products at the market held every Saturday and at the fair on August 28th; importation of goods lacking in the country and exportation of those not sold in the town, either by the residents themselves or by the many muleteers who come from all over. Population : 430 residents, 1,539 inhabitants.

It is not that today. Between 1842 and 1910 the population fell by a third. Spain’s economic miracle of the 1960s saw the people migrate in search of jobs and half left in a decade. By the 2010s things had stabilised to the 210s and today 226 people dwell here.

The town has a history. It had a Jewish population and was renowned for its tanneries. In 1434 it got its charter. They still had to offer us honey and 28 well fattened capons at Christmas to the local Duke but that was it. Things were not aways good and in 1710 the Habsburg Army retreated through the place doing 44,000 ducats of damage.

The CM-2013 also by passes Duron, but at least we get a bit of it. I will give to the GSD highlights.

Illness: Location : on the slope of a hill crowned with enormous crags, it is freely attacked by the winds, and the most common diseases are: intermittent fevers, arthritic pains and pneumonia

Products.Wheat, barley, oats, legumes, wine, oil, and some fruit are grown; sheep, goats, mules, and donkeys are raised; partridges, rabbits, and hares are hunted, along with some roe deer and red deer, many foxes, wolves, and martens; barbel, eels, and trout are fished; the agricultural industry includes a flour mill, an oil mill, two looms for ordinary linen, and some of the most essential trades and mechanical arts

Currently 108 people live here, down from the 19th century’s 500.

We will stop at the Bar Restaurant El Cruce. It identifies as woman owned. I was intrigued by the translated recommendation by Paulino of black pudding scramble. ‘A perfect place to eat. Delicious homemade food. The black pudding scramble is SPECTACULAR. The owner is attentive and very friendly, as are the rest of the staff. They serve quickly, at a good price, and with great quality. 100% recommended!’

Three weeks ago Alicia wrote ‘A perfect place to eat. Delicious homemade food. The black pudding scramble is SPECTACULAR. The owner is attentive and very friendly, as are the rest of the staff. They serve quickly, at a good price, and with great quality. 100% recommended!’