Packed in the trunk, luggage loaded, playlist chosen and GPS ready. Friday afternoon, Madrid fades away and the road becomes, for a few hours, a travel companion. We set course for Brihuega, in Guadalajara, one of those destinations that seems much farther from the capital than it actually is.
Only about an hour of driving separates the capital from this Alcarria town, known as the Garden of the Alcarria and famous for its lavender fields and its historical heritage. For a few hours, the Fiat 500 Hybrid will be our best ally.
Compact, nimble and with that unmistakable Italian design that seems designed to bring a smile, the latest FIAT 500 model recaptures color, one of its historical hallmarks. And that, on a gray and rainy autumn day, is all the more welcome. Because perhaps a getaway is also about that: bringing a splash of color to the middle of the routine.
The Castle of Torija
We leave Madrid and let the A-2 take us toward Guadalajara. The traffic gradually thins out and,
little by little, the urban landscape gives way to that of the Alcarria. Before reaching Brihuega we make a first stop in Torija, known as the Gate of the Alcarria. Here there is a silhouette that is impossible to ignore, its medieval castle, perched on a hill, dominating the town and watching over one of the main routes of communication between the Castilian plateau and Aragon for centuries.
The fortress holds more history than it might appear. Its origins date back to the 12th and 13th centuries, although the structure we see today owes much to the renovations carried out in the second half of the 15th century, when it passed into the hands of the Mendoza family. Its square plan, the thick walls, the towers and, above all, the imposing keep turn the castle into one of the province of Guadalajara’s most iconic medieval scenes.
