CWT Journal – August 23, 2026 / Girona

Today we packed up and said goodbye to Valencia, driving a little over four hours north to Girona to spend more time with Keith and Carrie Wood. Along the way, we stopped for gas and discovered one of Spain’s ubiquitous roadside cafeterias—basically a truck stop, except someone apparently told the Spanish that roadside food doesn’t have to be terrible. After a surprisingly great lunch, we continued north.

Before we knew it, we were in Girona’s Old Town. We parked the car and schlepped our bags about 400 meters through the ancient pedestrian streets to Hotel Històric, tucked deep inside the old city where cars simply aren’t invited.

After freshening up, we headed to Casa de Woods for a dip in the pool followed by a fantastic multi-course dinner prepared by Sam, an Australian chef they’d hired for the evening. We met several of Keith and Carrie’s expat friends—Mark and Karmi, Alex and Gwen, and JF—and enjoyed several hours of food, wine, and proper Spanish sobremesa.

Eventually we wandered back through the ancient streets to our cozy hotel inside Girona’s fortified Old Town. The city’s story stretches back more than 2,000 years, to the Roman fortress of Gerunda, founded in the 1st century BC along the important Via Augusta. Over the centuries, Romans, Visigoths, Muslims, Franks, and medieval Catalans all left their mark here, and portions of the enormous walls surrounding us still incorporate Roman foundations.

Not a bad place to sleep—inside a city that’s been putting people to bed behind fortified walls for two millennia.