Book description
Penelope Chetwode's middle-aged companion on her ride over the mule
tracks and goat paths of Andalusia in 1961 was a twelve-year-old mare,
La Marquesa. This treasured animal, borrowed from the Duke of
Wellington's Spanish stables, brought her experience of native travel
conditions to the expedition, which was otherwise inspired by the
author's reading of those early British Hispanophiles George Borrow
and Richard Ford, combined with her interest in the breeding of
Spanish horses. Together the travellers brought out the best in their
Spanish hosts, whether met on the road, in a crude country inn, a
cave-house or during Penelope's frequent attendance in church. The
result is a journey described with warmth and wit, lit up by an
infectious fascination for horses, God and Spain.
