frjulian - In fairness, I should report one uplifting experience from Torremejia.
We were having dinner at the Milenium, bad food served with puzzling ill grace (the latter a rarity in Spain). Three kids around ten years old were the only other people in the dining room, I imagine they lived in the hotel.
After about 20 minutes one of them approached us hesitantly, said he’d noticed we were speaking English, and asked if it would it be ok if he practiced with us. He was attending school in Almendralejo, and his ambition was to become fluent in English as a steppingstone to a professional career. He was a terrific kid, clever, polite and thoughtful, and we spent a most delightful half-hour chatting (his English was very good). I wonder about him from time to time, and hope he’s having a good life.
So, visions of Pascual Duarte and the reality of the Milenium notwithstanding, a stopover in Torremejia was not without reward.
Buen camino,
Wes