Don Quixote spent four days at Don Diego’s house. As he came in and saw the El Toboso jars in the courtyard, he thought of the enchanted Dulcinea and sighed. Don Diego’s wife, Doña Cristina, welcomed him warmly. Their son, Don Lorenzo, who wrote poetry, tested whether he was mad or wise, then recited his own poems for him. Don Quixote praised him, saying there were countless worn-out poets but he had never before seen one so fully ripened.
On the day he left, he said he would visit the Cave of Montesinos and then go to the jousts at Zaragoza. And he left Lorenzo a piece of advice. If he wanted to reach the summit of fame quickly, he should leave poetry’s rather narrow trail for the far narrower road of knight-errantry. Sancho was not keen to leave that well-stocked kitchen for the hungry fields again.
Not long after setting out, they met two students and two farmers. All four were riding donkeys. When Don Quixote gave his name, Don Quixote of La Mancha, also known as the Knight of the Lions, the farmers could make nothing of it. The students soon saw that his mind was weak, but they politely invited him to a wedding all the same.