Granada has been a city we have wanted to visit
the entire time we have been here but we never found ourselves in a position to
make it down that way. Luckily for us
our friend Lloyd wanted to make sure we had a great final adventure here in
Spain so he planned a super fun weekend away.
So last Friday Lloyd, Kevin, Ines, Ross and myself embarked on a road
trip south.
We rented a car here and drove for just over 7
hours to Ronda which was the first city on our tour. Though the drive is long once you get a few
hours out of Valladolid the scenery is spectacular. Rolling green pastures and mountains line the
highways. All of us but Ines live in
Valladolid so she flew from Madrid to Malaga and took a bus to meet us at the
flat in Ronda. As usual we had issue
with our rental. We ended up being put
up in a different apartment then we rented, however because of the issue we
were given less of a charge so that worked out nicely.
Ronda is a gorgeous mountain top city that is
situated above a cavernous gorge (el tajo). The views from the Vantage points
(mirador) are superb. You see the valley
villages and the mountains which surround them. It seems like endless nature
and gives such a sense of serenity. Many famous authors have spent a considerable
amount of time in the city and their romantic and powerful writing has
influenced tourism in the area. Ernest
Hemmingway, Orson Wells and Rainer Maria Rilke are among the most notable.
“I have sought everywhere the city of my dreams,
and I have finally found it in Ronda”
(“He buscado por todas partes la ciudad sonada, y
al fin la he encontrado en Ronda”)
As written
by Rilke.
We stayed in the city center which made it very
convenient to go out for late night tapas and drinks. My favourite place we stopped at was El
Lechuguita (the little lettuce). It was
a “charming” tapas bar with cheap snacks so you couldn’t go wrong. There were even some actual vegan options for
me! It is famous for the lettuce tapa
which is basically a quarter of a head of lettuce dressed with oil and garlic
and honestly it was the best lettuce I have ever had.
In the morning before continuing the road trip we
explored Ronda in the daylight. It was
filled with narrow alley ways, interesting old buildings and the famous Puente
Nuevo (new bridge) which connects the city across the gorge. The construction of the bridge began in 1751
it took 42 years and 50 workers deaths before its completion in 1793. It is said that many prisoners were thrown to
their death from the bridge during the Spanish civil war.
After Ronda our journey took us first to the
ancient ruins of Acinipo (also known as Ronda la Vieja – Old Ronda – although
it has a separate origin and history) This ancient city was erected over 2000
years ago for Ceasars retired soldiers.
If you are in the area it is definitely worth a look. It is only 20 km from Ronda and the drive is
lovely.
We continued on from here towards Sentinel de las
Bodegas for a quick tour and lunch. This
small town (pueblo) is very famous because it is built in a canyon along the
Rio Trejo (Trejo River). Many of the
buildings themselves are built right into the rock and therefore have
interesting cave walls and ceilings inside.
The more modern Sentinel has evolved from a
fortified Moorish town but historians believe that with the evidence they have
from cave dwelling societies nearby that the area was likely inhabited more
than 25000 years ago. I have never seen
anything quite like it. It was the
perfect place to have lunch and then post lunch shots and cookies. Be prepared however to do some serious
walking here. The city is steep and
slippery so wear good shoes!
From here we drove for around 2 hours to do a
short but lovely hike in a nature reserve in the Sierra del Torcal mountain
range which is just south of the city of Antequera. The hike, called El Torcal
de Antequera, was so interesting because of the landscape. I have never seen rock formations like this
before. I learned that the limestone
here is from the Jurassic age (so about 150 million years old) I felt like I
was on another planet or that in the very least I should see a dinosaur.
It was great to get out of the car for a good leg
stretch and see the views from the lookouts.
We could see all the way to the sea from certain points and that always
makes my heart happy.
After the hike it was back to the highway to get
to Granada before sunset. We stayed in a
hostel in the city center called Dreams Room.
If you are a hostel stayer it wasn’t bad so I would recommend looking it
up. Ross and I stayed in a private room,
which yes is a little more expensive but for me personally sharing a room with
strangers is not something I am willing to do (I don’t even like sharing a room
with people I know). I like my privacy.
Once we were checked into the hostel we dashed up
to the Miraodr de San Nicolas (Saint Nicholas lookout) to watch the sunset with
the perfect view of The Alhambra. The
mirador is on top of a hill in the ancient Moorish district of
Albaicin/Albayzin. This area is one of
the oldest centers of Muslim culture in Granada. It is a maze of steep winding streets
surrounded on either side by shops and traditional houses which are separated
from the street by high walls and often have a garden. So after we had our fill of breathtaking sunset
views we wandered through the neighbourhood towards dinner.
The streets were full of people enjoying tapas,
playing music, selling crafts and generally just enjoying the beautiful
evening. The main strip we wandered
down, where we found some dinner at a Moroccan restaurant, was Caldereria
street (calle de la caldereria nueva) also known as Little Morocco. Here there were a myriad of touristy shops,
Moroccan tea houses and craft shops.
Then it was out for tapas and drinks. Something I like very much about the south is
that when you order drinks (even water which is all I have) you get a free
tapa. Now usually it is not something vegetarian
or vegan but I love that this tradition stands.
It makes going out for drinks in the evening more exciting and means you
could forgo dinner all together and just survive off deep fried treats with
your drinks.
Our last day began with Ross, Ines and I taking an
early morning hike up the hill to The Alhambra which is a palace and fortress compound. Words cannot describe the beauty of this
place. Its ownership has exchanged many
hands throughout its history from Romans to Moors to Christians and is now a
UNESCO World Heritage Site. This palace
is one of Spain’s most notable tourist destinations and has the county’s most
significant Islamic architecture.
The palace has a theme described as “paradise on
earth” with columns, fountains, reflecting pools and gorgeous gardens filled
with orange trees, roses and wisteria covering the arches. The rooms all have arched windows and doors
which lead to beautiful courtyards and offer an incredible view of the city and
mountains. The walls and ceilings are
carved stucco and stone in geometric patterns and Arabic writing. It is incredible.
We spent several hours marvelling over everything
before heading back down the hill towards the Moorish district again to have
tea and falafels. After which we met up with Lloyd and Kevin where they were
having tapas and we wandered towards the area of Sacromonte.
Sacromonte is an interesting area with incredible
views of The Alhambra, the mountains and the river Darro. It is characteristically inhabited by Gypsies,
bohemians and Flemish artists, but it was the Gypsies/Gitanos/Romas who first settled
in this area in the 15th century.
The hillside is lined with stark white buildings built into the hill and
many houses are in actual caves.
Here is a better explanation from Rick Steves
It was a really neat place to spend a hot sunny
afternoon exploring.
After a relaxing lunch then post lunch pastry and
coffee we set off on our journey back to Valladolid, with a quick stop in
Madrid to drop Ines off. We left Granada
around 530 and made it back to Valladolid just after midnight.
I had an amazing time and truly appreciate the
people I was able to share these experiences with. Like I have said in previous posts I have met
some truly incredible people here in Spain and I value all the time I have been
able to spend getting to know them and enjoying life in Espana.
This country has been my home for the past two
years and I feel like I have experienced a great deal and learned so much about
it. A lot of that is because of the people I have met who have shown me
wonderful places and taught me so much about the history and traditions. I feel very lucky to have had this opportunity.
Until Next time,
Besos xx
