Mrs M's BB diary of the trip:
24th Sept
Saturday. Up at 4 to get to Stansted for 6.30 flight. Bit of a zoo at airport - too busy. Eazijet left on time. Malaga by 10 ish local time. Rented a Smart car auto very sweet.
Drove along coastal motorway past Torremolinas and Marbella. Brilliant sun 23 degrees. Impressive granite peaks to the right of us with crowded high rise development of the coastal strip.
Headed north along scenic winding road up into the high sierra to Ronda.
Beautiful town with 18th C bridge over dramatic gorge. Bull ring , white architecture. Narrow winding lanes set on hillside with views across the sierra. Tapas lunch with Manzanilla sherry - ice cold dry- delicious. Tapas bar - Sat at high stools along narrow walkway between the Parador and bullring.
Wedding guests paraded in ridiculous high heels -toppling on the cobbles with fascinators bobbing and plump brown skin glowing.
Onward across golden plateau to Seville. Arrived 4.30. Parked underground at Puerta de Jerez and walked with our backpacs to Hotel Almires.
City busy with people sitting out eating and drinking. Temps 29 degrees - wonderful.
Vast cathedral looms above us and modern tram glides almost noiselessly by between us and cathedral. Hotel on a narrow passage just north of cathedral. Modern room with view of passage.
Walked out to the north among the strolling throng. Shops open. Pedestrianised. Narrow passages and larger thoroughfares and a few large squares with huge shades -awnings above to keep off the sun
Visited El Salvador church - amazingly ornate with silver and gold altar pieces. Guest thronging outside before an evening wedding with traditional lace mantilla worn by a family matriarch.
Arrived at the Museum de Belles Artes - free for EU visitors. Housed in a beautiful old convent around 3 courtyards with ponds and trees and traditional tiling - very elegant.
Compositions by Murillo - vast religious canavases- smudgy style- in a high vaulted ex- chapel of the convent. Zubartan- more precise and detailed style with exquisite clothing on his saints. Easy tour around 13 rooms on 2 floors.
Wandered back to hotel - soaking up the evening ambiance. Everyone out for their stroll along the narrow shopping boulevards clutching their little paper bag purchases. Old bodegas with white and blue tiling and hams hanging over counters jostle with modren stores like C and A - they still have it!
Ate on outside table at Robles just 30 seconds from our door. Tapas and red wine and watched the world go by.
25th Sept
Sunday
Woke early and had a light b'fast in the hotel little tiled lobby. Headed out by 930 to the Alkabar - Palaces and gardens. Exquisite tiling and archways in the Pedro I Palace - grander scale in Carlos V but not so delicate. Room upon room around courtyards. Fountains gardens, maze tallist palm trees, ponds exhausting. Coffee and pastry and a litter of kittens bothered us. On to a walk thru the Santa Cruz district. Narrow white passages between tall buildingd little squares with tapas bars stopped at one for masanilla and beer and gaspacho and chorizo. Wandrerd on then back to Catherdral queued to get in at opening 230. Huge inside a vast cube with ornate chapels all around. Tall central altar piec 120 ft high with wood carving in boxed relief.
Climbed la Giralda - ramps up 36 levels. Great views from the belfry at the top. Tired headed back for a lie down at 4 pm
Out again at 5.30. Walked to the river to see the Torre D'oro then to the bull ring where to our surprise there was a bull fight just starting we were persuaded to buy tkts by a marketeer -only the tkt price - so not being done!
Suddenly we were in the arena - a coliseum like feel of noise and heat packed with locals. We squeezed our way to our seats - up and up and along long long way along the row - managing to tread on feet bags and cushions as we went
We saw all but the first fight - so 5 bulls plus one that didn't make the grade and was seen out of the ring by a crowd of brown-headed white cows with HUGE bells at their necks
The fights were fascinating and balletic and by the 5th fight rather predictable and boring. Worst bit was the long speared horseback riders whose attacks provoked the bull to attempt to gore the horse-luckily well armoured and protected
The most skilled bit was the picadore planting his barbs in the neck of the charging bull.
Very hot and sweaty for 2 hours.
The crowd quickly dispersed at 8.15 and we sat out with red wine and tapas including oxtail stew- a bit troubling. Bed by 10. Read my book 'a visit from the goon squad'
26th Sept
Monday
Slept well at Hotel Alimar. After brekka of fruit and mini muffin and coffee we donned our backpacks and headed to our car. Wonderful blue skies and warm so warm. The cathedral was stunning in the morning sun with the ultra modern trams gliding by. Collected our Smart car from the underground carpark and headed around the ring road - the northern side to go east to Cordoba. Easy signage and we were soon heading across rather a flat nondescript plain.
Stopped on Carmona and parked SO easily with our little Smart. Walked thru the beautiful narrow white streets seeing a Roman floor on the way to the prow of the hill where the Parador was built on the ruins of the original palace built by Charles or Frederic or Alphonso. From the terrace we could see a collumating solar powered light a feature in the distance. Coffee in the rounded 'square' with shady trees bordering and elderly folk sitting and chatting their sticks at their sides.
Found a Chinese shop selling everything including the batteries we wanted for my camera. Then anaother chinese shop for a tasty peach which I ate in the car - no good pastries to be found!
Drove on to Ecija and had a scoot around the town but no stopping. On to Cordoba - approached along the eastern bank of the river Guadalquivir. Parked easily and slung backpacks to walk across the Roman pdestrian bridge to the old town where our Hacienda was just a few steps along the road adjacent to The Mesquita - the old mosque - famous for its collonades of double arches built 900. Christians booted Islam out in 1300s and its now Cordoba Cathedral with a belfry on top od the original tower.
Our hotel is a delight with inner courtyard with plants and old wood chairs and artefacts. Our room has view of wall of Mesquita. Quickly sorted and out for tapas to Bodega Mesquite next door - excellent aubergine patties orange onion and tuna salad; grilled squid; gazpacho and Cordoba tart and orange cinnamon and sugar. Wines Montilla Montides dry white -delicous then XP M-M sweet dark sherry with dessert.
Walked to the Jewish quater thru the tiny white streets decorated with plants and tiles. Tracked to the plaza Tendillas and the shopping streets opening up at 5 30 past some Roman columns the back to the square for coffee and a rest!
Back to hotel to revamp. Then out at 830 for dinner to Casa Pepe solemjero? Thick gazpacho then oxtail stew -again- for me. Attentive waiter -too much. But glass of XP gratis and 'England' platter after meal.
27th Sept
Tuesday
Up at 8.30 as we want to visit The Mesquita early before the paying tours at 10 am. The breakfast at the hotel - downstairs in a pretty dining room - is delicious. Fresh pineapple,melon,watermelon, juices, meats cheeses yoghurts pastries. I have myfavourite crema pastry. We head for the mosque where I have to return to hotel only 5 minutes for a cover for my arms. Different from Seville cathedral.
The outer courtyard is a mass of orange trees in neat quadrangles with a background of seering blue sky and campanille. Warming up even at 9am. We enter the dark vastness of the mosque with row upon row of souble horseshoe arches enclosed by the caged chapels of its catholic conversion back in 1492. There is a strange central christian church where a mass is being sung by numrous pink clothed clerics. We wander undisturbed and view the pillars - some reclaimed Roman in origin in the oldest part. In the far right corner from our entry are gorgous patterned celings and highly decorated moorish side archways whcih face Mecca. The whole effect of the mosque is mesmorising and having it almost to ourselves is bliss.
We head onward to visit the Jewish quarter and the synagogue - last used as such in the 1300s when the Jews were booted out. It is one of only 3 synagogues inthe whole of Spain. Its very small but with some original intricate plaster work on its simple 4 walls.
Next to the Alcazar - and its free to visitors today because of National Tourism Day! We enter thru a shady. Open square then climb the tower to views over the mosque and gardens.
Down to the Roman baths then into the gardens and pools and fountains and high cypressuss and smelling of jasmine - wonderful.
See the water wheel originally installed by the moors.
Walk east thru the white streets to a bar near the river for coffee cortado.
Carry on to Palace Viane with its 12 beautiful gardens then wander for hours thru the white streets discovering churches and convents and schools and shops and tapas bars.
We eat in the Plaza Ponza tapas and local wines as the sun beats down on the white umbrellas of the bar. A short visit to the Musee de Belles Artes but Romero musee is closed.
Back to hotel for a rest at 430pm. A sleep then up for about 8pm to Bodega Mesquit again - so conveneint and so good. Tapas and sangria for me beer and red wine for Stiart. At 10.30 head to Flamenco - prebooked. In a small piazza near The Mesquite. Under the stars. Wonderful guitars x2 and singers x2 and dancers x5 and one man who was superb. Love the thunderoues clattering of their stubby heels. Stu managed to stay awake till end ( midnight .30.
28th Sept
Wed. Up early for another great brekka. Then a repeat visit to enjoy the Mesquita - so different and free before 10 am.
Packed and headed back across the Roman bridge to our Smart car - me driving today!
Out in an easterly direction to Granada - about 120 km. Thru vast expanses of olive groves - 100s of thousands of trees undulating across the hills in orderly rows. Past olive oil towns with fortresses set dramatically atop rocky outcrops.
Managed a cortado and churros in Alcuetede. Arrived Granada at about 1ish. Parked underground and walked in high heat towards the old town and hotel de the grande puerte. Room not ready so went down the hill for wine and tapas. Then walked up thru Wellingtons lofty elms to collect tkts for Alhambra tomorrow. Back thru old Jewish quarter.
G and T on our 4-walled terrace -read up on history. Out for a walk before dinner - wandered up and up thru Albacin district - all white houses and winding roads - but look out for dog do! Arrived at the look out infront of St Nicholas church - with great views of Alhambra - lots od tourists waiting for the lumiere to switch on -which they do at 8.30pm. Head a few yards dow hill to a reataurant with terrace and view. Great meal - spanish cheeses then salmon salad and - cod for Stuart. Wander down to bed
29th Sept
Thurs. Up 7am for light brekka - fruit and fruit before climbing to the entrance to the Alhambra. We have timed entrance for 9.30 for the Nazrid Palaces so have time to visit the Alkabar before this. We are almost first in at 8.30.
Alkobar is fairly easy - just a couple of ancient towere built by the moors. Fab views of city. Time for a sit and a coffee then into Nazrid Palaces.
Impressive for the amazing plaster patterns and arcgways and water features. But the crowds all in togehter at 9.30 are a bit of a downer. Also Palace of. The Lions is being revamped so more a building site. But still its all wonderful - just enjoyed Alkobar in Seville more. On to the Generlife thru beautiful grdens with backdrop of city and Sierras. The G is another palce but less ornate and more full of gardens and fountains.
We wander back via ancient bath house and the Parador which is housed in a monastery which was previously a palace. Isabel (1500s) wanted to be buried here - and was but then moved to the Alciera - mausoleum next to cathedral and her husband Ferdi.
Back to Grand Taberna - our local for tpas. I had palm ht and avo salad very good. Plus vino rosado after manzanilla.
Back to hotel for respite. Out again to cathedral and mauso. At 5ish. Then walk up Albacin to Alhambra view for a drink at 8ish. Meal at El ladrino(?). Good squid and sardines and local granadine soup -egg and ham and crouton.
30th Sept
Friday. Slept til latish. Brekka at 10! Walked thru reye de Catholica to large Plaza then on to shops and Handbags. Coffee by the river Genil. Walked south to Lorca Park and museum for guided tour at 12.30. Nice little house but very little info of how he lived and how and why he died.
Walked back to town and came a cross great bookshop with loads of good English books and history. from there to Plaza las ramblas but tooo touristy because - hey - we aren't! Back to near book shop to a local bar Pucarri for fantastic wine and tapas - just copied what the locals were having. Very friendly barman with a tracheostomy and gut voice. We drank local cab sauv. From Alpajurras and ate a pork dish with hot goats cheese and pePpers called 'secreto' for the shoulder cut of pork.
Stuart impressed with how I have orchestrated the day AND not bought a handbag!
Back to hotel for siesta.
Out again and walk to shopping area and visit 3 churches some with amazing ornat decor then to Albacin for a view andwater at top then down to copa of vin at bottom!
Sat 1st Oct walked to collect car and off to the Aljupurra mountains to have wander around some of the white flat roofed ancient villages then down to coast for a paddle and lunch on the beach. To Malaga for a wander, then to airport and back home just after midnight
