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Two Weeks in Andalucia : Finally a Trip Planned Five Years Ago Comes to Pass!!

Two Weeks in Andalucia : Finally a Trip Planned Five Years Ago Comes to Pass!!

Old Oct 12th, 2013, 06:58 AM
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Two Weeks in Andalucia : Finally a Trip Planned Five Years Ago Comes to Pass!!

We just returned from a long-ago planned 2 week trip to Andalucia and had a lovely time. There is much to tell so I will begin at the beginning :

We flew into Madrid and took a pre-ordered and pre-paid AVE train to Cordoba. This I will NEVER do again, just because I was so worried and nervous about whether we would make the train or not, that it made me nuts. Of course we made the train with plenty of time to spare, since I calculated possibilities of delays, etc. but still......

Madrid Barajas airport - hmmmmmm what can I say? AWFUL?? But we knew that from several years ago. And the awful part is that it is so huge and spread out and really and truly from the time we left the aircraft till we got to where the luggage carousel was it was a GOOD 20 minutes and we were walking fast in order to save time. So we ended up back and forth several times till we found the correct carousel, they are really not clear with this. And THEN I started getting really nervous when after about 20 minutes and most people leaving with their suitcases, we had nothing. So I said "great, the ONE time I am gonna have lost luggage is when I need to make a train:!!! But lo and behold we did get our luggage albeit really almost the very last ones and we were at 12 noon leaving the customs and walking out into the street (we landed at 10:30 so it was a good long time). Here I pulled the "this is MY decision" card and decided that even though we may have time still to save some money and take the bus to Atocha train station in the city, we went by taxi. It took 25 minutes or maybe even less and was 35 Euros, not terrible.

The train was fast and quiet, although VERY expensive at about 70 Euros per person!! But knowing that for our first week we did not want or need a car, this was what we decided to do.

We took a taxi to the hotel from the Cordoba train station and the hotel VIENTO 10 is...................WOWOWOWOWOWOW. Just as in the pictures and we love it.

The weather is SOOOOO VERRRRRRY HHHHHHOT BUT today at the Alcazar the lovely girl who saw us trying to cool off said "we are having very good weather now, in August it was FIFTY DEGREES CELSIUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OUCHY!!!!!!

So...... the hotel is fabulous, the owner is a sweetheart and full of patience and good information and suggestions. Since it was Sunday yesterday, our first day, and everything is closed, he suggested a walk around the town for about 1.5-2 hours and ending up at the Mercado Victoria where there are food stands of all nature and you pick what you want, pay for it and sit either outside or in, and have your meal/drink.

So that is what we did. We walked through a lot of the city, not the very old town because that will be today and tomorrow, but did some purposely "getting lost" and just seeing where it will take us. We were quite tired and hungry by the time we got to the Mercado and ended up tasting the following and loving them all :

Tapas olives stuffed with salmon and with a pearl onion
olives stuffed with cheese and with a small tomato
empanadas with tuna
tortilla with egg, potato, salmon, etc.
delish area typical white wine Monzillo, yum
Ended with frozen yogurt

Took taxi home and slept SO well !! Bed is amazing, king size and comfortable, shower is one of those huge rain showers with all sorts of jacuzzi like nozzles and squirts all different places and is so fun.

So today we woke up to the most amazing breakfast I have ever had in a hotel!!. Beautifully and so asethetically presented, as is everything in this place. A tray of small boats with 2 different jams, their typical tomato puree of fresh ripe tomatoes, jambon (ham), butter and sugar. We then received the following and in this order : freshly squeezed orange juice, coffee, small elegant glass bowls of the most exquisite melon partially pureed with lemon, mint and sugar, and some left in pieces, watermelon pieces, a fresh roll, small pieces of typical yellow cheese with a bit of spicy jam, small pieces of luscious orange pound cake, another different kind of roll, a croissant, all warmed and lovely. THEN the gal asked if we wanted yogurt!! We said yes and it was amazing.

We then started our day a bit after 10 AM and walked down the river Quadalquivir which is right here at the hotel towards the Mesquita. We crossed the Roman Bridge to the other side to see the Andalus Museum which was interesting and had some nice views from the top. Then back to the original side of the river and walked into the gates of the Old City. The Mesquita was amazing and I could not stop taking pictures. It was more beautiful and large that I even imagined.

We spent a good hour or so there and then walked towards the Alcazar not far from there (these and the previous Museum were about the only things open on a Monday here so it was fine) but stopped for some refreshments beforehand and a rest.

So again not a lot of places open on Sundays and Mondays but we found a nice place in the shade and we all had some small nosh and a drink and a rest.

Around 2 PM we went into the Alcazar, it was mostly gorgeous and large gardens but also some things inside to see like lots of mosaics and lovely architecture. By the time 3 PM came around we were all pretty tired from the heat mostly and trudged back to the hotel. It was VERY hard in this midday heat . But we have a great shower in our hotel so it refreshed us for our evening walk and dinner.

More later.........
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Old Oct 13th, 2013, 04:34 AM
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Thanks for posting - I like the way you use paragraphs to make this readable.
(Too many use the "big block" of text method!)
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Old Oct 13th, 2013, 04:47 AM
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Great start!
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Old Oct 13th, 2013, 04:58 AM
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Old Oct 13th, 2013, 05:45 AM
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Thanks guys and gals!!
Here is some more :


Today was a wonderful day and instead of being close to maybe 38 degrees I think it was more like 34 which is still too much but makes a difference. We also were out of the sunny sides of the streets more this time because we were inside the small alleys, etc and so it was somewhat better.

We started the day with the wonderful breakfast here at Hotel Viento 10 again and then we made our way on foot of course towards the Juderia, the area of the synagogue, etc. It was a lovely walk, getting lost on purpose through the small alleys and tiny streets of this really pretty city. The synagogue is one of only three in Spain, the other two being in Toledo and we have seen. While there was still little left of this one, there was no comparison to how much more preserved it was than those in Toledo and was very nicely kept. Next to it is Casa Sefardi where they have a museum to Maimonedes and to Judaism. A lovely beautiful young gal took our tickets and explained a bit about the place. We continued our walk down this street and came to a lovely place where we had a stop for wine and olives - Bodegas Guzman!!!

Since it was already noon we went inside and it was absolutely lovely and antique and we had an aperitif of wine and olives. We sat and rested and cooled off a bit and then continued on our journey through the streets, stores, artisan craft area call ZOCO and towards the end ended up in a restaurant there called MAZAL and had lunch. A lovely small place with decent food, although not stellar.

We ended with an espresso which brought us back to life and a lovely conversation with our young handsome waiter!!

Back at the hotel by 4 PM, had a shower and a rest and met up again at 6:30. Went for a walk outside towards Plaza San Pedro and back to the square we started in the morning called Plaza Corredera which reminded us of Piazza San Marco a bit. We had a drink there at one of the outdoor tables and at around 8:45 walked nearby to the restraurant for dinner that the hotel manager suggested called Blanco Enea.

It was elegant, refined, superb dining at its best. The place was gorgeous, the food great and the service amazing!! I started with salmajero, made by mashing tomatoes, olive oil, salt, garlic and bread (to thicken it) and it looked just like Gerber food but the taste was divine. It was sprinkled on top with shaved hard boiled egg and jamon (ham). A salad with eggplant and cheeses were shared. I then had a fish dish which our waitress said was the specialty of the house and it was great, in a plate with some special greens and a creamy divine potato something. A large entrecote was also ordered which was good but not great, had a bit too much fatty pieces in it. We each had some wine, all good. And when she asked if we wanted desert we said we were so full we could not. She asked whether she can "invite us", that's how she said it, for a special almond cake and so how could we refuse? She brought out three sherry desert wines, which we see is "de regueir" for all the places here, and a beautiful plate of 2 large pieces of this amazing almond cake soaked in some amaretto and topped with cinammon ice cream. Heaven heaven. We stumbled back to the hotel very late and slept well !!!

Tomorrow we are off to Seville !!
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Old Oct 13th, 2013, 06:58 AM
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I just found your report. Wonderful and timely as I will be in Andalucia for 2 weeks May 2014! I'm enjoying your writing style and your detail. It will be most helpful. I've already cut and pasted several passages into the document I'm creating. Please, keep the wonderful information coming.

Thanks for the heads up on Madrid airport. I've never flown in or out of it. I plan on doing the same as you - land, head downtown & take the high speed to the south. I'll know to leave plenty of time between landing and my train departure.
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Old Oct 13th, 2013, 07:05 AM
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Wonderful TR. I'm going to read some of your others now!
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Old Oct 13th, 2013, 07:10 AM
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Dee_Dee - happy to help. Make SURE you leave plenty of time between plane landing and train departure. The tickets we had were not only unrefundable, etc. but there also were no seats available on the trains following it (I checked before leaving home just to make my nerves even more frazzled) so really what would we have done if we would have missed our train?

TDudette - thanks. More is on the way.
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Old Oct 13th, 2013, 07:43 AM
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Dee_Dee

If you plan to take the AVE train to Andalucía via Madrid, I very much recommend to have a relaxing evening and morning in Madrid before taking the train after lunch the next day. Will take away all stress about making the train or not, and you could still buy the heavily discounted tickets in advance.

And Madrid is a fabulous city where you can have a nice and tranquile late night dinner, or you can go for delicious tapas, or perhaps see some excellent live flamenco or jazz just around central and bustling Plaza Santa Ana. Or a concert in the Opera or in one of the many great theaters around town. The next day you can have a bargain lunch Menu del Día in one of the many local flavour restaurants before taking a 5-7€ taxi down to Atocha for the train. Maybe you'll also find time for one of the world class museums or a stroll in the beautiful Retiro park?

Several very good value places to stay around Plaza Santa Ana: Persal, Prado, Plaza Mayor etc (60-110€/double)
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Old Oct 13th, 2013, 08:08 AM
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I had read the 2009 Madrid report and enjoyed it a second time. I am finally going in 2014 but alone so I read in a different way. Glad to find Maribel's guide online. I will weigh in about museums as well!
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Old Oct 13th, 2013, 10:47 AM
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Four Nights in Seville!!

We had our last luscious breakfast in Cordoba and said our goodbyes (paid the bill !!) with kisses from our host Gerardo and took a taxi to the train station. Our train left EXACTLY to the second, not the minute (amazing) at 11:21 to Seville and arrived 40 short minutes later. It was an AVE fast train and very comfortable, clean and quiet. The gal at the hotel working the night before checked on trains for us and got us a promotional deal for only 18 Euros each instead of 30 (trains are so expensive here!!

At the Seville train station, after missing a fall by a small margin (my shoelace untied and got caught at the end of the escalator before getting off - I was lucky!!) we took a taxi to our hotel. It is the Alminar Hotel and is it situated well !! Just smack in the thick of things right next to THE cathedral and tapas bars, restaurants, etc. and so so quiet though. The hotel itself is nothing compared to what we had in Cordoba but this is a different category and right in the city so. But it seems clean and comfortable and the price was right.

Our room was ready at 12:30 when we arrived and so we settled in, unpacked, etc. and then went downstairs to explore. We went into the cathedral which in some books is billed as THE biggest in the world and others say it is third only to St. Peters in Rome and St. Pauls in London. In any case it was truly humongous and very very impressive.

By then it was time for a short siesta so back to the hotel and we met again at 5:30. On our earlier walk we saw a young gal selling tickets for THE Flamenco show that was recommended to me (El Arenal). She has been here 2 years studying flamenco and we talked to her at length, in the end buying these tickets for the 8 PM show.

After our siesta we walked around some more and went towards the El Arenal area where our Tablao show would be. It is next to the river so since we were early we walked along it and went past the bullfighting arena, many more tapas bars and shops and just had a lovely walk.

At 7 PM we went into the Tablao and were seated right next to the stage, the place was nice and small so it was really quaint. We loved it right away. We each had a lovely meal of some typical Andalucian dishes and at 8 PM promptly the show started. There were 2 guitar players, 3 singers and a myriad of flamenco dancers, both men and women, who came out separately and then together at the end, to do some serious dancing. We were mesmerized and we all loved it. We slept well after a really lovely day.

Next morning - Well we had another lovely day today. The hotel in Seville is a bit of a letdown after the amazing one we had in Cordoba. With the exception of good location, and of course being clean which is always my MAIN MUST, it has little going for it. So.........

Breakfast was not great and it was all self-service but we managed.......

We walked out today towards the Real Alcazar, a series of amazing palaces, gardens, vistas, houses, etc. which truly took our breath away. We spent over 2 hours there, resting for coffee, etc. here and there. Afterwards we walked towards the Barrio Santa Cruz, a very picturesque area which used to be also the Jewish Quarter. On the way we saw something about wines and liquors and sure enough we went into a lovely building and they were having a festival with free tastings, etc. and we had a great time there.

Walked through this Santa Cruz area, saw a fantastic guitarist playing and singing really well, walked into shops and just breathed in this very exciting atmosphere there. Around 1:30 we stopped for lunch at a outdoor sidewalk place, of which there are many here, and we all had salads. We are missing fresh vegetables!!

We then walked to a place called Casa de los Pilatos and no it is not a place to do Pilates!! LOL. The guidebook says it is a must, as does tripadvisor, etc. It is another large house full of beautiful mosaics, and artwork but after seeing the Alcazar it was a bit of a letdown and we found it to have been a waste of time and money. Oh well.

We walked back to the hotel, got there around 4 PM and went for a siesta.

We met up again at 6:30 and were invited by our travel companion to THE most elegant and expensive hotel here called Alfonso XIII for a celebratory drink in honor of our anniversary. It was also not far from here and it was AMAZING, I could not stop taking pictures. We had a lovely mojito in this gorgeous place and sat and talked for over an hour. Then back towards our hotel, stopping at an Italian place here for pizzas and risotto. It is nice to be close to the hotel after dinner so we just got back quickly and went to sleep.
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Old Oct 13th, 2013, 02:37 PM
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This is a great tr. It sounds like you all had an amazing time!
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Old Oct 13th, 2013, 04:06 PM
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Great TR - We are in the planning stages for our trip to Andalucia next May so will be saving your report for reference. Thanks for the great detail. Looking forward to more!
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Old Oct 14th, 2013, 11:02 AM
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Thanks all. We did indeed have a wonderful time. And if there are any questions I can help with, feel free to ask.

Here are our next and last two days in Seville :

Our day started as all our days here have been, i.e. an almost inedible breakfast and so we do end up eating at lunch which we usually don't.

Today was brutally hot again 38 degrees C. We walked towards the Museo des Belle Artes, billed as second only to the Prado in Madrid in its importance. The building was gorgeous and planned, as so many of them here are, around a gorgeous garden and pacio as they call them, and for a change was not 8 Euros entrance but only 1.5 Euros. Kudos to them. It was lovely and small and we enjoyed walking through the beautiful halls, one of them having been a church at one time with a gorgeous huge ceiling and frescoes. And it was nicely put together because you knew exactly where you were and where you still needed to go. Something that is really lacking in most museums I find, where you are not quite sure of the above.

After this we took QUITE a walk over to a bridge across the Quadalquivir River, one of many bridges. It took us to the area called Triana which, from what I had read and heard, thought would remind us of Trastevere (which also MEANS across the bridge in Italian) in Rome. And sure enough, that is what is did. One gal here at the hotel who lives in this area, told us where to go and visit and so we did. There is atmosphere in this part of the city although no true sights as in the area where we are.

We walked the tiny streets with the beautifully different colored buildings, and ended up in a true authentic old taverna called Sol y Sombre which means Sun and Shade. She suggested it and was it ever great. The place was right out of an old 1920's movie including old faded bullfighting posters and others on the walls, old old furniture and many many Iberian hams hanging from the ceiling!!!

We sat down and had a truly exquisite meal. There was a scrambled egg dish with ham and beans (this sounds ever so simple and just so-so but it was one of the most exquisite dishes we tasted on this trip!!) a cheese plate, I FINALLY got to try the Jambon Iberico de Bellotta which is THE ham here and was amazing, plus a potato and tuna dish. We had some wonderful white wine to wash it down and were truly happy.

We walked and walked and walked some more until we got to another of the bridges, Triana Bridge and on the other side, were the boats which took you on a one hour cruise down the river. We knew it would not be a great trip but it was hot, mid-afternoon and we figured it would be a nice rest.

So we WERE disappointed, we were aware it would be like this and we just shrugged it off and said that we all can make mistakes. No big deal.

At that point it was already 4:30 and we were exhausted and really hot so we took a taxi to the hotel and were here at around 5 PM.

We had a shower and a rest and then were out at 7:30 to get an ice cream and sit on the sidewalk near the cathedral. At around 8:30 we went to another Flamenco show literally right next door to the hotel so we did not need much walking . We were first in for the 9 PM show so sat in the first row. It is a small place, very different from the one we were two nights ago and there was only one guitar player, one singer and one flamenco dancer but a very famous one that I had even heard about - Ana Morales. They were all fantastic and she was something else!! We really really REALLY loved it.

At 10 PM when it was over we decided to walk around and see if we could get a drink and a small plate of some things and ended up on a different street that we had never explored yet because everything in the immediate vicinity of the hotel was so full!!

So we found a nice place with one empty outdoor table and we sat, ordered Sangrias, and 2 tapas plates for each of us.

Next Day :
Today was another scorching day and we started as usual with the blah breakfast here. We were out by about 9:30 and headed in the northern/western direction this time of the city towards the very large and beautiful Park Maria Luisa.

On the way we saw a side entrance of the cathedral open and when we were there originally, we "missed" seeing C. Columbus's supposed grave, they are not sure his remains are there. So we went in gratis and saw it. They were having a service even though it is not Sunday so we stayed a bit to listen also mostly to the organ music.

Off we continued and walked quite a ways, ended up in front of a very nice building, went inside and saw it was like their Polytechnic Institite and belonged to the University of Sevilla. Not a bad place to study. Later I read in the guidebook that it used to be the Tobacco Factory. Continued along wide roads and ended up at THE MOST GORGEOUS square here and quite the surprise called Plaza de Espana. It was built in 1929 as part of the Expo at that year and it was an immense surprise for us. I had no idea it would be so huge, intricate, beautiful, etc. We spent quite the amount of time there and then went into the park right near it.

Again a long walk through the park and we found the Archeological Museum which was very impressive. As with the Belles Artes museum, it was small, functional, beautifully put together and easy to see everything properly. I don't know why but we were told "right now the entrance is free". Not clear whether it was that moment, or whatever but it was nice.

We then walked back the whole way and it was already midday and the sun burning. We stopped at some National Fair which was very poor and not even worth writing about. Ended up having a really funny lunch at Burger King! But it was what everyone felt like.

Back to the hotel early around 2:15 and rested and showered till about 5:00.

We were out again in the early evening and went to the shopping area (Calle Sierpes) which was not far from the hotel. Did somewhat of a damage to our bank accounts, not terrible, but found some nice things, both for gifts and for ourselves. Made our way after about 2 hours of shopping to the Plaza Nueva where it was the time when the Spaniards have there daily afternoon/evening outing before their very late 10 PM dinners. So we sat on a bench there for a while and watched their world go by.

We then walked down Zaragoza street where our hotel staff told us about a nice place for our last evening meal here called La Azotea. OMG OMG OMG!!! Did we have a meal here.

It is a very small place and we were the first ones in and lucky too, within 5 minutes all was full. Had a lovely sweet waitress who knew very little English. I started off with possibly THE most interesting and unusual dish I have EVER had. It was organic tomatoes with some peppers in a basil olive oil with burrata Italian cheese (sorta like mozzarella but even better because there is a cream inside!!) and on top of it was a lemon/basil sorbet. WOW WOW WOW.

Others had a superb duck breast on pumpkin puree with passion fruit, an amazing fish tagine with vegetables and an omelette with potatoes, zucchini, cheese and ham. And we shared a terrific bottle of white wine. We shared a desert even though we were busting full so we had some rice pudding mousse with whipped cream, cinammon and I don't even know what else.

We stumbled back to the hotel and we are really tired.
Tomorrow we leave to pick up a car and start our week of driving here.
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Old Oct 14th, 2013, 12:49 PM
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Good to hear that you saw a flamenca of Ana Morales' caliber when in Sevilla. She also danced on Oct 1. in the new three week Muestra de Flamenco festival (Sep 24-Oct 13). Review of her performance in Teatro Central:
http://www.flamenco-world.com/magazi...102013ing.html

As you probably know, she won the prestigious Premio Desplante in La Unión in 2009. http://www.fundacioncantedelasminas....o_datos/?cat=9
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Old Oct 14th, 2013, 01:13 PM
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Indeed. I love Flamenco, although I am not really very informed about who are the "stars" or those well known and well versed in the art. But for some reason, I knew the name of Ana Morales and so was very excited indeed to see her performance. And from the first row !!!
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Old Oct 16th, 2013, 11:37 AM
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Two Nights in Ronda and the White Villages is next.......
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Old Oct 17th, 2013, 06:27 AM
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If anyone is still reading, here is the continuation of our trip :

We left the Sevilla hotel (Alminar) relatively early, took a taxi to the train station, effortlessly picked up our white sporty BMW car and were on our way around 10 AM. It was easy getting out of the city in the sense that I did not make any turns that would take me into the small little streets of the old city, etc. But I did make some errors until I managed to get out and then it was fine. The car has 903 km on it and so it is really brand new and great fun to drive. There is room for all three big suitcases in the trunk and no problem putting the handbags inside with the person sitting in back.

On our way to our hotel in Ronda for the night, we drove to a place called Jerez de la Frontera, instead of driving all the way to the seashore to Cadiz which had been an idea tht we were toying with. It was just too far out of the way and I was worried it would be too long a drive. Jerez turned out to be a bit of a letdown, although we did see the town, it is very pretty and elegant, walked around a bit, found the tourism office and it was even open ON A SUNDAY, and ended up doing the one thing that would be unique there, i.e. a tour of the local sherry/wine bodega called Tio Pepe. It was way longer that we expected, almost 90 minutes!! and in the end we only tasted two wines and with not even a morsel of anything in between. But it was OK and on the walk back to the parking garage we stopped for ice cream around 3 PM because no one was really hungry for a meal.

To Ronda we arrived a bit after 5 PM and the hotel is GORGEOUS, as I had expected and seen from tripadvisor. Rooms are large and beautifully decorated and location is right smack in the middle of town right near the amazing bridge and gorges. So all of that went down well. Had to find the parking garage which was fine and managed.

After some unpacking and a rest, we walked out about the town, seeing elegantly manicured gardens, beautiful vistas across the mountains and gorges here, stores, people, etc. It was lovely, for about an hour or so. We looked for a certain restaurant that the guy here recommended but could not find it, ended up eating at a non-descript place right across hotel, nothing great, nothing bad. Just blase and nothing else.

Next day :
We have a GORGEOUS room in this hotel La Poeta in a wonderful location in this amazing little town. The hotel is an old house that was renovated but kept in the traditional Andalucian style and is just amazing. Breakfast was decent, continental style and not too much, but just right for what we need and served in a most gorgeous setting and dining room.

We walked around the other part of Ronda that we had not yet seen which was really really beautiful with many alleys and secret pathways to explore and really enjoyed it. Had a drink in mid-morning and a rest in a lovely setting which has been our norm mostly every day and is really great.

Around noon we went to get the car and drove to a place called Zahara de la Sierra which was in the Parc Grazalema, a natural park which is quite large of this area. It was a very special place high up in the mountains, with gorgeous views of a azure colored lake, trees, and beautiful countryside. We ended up having an amazing lunch here just by chance, Menu del Dia for 8 Euros each which included a hearty first course, main and even desert. And while our waiter at first let us stumble with our basic Spanish he at one point asked us if we speak English, in perfect British English. Turns out he was Scottish!! It was a fun time.

We then drove to Grazalema, a place I read that was worth a visit. The twisting and turning bends and the very narrow roads were quite an adventure. Grazalema was a lovely pueblo blanco amidst many others and we had a lovely walk and exploration around there as well.

We returned to the hotel, after parking the car again in the lot, AND some nice shopping adventures here in Ronda, around 5:30 PM. After a rest and a shower we met at 7:30 and went to dinner at a really special and lovely place here called Alcomobar. The ajo blanco was served here with mango sorbert in it!!! Very refined, exquisite food and we had a lovely meal with great Ronda wine.
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Old Oct 17th, 2013, 08:17 AM
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Old Oct 17th, 2013, 09:41 PM
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Glad I found your report. Can't wait to read more!
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