Spain Trip (Part II) Back to Part I
Wed 9/22. Jerez, Tarifa.
|
|
From Sevilla, we rented a car
from Auto Europe and drove south on the E5 expressway towards Cadiz.
In Jerez, we visited the Andalusian equestrian school to view their public
practice session. We also caught the Sandeman sherry bodega tour
which is around the corner from the equestrian school. The tour was
pretty good with a good mix of educational and interesting features (e.g., 80% of Sandeman's
sherry is exported to Germany).
From Jerez, it's about a 90 minute drive to Tarifa, a sleepy small town on the Mediterranean coast. In Tarifa, we stayed a night at the Hotel La Mirada which had nice rooms, but was a little far (5 blocks) from the old town where most of the restaurants, stores, church, and Africa views are. From Tarifa, the hills of Africa are visible across the sea. Jerez and Tarifa Ratings: Food 2, Hotel 7, Shopping 1, Sights 6, Friendliness 8. |
| Sandeman sherry bottling |
Thu 9/23. Tangier.
|
|
 |
Our purpose of staying in
Tarifa was to take a day-trip to Tangier, Morocco. Unfortunately,
the Tarifa - Tangier ferries have been discontinued indefinitely.
Instead, you must leave from the large port at Algeciras, a 20-minute
drive away and a longer ferry ride.
At Algeciras, we signed up for the Tour Africa one-day guided tour. The ferry takes an intolerably long time to load and unload, but otherwise the 2 1/2 hour trip is fairly pleasant. |
| Sunrise over Gibraltar | Berber merchant |
 |
 |
Right off the ferry, we are met by our guide. We walk out of the port into the Medina, the old town. The Kasbah, the fortress, is basically some walls, some great views of the sea, and some entertainers (musicians, snake charmers) there for tourists. The tour also takes you to a spice shop, a rug shop, a souvenir shop, and a walk through the market. Lunch includes some fragrant Moroccan food. A short bus ride along the Tangier coastline leads to a camel ride photo op. Very touristy, but mostly enjoyable. Tangier Ratings: Food 4, Hotel N/A, Shopping 6, Sights 10, Friendliness 6. |
|
Spice store |
Kasbah |
Fri 9/24. Ronda.
|
|
 |
 |
The previous night we had driven from Algeciras up a 2-lane winding road in sheer darkness to Ronda, a beautifully situated hill town that straddles a deep gorge. We stayed at the Hotel El Tajo, a good clean hotel in the center of town. Ronda is a beautiful town in a beautiful location. Ronda Ratings: Food 2, Hotel 9, Shopping 1, Sights 10, Friendliness 7. |
| Ronda bridge | Ronda gorge | Ronda view |
Sat 9/25. Ronda to Granada.
|
|
 |
From Ronda, it was about a 2-3 hour drive to Granada where we dropped off our car. Hotel Macia Plaza right on Plaza Nueva was a great hotel: perfect location, clean, new, quiet room, and a good rate after showing the Rick Steves' book for a discount. We visited Granada's cathedral and Royal Chapel and then took the minibus to the San Nicolas Mirador for the famous sunset view of the Alhambra. The Albaicin neighborhood is the old Moorish quarter and is sprawled on a hill facing the Alhambra. Near the city walls are the gypsy caves. We ate at Ladrillo 2 in the Albaicin. They served us massive quantities of soup and fried seafood. |
| Mirador San Nicolas | Gypsy caves |
Sun 9/26. Granada. Alhambra.
|
|
|
|
A few days earlier, we had bought our reserved tickets for the Alhambra in Sevilla at a BBC bank. The time-restricted entry ticket is for the Palacios Nazaries, the Moorish palace. The Generalife gardens with their fountains are awesome. The beautiful palace was one of the highlights of our trip. The Alhambra Alcazaba has some nice views, but that's about it. Granada Ratings: Food 3, Hotel 10, Shopping 1, Sights 10, Friendliness 5. |
| Generalife | Inside the Palacio Nazares | The Court of 12 Lions |
Mon 9/27 - Wed 9/29 Barcelona.
|
|
Monday morning we flew from Granada to Barcelona on Iberia. Barcelona's atmosphere of a large cosmopolitan city is a striking contrast coming from Andalucia. The Hotel Gran Via is a block off Plaza Catalunya. Gaudi's architecture is impressive and memorable. The Ramblas pedestrian walkway is pleasant as is the port area. We bought tickets for the unlimited ride tourist bus which seems like a good way to get to Montjuic where many sights are including the Olympic museum and the Miro museum with Calder's famous mercury fountain. We enjoyed the Basque tapas at Txapela near Plaza Catalunya. Ending our trip, we flew back to San Francisco through NYC-Kennedy. Barcelona Ratings: Food 6, Hotel 6, Shopping 3, Sights 9, Friendliness 9. |
| La Sagrada Familia |
| Back to Part I |
