Day 9 & 10: Segovia and Back to Madrid

We spent Day 9 on the road driving back towards Madrid.  No big sightseeing stops until we got to Segovia.  We didn't have much time in Segovia - barely 24 hours, but we walked around the old town and saw the Alcazar and the aqueducts.  The Romans built huge aqueducts to carry water from a river into town.  The 2000 year old section is 2,500 feet long and 100 feet high and has 118 arches.  It was made without any mortar and still functioned up until the late 19th century.  While in Segovia, we also tried the roast suckling pig.  We stopped at Jose Maria to sample a little of it and were pleasantly surprised.  Although, at this point, it is safe to say the Spaniards know how to serve pig!

On the way back to Madrid, we attempted to stop at the Valley of the Fallen - a huge memorial and burial grounds for those who fought and died in Spain's Civil War.   Franco had it built by prison workers who dug out 220,000 tons of granite under a hill to form an underground basilica.  We got to the door, but it was closed for mass, so we didn't actually get inside!  I am sure it was beautiful though!

Once back in Madrid, we got lost in the city for a few more hours and finished the evening with tapas and beer!  Not a bad way to end our time in Spain!

Day 8: Granada

We only had one full day in Granada so we had to make it count.  Granada was the last stronghold of the Moors as the Reconquista in Spain started to come to an end.  There are traces of this history all over town, and you can definitely still see the influence of the Moors in a lot of the architecture.  We started the day by following the walking tour in our book that wound through the many plazas in the historic district of town.  

Our first stop was the Royal Chapel and Cathedral.  The Royal Chapel was built for Ferdinand and Isabel, and they are buried here.  The chapel also had the crown and cape used by Isabel as well as the box she filled with jewels and gave to Columbus to finance his trip to the new world.  After the chapel, we walked next door into the Granada's big cathedral.  Another ornate cathedral, this one was slightly different as the stone was white - not quite as dark and dreary as the other ones we had seen!

After touring this area (and stopping for more ice cream), we took a bus to the Albayzin neighborhood.  This area is the old Moorish quarter of Granada.  Built on hilltop overlooking the city, the neighborhood is full of tiny streets and plazas.  We rode a bus to the highest point and took lots of pictures.  Then we wandered down the hill, zigzagging through all the small streets.  Next to the Albayzin is the Sacromonte district.  This is wear all the gypsies live.  There are a few houses, but mostly full of people living in caves.  We didn't venture into this neighborhood, but you could see tarps covering the side of the hill where people must have been living.

Our final big sightseeing adventure in Granada was the Alhambra - the last Moorish palace in Spain.  The Alhambra is a huge fort with two palaces and a town inside.  We toured the Palacios Nazaries (the well-preserved Moorish palace), Charles V's palace, and the Alcazaba - the actual fort.  The Palacios Nazaries was a maze of courtyards and open rooms.  I can only imagine what life must have been like hear.  You can hear the fountains from the courtyards in every room, and there are spectacular views from every angle.  The Moorish architecture and decor was amazing.  Geometric shapes and Arabic script covered the entire palace.  

Charles V decided he needed a bigger palace so right next door to the Palacios Nazaries is his attempt to outdo the Moors.  However, he decided to move to Madrid before he lived in this palace.  It looks like a square building on the outside, but once you get inside, it has a huge circle courtyard.  We couldn't go into any rooms as they are now a museum and gift shop.  It looked like it would have been a nice place to live!  We finished up at the Alhambra by getting lost in the gardens and wandering through the fort.  There were good views of the Albayzin and Granada from the top of the fort.  

After a full day of touring, we stopped in a couple of tapas bars for dinner.  We had some of the best tapas yet at the Bodegas Casteneda.  After dinner, we also tried one of the many teterias.  These are small tea shops filled with beaded cushions and African music and lots of teas and crepes.  It was a good way to end our time here.  One last stroll through the city at night, and we were done in Granada!  

Day 7: Drive to Granada

We left Tarifa with Granada in our sights.  Along the way we made a few detours.  Our first was the Rock of Gibraltar.  We couldn't be that close to British territory and not stop!  We drove through customs and to the end of the small pennisula.  Because of the wind, we couldn't go to the top, but we got lots of pictures of the big rock!  It was funny traveling into this small British enclave as the signs quickly switched to English and the streets were full of pubs.

After leaving behind the Brits, we drove up the coast towards our next stop - another town in the White Hills called Ronda.  Another old frontier town, the highlight of the community is the bullring and a huge bridge that crosses a gorge.  The bridge was breathtaking.  Check out the picture below to really understand!

After Ronda it was a straight drive into Granada.  We settled in at another eclectic Room Mate Hotel in the middle of the historic district.  Dinner was more tapas and ice cream!  We stumbled on a little Italian ice cream shop, Los Italianos, and made several stops while we were in Granada!

Day 6: Tangier, Morocco

Today was a big day as we ventured to a new continent...Africa!  We took a ferry from Tarifa to Tangier.  And, I must say it was quite an experience.  I didn't really know what to expect, but I was pleasantly surprised.  Morocco is governed by a progressive king, and he understands the potential tourism has on the country.  For example, we saw women dressed in everything from modern, stylish clothes to full burkas.  Tangier is definitely prospering under this king.  There was construction all over Tangier and many modern conveniences.  The beaches were also fantastic.  It is hard to explain what all we saw.  Hopefully, the pictures help!

It was a quick 30 minute ride over the Strait of Gibralter.  Once we arrived we were met by our guide, Aziz Begdouri (he was mentioned in our guidebook and did a great job).  Aziz took us all over Tangier so we got a good taste of the city and the surrounding countryside.  We saw many communities filled with huge mansions belonging to the kings of several countries, including Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.  We also stopped and took our obligatory ride on a camel!  After the drive was over, we went to the old city for lunch and more sightseeing on foot.

We had lunch at a restaurant in the old town that served traditional Moroccoan food.  It was a four course meal and was great (and we managed not to get sick)! After lunch we walked through the the Kasbah which is the area of the old town that inside a walled area.  There was about 5 feet of room between most of the houses, so no cars or bikes in the kasbah!

We also stopped in a carpet shop and got the full sales pitch for a carpet.  We told each other we weren't going to buy anything, but in the end we couldn't resist.  We ended up with a new carpet handmade in Morocco!

I think Morocco definitely deserves another visit.  We definitely left wanting to see more!

Day 5: Drive to Tarifa...

Day 5: Drive to Tarifa

We drove to Tarifa through the White Hill Towns of Andalucia.  These towns sit on narrow hilltops and were established along the frontlines of the centuries-long fight to take Spain back from the Muslims.  Now they are just sleeping towns with beautiful squares and streets.  We drove through several towns, but only stopped in Arcos de la Frontera today.  The town was a little hard to navigate as the roads are small and run one way.  We finally parked and walked through the maze of streets and alleyways through the old town to the Main Square.  It looks like the Main Square and cathedral are under renovation, but there was a good view of the valley from here.  Most of the old town is built right up the the edge of a cliff.  Since the cliff is starting to erode, some of the buildings have lost rooms!  

We stopped for more tapas, found a local bakery and tried the sultana cookies (kind of like fluffy macaroons), and wandered back to the car.  From here we drove onto Tarifa along the southern coast of Spain. 

Tarifa is quite beach town, although we think it gets pretty lively once summer rolls around.  It was very quiet while we were there and several shops looked like they hadn't even opened for business yet.  Part of Tarifa is surrounded by a wall, and we stayed here in the Hotel Misiana.  The hotel was interesting.  It was a great location but had a big bar where the lobby should have been!  It was an issue while we were there, but I can only imagine a Friday or Saturday night!  We finally got a chance to go to the beach in Tarifa, but unfortunately, it was too cold to get in the water.  It looked pretty though!  

Tomorrow...onto Morocco!

Day 4: Sevilla

Day 4: Sevilla

On the agenda today...the world's largest cathedral, a royal palace, and a flamenco show.  It was definitely a full day!  We started the day at the Cathedral.  This is definitely the biggest cathedral I have ever seen.  It was built on top of a mosque after the Christians reconquered Spain a long, long time ago.  The Christians decided that they would build a huge cathedral in thanks, and that's exactly what they did over the next 120 years.  It is the third largest church in Europe after St. Peter's at the Vatican and St. Paul in London.  And, Christopher Colombus is buried here too!  We also climbed up the Giralda Tower, which is 330 feet tall.  This was built by the Moors and luckily for us the tower didn't have stairs.  A spiraling ramp was designed to accommodate people on horseback, who rode to the top of the tower to give the Muslim call to prayer 5 times a day.  I'll post pics/video eventually, but I don't think they will do the church justice.  

Our next stop was the Alcazar.  This is a 10th century royal palace built for the governor of the local Moorish state, but rebuilt in the 14th century in the Moorish style for King Pedro I.  It's full of geometric design and the use of Arabic to decorate the walls (instead of passages from the Quran, it was Bible verses).  The palace wrapped around a huge courtyard with orange trees, ponds, and a garden maze.  

We took a short coffee break and stolled along Avenida Constitucion.  It is a big pedestrian street used for the paseo although the city put in a huge tram right in the middle.  It makes it a little harder to stroll down the street when you are dodging trams!  

After coffee, we went on a tour of the bullfighting ring.  The ring in Sevilla is one of the most famous and they are preparing for their big week of bullfights in April.  The Spanish take their bullfighting very serious!  Turns out we saw one of the more famous matadors at the fight we went to in Colombia.  

Since we had checked off just about everything on our list, so we wandered over to the Basilica de la Macarena - home to the weeping Virgin.  Another ornate church that has a long history in Sevilla as the weeping Mary is carried throughout Sevilla during Holy Week.

We ended our night in Sevilla with more tapas and sangria and a flamenco show.  The show was a little touristy, but I'm not sure where else we would have had such a great time.  The dancers were fantastic as was the music.  Don't have any pictures of this as they wouldn't let us take any!

On the agenda today...the world's largest cathedral, a royal palace, and a flamenco show.  It was definitely a full day!  We started the day at the Cathedral.  This is definitely the biggest cathedral I have ever seen.  It was built on top of a mosque after the Christians reconquered Spain a long, long time ago.  The Christians decided that they would build a huge cathedral in thanks, and that's exactly what they did over the next 120 years.  It is the third largest church in Europe after St. Peter's at the Vatican and St. Paul in London.  And, Christopher Colombus is buried here too!  We also climbed up the Giralda Tower, which is 330 feet tall.  This was built by the Moors and luckily for us the tower didn't have stairs.  A spiraling ramp was designed to accommodate people on horseback, who rode to the top of the tower to give the Muslim call to prayer 5 times a day.  I'll post pics/video eventually, but I don't think they will do the church justice.  

Our next stop was the Alcazar.  This is a 10th century royal palace built for the governor of the local Moorish state, but rebuilt in the 14th century in the Moorish style for King Pedro I.  It's full of geometric design and the use of Arabic to decorate the walls (instead of passages from the Quran, it was Bible verses).  The palace wrapped around a huge courtyard with orange trees, ponds, and a garden maze.  

We took a short coffee break and stolled along Avenida Constitucion.  It is a big pedestrian street used for the paseo although the city put in a huge tram right in the middle.  It makes it a little harder to stroll down the street when you are dodging trams!  

After coffee, we went on a tour of the bullfighting ring.  The ring in Sevilla is one of the most famous and they are preparing for their big week of bullfights in April.  The Spanish take their bullfighting very serious!  Turns out we saw one of the more famous matadors at the fight we went to in Colombia.  

Since we had checked off just about everything on our list, so we wandered over to the Basilica de la Macarena - home to the weeping Virgin.  Another ornate church that has a long history in Sevilla as the weeping Mary is carried throughout Sevilla during Holy Week.

We ended our night in Sevilla with more tapas and sangria and a flamenco show.  The show was a little touristy, but I'm not sure where else we would have had such a great time.  The dancers were fantastic as was the music.  Don't have any pictures of this as they wouldn't let us take any!

Day 3: On to the next stop...

Day 3: On to the next stop...

Today is a travel day to Sevilla, but we returned to the Royal Palace one more time.  Luckily, this time we were able to get in!  The palace was built after a fire destroyed the previous one in 1734.  We saw a few of the rooms inhabited by King Philip V and Charles III.  As with most of the European palaces we have seen, it was filled to the max with gilded furniture, silk lined walls, and beautiful frescos.  The dining room had a table that would seat as many as 144 guests at it's max.  The current King, Juan Carlos, still hosts dinners in the Palace, but no longer lives there.    

Next stop... Sevilla!  We made our way to the train station.  I love taking trains.  It is more peaceful and relaxing then flying and surprisingly efficient.  Our trip to Sevilla would take 5 or 6 hours by car, but we made in 2.5 hours on the high-speed train.  Once we got to Sevilla, we checked into our hotel - YH Giralda.  It was in the middle of the old town and near all the big tourist sights.  We spent the evening wandering around from plaza to plaza and eating tapas and drinking sangria along the way.  The Spaniards call this paseo.  At around 6:00pm, the streets were full of people and families just walking around.  Some were pretty dressed up and others more relaxed.  We saw several wedding parties coming out of churches along the way too.  Friday must be a popular night to get married!  

Tomorrow...more Sevilla!