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Gail South

Monday, 10/21/2005   Arrive Faro, Portugal at 10:30 am

Father Frank had blessed us at church and prayed for our safe return.  We left LBI about 1:45, but, with various stops, didn’t get on the GSP til almost 3.  Parked at Vista (airportparkinglots.com) at Newark and were checkd in by 4:45.  Jerry did some shopping at duty-free (later found he could have done better at Lisboa) and we took off about 30 min late.  No sleep.  OK meal.  Had a 3-hour layover, then on to Faro (a 30 min. flight).  It took about an hour to get our luggage and an Avis car, then on our way. 

Funny weather—brilliant sunshine and then sudden, brief squalls.  Got to Loule  easily.  More difficult to find Turismo.  The lady there directed us to the capalplana man, but the price was 3 pans for $350 and that seemed too much, so we left.Loule—(9.5 mi north)—market town in the “chimney country” of the Algarve. From many of its houses, free-cut plaster towers rise.  You may even see one on the house of a very discriminating dog.  They resemble fine lace or filigree in stone; others are as delicately contrived as forms of snow crystals blown against glass.  Loule and the villages around it are known for their handicrafts (catalplanas).  It has a history similar to most of the towns in s. Port. —Roman and Moorish occupation—and castle ruins to match.  The castle (home of the turismo) walls are the best point to begin a look around town.  14 k n  on N396 to rt 2  then 45 k n to Almodovar continue north 21 k through Castro Verde 23 k to Beja (69 mi) The landscape changed from undulating hills in the south to stark flatlands with forests of cork and eucalyptus north of Castro Verde. 

Stopped for lunch by the side of the road at Café Abobora in Pogueno.  We had the recommended lunches: roasted chicken and cutlets of pork with fries and the normal accompaniments (bread, olives, and wine).  Saw a beautiful rainbow on the way to  North 81 k to Evora (54 mi) We saw vineyards and stork nests everywhere—the nests are built on platforms with wooden bases at the top—much like osprey nests here

Evora (Mon nite)

One of the most impressive and enjoyable cities in Portugal, its relaxed provincial atmosphere forming a perfect setting for a range of memorable monuments.  A Roman temple, Moorish alleys, a circuit of medieval walls, and a rather grand 16th c ensemble of palaces and mansions are all in superb condition, spruced up by a long-term restoration programme and placed under UNESCO protection.  In spite of many summer tourists, the city is far from spoiled.  It still plays its part in the agricultural life of the region, with a produce market on Tu mornings.  A large walled city of some 45,000, about half of what it was at its heyday during medieval times when Spain took the throne in 1580 and when future Portuguese monarchs chose to live near Lisbon. During the interim the university at Evora was closed for 400 years. It reopened only after the Portuguese revolution in 1974. 

Evora was shaped by its Roman and Moorish occupations: the former is commemorated by a temple, the latter by a characteristic tangle of alleys, rising steeply among the whitewashed houses.  Most of the city’s other monuments, however, date from the 14th to the 16th c, when E prospered under the patronage of the ruling House of Avis.  To them are owed the many noble palaces scattered about the city; as are the Jesuit university, founded in 1559 by Cardinal Henrique, the future “Cardinal King”; and the wonderfull array of Manueline and Renaissance buildings. The Cathedral and several other churches in this city were constructed of red stone, which contrasted against the white mortar is quite alluring but inconsistent with most of the other grand Gothic monuments, which are for the most part built of a cream colored stone. 

Found the Turismo in the main Praca do Giraldo.  The lady there gave me a list of accommodations. The Santa Clara, also recommended by Frommer is right around the corner, and we got one of the few, prized parking spaces.  Our room is very clean and quiet--$55 including breakfast.  We cleaned up and organized and went for a walk.  It’s really a lovely town—very medieval with tiny twisting alleys and lanes.  We arrived just at rush hour and andemonium reigned, but by the time we came home it was deserted. Of course, everything was closed, but we saw, in the Portas de Moura Plaze, the outside of the church of Nossa Senhora da Graca, with its Meninos da Graca (Children of Grace), seated on pillars, looking as if Michalengelo were there.                               

We walked and walked and saw the outside of St.Francis and the Se, which we plan to visit tomorrow. We alsosaw the Temple of Diana--Not far from the cathedral is a Roman temple, which still has pillars on 3 of its sides and may owe its finely preserved state (best in P) to the fact that it was used as a slaughter house until the late 1800’s.  We had checked out all the restaurant menus and were about to return to the one with the most Alentejo specialities when we found O Garfo just a bit down the Rua do Caldeireiros—very small but bright and clean (except for a lot of fruit flies which were to plague us all throughout or trip). The waiter/owner? Didn’t speak any English, but our food vocabulary is pretty international.  After olives, bread and cheese, we had Carne de Porco and Alentejana pork cooked with clams, potatoes, tomatoes and vegetables (in a catalplana, no doubt)—I couldn’t finish it, so Jerry did ($28 with house wine). Returned home, showered and to bed. 

Tuesday, Oct. 22

Had a good buffet breakfast and then set off under blue skies and pleasant temperatures to see St. Francis.  We arrived about 8:45, but it wasn’t open yet, so we went over to the restored Palacio de Dom Manuel, the king who gave his name to the style, in the Jardim Publico.  Lots of peacocks and cats.  We went back and after a short wait, a man opened the Capilla. The most intriguing Catholic edifice,the Church of Sao Francisco (8:30-1 & 2:30-5:30). Within its confines is a chapel, the Capela dos Ossos, whose walls are covered in an amazing fashion with the skulls and bones of over 5,000 monks who once resided there. This is a most clever, if macabre, way to conserve on burial space. Notice the motto engraved above the entrance to the Capela. "Nos Ossos Que Aquiestamos Pelos Vossos Esparamos." These bones are waiting for your bones. Macabre indeed!  Another interesting feature of this 15th c church is its large porch, which combines pointed, rounded, and horseshoe arches in a manner typical of Manueline architecture                       

Evora’s cathedral, the Se (9-12:30 & 2-5), was begun in 1186, about 20 years after the reconquest of Evora from the Moors.  The Romanesque solidity of its original battlemented towers and roofline contrasts sharply with the pointed Gothic arches of subsequent and less militaristic additions, like the porch and central window.  The interior is more straightforwardly Gothic, although the choir and high altar were remodeled in the 18th c by the German, Frederich Ludwig, architect of the Convent at Mafra.  For a nominal fee you can clamber onto a terrace above the west entrance and take an unusually close look at the towers and the zimborio (the lantern above the crossing of the transepts).  Don’t miss the cathedral museum (9-11 & 2-4:45)) either: it’s stuffed with treasures and relics the prize exhibits being a reliquary studded w 1426 stones and a carved statue of the Madonna whose midriff opens out to display layered scenes from the Bible. 

Having been disappointed in the catalplana man yesterday, we asked at the hotel and were given the name of a shop near the youth hostel where we might find on.  Eventually we found the shop and got just what I had wanted for $69—handmade and perfect.  Back to check out and on our way. On the way out of town we saw the Aqueduct inside the city walls with houses and shoppes built beneath its arches.  Drove through lots of cork and olive trees to

Evoramonte

This medieval village lies just 1 km above the modern village on the N18.  It is signposted “Castelo d’Evoramonte” and is a tiny fortified town, nce occupied by the Moors and the Romans.  Its walls, constructed between the 14th and the 17th c. perch on the mountain high above the plain. It is a fascinating place, remote and, despite the fortifications, almost palpably peaceful. The ancient castle, whose Gothic style is a 14th c remodeling of an older structure, dominates the village.  The massive keep was designed in Italian Rtennaisance-style in the 16th c, with 4 round towers and a simple decorative Manueline twisted stone rope.  The vaulted chambers inside contain granite capitals that have been elaboratey carved.  The castle wasn’t open, but we walked thru the little town and admired the 360 degree views. The Turismo was open and I got a pretty little olive dish for $2.50. Drove past Estremoz and into Borba where we stopped at the huge Adega Cooperativa de Borba and bought some bottles of Tinto and one of aguardente velha (a brandy).  Then we walked through the town—the church wasn’t open, but a lot of sntique stores were.  Missed the heavily advertised festival de la Vinha e lo Vinho (vineyards and wine) from 11/9-16.                           

Borba the town of marble. 

In the village, marble is king.  Along the streets many cottages have door trimmings and facings of marble, and the women get down on their hands and knees to scrub their doorways, a source of special pride to them. Borba was retaken from the Moors in 1217 and is best known for its Alentejo regional wine. However, its history is quite bloody especially in 1662 when occupied by the troops led by John of Austria. Nearby in the plains of Monte Claros this army was soundly defeated by the Conde de Marialva.  Given a town charter by King Dinis, Borba is the centre of an administrative area which is small but fiercely proud of its identity. This identity dates back to the very foundation of Portugal as a nation-state, as proved by the castle and city walls ordered built by King Afonso II.  It is not know whether local delicacies and the famous wine produced here were responsible for the chubby king's nickname. But it is highly likely... On Rua S. Bartolomeu sits a church, also dedicated to S. Bartholomeu.  It contains a groined ceiling; walls lined with azulejos in blue, white, and gold; and an altar in black and white marble.  The richly decorated ceiling is painted with four major medallions, one depicting decapitation.  As Portuguese churches go, this one isn’t remarkable.  What is remarkable, however, are eight nearby antique shops filled with interesting buys.      

Then back toward Estremoz, where we stopped at a Pingo Doce and picked up picnic supplies. We headed north, stopped for lunch, and got to Portalegre about 3.  We drove around looking for Turismo for a long time. Askewd for lodging twice and on the third try, found a home at Pensao Nova, Rua 31 Jan.  Frommer was right about the “run-down” part, but it will be fine for the night ($40 with breakfast). 

Portalegre is the capital, market center and transport hub of Alto Alentejo. 

It is an attractive town, crouched at the foot of the Serra de Sao Mamede, endowed with the province’s usual contingent of whitewashed and walled old quarters, along with some interesting reminders of its industrial history.  These include a cork factory, whose great twin chimneys greet you on the way into town, and a tapestry workshop, the last remnant of a thriving period of textile production in the 17th and 18th c.  The wealth produced in these years, in particular from silk workshops, has a further legacy in a collection of grand mercantile mansions and town houses, which give the town an air of faded affluence.  The town’s boom years in the 17th c are immediately apparent as you walk up Rua 19 de Junho—the main thoroughfare of the old town—which is lined by a spectacular concentration of late-Renaissance and Baroque mansions.  At the southern end of the street, and dominating the quarter, is the Se, an austere building save for a flash of fancy in the pyramidal pinnacles of its towers; look inside at the beautiful 16th c azulejos.  

We followed signs to the Castle—not worth the $1 admission—besides which it was POURING when we left (as in Bali, we had left both umbrellas in the car).  We got back to the hotel, soaked, and found they had no ice.   The most interesting visit in town was to the Fabrica Real de Tapecarias . They have now discontinued the tours of the factory, but we were taken on a most interesting tour of the new museum by an English-speaking guide ($1.80)  The tour took us through the studios and weaving hall—where 5000 shades of wool are used in the reproduction of centuries-old patterns—and on to a gallery displaying works about to be dispatched to their well-heeled patrons.   We had dinner at Residencial O Facha, Largo Antonio Jose Lori, which Frommer had described as expensive. We found it to be very reasonable ($30).  I had ameijo catalplana which is clams the way I plan to fix them for Thanksgiving and Jerry had Avorra de Mariscos.  It was disappointing.  It was supposed to be fish soup, “dry” served over rough country bread with eggs on top. It was fish stock infused with fake crabmeat on top.  No fish, no eggs.  There was plenty of catalplana so he finished that. 

Wednesday, October 23

Left Portalegre (not a very good breakfast, and bad news on TV—10th sniper killing in DC) and easily found the road to Crato

The road is lined with cork trees that look like elegantly sheathed ladies with upturned, glove-clad arms.  Bags of fresh bread were hanging on door knobs.  An ancient agricultural town which has clearly seen better days and larger populations.  A trio of imposing, ornate churches and the elegant Varanda do Grao Prior in the main square attest to the textile boom years of the 16th c.  This is the most interesting of the structures—built for the outdoor celebration of mass.  We followed the N363 northwest towards Aldeia da Mata.  On the left side of the road, about 5km from town, is what is reckoned to be the best preserved dolmen in P.  We drove around a framer’s field, scaring the brave fighting bulls, looking for it, but didn’t find it tl we were on the way out. 

Alter do Chao--stud farm

This is another town that did well in the 16th c textile years, as indicated by its attractive Renaissance marble fountain and an array of handsome town houses.  There is a castle, too, whose central tower can be climbed for an overview of the region, but the chief reason for a visit is the Coudelaria de Alter-Real stud farm, 3 km out of town.  It was founded in 1748 by Dom Joao V of the House of Braganca, and remained in the family until 1910 when the War Office took it over. Admission is $2.50 and includes a tour of the interpretive center, horse stalls (big, scary studs), riding school, an interesting exhibit gallery (Man & the Horse), the coach museum, the mares and foals stalls. The “hotel” where breeders mares stay waiting to be “fecundated”, and a falconry center. 

Flor da Rosa

This upland district is a bucolic landscape, with tree-clad mountain ranges and a series of gorgeous hilltop villages two km north of Crato.  Traditionally a center for pottery, with as many as seventy families engaged in the trade in the early part of the century.  Today the distinctive olaria of the region is made in only two workshops, whose shared kiln is near the convent, high above the broad streets and low houses.  Their methods of manufacture haven’t changed in centuries, though the clay—yellow for waterproofing and grey for ovenware—has to be sought further and further afield.  Purchases break easily, but it’s nice to know that these functional (and inexpensive) pieces aren’t designed for the tourist trade (they were nothing to write home about).  The Convento de Flor da Rosa, founded in the 14th c and much endowed over the next 200 years, was abandoned in 1897, due to leaking roofs and a decaying structure.  After extensive state restoration, the fortress monastery finally reopened in 1995 as one of P’s most lavish pousadas.  It is still possible to see inside, though, and to look round the gardens, laid out in the insignia of the Order of Malta, in honor of the warlord Nuno Alvares Pereira, whose father founded the monastery.  His tomb is prominent in the narrow, soaring convent church.  Adjoining it, on the ground floor, is the 16th c Sala do Capitulo, distinguished by fine brickwork, fan-vaulting and a Gothic cloister.  On the first floor are the monks’ dormitories, whose open casements offer sweeping views across acres of olive trees. Stopped by the wayside to eat apples and yesterday’s cheese

Marvao   25 km

Beautiful as Castelo de Vide is, Marvao surpasses it. Try to spend at least 2 hours exploring its old streets, perhaps stopping to coffee at the Pousada de Santa Maria which stands in the upper levels of town sandwiched between two impossibly narrow cobblestone streets.  The panoramas from its remote eyrie site are unrivaled and the atmosphere even quieter that a population of less than a thousand would suggest.  No more than a handful of houses—each as scrupulously whitewashed as the rest—lies outside the 17th c walls.  Just under 4 miles from the Spanish frontier, the once-fortified medieval stronghold retains a rich flavor of the Middle Ages.  You get there by following a road around the promontory on which the little town was built, past the Church of Our Lady of the Star, the curtain walls, watch-towers, and parapets.  Arcaded passageways, balconied houses with wrought-iron grillwork and Manueline windows, and a number of churches can be seen along the hilly streets.  Originally the village seems to have been an outlying suburb of Medobriga, a mysterious Roman city which vanished almost without trace.  Its inhabitants fled before the Moorish advance in around 715 but later returned to live under Muslim rule, when the place was renamed after Marvan, the Moorish Lord of Coimbra.  It fell to the Christians in 1166 and the castle was rebuilt by Dom Dinis around 1229 as another important link in the chain of outposts along the Spanish border.  It stands at the western part of the rocky promontory.  You can walk along the parapet, taking in the panoramic view of the surrounding country, all the way to the Spanish mountains in the east, as well as a vast sweep of Portuguese mountain ranges.  It was captured only once, in 1833, when the attackers entered through a secret gate.  The town was preparing for a visiting conference and had devised a unique way to mow the grass on the very steep slopes.  They tied a rope to a lawnmower and slowly lowered it down then hauled it back up to repeat the process.

Cross to Spain   Land of the Conquistadors                 

It's estimated that some 15,000 Extremeños (from a total population of 400,000) went to seek gold in the New World. The most fabled of these adventurers were Hernán Cortés (from Medellín) in Mexico; Francisco Pizarro (from Trujillo) in Peru; Vasco Núñez de Balboa (from Jerez de los Caballeros) in Panama, where he first sighted the Pacific Ocean; Hernando de Soto (from Barcarrota) in Florida and beyond, discovering the Mississippi River; and Francisco Orellana (also from Trujillo) in Ecuador and the Amazon.                  

Thanks to these conquistadors, the names of Extremaduran villages are sprinkled through the Americas, as exemplified by the Guadalupe Mountains (Texas), Albuquerque (New Mexico), Trujillo (Peru), Mérida (Mexico), and Medellín (Colombia).  Because Extremeños faced such a hard time making a living in the harsh land of their birth, they often turned elsewhere to seek their fortune. One of the reasons for the poverty was that huge ranches were owned by absentee landlords, as many still are today. These ranches are called latifundios, and often farmers and their families live on these ranches, paying the owners for the privilege of grazing a few goats or growing some slight crops in the dry climate. A system of mayorazgo (still in effect) granted all the family property to the eldest son. The other sons, called secundinos, were left penniless, and often chose to set sail for the New World to seek their gold.                  

Many of the conquistadors died or stayed in the New World, but others who had grown rich there returned to the land of their birth and built magnificent homes, villas, and ranches, many of which still stand today. Bernal Díaz, who joined the Cortés expedition to Mexico, put the situation very bluntly. "We came here to serve God and the king," he wrote, "and to get rich." 

The tourist office, Plaza Mayor, 20 (tel. 927-24-63-47), is open Monday through Friday from 9am to 2pm and 4 to 6:15pm, Saturday and Sunday from 9:30am to 2pm. 

Now partially deserted, it is a perfectly preserved village of the late 15th c, built to replace the abandoned ancient settlement of Alconetar.  Until only a few years ago, this was one of the last villages in Spain where hired mourners were used at funerals.  The most striking feature of the place is the asymmetrically arcaded main square.Originally a Roman colony and later heavily disputed between the Moors and Christians, C. is today a provincial capital (Extremadura) and prosperous agricultural town, with the largest market fair in Extremadura. In the Plaza de San Juan is one of Extremadura’s greatest restaurants, El Figon de Eustaquio.

HISTORY

The lands of Extremadura are steeped in history. The paintings in Maltravieso Cave preserve traces of man in the earliest stages of development. The Celts settled there, and in the 1st c, the proconsul Cayo Urbano Flaco founded one of the five most important colonies of what used to be Lusitania,  later destroyed by the barbarians. After rebuilding it, the Arabs called it Quazri, from which the name Cáceres is derived, and they built the walls, which still stand today. In 1170, for a short time the Fratres de Cáceres (Friars of C.), the first members of the Order of St. James, took over the city. This turbulent period in history came to an end in 1227 when Cáceres became part of the Kingdom of Leon under the rule of Alfonso IX. Much later Cáceres and its towns and villages partook in the great Hispanic era during the reign of the Catholic Monarchs--the Discovery of America.

CLIMATE, TRADITIONS, COOKING

In general, the climate is dry with hardly any rain and mild because of the winds blowing across neighboring Portugal from the Atlantic. Popular traditions are best observed in the large number of "romerías", i.e., festive excursions to a saint's shrine, and in the regional costumes which are sober for men, but very colorful for women, especially the skirts and flowery kerchiefs and above all the rich, many-colored hats of braided straw. There is a great variety of fish and game: Boar, Red deer, Spanish Ibex, Pheasant, Bustard, Heron, Crane, a lot of Partridge and Rabbit; and in the rivers, Carp, Tench, Trout, Pike and Perch. Game and fish provide the basis for an uncomplicated way of cooking, which is very tasty with many recipes coming from its important monasteries. Especially outstanding are el frite, la caldereta (a lamb stew) and the typical migas con torreznos. To round off this list of specialties, special mention must be made of the famous Montánchez hams and sausage products as well as of the local wines.  

THE CITY

It lies 498 m above sea level, and has around 68,000 inhabitants. Although the modern part has its merits with clean, well laid out streets and a lovely park, it is the old area with its historic sights that draw the visitor's attention.  Travelers get lost in its labyrinth of medieval streets and plazas, under its arches, its towers and its battlements; in its churches, beautiful convents and amazing palaces. They will discover a mixture of styles in its architecture from the Arabic through the northern Gothic, the Italian renaissance and the influential legacies of the Americas. They will always find peace, quietness and temperance within its inns and restaurants, that with their country cuisine and wines from excellent grapes, will rejuvenate in the stillness of a patio or simply a refreshing shade. 

We saw lots of storks nesting on most of the rooftops and bell towers in the town. This is a revealing sign of how Cáceres has managed to preserve not only its landmarks but also an environmentally sound balance between people and nature. We had a hard time finding the Parador but finally succeeded.  It is on a tiny cobbled street inside the walls.  It was originally a 15th c palace.  Built in severe style it is in “a well scrubbed format of  exposed stone, white plaster, and tiled floors.”  Our room has a canopied bed, nice seating area, and excellent bathroom.  We walked all over town and went into most of the churches, ending at Plaza Mayor at dusk.  We went down to St. Iago and then window shopped up to the Plaza San Juan where we examined menus for half an hour. We settled on El Figo de Eustagnia, 12 & 14, Plaza de San Juan, and had a GREAT meal (but no Portuguese bread).  Jerry had gazpacho, white asparagus salad and a delicious venison and wild mushroom entrée.  I had a mixed salad and sea bass in a salt crust, then lemon sorbet and a local wine ($66). 

In the long Plaza Mayor, (Information) arcaded on its western side, is the entrance to the lively Calle General Ezponda, lined with tapas bars and full of animation in the evening.  On the high ground on the eastern side of the PM are the town’s fortifications—intact though heavily restored—that contain one of the best-preserved old quarters in Spain.  Some of the most appealing shops in Cáceres are on the streets radiating outward from the Plaza Mayor, with a particularly good selection of artifacts along either side of Calle Pintores.The old town of Caceres is small but without a single distracting modern building.  Almost empty of shops, restaurants, and even bars, virtually deserted outside the tourist season, and crammed with medieval and Renaissance palaces somberly constructed out of heavy gray blocks of stone, it looks like the stage set for a tragedy.  Try to come here at night, when the buildings and narrow streets take on an especially haunting quality. Enter the old town by the gate next to the Torre de la Hierba from the PM.  Immediately inside, turn right along the Adarves de San Juan, and you will soon pass the upper Palace of the Golfines, which is dominated by a soaring tower from 1515.  Continue to skirt the town walls until you reach, on the southern side of the old town, the Merida Gate.   About 30 towers remain from the city's medieval walls, all of them heavily restored. Originally much taller, the towers reflected the pride and independence of their builders; when Queen Isabella took over, however, she ordered them cut down to size. The largest tower is at the Plaza del General Mola. Beside it stands the  Leading from here to the old town center is the Calle Ancha, at the beginning of which is the Casa de Sanchez de Paredes, a 16th c palace that has been converted into a parador.             

On the Plaza San Mateo, at the northern end of the Calle Ancha, stands one of the town’s most important churches, San Mateo.  Built mainly in the 14th c, but with a 16th c choir, it has an impressively austere interior, the main decorative notes being the Baroque high altar and the heraldic crests surmounting the tombs of noblemen.  On the square facing the southern side of the building  (San Pablo), is the battlemented tower of Las Ciguenas (Palace of the Storks), so called because of the stork’s nest attached to it. Constructed towards the end of the 15th century by Diego de Cáceres; it is also known as the "Tower of the Storks." the only palace whose tower remains intact despite the order by Queen Isabella at the turn of the 15th century to reduce the height of all such strategic locations for military reasons. The building now serves as a military headquarters and is not open to the public.It is classifiable as a completely unique construction; this battlement tower overpowers the city demonstrating its grandeur. Today, it houses the military governance and it corresponds with the House of the Casa de los Cáceres Ovando. This defensive tower was the only one allowed to be erected during the reign of the Catholic Kings, when they ordered the destruction of all of the other towers to teach the rebel lords a lesson due to their arrogance.   

House of the Monkey

Beginning at the Plaza of the Santa María, and continuing down the Hill of the Aldana we come to the Monkey’s House, admirable for its typical constructions, following the Gothic style, and so called because of the relief stone monkeys that so adorn the stairs of the house. In front of this house, there is a very interesting mudéjar style house, as well as the "Mansion of the Aldana" down the hill.  The narrow street that descends from the eastern end of San Mateo to the town’s other main church, Santa Maria, passes the Jesuit church of San Francisco Xavier and then the lower Palaceo de los Golfines.  It is the most beautiful example of Cacereña architecture (i.e. architecture of Cacerés). Its façade demonstrates with its simplicity the beauty of the plateresca style. In it, the Catholic Kings lodged once allowing its owners to develop a close relationship with them.  It displays the sign: "This is the House of the Golfines." 

In the Plaza of Santa Maria, an irregularly shaped, rather elongated square, on the left is the gothic facade of the Episcopal Palace, once the residence of the bishop of Coria, and on the right the mud wall of the patio of the house of Mayoralgo. The cathedral constitutes the center of the low part of the city, with palaces and family houses of sober beauty.around.  The Gothic church of Santa Maria, now serving as the town’s cathedral, was built mainly in the 16th c and has an elegantly carved cedar high altar of 1551, just about visible in the surrounding gloom.  A gorgeous Romanesque-gothic church it was declared a cathedral in recent times. Its unmistakable silhouette with the nests of storks that crown it is visible all over.  A bronze statue of San Pedro de Alcántara is at its base.  It contains the remains of many conquistadors. It has three Gothic aisles of almost equal height and a carved retablo at the high altar dating from the 16th century. (Insert coins to light it up.) 

Farther down the square, with vistas over the rolling landscape to the east of town,on the site of the old Alcazar, is the Casa de Las Veletas (House of the Weathervanes).  This now contains a small provincial museum devoted to archaeology and folklore.  Its basement comprises the Moorish cistern (alijibe)(12th c) over which the palace was constructed (The existence of a cistern in houses long ago was essential for domestic usage to provide drinkable water and sometimes they were lavishly decorated. They were often used in Roman and Visigothic homes); horseshoe arches rise in the gloom above murky waters fed by pipes leading from both the roof and the sloping square outside. (Admission—200 ptas. Open Tu-Sa 9:30-2:30, Su 10-2:30,closed M and holidays).   

Estrella Arco (Arch of the Star)

This is one of the five access gates to the village, near Mérida, the Fountain or Gate of the Council, of the Succor and of the Wicket. In its interior, the Virgin of the Star is housed, thus its name. This gate has been crossed by both Catholic Kings, Isabel of Castille and Ferdinand V of Aragon.  In 1726 Churriguera modified the gate in the baroque style, widening it to facilitate carriage travel. It unites the inner curtain of the city with the Plaza Mayor.  To its right you'll see the Torre del Horno, a mud-brick adobe structure left from the Moorish occupation.  This is also the best place for a view of the cathedral. 

A 100-m (110 yd) walk from here down Calle Tiendas will take you to the northern walls of the town.  Turn left and you will come, in the northwestern corner of the old town, to the 16th c Casa de los Toledo-Montezumas (now a bank), which was built by Juan Cano de Saavedra with the dowry provided by his wife—none other than the princess daughter of the Aztec ruler Montezuma.  Follow the town walls south until you reach the Estrella Gate, which will lead you back to the main square.   Roman Arch of the ChristDating from the 1st. century, and built by the Romans, it is the oldest monument of the city, and it is situated near the "River Gate." Arab Tower of Bujaco and Hermitage of the PeaceThe Bujaco Tower is the most beautiful one of the five that are left in the city when it was under Muslim control throughout the 12th century. Also known as the "New Tower" or "Watch Tower", its most popular name derives from the Calif Abu-ya-gub. This slender (25 mtrs tall) tower is next to the Peace Hermitage which was originally built in the 16th century and reconstructed in the baroque style in the 18th century. The latter has the finest exterior of any Caceres palace, the austerity of the stone relieved by Mudejar (Spanish Muslim) and Renaissance decorative motifs.   

Plaza of Saint George and Church of Saint Francis Xavier

The church of Saint Francis belongs to the old Jesuit School. For the filming of the “1492: The Conquest of Paradise” (1992 Directed by Ridley Scott and featuring Gérard Depardieu and Sigourney Weaver) its façade was painted white. It is formed by a single nave with a beautiful baroque altar.  The church is commonly known as "The Precious Blood", where Jesuit priest of the nearby "House of the Sun" officiate masses. The last part of the complex of this plaza is the "House of Vargas-Figueroa", which was the living quarters of one of its most prestigous priests. The chief building of interest outside the town walls is the church of Santiago (instead of turning left at the Calle Tiendas, go through the Socorro Gate, and continue north along the Calle de Villalobos).  It was rebuilt in the 16th c by Rodrigo Gil de Hontanon, the last great Gothic architect of Spain.  The interior has a dynamic high altar (1561) by Berruguete, a sculptor much influenced by Michelangelo and one of the outstanding figures of the Spanish Renaissance). If you want to see a more modern face of the region, and shop for housewares and fashion while you're at it, drive 15 minutes west of the town center to the Centro Comercial Ruta de la Plata, Carretera Portugal, where you'll find a scattering of boutiques, plus a number of simple snack bars and cafes. 

Thurday, October 24   Leave Caceres The Roman Road

The silver way: from Astorga to Merida.  The Silver Way was built to take advantage of the natural passages which for thousands of years had been used by the inhabitants of the Iberian Peninsula.  But since “all roads lead to Rome”, once peace was installed, north to south was how the carts went, transporting minerals and allsorts of products to Merida, which were then taken to Mediterranean ports and sent to Rome. Got a good start under overcast skies.  The weather has been strange, but good for traveling, changinf from overcast to cloudless skies in minutes.  The sun is warm, but we keep shedding and then putting jackets back on. 

We had lots of choices for today—the most important was to visit the Monastery do Yuste.  The roads are very different from those shown in my 13 year old map book—everythng is very up to date.  We also saw several hjughe Torres (brandy) bulls outlined on the horizon atop hills.  Still olives, cork and oranges, but now we are seeing lots of huge chestnut trees LOADED.  Jerry says each one has more nuts that the total in PA.  When we got to the monastery we discovered a major business conference was in session.  We waited a bit then had a truncated tour ($1.50) of just the Palace.  We sneaked a look into the church through the Emperor’s private peek window.Monasterio de Yustein a wooded setting 2 km north of EX203 (turn off at Cuacos, 45 km/27 mi from Plasencia), was founded by Hieronymite monks in the early 15th c.  It was badly damaged in the Peninsular War and left to decay after the suppression of Spain’s monasteries in 1835, but has recently been restored and taken over again by the Hieronymites and is breathtakingly austere..  You can visit the Royal Chambers where Charles stayed from February 1557 to his death on September 21 of the following year.  The bedroom where he died has a aview into the church, which enabled Charles to hear Mass from his bed (Philip II was later to appropriate this idea at El Escorial).  A ramp, originally intended to be climbed on horseback, leads up to a terrace overlooking an enchanting fish pond and the verdant valley of the Tietar. (Admission.  Open daily 9-1 and 4-6)  

Then we drove on the tiny back road (on which Carlos was carried in his little box from Plascencia to the monastery) to La Garganta de Olla, a tiny very much alive, medieval town.  We walked the streets and saw the Casa de las Munacas (Doll House), painted blue with pretty girls on the dorr post and around the locks, then climbed to the second floor of the Restaurante Los Leones where I had a stew of baby goat and Jerry had pigs cheeks, also a pitcher of vino piitarra, a regional wine so effervencent and young that they do not even bother to bottle it or keep it for the following year ($29).  There is a bit of autumn color in the landscape and the roads are fine. We turned south at Jarandilla toward Navalmoral de la Mate.  Stopped to buy goat cheese at a working dairy.  Tobacco seems to be another product grown here.  Got to the Parador with little trouble.

Trujillo Visitor Information--The tourist office, on the Plaza Mayor (tel. 927-32-26-77), is open April through October, daily from 9am to 2pm and from 4 to 7pm; off-season, daily from 9am to 2pm and from 4 to 6pm. I like Trujillo more than Caceres. The whole city is smaller, but the old city seems bigger.  The Plaza Mayor is beautiful and even though the streets are incredibly narrow there is much less traffic.  Our parador is in the 1533 convent of Santa Clara. It is a mix of medievaland Renaissance architecture.  The rooms were once nin’s cells and have canopied beds and great bathrooms.  The gardens are beautiful.                                

We walked through town, becoming lost more than once, but everything is so compact and full of interesting sites that it didn’t matter.  We saw lots of Conquistadors houses.  The best was Palacido los Marquaras de la Conquisto. We also saw the house of  Francisco De Orellano, who traveled up the Amazon.  I don’t know much about him, but the larger than life bust was impressive.  We went inside two churches, Santiago, where the trip to the belltower had great views, and the room of the sacristan was interesting; and Santa Maria, with a much higher belltower (who needs Stairmaster?) with a magnificent alterpiece retablo.  My older guidebooks have (for this whole trip) talked about finding the little old lady with the key to open doors.  The towns have figured out that it’s worth it to have an attendant and to charge admission.  This is just one of a lot of changes since the EU. 

Dating to at least Roman times, when its castle was first constructed, T. was captured from the Moors in 1232 and colonized by a number of leading military families.  Known today as the “Cradle of the Conquistadors,” T. gave birth to some of the leading explorers and conquerors of the new World, men who were later to bring great wealth to their native town and build here, in the course of the 16th & 17th c, a splendid series of palaces.  The most famous of these conquistadors was Francisco Pizarro, conqueror of Peru, born in T. in 1475.  Pizarro, though illegitimate, was the son of one of the most illustrious noblemen in town and had a privileged upbringing.  Jealous compatriots killed him in Peru in 1541.  His brother, Hernando, also an adventurer in Peru, was luckier in this respect, ending his days in Spain and building perhaps the most magnificent palace in T.  Others from T who made their mark in the New World include Alonso de Monroy, Francisco de Orellana, García de Paredes, and Hernando de Alarcon, famous, respectively, for their exploits in Chile, the Amazon jungle, and California.           

T’s economic boom during the period of Golden Age Spain led the town to expand well beyond its medieval walls.  Then, from the mid-17th c onward, building ceased almost completely, and the town went into a long decline.  Today, it is possible to wander endlessly and at random around its maze of streets and still uncover at every turn poignant memorials of its glorious past.  A word of warning, however. Most of the streets leading up the hill converge on the Plaza Mayor.  The town becomes progressively older the farther you climb, but even on the lower slopes—where most of the shops are concentrated—you need walk only a few yards to step into what seems like the Middle Ages.           

The large Plaza Mayor, one of the finest in Spain, is a superb 16th & 17th c creation, one of the few features that mar it being, ironically, the modern tourist office in its center.  The spirit of the conquistadors dominates the town, and, appropriately, at the foot of the stepped platform that rises on the n side of the PM stands a large bronze equestrian statue of the great conqueror of Peru, Francisco Pizarro, by two American artists of the early years of this century, Charles Runse and Mary Harriman.  The church behind the Pizarro statue, San Martin, is a Gothic structure of the early 16th c, with some fine Renaissance tombs and an old organ.           

Facing the church, in the northeastern corner of the square, is the Palacio de los Duques de San Carlos, which has a majestically decorated façade of around 1600; the building is now a convent of Hieronymite nuns.The most interesting part of T extends to the west of the PM.  Your tour proper of the town could begin near the southwestern corner of the square, outside the Palacio de los Marqueses de la Conquista.  This was built by Francisco Pizarro’s brother, Hernando and is immediately recognizable y its rich covering of exquisite Renaissance ornamentation.  Flanking its corner balcony, around which most of this ornamentation is concentrated, are lively, imaginative busts of the Pizarro family. On the left-hand side are Francisco and his Aztec princess wife, Yupanqui Huaynas, while on the right is Yupanqui’s daughter, Francisca Pizarro Yuanqui, together with her uncle and husband, Hernando.  Prominent in the coat of arms above, and an interesting reflection of the spirit of brutal subjugation in which the conquest of the New World was carried out, are representations of chained Indians.  The magnificent interior of the palace has now been partially opened to the public and features a grandiose staircase, a courtyard, and some 16th c stables.              Adjacent to the palace is the arcaded former town hall (now a law court), which has much Renaissance painted and stuccoed ornamentation inside.  The alley that runs through this building’s central arch will take you to the Palacio de Pizarro de Orellana (now a school), where you will find the most elegant Renaissance courtyard in town (Free; Open weekdays 9-1 & 4-8; closed weekends).           

The oldest part of T, known as La Villa, is entirely surrounded by its original, if much restored, walls.  The Calle Almenas, which runs west from the Palace of Pizarro de Orellana, skirts these walls up to the Puerto de San Andres, one of the four surviving gates of the Villa (there were originally seven).  Once inside, you enter a world that seems to have been not only frozen in time but also mysteriously abandoned, inhabited less by humans than by storks.  Through the Gate of San Andres and past the church of that name, you come to a stagnant pond, which was once a public bath established by the Arabs.  Head north up the Calle Palomas, passing on your left the birthplace of the Amazon explorer, Francisco de Orellana.           

The cobbled climbing street leads you into the Plaza de Santa Maria, on which stands the town’s major monument of artistic interest, the church of Santa Maria.  This Gothic structure attached to a Romanesque bell tower is occasionally used for services; to go inside, you usually have to apply to the surly old woman who lives in the first of a small group of houses directly in front of the west façade.  The interior has been virtually untouched since the 16th c and has wonderful network vaulting as well as an upper choir with an exquisitely carved balustrade.  The coats of arms at each end of this balustrade indicate the seats that were used by Ferdinand and Isabella when they attended Mass here.  The chief attraction in the church is the high altar of c. 1480, adorned with one of the greatest Spanish paintings of the 15th c (to see it properly—put coin in box adjacent to the church entrance).  Executed by the Salamanca artist Fernando Gallego, it combines delightful Flemish detail and naturalism with Spanish harshness and power (Admission plus tip; daily at any reasonable hour—ask for Senora Tomasa or 10-2 & 4:30-7:30 200 ptas).            Climbing north from the church, you will come almost immediately to the birthplace of Pizarro’s father, Gonzalo.  The building houses a small museum dedicated to the life and times of Francisco.              Standing in isolation beyond this are the perimeter walls of the large castle, built by the Moors on Roman foundations.  It is at the summit of the granite hill on which T. was founded.  Once at the castle, you can climb its battlements and walk along the ramparts enjoying a panoramic view of the austere countryside of Extremadura. We bought some snacks and headed back (we also got a bottle of Beso Extremadua, the nutty beverage made from acorns).

Friday, October 25

Logrosan 

Beautiful morning across a wide valley with peaks of Sierras de Guadalupe in front of us—lots of sheep everywhere and black pigs feeding on acorns under the cork oaks.

Guadalupe

If you could only visit a single site in Extremadura, the choice would have to be the monastery of Guadalupe.  The journey here is in itself worthwhile through wild, breathtakingly beautiful mountain scenery—incredibly craggy mountains where every once in a while someone has cut out a little farm.  Finally, we glimpsed the monastery clinging to the slopes above and forming with its towers, pinnacles, and spires a magical profile echoing that of the gaunt wall of mountains behind.  Pilgrims have been coming here since the 14th c, but only in relatively recent years have they been joined by a growing number of tourists. The scene illustrates the major impression I have of Spain now, different from earlier trips.  It is a different country.  My guidebooks say today would be a 2-3 hour trip from the nearest town.  It was one and a half from Trujillo, and we stopped at a supermercado in the modern town of Zorita a half hour from the monastery.  The town was crowded with lots of busses. We hadn’t realized Spain was an hour ahead of Portugal.  We thought it was 9:30 am, but it was 10:30, so we didn’t miss being caught up in the multitudes.  In summer, it must be madness—but well worth it.            

The story of Guadalupe goes back to around 1300, when a shepherd uncovered a miraculous statue of the Virgin, this one supposedly carved by St. Luke.  Its fame might have been only local had it not come to the attention of King Alfonso XI, who frequently hunted here.  Alfonso had a church built to house the statue and later vowed to found a monastery, should he defeat the Moors at the battle of Salado of 1340.  After his victory, he kept his promise.  The greatest period in the monastery was between the 15th and 18th c, when, under the rule of the Hieronymites, it was rebuilt, enlarged, and endowed and turned into a pilgrimage center rivaling even Santiago de Compostela in importance.  Situated as it was in the heart of Conquistador Spain, the place emerged in the Golden Age as a symbol of Spain’s territorial expansion. Documents authorizing Columbus’s first voyage to America were signed here, a West Indian island and numerous other locations in the New World were named after this monastery, and the first American Indians to be converted to Christianity were also brought here to be baptized.  The decline of the monastery coincided with Spain’s loss of overseas territories in the 19th c.  Abandoned for 70 years and left to decay, it was taken over after the civil war of 1936-9 by Franciscan brothers, who slowly restored it.           

The village is filled with wood arcades and russet-brown-tiled roofs; on sale everywhere is the copperware that has been made here since the 16th c.  In the middle of the tiny, irregularly shaped main square (transformed during festivals into a bullring) is a 15th c fountain where Columbus’s two Indian servants were baptized on July 29, 1496.  Looming in the background is the late-Gothic south façade of the monastery church, covered in swirling decorative motifs and flanked by battlemented towers.           

To visit the monastery itself, we followed a guided tour that lasted about an hour (the entrance to the building is to the left of the church).  From the large Mudejar cloister, with its brick and tile Gothic-Mudejar shrine dating from 1405 and a Moorish fountain from the 14th c. (the only place photography was allowed), we progressed to the chapter house, with its collection of choir books, illustrated manuscripts, and paintings, including a series of small panels by Zurbaran that originally covered the predella of the sacristy altarpiece and also a marvelous Goya and three el Grecos.  Next through the raised choir of the church, an excellent vantage point from which to view the building’s Gothic nave and chancel, with its exquisite Renaissance grille and high altar carved partially by one of El Greco’s sons. Mass was in session so our guide was silent. The ornate 17th c sacristy contains the monastery’s most important works of art—a series of eight painting of 1638-47 by Zurbaran.  These powerfully austere works representing monks of the Hieronymite order and scenes from the life of St Jerome are the only important paintings by this artist still in the setting for which they were originally intended.  The tour concluded with the garish late-Baroque Camarin—the chapel where the miraculous Virgin is housed.  It is a riot of color and rich materials and is given further distinction by its superb canvases by the Italian Baroque artist Luca Giordano.  However, the focal point is the Virgin of Guadalupe, a dark and shriveled wood object hiding under a great veil and mantle.  Note the wrought iron railing in the nave (Admission to museum and sacristy 3E Daily 9 or 9:30-1 & 3:30-6).  

We stopped for a picnic lunch at a nice site on the way down the mountain, then straight on to Merida.  The parador is in the heart of town on the Plaza de la Constitution, in the former Convento de los Frailes de Jesus (dating from the 16th c).  Again, the accommodations were excellent ($100+ tax)  

Merida 

This is definitely not an old medieval town.  We drove around a bit and saw a sign for Parador Parking.  As it happened, the gate was opening as someone was exiting. We sneaked in and got the last space.  When we registered, the clerk tried to sell us a $9 garage spot.  He was very surprised when we said we were already parked.  There are lots of Roman artifacts in the halls.  The room is nice, but the tile in the bath needs a little X14.  We walked down to the Roman theatre and Amphitheatre where we waited for a few minutes then got a map and bought the $7.20 ticket good for six monuments.

Visitor Information--The tourist office, at Pedro María Plano (tel. 924-31-53-53), is open April through October, Monday through Friday from 9am to 1:45pm and 5 to 7pm, Saturday from 9:15am to 1:45pm. Off-season hours are Monday through Friday from 9am to 2pm and 4 to 6pm, Saturday and Sunday from 9:15am to 1:45pm. Those are the official hours, but don't expect the staff to interpret them too literally.  The Roman Emerita Augusta was founded by the Romans in 25 BC on the banks of the River Guadiana and strategically situated at the junction of major Roman roads between Salamanca and Seville and Lisbon and Toledo, Merida soon became capital of the vast Roman province of Lusitania (the Latin name for ancient Portugal, which included parts of southwestern Spain), Mérida was one of the most splendid cities in Iberia, ranking as a town of major importance in the Roman Empire; in fact, it was once called a miniature Rome.  A bishopric in Visigothic times, M never regained the importance it had under the Romans.  Its monuments, temples, and public works make it the site of some of the finest Roman ruins in Spain, and as such it is the tourist capital of Extremadura.

Old Mérida can be covered on foot-in fact, that is the only way to see it. Pay scant attention to the dull modern suburb across the Guadiana River, which skirts the town with its sluggish waters. We walked past the very modern and very large Museo Nacional de Arte Romano to the town’s best preserved Roman monuments. The teatro, dating from 24 BC, is notable for the elegant colonnade on its stage.  It is one of the best preserved Roman ruins in the world and was built by Agrippa (Augustus’s son-in-law) in 19 BC to house an audience of 6,000 people.  Modeled after the great theatres of Rome, it was constructed by dry-stone methods, a remarkable achievement.  During the reign of Hadrian (2nd c), a tall stage wall was adorned with statues and colonnades.  Behind the stage, visitors today can explore excavations of various rooms.  Daily 9:30-1:45 and 5-6, 600ptas (includes admission to amp.) The anfiteatro Romano is arranged in a verdant park.  At the height of its glory, in the 1st c BC, the amphitheater could seat 14,000-15,000 spectators.  Chariot races were held here, along with gladiator combats and mock sea battles, for which the arena would be flooded.  Many of the seats were placed dangerously close to the bloodshed gladiators waiting to go into combat. (Admission; daily 8-7:30).  Nearby stands the ruin of a Roman house with some interesting mosaics—especially Autumn in the dining room with the treading of the grapes.Caceres and Trujillo are certainly more beautiful than M, but they lack its vitality.  The exceptionally long Roman Bridge spans two forks of this sluggish river and comprises 64 arches formed of heavy blocks of granite.  The very modern bridge is behind it and forms quite a contrast.                         

The main square, the Plaza de Espana, adjoins the northwestern corner of the fortress and is extremely animated both by day and by night.  Its oldest building is the 16th c palace that has served for many years as the Hotel Emperatriz (VEx).  Between this hotel and the town’s stylish parador (VEx), stretches the most charming and best-preserved area of Merida, comprising Andalusian-style white houses shaded by palms.  Off the tiny Plaza de Santa Clara, at the heart of this area, is an abandoned 18th c church that has been turned into a dusty, old-fashioned Museo Visigotico, filled with fragments of Visigothic stonework.  Look especially for the two statues of Wild Men in one of the alcoves. From Plaza de Espana, head north along the Calle Santa Eulalia, a lively pedestrian shopping street.  Continue north along the Rambla Martir Santa Eulalia until you reach the church of that name, which was originally a Visigoth structure marking both the site of a Roman temple and the supposed place where the child martyr Eulalia, determined to die for her religion, was roasted alive in AD 304 for spitting in the face of a Roman magistrate.  Other Roman works (Admission 400 ptas; Open Oct-May Tu-Sa 10-1:45 & 4-6, Su 10-2).  This was the neatest thing in Merida so far.  Its refurbishment began in 1990.  Archeologists have excavated four levels under the Basilica: Roman house, Christian necropolis, 5th-9th c basilica, and present day church.  Above ground is an excellent interpretive center, then you descend to the actual excavations which are well lit and signposted.  Most interesting.           

Dinner was at 8:30 after a paseo through the pedestrian zed streets (100’s of kids running everyplace—apparently no danger in this town).  Restaurante Nicolas, Feliz Valverde Lillo 13.  Enjoyed watching two American couples discuss travel in Iberia.  Jerry had gazpacho and perdez estoffado and I had a wonderful grilled wild mushroom with shrimp and artichoke dish with ham and a great wine, Monasterio de Tentudia 1995--$51  

Saturday, October26    Merida to Huelva 261 k; To Matascalas 30 k—195 miles 

We left the parador and stopped at the excavation of a large, noble Roman house, Casa Mitreo (Mithraeum House).  It is very interesting.  The excavation is covered and the walls have been “topped off” so you can really follow the floorplan.  Some of the mosaics are almost complete, and the one called Cosmological Mosaic, which personifies their conception of the world and of the natural forces governing it—the colors are the most brilliant I’ve ever seen. 

We were on the road to Seville by 10:15.  They are building a brand new four-lane highway parallel to this one.  It looks about ready to open (still called Ruta de Plata).  This Roman road that joined Merida to Seville (the Roman Hispalis, capital of the Betica province) was not the only one communicating Merida with the south of Spain, although it was the most important road.  The route still crosses through some very interesting parts of Extremadura.  From Merida the road heads to Torremegia, where Tierra de Barros begins.  It is a district in E. with reddish earth and green vines, a land of Pottery and wine, which becomes pastureland as one goes south, the place where the famous Iberian hog is reared.  We passed through Almendralejo, the district capital, an important town after the Reconquista, when the Order of Santiago settled there. 

Drove through acres and acres of olives and grapes.  Some men were picking the pormer (maybe Saturday work?).  Passed trucks full of black pigs on their way to market—must be autumn—it’s a gorgeous day.  Eucalyptus has reappeared and hunters with trucks full of dogs.  From Fuente de Cantos, where the “mansio” of Contributa was located, southwards via Monasterio, there is a cha nge in the landscape around the Sierra de Tentudia, foothills of the mountain range of Sierra Morena, which serves as a natural boundary between E. and Andalucia, and on mount Tentudia is the Monasterio de Santa Maria, surrounded by a forest of pine trees, chestnut trees and oaks, and where our dinner last night came from. Stopped at Jabugo, about which we had read of its excellent Jamon iberico.  The weekly market was going strong, but except for some apples and pears (the apples were a gift—un regalo) it was mostly sweaters and shoes.  We walked around—very nice Plaza de Jamon—with a fountain and kids playing soccer. 

Then we had lunch (more expensive than we expected) at Meson Jabugo—asparagus with ham, some kinds of croquettes, an omelet and pork with mushrooms. We stopped at a market and got ham, olives and pate. It took less than two hours to reach Matalascans, one and a half from the turn off for Aracena (our route for Monday).  This high rise resort is very like Torremolinos, although the accommodations and beach are nicer.  The two beds in the main room are fine, but there is no door between the bedroom and living room.  There is a small frig, a microwave, stovetop, coffee maker ant toaster, and a nice balcony overlooking the beach.  Found a supermercado for supper.  Tonight is the end of Daylight Saving Time.

​The Province of Huelva     A place not too many tourists know about

The province of Huelva may not be the best-known part of Andalucía among foreign visitors, yet it too has a lot to offer. It lies to the west of Andalucia and stretches from Seville to Portugal. The province is probably best known for its marshlands and national park, called the Coto Donaña where, amidst sand dunes, marshes, pinewoods and freshwater lagoons live flamingos, rare buzzards, lynx, mongoose and a startling variety of migratory birds. Atlantic beaches with miles of unspoilt golden sand are also a feature of this province. The Coastline is known as Costa de la Luz.

To the north rolling wooded hills of the Sierra de Aracena complete the picture of this varied province that has so far escaped mass tourism. Fascinating in their own right, these green-sloped mountains conceal one of the marvels of Andalucía: Rio Tinto.  The mountain range, which stretches from the north of Huelva Province to the western edge of the Sierra Morena, covers an area of 184,000 hectares. Its forests are typically Mediterranean, essentially composed of holm oak and cork trees, and interspersed with wide tracts of pasture. There are also many ancient chestnut trees and gall oaks, alternating with orchards in the valleys. The land surface is highly irregular, with softly rolling hills and pine groves suddenly giving way to towering limestone formations from which the hiker can enjoy splendid views. La Gruta de las Maravillas – the Cave of Marvels - in Aracena is famous for its spectacular calcareous formations. The fauna includes the stone martin and black vulture.  Dotted with small villages clinging to the slopes of the plunging mountain valleys, this area was settled in ancient times, by the Phoenicians and Romans, who mined its copper, silver and iron, and the open-faced Mines of Rio Tinto are still one of the region´s major resources.

There is a fascinating museum in the village of Riotinto which presents the history of the local mining industry. This is a region which is dear to every Spaniard´s heart because - as well as mushrooms - it produces the country´s most highly-prized gourmet delicacy, ham. The village of Jabugo is famous for the ¨denominated origin¨ variety known simply as jamón de Jabugo or pata negra, for the black-footed pigs which feed on the acorns in the forests of the surrounding hills. Spanish cured ham - whether salt-cured or hung in attics to dry in the cold mountain air, and therefore known as jamón serrano, mountain ham - is an acquired taste, but once the traveller has accustomed his palate to its subtle flavours, he will appreciate the natives´passion for this ancient delicacy invented, like so many other things, by the sons of Rome. The bars of the villages are well-known for their tapas of wild mushrooms, collected in autumn in the surrounding forests. Huelva to MatalascanasMazagon is 18 km away and is a good place for those interested in fishing, sailing and long walks along the beach.  From this point onwards the road passes through areas of sand dunes, pinewoods and mud flats, the only town being Matalascanas.

Sunday, October 27—pick up Paige & Tom

We left M. at 9:40 to get Paige and Tom, forgetting that it was 8:40 Portuguese time.  Crossed a very neat, Vasco de Gama-type bridge over Rio Guadiano and arrived at the airport at 10:35. They were on time at 12:05 and we left and went down to Isla Cristina, situated at the mouth of the river Carreras. This summer holiday resort and fishing port has more than 300 fishing boats, which supply fish and shellfish for the canning industry and for a large proportion of the Spanish markets, too. 

We had a simply mahvolus lunch at Restaurante Casa Rufino, Cra. De la Playa.  We started with an appetizer of white asparagus stuffed with shrimp and another of leek and langostino mousse.  Jerry had fish soup with a large langostino.  The Tom had tuna with an orange sauce, Paige had Corvino (meager fish)—rather strong tasting—in tomato green sauce, Jerry had grouper (mero) with an interesting vinaigrette $100.

Following the coastline we reach La Antilla, which consists of four or five rows of small holiday homes by a magnificent beach. La Antilla and El Terron -a small port on the river Piedras- belong to the township of Lepe, an agricultural town surrounded by fertile countryside where melons, watermelons, figs and the famous strawberries are grown. We passed a large heard of sheep with 2 dogs and a shepherd on a mosquito.  Strawberries growing everywhere under protective black plastic.  Not too long ago people here had never heard of strawberries.  A sign outside of Lepa reads “It is forbidden to sell strawberries in the public street.” 

Four km (2 ½ mi) away is Palos de la Frontera, from which on Aug 2, 1492, Columbus’s three caravels, the Pinta, the Nina, and the Santa Maria, set sail.  Most of his crew were men of Palos and neighboring Moguer.  Here, you can see the church of San Jorge (1473), at whose door the royal letter ordering the levy of the crew and equipment of the caravels was read aloud; and the Fontanilla, the well from which the caravels took their water supplies.In the main square there is a Statue of Pinzon the builder of the ships and also a plaque to the sailors most of whom were from the village.              

La Rabida

Just to the South of Huelva city across the River Tinto we found La Rabida. La Rabida is the name of the Monastery where Colombus stayed and studied and planned his trips. We had to buy an audio tour to visit the monastery and walk around the cloisters that Columbus once paced. 1485 Columbus came from Portugal with his son Diego to stay in this Gothic Mudejar monastery.  Here, he discussed his theories with friars Antonio de Marchena and Juan Perez, who interceded on his behalf with Queen Isabella.  The frescoes in the gatehouse were painted by Daniel Vazquez Diaz in 1930. (Tu-Su 10-1 & 4-7 with visits every 30 min; closed M) 

A 14th century monastery which Columbus visited several times during his attempts to win royal patronage for his voyage to the Americas and which is located just 9 kms from the centre of Huelva. There is a fascinating display of 1930 murals on the Columbus story by local artist, Daniel Vazquez Diaz. The room where Columbus and Padre Marchena discussed the projected voyage and the refectory where Columbus ate, are off the peaceful 15th century mudejar cloister. Other rooms hold art, models and documents on Franciscan and Columban themes. Finally you visit the Sala de Banderas with the flags of the Latin American nations and a box of earth from each.Also in the area you can see the Monument Fé or Monument to the Faith and Monument Plus Ultra which commemorates the first south transatlantic flight. The modern Iber Americano Forum is an outdoor venue for Concerts and conferences. There is also the Iber Americano University located here.           

Back to Matalascanas for a bottle of champagne and a beautiful sunset.

Monday, October 28     Jerez & Arcos 

Left for Jerez about 8:45 and got there an hour later.  The first thing we noticed was horrible air pollution.  After an unplanned detour around the wrong way, we were back on the A4 at 11:05.  Cotton was growing everywhere.  Got to the horse farm at 11:40.Jerez de la Frontera became famous throughout the world for its sweet wines named after the town, which the British pronounced "sherry". It is called "de la Frontera" because it once stood on the frontier between the Moorish and the Christian realms. Jerez is also famous, throughout the world, for its fine horses and brilliant singers and dancers of flamenco.

The Tourist Office is located at Larga, 39. (Tel: +34 956 331162). Jerez has its own airport, Aeropuerto de la Parra, 7 kilometres north of the town on the NIV to Seville. (Tel: +34 956 150000).

Real Escuela de Arte Equestre, Avda Duque de Abrantes.

Located in a magnificent 19th century mansion designed by the architect of the Paris Opera - Garnier and world famous for its magnificent dancing horses, at Avenida de Abrantes (Tel: +34 956 311111). The establishment of this prestigious school was masterminded by Alvaro Domecq in the 1970’s. On Thursday mornings there is a spectacular display of dressage.  We opted for the training session, Como Bailan los Caballos Andaluces, in which horses (a breed created from a cross between the native Andalusian workhorse and the Arabian) and skilled riders in 18th c riding costume demonstrate intricate dressage techniques and jumping.  We also included a tour of the stables.      

The distinctive wine in Jerez has been exported for centuries, it was even praised by Shakespeare. It is distinctive because the strong sun gives the grapes a high sugar content. British merchants have been involved in the wine trade here for centuries, producing and shipping a fortified wine known as sherry. Famous names of these dynasties can be seen here over the doors of the bodegas; Sandeman, John Harvey, Domecq, Gonzalez Byass.JdlF, the home of sherry, is surrounded by immense vineyards of chalky soil, whose famous Palomino grapes have funded a host of churches and noble mansions.  Both sherry and horses are very much the domain of Jerez’s Anglo-Saxon aristocracy, whose Catholic ancestors came here from England two or three centuries ago.  At any one time there are more than a million barrels of sherry maturing in Jerez’s vast aboveground wine cellars. If you visit a bodega, the guide will explain the solera method of blending old wine with new and the importance of flor (a sort of yeast) in determining the kind of sherry.  Afterward you’ll be able to sample generous amounts of pale, dry fino; nutty amontillado; or rich, deep oloroso. 

Dumecq is Jerez’s oldest bodega, founded in 1730. The Spanish word bodega means "cellar", but it has the generical meaning of "wine manufacturer". You can take a guided tour of the many Jerez bodegas. Some of the companies such as Gonzalez Byass, Pedro Domecq and Sandeman – British winemakers have been active here for centuries, which is why many of the names have an Anglo-Saxon ring to them – provided guided tours of the cellars on weekdays, followed by sampling of the various types of wine produced.

Great lunch at Gaitan, Calle Gaitan 3.  Tom had cream of artichoke soup and Jerry & Gail had cream of crab with shrimp.  Paige and Jerry had oxtail, Tom had pork with Paris sauce and Gail had smoked pork with chestnut sauce.  Flan for dessert and sweet sherry (nobody’s favorite).

The town has a markedly aristocratic flavour with wide streets and squares.  The 11th c Moorish alcazar has been restored and was Paige & Tom’s first castle.  Its church was originally built by the Arabs as a mosque, and there was a couple fornicating on the floor—very disgusting.   

Sherry

Jerez lies some nine miles inland from the sea between Cadiz and Sevilla and is the principal of three sherry towns. The others are on the coast are Sanlucar de Barrameda at the mouth of the ríver Guadalquivir, and Puerto de Santa Maria. Between them they produce virtually all the genuine sherry that is shipped to the rest of the world. There is not much difference between the wines of Jerez and Puerto de Santa Maria, except that the latter are noted for their fino and amontillado types of sherry. Sanlucar, however, produces quite different wines: all the manzanilla is made there, wíth its distinctive fresh flavour that cannot be reproduced anywhere else. Despite such a short distance between them the wine produced will be affected by any slight change in the atmosphere or climate. History records the earliest fermented fruit as date wine, but mead probably came first, then beer. Grape wine was prepared as early as the prehistoríc Djemdet-Nast period in Mesopotamia and was brought to Egypt before 3000 BC. The Greeks however practised viticulture as an art. Some say that the Phoenicians introduced the vine to Spain, but it is more probable that Greek settlers brought it with them around 6th or 5th century BC. It is pure speculation, but the name Jerez may also be Greek in origin: they could have imported wines from the Persian city of "Shiraz", so why not name their new town after that city. When the Romans captured Spain, they found many vineyards and viticulture advanced rapidly. Then the Vandals invaded (calling the south Vandalusia) and in turn the Visigoths. It heralded a time of perpetual war until the Moors swept over the peninsular for some 7 centurias, only to be usurped finally by the Christians. During Moorish domination, Jerez expanded in size and wealth. They called it "Seris", whích was later corrupted to "jerez" by the Spanish and to "sherry" by the Englísh. By the 16th century, the sherry trade with England had become well establíshed, but it actually originated earlier during Moorish domination (despite the irony that wine was prohibited to the muslims.) In recent times, wage inflatíon and the availability of cheaper and better machínery and new computer technology have jolted the traditions and whole atmosphere of the sherry towns. Equally the impact of individual businesses such as the fluctuating fortunes of Ruíz-Mateo has been enormous, from his family´s humble beginnings as a local wine shipper to big business and banks. Nowadays all the big sherry labels of the world are present in some form in Jerez.    

Arcos de la Frontera

Thirty km (18 mi) east of Jerez, the white village of Arcos de la Frontera is perched dramatically on a wild crag crowned by a castle, overlooking the gorge of the Guadalete River.  On the main square, the Plaza de Espana, the Church of Santa Maria is a fascinating blend of architectural styles: Romanesque, Gothic, and Mudejar, with a Plateresque doorway, a Renaissance retablo, and a 17th c Baroque choir.  It is an old Arab town built in the form of an ampitheatre.  The city is filled with whitewashed walls and narrow winding streets that disappear into steps.  On the way home we passed huge fields of cotton.  Then we got stuck in a bad truck accident outside Seville and didn’t get home til 8 pm.

Tuesday, October 29

SEVILLE  

Left at 9:10—another beautiful day.  Again we passed the strange scene of lots of horses drinking what appears to be marsh water with the church of Santa Maria del Rocio in the background.  Paige was in charge of planning and did a great job.  We parked near the Magdeline church and were in the center of everything,                        

Lying on the banks of the Guadalquivir, S is Spain’s 4th largest city and the capital of Andalucia.  Its whitewashed houses bright with bougainvillea, its ocher-colored palaces, and its Baroque facades have long enchanted visitors to the region. Of course, this bustling city of 700,000 people also has a negative side: traffic choked streets; high unemployment; a notorious crime rate; and, at times, the kind of impersonal treatment you won’t find in smaller cities.  But Seville’s artistic heritage and its citizen’s zest for life make it all worthwhile. 

Seville has a long and noble history.  Conquered by the Romans in 205 BC, it gave the world two great emperors, Trajan and Hadrian, whose birthplace you can see at nearby Italica.  The Moors held S for more than 500 years and bequeathed to it one of the greatest examples of their art in the form of the well-loved Giralda tower.  Saint King Ferdinand (Ferdinand III) lies enshrined in glory in the cathedral, one of S’s greatest monuments.  His rather less saintly descendant, Pedro the Cruel, builder of the splendid Alcazar, is buried here, too. S is justly proud of its literary and artistic associations.  The painters Diego Rodriguez de Silva Velasquez (1599-1660), and Bartolome Esteban Murillo (1617-82) were natives, as were the poets Gustavo Adolfo Becquer (1836-70), Antonio Machado (1875-1939), and Nobel Prize winner Vicente Aleixandre (1898-1984).  The tale of that ingenious knight of La Mancha was begun in a Seville prison, for Don Quixote’s creator, Miguel de Cervantes, twice languished in a debtors’ prison here.  Tirso de Molina’s character, Don Juan carried on his amorous pursuits in the mansions of Seville, later scheming as Don Giovanni in the Bartio of Santa Cruz.  The barrio also provided the setting for the nuptials of Mozart’s and Rossini’s barber, Figaro.  Nearby, at the old tobacco factory, Bizet’s sultry Carmen first met Don Jose. 

We started in the Plaza Nueva.  In the middle of this square stands the Ayuntamiento, designed by Diego de Riano and built between 1527 & 1564.  The façade, which overlooks the Plaza Nueva, dates from the 19th c, but walk around to the opposite side on the Plaza de San Francisco, and you’ll find Riano’s original building, exquisitely decorated in Plateresque style.  To the Plaza Virgen de los Reyes.  From next to the central fountain we gazed up at the magnificent Giralda, symbol of Seville, and the east façade of the great Gothic cathedral.  After Ferdinand III captured S from the Moors in 1248, the great mosque begun by Yusuf II in 1171 was at first simply reconsecrated to the Virgin Mary and used as a Christian cathedral, in much the way the mosque at Cordoba was.  But in 1401 the citizens of S. saw fit to erect a new and glorious cathedral.  They pulled down the old mosque and began.  This mighty building was completed in just over a century—a remarkable record for the time.  The clergy renounced their incomes for the cause, and a member of the chapter is said to have proclaimed: “Let us build a church so big that we shall be held to be insane.” 

And this they proceeded to do, for today S’s cathedral can be described only in superlatives: It is the biggest and highest cathedral in Spain, the largest Gothic building in the world, and the world’s third largest church after St. Peter’s in Rome and St. Paul's in London.  ($6; M-F 11-5, Sa 11-4, Su 2-4). Since the guidebook was written, the entrance price went up, but the money has been spent on renovations and everything is clean and well lit.  We got another audio tour ($3) which was a good investment although most of the chapels had English explanations. The exterior of the cathedral, with its rose windows and magnificent flying buttresses, is a monument to pure Gothic beauty. Gothic purity has been submerged in well-lit, ornate Baroque decoration formerly lit only by flickering candles.  Just inside the main entrance, on the south side off Calle Fray Gonzales, is the flamboyant monument to Christopher Columbus.  The great explorer knew triumph and disgrace and found not repose. He died at Valladolid, bitterly disillusioned.  His body was buried at Santo Domingo although this monument was built at his tomb.  Columbus’s coffin is borne aloft by the four medieval kingdoms of Spain: Castile, Leon, Aragon, and Navarre. Between the great west door, the Puerta Mayor, and the central choir, is the tombstone of Columbus’s son, Hernando Colon (1488-1539), inscribed with the words A Castilla y Leon, mundo Nuevo dio Colon (To Castile and Leon, Columbus gave a new world). 

In the Capilla Mayor, in the central nave, is the intricately carved altarpiece begun by a Flemish carver in 1482.  This magnificent retablo, the largest in Christendom (65 feet high by 43 feet wide), depicts some 36 scenes from the life of Christ; its pillars are carved with more than 200 figures, and the whole work is lavishly adorned with immeasurable quantities of gold leaf. In the Capilla Real, above the grille, we saw Ferdinand III, on horseback, receiving the keys of S.  At the sides of this chapel stand the tombs of Ferdinand’s wife, Beatrix of Swabia, and his son, Alfonso X, called the Wise (died 1284).  In a silver urn before the high altar rest the precious relics of Ferdinand III, S’s liberator (canonized in 1671), who was said to have died from excessive fasting.   Between the Capilla Real and Columbus’s tomb, are the main treasure houses of the cathedral, displaying a wealth of gold and silver (much of it brought from the New World), historic relics, and many rather neglected works of art.  In the dome of the Sala Capitular, in the cathedral’s southeast corner, is one of Murillo’s finest Immaculate Conceptions, painted in 1668.  Next, in the Sacristia Mayor, are two Virgins by Francisco de Zurbaran (1598-1664) and the keys of the city, which the Moors and Jews of S presented to its conqueror, Ferd.  Finally, in the Sacristia de los Calices, is Martinez Montanes’s crucifixion, Cristo de la Clemencia; Valdes Leal’s St. Peter Freed by an Angel; Zurbaran’s Virgin and Child; and Goya’s St. Justa and St. Rufina. We left the cathedral through the Patio de los Naranjos.  The old fountain in the center was used for ritual ablutions before entering the mosque. 

Across the patio, the Sacristy houses the Columbus Library, a collection of 3,000 volumes bequeathed by his son Hernando. The Giralda, undisputed symbol of S., dominates the skyline and can be glimpsed from almost every corner of the city.  Built originally as the minaret of S’s great mosque, from which the faithful were summoned to prayer, it was constructed between 1184 and 1196 under the Almohad dynasty, just 50 years before the reconquest of S.  When the Christians tore down the mosque, they could not bring themselves to destroy this tower and so incorporated it into their new cathedral as the bell tower.  In 1565-68 they added a lantern and belfry to the old minaret, installing 24 bells, one for each of S’s 24 parishes and the 24 Christina knights who fought w Ferd.  They also added the bronze statue of Faith, which turns as a weather vane (el giraldillo—something that turns), providing the name Giralda. With its Baroque additions, the slender Giralda now rises 322 feet.  In its center, in place of steps, a gently sloping ramp, made up of 24 parts, wide enough for 2 horsemen to pass abreast, climbs to a viewing platform 230 feet up. It is said that Ferd rode his horse to the top to admire the view of the city he had conquered. 

We followed in his footsteps, and were rewarded by a glorious view of pan-tile roofs and the Guadalquivir shimmering beneath palm-lined banks.  (Plaza Virgin de los Reyes; Admission included in cathedral ticket.  Open Oct-Mar weekdays 11-5, Sat 11-4, Sun 11-1) We exited from the church, then walked eastward across Plaza del Triunfo intot he entrance of one of the most exotic palaces in Europe, the Alcazar ($3), the Mudejar palace built by Pedro I (1350-69), on the site of the former Moorish alcazar.  Don’t mistake the Alcazar for a genuine Moorish palace.  It may look like one, and was indeed designed and built by Moorish workers brought in from Granada, but it was commissioned and paid for by a Christian king, more than 100 years after the Reconquest. Into its construction, Pedro the Cruel incorporated stones and capitals he pillaged from elsewhere—from Valencia, from Cordoba’s Medina Azahara, and from S itself. 

The Alcazar is the finest example of Mudejar architecture in Spain today, though its purity of style has been much diluted by the alterations and additions of successive Spanish rulers.  The Catholic Monarchs, whose only son, Don Juan, was born here in 1478, added a new wing to serve as an administration center for their New World Empire.  Today the Alcazar is the official residence in S of the king and queen of Spain. We entered the Alcazar through high, fortified walls of genuine Moorish origin that belie the exquisite delicacy of its interior.  Cross the Patio de la Monteria to Pedro’s Mudejar palace, arranged around the beautiful Patio de las Doncellas (Damsels).  It reminded me of the blue “House of the Dolls” in Garganta.  Its name most likely pays tribute to the annual gift of 100 virgins to the Moorish sultans.  Resplendent with the most delicate of lacelike stucco and gleaming azulejo decorations, its Granada craftsmanship is instantly reminiscent of the Alhambra, though the upper galleries were added by Charles V.  Opening off this patio, the Salon de Embajadores (Hall of the Ambassadors), with its cedar wood cupola of green, red, and gold, is the most sumptuous hall in the palace.  It was here, in 1526, that Carlos V married Isabel of Portugal—for which occasion he added the wooden balconies. Next, Philip II’s dining hall and the three apartments of Pedro’s wily and beautiful mistress, Maria de Padilla.  Maria’s hold over her royal lover, and seemingly over his courtiers too, was so great that they apparently lined up to drink her bathwater. 

The Patio de las Munecas (Court of the Dolls) takes its name from two tine faces carved on the inside of one of its arches, no doubt as a joke on the part of its Moorish creators.  Here, in 1358, Pedro reputedly had his half-brother, Don Fadrique, master of the Order of Santiago, slain.  And here, too, he murdered his guest Abu Said of Granada for the sake of his jewels.  One of these, a huge uncut ruby, Pedro presented to the Black Prince (Edward, Prince of Wales, eldest son of England’s Edward III) in 1367.  It now sits among other priceless gems in the Crown of England. The end of our visit will bring us out into the Alcazar Gardens, where a family could easily spend a whole day enjoying the fragrance of jasmine and myrtle, the beautiful terraces and ornamental baths, the palm trees, and the well-stocked goldfish pond covered in water lilies.  In the midst of this oasis of green is an orange tree said to have been planted in the time of Pedro the Cruel.   

We walked back ton Avenida de la Constitucion to Plaza Nueva then to Enrique Becerra (En. B Gamazo 2), which Paige had selected for our lunch—excellent. A cozy snug retreat in a whitewashed house with wrought iron window grilles.  The place was full of local business people.  Paige and I had gazpacho with crudités (among the city’s best, so they say) and Tom and Jerry had the daily vegetable and calamari soup.  Then Tom had pork croquettes stuffed with asparagus and cheese (OK), Jerry had pork stew (very good), and Paige and I had fried eggplant slices stuffed with shrimp (very Good).

Then we walked to the Museo Provincial de Bellas Artes de Sevilla, in a lovely old convent off Calle de Alfonso XII and housing one of the most important Spanish art collections.  A whole gallery is devoted to two paintings by el Greco, and works by Zurbaran are exhibited; however the devoutly religious paintings of the Seville-born Murillo are the highlight.  An entire wing is given over to macabre paintings by the 17th c artist Valdes-Leal.  His painting of John the Baptist’s head on a platter includes the knife—lest you miss the point.Stopped at El Rocio on the way home—sort of Twilight Zone Spain.  A town out of the American west, with dusty, unpaved streets, empty whitewashed houses, and an amazing church from the late 1960’s, housing a gilded virgin.  On one day a year it is paraded around to about 1 MILLION faithful who worship and party for several days.  This is also where the horses are—it turns out they are drinking fresh water and belong to people living in the town. 

Stopped at the supermercado, then home. 

Wednesday, October 30   To the mountains 

We were downstairs to meet the transport to Donana at 8, but, at 8:30, we found out that the trip is tomorrow, so we moved our mountain day up.  The sea breeze blew away the rain clouds and we were off through Valverde and Zalamea la Real.  Saw an eagle outside Alajar. Turned off at Sta Ana la Real and Paige and I took a walk about a half mile to Chorros de Joyarancon.  We found chestnuts and acorns and a little dark grey bird with an orange face (Paige said he was in his Halloween costume. 

Outside of Alajar we drove way up the mountain to Penes de Arians Montano, a hermitage on a rocky promontory with a great view.  Its Romeria is renown.  We also went out in the country to the San Bartalemeo hermitage.To Aracena--along the northern border of the province in the beautiful and little-visited Sierra de Aracena, an extensive range of pine-covered mountains, the Sierra Morena, and thinly populated valleys, where wild boar, eagles and deer still roam abundantly.   We passed some fine old mansions that were once the Summer homes of wealthy Sevillian families. 

We parked in the main square and went shopping.  We went into a couple of jamon stores and a great pottery shop where I found the perfect green and gold bowl for our new house.  The proprietress recommended the Restaurant Rabida, a simple country place where we got a jarra of wine and a plate of Serrano jamon to start.  Tom and Paige got omelets and Jerry got picadillo soup and chicken.  I got *** setas (wild mushrooms) in garlic sauce ($40.50). Then we went back to the pottery and Paige got a great plate.  Then west to AROCHEFor something really off the beaten track, you could continue 40 km (25 mi) west on N433 to

Aroche, a village of 4,000 people with a 12th c Arab castle and ancient Gothic and Baroque houses. 

Aroche is at the top of a hill dominating the extensive plain of the fertile valley of the Chanza River. It was the scene of a famous battle during the Reconquest, in 1236. Castle of the 12th century is within the urban enclosure of Aroche, surrounded by the small village. It is of polygonal form, it has ten rectangular towers, at the moment it is used as Municipal Archaeological Museum  (closed)and in the celebrations of August is celebrated in its interior run of bulls. The parish church of the 16th c, Chapel of the Christ of the Humility, located equally in the interior of the town of Aroche, is a square covered with vault of average orange on pechinas from the 17th century; the town walls. Turned south at Rosal de la Frontera and home.        

Thursday, October 31  DONANA NATIONAL PARK     

Parque Nacional de Donana lies beyond the Guadalquivir estuary in the southeast corner of Huelva province.  These wetlands, one of Europe’s last corners of wilderness, constitute Spain’s largest national park.  They cover an area of 188,000 acres, 40 mi by 9 mi., and are a paradise for nature lovers, especially bird-watchers.  The park lies on the migratory route from Africa to Europe and is the winter home and breeding ground for as many as 150 species of rare birds.  Their habitats range from beaches and shifting sand dunes to marshes, dense brushwood, and sandy hillsides of pine and cork oak.  Two of Europe’s most endangered species, the imperial eagle and the lynx, make their homes here.  Sightings of lynx are fairly rare, but you may be lucky enough to spot a wild boar, a fox, or even a mongoose. Kestrels, kites and buzzards, egrets, storks, and spoonbills breed among the cork oaks. 

The marshlands are home to some 40,000 geese and to one of Europe’s last remaining colonies of flamingos. Its configuration is a result of its past as the estuary of the Guadalquivir river. It consists of beaches, coastal mobile dunes, "corrales"; marshes, "lucios" (ponds) and "caños" (jets); vegetation is typical Mediterranean thicket of narrow leaved cistus heather, mastic tree, rosemary, cistus scrub, red lavender, etc; the marsh cork oaks are known as "las pajareras" for the enormous quantity of birds that nest in them and large expanses of stone pine. Fauna here has a rich variety, some in danger of extinction, such as the lynx, the Egyptian mongoose and the imperial eagle; game is also plentiful - deer, fallow deer and boar. Doñana is well known for the variety of species of birds, either permanent residents, winter visitors from north and central Europe or summer visitors from Africa, such as numerous types of geese and colourful colonies of flamingo.

Entrance to the park is strictly controlled. We chose the half day trip in a jeep with two other people and an official guide. To visit the park take the A483 past Almonte and El Rocio to El Acebuche (near Matalascañas) where one finds the main visitors centre. There are trips into the park at 08.30h and 17.00h every day except Sundays in the summer (1/06 – 15/09) and at 08.30h and 15.00h every day except Mondays in the winter. Booking is recommended by phoning the visitors centre on +34 959 430432. Full day trips can also be organised for groups. Visitors centre 'El Rocina' is nearer to El Rocio, it has an audio visual display and nature trail. The park can also be reached ( but not entered) by taking the ferry boat across the Guadalquivir river from San Lucar de Barrameda where a new visitors centre is projected. We saw two of the three environments: the Mediterranean  forest and the marshes (we did not see the dunes). Very few animals, but lots of birds: red kite, winchat, greylag goose, little grebe, chiffchaff, lapwing, stonechat, great red warbler, redstart, crested lark, common kestral, comman buzzard, pochard (like a redhead or canvasback), ringed plover, little ringed plover, little wagtail, yellow wagtail, and lots of “our” herons, egrets and ducks.  Also saw cork oak (native), and Italian Stone Pine and Eucalyptus (introduced), strawberry tree (like the one Paige and I saw at the falls), tamarisk and mastic tree.  

We returned to El Rocio for lunch at the Toruno Restaurant.  We had a nice table under a 700-year old cork tree.  Tom had sopa peccadillo and grilled porkloin topped with Serrano ham.  Paige had grilled dorado (with head, tail and spine).  Jerry had octopus and venison stew and I had mixed salad and assorted fried fish (incuding whole sardines).                      

Then off to Italica, the testimony par excellance of Roman magnificence in Seville.  This colony was founded by Publius Cornelius Scipio the elder in the year 206 BC for the veterans of the Second Punic War. It was the birthplace of two Roman emperors, Trajan and Hadrian.  It flourished until the 2nd c AD.  The dimensions of its amphitheatre, with a capacity for 30,000 spectators, are testimony of this splendor.  Another example of the changes in Spain were brought home here when we interrupted the ticket lady in the middle of her game of computer solitaire. 

Then on a scenic road north to Las Nieves and west, passing through the amazing Minos de Riotinto—huge mining excavations reopened in 1556 after Philip II sent a party to search the Andalcian hill for the lost Roman silver, copper and gold mines.                           

To Zalamea la Real, where we failed to find dolmens—no success either in El Pozneto either, but in a year or two they will be easy to find.  Stopped in the “leather” town of Valverde del Camino and bought a beautiful purse fo Lois.  Then home through small towns like La Palma del Condado and Bouuluuos that were really hopping.

Friday, November 1    Portugal  

We soon discovered that November 1 is All Saints Day and lots of things are closed.  Also—every little town was full of people laden with flowers, headed toward the local cemetery.  We got to Estoi and found the place closed.  Apparently it is scheduled to become a parador.  It looked even more run down than when Kim and I were here.  BUT the Roman town of Milreau was greatly improved..  They are really fixing it up.  The 16th c house built beside it was all covered and workers were busy inside. Drove north along a scenic road to Almodovar.  It was a very, very curvy road—reminiscent of the old Portugal.  Little towns with houses covered all over with colorful patterned tiles. 

Had a good lunch at the Dom Dinis Restaurant there.  We started with cheese, olives, bread and pickled pigs’ ears (a bit tough, but obviously a local delicacy).  Then Tom had beef in a white sauce with homemade potato chips; Paige had beef in a fresh tomato sauce and fires; Jerry and I had the daily special, lamb stew. Then across to Mertola and along the eastern border down to the coast, passing the famous Moorish chimneys of Loule along the was.  El Rocio was really rocking with lots of tour busses and hundreds of cars.  Packed up for our flight tomorrow.   

Saturday, Nov 2—Home 

All was well for our departure—I think a good time was had by all