Granada

11th to 13 June 2024

Flamenco Show

We went to another flamenco show…and OMG I’m glade we did.  The dance style was very different, still very powerful. They said the performers are from a gypsy cave group. The show was in the building built into the side of the mountain, the performance was raw and power. Attitude plus some.  Loved it.

The guy on the guitar was extremely good, fingers that really moved.  You could feel the sound in the small cave room, no amp but with the stone walls they didn’t need it.

The language of music and dance is universal, especially beautiful, it unites peoples from different cultures and places.   

No videoing was allowed so my vid is all stills…So you’ll have to imagine their feet going a million miles an hour. 

Alhambra

WOW this place is huge,  Alhambra is a fortress palace, Spain’s number one tourist attraction.  About 3m people a year visit the place or about 10,000 per day.  

All the rest of Granada in one video.

Enjoy

 Cordoba

8th June

In Cordoba there is a number of great places to visit.  The old royal stables where they now have a Spanish riding school, a Roman built bridge with the original gates at either end, the alcazar that is the old royal palace…mostly all that is left is the gardens and a little bit of the original palace, old town with its twisting little alleyways, etc..  

But what I really came to see was the Mosque-Cathedral of Cordoba and I was not disappointed.  I think it’s the most amazing structure I’ve ever seen, the architecture, the culture significance, religious significance and just how beautiful it is.  The site originally was a Roman Temple, then the Christians built over it a Visigoth church, then the Moors took Cordoba and split it in two for both Christians and Muslims in 711. In 784 it was destroyed and they started work on the mosque and continue building for over 2 centuries and finally completed in 987. Then in 1236 Cordoba was recaptured by a Christian King and he start rebuilding a synagogue in the middle of the mosque, and he never demolished the mosque. So we end up with a cathedral sort of built in the middle of a mosque.  Today the site is as significant to both Islamic and Christian faiths.  While we were there we saw people from both faiths.

I’ve done two videos, one of the Mosque-Cathedral and another for the rest. Hope you enjoy Cordoba as much as I did. 

Cordoba

Mosque-Cathedral 

See if you like my take of music for the cultural mix 

 Ronda

4th of June

Ronda is 750 meters above sea level on a high plateau. It’s a natural fortress location.  The town has a huge gorge that cuts the town in half.   In the 15th century a stone bridge was built joining the town…very pretty place with incredible views.  

I also thought I’d do a video on the park where we’re staying, Give you a look at how hard we’re doing it….! 

The Park

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 Gibraltar

2nd June

We crossed the border into English held Gibraltar today and took the cablecar to the top of the rock of Gibraltar.

Hope you enjoy the video. 

Wishing on a postcard, that you were here with me.

 

 Jerez

30th May

We stayed at a park-up in a huge shopping centre. The ablution were very average but the site was quite and the lady running the place was very helpful and nice. So overall an ok park-up.

The next day we went to see the “Royal Andalusian School of Equestrian Art”. There one off the bucket list. 

Royal Andalusian School of Equestrian Art

 Seville

26th to 28th May - 3 Days.

Day 1 

We visited a Roman Amphitheatre the Spanish call it “The Italica Amphitheater”.  There is also a large area that used to be the Roman town, the buildings are all in ruins, but the floors and their mosaics are still intact.  Some very nice tile work.

We also went to the “Setas de Sevilla”, it’s a structure that has 9 columns.  A funny looking thing that has a walkway across the top…..great views of the city and area.  They say it’s made of wood….but all the real structural bits are steel.

Day 2 

A bit of a bust…3 of the 6 sites were closed…say la vie.

Seville is teaming with lots of tourists, we must be moving into peak period…or it’s just Andalusia the tourist capital. 

At the moment, I’m sitting on my camp chair at the back of the van, doing the blog and watching a couple put up a two man tent.  Not sure which one will kill the other.  

Anyway the main thing today was the Seville Cathedral…a nice cathedral but we’ve now seen lots better… We started the day with a walk along the river, looking at the boats, monuments, etc.    

Day 3

We went to the Real Alcazar and Plaza de Espana

The Alcazar is truly amazing.  It was closed up for centuries and that is why it’s in such good condition.  They allow 800 people per hour through the entry gate and the volume of people get lost, it’s huge. One of the must do things to see.

Alcazar

Plaza de Espana

Plaza de Espana is a landmark square with a large water feature, seats with painted ceramic tiles & an ornate pavilion.

 Evora

24 May 

Our last stop in Portugal.  The bone church was interesting. 

A very beautiful town.