Road trip through Andalusia
(Originally posted August 2011)
Tuesday, July 5th
Today has been the longest travel day yet. Luckily we survived all the logistic checkpoints along the way. Here’s a quick run-down:
We left our apartment in Essaouira this morning at 5:00 to walk with Abdul to the bus station. After a three hour bus ride back to Marrakech, we arrived at bus terminal. With no dirham to our name, just a poorly-scaled map, we started walking the six kilometers to the airport under the Moroccan sun with our packs on.
We flew from Marrakech back to Madrid, cleared immigration and customs and got our rental car. A brief adjustment to driving a different vehicle was solved by a man that showed me how to put the thing in reverse (yes, I was blocking traffic in the parking lot). We made it by midnight to our hostel in Granada.
Wednesday, July 6th
This morning in Granada we hiked around the Albaicín, a neighborhood with white-washed houses on a hill across from the Alhambra and overlooking the city. We stopped for cañas and tapas at a plaza and strolled past the statue of Christopher Columbus asking Queen Isabel to finance his journey.
Jackie and I toured the Cathedral built on top of the site of a mosque as was the practice around the time of the Inquisition. And like most large buildings of the time, only took 180 years to build. That night, we hiked Granada all over again on our own “tapas tour.”
Thursday, July 7th
This morning we toured the Alhambra, the Moorish palace and fortress built in the 13th century overlooking modern-day Granada. The enormous complex contains a palace, various halls and residences and gardens surrounded by thick outer walls and towers. The buildings have been restored with detailed engravings and colorful tiles.
Next we stuffed ourselves into the car and started the drive down the coastal highway to Malaga. The journey contained my biggest driving stressors: tall viaducts, steep hills, cliffs and tailgaters.
We found our hostal, Bahía Hotel and met our hostel host, Mimi. He gave a new names, poured some cold beer and started a dance party. In the evening, we watched the sunset on the beach and grabbed dinner at a kabob stand.
Friday, July 8th
We started the day with a trip back to the beach, no tan lines at Spanish beaches. We drove to La Linea, parked the car and walked to Gibraltar. We showed our passports to the immigration official, since we were leaving the European Union, and the officer gave us stamps. Transit police halted pedestrian and vehicular traffic momentarily while we waited for a plane to take off. Once the runway was cleared we found our way to our hotel down one of the three streets in Gibraltar.
The British-territory of Gibraltar has a unique mix of English, Spanish and Portuguese. It’s a strange tax-free zone for tobacco and liquor and the residents share their aversion to the other groups on the Rock.
Saturday, July 9th
Being in a British territory, our hotel offered a “full English breakfast.” Then, we hiked to the tip of Gibraltar where we could see African continent. Then, we hopped on the cable car up to the top of the Rock. The monkeys surrounded the landing as we stepped out of the cable car hoping for food from the visitors. Several babies cling to mama monkeys. The view from the top is amazing, although I don’t get too close to the edge.
Next stop, Sevilla. We arrived hungry at 5:30 when most restaurants in Spain are closed. We did a walking tour of the streets and alleyways of Sevilla, by our guide Ellen who used to live nearby. At night we went to two flamenco shows. The expressiveness of the singer almost brought the audience to tears.
Sunday, July 10th
In the morning, we toured the cathedral in Sevilla with a huge golden altar. The largest cathedral in Spain also holds the remains of Christopher Columbus. Next stop the Alcázar, the palace of royal family. It was originally built by “Peter the Cruel” on the site of the Moorish residential fortress, pillaged its contents. The grounds were filled with extensive gardens with fountains, a waterfall and peacocks.
In the late afternoon, we returned the rental car, scratch-free, at the airport and flew to Rome.
