Andalucía revisited

[amboseli]

Since we never get tired of Andalucía, this June we spent (again) two and a half weeks there, combining cities and beaches.
As always, we started in Málaga. Easy to fly into from Belgium (from our local Antwerp airport this time!) and a city that is more than worth visiting. The jacarandas were still in full bloom ... we felt like coming home right away. We love jacarandas, that is.
The hotel we always stay at, supplies free bikes for each guest. Very easy to get around. We cycled into the city, to the beach, to Pedregalejo for the best boquerones.
This was our 3rd time in Málaga in five years, so I didn't take as much pictures as I usually do. An overview:

[htmb]

Gorgeous pictures, Amboseli!

[amboseli]

From Málaga we visited Frigiliana and met some friends in Nerja. I've never been a big fan of Nerja and now I know I never will be. As to Frigiliana, it used to be the most beautiful pueblo blanco in Andalucía. It was still nice, but overly touristy. Give me Grazalema or Comares anytime.

























After five days we left Málaga and drove to Ronda through the pretty countryside along Parque Natural Sierra de las Nieves. We hadn't been in Ronda for at least 25 years. It was a pleasant surprise. Nothing much has changed over the years. It was hot in Ronda!

[amboseli]

After having spent a few days in Ronda we contued our journey, to Sevilla. We have been two years ago, and three years ago but we simply can't get enough of Sevilla.
We visited Montecorto and Grazalema en route, and had a lovely lunch in Al Lago near Zahara de la Sierra overlooking the blueest lake we have ever seen.

[amboseli]

Sevilla ...

[bixaorellana]

Gorgeous pictures, Amboseli, full of such clear light and pure color. Looks as though you all had a wonderful time.

Is the walkway with the wavy overhead structure the walk by the sea? And the picture of skeletons -- from the same fabulously baroque church just below it?

I didn't know about that huge aqueduct(?) in Ronda. Is there still a big naval base there? Your bullring photo is wonderful, and I love your landscape pictures in the next section.

-- edited to say we simul-posted, so I need to go back to see what I missed while writing the above --

[amboseli]

Our days in Sevilla went by too fast. It's such a vibrant, lively city with good atmosphere. But then, it had been so hot that I was also glad to escape the heat and to move on to the beach: Conil de la Frontera, our favourite spot on the Costa de la Luz. Conil is one of those typical Andalusian coastal towns. Not much to see, other than a wide, fine sandy beach.

















From Conil we made various daytrips, to Arcos de la Frontera, through more beautiful countryside. This time we parked our rental car in the lower town, remembering the trouble we had years ago with driving our car in the narrow streets of the old town.



























To Bolonia and Tarifa, the windy coast.







































To Cádiz, more than once. It wasn't too far from Conil and a nice change of scenery.

[amboseli]

Thank you, bixa!
The overhead structure is the Muelle Uno: shopping & restaurants on one side, the harbour on the other side.
The skeletons are in the Crypt of Buenavista, beneath the heavily decorated Basilica of Santa Maria de la Victoria below.
The huge aqueduct in Ronda (Puente Nuevo) spans the Tajo de Ronda and the river Guadalevin. This bridge is the connection between the old and the new city.

[htmb]

Super interesting photos, Amboseli. I can certainly see why you like the beautiful beaches.

[onlyMark]

You can see why I'm living in the area. The photos make it look as good as it is. Excellent ones and so full of light.
I think you took the exact same as me from the Balcon de Europa. Probably the same sunbathers as well. I've only been to Nerja once to see what the fuss was about and the same as you, I wasn't so impressed by it at all.

In the market in Seville, the photo just above the hanging hams, there are packets of different pieces of vegetables wrapped in cling film (near bottom left). I buy them a lot as they are a soup starter type of thing and cost little more than one euro. I usually add one or two other things and then use a stick blender to make a cheap and filling soup for several people.

Thanks for all this.

[onlyMark]

Jul 30, 2016 13:38:07 GMT bixaorellana said:

.... in Ronda. Is there still a big naval base there?

Probably a slip of the keyboard, Ronda is inland. Do you mean Gibraltar?

[bixaorellana]

Just dazzling, Amboseli! I was frustrated in getting a good shot of sunflowers in France, but your wonderful photos make up for that. You reeeeally make me want to visit Sevilla and your beach pictures are tempting even to a beach-avoider like me.

[bixaorellana]

Not a slip about Ronda, merely lack of being specific. I think the actual navy base is in Rota, with a US Air Force detachment there. When I was a kid, the AF people always said they were based in Ronda.

[amboseli]

Jul 30, 2016 15:27:06 GMT onlyMark said:

You can see why I'm living in the area.

Wow, to live there! Although I would have problems in the summer heat. But it must be fantastic between October and May.

Yes, those packets of veggies are handy. A bit of everything can make an interesting soup.

[amboseli]

Jul 30, 2016 15:36:56 GMT bixaorellana said:

Just dazzling, Amboseli! I was frustrated in getting a good shot of sunflowers in France, but your wonderful photos make up for that. You reeeeally make me want to visit Sevilla and your beach pictures are tempting even to a beach-avoider like me.

Thanks! Sunflowers were literally everywhere. I think in France the season may be somewhat later.
Do visit Sevilla! And Córdoba and Granada. It's such an interesting area, a mix of roman, moorish and catholic culture.

[Deleted]

I know that Seville is an absolutely glorious city that I need to see because numerous friends have been there over the years, and I've seen their photos, too. Yours are absolutely great, amboseli, and pretty much clinch the necessity of going there, although I might choose something like October or November for a trip.

The sunflower fields are magnificent and appear to be much bigger than the sunflower fields of France that I have seen. In any case, the sunflowers in France are relatively pathetic this year, and it is supposed to be the worst agricultural year in about 40 years due to all of the rain and cold up until mid-June.

I have had to drive through a few streets as narrow as the ones that you have shown, and sweat pops out on my brow just remembering it.

[amboseli]

Thanks kerouac.
The sunflower fields were beyond measure, as far as the eye could see. So very pretty!

[breeze]

Pretty dazzling photos from what was obviously a relaxing vacation. That lake truly is a beautiful blue. You must have been there at the peak of sunflower bloom. Everything looks pristine. I can see why you love it.

That giant bull silhouette took me back. It seemed there was one on every hilltop when we drove in Spain. Veterano Osborne if I recall correctly?

[lugg]

I can quite understand why you are so fond of this area and why Mark chose to have a home here, its beautiful and so varied as your post shows. I recognise some of the places in your Cadiz photos as you will see when I finish up my thread.
Really enjoyed reading this ... Seville for us , next year maybe .

[onlyMark]

Don't go mid July and August.
It's not called "the frying pan of Europe" for nothing.

[amboseli]

Sevilla was very hot in June already!

Can't wait to see your pictures of Cádiz, lugg.

[nycgirl]

I really wanted to see Andalucia on my upcoming trip to Spain but I decided I didn't have enough time to stray that far from Barcelona. These pictures really make me wish I could, though. I especially love the look of Seville. Hopefully I can make another trip to Spain one day and see Andalucia. It sure seems like it deserves its own trip.

Excellent photos. I especially like the shots of the blooming trees and the fields of sunflowers.