The Great Andalusian Road Trip

When I was younger, my dad told me about this wonderful cathedral with hundreds of pillars that used to belong to Moors  and  Christians. I was intrigued as dad showed me a National Geographic documentary and while it played in front of us, I knew we would get there once.

And so it was.

Last month we finally booked our tickets to Málaga. After two nights there, we rented a car and explored Gibraltar, ending the day in Seville, where we stayed for other two nights, followed by one (freezing) night in Cordoba and two nights in Granada.

Covering so much in so little time was definitely energy-demanding, yet I highly recommend this Road Trip as the region is absolutely splendid (although I would avoid August at all costs unless you want to sweat out all the water you have in your organism).

 

Here are some bits of what we saw (not necessarily touristy photos – those images are more about the things that particularly captured my attention):

Málaga

The Castle of Gibralfaro would have been a truly rewarding experience if we wouldn’t have climbed the hill in a taxi, but nonetheless the ride and the view were great. 

We couldn’t miss a ferry wheel ride, so here is one image taken from above:

Overall, Málaga was a nice surprise and I am more than happy we chose to stay than more than just for transit.

Gibraltar

Besides almost crossing the Strait by mistake – we thought the line of cars was for the parking, but it was actually for customs, and nearly ending up in Morocco (which would not have been bad at all), our day in Gibraltar was mostly peaceful. Except that time when a sweet-toothed monkey decided to rob mum of her chocolate. Unfortunately, the macaque didn’t know my mum was a much bigger chocolate lover than herself, so she torn apart the foil until she realized there was nothing good hidden anywhere.

If you ever find yourself in Gibraltar, don’t take the cable car because it will leave you on the top of Gibraltar’s Rock with no other means of going around it. Instead, go for an 8 person taxi which will stop in key points such as St. Michael’s Cave ( the audio and visual show projected in the cave is a feast!), the southernmost point from where you can see Africa and the tunnels of the Great Siege.

Seville

By far the city I enjoyed the most, Seville hosts the second largest religious building in Europe (the top spot being occupied by St. Peter’s Basilica), an impressive amount of orange trees, modern architecture ( the Metropol Parasol being my favorite example), fabulous food (I was too big of a coward to try the traditional oxtail stew, but maybe some other time) and the prettiest tiny rooftop pools I’ve ever seen.

Córdoba

The much awaited visit to this Church-turned-Mosque-turned-Cathedral (Mezquita) was definitely worth it. They say that once you’ve seen this place, you’ve seen them all. And it’s true. The Mezquita beautifully incorporates so many styles and influences that without being there you can’t truly understand how all those architectural elements can be present all in one place. 

Besides this miraculous Mosque-Cathedral whose foundation was established in the 7th century (!), we have also went to the Alcázar de los Reyes Cristianos, a royal fortress with serene and neat gardens. When we went there it seemed like the best place to sit around, enjoy the sun and read a bit.

Granada

Famous for the Alhambra Castle and the surrounding domains (by the way, it’s necessary to get your tickets online in advance if you want to go in for sure!), I though Granada was not going to offer more. It turned out I was wrong. Its Cathedral is one of the most beautiful I have ever seen ( and I have seen a few), with the best use of light and art (yes, you read correctly – this Cathedral has several paintings on display in the Dome). What’s more is the charm of the Moorish neighborhood, called Albayzin, where we got to eat some amazing Moroccan food ( Chicken Pastela is my dad’s newest crush) and roam around the narrowest streets of the city.

All in all, this road trip was a feast for all the senses and I would gladly do it again.

Also, if you are going on a trip to Andalusia soon or you just want to find out more, let me know!

Thank you for reading this!

 

P.S. Thank you to everybody who showed concern regarding my blogging hiatus. The past few months have requested my full attention which led me to choose to do less things, but of better quality. Thank you for respecting that. I am preparing some bigger things, but everything will be revealed at its own time.

Love,

Laura