Goodbye Portugal, Hello Spain

As soon as Bob landed from Cork we were on our way again. We were moving east along the coast heading towards Spain. We stopped off for lunch at Cabanas de Tavira – we were leaving the Algarve and we wanted to take one more look at the coastline of Portugal. Cabanas is a small coastal fishing village just past Tavira with a long island strip which is popular with tourists and forms part of the Nature Park that began in Faro. There is one road along the front that is lined with shops and cafés that have an outlook to the sea flanked by a wooden boardwalk. It was a small and pretty town but it had a lots of holiday and Expat accommodation so it appeared more touristy than the old tuna-fishing village that it was once known for. We were able to park in the harbour right in the town, overlooking the natural harbour and the beach across the water.

After lunch we headed off to an Aire on the Portuguese/Spanish border in the mountains. We thought we could guarantee a space if we went inland for a night or two.

Our drive took us along the coast right up to the border and then turned north for about 30 minutes, driving through mountain ranges and lakes until we got to a small town called Odeleite, where high up on a hillside there is a privately own Aire giving you the most amazing views of the surrounding area. You can see Spain and the wide river Guadiana that forms the border between the two countries before it reaches the Lake Chanca. But this Aire was almost full…. They had space but no electric which was fine but surprising all the same. We spent the evening watching the views before the sun set on our last night in Portugal and reflected on our stay for the last 7/8 weeks.

The Portuguese are extremely friendly people, most of them speak very good English, there are cafes and bars everywhere that locals and visitors alike are welcome. The food is fresh, cheap and tasty and they all sell traditional dishes with their own twist especially the salted cod (Bacalao), clams and Octopus. The wine is delicious and I have had so many lovely glasses of crisp white wine that was so cheap compared to prices in the UK and Bob has had copious bottles of Red wine as little as 2 euros a bottle! The beaches are beautiful, long white sandy stretches, rocky coves and caves, clear blue seas and much of the countryside is green and not over developed. The Algarve coastline is very developed and it doesn’t feel like you are getting the real flavour of Portugal when you visit.  Many of towns and villages that we visited or drove through are full of rubbish especially the outskirt’s and there are a lot of stray and barking dogs, which would be a huge problem for me if I was too live there. In fact that night at the Aire we hardly slept as there was a house in the valley that had dogs that barked on and off all night.

So, the following morning we headed across the big white bridge to Spain. (First of many bridges it would appear) We stopped again for lunch at a small coastal town called Isla Christina and found a great little park up on the beach on the outskirts of the town. It has a gorgeous long white sandy beach; the car park was in a sheltered area with plenty of parking and several other motorhomes were stopping for the night. There was also a pine forest with picnic benches and pathways  and I regularly saw people walking for exercise and an area with outside gym equipment. The Spanish really do like to walk! We decided to stop over night there and had a lovely evening chatting to the other motor homers stopping for the night.

We were in two minds which way to go the next morning as we are heading towards Malaga  – Bob has a brother who lives in the mountains north of Malaga who we are popping into see before we start the slow journey north back to the UK.

Seville is one of the cities that I have longed to see as I have heard how beautiful it is but we were also told Cadiz should not be missed. Looking on the map I realised that we would have to head towards Seville anyway as there are no direct roads along the coast to Cadiz due to the terrain, rivers and lagoons to cross.

So, Seville it was….we arrived around lunchtime to a huge motorhome car park next to the port where you can stay over, visit the city and it has basic facilities. It was super busy with over 100 motorhomes but we found a spot and walked along the river into Seville. First stop was the magnificent Plaza de Espana set amongst the Botanical gardens of Maria Luisa. The buildings at the centre of the plaza have been designed in a Moorish style with tiled fountains, pavilions, walls, ponds, benches, bridges and steps up to the terraces. There is a mix of Art Deco meets Baroque and Spanish Renaissance. It was designed as a place for exhibitions so it was huge with plenty of space for entertainment and milling around and we came across musicians and flamenco dancers performing on the steps of the terraces.

From there we walked past the university an impressive building itself and stopped for lunch outside at an Arabic restaurant eating some delicious fresh salads. We then spent the afternoon walking the narrow streets, admiring the buildings, past the Spanish Gothic Cathedral of Seville built in 15^th century and for nearly a thousand years was heralded as the largest cathedral in the world. It was actually built on the site of a mosque and they kept parts of the original mosque which have been woven into the cathedral building. It spans an enormous area but the most well-known symbol of the city is its bell tower known as La Giralda as it stands at 97.5m high.

The cathedral is a very beautiful ornate building especially after all the plain white fronted, sometimes ugly looking churches and cathedrals that we have seen in Portugal. I liked Seville, it was clean, had quirky streets with buildings painted pastel colours and ironwork balcony’s overlooking the shops and cafes below. It was busy with a mix of young students and office workers and tourists. But we walked too much and it was a very slow painful walk back to the van for Bob  – his knee had taken a real pounding. In the end I think we covered about 8 miles which is probably 5 more that he should be doing.

The next day was a rest day for Bobs knee and we headed to Jerez – home of Spanish sherry  – we didn’t get around to tasting it here as the Aire was too far out of town and we needed a day for chores. Washing, cleaning and filling the van up with water and food. We camped up at a very well-run Aire, all the facilities, vans tightly packed together but exceptionally clean and friendly staff. They were a very professional set up and catered for repairs, spares and storage of motorhomes out of season.

To get there, the drive from Seville was about 90 minutes but we stayed away from the motorway and travelled through vast open plains with Sierra de Cadiz mountains in the far distance. It was a great road and a very relaxing drive.

We are now 30 mins from Cadiz, the next city on our Spanish list, I had researched a good parking spot that was only 15 mins walking distance to the old city and as it was a small city, Bobs knee wouldn’t have to walk too far.

We both loved Cadiz, we only visited the old town, still partly surrounded by walls was quite bohemian. The narrow windy cobbled streets had lots of independent shops selling bespoke and designer clothing.  The buildings were in baroque style, lots of iron works, plazas and numerous parks with botanical plants and birdlife. Cadiz was an ancient port, founded by the Phoenicians 3000 years ago and then during Roman occupation it became the second largest city of the Roman Empire next to Rome. It is the home of the Spanish navy and was once a very important trading port, as it had special trading links with The New World (America). It had undergone many changes over the years with its significance and now it has two magnificent bridges across the bay to link the island with the mainland. We thoroughly enjoyed exploring Cadiz, it was another place to which we would return.

Whilst we were in Portugal, we discovered that Spain is the worlds leading producer in Olive oil. You can see evidence of it everywhere and we are both hooked on EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil). The next part of our drive was to take us through the Sierra of Cadiz mountains towards Malaga and it is the thick of EVOO territory. Although you are in the mountains there are hillocks and olive groves on red soil everywhere. The views are a patchwork of perfectly lined olive trees of every size. Every crag and rock is used and cultivated for the olives as far as the eye can see.

We stopped at another Aire in a little town called Algodonales, a popular spacious spot for motorhomes, on the outskirts of the village. We manged to cook outside that evening in the sunshine with fabulous views all around. The following morning I took G for a walk into the village and was  quite astounded as to how pretty it was. The narrow streets lined with oranges trees were very clean and smart looking, everything looked well cared for – such a change from parts of Portugal. I walked through the main square and they appeared to be gearing up for a challenge race called Viboras Trail – an Ultra-run through the mountains of varying distances.

We left Algodonales to drive 30 mins to Olvera, a Moorish village found at a crossroads between the provinces of Seville, Cadiz and Malaga and stands 643m above sea level. It is a popular stop for tourists due to the most impressive 12^th century castle that rises high above the village. It was a fabulous climb through the village with houses on different levels and many steps up to reach the church plaza and the castle built into the rock and magnificently renovated to capture what it must have once looked like. The views all around included as far as the coastline of Malaga.

It was here that I bought my stock of EVOO to bring home….a 5 litre bottle of the local nectar!