Andalucia, Spain - captivating Moorish shores

ANDALUCIA
Spain's Captivating
Moorish Shores

By Ray Chatelin
Photos By Toshi

Once Spain’s poorest region, Andalucia is now one of the most popular tourist destinations in Europe, thanks to its sandy beaches, beautiful countryside, spectacular mountain ranges, ancient monuments and the exuberant character of its people. It’s a play-land of golden beaches and lush, green golf courses, where the Spanish travel to have fun throughout the year and where languages from throughout Europe can be heard in every small village store and on the vast beaches.

But, Andalusia is more than tourism. Here, you’ll encounter the richest collection of Spain’s historical treasures, its character and soul. It holds some of the nation’s most treasured historical sites and its greatest cities - Seville, Ronda, Malaga, Cordoba, and Granada.

There are really two Spains. The Spain north of Madrid is more Celtic, with its traditions, cuisine, and history firmly entrenched in Western Europe. South of Madrid to the shores of the Mediterranean is the vast expanse of Andalusia - the Spain of the Moors and of great battles between competing cultures. It embraces the lifestyle that lives in the minds of most tourists – the Spain of Hemingway and bull fighting; of guitars and flamenco; of ancient Moorish palaces and cities and towns hanging on the edges of mountains; of Gibraltar and great resorts that lie along the southern coastlines.

On a clear day, from where the southern shores of Spain touch the waters’ edge, you can see the mountains of Morocco. And you then begin to understand the history of the place and why today it’s what it is. For Spain’s history is one of invasion and conquest and modern Spanish culture is a fusing of both victors and vanquished.

GRANADA
This major entryway to the coastline of Andalucia is also a National Monument, a must-see city that holds one of the most cherished attractions in all of Spain. The heart of the city – indeed the entire region – is the Alhambra, the 13th Century Moorish castle that sits upon the city’s highest point. Muslims from Cordoba – which had fallen to the Christians in 1236- flourished from 1238 to 1492 before falling to the Catholic Monarchs after a six-month siege.

Alhambra alhambra.org is one of the most grandiose castles ever built, the ultimate in Spanish Muslim architecture with successive Monarchs creating spectacular architecture and decorations. The Nasrid Palace is the centerpiece with a richness of decoration that stuns the viewer with its bold colors and intricate mosaic designs on ceilings, walls and floor. Reservations are a must and can be arranged through your hotel concierge.

Gypsies once lived in hundreds of small caves in the surrounding hills and today the Centro de Interpretation Sacromonte museum sacromontegranada.com has 12 refurbished caves to illustrate how these people once lived and practiced their traditional crafts. The Sacromonte area is still used by people living in caves dug out of the soft rock behind modern house fronts and during the tourist season (April-October) some are open to the public.

THE SOUTHERN COAST
Along the southern Andalucian coast are beaches that are more than just places of pleasure. There are the wide open, golden sandy beaches backed by sand dunes typical of the Costa de la Luz; the most popular bathing beaches with showers, beach bars, and snorkeling are found on the Costa del Sol; small beaches reached by paths down from the cliffs are along the Costa Tropical; and you’ll find hidden coves and small villages tucked away along the Costa de Almeria. All have a history and the only way to experience it is by car as each melds into the other along the southern coast.

Throughout the area you see small, decaying towers along the beaches. Made of stone, these were observation posts that looked out towards North Africa. Should the North Africans mount an invasion, these were the early warning tower manned by observers who would then warn the local population.

Costa de Almeria

The real character of sea-side Spain is found in the southeast corner of this region in small villages and towns like Carboneras, Garuca, and Aqua Amarga, from where fishermen go out in the morning to supply local restaurants with that evening’s meal. Fishermen love to talk (English is spoken, but Spanish is the prevailing language) and will take you – for a fee – out into the Mediterranean for a day of fishing.

This is one of the driest parts of Spain and was used in the 1960s and 70s by Hollywood to make fake Wild West towns and films. Local gypsies played the Indians and Mexicans, while Clint Eastwood, Raquel Welch, and others played the good guys. It was also the location for the filming of Lawrence of Arabia. Film sets are open to the public at nearby, Mini-Hollywood, a Spanish theme park.

Costa del Sol
Hollywood and Las Vegas mixed in with a touch of the French Riviera with towns and cities out of a jet-setter’s guide to the rich and famous – Malaga, Marbella, Torremolinos, and Estapona. In May, the Chiringuitos (beach bars) start to open and the beaches are packed with the famous and the ordinary. It’s a wonderful combination of historical sites, cafes, fishing, sun bathing, numerous golf courses, and crowded mountain villages above the beaches as residents from Madrid and other cities Spain arrive on the coast for their annual holiday. It’s a far different beach style then you’ll find on Costa Almeria or Costa Tropical. These beaches are where you go to be seen and to be part of the beef parade, not to get away from it all.

Malaga is the largest city along the coast and the most sophisticated with high end shops and wide boulevards that embrace cosy Tapas bars and small fashion boutiques. Be sure to visit the 16th Century Cathedral that’s in the heart of the city and the nearby Moorish Gardens of the 10th Century Alcazaba.

Though begun in the 16th Century, the cathedral is still uncompleted as the south tower still lacks its full height. Nonetheless the vast church has 17th Century choir stalls with figures by Pedro de Mena, a Malaga sculptor who also provided the wood carving of St. Francis of Assisi in the cathedral in Toledo and numerous works of art that would be comfortable in any European museum.

Malaga is also Picasso’s birthplace. His old home, located in a 15th Century building on the Plaza de Merced, is now devoted to his and to works of modern artists.

The Costa del Sol is also the jumping off point for a day trip to the British enclave of Gibraltar (55 km east from Malaga) and to Ronda, the mountaintop city that seems carved from a story-book (47 km north of Marbella on Highway A376). Ronda is where modern bullfighting had its start in the late 19th Century and its small bullring is one of Spain’s most treasured historical sites. And, it’s even close enough to make a day-trip to Seville if you continue along A376 from Ronda for an additional 150 km.

Today’s most familiar Costa del Sol asset is a golf course, Valderrama, in San Roque, just north of Gibraltar and an hour drive from Malaga. Site of the Ryder Cup in 1997 and of the World Golf Championships in 1999 and 2000, the private club is open to limited public play.

Costa Del Luz
The Costa del Luz fronts the Atlantic and its beaches are long, with fine golden sand and huge dunes and with a coastline dotted with small fishing villages.

Along the beach road north of Tarifa are the towns of Barbate, Los Canos de Meca and Conil de la Frontera where you can hire fish boats that mostly hunt tuna. The 90 km of beaches are backed by large cliffs. And the constant wind has made this area the windsurfing capital of Europe with international competitions held along the coast.

The largest town is Cadiz, the city from where Columbus sailed to America. Cadiz harbour was from where Admiral Villeneuve sailed with the Franco-Spanish fleet to confront Admiral Nelson and the British fleet in the Battle of Trafalgar. A series of museums recreate much of the seaport’s past and the port is the embarkation point for trips to the Canary Islands.