TELGEN VACATION REPORT
Andalucía, Spain, February 2001
Ah,
February in England. Unlike Michigan, where it's white, snowy, and dreary, in
England it's yellow-green, rainy, and dreary. So when mid-winter holiday time
rolls around, it's time for us to head to the Mediterranean. This time we
brought the whole family, and four generations of Parkers and Telgens headed
down to Andalucía, Spain, for a week-long tour of Spain's southernmost
provinces. Why Andalucía? Well, besides its southern location, it has an
interesting historical and architectural history, owing to the succession of
cultures, particularly Moorish, that have occupied it over the years. The Moors
ruled various parts of Andalucía for more than 700 years, and their style
remained influential even after they were finally driven out of Spain in 1492
by Fernando and Isabel—those same Catholic Monarchs who sponsored Columbus's
explorations of America. (Okay, technically they sponsored a trip to find a
western route to India and China; ole Chris just happened to hit Cuba and
"discover" America on the way.)
We began our visit in Seville, the capital of the region
and Spain's fourth-largest city. In the early 1500s it was one of the world's
richest cities, as it had a monopoly on trade with the New World; shortly after,
Spain's King Carlos I was elected Holy Roman Emperor Carlos V, making Spain the
most powerful country in Europe. Like most of the places we visited during our
stay, Seville contains a combination of palaces and churches converted from or
built on top of Moorish castles and mosques. Its famous bell tower, La Giralda,
used to be a minaret, while the Reales Alcázares, a series of royal residences,
were built within the old palaces of the Moorish Almohad dynasty. Both Isabel I
and Carlos V made their own additions to the complex, and most of it is in the
style known as mudéjar, after the Moorish craftsmen who were permitted
to remain (or "dejar," in Spanish) after the Christian reconquest.
Here you see the lovely and talented Bill and David pointing out some of the
characteristics of the mudéjar style: the horseshoe-shaped arches; the
intricate plasterwork; and the azulejos, or colorful tiles used upon the
walls as decorations. (Thanks, boys, you can take a rest now.)
In Seville, we also experienced some other attractions
which you might think of as "typically" Spanish. We toured the Plaza
de Toros de la Maestranza, which is one of Spain's finest bullrings. We didn't
actually see a bullfight (thank goodness—I'm a bit squeamish when it comes to
butchering animals, no matter how artistically), but the ring has a museum
which gives a lot of insight into this old tradition. (Which, in case you were
wondering, originates from providing army troops with live practice.) In
Seville we also attended a flamenco show, complete with traditional musicians
and dancers and castanets. Never mind "Riverdance"—some of these
dancers moved their feet so quickly you couldn't follow them! It made for a
very entertaining evening.
After a
couple of nights in Seville, the six of us rented a car and drove southwest
towards Jerez, a city world-famous for not just one, but two interesting
enterprises. For centuries, Jerez has been at the center of the sherry industry—the
name "sherry" is actually an English corruption of Jerez (pronounced
"hay-res"). There at least a half dozen major sherry bodegas
(wineries) in the city, and most offer tours of their facilities. We visited González
Byass, home of Tío Pepe, and enjoyed a "train ride" around the
bodega. We saw the cavernous warehouses where they stack the oak barrels
("soleras") used for aging sherry or brandy; amazingly, they stay at
a constant cool temperature, even in the height of summer (and they smell wonderful).
Of course, we got to end our tour with a wee sample of the merchandise...hic!
Afterwards, we walked across the street to the Alcázar
(ie, "fortress") of Jerez, which was built in the 12th century by the
Almohad dynasty of Morocco. It has a mosque (converted into a Christian chapel
by King Alfonso X "the Wise"), lovely gardens, and Moorish baths that
were divided into hot and cold rooms, just as the Romans did. The cold bath,
which also served as a reception area, is in the picture here. I particularly
like the way the star-shaped skylights let the light in. David, however, really
liked the camera obscura that was in one of the Alcázar's towers. With a
mirror, a couple of lenses, and a screen, we could see all around the tower,
like a moving photograph. It made for a fun lesson in physics.
Now hold on, didn't I say that there were two
interesting and world-famous enterprises in Jerez? Well, I'm getting to that. I
just didn't want you to look at the picture and think that's where they kept
the horses. That's right, horses. Jerez is home to the Real Escuela Andaluza de
Arte Ecuestre—the Royal School for Equestrian Art. We weren't there on a show
day, but we were able to tour the grounds (including the stables) and see the
stallions training in dressage and other types of horsey acrobatics. (Sorry,
but I'm not that well-versed in equestrian arts; my schoolgirl horsey stage
only lasted about eight months, or as long as it took me to read all the
"Black Stallion" and "Misty" books.) Anyway, we got to see
some of the horses prancing around the arena using intricate steps or precision
paths; seeing the full performance, with all the pageantry and music and
beribboned harnesses, must be quite a spectacle.
After a night in Jerez, we drove inland,
almost directly east. That took us towards Andalucía's more hilly and mountainous
areas, called sierras and serranias in Spanish. One of the most picturesque
towns in this area is Ronda, pictured at right. It's partly in shadow, but at
the center of the picture you might make out the Puente Nuevo, or "New
Bridge," which crosses the Tajo gorge (the river Tajo, aka Tagus, is the
same one that flows into Portugal and Lisbon). It
may not look that fancy, but consider that it was built in the late 1700s and
crosses a gorge of some 330 feet, and it seems much more impressive.
After
leaving Ronda, we found ourselves well and truly in the mountainous areas of
Andalucía. We took the scenic route towards Granada, following lots of twisty
twisty roads to go a relatively short distance. But it was worth it to find the
following sight: the Garganta del Chorro, an extraordinary chasm almost 600
feet high. The Guadalhorce River has cut a path through this limestone
mountain, and in places at the base the gorge is only 30 feet wide. Thus in
rainy times, like the winter, you can see the water churning through this teeny
tiny passage. Midway up the chasm you should be able to see a little wooden
walkway built into the side of the mountain and across the gorge. This is known
as the Camino del Rey ("Path of the King"), because King Alfonso XIII
officially opened it in 1921. It didn't appear to be open to visitors when we
were there—whether because of safety issues or because it was low season for
tourists—but we weren't too eager to go up in any case. So we got back in our
car, continued looking for cars coming the other way on the twisty twisty
roads, and made our way to Granada.
We were looking forward to Granada because it has the most
famous Moorish palace in all of Spain: the Alhambra. Granada's Nasrid rulers
were the last to fall to the Christian reconquest, when the Catholic Monarchs
Fernando and Isabel took the city in 1492. The city also has a gothic Cathedral
and Royal Chapel, built in the early 1500s, where the two are buried. Our
favorite monument was in the Plaza Isabel la Católica, however, a type of
all-purpose statue that commemorated both the conquest of Granada and Isabel's
sponsorship of Christopher Columbus. Nice and economical, covering everything
at once.
The main
sight to be seen was the Alhambra, however, and we got there bright and early
to beat the crowds, not that they were too bad at this time of year. The
Alhambra is actually a complex of palaces, gardens, and museums, and you could
spend all day wandering around them. There are the Casas Reales (Royal Houses),
built by the Nasrid dynasty in the 14th century. These are an impressive series
of salons and patios, complete with fountains, exquisitely carved plasterwork
and woodwork, beautiful tiles, and even a room with leather paintings on the
ceiling. In the picture to the right, you see David and his great-grandma
sitting atop one of the towers of the Alcazaba, the fortress that was
constructed in the 13th century and contains ruins of the military
encampment that once lodged there. In the background, you can see the newest
palace of the complex, the Renaissance-style Palacio Carlos V, begun for the
Holy Roman Emperor in 1526. You can see that the building itself is square, but
inside there is a huge, circular courtyard surrounded by stone columns and
built two stories high. It's quite a contrast to the Moorish palaces, which
aren't so deliberately grand and are on a smaller scale—built for people to
live in rather than to make a statement. (Evidently Charles V never lived in
the palace that was named after him, for the courtyard took a century to build
and the roof wasn't even finished until 1931.) Now this palace houses two
museums, including a very nice one of Hispano-Muslim art.
On our
way out of Granada, we made a short stop at the beautifully ornate chapel and
sacristy of the Monasterio de la Cartuja. (For people who take a vow of
poverty, they sure used a lot of gold and marble to decorate their chapel!)
Then we drove to the northwest, making a brief stop along the way to a Moorish
castle currently undergoing excavation and restoration. Eventually we ended up
in Córdoba, which was my personal favorite of the visit. Maybe it was the
beautiful blue skies we had for our visit, or maybe it was having a hotel in
the middle of the attractions. But mostly it was the extraordinary sights of
the Mezquita (ie, mosque) Cathedral and Alcázar de los Reyes Cristianos
(Fortress of the Christian Monarchs). The Mezquita was originally a huge
Mosque, built in various stages from the late eighth century to the tenth
century. After the reconquest the minaret was turned into a bell tower and part
of the Mezquita itself was taken out and replaced with a cathedral. In this
picture, taken from the Puente Romano (a bridge built atop original Roman
foundations), you can see the cupolas of the Cathedral sticking up from the
surrounding Mezquita. The interior is dark, atmospheric, and mesmerizing, as
some 850 columns and arches of marble, jasper, and granite still remain.
Looking down these columns is like looking into a series of mirrors, where the
images seem to go on into infinity. While the Cathedral is an interruption in
the architecture of the place, it has its own appeal, with a beautiful
Italianate dome and lovely wooden choir.
And that was just one of Córdoba's highlights! The Alcázar
had some lovely gardens and Roman mosaics, while the 17th-century Palacio de
Viana was a treasure-trove of tapestries, paintings, furniture, and books; it
also had more than a dozen patios, which were lovely in the morning sun. So it
made for a wonderful conclusion to our Andalucian tour. It seems as if the nine
days just flew by, and there was so much more we could have seen but didn't.
Well, we can just add it to our list of places we'd like to explore in more
detail, and perhaps visit again one day.
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Copyright © 2001 by Diane
Telgen. All rights reserved.