Sunny side of Spain is truly divine
WHEN you mention a holiday in Spain, people’s eyes often glaze over because it is easy to forget how exciting the country can be. And Andalucia in the south is the Spain of your dreams – flamenco, orange blossom, cities simultaneously historic and exotic, and drenched in sunshine for much of the year. Home to Seville, Cordoba, Malaga, Granada and Jerez, your only problem is fitting them all in.
Easter is a particularly fantastic time to be in Andalucia as the region is full of processions of ornate religious floats, some antique, and huge brass bands.
The marchers are resplendent in traditional dress, and even if you are not religious it is quite a spectacle. I couldn’t take my eyes off the float-bearers’ feet – elaborate costumes atop prosaic Hush Puppies.
My personal highlight of Andalucia is not the Alhambra, that indescribable and intricate palace complex i n Granada, but the Mezquita in Cordoba.
In the 10th Century, Cordoba was believed to be the most populous city in the world, and the Mezquita is a serene, ancient mosque full of terracotta and white-striped arches, with a blinging 16th Century cathedral plonked right in the middle of it.
The rest of the old town is just as hypnotic, although extremely crowded. There’s an atmospheric Jewish quarter, cobbled streets, operational Arab baths, and shady terraces amid tiled fountains and lush blooms.
And so to the Alhambra, Spain’s most visited site, a lavish palace high on a hill overlooking Granada. Sure, it’s gorgeous, but frankly it’s easier getting tickets for Glastonbury. You’ll need to book well ahead – up to three months. Although a third of the tickets are available on the day, the snaking queues for the ticket office start at the crack of dawn. We missed out this time. I kicked myself all the way back to the car park.
We had based ourselves in Almunecar, a small coastal town 20 miles west of Malaga. From the Alhambra we drove back to Almunecar via the Sierra Nevada mountains.
While they are undeniably majestic, the sun disappears the higher you get, and you need to hold on to your nerve – and your lunch – around the narrow mountain roads.
Along the way we stopped at Guadix, a curious hilltop village where people still live in caves. The caves have all the mod-cons of any regular house and maintain an indoor temperature of 21C all year round. The children – Dahlia and Octavia – loved them. We also went to the Cave House Museum, a fully kitted out troglodyte dwelling.
Flamenco nights tend to start very late – the Spanish are night owls – but there are often performances that are more family-friendly and we found a lovely one in Almunecar.
We ended the holiday with a Good Friday lunch at one of the excellent beachside cafes in Almunecar – perfect gazpacho, chips and a glass of wine in the 26C heat, with the sand beneath our feet. Not religious, but heavenly for sure.