Through Andalucia

After several days of delays in leaving Cambrils, we finally got on the road. (The picture to the left is Maya having a roadside potty break in a lemon grove) We did a day of marathon driving from Cambrils to Granada, and spent the night in a lovely little roadside hotel before waking early the next morning to visit the Alhambra. Recommended visit time is 3 hours, but we spent 6 and could easily have spent more if Maya had not gotten tired and grumpy. The first 2 hours of our visit, through the palace, Maya was asleep in the stroller, and it was before the crush of visitors and tour groups arrived, so we were able to spend some moments in solitude in the beautiful rooms. The rest of the day was spent strolling outlying buildings and gardens, and by 3 o'clock we were all tired, and had a delicious impromptu picnic in the car park before heading on. It's amazing what you can improvise when hungry, but still feeling creative. I made a baguette with tuna and roasted red pepper and a corn salad with tuna, fresh tomatoes, lemon and spices. It sounds simple, but was truly delicious, especially accompanied by the last of the road-side clementines that we brought from Tarragona region.


We then found our way to a lovely hotel at the side of the Alhambra overlooking Granada. It was a bit of a splurge for us, compared to the hotels we usually select, but well worth it....great view and terrace, lovely sheets and showers, and we needed the comfort and rest. I left the room to speak with the staff and returned to find Haim and Maya cuddling on the balcony wrapped in blankets and enjoying the view. Granada was cold!

The following day it snowed briefly. Maya and I slept until 11am, and then we made sandwiches (emmental cheese, dijon mustard, fresh veggies, and roasted peppers) and checked out, wandered the town a bit, and headed in the later afternoon to Cordoba.

The drive to Cordoba was breathtaking. We were on a minor highway, that does not see too much traffic. The rolling mountains (or maybe large hills) were covered with olive groves and a sprinkle of snow. I had never imagined the combination of olives and snow...but the scenery was truly amazing.

In Cordoba we took a funky ramshackle place in the old Jewish Quarter. We spent the evening on a long wander, bodega for a light snack. It was the only place open, and we were lucky to have found something so delicious...a tapa of stewed beef in thick tomato sauce particularly standing out in my mind. Maya spent her time charming the patrons, making friends and playmates out of the adults at the accompanying tables....and of course making sure to pull as maany napkins from the nakpkin dispenser as she could without us noticing. In the napkin endeavour she was aided by a particularly charmed and devilish occupant of the table next to ours.

The following day was spent with Maya inexplicably in a really bad mood....hey, we all have our days. We wandered a bit, visited the Mezquita, and tried alternately to comfort, placate, and not strangle her....before heading on the Sevilla. Thankfully she napped in the car!

In Sevilla we couch surfed with a WONDERFUL family. Anna is a really neat transplanted Italian, and her 2 darling boys Linus (2) and Leon (5) were exactly what Maya needed. Maya was in playmate and toy heaven, imminently falling in step with the kids, they played wonderfully the entire time we spent with them.

Our visit in Sevilla was very lazy in terms of seeing and doing...we slept-in a lot, prepared for Morocco, and hung out at the house while Maya played with the kids and cats. We took 2 very nice (and chilly) afternoon strolls, and ate LOTS of the delicious bread that Anna makes. Sevilla is definitely a city that we'd like to return to, maybe even to rent a flat for a couple of months in the future. Our last day was spent waiting for a fed-ex with a replacement drivers license for Haim (he had lost his in Barcelona), which we finally intercepted at the shipping facility near the airport, and then we were off to Tarifa.

We drove to Tarifa last night, arriving in time to take the 9PM ferry, but decided to take a hotel here and wait for the morning so that we could see the crossing. It's almost 9am, and we're taking the 11am ferry, so in less than 3 hours we'll be in Tangier!