Andalusia, Spain, April 27. - May 04. 2021

Usually we spend our April holidays in Italy visiting Johnny's family and sightseeing. We also go to Italy in August for about 10 days every year, but in August it is purely beach holiday, it is too hot for sightseeing. This year Italy had very strict Covid restrictions in place in April and it was not even possible to travel from one region to the other, so we needed to find an alternative. We had been thinking about going to Southern Spain a couple of times already and really needed a break from France and all the restrictions (not saying that Spain did not have any, but at least we could go to eat in a restaurant or evening walk). 

I bought us Ryanair tickets to Malaga leaving from Marseille. It was our only option, because I wanted a direct flight and there were no direct flights available from Nice that time. French governement decided to change the school holiday dates last minute, bringing the holiday dates two weeks forward. That meant the kids had to do Zoom lessons while we were travelling and fortunately they only had to miss two days of real school. That complicated things a bit, but we did not want to cancel the trip we were so looking forward to.

On April 26th we left for Marseille (a bit under two hours drive from chez nous), deciding to spend a night there before flying out on April 27th. We stayed in Holiday Inn Express Marseille, a short walk from the center. The hotel was mostly empty due to lots of restrictions still in place in France. We had to fill out breakfast cards for the next morning so that we could take the prepared trays to our room. Restaurants were still closed in France and the curfew started at 7pm, meaning we had an Uber dinner in our hotel room. The staff in this hotel were all super nice and friendly, it did not feel like being in France at all.

The next morning we left our car in Marseille airport (38 euros for a week's parking within walking distance of airport terminal). The airport was empty, there were only four international flights leaving that day. It was almost lunchtime and the kids were getting hungry, but the only choice of something to eat were vending machines, everything else was closed. 

The two hour flight from Marseille to Malaga went smoothly. I have said it already, but Ryanair really is an OK airline for short distance direct flights within Europe. It is important to read, follow (and pay for) all the rules about luggage etc. and there will be no problems. On our arrival in Spain we had to show the QR code obtained from the Spain Travel Health website. We filled out the forms about a day before our arrival and uploaded the PCR test results once we had them. The QR codes then came through by e-mail within the next half an hour. Without this code it not possible to enter Spain. We had reserved a rental car in Malaga airport with Wiber car rental. Wiber does not have the office in the airport, but they will pick you up with a shuttle bus and take you to the rental office. Their service is very good and prices reasonable (178 euros per week with full insurance for a Ford Focus estate), I would definitely use them again. We were driving directly to Seville, where we would spend the next two nights. 

We had not travelled for a while and wanted to treat ourselves a bit, so we had chosen to stay at Barcelo Sevilla Renacimento hotel. It is a nice five-star hotel just a bit outside the center of Seville and we had booked two rooms there. We were really happy with the choice of the hotel - the rooms were spacious with comfy beds, the breakfast was great with lots of choice (also vegan) and it had a half indoor/half outdoor pool where we could relax after a day of sightseeing.

Double room in Barcelo Sevilla

Hotel pool

Seville is the capital and largest city of Andalusia, with the a population of about 1.5 million, making it the fourth-largest city in Spain. Seville is approximately 2,200 years old. The passage of the various civilizations instrumental in its growth has left the city with a distinct personality, and a large and well-preserved historical centre. As we arrived at Seville late afternoon, we only went for a short walk in the evening, the rest of the time we just relaxed in the hotel. We also had dinner in the hotel restaurant and found the quality of food really good.

The next morning we were ready to discover this wonderful city and at first we headed to Plaza de Espana - the main square, and Parque de María Luisa just next to it. Plaza de Espana is relatively recent - it was built in 1928 for the Ibero-American Exposition of 1929. It was one of the most beautiful city squares that I have seen - maybe it was for the lack of tourists (as it can be seen on the photos, there was hardly anyone around), but we were all amazed by its beauty.

 

Adjaent to the Plaza de Espagna is Maria Luiza Park, the principal green area of Seville. The park is in 'Moorish paradisical style' with lots of of tiled fountains, pavilions, walls, ponds and benches. There are lush plantings of palms, orange trees, Mediterranean pines, and stylized flower beds with bowers hidden by vines. It is definitely worth a visit and a stroll around.

Seville is a very walkable city with its buildings from different eras and narrow streets. Our next destination was the Royal Alcázar Palace, not too far from the Plaza de Espagna. The Alcázar of Seville is one of the most representative monumental compounds in the city, the country and the Mediterranean culture as a whole. The Royal Alcazar brings together Islamic, Mudejar, Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque styles. The declaration of World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1987 acknowledged the survival of cultures and civilizations as a harmonic whole where all of the elements are balanced (source: alcazarsevilla.org).

While we were visiting, the tickets could only be pre bought online for a given visiting time, to control the number of people inside the palace.

Just opposite the Alcazar entrance is another famous landmark of Seville - the Catedral and la Giralda.The Giralda of Seville is a tower of unparalleled size for a building of its era (from the 12th to the 6th century). In fact, for a long time, it was the tallest building in the world (101 metres counting the Giraldillo, the beautiful weathervane that crowns it and one of the symbols of the city). The Giralda is a perfect symbiosis of different architectural styles, different civilizations. It is a tower that begins by being a minaret and ends up being a bell tower (source: visitsevilla.es).

We had had a busy and full day of sightseeing and we definitely needed to sit down to sample the famous tapas of Seville. We chose one of the many restaurants in the pedestrian area, had a lovely filling meal of lots of different tapas that were all delicious, and were pleasantly surprised to receive a bill of only 39 euros. 

We still had energy for another walk around the narrow streets of Seville before calling it a night and heading back to our hotel.

The next morning we wanted to check out the market of Seville. We love markets, specially local food markets that also have counters to sample local products and we often try to find one while travelling. Google was telling us that the most popular market in Seville is Mercado de Triana so we decided to take a look ourselves.  Mercado de Triana had both - the classic food market for local goods and also the area for having a bite to eat. Unfortunately we had already had a hearty hotel breakfast and were not hungry, but it sure did look appetizing.

It was time for us to pack our suitcases again and start driving towards the coast. For the next five nights we had reserved an apartment through Airbnb in Puerto Banus, near Marbella. We had decided to take a 'scenic route', passing through Cádiz on our way there.

Cádiz is one of the oldest continiously inhabited cities in Western Europe, with archaeological remains dating to the 8th century BC. It was founded by the Phoenicians. Cadiz is situated on a narrow peninsula on the Atlantic coastal part of Spain, so the town is basically surrounded by the sea - the perfect spot for a seafood tapas lunch. The beaches around the town are long and sandy, voted as one of the best city beaches in Europe by LonelyPlanet.

 

Seafood tapas

 

We still had about two hours of driving ahead of us, so our visit to Cádiz could not be too long. We had agreed to meet the owner of our AirBnb apartment in Puerto Banus at 7 pm and we did not want to be late. We had reserved the apartment for the next five nights, deciding to have the same base for the rest of our trip and take day trips from there. The three bedroom apartment was spacious, new, tastefully decorated with a huge terrace and the host Pepi had left us a fruit bowl in the kitchen and filled the fridge with drinks (juices, soft drinks, beer, wine).

 

Our beautiful AirBnb apartment

We had an early start the next morning driving to Granada to visit the famous Alhambra palace complex. Granada is situated inland from the coast, at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, about two hours drive from Puerto Banus. The elevation of Granada is about 730 meters and it is significally cooler there, than on the coast. Although we were thoughtful enough to take sweaters with us, it still felt pretty chilly. We had bought the tickets for Alhambra online, as due to Covid restrictions they are limiting the number of people inside and tickets could not be bought on site. We got to choose the time when we wished to visit the Nasrid Palaces. It is important to be at the Nasrid Palaces at the time marked on your ticket in order to secure a visit. 

 

Nasrid Palaces, Alhambra

 

 

The Alhambra was so called because of its reddish walls (in Arabic, («qa'lat al-Hamra'» means Red Castle). It is located on top of the hill al-Sabika, on the left bank of the river Darro, to the west of the city of Granada. The Alhambra is located on a strategic point, with a view over the whole city and the meadow, and this fact leads to believe that other buildings were already on that site before the Muslims arrived. The complex is surrounded by ramparts and has an irregular shape. The first historical documents known about the Alhambra date from the 9th century (source: alhambradegrenada.org).

Granada itself is also a lovely town. After Alhambra visit we decided to go for a bite to eat and discover the town after the meal. Our plans did not work - we managed to have a great tasty meal in a center, but it started pouring rain while we were eating. As it looked like the rain would last for a while, our only option was to get in the car and drive back to the coast. 

We had done a lot of driving during the last days, so we decided to take a slower day for a change to visit the nearby town of Marbella, have lunch at seaside restaurant and meet some friends, who live locally, for drinks in the afternoon. There is a nice seaside promenade that stretches from Puerto Banus to Marbella. It is quite long - a 7-kilometer walk one way, so we did not do all of it.

 

Marbella old town

 

The beach and the promenade

 

Paella for lunch

 

 

The next morning we found ourselves in the car again, this time driving towards Gibralatar - it felt strange visiting a small piece of Britain (only 6.8 square kilometers in size) on the Mediterranean coast. The drive to Gibraltar from Puerto Banus took a bit over an hour. There are huge parking lots at the Spanish side before entering Gibraltar and this was also where we left the car to enter Gibraltar on foot. We passed two passport controls - one to exit Spain and the other to enter Gibraltar - and were good to go. It was about 10-minutes walk from the border to the old town and we instantly felt like being the UK (apart from the weather, obviously). It was Sunday and the restaurants were offering a Sunday roast, carvery and fish and chips, the streets were lined with British shops, all signs were in English and English language was heard everywhere. We thought to take a bus to up to the rock of Gibraltar to visit the caves and see the monkeys, but got chatting to some local people at the bus stop who said the caves and a part of the Nature Reserve area were closed due to Covid restrictions. We decided to take a different bus instead that would take us to the Europa point - the very end of European continent, where the African continent is visible across the 14-kilometer Strait of Gibraltar. The Strait of Gibraltar is the only natural link between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea and is one of the busiest waterways in the world. 

 

Europa Point

 

Africa visible across the strait

Our last day in Spain was spent having a wonderful lunch in a house of Estonian friends who live in the area. During our life of travelling we have made many friends in many different countries, but this is a friend I grew up with. It is great to see a familiar face in whichever corner of the world we end up travelling to and even without having seen each other for years, there is always lots to talk about.

 

We also needed to get PCR tests done for being able to enter France. While in France the tests were covered by Social Security (also the ones needed for travelling), in Spain the tests were a big business for the clinics. While a person not covered by Social Security would have to pay 45 euros for a PCR test in France, in Spain the prices for PCR started from 120 euros and went up to 180. We had our tests done in Clinica Boris in Marbella for 130 euros per person - it was a significant cost to add to the travel budget when travelling with a family. 

 

Our flight from Malaga back to Marseille was quick and easy and by the time we got back, France had also started to ease a bit the restrictions that were in place from end of October 2020. It was still great to have a little holiday and to be able to do simple things not possible in France, like eating in a restaurant, staying outside after 7pm or visiting a museum.

 

Andalucia is a beautiful region in Spain, full of culture, history and nice beaches. I hope we could go back there one day, as there were many places we did not have time to discover.