Our Kind of Towns

We were met in Jerez de la Frontera by our guide / driver, Roger, who was determined to make up for the previous day. He was a success. We quickly had to decide how to spend the day and decided to go to the seaside town of Cadiz. Roger assured us that we would like it, and we did. He also mentioned that in the last 5 years only one other time had he picked up someone that had spent the night in Jerez. For everyone else, it is a day trip from Seville.

We drove to Cadiz while Roger told us stories of food and wine of the Andalusia region. He specializes in wine or food tours of this region and was perfect for us.

Cadiz is a city sitting on a narrow peninsula surrounded by water on all sides. It is connected to Spain via a bridge and a narrow isthmus. It is an old city that once was the major sea port for Spain.

We walked around (and up the city). Up you ask? Up because we climbed up an enormous ramp to the top of a church bell tower to survey the city from the highest point in the city. From this high vantage point you can see all of the flat roof buildings and some of the hundreds of lookouts built upon the buildings so they could see the returning ships. Back at the street level we walked the narrow streets to a new market that we would love to have in LA. All kinds of hygienic (new to us after Morocco) food stalls with an amazing amount of fish. Including one red one, I wouldn’t want to eat!

We then went to a Camera Obscura, another march up steps after steps to the top of a building. I have heard of Camera Obscura. I have seen a couple of them but never actually experienced it. Darkened room, and a lens focus the entire city onto a giant dish where you view the image. It works kind of like a periscope and they can focus in any direction. It was interesting, not touristy.

Cadiz is very narrow, maybe 20 streets wide, we walked across the island to a restaurant Roger had picked out. Blew our minds, enormous portions of fabulous fish. The preparations were amazing. Once again we featured Octopus. It was definitely the best meal we have had on the entire trip. Pays to eat out with a food writer!

He recommended several other places we will try. We walked around the town and then drove to Saville. Did you know more Operas are set in Seville than any other town?

Barber of Seville, Don Giovanni, Carmen, etc. We checked into our hotel, and had some wine, some more wine, walked to a local Tapas Bar that is over 300 years old and had Tapas and more wine. You eat Tapas standing up. I actually like the life style of big late lunch at light Tapas and wine for dinner. This town appears to be our kind of ville!