There was nothing good about being stuck in Spain's Sahara dust storm. As the plume threatened to spread northwards pictures of the orange skies featured in the media back home, dubbed by the tabloids as 'like Mars' or a 'Bladerunner sky'. It's true the landscape did remind me of the cover of the 1973 edition of Asimov's 'Foundation and Empire' that we once owned.
It soon became clear that sticking to our original plan of heading slowly up Spain's Mediterranean coast towards Valencia risked tracking the fallout from storm Celia. The prospects for Malaga to the west of us looked far more promising, the problem of course is that this added hundreds of miles to the homeward journey. Still, there is no point sitting in a motorhome watching the rain, it is essentially, at least for us, a fair weather occupation.
So we washed the red dust off the van as best we could then headed west along the A7 towards the Costa del Sol. The 'Blade Runner' sky stayed with us, until somewhere between Motril and Nerja the clouds on the mountains became gloomy grey rather than apocalyptic orange. By the time we reached the campsite at Benajarafe the sky had lifted somewhat. Still, it was a very grey looking Mediterranean that we took a stroll beside, more Frinton-on-Sea than Costa del Sol, but at least it looked normal.
We have about 16 days before we need to be in San Sebastian ready for a quick dash north through France. Our plan B is to have no plan, though at the moment the weather prospects in Asturias are looking brighter than Andalucia. So we might head back to Seville and up the 'Ruta de Plata'. In the end, in terms of getting out and about, bright cool weather is better than warm but wet.
So we headed towards Antequera and back to the supermarket car park in Osuna. We are becoming regulars. This time we actually escaped the confines of the car park and walked into town.
It's a classic pueblo blanco but a little more aristocrat than most. Substantial baroque palacios are dotted among the narrow streets of whitewashed houses.
The town was busy, cars, trail bikes and electric scooters speeding down the cobbled streets. The pavements are less than a metre wide and locals enjoying a chat seemed reluctant to budge to let visitors past. It was a bit nerve-wracking and we were relieved to get back to the van.
The next two days are forecast sunny, then there is a spell of wet weather more or less everywhere. We are going to head to a campsite in Dos Hermanas. The town has regular connections to Seville by both bus and train. A sunny day in Seville is something to savour. Afterwards, during the rainy patch, we will head towards Asturias, probably with stops at Caceras and Zamora. The latter place is new territory, which is what we like.
Dos Hermanas may have an attractive old centre somewhere, but most of it seems to consist of a grid of dual carriageways with complicated roundabouts connecting a series of retail parks. The place seems to be a bland dormitory town for Seville with all the visual appeal of Milton Keynes. The campsite is ok. In a nice wooded location but a little cramped, fine for a couple of nights. Like a lot of sites serving urban areas it has a captive market and is somewhat overpriced.
There is a regular bus service to Seville, it took about 20 minutes and cost €1.70 each. We had no grand plans - have lunch at Cerveceria Giraldo, then wander about. Seville is a great city to simply stroll around.
There's always a risk in returning to a restaurant that you remember fondly, it's like deliberately courting disappointment. In one sense this happened to us the last time we were here, though the tapas were as good as ever, the place was undergoing a major refurbishment, we had lunch serenaded by angle grinders. All the work is finished now, from about a metre and a half upwards the plaster has been stripped away to reveal the original Arabic stonework some still decorated with Islamic motifs.
The building was originally an Arabic bathhouse dating from the tenth century, a truly memorable place to eat lunch.
The fact that the tapas on offer has maintained such a high standard is remarkable given the restaurant is only a few yards from the rear of the cathedral in an area teeming with tourists. It has guaranteed custom, so often that means corners get cut and the place becomes mediocre, or it 'elevates' itself and becomes swanky. Cerveceria Giraldo has resisted both temptations, it still offers an interesting but affordable tapas menu and attracts locals as well as tourists.
Our choice today...
pork cheeks
tortilla with cumin
shitake mushrooms with aioli, pico de Gallo and prawns.
The toasted goats cheese with sesame and honey drizzle was excellent too, but didn't stay on the plate long enough to get photographed.
Then to finish, two cortados and a lemon mousse which we shared. All that, and a glass of house wine each cost a little over €30, affordable delights! This is what it is all about.
Afterwards we walked up to Plaza de la Encarnación to take a second look at 'Las Sestas' the giant wood installation that dominates the square. It is the biggest wooden construction in the world.
The last time we were here it drizzled and most of the square had been fenced off for some reason. Today we had sunshine and a buzzy weekend vibe. The place is very photogenic.....
We were in Seville just over six weeks ago. The city felt subdued and quiet. Not so today, you can sense the world coming back to life, an old normal reasserting itself. Aside from the fact that the streets were busier, once again you could hear American voices, so transatlantic travel must have restarted, no Asians yet however.
On a more parochial note I am sure all the locals must be delighted to have British stag and hen parties back in their midst. We happened upon one of each. The common denominator - male genitalia. Each of the girls wore a dainty rosette decorated with a pink plastic phallus. The boy's appendages were, as you might have anticipated, much larger. They had decided to entertain the diners in Plaza de la Encarnación with a bit of impromptu karaoke using big plastic penises as pretend microphones.
The classical guitarist entertaining the nearby tables with a heartfelt rendition of Concerto de Aranjuez paused mid arpeggio to slow handclap the merry band as they passed by, then continued as if nothing had happened. Impromptu street theatre, if it happens at home there is often a menacing edge, the possibility of argy-bargy, here it's all very laid back, whatever will be will be.
Our bus back to Dos Hermanas was at 16:45, we headed back towards the bus stop, past the entrance to Alcazar (very long queue), noting the municipal buildings on Avenue Roma were flying a Ukrainian flag.
Then through Parque de María Louisa resting every so often on benches. I don't think we we have fully recovered yet, we still get fatigued easily. Nevertheless the we reached the bus stop in good time. It was situated behind the main pavillion in Plaza España, so well placed for most of Seville's main sites. We recognised most of the dozen or so people gathered around the shelter, half the campsite seemed to be waiting. Boarding was a somewhat random affair as there is no international protocol about how to get on, orderly queuing is definitely a peculiarly British trait.
Alighting was a somewhat sorry sight too, but for a different reason. It appeared that at 66 I was one of the younger campers and not alone in having found a whole day's siteseeing somewhat hard going. A gaggle of us shuffled and limped the couple of hundred metres from the bus stop to the gates of Camping Valbom like a Saga excursion that had escaped its tour guide. The prospect of becoming elderly does not depress me, rather I take it askance, I get affronted by it, there is no way I am going to 'go gentle'.
Today was a rare sunny interlude within a cool showery forecast. Tomorrow we will head north, and keep driving through the dull until we reach brighter skies or the Asturias coast, whichever happens first.
No comments:
Post a Comment