Storage never looked so good. Caceres, Spain

Damascus, Istanbul and...Cáceres. Wind up the narrow lanes of Europe's third biggest intact medieval city and emerge from the labyrinth near the Plaza de las Veletas. Scan for the palace with the strange ceramic gargoyles and enter the museum. Breeze past Roman statues, Visigothic tablets, and prehistoric pig carvings that prove Spaniards have always had a thing for ham... just when you think you've seen everything, creep through a claustrophobically small door and scale down some narrow steps, the cool dampness will reach you first. In the penumbra, beautiful Moorish arches reach down into the water showing you the world's third largest intact Arabic cistern (aljibe). Who knew?

#museum #underground #getaway #medieval #water #ancient #arches #ancientrome #publicworks #oldstone #arabicarchitecture #cisterns #aljibe #waterconservation #archtecture

Originally published on Trazzler

The Southern Pilar...Ceuta and the Maranid Wall

Gaze across the blue Mediterranean at Europe while feeling the vast African continent breathing down your neck, and then remember, you're in Spain. Confused? You wouldn't be the first. Hidden behind the southernmost of the two pillars Hercules dropped at the entrance to this civilization-cradling sea lies this tiny Spanish enclave you never learned about in geography class. Homer wrote about Ceuta. Ibn Battutah set off from it. The Moroccan government sometimes complains about it (just as the Spanish government complains about Gibraltar), and if you're on your way to or from Morocco, you'll probably pass right through it. But rather than dash for the hideous border crossing, take a break, relax, and remember that the ferries leave every hour. After all, it's not everyday you can say you've been in Europe in Africa.

#beach #architecture #europe #mountains #coast #view #ruins #africa #spain #mythology #mediterranean #islam #offthebeatenpath #morocco #gibraltar #offbeat #spit #point #panoramic #odyssey #continent #hercules #geography # #ibnbattutah #confused

Soaking it in, Alhama de Granada, Spain

Alhama's name says it all...that is of course if you speak Arabic. Just a mile or two upriver from this quiet town astride a vertigo-inspiring canyon, a hot spring has been soothing aches and pains for two millennia. The town's name comes from the mineral-rich water bubbling out of the ground at a toasty 116.6 ºF. Here, the Romans built a spa that the Arabs later spruced up. The first known traveler to soak his road-weary feet here was Ibn Battutah en route from Malaga to Granada in 1350. However, if today's traveler wants to visit, they must either be guests of the modern balneario (spa) that has kidnapped the ruins or visit the site between the entirely unSpanish hours of 2 to 4pm. That or do as the local kids do and take a dip in the public land just below the building.

#spa #history #hotsprings #swimming #bath #getaway #ruins #medieval #muslim #muslimarchitecture #hammam #arab #canyon #islam #therapeutic #relaxing #remote #roman #ancient #andalusia #bathhouse #islamicarchitecture #geologicalanomaly #andalucia #ancientrome #ibnbattutah

Originally published on Trazzler

The Feria del Queso in Trujillo, Spain

Soft and sweaty in the deliciously warm early May sunshine...Gorgeous, round, curvy and even just a wee bit pungent. The Feria del Queso, a culinary beauty pageant takes place in the very town that Pizarro left off from on his way to conquer Peru. These creamy contestants sport names like Tortas del Casar and la Serena, Manchego, Ibores, Tetilla, Cabrales, all of which can make the average Spaniard, male or female, stop dead in their tracks, salivate and lose their composure. Thousands gather from all over to see them unwrapped, opened, and enjoyed. The annual event in the UNESCO heart of Trujillo is a cheese lover's fantasy. 300+ varieties from all over Spain waiting to be savored with wines from the region. A reverie that makes other pageants seem, well, not cheesy enough.

#culinary #festival #wine #cheesy #cheese #village #getaway #foodie #gourmet #dairy #chowhound #extremadura #locavore #goatsmilk #producers #artesinal #cabrales #cheesefestival #dortadelcasar #quesolaserena #iboes #manchego #tetilla #rawmilkcheese #rawmilk #spanishcheese #sheepsmilk #cowsmilk #obsessionscheese

Originally published on Trazzler