Archive for December, 2005

Christmas Preparations

Friday, December 16th, 2005

Today I stepped outside to find 3 ladies painting our house - all in preparation for the LIVE NATIVITY.
The PaintersHere is a photo taken from the inside of the house looking out at the workers. Very friendly there were too! This evening instead of dancing class, we had a FIESTA …. lots of clapping, singing and binuelos (flour and water, made in a doughnut shape) - absolutely delicous! With hot chocolate, hmmm.

The kids had a wonderful time, dancing Ana, mi amigaand eating.. and we enjoyed some Pastis - to warm us up.

The Plaza de Cabildo is now looking a lot like Bethlehem: covered in sand, palm trees, even a lake and water wheel. Tomorrow night it will be ready and people will be acting out the parts of the main characters. It’s superb.

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Ronda

Saturday, December 3rd, 2005

Ronda is a superb place to visit. It’s about an hour from Arcos through the spectacular Grazalema mountains. We’ve been there 3 times now: once in the height of summer (yes, the gorge did pong a bit), once a few weeks ago when it was biting cold, oh and today - mild, but cloudy.Ronda's Tajo

Unlike Arcos it is built on a flat cliff or plateau, so no hills to climb up and down. It has a deep gorge “El Tajo” slicing it in two and a bridge spanning the gorge separating the old and new town. The Parador Hotel is next to the gorge with an outdoor pool. Alongside that is the bullring.

It has several pedestrianised streets with fantastic shops, really trendy stuff and moderately priced. There is also a beautiful park for children, with swings, slides, seesaw etc and magnificent views. The park is mature and the trees, shrubs and flowers reflect that, many huge palms and ornate water fountains. There is also a small bird section with budgies, peacocks, doves and ducks.

The Islamic layout of the old town remains intact, a maze of narrow streets take their character from the Renaissance mansins of powerful families, whose predecessors accompanied Fernando el Catolico in the taking of the city in 1485. Loads of interesting architecture, Palacios, and museums - a must see!

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