Spain 5/12

NOTE: This blog from 5/12 somehow disappeared from the web site, so I’m re-publishing it.

Today is an off day, so what do most of us do? Take the train to Sevilla for a tour of the city – by bike of course!  The trains are very modern and very efficient. Each seat even has an outlet for your computer. ‘Not sure if there was wi-fi or not.  They run on time and are reasonable priced. We took a slow “local” train but it got to around 100 mph.  The high speed train is more expensive so we avoided it.

The first settlement of what is now Sevilla (Spanish spelling) was made by the Tartessians in the eighth century B.C. It was later occupied by the Phoenicians and the Carthaginians. The River Guadalquivir is navigable to the sea, making this a strategic trade location. After the discovery of America is 1492, Seville (English spelling) became the main port for trade with the new world.  This resulted in several centuries of Grandeur and the city became one of the most relevant cities in the world.  I believe it was devastated by the plague, but that may have been another city.  At left is monument to Christopher Columbus.

Our bike tour was “interesting”.  The bikes, mostly folding bikes with small wheels, were in poor repair. My bike had crooked handlebars, a loose headset, a rear brake which wouldn’t even slow you down, a front brake lever which was loose and which I could put in any position. The gears sort of worked, sometimes.  And here we are racing through a busy city, riding on sidewalks, streets and bike paths, through pedestrians and tour groups, down small alleys, on the railroad tracks, through courtyards, making all sorts of sudden turns.  We started at the train station and assumed we would return there. That was not the plan so Brenda and I took a taxi to the train station. The guide did lead the others there, barely in time to catch the 3:00 pm train.

Cycling in Spain

Having just cycled for a month in Spain, I thought it would be worthwhile to give my impressions on this country for the cycle-tourist.

FIRST THE LAW   In 2004, new traffic regulations were introduced, many of which impacted cyclists.

Restrictions

• Helmets are required
• Drivers, including cyclists, cannot use cell phones while “driving”.
• After lighting up time, cyclists should wear reflective clothing that makes them visible to other road users at a distance of 150 meters.
• The maximum alcohol limit applicable to motorists (0.5) now also applies to cyclists.

Rules favoring Cyclists

• Car drivers should slow down, or even stop, when approaching cycle tracks or intersections
• Cyclists have full right of way over a motor vehicle when the latter is entering the road, a cyclist is using.
• If a group of cyclists has already begun to enter a junction or a roundabout, they will have priority over cars doing the same.
• On long descents with bends, cyclists are allowed to use as much of the road as they need, as long as they keep to the right half of the road.
• Support vehicles are allowed to follow cyclists at the same speed, keeping to the right of the road.
• Cyclists are allowed to ride close together, taking extreme care to avoid hitting each other. The are also allowed to ride two abreast, keeping as far to the right as possible and keeping in single file in stretches of poor visibility. On dual carriageways, they are allowed to ride on the hard shoulder as long as they are over 14 years of age and there is no sign that prohibits cyclists.

MY IMPRESSIONS

• Overall, Spain has a lot going for it and very few, in any, negatives.
• Cycling Areas: I know the Pyrenees, Northern Spain, Mallorca and Southeast (Andalucía) are all good. BAC has done successful rips in these places. There are probably others.
• Roads: I can’t think of a country which has better roads. 90% of them were very smooth. Our guides (three of the four areas mentioned above were scouted by locals) found very remote roads with minimal traffic. And when there was traffic, the drivers were polite. (A couple of trucks passed closer than I would have liked but that is pretty common.)
• Spanish: The locals were always friendly. Supposedly their unemployment rate is 21%, but we saw no signs of stress. Although the Spanish may not be as effusing as the Italians and the Irish, they were just as hospitable.
• Food: The typical Spanish diner doesn’t start until at least 8:00 pm, but you can always find something to eat (tapas). The food is good; so is the wine.
• Weather: The north is good in the summer, Andalucia is best in spring, the center is best in autumn and the south in the winter. From April 21 thru May 21, we had 3 or 4 hot days and the only rain occurred in the evening.
• Lodging: You get what you pay for. Although Spain is an old country, I was impressed at many modern facilities.
• Scenery and Monuments: Depends on location, but overall compares favorably with more popular cycling destinations (France, Italy, Ireland).

Spain 5/20

‘Last day of this tour.  We ride down the Atlantic coast toward Africa.

We arrive at the coast at 6 km.  This is the bluest water I’ve ever seen.  We pass the Trafalgar Lighthouse (shown on left), site of the famous October 21, 1805 battle in which the Royal British Navy commanded by Admiral Nelson defeated the much larger combined fleet of the French and Spanish Navies.  The lighthouse seems small and isolated compared with the battle’s memorial, Trafalgar Square in London.

Our destination is the town of Tarifa at the south-most tip of Spain and of continental Europe.  Looking across the Straits of Gibraltar we can clearly see the Atlas Mountains of Morocco. These are the Pillars of Hercules and the entrance to the Mediterranean Sea and one of the busiest waterways in the world.

Above, blue Atlantic. Below, Altas Mountains of Morocco as seen from Tarifa Port.

Tarifa has fairly constant winds and thus is a Mecca for kite surfers.  We see hundreds of colorful kites on the final stretch of the ride.  Tarifa looks more like an African town than an European town.

We pack our bikes in a plaza by the Tourist Information Center and then a bus takes us along the Mediterranean to Malaga where we have our last dinner and say farewell to our cycling friends, both old and new.

Along the route we pass Gibraltar. But what we witness along this Costa del Sol is difficult to properly explain.  To our left loom large, rugged mountains – and to our right, the Mediterranean. This is a two hour drive so it is probably 100 miles from Tarifa to Malaga.  But it is 100 miles of mega development. Every foot of land on the beach side is developed – on every hillside and on top of every hill are houses, high-rise condos, resorts, apartments, hotels.  It’s New York spread out on a beautiful beach. Where do these people come from? Where do they work? Or is it all vacationers?  This leads to questions about Spain: How big is it? How densely populated?

In terms of land mass, Spain is the second largest country (France is larger) in the European Union.  But in terms of population density, Spain has somewhat smaller density than France; and both are one-half of Italy, Germany and England (the most dense). Spain has five mountain ranges, which probably means it’s density is not evenly distributed.

On Sunday, I’ll complete this Spain trip blog with thoughts about cycling in Spain.

Spain 5/19

We’ve been on the road over three weeks and not had a bike problem, other than my mysterious missing brake pad. But our luck changed today.  today. Before leaving the hotel today I pumped up the tires. When I removed the pump head from my rear time, the valve stem broke. So I had to replace the tube.

Then, 12 km down the road, I was following Brenda and watched her chain slither off the cassette and down the road.  Fortunately I had spare master links (It was the master link which had come apart.)

Our luck, weather wise, is better.  It rained last night and it rained about 3:30 today but we were inside the hotel both times.  Only one more day; hope to keep a perfect weather track record.

Today’s ride is from Arcos de la Frontera to Vejer de la Frontera.  The main point of interest along the way is the city of Medina Sidonia, which dates to both Roman and Arab times.  Of course it sits on top of a hill, providing the second of our three climbs today.  After Medina, we had mile after mile of wild flowers.

Photo below is Storm Passing, Vejer de la Frontera

Spain 5/18

Today we ride from Ronda to Arcos de la Frontera. Weather forecast is 60% probability of rain so we take our rain gear - which is not needed.  The ride is great, particularly the first part.  We are riding primarily in a forest with a large number of cork trees (right below).  There are no cars and the road surface couldn’t be better. The scenery is great. The wind is strong but we’re at least partially protected by the trees.  Starting at 2,200 feet we lose 500 feet of elevation and then re-gain it.  After our coffee stop (see next paragraph) we continue to climb to 3,600 feet.  Then we have a 10 km, 2,000 feet descent.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Above, we approach Grazalema, our coffee destination.  The city center, below, is thriving and very picturesque.

We stop at a small bar in El Bosque for lunch.  The bar keeper doesn’t speak a word of English but is very gracious and we manage to communicate well enough to get great sandwiches.  The last 30 km – we take a short-cut here – are along A-372, once again an extremely smooth road with a wide shoulder.  There are two slight up-hills and 3 down-hills.  We make good time and arrive shortly after 3:00.  It was a good day, not nearly as difficult as projected.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Photos above: Left – church in Grazalema. Right – Apartment in Arcos de la Frontera.

We now have two fairly easy days ride to Tarifa, the southernmost tip of Spain and of continental Europe.  And on Saturday, we’ll be back in Dallas.

Spain 5/17

We’re in Ronda for the day and spend several hours walking this morning, primarily in and below the old city.  Some believe this is the most beautiful Andalusian town.  Situated at 2,460 feet above sea level, it seems bigger than it’s actual size, a town of 35,000.  Ernest Hemmingway said this is “the perfect place for a getaway with a friend or a honeymoon.”  Another fan, Orson Wells is buried close by.

The town is divided by a ravine, separating the old Arab town from the more modern town.  Puente Nuevo, the bridge separating the two haves of the city was build in the 18th century.  Our hotel, Don Miguel is built on the edge of the ravine.

 

In the photo above, our hotel is in the upper right.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Although no longer practiced here, Ronda is known as the cradle of bullfighting. We visited the arena, built in 1785.

Spain 5/16

Anyone who has been following this blog for the past week or so will notice less and less photographs each day.  That’s primarily because the rides got boring. White Villages were great for a day or two; then they began looking alike.  And the terrain and vegetation changed gradually as I’ve discussed, but it was pretty much the same. This was all becoming boring.

But today was different, a lot different.  The scenery was spectacular – at least for the first 60 km.

It was appropriate to find many windmills today because we had a strong (20 mph?) wind from the south.  This kept us cool but made cycling difficult.  From km 35 to km 80, we climbed 2,400 feet.  The last 35 km were not pretty. From km 60 through 80 we were on a busy road with no shoulder and climbing into the strong wind.

Overall, (SEE THE RIDE) we rode 95 km and climbed over 5,000 feet with the wind mostly hurting us.  I’m surprised my unfit, 70-year old body survived so well.  But I’m tired.  Tomorrow is an optional ride day and my current plans are to spend it with Brenda in Ronda.

Spain 5/15

We knew today's ride was going to be difficult; it was long (105 km) and had over 4,000 feet of climbing.  To make matters worse, it’s been very hot is recent days.  So we decided to take a short cut.  The one we took yesterday was great.  Probably today’s wasn’t a good decision.  Well into the short cut, we found the only practical way to our destination was by riding 7 km on a gravel road.  A dirt road would have been ok but the rocks were rough.  We had to go so slow over that section that we probably could have done the long route just as quickly.  We only cut off 10 km.  And today we had strong winds.  This kept us cool but made riding difficult.  The only good point of our detour is that incredible wildflowers lined the route.

Right: gravel road with wildflowers.

Tomorrow: another long ride with much climbing.  Then we’ll get a rest day which we sorely need.

Spain 5/14

Yesterday in Ecija out hotel was right off the Plaza de Espana, a square about 100 meters wide and a block long.  We walked it at 4:00 pm – it was pretty hot - and there was not a sole in sight.  While walking, I did take a couple of pictures of the many church towers:

                       

At 8:00, after our Happy Hour, most of us went to the square for dinner at a tapas bar. Now, with everything in shade, the plaza was the “to be” place.  Everybody was there: families, kids, old men.  We occupied 3 tables in the plaza in front of the tapas bar and soon 8 to 10 pre-teens (12 to 14) came to our tables to practice their English, learn about us and tell us about them.  They were full of enthusiasm, but very polite. We enjoyed their visit.

I haven’t mentioned that for the past two days while we were cycling through the lush river valley with all the agriculture, the olive trees have disappeared.  Apparently they’ll grow in rock soil where other things won’t, so that’s where they are planted.  Midway through today's ride, we began to climb out of the valley and so found rocky soil and olive trees again.  We also witnessed something new, vineyards.  In this area they primarily make a white, “Sherry style” wine.

I haven’t mentioned the earthquake because we know nothing about it.  Brenda and I don’t turn on the television and thus don’t get much news.  As we understand, the earthquake was west of Granada.  We left Granada several days before it happened.

In several places today we found bumpy roads; a first I believe.  ---  Also on  two occasions, while cycling through towns, a Spanish cyclist with good English saw our groups and escorted us thru town. This was appreciated.  Although these towns appear small, they are concentrated in the center and are full of pedestrians, narrow roads and cobble-stone streets.  It’s easy to get lost.  ---  We’re at a resort hotel outside of Cabra tonight.  The next two days will be difficult cycling.

Spain 5/13

We’re headed toward Ecija today.  I don’t know as much about this town as usual since the tourist map and info is in Spanish. I do know that artifacts have been found that date back to the 8th century BC and that today’s population is about 40,000. As we rode into town you could see 8 church steeples.  I hope to get a photo of them in the morning. The river Genil runs through town.  One thing Ecija is famous for is it’s exceedingly hot temperatures, with a record of 125 degrees Fahrenheit.  (The English Wikipedia and the Spanish Wikipedia differ on what the record is but, for sure, it is hot.)

Today’s ride has been along the Guadalquivir River (the Genil river is a tributary to this).  So we were in farmland riding through crops of tobacco, wheat, sunflowers, various vegetables and orange groves.  Early in the ride, at about 24 km, we decide to take a shortcut which will save us maybe 3 to 5 km. This turns out to be a very pleasant road with smooth pavement going through the farms. But when we get back to the main road we find the road is closed due to construction.  After much discussion and consulting with our guide, we decide to try to ride through the construction.  It’s pretty dicey for about 5 km.  See Brenda to the right.  But then, based on the wonderful short cut we took earlier, we and another couple decide to try other shortcuts.  Of course we have no idea what the road surface is or even if it’s passible.  But the ride surface turned out to be fine and we end up with 68 km instead of 95 km.

We’re been doing well with Spanish food, in spite of the late dinner hour.  Last night we went to a place close to the hotel in which you could order from three portion sizes, full, half or tapas. We ordered a couple, found that wasn’t quite enough and ordered an additional 1/2 serving. --- When we get to the hotel today we find they have a three course lunch of the day for less than seven Euros.  You had 4 or 5 choices for each course.  The food was quite good.

Spain 5/11

Today's ride was easy – mostly downhill.  Our destination is Cordova, founded as the Roman colony of Corduba in 152 BC.  In 711 AD the city was conquered by the  Muslims and soon became the Muslim capital of the Iberian peninsula. It became the biggest city in Western Europe with a thriving economy and the university, a great learning center.  The Christian army of Fernando III conquered the city in 1236. Today’s population is 325,000 – less than at it’s peak.

We enter Cordova over the old Roman bridge.  To the right is the Mosque. 

The immense Mosque (above) was built in 785 on what had originally been the basilica of San Vicente.  When the Christians conquered Cordoba, they constructed a cathedral inside the mosque (photo below).

Spain 5/10

Today was the most difficult 37 mile ride I can remember. Here's what it looked like. 

We had an hour plus lunch which was primarily a lecture on olive oil tasting.  See photo at left.  There are 14 characteristics to look for, 7 bad ones and 7 good ones.  If an oil has absolutely no bad characteristics, then it is labeled “extra virgin oil”.  If it has only very minor bad characteristics, then it is a “virgin oil”.  It’s refreshing to learn that a virgin oil is only a little bit spoiled.

 

In 2009, Spain produced 41% of the world’s olive oil.  As you ride along you notice that every square foot of land it planted in something, but mostly olive trees.  Just like every hillside in France is covered with grape vines, every foot in Spain is planted with olive trees.  See photo at right.

Tonight we’re staying in the white village of Zuheros, shown below.  I don’t know it’s history but the castle dates back to the ninth century; it was built by the Arabs. Click on any photo to enlarge.

Seeing the village as the sun changes the shadows and highlights, I remember my hobby of 20 years ago, black and white photography.  Maybe that’s a more sensible hobby for someone my age!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Spain 5/09

NOTE: Clicking on any picture or slid show in this blog will produce a larger copy.

The first day of the White Villages of Andalusia was difficult, 107 km – 5 hours and 50 minutes in the saddle.  It was difficult primarily because the climbing came late in the day, the temperature was hot (95 degrees) and there was no shade. See the route.

Leaving Granada was difficult primarily because of the steep hills and narrow streets. (It’s much easier to get out of New York City – 96th and Broadway.)  Although we were primarily following the River Genil all day, we rarely saw it.  What we saw primarily was agriculture: Popular tree forests, orange and olive groves, potatoes and onions growing, asparagus being picked by hand, poppies and many types of wild flowers.  There were crops we didn’t recognize.

And we did see White Villages. Below Loja, Ventorros de Balerna and Iznajar.  Tonight we’re staying in a hotel across the river from Iznajar.

Spain 5/08

Today we visit The Alhambra (Arabic: الْحَمْرَاء‎, Al-Ḥamrā' , literally "the red one"), the complete form of which was Calat Alhambra (الْقَلْعَةُ ٱلْحَمْرَاءُ, Al-Qal‘at al-Ḥamrā’ , "the red fortress"), is a palace and fortress complex constructed during the mid 14th century by the Moorish rulers of the Emirate of Granada in Al-Andalus, occupying the top of the hill of the Assabica on the southeastern border of the city of Granada in the Autonomous Community of Andalusia.

The Alhambra's Moorish palaces were built for the last Muslim Emirs in Spain and its court, of the Nasrid dynasty. After the Reconquista (reconquest) by the Reyes Católicos ("Catholic Monarchs") in 1492, some portions were used by the Christian rulers. The Palace of Charles V, built by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor in 1527, was inserted in the Alhambra within the Nasrid fortifications. After being allowed to fall into disrepair for centuries, the Alhambra was "discovered" in the 19th century by European scholars and travelers, with restorations commencing. It is now one of Spain's major tourist attractions, exhibiting the country's most significant and well known Islamic architecture, together with 16th-century and later Christian building and garden interventions. The Alhambra is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the inspiration for many songs and stories.

For more information click here.

At once you know Alhambra is large with over 60 buildings and monuments. Even more impressive are the gardens and the stone work. I don’t know how may acres it occupies but it takes 20 minutes to walk from the entry gate to the Nasrid Palace. 6,000 people are allowed to enter each day. Reservations to a specific time slot (e.g. 9:30) on a particular day are available through the internet.  Then you get your tickets from an ATM-like machine by inserting your credit card.  They tightly control everything but it all runs smoothly. ‘Would be even smoother without the German and Asian tour groups. Here are some photos: