We are heading to Granada today via Guadix. The land around here is very barren and the orchards that we have been seeing have disappeared. As we travel down following the coastline (although some distance from it) the skyine to the left of us along the coastline is a mass of high-rise concrete blocks. Although it is now October, summer is still in full effect, it is HOT! DRY! And BRIGHT!
The flies around here are what we refer to as sticky flies. Once they land on you they are just too lazy to leave no matter how hard you try and swat at them. But they seem to know just the right place to land that is hard to get at. Another noticeable thing around these parts is the sweet food. When you walk into a bakery you get confronted with every form of sugar and it’s derivatives that you can imagine. They seem to like it that way. We even watched a guy put two sachets of sugar into his glass of Orange juice this morning.
Later in the morning we headed inland. If we thought it was dry before, well it just got a whole lot drier and very sparse. We arrived at Guadix, not far from Granada, to have a look at the troglodyte cave dwellings that we had heard about. This is a town filled with white plaster houses. Who ever sells white paint around here makes a killing. On the fringes of the town there are old houses that are literally built into the side of the hills. These range from very nice looking houses that protrude from the hillside, to a mound of stone with a door and a chimney protruding, to the rundown decrepit looking houses that in any other country would be condemned. Some look like they are just the average looking house that has been buried under a pile of rocks. We stopped and had a walk around, but it was one of those small towns where you feel like you are being watched, although there is no one in sight. So we didn’t stay long.
We arrived in Granada and as usual with these old centers we had a bit of a problem finding out accommodation. As we usually do in these circumstances, we park the car and walk in circles until we found it. On this occasion this was almost our undoing. As we returned to our car we saw it being hitched up to a tow truck. A quick sprint prevented it being towed, but not an exorbitant fine. Evidently we had parked on the street behind the police station and having ‘tourist plates’ it was a security risk. So there it was up on blocks within five minutes … ouch!!! The tow truck driver was nice enough, but we didn’t feel inclined to argue with a cop with a full bandolier, and a chip on his shoulder for being given traffic duty.
We did finish the day on a nicer note though. After a quick round of tapas and sangria (to ease our troubles), we came across an open air orchestra outside the Cathedral.
The flies around here are what we refer to as sticky flies. Once they land on you they are just too lazy to leave no matter how hard you try and swat at them. But they seem to know just the right place to land that is hard to get at. Another noticeable thing around these parts is the sweet food. When you walk into a bakery you get confronted with every form of sugar and it’s derivatives that you can imagine. They seem to like it that way. We even watched a guy put two sachets of sugar into his glass of Orange juice this morning.
Later in the morning we headed inland. If we thought it was dry before, well it just got a whole lot drier and very sparse. We arrived at Guadix, not far from Granada, to have a look at the troglodyte cave dwellings that we had heard about. This is a town filled with white plaster houses. Who ever sells white paint around here makes a killing. On the fringes of the town there are old houses that are literally built into the side of the hills. These range from very nice looking houses that protrude from the hillside, to a mound of stone with a door and a chimney protruding, to the rundown decrepit looking houses that in any other country would be condemned. Some look like they are just the average looking house that has been buried under a pile of rocks. We stopped and had a walk around, but it was one of those small towns where you feel like you are being watched, although there is no one in sight. So we didn’t stay long.
We arrived in Granada and as usual with these old centers we had a bit of a problem finding out accommodation. As we usually do in these circumstances, we park the car and walk in circles until we found it. On this occasion this was almost our undoing. As we returned to our car we saw it being hitched up to a tow truck. A quick sprint prevented it being towed, but not an exorbitant fine. Evidently we had parked on the street behind the police station and having ‘tourist plates’ it was a security risk. So there it was up on blocks within five minutes … ouch!!! The tow truck driver was nice enough, but we didn’t feel inclined to argue with a cop with a full bandolier, and a chip on his shoulder for being given traffic duty.
We did finish the day on a nicer note though. After a quick round of tapas and sangria (to ease our troubles), we came across an open air orchestra outside the Cathedral.
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