June 14: White villages of Andalucia; local cheese, Arrival in Ronda

Dear Friends and Relatives,

Leaving today from our high-perched aerie in Carmona, we traveled back and circled around the airport in Sevilla to pick up our guide Francisco, who had accompanied us on our explorations of Sevilla two days ago.  He was once again in an expansive mood and eager to greet the new day and a subject he was passionate about--Andalucia.  He and I talked a lot about bullfighting along the way, and the scenery of the hill towns showed off a bracelet of Andalucian whitewashed houses--virtually untouched Spanish culture; bull ranches and bullfighters' estates, rolling hills and whitewashed towns.  Our first stop was at the hilltop town of Arcos de la Frontera, larger than most Andalucian hill towns, and we walked uphill to a brilliant vantage point.  An extra boon once we got to the top, was not only the extraordinary scenery, but also a collection of raptors, owls and macaws that their trainer allowed us to get close to.  We also entered the lovely Church of Santa Maria, which had been taken from the Moors in the 13th c.  The church was built atop the mosque.  

From there we walked back into town, caught our bus, and then proceeded towards the small hilltop town of Zahara de la Sierra, which was a tiny whitewashed village scenically set between a Moorish castle and a scenic lake.  Our restaurant was perched on the top of a hill and sported a magnificent view of the area.  We had another great vegetable and egg soup, black boar and potatoes and a flan dessert featuring two types of flan and whipped cream--all of it yummy.  

From then on we were within the Sierra da Grazalema Natural Park.  It encompasses about 128,000 acres and contains many limestone caverns.  All of a sudden a few elements fell into place.  In the third act of Bizet's "Carmen," the scene takes place in a smugglers' den in the countryside.  Francisco, our guide, said that this area was what both Bizet and novelist Merimée (the author of a story about Carmen which Bizet adopted for the basis of his opera),had in mind for the third act, at the 19th c. smugglers' den, when her friends Frasquita and Mercedes read their good fortunes in the Tarot cards, and Carmen reads her downfall:  "carreau...pique...la mort."  Later, as we stopped at an artisanal cheese farm in the area, and I looked at the landscape before me, the prelude to the third act of "Carmen" was more appropriate and fitting than it had ever been before.  I also found out that Merimée had lived in that very area, so the realization was indeed a fantastic shock and surprise, confirming more than ever how much I adore that opera!

We also stopped at a third and last whitewashed hill town of Grazalema, at the artisanal cheese farm of Poyoyo, and we were treated to a lecture on the making of both sheep and goat cheeses.  We went to see the animals, then talked to the proprietor and had four different tastings of sheep cheese, goat cheese, and two blends of both cheeses.  They were very fine.  

After leaving this peaceful valley, we made our way to Ronda.  We checked into the Hotel Catalonia Reina Victoria.  Ronda rises amid a ring of dark, angular mountains, on an isolated ridge of the Sierra, and is split in half by a gaping river gorge, El Tajo, which drops 130 m on three sides.  Still more spectacular, the gorge is spanned by a stupendous 18th c. arched bridge, the Puente Nuevo, while tall, whitewashed houses lean from it precipitous edges.  

By the way, our hotel was built in 1906 and renovated in the summer of 2012.  It was once the home of the poet Rainer Maria Rilke, who was Czech but wrote in German.  

After a hot day today, I am going to get on our balcony and have a dinner of sandwich and fruit with my roommate, then enjoy the trees and plantings in front of us and read about our exploration of Ronda tomorrow.  Another fabulous day!  As ever, Sylvia / Mami 

 

Sylvia M. Venable, PhD

Instructor, German

St. John's Episcopal School

Dallas, Texas