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Made up of 8 provinces,
Almería, Cádiz, Córdoba, Granada, Huelva, Jaén, Málaga, and Sevilla, with a
population of more than 7 million and a land extension of 87.300 sq km, (equal
to that of Portugal or Switzerland),
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The region of Andalucía
is the largest and most geographical diverse in Spain. Andalucía extends across the south of
Spain.
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Its landscape varies from the deserts of Almería in the
east, to
the wetlands of Doñana National Park in the west: and from the snow-capped
peaks of the Sierra Nevada to the beaches of the Costa del Sol then heading
inland where the mountains give way to rolling hills and cultivated plains,
brilliant yellow with sunflowers in spring, reaching out to the horizon, all
looking upwards and bathing in the sun.
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Three
inland cities between them share the greatest of Spain's Moorish monuments,
Granada, Córdoba and Sevilla, the capital which stands on the banks of the Río
Guadalquivir, which in its hayday was the one of the most important ports
of its time.
Andalucía has many other historical towns as well as
attractive, whitewashed villages, important nature reserves, olive groves which
produce around 20% of the worlds olive oil, and the sherry
producing vineyards around Jerez de la Frontera. As one
travels through Andalucía it is virtually impossible to pass a town or village,
no matter how small, that does not have some representation of its colourful
past, and for
the larger part they are all surprisingly well preserved.
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Something that
also becomes immediately obvious, especially as one travels through the
countryside, is the fact that how the churches and ancient castles rise up from even the smallest of
settlements that
we pass on the way, dominating the profile of the village.
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Each place has
its own history, too much to ever try to put into words but I always think that
one can appreciate a little more of the places one visits, even if it is just in
passing, if one knows a little of its roots, customs and legends.
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With
over 800 km of coast Andalucía, from the touristic point of view, is a prime
attraction. Made up
of costas, the Costa de la Luz which stretches from the border of
Portugal to the Strait of Gibraltar, the Costa del Sol, which includes all the
main holiday resorts of Andalucía and hosts beaches such as those of Marbella,
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where holiday makers and celebrities alike enjoy all there is to offer.
The Costa Tropical is well known for its rocky coastline and transparent waters,
which make it an ideal spot for scubadivers. Finally finishing with the arid,
desert like, Costa de Almería.
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Each
location has its speciality crafts. Look for delicate filigree
jewellery in Cordóba. Hand woven rugs and ham in La
Alpujarras. Beautiful embroidered shawls in Sevilla. Famous
hand-woven blankets from Grazalema. Inlaid wood from
Granada. Wallets, briefcases and leather clothing from
Ubrique.
Ceramic plates, tiles and pots - available everywhere. |
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Here you can find a page dedicated to
each province of Andalucía, telling you a little about its history and what you can see and do,
monuments to visit etc., it may give you an idea of where you would like to
visit. Remember that this is just a brief taster, Andalucía has so much more to
offer, thousands of years of mixed cultures all having left their very
distinguished marks on the landscape, monuments, agriculture, architecture,
gastronomy, and customs in this beautiful corner of the world.
There is no way that
we could ever condense those thousands of years of history and culture which
gives us the Andalucía as we know it today on a web site or even see everything
during ones travels,
no matter how intense, and any trip to Andalucía would be too short. That is one of the things that we should be
grateful for as it means that we can make a return visit time and time again and always
pick up where we left off and learn new things. It is a part of the world where
its history can still be very much a part of its present - if we so wish - all just
waiting for us to re-open the book.
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