I arrived, drenched in sweat, to the small village of Quentar a few days ago. I took the train from Madrid to Granada and then a bus to Quentar–a small town about 25 minutes outside of Granada that’s situated in the Sierra Nevada mountains. All of my travel has been pretty seamless on this trip (besides my departing flights), which has me feeling grateful. I chose to stay in Quentar instead of Granada because I figured it would be nice to get outside of a city at this point in my trip, and the guesthouse I was at has a pool, which was very welcomed on these 95 degree days! I’m also glad that I booked a place outside of a major city because it felt like an extra, yet appropriate, challenge to navigate the bus system to a small village, and it gave me a day to slow down and relax. Surprisingly, I didn’t feel like I really needed a break from the fast pace of my travels, as I’ve been fueling myself on the satisfaction of navigating new cities and transporting myself all over this beautiful country, but I didn’t really have an option as I arrived on Sunday. Sundays here mean the shops, grocery stores, and bus lines are closed or only operate for a few hours, so once I arrived at my guesthouse, I was forced to stay poolside for the rest of the day–not a bad place to be! Quentar reminds me so much of Ortahisar, the village we lived in in Turkey–maybe it’s what all southern European/Mediterranean/Islamic-influenced towns feel like, but between the valleys, and winding, narrow roads, it felt so familiar. I was expecting our bus ride there to be similar to the dolmuş rides of Turkey where we squeezed far too many people into a sweaty minivan, but I was pleasantly surprised by the large, air conditioned city bus that runs to Quentar.
The next morning, I journeyed into Granada for the day. I had tickets for the Alhambra and got an early morning start so that I could beat some of the heat. I had a great time exploring the Alcazaba, Generalife Gardens, and the Nasrid Palaces and seeing such an important piece of Islamic history. Later in the afternoon, I walked to Mirador de San Nicholas to get a view of the Alhambra from afar. In general, I have felt extremely safe as a solo female traveler in Spain–people generally mind their own business, a few have even been helpful when I’ve needed it, and I haven’t been too bothered by street vendors. However, the only moment that’s troubled me happened right near the Alhambra. A lady approached me rather invasively and went on about how beautiful I was (“muy guapa”). It seemed like she wanted to sell me some plants and she managed to grab my arm as I walked away, but I was proud of myself for assertively saying “no” and not hesitating because I get the sense from when she grabbed me that she wasn’t afraid to be aggressive and who knows what exactly she wanted, but I kept moving and my valuables and I were okay. Still, not fun. I’m proud of how I handled the situation, though, and that I didn’t remain passive as I have in the past.
Random side note: A lot of the supermarkets in Spain have machines that use oranges to produce freshly squeezed juice–it’s such an easy way to get delicious orange juice! You just grab an empty plastic bottle off the shelf next to it, let the machine do its work, and voilà! You have a nice, refreshing, pulpy bottle of orange juice to take home with your groceries. I’ll miss this when I return home…
After my day in Granada, it was time for me to pack up and catch the bus to Cadiz. I’ve been doing a lot of moving around in Spain, but my main goal was to see as much of the country as possible while I’m here, so I’m not complaining. One of my favorite parts of travel is a long train or bus ride. It’s what Alain de Botton calls “travel dreaming.” I loved reading a good book or staring out the train window while listening to an album and reflecting on what’s important to me. Thus, I have enjoyed my travel days very much, and enjoyed staring at the southern Spain countryside for five hours en route to Cadiz.
I decided on Cadiz based on online recommendations–originally, I knew I wanted to go somewhere on that part of the coast, and considered Malaga before opting for somewhere different. Cadiz is part of the Iberian Peninsula in the southern part of the country and is separated from land by an isthmus. Cadiz has long been an inhabited place in Western Europe, and played an important role in trade as a port city to places such as the Americas. I climbed the Tavira tower, which is the highest point in the city and was used to watch for arriving merchant ships from sea.
I was a bit anxious when I arrived in Cadiz because the hostel mixed up my reservation and put me in a different room than I’d booked–I usually try to stay in female dorms but they placed me in a mixed dorm. I decided it was okay and, if needed, I could try to switch rooms later, but I’d try to stick with where they placed me–both of the guys in my room were super friendly and I actually ended up connecting better with them than many of the other people I’ve met so far! As I tried to get my bearings in Cadiz and channel some calm energy, I went into flight mode and quickly ended up at the sea (not hard to do when you’re practically on a small island), relieve to be greeted with shining, blue waves. This part of Spain feels so different from everywhere else I’ve visited–with the white buildings, narrow streets, and warm, coastal feel, it reminds me of the coast of Turkey or Croatia combined with what I imagine north Africa feels like, even though I’ve never been.
I spent a lot of time wandering around, staring at the sea and the massive cathedral (this might be one of my favorite buildings I’ve seen on my trip), climbing the Tavira tower, sitting by the rubber trees (these are over one hundred years old and are from missionary nuns in India, who had intended to bring them to Northern Spain but never made it there as the nuns got sick and died in the hospital in Cadiz), and going for a quick morning run followed by a dip in the water.
I also took myself out to a nice dinner at a Moroccan place. It was fantastic; from the mint lemonade to the vegetable couscous and custard with pistachios for dessert, I was extremely satisfied. It’s safe to say Cadiz may be one of my favorite stops on my travels this summer–I loved the coastal, small town feel, being right by the sea, exploring a part of Spain that feels slightly different from the rest, and enjoying the delectable Moroccan food! I finished my time off with some gelato at sunset after my hostel roommate from Sweden rushed into the room in a hurry to change his pants before he missed the sunset, encouraging me to get myself outside instead of continuing to sit in the dark hostel room.
Now, I’m in the final destination of my trip: Seville!