Author: Diana

Ruta Day Two – Ategua Ruins to Castro del Rio

Route of the Caliphate, Spain

Ategua to Espejo to Castro del Rio  – 15 miles

Leaving Ategua we passed hillside ruins of a Roman mine and descended into the valley.

Corralled sheep

Soon after passing the sheep we saw this ewe with a newborn. We told a man pruning olives and he seemed quite amused but did say he’d let the shepherd know.

Rain threatened and we walked towards palm trees and a small river.

Forging the happily shallow water; it was very cold.

Climbing into the hills.

We lunched under an olive tree. Olives are ripe and being harvested.

To harvest nets are laid down then machines shake the trees. The olives are then emptied into a truck.

The town of Espejo can be seen for miles.

This was a border town between Moorish and Christian Spain. As with many of these towns the castle was for protection.

Renovated Roman cistern. The Romans grew olives and put in extensive canal and cistern systems.

On to Castro Del Rio!

    Madrid

    Spain

    Madrid is the capitol of Spain, the third largest city in Europe and the financial center of Southern Europe.  As with many other places in Spain it was initially a Roman city that fell to the Visigoths, the Moors then was ultimately incorporated into Christian Castille in 1085.

    We are staying at the Hostal Oriente; a lovely spot in the center of the city. We awoke at 5:30 the first morning to Shakira and the smell of baking bread. Off to see the sunrise!


    Artistic street signs


    As a tourist there are many places to visit.

    • Palacio Real, the royal palace for hundreds of years; still used for state functions.

    Courtyard

    Almudena Cathedral

    Entrance to the palace.

    • The Buen Retiro Park , founded in 1631, belonged to the Spanish Monarchy until the late 19th century.

    The Crystal Palace

    Promenade to the Prado Museum.

    Monument to Alfonso the 12th

    Full view

    Walkway through the middle of the park.

    The Prado

      Rebuilt church housing sculpture.

      A copy of the Mona Lisa being copied again.

      Entrance

        • Almudena Cathedral is just opposite the Royal Palace.

        The interior

        The cathedral at night.

        • Madrid is incredibly pedestrian friendly. Many streets are closed to traffic and everywhere there are parks.

        The sidewalk is well segregated from traffic.

        This street is just open to pedestrians for most of the day.

        La Comida!!

        Spain

        A huge part of any trip is the food!

        We’ve been eating a lot in local bars.

        The hot chocolate is thick and amazing.

        Coffee and fresh squeezed orange juice

        Tapas in a can – delicious!

        A store just for ham!

        Pastry shops have traditional custards and more exotic sweets as well.

        The coffee is strong and good and often comes with a sweet biscuit.

        Salad with cherry tomatoes and baked rounds of balsamic vinegar drizzled goat cheese.

        Paella with verdura.

        We had breakfast at um, McDonald’s and found toast with olive oil and tomato. It was delicious.

        A vendor near the hotel sells chestnuts, corn and roasted sweet potato.

        Cheese!

        Toledo

        Spain

        Climbing up the hill from the train station to the walled city of Toledo it does feel like you’re entering a different world.

        Walls surround much of the city.

        Church of San Andres

        View from La Mezquita

        Walk along the Tajo (Tagus) River

        Santa Maria Cathedral

        Excavated Roman baths

        Cobblestone streets

        Narrow, winding streets

        View of Toledo and the Alcazar

        Alcantara Bridge (originally Roman)

        Porcelain wares

        City at night

        View across the river valley

        So true!


        Cordoba

        Spain

        Córdoba is a city in Andalusia. It was a major Roman city, a center for Jewish learning and a vital Islamic center in the Middle Ages.

        The most famous monument is La Mezquita, an enormous mosque built in 784 A.D. In 1236 it became a Catholic Church.

        Córdoba reminds me of Arizona with orange trees everywhere and sunny skies.

        There are street cats everywhere and these are relaxing on the ruins.

        Ruins of a Roman temple

        La Mezquita

        Inside La Mezquita

        Alfred moving towards the light.

        Famous Anadalusian Jewish women scholars.

        Roman bridge

        Kitchen from a recreated house from the Middle Ages

        Route of the Caliphate

        Spain

        Who can resist a route with a name like this? We’re landing in Madrid, spending a few days there, then taking a train to Toledo and Cordoba where the walking will start. (I am posting the outline of the trip then will fill in with more photos and details as we go.)

        La Ruta del Califato runs from Cordoba to Granada and is also known as the Camino Mozarabe de Santiago. It is a path that “en definitiva, que nos hará, sin duda, un poco más sabios” (a road that will make us without doubt, a little wiser).

        In January the average temperature is predicted to be around 60 during the day and 38 at night. We may do some camping but are aiming to stay in town most evenings.

        • Day one:  Cordoba to Castro del Rio – 39 km.

        Cordoba was founded in 152 BC by the Romans who made it the capitol of Hispania. The famous philosopher Seneca is from this city. Conquered by the Muslims in the 8th century they made it the capitol of their Islamic Emirate and it became a center for learning. The city was captured by King Ferdinand III in 1236 and has been under Spanish rule since.

        Castro del Rio is an ancient town on the banks of the Guadajoz river.

        • Day two:  Castro del Rio to Baena – 20 km.

        Baena is on the Marbella river and is renowned for olive oil and linens. It too was a Roman then Muslim city captured by King Ferdinand. It was on the historic border with the Muslim kingdom of Granada and is famous for its old town and castle.

        • Day three:  Baena to Alcaudete – 24.6 km.

        Alcaudete is famous for its 13th century Calatravo castle and the church of Santa Maria.

        • Day four:  Alcaudete to Alcala Real – 23.7 km.

        Alcala Real is thought to be one of the last places lived in by Neanderthal man. It was also a Roman city and ruled by Muslims. Watchtowers were built against Normans and Vikings. During the Napoleonic Peninsular War in the early 1800’s the upper city was burned. (Setting of part of the Netflix series Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell.)

        • Day five:  Alcala Real to Moclin – 21 km.

        Moclin was the site of a famous battle between Muslims and Christians in 1280.

        • Day six:  Moclin to Pinos Puenta – 16 km.

        Pinos Puenta is the home of the Spanish poet Federico Garcia Lorca: “Three hundred dark roses stain your white shirtfront”.
        The town is also well known for dishes such as migas, gazpacho, bean stews and noodle casseroles or fideos a la cazuela (even “noodle casserole” sounds more delicious in Spanish).

        • Day seven:  Pinos Puenta to Granada – 19 km.

        Granada is home to the Alhambra and will get its very own post.

         

         

         

         

         

        Walks Toward Seward Park

        Seattle, United States, Washington State

        Walking before dawn is like opening a geode; you never know whether the sky will burst into glowing color or a steel grey sky will simply slowly change to a lighter hue.

        Time permitting, my favorite thing to do is head east along the Lake Washington path towards Seward Park and catch the sun rising over Mt. Rainier and a glowing lake.

        Here are some morning walk photos.

        Lights cut through the mist next to the lake.

        Rowers near the Mt. Baker boating center.

        This tree is now gone but graced the curve for years.

        Sunrise on a foggy morning.

        Walking the inner old-growth path.

        Near the marina.

        Glowing lake on the morning of the winter solstice.

        A rare snowy morning.

        Sun through the mist on a fall morning walking the loop around Seward.

        A crow against the rising sun.

        Receding trees

        Spain Trip Photo Gear

        Spain, United States

        In keeping with our goal to do this Spain trip as light as possible I am just taking my iPhone for photos and leaving the bigger camera home.

        Here’s the hardware I’m bringing.

        • The hama tripod is great for uneven surfaces  and the legs can be wrapped around things for greater stability.
        • The jellyfish clamps easily and tightly around most external phone cases then screws on to the tripod.
        • The leef is for external memory storage so I can take a lot of photos then easily upload them onto a computer when one is available.
        • The ztylus lenses I’m not totally sold on.  They do screw into the special phone case which means cleaner edges but so far I haven’t been super impressed with the optical quality of the images. I’m going to bring them to give a bit wider range of options but this is an area where there hopefully will be some improvement.

        In addition to the hardware I’m also using several different photo apps. These are great for pushing the camera to do a little more and for quick post-processing.

        Camera +, Snapseed, SKWRT, Longexpo

        • Camera + has a nice macro feature as well as ISO, exposure speed, white balance and photo processing tools.
        • Snapseed is great for quick post-processing. I especially like the “drama” filter for black and white city scenes. I use the healing tool and the dodge and burn brush tool a lot too for increased image control.
        • SKRWT is a way to get building lines straightened out and to correct for some of the distortion with the iPhone native lens. I’m looking forward to trying this out more.
        • Longexpo easily extends exposure times. I like using it for water and city motion shots. You definitely need to use a tripod with this app. I usually use headphones for a remote shutter too.

        I’ll post periodically during the trip and let you know how the gear is working out. I’d love to hear from you if you have favorite apps or tips on getting the most from your iPhone camera.

         

        Spain

        Spain

        Alfred and I are heading to Spain mid-January. Leo, our elderly dog, is holding down the fort and sleeping in front of the fire.

        Our plan is to fly into Madrid then take a train to Toledo then Cordoba. Once there we start walking along the Route of the Caliphate until we get to Granada. After Granada it’s a bus to Tarifa, the southernmost point of Spain, where we  pick up the E4 trail and the walk really starts.

        Route of the Caliphate

        The E4 is one of the longest walking paths in Europe and covers almost 10,000 km total. The portion in Spain is known as the Gran Recorrido 7 or GR7. This route is 1,900 km, (1,180 miles), long and runs from the southern tip of Spain, Tarifa, to the Pyrenees on the border with France. We are still debating whether to take the southern or northern portion; the southern portion is supposed to be more interesting but it’s also higher and we may run into snow.

        Alfred would like to summit Mulhacen, Spain’s highest peak; we’ll see if I go with him or not on that particular adventure!

        GR7 route in Spain

        Our plan is to do a combination of camping and staying in small hotels. We’re going to go as light as possible with gear; I’m just bringing my iPhone for photos and we’re downloading maps on our phones.

        More on this soon, in the meantime back to studying Spanish with Duolingo!