These were only a few of the selections. And the view was even better -
The weather was overcast and drizzly this morning, so we just relaxed until early afternoon before heading out to explore a couple of the nearby Pueblos Blancos - white villages. We took scenic roads that wound through the countryside, occasionally spotting the old Roman watchtowers on hilltops.
The high point of the day was Arcos de la Frontera. John courageously drove up the incredibly narrow streets to the top - to the town square - where we were fortunate to find a place to park (mostly because it's Monday and the weather's iffy). At one point we had to fold in the outside mirrors in order to squeeze through the incredibly narrow street without scraping the buildings on either side. The views at the top were worth it, though.
The patio in the foreground is part of the Parador hotel, which is right on the edge of the cliff - apparently they are having issues as erosion eats at the edge. The views are amazing, but I'd hate to be there during an earthquake.
Not surprisingly, the church is also located on the square -
We decided to pay the modest admission fee and check it out. The church was originally built in the 13th century (when the Spanish retook the city from the Moors) over the mosque that had been there during the Moorish era. According to the signs, it had fallen into disrepair until restoration efforts began in 1960 - they were completed in 1972. There were several beautiful Renaissance altars, especially the high altar:
This was one of the several figures of Mary (not surprising, since this is the Basilica of St. Mary):
An interesting aspect is that the choir is located at the back of the sanctuary, rather than in front of the altar where is usually is located -
Getting back down the hill wasn't quite as tight a fit as getting up, but it was bad enough -
I took this picture through the windshield just before a scooter came roaring up toward us, going the wrong way on a one way street. We noted that he did turn around after squeezing by us.
En route back to Grazalema we again went through a National Forest. As we passed a deer caution sign, John laughed and said they just put up those signs to impress tourists. He was still chuckling when we came upon about half a dozen of them. We pulled over, and John got out to take a few pictures (there was almost no traffic).
They were quick, but he did get a few shots.
They are much smaller than deer at home - they look kind of like mountain goats.
We stopped for lunch at a roadside restaurant where there were lots of diners and no one who spoke English. We've had some great meals at such places, and this one was pretty good. We managed to order paella for me and chicken cutlets and papas fritas for John, and I may have ordered the chicken and fries for me, as well, but knew to say "nada mas" when the waiter seemed to be asking if I were ready for the next course.
Even so, we weren't able to work up a sufficient appetite for the three course dinner that's included with our hotel. I opted for two appetizers (which were substantial - just the salad would have been plenty), and John ordered a sandwich from the lunch menu. We did have dessert, though - my chocolate mousse came in a cute light flower pot -
We find the English translation of the menu amusing at times - tonight we weren't sure about the goldfish filets.
