Colours of Andalucía

My first foray into Andalucía was driven, to some degree, by travel programmes, articles and images of pretty whitewashed villages with a knack of making you feel that everything happened very slowly there. So Inntravel’s Walking the Aracena Sierra holiday seemed to tick all the boxes for me – a real deep dive into the life and culture of Andalucía. 

With a straightforward flight and late evening transfer from Seville, I wasn’t given the usual glimpses of the countryside, so waking up in the classy Hotel Luz the next morning was my first sense of Andalucían hospitality. The hotel was tucked-away in Almonaster: a pretty, clean and classic village, with the church positioned in the centre of life, where the streets are cobbled, shiny and bright. And small squares house smaller businesses, from hairdressers to bakers to tobacconists. The warm welcome from the hotel was replicated in its rich breakfast, and for someone who loves cakes, this was the perfect start to the day.

The walks around Almonaster gave me a real sense of the layers of inhabitation over the centuries and how life has changed little, even if original homes have found new purpose.

 

The walks all hailed to, or from, existing path networks, and the hedgerows just kept on giving, colour upon colour, layer upon layer of prettiness. I immediately recognised delphiniums, gladioli, fuchsia, cornflowers of every colour, Jerusalem sage, thistles, daisies, marigolds, poppies, fennel, cistus rose, French lavender, orchids, borage, camomile, flax and cranesbill – a veritable hedgerow garden centre.
 

The paths led to reflections of those that had gone before, different cultures, religions, status and occupations, all shaping the walls, the buildings and the landscape.

Holm oaks were a new species to me and the evidence of cork harvesting a fascinating glimpse into sustainable practice: cork taken only every nine years and trees passed down the generations, lasting up to 200 years.

Linking Almonaster to Alájar was a long day of more hedgerow havens, a wider range of species, birdsong and the briefest glimpse of vultures! The village of Linares was special in retaining its public laundry and the traditional mosaic stone doormats added a real personal touch to each house.

Alájar for me was the living embodiment of the images I had retained: a rich tapestry of streets, threaded by cobbled roads and pivoted around the church.

 

Hotel Posada San Marcos run by Lucy and Angel combined the simplicity that was becoming so apparent with a real commitment to maintaining the rich culinary heritage, living with what was on offer, working in partnership with local artisans and producers all within the framework of sustainable practices: the saltwater pool was ingenious! 

Here is where I was able to see how, despite modernity, traditional buildings can have new life that still retains their heritage: the hotel was adorned with traditional implements, furniture, tools and a definite passion for representing heritage of rural Spain. Lucy’s cooking was without question a testament to celebrating the best of the region, but with a nod to third generation recipes.

 

Walks out to Los Molinos and Los Madroñeros showed me again and again the heritage of the area with olive growing, milling, goats, pigs and cattle all grazing on the herbs, shrubs and pastures.

And to Aracena for the last two days led me along the riverside, closer to more formal grazing practices with cattle and Iberian black pigs – a 'nosy' breed that made a beeline for the fence as I approached to make their acquaintance, and squealed excitedly as I helped them pick daises to munch. The area was more agrarian and productive – honey chestnuts and pork – all perfectly growing side by side.
 

Aracena came alive with the usual hustle and bustle of a busy market town, beautifully mosaicked streets and public art neatly integrated into the streetscape, but still enough space to soak up the warm sun.

A walk out to the pretty village of Corteconcepción allowed me to sip coffee in the small market square listening to the men discuss local politics whilst playing cards (well my Spanish isn’t that good, but I could get the gist!)