Las Alpujarras

As you might know Jose and I love spending time at rural houses around the south of Spain. It is one of our favorite ways to travel and see new places and just recently we headed out east to the Alpujarras region for a long weekend. The Alpujarras are a mountainous area dotted with cozy white villages extending from Granada into Almeria. We spent the first few nights in a tiny town called Laroles after crossing the Sierra Nevada and then the last in Trevelez which is the highest village in Spain. We enjoyed hiking, good food and relaxing by the chimney.


Our hike ended up being a bit longer than we had planned but the views were beautiful. Poor Cooper by the end was exhausted. This hike was about 9 kilometers long and wound up through the mountains passing an incredibly old chestnut tree. The weather was just about perfect during our whole trip, warm during the day and cooling off at night.

One of our requirements when we book a rural house is that there be a chimney. Usually the other amenities are quite basic, a small kitchen, bathroom and bedroom but a fireplace is a must. Whenever we move again in the future I am going to look for a house with a chimney. There is nothing like vegging out in front of a fire when it is chilly out. Cooper loved it.

My one beef with this vacation were the windy roads through the mountains, especially the one that took us through the Sierra Nevada to the first pueblo we stayed in. Not only had it snowed recently but in some parts there was only enough room for one car to pass. It got to be a bit nerve-wracking at moments. Then later on to get from one village to another we had to travel on twisty roads which made me a bit car sick. The view of Trevelez (above) was quite beautiful as we drove in on our last afternoon.

One of the other things we enjoy doing when we travel is trying the local or typical food available. Whenever we go to the mountains we know that the food will be hearty. In the Alpujarras we tried migas (fried bread crumbs pictured above), their special type of jamon, fried rabbit, garlic soup and some amazing meat. The food was awesome.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Simple Spanish recipe: Chipirones a la plancha

Image
Ok so I know this picture is a bit blurry and I apologize but it is the final result of my having cooked chipirones a la plancha for the first time. Let me explain, chipirones are small squid and a la plancha means grilled. They are served in an olive oil, parsley and garlic sauce. At first I wasn't sold on the idea of this recipe but believe me, it is pretty awesome and super healthy. It is a really typical tapa that you can order at almost any bar here in the south of Spain. Chipirones a la plancha is usually served on a bed of lettuce or with a small side salad. Yum! Here's the how: First you need the chipirones (small squid that come with the heads and tentacles attached). I can buy them at my local grocery store in the fresh seafood section. I bought a package of 400 grams though the good thing about this recipe is that you can make as much or as little as you like. Allow me to also explain that here in Spain people tend to eat a lot more fish and seafood than...
Read more

La mesa camilla

Image
The mesa camilla is a very Spanish invention (in fact I believe it to be a very southernly Spanish invention). It consists of a table, a heater and a heavy, long tablecloth-like fabric that drapes over the sides. The idea is that you put the heater under the table and when you sit down you put the fabric over you like a blanket. The truth is that it does keep you quite warm. The downside is that once you get up and move, you lose the heat. Since the houses and apartments here in the south of Spain are not created for the cold (no central heating) a mesa camilla can be found almost every where.  We didn't have one last year and survived with blankets, space heaters and flannel pajamas throughout the winter. This year Jose decided we needed to get a mesa camilla. I fought the good fight (since often times they look very similar to the option in the picture above) but we ended up ordering one not too long ago.  Typically the mesa camilla is made of wood and can be stored ...
Read more

Spanish names

Image
Maaaaaaaria, I just met a girl named Maria Hopefully you just read that and sang the song from West Side Story in your head. Let's just say that from what I have experienced here in Spain, people really, really like this name. In fact, there are times when it seems like EVERY woman or girl is named Maria (or Maria de/l something) and though they might go by the second part of their name, their given one is still Maria. People definitely opt for traditional names here, unlike the US where names go through trends.  Recently a friend on Facebook posted a link which contained a GIF  (originally from The Atlantic)  showing the different female names that had been popular in the US since 1960. It is interesting to see how a name like Jennifer would be popular in one region and then would sweep the nation. Such a map would not be as cool here in Spain since not a whole lot would change. Maria. Maria del Carmen. Miriam. Marian. Mirian. Variations on a theme. Religious...
Read more