The morning I was to check out of the convent and into my beach hotel, I had time to kill, and finally found the Torre Tavira - right in the center of town, but so well hidden among the most narrow streets I'd walkd through in the trip (so far at least) that while I'd looked the day before, find it I could not. This time I did, climbed the steps - a bit over 100, easy (-ish) for someone who is willing to climb 200 or 300 for a view.
And I got a view or two:
In the shot below you can see the fortress set off the shore (up center), reachable only by a walk that had to depend on the tides.
What I could not get, because of where the sun was on its daily trip across the sky, was my favorite sight/site in Cadiz, the Cathedral
Well, I GOT it, but couldn't do it justice - a word to the wise if your goal is a good pic of the cathedral, go in the mid-to-late afternoon, when the sun is not blasting down on it.
My new hotel could not have been more different than the convent I'd just left.
The room was the roomiest of any I'd have on this trip. It was comfortable, the wi-fi was good, it featured great buffet breakfasts and a singing chef! But its finest asset was location - a two-minute walk from the beach.
A lovely beach. So much so that I decided to eat at the restaurant on it (you can see it at the very right of the pic above - a mix of whiteness and black. Decent view too:
The waitress was a dolt, but the barkeeper, who was I think also the manager was quite helpful, and I got some wonderful pork. Let's just say the waitstaff brought a knife, but it wasn't necessary, slow cooked and practically falling apart even as I merely looked at it.
The wine was very nice too.
A bit tipsy, I returned to the hotel, took a walk, then slipped back to the beach just before sunset.
The view was not at all hurt by the ancient Roman columns on it. I left before the sun actually set. I was one of the only people watching as it went down - the only ones who stayed longer were the specs in the water - surfers (below), waiting as always for that perfect wave.
Slim pickings tonight, but a nice scene, yes?
The next morning I had a very good breakfast and got out to the beach again, this time just after sunrise. The lights were still lit in the pretty area which houses the Roman ruins.
Every bit as nice as at sunset. The surf was not "up" but a few intrepid surfers were - I wonder, had they spent the night?
and maybe even more so.
I took my time today, walking into the old city via the ancient gate and walls known as the Puerta de Tierra (very close to the hotel, so close that the hotel's name is Monte Puertatierra)
and then went in search of more things Roman, for example, the Roman theatre.
Sadly it was closed for repairs, and looked as though it had been and would be for some time - nice sign, though!
I then went walking through the old town somewhat aimlessly, but did come across the Torre Tavira again - no need for another climb, but here's a look at the ediface
doesn't look as high as the commanding views I saw from it yesterday could lead one to believe.
I walked farther, thinking I'd take the walk out to the fortress in the sea. On my way I saw the back of what seemed to be a very impressive building.
It was! I give you the Gran Teatro Falla - what a beauty!
It is named of course from one of Cadiz's finest, composer Manuel de Falla. I'd love to have seen the interior, but the only performance was a dance concert on the eve of a long-ish train ride to Cordoba, so I sadly passed it up.
From the theatre it was not a long walk to the castello. Here you can see the entrance to the walkway:
I headed out - it's really very pretty, as (the pic just below this one) are looks back toward Cadiz as one strolls along.
Alas, as I approached it I (and I think several of the others who were walking on the pathway) saw that, like the Roman theatre it was closed for restoration. Like the theatre, it looked as if it had been and would be under repair for a long time.
I was quite amused, on the trek back from the shuttered fortress, to see what I can only call "Brighton-upon-Cadiz" -
Seriously, does this not look like the Brighton (UK) pier and buildings? or at least somewhat like it and other Victorian piers along the British coastline?
All that hiking about had made me tired, and also built up an appetite. So when I arrived back at the large square very near my first hotel, the convent, I sat down at a place called Sardinero, ordered swordfish, and liked it very much.
all in all a good day, even if the two places I really wanted to see had been closed.
The next day I had another look at sea and sky at just after sunrise - a lovely, mild morning.
I will never tire of this lovely view:
This was my last full day in Cadiz, and I didn't really bother to make the most of it. I had seen a good bit of the city, and other than having a look inside the Cathedral I simply enjoyed Cadiz.
Above the nave of the Cathedral, below a closer look at its high altar
A very nice place, but falling apart, as is much of Cadiz - the sea and the sea air are eroding, gradually crumbling the limeston that much of the city is made on.
For me the most interesting part of the church was its crypt, for it is here that Manuel de Falla was laid to rest.
Please imagine this on its side - it is in the floor, not on a wall!
When I got out of the cathedral I went to a place I'd been curious about, as it claimed to have the best gelato in Cadiz.
They were right, and when I finished mine I went back inside and told the nice fellow who served me that the claim was justified.
Nothing like having dessert before lunch! I headed back to my hotel, past it in fact as there were a few beachfront restaurants and I wanted to try one. After a brief comedy of errors in which I went to a plzzeria, ordered pizza, only be told that they don't do pizza. At which I left and foune Mirilla, where I had a very tasty lunch with a very pretty view.
my fun menu:
and very tasty pork, with spicy, but not hot, peppers
And, except for another stroll along the beach at sunset, complete with, high above, a crescent moon...
...that was the end of my day, as well as the end of my time in Cadiz. An extremely pleasurable time it was! This place is not pushed by the guidebooks (except for the Rough Guide, thanks the gods of travel for it)
but if you ever find yourself in Southern Spain you could do worse than spend a few days in this lovely, ancient city.
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