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Andalusia or Andalucía?

The autonomous region of Andalusia (Andalucía in Spanish) is in the southern part of Spain. It spans from Atlantic coast in the west to the sheltered coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the east and from Málaga's Costa del Sol to the borders of Castilla – La Mancha the famous flat lands and Don Quixote windmill country.  With an average of 300 plus days of sunshine a year the coastal area is an all year round destination. Not so in the inland provinces of Cordoba, Jaen and Sevilla which ha ve baking hot summers that can reach +40c and cold winters which can be 0c or less overnight. The Mezquita, Córdoba Andalusia is divided into eight provinces, each with a provincial city of the same name. Some of them are far more famous than others: Almería , Cádiz, Córdoba, Granada, Huelva, Jaén, Málaga and Sevilla. The three land-locked provinces are Córdoba, Jaé n and Sevilla, the rest are coastal. Each province and city is full of culture, history, traditions, fabulous monuments and cre...

Paradors of Andalucia With Wonderful Views in Classic Buildings

Top Two in my Top Five Paradors of Andalucia

The first Parador I saw spoilt me forever. Dimly-lit corridors, suits of armour lurking in cornices and a ginormous 40 metre high vaulted ceiling with comfy sofas and log fires, I wanted to move in.








No other Parador I´ve seen (so far) comes near and the modern ones don´t even enter the equation.

My first experience? The Parador de Santa Catalina in Jaén, a reconstruction of an Arabic fortress, next to the ruins of a castle. Also the walkway along the narrow hill of Santa Catalina with three-way views and a huge white cross at the end marking the winning of another strategic post, by The Catholic Kings, from the Moors, is magnificent.



I visited some awful low-built modern blocks and then found The Parador de Ronda, another fall-in-love-with setting but less exciting building, which comes second in my Top Five Paradors in Andalucia list.


You can imagine the views from being perched atop the rocky outcrop, another breathtaking moment of sheer sighs.

To be continued.... next three in top five.

Carmona
Granada
Úbeda

But in what order?

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