Subject: Report #111 Cadiz, Spain April 20, 2016 Wednesday Chance of rain & 60 degrees Part #1 of 3 86 Pictures
Cadiz is located on the Atlantic coast outside of the Mediterranean, past the Rock of Gibraltar. Cadiz has been the home port of the Spanish Navy since the 18th century. Founded by the Phoenicians about 1100 BC, Cadiz would become the base of the Med and Atlantic trade route of all time.
Muslim rule reigned in 711 with the Islamic conquest of the peninsula. King Alphonso X ousted the Moors in 1265, and eventually the city came under the Crown of Castile in 1493. The city flourished in the 16th century due to the trade with the New World. At that time, the House of Trade had moved from Seville to Cadiz in 1717, giving them a monopoly with the Americas. The first Spanish Constitution was drafted in 1812.
Cadiz is currently a major tourist destination these days, and that is why we have been here many times over the years. And have enjoyed what the city offers, as well as the outlying areas. Some of these tours are still available such as A Taste of Cadiz for 4 hours at $85. Or Cadiz, Sherry, and Horses with a visit to the Andalusian School of Equestrian Arts for 5 hours at $85. You can take a Walk through Cadiz with a Flamenco Dance for 3 ½ hours for $95. If you want to get out of town, you can see the White Villages and Countryside for 5 hours at $80, or Go to Seville for 8 hours, costing $200. A little closer to home, you can visit Los Alburajus farm and Country Estate for 4 hours for $220.
Not alone in the harbor, we shared berths with MSC Splendida, a 4 star ship built in 2009. She is big, at 137,936 gross ton, and has 3900 passengers, mostly European. Also in port was the Aidablu, a smaller vessel, 4 stars, built in 2010. She is 71,100 gross ton, and holds mainly German-speaking families for "no frills" sailing (no ties, jackets, or formal evenings).
We chose to stay in town, do a whole lot of walking, and site-seeing on our own. If we were lucky enough to find the pizzeria we went to last year, we will have lunch. So we left the ship by 10am dressed in long jeans for the first time this entire cruise,, and headed right across the road to the Plaza San Juan de Dios Square, past the old tobacco factory from 1741, which now serves as the Congress building. Walking past shops that were still closed, we found the Plaza de la Cathedral, where the Baroque Cathedral sits proudly overlooking the city.
We took a quick look in the Cathedral, which we have toured every nook and cranny over the years. Now they charge a fee to go inside, although, we did it on an organized tours, so it may have always been that way.
From here, we headed uphill until we came out on the Atlantic Ocean side. There is one long stretch of old city sea walls on this coastline with the ocean water far below, where the surf crashes on the rocks. It has artificial square blocks of concrete that help protect the old wall from erosion from the wind and surf. Living in and among these huge manmade rocks are feral cats. Someone has seen fit to provide some boxes for shelter and bowls for food and water. We suspect these cats serve a purpose by keeping the rat population down. Must be working, because they seem fat and healthy. It is also springtime and possibly mating season, since we saw some pretty frisky males chasing the females.
We reached Playa de la Caleta, one of the beaches in Cadiz. There is the remains of La Palma Spa, which must have some history involved, but nothing was in writing. There is a large area of sandy beach here, and we know from previous visits, that the locals crowd this beach when the weather is nice.
There is a long stretch of road that goes out to San Sebastian Castle, located out in the water. Today there is a lighthouse, and possibly a restaurant. Opposite this castle are the Orphanage and the former Mora Hospital.
To protect the San Sebastian Castle, another fortress was built called the Santa Catalina Castle constructed in the 13th century. It was open to the public, so we strolled through there. We found the restrooms to be quite adequate and clean, as well as a well-done display of recent refugee migration from Eastern Europe in 2015.
Close to here was the Genoves Park, a botanical garden, also open to the public. The garden paths were mostly sand, and very wet with puddles from recent rain. Being careful, we navigated around the muddy parts to see the mature trees and fountains of this lovely garden. There is a pigeon coup, which was usually being cleaned when we were here. But then, last year, we were here on a weekend, not on a Wednesday. The coup was locked, but full of pigeons. Once they fly back from wherever they are released, they come back here for shelter, food and water.
Continuing on, we passed the La Candaleria Bastion, which now looks like an artist museum. Across the street, the Nuestra senora del Carmen Church faced the bay. The monument of the Marquessa of Comilla is in a bayside garden here.
It was getting close to lunchtime, so we headed across the main road, and went uphill to the plaza San Antonio. The largest structure in this plaza is the San Antonio Church. That's when we heard loud thunder and knew rain was coming soon. There was no more warning than that, when the rain began coming down hard. Good thing we had the umbrellas. Usually we end up packing them all day for nothing, but today it was a good call.
Following the map which we brought with us from last year (for free by the way, now 1 euro), we still ended up turning the wrong way to find our favorite little hidden restaurant. These streets can be confusing, since it is hard to find names of them, and the lanes are narrow with tall buildings close together. We believe they are deliberately designed in ancient times to confuse the enemy. Sure works for one of us. Anyway, we were on the right street, and as soon as we turned back, we found Calle Rosario and the restaurant in minutes. Bad news was that they were not open yet. Worse news, was that it was raining hard by now. For some reason (could be one of us was crying?), the owner opened the door, and invited us inside, explaining that the ovens were not hot enough yet, but we were welcomed to wait and have a drink. Sounded good to us, and the wait was only 20 minutes. And worth it. We ordered two beers, one margherita and one jamon ham pizza. They measured about 14 inches in diameter and were only 4 Euro each. Beers were only 2.50 Euro…..good deal for all. We even added a dessert plate of sliced chocolate wafer cookies with a drizzle of chocolate sauce.
As we dined at a table by the window, many locals stopped and stared, checking out the pies. Some came inside to also get out the rain, which came down hard at times. Even by the time we left the pizzeria, the rain was still falling, but lightly. We were so close to the oldest covered market in all of Spain, we decided to check it out. Most of the fish and produce were gone by now, but we did find some langostino, sardines, and assorted produce. Heo and Greg had actually purchased some shellfish, along with fresh veggies, brought them to a willing restaurant nearby, and asked them to cook the food for them. They said OK, charging them 8 Euro each for the service. They said it was the best lunch of the trip, as all of the food was grilled over coals. Nice memories for them.
Our time was running out……all aboard was 4:30pm, although that did not happen due to late tours. At least the rain had let up, and we would have a cool, but almost dry sail away. The festivities were all set on deck eight aft, but there were few people there. Henk, the Hotel Manager, came back and visited with us for a while. He seemed to be quite pleased that the trip is coming to an end, since he and Christel will be going home to Holland in less than 10 days, and be off for a couple of months.
As the days wind down, there will be Mariner member brunches, a cocktail party, and some special dinners, as well as a Grand Buffet. Wonder if we will get the commemorative Delft plate for the 2016 world cruise? The last two years they have been incorrectly done, with last year's having to be totally replaced. That must have set them back a few bucks, since the plates had to be mailed to our homes.
The Amsterdam finally left the harbor by 6pm, right after the MSC Splendida sailed away. The rain began again, so we retreated to deck seven aft until we were out to sea, getting some good photos of where we had walked all day. Love this stop, even though we have been here numerous times. Over in a different area of the harbor, we could see two more cruise ships docked. One was the Mein Schiff 3, another German-speaking ship at 99,300 gross ton vessel with 2790 passengers, built in 2014. Next to her was the Semester at Sea, a learning ship not in the Berlitz book.
Dinner was dubbed "Fiesta Espana" with black lace Spanish fans for the ladies and the rice or bean-filled wooden cucaraches(?) for the fellows. Martha collected several of each to take home to Bob and Hannah. The menu choices were diverse, which really means, they appear to be cleaning out the pantry. One entrée that we have never seen before was beef tongue. Some of our tablemates ordered it just to say they have tried it. Only Martha admitted it was tender and tasty, as she eats it at home often. One of us ordered the alternate roasted chicken entrée, which is always good, and the other ordered a large Caesar salad with a sliced chicken breast, not on the menu as such, but always available. Our waiters are quite accommodating when it comes to mix and match.
Captain Mercer said the next few days may have some showers and slightly rough seas, but he feels the crossing should be OK weather-wise. Hope he is correct, because last year we had a gray, rainy, and depressing crossing. Not a way we wished to end the cruise.
A good thing was that the clocks went back one hour tonight. We all needed it.
Bill & Mary Ann
Another ship arrived to the harbor….MSC Splendida, 137,936 gross tons, 3900 passengers, mostly European
You think it will rain?
Here comes the third ship…Aidablu, 71,100 gross tons, 2500 German-speaking passengers (no frills cruise)
Love the lips and the eyeball
Docked right in the center of town
The pilot boat
A huge parking lot
The terminal building
Gangway belongs to the port
The terminal building
Amsterdam docked
Petunia flower bed
Interesting statue on the building
Plaza San Juan de Dios
City Hall
The start of our walk
City Hall
Pillar of flowers
Walking towards the Cathedral
Narrow cobblestone streets
Designer shirts
The Baroque Cathedral
A glimpse inside the Cathedral
Santiago Church
Heading up the street
Rounding the corner of the Cathedral
The Atlantic Ocean
Turning right on the ocean wall
Feral cats down below the wall
Pretty cat
The clouds were moving in
Streets still wet from early morning rains
Kitty city
View of the Cathedral from the Atlantic side
Old walls of the city
Rough surf
The long road to the San Sebastian Castle
A commemorative bust
Santa Catalina Castle
Portal to San Sebastian Castle
The La Palma Spa on Playa de la Caleta
Lighthouse on San Sebastian
Fishing boats stranded at low tide near Santa Catalina Castle
Young ladies near the beach
Waterfront plaza
Old fishermen tending their boats
Time for a break
The La Palma Spa from the beach
Inpenetrable walls of the fort
Entrance to the Castle
The story behind the Castle
Very old
The chapel inside the castle
Central space of the fort
The chapel
Up on the bastions
View from the fort (castle)
A lookout
San Sebastian Castle and lighthouse
Another view from the fort
Center of the fort
Going all the way around
A few fishing boats off of the San Sebastian Castle
Steep, unclimbable rock walls
Low tide
The chapel
Lawn art
Genoves Park entrance
Opened early
Sandy paths were very muddy
A walk in the gardens
Palms
Mature trees
Fountain and waterfalls
Large domestic ducks
Flowering tree….the name began with Erythrina
Muddy puddles
The pigeon coup was locked up today
A garden statue
Unusual fountains
Tree-lined benches
Garden trees and shrubs were all identified
Our oceanside walk continued
Deep blue waters of the Atlantic
