Cultures meet in curious ways in Andalucia
In 1492 the city of Granada was taken from the Moors after being laid siege by Ferdinand and Isabela, the Catholic monarchs.
In this moment, Spain became, nominally at least, a politically unified body for the first time in its history.
The bigger task was to create cultural unity.
The Moors were unique in European history in that they sought to build on rather than destroy what had come before. The great achievement of Moorish Spain was this accumulation and compilation of knowledge.
Without knowing enough to be able to say that everything was rosy for the Christians, the Jews and the Muslims living hand in hand in harmony. They surely didn’t. However, they did all have the right to coexist in Moorish Spain.
After 700 years of this, the population of the Iberian peninsula was completely embedded. This photo of the church roof in the village of Júbar is a dramatic illustration of the point.
The idea that you could simply expel the Jews or expel the Moors is ridiculous.
It’s not as if there were neat demarcations between communities after all those centuries. Traditions and people had mixed. In all honesty, that blend is still apparent today, particularly in Andalucia.
The Alpujarras was the region of Spain which remained culturally diverse for the longest. It fell to a body of 6,000 troops, based in Granada, to patrol the entire region and ensure compliance with the new religious protcols.
That is to say to enforce the exclusivity of Catholic worship.
As you can imagine, it’s pretty hard for such a small force to keep an eye on what people were up to. This apparently is where the habit of hanging hams came from. The troops would basically travel round, hanging ham legs inside churches to make sure that they weren’t being used for Muslim or Jewish services.
This way the soldiers really just had to patrol the ham legs and make sure they were still hanging from the roof in order to ensure at least some level of compliance.
If you would like to take a holiday to Andalucia, call us on 01273 676 712 and we’ll get to work straight away!
The streets of Alajar village high in the Aracena Hills near Seville
Our new Foodie holiday in Andalucia starts in the pretty village of Alajar in the Sierra de Aracena. The village has a population of less than 500 but incredibly there is of choice of has seven restaurants within the village.
Lucy & Angel, the owners of the hotel where you stay in the village, will talk you through each restaurant – this place is great for jamon, this one has the best paella, that sort of thing.
I visited with a friend and we wanted a long leisurely lunch – very Andalucian! Angel recommended a restaurant that he said had everything – great service, food, wine and ambience. It was Saturday afternoon around 15:00 so it was a late lunch even by Spanish standards.
We wandered down the narrow cobbled streets and commented on how quiet the village was. There were a few dogs wandering around but no other sign of life as all of the shops had closed for the afternoon siesta.
We got to the street where Angel had told us to go but couldn’t see any restaurant – it’s a tiny street in a tiny village so a bit surprising. After checking the address I walked back along the street and noticed a small restaurant sign next to a big wooden door. Aha. I opened the big door and was initially shocked by the noise and life behind it.
It was quite surreal to go from the silence of the empty village streets to the noise of big Spanish families all enjoying weekend lunch. There was certainly life behind those doors.
There were no tables free so we sat in the bar area for half an hour or so just soaking up the atmosphere. We ordered some bellota ham and sherry – yes sherry.
My friend was very dubious about having sherry and I know she was suddenly thrown back to the 80s with visions of her granny sipping a glass of Harvey’s, but sherry in this part of the world is something completely different.
A chilled glass of fino or manzanilla is a perfect accompaniment to the jamon. My friend quickly agreed and now sees sherry in a whole new light. We sat at the bar while the owner of the restaurant carefully and slowly carved the belotta for us. We quickly polished it off.
We then moved into the main restaurant area. Angel had recommended, almost insisted, that we go for the pork steak. It is not something I would usually choose as I find pork quite tasteless at times but I went along with the recommendation.
I was asked how I wanted it cooked – rare, medium - which was a surprise as I didn’t know pork came as anything but ‘done’ – but that is possibly because I very rarely, if ever, order pork off a menu.
Anyway, the meat came and I have to say I had no idea pork could taste like that. It was wonderfully tender, surprisingly succulent and was just served as it was without any need for sauces. It was simply delicious. I am getting hungry just thinking about it.
After lunch we went back into the main bar area to pay and the owner insisted on giving us a ‘chupito’ which is basically a post-meal short drink. Not wanting to offend I dutifully drank it but it kept getting re-filled. It took me a while to realise that it would keep on being filled as long as I kept finishing it … so be warned!
We finally left the restaurant around 18:00 so it was indeed a very long leisurely lunch which the Andalucians would be proud of.
If you would like to enjoy a meal at El Padrino as part of our Andalucía Foodie walking holiday or on our Andalucía Inn to Inn walking holiday then call us on 01273 676 712.
Stay in small, sustainable lodgings
We are very excited about our new walking holiday in Andalucia.
It’s a sort of laid back inn to inn with great food. You only move on every other day so the pace is slow and lets you really get the most from the great places you stay.
The accommodation offered on this holiday is all comfortable, not luxurious but charming, characterful and each in a very different but striking location.
Over the course of the holiday you stay in a village, on a farm and out in the countryside on a hill. Each place reflects a different aspect of what makes this area special. Culture, people, food and landscape.
In addition to this, the owners of each place are passionate about protecting the environment.
In Alájar, Lucy & Angel have built the hotel from scratch. The whole hotel is insulated by lamb’s wool and cork. Heating during the winter months and air conditioning during the summer months is all generated by ground source energy.
On the farm the concern for the environment focuses on low-impact living and being as self sufficient as possible. The owners live off their land as much as they can – milk, eggs and cheese come from their own chickens and goats. They also have their own organic allotment.
The final lodge is a complete eco-build. Everything from design through to completion has used processes that are both sustainable and responsible. The vision of the owners was to create maximum comfort using natural and renewable sources. All of the electricity on site is generated by solar power and the property is heated in the winter months by burning ground up olive stones.
All three of the places you stay have their own food sources and are followers of the Slow Food Movement which aims to ensure that food should be as local as possible and prepared in a way that respects the environment, human health, animal welfare and that producers are paid a fair price for their food.
The result is delicious home cooking.
Find out more about our walking holidays in Spain
or about this Andalucia walking holiday.