The Road from Santiago

  In all the tapas bars, on all the hills, in all of Andalucia we happened to bypass this.  We are near Casablanca. Some films could be remade, if skill and sensitivity was deployed. For example, Passport to Pimlico is glorious and deserves a modern audience but the pace is just a little too slow for today.  Casablanca. Touch it and prepare to face the wrath of the film gods. We will by pass Casablanca and have nothing else to say.  We are heading into El Cuervo de Sevilla. When googling El Cuervo de Edgar Alan Poe turned up - so we now know Cuervo means crow.  English wiki is tiny, which is odd for such a large town - 8628 in 2018.    We will need to go to the Spanish page. So, why call it the Crow? Theory 1 - the Crow was a bandit who used to mooch around the play. Theory 2. An innkeeper had a crow that hung round on his shoulder.  Theory 3. The land was granted to the Count of El Cuervo. Theory 4. It is a translation of the name of the nearby p...

  It is going to be a bit of a vibes day. Once we get on the N-4 we can do some nostalgia for what major road ways were like before motroways and why traffic jams are so ‘the good old days.’  Until then we have the Recreo la Parra to look at. The Rec is a recreation centre. It gets 4.8 stars from 34 reviews.  Six months ago Sonia wrote ‘ We celebrated a baptism and had a great time. A very nice place with a pool and delicious, plentiful food. The waiters were very friendly.’ I’m not getting trampoline and ball games sensations here so the Google label may be misleading.  Thais confirms the location with ‘ The first time we celebrated my sister's communion, and a few months ago, my wedding. Both times, my family and I were delighted. Manuel and his entire team work brilliantly; they are friendly and very professional!!! I organized my wedding remotely from Madrid; they made everything very easy, and it ended up being perfect. They're a great team, and having followed ...

  Whoops. Wrong turn, back we go and out into the suburbs of Jerez.   We are going past a restaurante, Tuga by name, and it has 4.9 stars from 678 reviews so I think we really must allowed to indulge a little.  It’s LGBTQ+ friendly.  The website does not seem to be owned by the cafe anymore.  Yesterday Carles wrote ‘Excellent cuisine, with superb product quality and very professional service’.  Emilia reckoned ‘An absolute delight for senses! We were incredibly lucky to be greeted personally by the owner and chef of Tuga - a welcoming and sophisticated gentleman, who also helped us choose the meals. The food is outstanding, so is the atmosphere. We cannot be more impressed and indulged. Thank you!’  We must push on. We are leaving town and crossing a blasted - well, well frazzled, health.  Along a camino de servicio.  All the stuff is going on on the other side of the A4.  Now, this A4 doesn’t have the decency to head out of London ...

  Jerez has a Juan Carlos I avenue, and one for Queen Sofia and an IKEA.  We are going near none of them but never mind. As per, the city has a website.   https://www.jerez.es/   It informs us that this is the Year of Gastronomy in Jerez and today Tootsie is on at the theatre.  Culture trip recommends 10 traditional dishes you must try at least once.   https://theculturetrip.com/europe/spain/articles/10-traditional-dishes-from-jerez-de-la-frontera-you-need-to-try-at-least-once     I am not convinced that they have spent months on this however their are some fun bits. Of  Rabo de Toro they say ‘ Jerez , like every other major city in southern Spain, has put its own stamp on rabo de toro (stewed bull’s tail). The chunks of tail are cooked for at least three hours in water and sherry – in some recipes it’s a dark, sweet oloroso , while others favour a drier version – along with red pepper, onion, celery and garlic (elsewhere in Andalusia red w...

  In we go to Sherry City.  First let us head to the Alcazar.  The Alcazar https://www.turismojerez.com/en/detail-tab/alcazar-de-jerez was built by the Almohads in the 12th and 13th century on the site of an 11th century gaff.  It is a bit of an odd shape but manages a gate on each side leading off to important roads in its 3 kilometres of enclosure.  It got an update in the 17th century, when a Baroque style palace was built.   The top review words are gardens, mosque and pharmacy so here we go. Gardenss - Cliff, three weeks ago, wrote ‘ The Alcázar of Jerez de la Frontera is an impressive 12th-century Almohad fortress. The Arab baths are perfectly preserved and among the most beautiful in all of Andalusia. The mosque, with its original mihrab, is an architectural gem. The gardens are a haven of peace with fountains and lush vegetation. The octagonal tower offers incredible panoramic views of the entire city. The olive oil mill and the Arab pharmacy are a...