Visiting Arcos

Veteran's Day found our family visiting nearby Arcos, a city located in southern Spain atop a rocky limestone ridge, known for its "pueblos blancos" (white villages) and stone castle walls. There are some absolutely beautiful views from below as well as atop the ridge! Here are some of the highlights of our trip...


See the castle up on the hillside in the distance? (Just click on the picture for a closer view.) That's where we were headed from down below. What struck me as being rather funny was the fact that these magnificent centuries-old structures were within our view and then we looked to the right and saw the very modern, contemporary new building going up.


Here's a closer view of the castle, which is now the palace of the dukes of Arcos. According to Rick Steves (You know the big-time Travel Chanel dude), te 11th-century Moorish castle is reportedly where Ferdinand and Isabel held Reconquista strategy meetings. Aren't you impressed? We were!


We started at the bottom of the ridge and began the hike to the top. Luckily it was a rather steady uphill grade, nothing too agonizing.


We were probably only a third of the way up the ridge when we stopped to take this photo. The white-washed villages are really quite beautiful.


Orange trees lined the streets as we continued our journey.


This dog was simply sitting on top of a building, watching the world go by.


Narrow streets are certainly the norm here in Spain, but we were AMAZED at how much more narrow they became as we got closer to the top. We couldn't imagine we'd see cars being driven on many of these streets, but they kept coming. At times, we had to duck into doorways to avoid being hit by oncoming traffic.


This is just one of several churches we saw that day.


Of course duty still called as my husband answered emails on his Blackberry, affectionately referred to as "the crackberry" around our house.


We took a photo of a group of folks traveling together, and one of them returned the favor by taking this photo of us.


Hello? Anyone home?


Look at the massive size of these doors!


The architecture is so detailed, isn't it? Makes me wonder just how long it took to build this church.


This is the bell tower of the same church.


Now we're at the top of the ridge and here's the beautiful Church of Santa María located in Plaza de Cabildo, which is the main square in the city. This church was actually built atop a mosque after Arcos was reconquered from the Moors in the 13th century.


Just beyond this arch is an incredible view of the fertile valley near the Guadalete River.


Boys, that's a LONG WAY down!


Wow! Can you imagine having this view from your home every day?


Beautiful countryside, isn't it?


A little different view.


More of the white-washed houses.


This is the top of the castle, which is now in private hands and closed to the public.


Can you imagine living on this cliff? There's even a big crack in the rock down below. Scary!


Here are the boys in their typical "thumbs up" pose.


Just a "normal" pose this time.


Here I am, returning from the surprisingly clean and fully-stocked restroom facility. Peace be with you, friends!


We were told the nuns at one of the local convents make and sell cookies and cupcakes. We went to the window you see here, rang the bell and a nun appeared. We asked for "galletas" (cookies) and she put them on a lazy Susan and turned it around so we could make our choice. We then paid 6 Euros for a box. The boys thought this was really cool.


Here's the box of cookies we chose.


Mmmm... hazelnut cookies!


Muy delicioso!


We did a little shopping in here for postcards and a Spanish welcome tile to hang by our front door. My hubby is paying for our purchases.


This is what we bought.


Beautiful view of the cliffs from below!


See the castle perched on top of the ridge?


We truly enjoyed our day in Arcos and hope to visit again as we've heard the people put on a fabulous live nativity during the Christmas holiday season.