Help Me Ronda

Saturday 7 – Tuesday 10 April – Ronda – we were sad to leave the lake and dam as it had been so peaceful and beautiful there, but we were almost out of water and almost full of the result of that so needs must. We left the dam just before lunch and had another exciting drive through the mountains, taking our time, so that we arrived at Ronda at around 5:30pm. The site was another simple gravel area near the football stadium but had fresh water, waste disposal and good wifi for E10 per night so not too bad.

Ronda is absolutely stunning – a city of two halves, ‘new’ and ancient, each of which sits on a rocky outcrop with a gorge between, bridged by the most beautiful bridge/viaduct. The ‘new’ town is clean, pretty, bright and attractively laid out whilst the old town is like something straight out of Lord of the Rings or Game of Thrones – narrow cobbled streets, huge iron-clad doorways, ancient stone buildings and around every corner a new view of the surrounding plain and mountains.

On Sunday we explored our way through the old town, past the impressive bull ring and steadily down the side of the mountain on a winding path which eventually gave us a fabulous view back up to the viaduct linking the two towns with the buildings and cliffs towering above us. Some young, fit types made their way right down onto the gorge at the foot of the viaduct but we decided once more that discretion was the better part of valour and returned home after a delightful stop for lunch at a tiny restaurant in the old town with a mere 12000 (up and down) steps under our belts. I don’t think I have ever taken so many photos in my life before – proper tourist today!

Monday the shops were open and we decided to have a bit of a browse, partly because there were some lovely little shops selling all kinds of fascinating things you never knew you wanted and partly because we has spotted a dress in a closed shop window on Sunday which we both thought might look a bit special on Sam (she is rather special after all). The shops were lovely, the views were as spectacular as before and the dress was a perfect fit – what more could you ask?  …. Well…. you could ask for another cracking lunch at another lovely little restaurant – so we did – and it was 🙂

Tuesday the heavens opened, the wind went bonkers. After a brief foray into town we retreated to the cosiness of Bessie and battened down the hatches. The site got waterlogged rather quickly so we decided to leave the next day before sinking without a trace.

Namaste

Paul and Sam x