Ronda
is one of the white villages of Andalucia. It was originally established
during Moorish times, and because of its strategic location (on
top of an amazing cliffs) it was one of the last strongholds fall
into Christian hands in 1485. The cliffs are not only strategic,
but also startlingly beautiful. They were made famous by Hemingway's"For
Whom the Bell Tolls", where local residents clubbed a group
of fascists and threw them off the cliffs to meet certain death
below (based on a real incident only the actual event involved
townspeople and a gang of thieves). The mountains of the Sierra
de las Nieves are close by, so its a great place for hiking and
biking (as long as you don't mind steep hills). The town is famous
for its bullfighting and oxtail stew, as well as being old stomping
grounds of Hemingway and Orson Wells. The town is not
famous for its Arab Baths, which on a very cold day we
discovered were only ruins. The Arabs took their bath culture
with them 600 years ago. Despite the poor bathing opportunities,
Ronda is great and I would go back to it in a heartbeat.
Me during a brief moment of sun. Ronda was
higher up in the mountains, thus pretty cold. Not exactly the
sunny Spain I had heard about (note had, scarf, and jacket over
sweater). But hey, it sure beats Alaska at Christmas.
The bridge connecting old Ronda (the Moorish
settlement), with new. As you can imagine, a fall off these
cliffs would hurt.
A very scenic walk runs along the cliff's
edge of Ronda with several different view spots, like this pagoda.
There was a very famous Japanese artist who also camped out
in Ronda for awhile, but I forgot who that was.
A view from town. Very scenic and lots of
walking, hiking, biking opportunities available.
Looking at Ronda from across the way.
This lower bridge is the 2nd of 3 bridges
that connect old Ronda with new.
Why they call it a white village (duh -
my caption writing abilities must be off)
This tile is as best as I can get of an
aerial shot of town. Gives you a bit of an idea of the town's
layout. I hope. Arab size is on the right, new Spanish side
is on the left.
I thought the light on the
roofs looked very cool, although in retrospect, I think you
had to be there.
Outside of the Plaza Del Torros, in the
center of town of course
If you made it this far, you get to see a really dorky
picture of me. This was taken at one of the coolest hotels I've ever
stayed in. Not only was the decor funky, but they had an free bar, self-service
espresso machine & beverage area, all-you-can-eat breakfast that
lasted until noon, sauna, pool room and a mini tropical garden. If you
ever make it to Ronda, stay at En Frente de Arte. Its a bit more expensive
than other hotels, but I figured with the free bar, we saved LOTS of
money every day we stayed there :)
