Beautiful Cadiz
In October this year, we had the privilege of visiting some friends in Cadiz. Funny enough, as popular as holidays to Spain are with people from this part of the world, this was our first visit to the Spanish mainland. Our flight was from Dublin to Seville, and Cadiz is about a 90 minute drive. The weather was warm and mostly sunny! We had a day of stormy winds and rain, but it was still mild. The rest of the time it was sunny and good “t-shirt” weather. Not quite warm enough for me to brave a swim though!
We spent all of our visit in the old part of Cadiz. We loved the cobbled streets, charming buildings and bustling squares. It’s very easy to navigate, and there are some beautiful beaches too. We enjoyed La Caleta beach, especially the stunning sunsets each evening. Other highlights included the fish market with some fabulous fresh-as-you-can-get produce, as well as an amazing variety of food stalls around the perimeter. We enjoyed some Empanadas with an Argentinian rugby fan!
A visit to the top of the Torre Tavira is definitely recommended. You can book to view the Camera Obscura but we were unable to do this as the weather was unpredictable. However, the views of Cadiz from the top were gorgeous! You really get a good view of the narrow streets, and all of the old merchant towers.
The Castillo de San Sabastian was a slice of history. Many conscientious objectors were imprisoned here in the 60s and 70s – including some of our brothers – you can watch a short video about them here. There is a plaque as you enter the old fort explaining a little bit about them, and even has a QR code that leads you to the same article.
On one of the evenings we enjoyed a delicious tapas restaurant (Balandro Restaurante) with our hosts which was in a beautiful location and treated us to some amazing food. We were feeling adventurous, so decided to try some of the local delicacies. Red tuna tartar, Tortillas des Camarones, fried Ortiguillas, fried sardines, milk cake…. so many amazing dishes!
A couple of mornings we had brunch at El Cafe de Ana, really good value with a big plate of food, coffee and orange juice. Another great spot for a little glass of the local Moscatel wine is Cafe Royalty. The decor is just beautiful – you feel like you have been transported back to the 1920s.
A humble breakfast that we loved was Mollete bread drizzled with olive oil and then topped with tomato paste and Iberico ham. This is definitely a bread that I am going to try making myself.
Well that was just a quick overview of our visit to Cadiz – we would absolutely love to go again – sun, beaches, and amazing food – what more could you want?!
If you want a bit more of a flavour of Cadiz, have a look at our album below..
