All posts by chaput@live.com

Spain

Christians and Moors Battle

We awoke early and took the Tram to El Campello, a city approximately 20 minutes away from Alicante.  We went early to attended the beginning of the Moors and Christian festival which started at 7 am. We arrived to find a large crowd of people already lined up along the beach.

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Crowds of people lined up along the beach to watch the reenactment of the Battle

The festival which is held every year to observe the patron saint, the Mare de Déu dels Desemparats. The events are recreated to depict the history of the Moorish occupation of the area between 700 and 1400 AD.

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Dawn with the reenactment of the Christian and Moor battle.

The beginning of the festival includes the reenacted of the arrival of the Moorish army by boat. As they approach the shore of El Campello in a flotilla of boats, torches are lit, cannons fire and musket shots rings out.

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Reenactment of the Moors landing in Spain

When they arrived at the shore, the battle continued on the beach. They fought each other in a choreographed  battle with swords and on horseback. It was truly an exciting and amazing thing to watch.

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Landing on the beach start of moors and Christian reenactment.

We watched the battle for approximately 45 minutes before the reenactment moved along the shoreline to the castle where the next leg of the reenactment begins.

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The king in the reenactment

The Moors and Christians face off at the castle in a long speech in Spanish. Unfortunately, we could not understand what was being said, however, it was very interesting to watch.

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Moor leader speaking to Christians

The reenactment was very well done and spectators would get dressed in the traditional dress to attend the festival.

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A family dressed up for the festival
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People dressed in traditional clothing
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Dressed in traditional clothing for the fiesta

They even had real camels in the reenactment.

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Ray with a camel in background from the Moor Christian festival
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Camels in the Moor Christian Festival

We watched the entire reenactment which was very interesting and enjoyable.

“Adios y que tenga un gran dia”

Spain

Equestrian show in Jerez Spain

We stopped at the “Fundacion Real Escuela Andaluza del Arte Ecuestre” located in Jerez Spain. The equestrian School is known around the world for its “Andalusian Horse Dance” which is an amazing display of  horsemanship and horse skills. The equestrian school has been visited by the king of Spain and is considered the royal equestrian school of Spain.

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Fundacion Real Escuela Andaluza del Arte Ecuestre in Jerez, Spain

We arrived and entered the arena which is fairly large. The arena is well designed and every seat is excellent for viewing the show. We settled into our seats and awaited the show.

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View from our seats in the arena

The show started with an explanation of the  history of the horse and the interaction with man. Then there were eight horseback riders that entered the arena and began a routine with the horses.

The display of horsemanship and abilities was amazing. The horses were spectacular and very well trained completing intricate routines in perfect timing.

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View of the horses from our seats
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Part of the routine of the “dancing horses”

The rider and horse did routines that had the horses “dancing” with exaggerated steps ad jumps by the horses. After the Dancing horse routine, they did a routine with unmounted horses.

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Horse on hind legs doing a hop
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Part of the man and horse display with jumps and bucking part of the show

There was also a horse and buggy routine which demonstrated the precision handling of horse and buggy.

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Wagon section of the show

We enjoyed the show which was approximately 1 1/2 hours long. The show was unique and well worth te time to go and see.

“adios y que tenga un grand dia”

Spain

A walk along the river in Cuenca

We took a walk down the old streets in Cuenca and found ourselves along a pathway which brought us down towards a river.

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Pathway downwards toward the river

The path brought us to the river’s edge where a trail followed the riverbank throughout the city. We took the path and enjoyed a nice walk along the Júcar and Huécar rivers.

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Path along the river in Cuenca, Spain

We headed down the trail and admired the different views. Stopping along the way to take photos and enjoy the moment.

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Louise taking a moment to take a photo and enjoy the view
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Trail along the river edge in Cuenca, Spain
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Buildings along the edge of the cliffs of Cuenca

As we walked along the path we came across some of the buildings perched precariously on the cliffs. It is amazing that these buildings have withstood the test of time.

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Building on the edge of the cliff in Cuenca
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View of building on edge of cliff from the river bank in Cuenca
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Shelley, Louise, and Brad on the path in Cuenca Spain

We walked approximately 3 hours all along the walkway. We saw some beautiful scenery and amazing buildings perched precariously on the cliffs of Cuenca.

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View along the walkway in Cuenca
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Buildings on the edge of the cliffs in Cuenca

We came across some buildings which had sewer pipes exposed down the side of the cliffs which connected with the main sewer system.

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sewer plumbing exposed on the outside of the cliffs of Cuenca

Along the way, we enjoyed the sights and sounds which almost made you forget that you were in the heart of the City of Cuenca.

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View along the walkway in Cuenca

The walk along the pathway was very enjoyable, the sights and sounds were amazing and we had a wonderful time.

“adios y que tenga un gran dia”

 

Spain

Million Dollar View for Dinner

We decided to go to a restaurant in Cuenca for dinner. We headed to a quaint small restaurant that was located in the old quarter of Cuenca called “Posada de San Jose”.  The entrance was in an unassuming hotel lobby. We entered and went down a set of stairs to a lower lobby area.

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Lobby area of the restaurant

We went through the room to the next doorway which brought us to the little quaint restaurant area.

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Restaurant area with inside seating

We asked for a table outside and she indicated we could sit anywhere outside. We went to the small balcony which hangs above the cliffs of Cuenca. We found the perfect seats for our dinner overlooking the Cuenca valley and mountains.

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Shelley, Louise, and Brad enjoying the great view at the restaurant in Cuenca Spain

We enjoyed a wonderful meal with great views in a historical building on the cliffs in Cuenca.

“adios y que tenga un gran dia”

Spain

The city of Cuenca, Spain

We went to Cuenca to visit this unique and quaint city. It is known for its long history and unique buildings and is classified as a UNESCO world site. The city was built as a defensive city in the Caliphate mountains by the Moors. Cuenca is unique because it is a well-preserved medieval fortified city. It is also known for its “casas colgadas”  (hanging Houses) built on the sheer cliffs that overlook the Huecar river.

We went to the local tourism office and spoke to the clerk who suggested we take a taxi to the top of the city and walk down the medieval old quarter of Cuenca.

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View from the mountain in Cuenca Spain

We arrived at the top of the city at the parking lot of the Castilo and took in the breath-taking views.

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Cliffs of Cuenca Spain
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Ray, Brad, Louise, and Shelley at the top of the Castillo Parking lot in Cuenca, Spain

We walked slowly down the steep cobble-stoned streets working our way through the amazing city.

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View of the old section of Cuenca Spain
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View of the buildings on the cliffs of Cuenca Spain

Along the route, we came across a side path that went under the roadway that was beautiful.

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Path leading under the roadway in Cuenca

The view from the path provided a stunning view of the Cuenca valley.

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Path in Cuenca Spain
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View of the valley in Cuenca Spain

After taking a break and looking at the beautiful vistas, we headed back down the streets of Cuenca towards the central Plaza de Mayor.

There were 11-century old buildings  along the way, some of which were  built on the sheer edge of the cliffs of Cuenca.

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Building on the cliff edge in Cuenca Spain
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Hanging house in Cuenca Spain

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We arrived at the busy Plaza de Mayor which is the main square in the old medieval section of Cuenca. There were numerous  restaurants and coffee shops in the square.

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A partial view of the Plaza Mayor of Cuenca

We decided to take a break and have some snacks and refreshments before heading on to explore more of the city of Cuenca. The city of Cuenca has so many amazing sites and unique things that we will do several blog post on it. Below is a video capturing some of the amazing sites of Cuenca.

“adios y que tenga un gran dia”