CADIZ, SPAIN
Today, we arrived at our first port-of-call, Cadiz in Spain (pronounced Car-dees).
Not having to set the alarm to be up at the crack of dawn was bliss, and even nicer – after enjoying a lesiurely breakfast – to step ashore and feel the ground beneath our feet. I’ve been to Cadiz before, many years ago, and don’t remember it; Tracey has never been here before; our first impressions were good. Last night, we watched Keith Williams’ port lecture on the cabin TV to help give us some pointers, and were encouraged by the fact that Cadiz is actually quite compact, and most of it can be accessed very easily, directly from the ship (so, no shuttle buses required).
One of the first things we came across was a little outdoor market that seemed to be selling some interesting, genuine stuff. We browsed, but decided a closer look later on, before getting back on the ship, would be more appropriate. Who knows – we might even spend some euros…
Our first objective was a Roman amphitheatre, which has only been unearthed in relatively recent years. Unfortunately, as it turns out, it is closed on Mondays.
Our next stop, after the minor disappointment at not being able to see the amphitheatre, was to walk to the city walls, adorned with huge arches and an impressive fountain. There also seemed to be a large number of police cars and policemen hanging around; we’re not sure why, but one of the things that had us double-taking was the fact that, as well as carrying hand guns, one or two were packing what looked like machine guns.
After filming and photographing the city walls and keeping well away from the police, we headed towards the Cathedral, which is huge and super-impressive inside. A hand-held digital guide provided us with information as we walked around, and we particularly enjoyed the crypt, which had a really good echo.
Our general policy of visiting anywhere is; if we see a tower, then it should be climbed. So, we climbed the tower, which was included in our very reasonable ticket price of €20 (€10 each). The bells rang just before we got to the top, and signs told us that they would continue to ring every 15 minutes… and not to ring the bells ourselves. One of the fascinating things about the tower – aside from the impressive, extensive views from the top, was the fact that it didn’t have steps, other than just the very last section. Instead, we were climbing a very long, windy ramp, which – according to Keith in his lecture – was so that the boss man could ride up there on his donkey.
After the cathedral, we went back out onto the coast and walked the long causeway to San Sebastian Fort, which is old and decrepit, and has a tall, modern-looking, metal-built lighthouse protruding up from one of the courtyards. Other than that, there wasn’t very much else to see.
Back on the main land, following the coast road, we came to one of the city’s largest parks. It had some impressively sculpted trees and a large, man-made waterfall, but other than that it felt a bit run down.
Heading back into the narrows streets of the city, we navigated from plaza to plaza, pausing only to buy an ice cream, gravitating back to our starting point. We returned to where we’d seen the interesting market earlier in the day, only to find that it had gone.
Overall, we enjoyed Cadiz, and hope to return some time in the future. It is an attractive city with lots to offer, and one that certainly caters for all tastes. It feels like we only scratched at the surface. And – should we return some day – we’ll spend more time at the little market first, and try not to make it a Monday.
