Andalucia: The Rough Guide

INTRODUCTION

Andalucía is the southernmost territory of Spain and the part of the Iberian peninsula that is most quintessentially Spanish. The popular image of Spain as a land of bullfights, flamenco, sherry and ruined castles derives from this spectacularly beautiful region. The influences that have washed over Andalucía since the first paintings were etched on cave walls here more than twenty-five thousand years ago are many – Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Greeks, Romans, Visigoths and Vandals all came and left their mark. And the most influential invaders of all, the Moors, who ruled the region for seven centuries and named it al-Andalus, have left an enduring imprint on Andalucian culture and customs.

The sight and sound of flamenco, when the guitar laments and heels stamp the boards, or cante jondo, Andalucía's blues, as it mournfully pierces the smoke-laden gloom of a backstreet café, also tell you there's something unique about the people here. The Muslim influence on speech and vocabulary, a stoical fatalism in the face of adversity, and an obsession with the drama of death are all facets of the modern Andalucian character. Contrastingly, the andaluces also love nothing more than a party and the colour and sheer energy of the region's countless and legendary fiestas – always in traditional flamenco costume worn with pride – make them among the most exciting in the world. The romerías, wild and semi-religious pilgrimages to honour local saints at country shrines are yet another excuse for a jamboree. And in quieter moments there are few greater pleasures than to join the drinkers at a local bar winding down over a glass of traditional fino (dry sherry from Jerez), while nibbling tapas – Andalucía's great titbit invention.

Few places in the world can boast such a wealth of natural wonders in so compact an area. The mighty Guadalquivir river which crosses and irrigates the region from its source in the Cazorla mountains of Jaén in the northeast, reaches the sea 400 kilometres away at the dune-fringed beaches and marismas of the Coto Doñana National Park, Europe's largest and most important wildlife sanctuary. To the east and towering above Granada, the peaks of the Sierra Nevada include the Spanish peninsula's highest mountain, snowcapped for most of the year, while thirty kilometres away and close to the sweltering beaches, sugar cane thrives. This crop was another contribution to Europe by the Moors, along with oranges, almonds, aubergines, saffron and most of the spices now used to flavour the region's cooking which features an astonishing variety of seafood. Nestling in the folds of the same mountains are the valleys of the Alpujarras, a wildly picturesque region dotted with dozens of mountain villages, many of them little changed since Moorish times. Further east again come the gulch-ridden badlands and lunar landscapes of Almería's deserts, sought out by film-makers and astronomers for the clearest skies in Europe.

On the coast it's easy to despair. Extending to the west of Málaga is the Costa del Sol, Europe's most developed resort area, with its beaches hidden behind a remorseless density of concrete hotels and apartment complexes. But even here the real Andalucía is still to be found if you're prepared to seek it out: go merely a few kilometres inland and you'll encounter the timeless Spain of white villages and wholehearted country fiestas. Travel further, both east and west, along the coast and you'll find some of the best beaches in all Spain, along the Costa de la Luz, near Cádiz, or the Costa de Almería.

Andalucía's sunshine image – projected across the world in advertising campaigns – belies the fact that this is also Spain's poorest region where an economy rooted in near- feudal land ownership (two per cent of the landowners possess fifty per cent of the land area) stifles investment and is the cause of desperate poverty. Rural life is bleak; you soon begin to notice the appalling economic structure of vast absentee-landlord estates, and landless peasants. The andaluz villages saw little economic aid or change during the Franco years, or indeed since, even though the former governing Socialist party has its principal power base here. Tourism in coastal areas has brought some respite to the alarmingly high levels of unemployment, and Spain's growing importance as a member of the European Union promises to speed up progress, but there is still a mighty long way to go.

Mark Ellingham founded Rough Guides in 1982 and has created many of the series new ventures over the years, including The Rough Guide to the Internet, The Rough Guide to World Music, and, only a little ashamedly, The Rough Guide to the Da Vinci Code. 

Geoff Garvey has been captivated by Andalucia since his first visit as a student in the early 1970s. Garvey first visited Crete as a student of ancient history and developed a great affection for the island and its people. He is the coauthor of The Rough Guide to Crete (with John Fisher), The Rough Guide to Andalucia (with Mark Ellingham), and The Rough Guide to Spain 13 (with Jules Brown, Simon Baskett, Greg Ward, and Annelise Sorensen).