Four & half hours on a high speed train (says 285 km/hr) whisks me from Barcelona to Cordoba in Andalus. The hilly landscape is a mixture of dry scrub interspursed with vineyards, olive groves & solar farms. Further south there olive & almond plantations that disappear into the distance.
It's a seachange of culture - exchanging urban sophistacation for Moorish charm & orange tree filled streets. The cost of living has been plumeting as we go south so food & drink is less than a quarter what it was in Paris.
Checked into a wondeful hotel - Hospes Palacio del Bailio - a real palace & perfectly situated in the city centre but far enough away from the key tourist area keep its local feel.
It's a seachange of culture - exchanging urban sophistacation for Moorish charm & orange tree filled streets. The cost of living has been plumeting as we go south so food & drink is less than a quarter what it was in Paris.
Checked into a wondeful hotel - Hospes Palacio del Bailio - a real palace & perfectly situated in the city centre but far enough away from the key tourist area keep its local feel.