Lunch and a Castle in Cadiz

My husband is the spontaneous one in our family. I approach traveling like a task: plan a trip, pack snacks and diapers, prep the kids with good naps or early bedtimes, prepare myself with good walking shoes and right attitude, and then hope for the best. My husband, on the other hand, skips most of these steps and saves us a tremendous amount of time--and usually makes things a lot more fun! Last Sunday, we had the day free but no plans because the weather was rather ominous. So it surprised me when, on the way to church, he asked, "Do you want to drive over to Cadiz for lunch?" Cadiz is only about 30 minutes from base, but we had not been there before and we were all in church clothes. Usually the only thing we do after church is have lunch and then take naps, so this would certainly be a departure from our routine. But it would be perfect timing for Spanish lunchtime (around 2 PM) and I had been dying to get over to Cadiz and explore a bit. So we stopped by the house after church, grabbed some snacks, a guide book, and a gps, and off we went!
The city's name apparently comes from a Phonecian word meaning 'walled stronghold,' which was later perverted by Greek pronunciation. There is an accent over the a (which I haven't learned to do on my computer yet) so that vowel is drawn out, and the locals pronounce the z like a -th. So it sounds more like Caaaadith. The first time I heard it, I thought they were talking about the capital of Wales! Cadiz is a city built on a small peninsula, across the bay from Rota. So you can either get there by ferry, or drive around by land taking the one main bridge that leads into the city. (We took the land route as it was a cloudy windy day). It is one of the oldest continuously-inhabited cities in Europe-- originally founded by the Phoenicians 3,000 years ago! It was then taken over by the Greeks, Carthaginians, Romans, then the Moors, then finally the Spanish. It continued to be an important port and trading city for each of those periods, so it is full of history and interesting buildings, all of which are built upon layers of other civilizations. The old part of the city is still surrounded by a huge wall built in the 18th century. The road led us directly through the wall, which the kids thought was cool. The enormous complex that dominates the skyline is the Cathedral, which we will have to come back and visit another day.

The guidebook had several recommendations for good, affordable tapas bars, and we thought tapas (little plates with small portions of varied and flavorful appetizers) would make a great lunch. So we typed the address into the gps, and found a parking lot just a few blocks away, on the Southwest/Ocean side of the city, the farthest side from Rota. Unfortunately, the recommended restaurant was just a tiny bar, with no tables, just barely enough room for the many patrons to stand at the bar and grab their coffee or tapas. Not exactly ideal for children. So we walked another block or so, watched the restaurants open up for lunch, and found one on a quiet side street that ended at a beautiful tiny church--Senora de la Palma, an 18th century Baroque church. Either because of the bad economy, or because of our 'early timing' (it was about 1:30 PM), we were the only patrons there! We settled in, gave the kids some of their crackers, and ordered some salad and starters. Everyone was hungry! Danny loved caprese salad (tomatoes and mozzarella cheese), and Alex finished a whole plate of chicken croquettes by himself, while Sophie's favorite was the bread.

Dan and I thought this was a good opportunity to try something new, so we ordered a half portion of sardines in vinegar. I had never tried anchovies before. These were good, a little fishy and VERY bitter from the vinegar. I probably would have preferred them lightly fried, which is another popular way to eat them here. But hey, now I know! We decided to share the house special, which was grilled fish. They asked if I wanted it whole or opened, and I figured the cleaner the better. So you can see the left the head and tail on, but gutted and cleaned it, then opened it up and grilled it flat. It made it a lot easier to pick out the bones! It was served with a simple 'salsa' of fresh chopped peppers, onions, corn, and of course olive oil. It was very Spanish--simple fresh ingredients combined to compliment the natural taste. Delicioso!

 After our stupendous and relaxing meal, we realized there was no hope of salvaging naptime, but the kids seemed pretty pleasant and content, so we might as well do some walking and exploring until they hit the wall of exhaustion. We knew from our maps that there was a castle on the point, which was easy to find--just walk toward the beach, then follow it North until you come across a gigantic castle! We meandered through some beautiful quaint streets, lined with flower pots and boxes. Each resident maintained their own, so there were a variety of colors and styles, but they almost all contained blooming geraniums, which really livened up the street on a day that as becoming increasingly gray.

We walked along the beach sidewalk until we came to the Castillo Santa Catalina--a star-shaped fort built in the 17th century (1690's) to defend the Northern side of Cadiz. We walked right across the moat on what is now a permanent bridge through the only door into the castle. It was open, and admission was free, because it is now used as an art exhibition center. The kids thought it was pretty cool to walk across a moat and into the castle! The walls, turrets, and interior buildings are all still intact. The 'stones' used to build it all are actually blocks of coral, which were mined from the reefs just off the coast. Once inside the gate, we walked into the open sandy courtyard. The kids were confused, since they expected to enter an actual building when they went into a castle. I know I felt that way the first time I visited one too! I explained that the courtyard was where all the horses could gather and the knights could practice with their swords, which of course Danny thought was amazing. :-)

 The courtyard was dominated by two things: first, the chapel, which was built in the 1790's... and secondly, by several very modern statues which are part of the art exhibition. The chapel made me laugh, because of course my first thought was that it was in the Mission style popular in Mexico and California. Then of course I realized that it was Spanish style first, before the conquistadors brought that style to the new world! How much of our world view is shaped by our own experiences! Up until now, my only experience with Spanish things have actually been Mexican things, so I need to re-train myself to put Spain before South America in my mind's eye.

Moving through the courtyard, we were then able to walk along the entire length of the castle's walls. It is a star-shaped fort, a defensive style that was very popular in the 17th and 18th century, and can be seen in America in placed like Fort McHenry in Baltimore. Each 'point' of the star had a tiny guard tower from which the entire surrounding ocean could be surveyed. The kids loved running into each one, peeking through the windows, hiding inside, and then jumping out and saying "Peek-a-boo" to Alex. We had so much fun playing a strolling along, enjoying the fresh sea breeze and the gorgeous views of the beach and harbor. Fun fact: this castle and beach actually appear on one of the James Bond movies. I believe it is Die Another Day, the scene where Halle Berry comes out of the water and joins Bond for a mojito. They are supposed to be in Havana, Cuba, but the scene was filmed here! :-)

The views of the city were wonderful. Interesting note: in the picture above, the cluster of trees that is visible on the beach is actually one ENORMOUS tree! It must be hundreds of years old, because its trunk is about 15 feet in diameter, and the branches have swallowed up some of the old posts and fences built to hold them up over the road. We looked for a commemorative plaque explaining the tree's importance, but couldn't find one.
Just as we finished up with the castle, the gray skies got even darker and we started to get a light sprinkling of rain. The kids wanted to go see the other Castle (San Sebastian) which is built on an island off the harbor, but we could tell they were exhausted, so we walked to the car instead. We made it just in time! We all had a sense of satisfaction and contentment: we enjoyed a wonderful afternoon with our family, had a delicious lunch, explored a new city, and survived a day without naps! The kids were a little cranky the next day, but nothing unbearable. Now that we know they can last all day on occasion, a whole new world of travel opportunities is open to us. We can take day trips 1-2 hours away, eat on Spanish time, and meander through historical sites. Excited about new possibilities, but also excited about new reasons to return and explore more of Cadiz another day.