We had a wake up call
while on vacation but there was a reason, beginning showers and breakfast so we
could arrive at the dock 0940 for to meet the “Real Fernando”a boat to take us,
plus a horde of people up river and onto two stops inside the National Park of Donana.
We have already loaded the car with
luggage and checked out of the hotel but the car remains in the shaded confines
of the underground garage. There are two stops along the way: Las Salinas
flooded marshes to see the birds and flamingos. Then on to Poblado de La
Plancha a village of ancient huts among the wild pine trees but of course we
are here during the unusual heat wave that is gripping the Iberian Peninsula,
only 100F today. Wednesday is forecasted to only make 93F. Oh well. It was
pretty packed on the boat, seats in the shade were at a premium. Do not leave
for any reason or the old lady over there will collapse with moans of distress
totally ignoring the fact that someone was there a moment ago! A lot of
incredulous looks were exchanged until the lady moved on. We thought it would
be cooler but as we were behind the wheelhouse you could only get a breeze by
hanging over the rail and pretending to take pictures and remember to keep an
eye on that lady because she is ruthless in her quest to get a seat in the
shade!
The first stop was quite short, only 15 or 20 minutes as the landscape and birds were explained to us. There was a salt marsh where it was flooded and the allowed to dry and the water evaporate leaving the salt behind. We have seen these before down in these southern parts of Spain, flamingos like to gather there, but not today. Actually it is very similar to our very own Merritt Island Wildlife Preserve. There was a guy in a flooded ditch area up to his elbows in mud gathering shellfish! This is not actually the protected part of the park. The park was established as a nature reserve in 1969 when the World Wildlife Fund joined the Spanish government to purchase a section of the marshes to protect it. It is in an area of Las Marismas, the delta where the Guadalquivir flows into the Atlantic and was under constant threat by the draining of the marshes, the use of river water for irrigation and of pollution by up river mining and expansion of tourist facilities.( I pulled that off Wikipedia by the way) Now what does that sound like? Our own Everglades face a similar problem from Big Sugar and it will be more than the Everglades that will be impacted if we don’t get a handle on this soon. Back to the story….
The second stop involved a quite lengthy hike around a boardwalk through trees and scrubland to visit an exhibit hut which was so packed with hot sweaty bodies that we hiked right back to the boat long before the horde returned enabled us to reach the bar and have an extremely welcome “cold one” before we set sail again!
We made it back to land by 1:30PM and walked the 3 blocks back to the hotel to retrieve the car and headed out for Arcos de la Frontera but first a quick stop at the Chinese Bazar for a few goodies: toothpaste and a windshield sunshade. Paul refers to the numerous Bazars as the Spanish Walmarts where you can find any and everything. It is only 66K trip today so the late start is not a factor.
We stopped for lunch
at 2:30PM on the outskirts of Arcos for Menu of the Day. The recently
discovered Navigation System took us directly to the Parador even though
mirrors had to be withdrawn to snake through the narrow walkways now carrying
traffic to the Old Town at the top of the cliffs in Arcos. Leaving is projected
to be just as tricky with mirrors withdrawn for the entire ride to the bottom.
We found the last parking spot around the plaza and dragged the bags to the front door all the while hounded by the unofficial parking attendant who wanted his due and gave unsolicited instructions to all of the churches and touristy stops atop the old town plaza adjacent to the Parador. Room 14 was actually up on floor number two.
Time for a siesta before wandering around town to get our bearings. We had our free drinkies on the balcony but the blustery heat winds had blown over a wine glass that shattered on the ceramic tiles and had to be swept up by the barman. This is one of the Pueblos Blancos(old white towns of the south) built on top of a cliff and from the Parador you can see down to the valley and river Guadalete below. Quite dramatic! The cliff dwelling birds are soaring on the thermals just over the railings. Up Up and Away. They are really having fun with it. They are for the most part pigeons and doves and they land and then take of out into the wind with wings and tail feathers spread wide!
We visited several
very cute gift shops and passed the old theater and patio Andalus and Market. We
stopped for refreshment at an outdoor bar next to a convent of cloistered nuns.
They bake cookies and sweets which you can buy at a carousel just inside the
main door. Paul was pooped on by a bird and everyone at the bar congratulated
him and said it meant he was lucky!
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