Explore Spain
It isn’t just about the olives
The alternative headline for this piece is 'underneath the arches'; with the emphasis on the plural because there are a lot of arches to walk under in this historic town in the north-east of Aragón region. Anyone arriving in Calaceite and seeing the fields of olive...
Iberian village visit from Calaceite
The hilltop was first occupied by the Iberians in the 5th century BC. They built rectangular stone houses along a central street, protected by walls and towers. Then in the 3rd century BC the settlement was expanded when terraces were constructed on the hillside....
Storage in stone
One of the ever-present sights in the Galician landscape is the hórreo; a type of granary traditionally used to store cereals and others crops. They can be seen in almost every village and in some hamlets every home has its own 'hórreo'. They stand on stilts which...
Bewitching Benasque
There are few better towns for an evening stroll than Benasque. Its historic heart is built from stone and wood. The streets are cool at the height of summer, and the thick walls of homes keep out the cold during winter. Situated towards the end of a long, wide valley...
Morella – high and mighty
Enemy soldiers approaching Morella in centuries past would have trembled at the sight of this fortified town. If they managed to breach the towering walls, then surely the castle on the cone of rock at its centre would prove impregnable. However, despite its fearsome...
Morella’s castle – a climb through the ages
The castle towers over the town, standing on top of the hill that Morella is built on. Impossible to ignore, it demands to be visited. The conical rock formation provided a natural fortress for Bronze and Iron age settlers. It was the Romans, the Visigoths, the Moors...
A walk around the walls
Morella's walls completely encircle the town, measuring some 2.5km in length. These formidable defences are between 10 and 15 metres high and two metres thick. With 10 towers at strategic points, there are seven gates to enter the town. Constructed in the 1300s, the...
The best of nature in the national parks
Spain has 16 national parks – the highest level of protection available in the country. This very important instrument for conservation has been in existence for more than 100 years. The first two 'parques nacionales' were created in 1918 in mountainous areas of...
Spectacular cliffs made of ‘sand’
The highest 'sand' cliffs in Europe can be found on the south coast of Spain, inside the protected area of the Doñana in Huelva province. It is along the Playa de Castilla, between the towns of Matalascañas and Mazagón, that sheer faces rise to heights above 100...
Canyon views at Alcalá del Júcar
It is the dramatic position of Alcalá del Júcar which makes it such an intriguing place to visit. The River Júcar has cut a path through limestone rock, gouging out a wide snaking canyon; the old town stands on an outcrop, high above a meander.It was the Moors who...
Going wild about mountain flowers
Wildflowers provide extraordinary vistas on mountain slopes all over Spain, sparking a rainbow of colours on green hillsides in the spring.I am no botanist and struggle to name almost all of species which excite butterflies and naturalists in equal measure. However, I...
Breathless at Roland’s breach
Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more.Mention of breaches often conjures up images of war and historical events, not least because of the immortal words of Shakespeare's Henry V. And the one on the border between France and Spain is no exception. Roland's...