This is a re-post of a guest post I wrote for GotSaga.com in January. Check out the original article here.
San Ambrosio. My home. What, you've never heard of it? C'mon! At a whopping 400 citizens in a country most people have on their bucket lists but not in their backyard, I guess I understand. San Ambrosio, Andalucia, Spain. It's a place I haven't called home for very long - less than a year actually. But it's a place that has done something to me that I thought would never happen (or at least not for a couple decades) - it's made me want to stop traveling. I have gone from perpetual nomad, commitment-phobe to what I am now: an American ex-pat in Spain who is counting down the days for her visa to come through so she can sign on the dotted line for a >3 year commitment. Yes, I said year.
So what makes this place so magical? I honestly have no idea. But what I do know is that Southern Spain, the coastline of Andalucia, needs to be on everyone's list of places to visit. I kind of cheated with this list, as there aren't actually 5 places you can go in San Ambrosio. But I have only broadened the search area to about a 5 mile radius, so I haven't gone far from home.
The 5 places I would take a visitor in San Ambrosio.
El Palomar de la Breña
El Palomar de la Breña is an old dovecote turned hotel. A dovecote is basically a giant bird house where a breeder keeps doves in holes to harvest them for meat, as message carriers and to collect their shit (literally) for its important role in the production of gunpowder. This particular dovecote is the largest one in the world, though it’s not in production anymore, you can still go back and see the old dovecote (or part of it, at least) as it’s turned into a small museum. It's gigantic. It really is a site to see and the walk down there is spectacular as well with views of the national park, windmills and beautiful farmland. The Palomar hotel is a great place to stay also (and the only hotel actually IN San Ambrosio) and serves the strongest G&T on the planet.
Vejer de la Frontera
The closest town to San Ambrosio is one of the white hilltop towns of Andalucia. You can't get more Spanish culture than what's infused into this tiny Moorish town. Walking up the hills of main street with views out into the valley, the rice paddies and acres of horse breeding farms is just a peek into what this town has to offer. There is a great castle here, a beautiful cathedral and street upon winding Pedestrian Street of shops, tapas restaurants and your typical old man pubs. Being in Vejer will infuse you with Andalucia culture in a way you can't get anywhere else.
The nude beach in Los Caños de Mecca
One of my favorite beaches, for more reasons than one, is the nude beach in Los Caños. All beaches in Spain are nude beaches, technically, with no laws in Spain to make nudity illegal (literally, you can walk down main street Madrid completely naked and you have committed no crime). However, most of your beaches are strictly top-off beaches. Lame! This beach is surrounded on either side by rock cliffs jutting out into the sea, and as such keeps a relatively low profile, even in the high season. Pair the bouncing junk on the beach with a cleverly posted beach bar at the only entrance and it's a match made in heaven.
Friday night Flamenco at Los Majales del Sol
Don't tell anyone I told you this, but every Friday night, there is a private party at the only bar on the road between Los Caños de Mecca and Barbate. A famous local flamenco singer sits on a stool with his guitar and his entourage while dozens of locals flock in, sing, dance and get drunk on Cruzcampo and Sherry. No one speaks English, but don't worry, no one cares that you can't speak Spanish. It's flamenco as it was invented: raw, impulsive and shared with friends.
Horseback Riding
I have the privilege of having access to 22 beautiful Andalucian horses. So if I was answering this "top 5" honestly, it would absolutely include a private guided tour of the Parque Natural de la Breña on board a sturdy and beautiful horse. Andalucia is horse country and everyone in my tiny town at least knows how to ride. Most of the men here have several horses and they treat them much like men do cars in other cultures. Horses here are trophies, they're hobbies, they're life. They are transportation to the bar (when you're too drunk to drive/walk) and they're treated with more respect than most family members. On our ride we will more than likely run into one of the mounted forest guard, one of my neighbors schooling his stallion or a group of youngsters on their way to the pub. Either way, this is the best way to see Andalucia.
So who wants a taste? "El Futon de Abbey" is now accepting reservations through Fall 2011