A hospital visit

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It’s a very early start today. We have planned a day trip to the twin towns of Úbeda and Baeza, but they are 150 km from Granada. We don’t want to drive in rush hour, but neither do we want to be too late as the Spanish have a horrible habit of shutting up shop to siesta for hours on end in the afternoons so we have to get cracking early!

It’s still dark as we leave the hotel at 7am. There is no daylight saving here! Our rental car, way up the hill from our hotel is still in one piece, that’s a relief. We reluctantly vacate our position on the road fearing that it will be gone when we return. Seriously the ‘public parking in the street may be possible’ should be reported to trade descriptions…it is missing the phrase, ‘but not probable!’ Fortunately I think this is the last place that we will be visiting in the car that does not have proper parking. But I could be wrong!

We climb the steep narrow road (having already ensured we are not doing so at the same time that the bus will be coming down the hill. We know the bus schedule now and, unlike the UK, this bus always runs on time!

Now it’s back down the steep main road to river level. It feels like a roller coaster ride - and not that much fun.

Down at the bottom and we are on the Spanish equivalent of the motorway. It’s pretty busy around the Granada outskirts, much as we had expected, but not too bad at all. My new Spanish friend who said the traffic would be bad at this time has obviously never been in the M25! :-)

I am on map duty and we make the three major road changes required fairly seamlessly. That’s because we are in the right hand side. Something tells me the return journey may not be as easy!

We have arrived in Úbeda. It’s 9am so two hours was not bad. I have managed to find a nice big car park just outside of the narrow streets of the historic old town but not too far for us to walk in. It’s labelled as a car park for motor caravans, but there is provision for car parking too. It’s an easy ten minute walk to the historic centre.

This place is high in the mountains and, for the first time this trip, I’m feeling a tad chilly! Not that I am complaining as I’ve struggled with the heat here.

Our first point of interest is a hospital! Yes, really. Though it’s no longer taking in the sick, but is used as a conference centre. The Hospital De Santiago dates back to 1562 and was ordered to be built by the Bishop of Jaén. It has a majestic facade, a blue topped tower and a cool inner courtyard with fountain.

We are invited inside by a security guard who points to a stairway which is decorated with frescos. We wander upstairs. I try to open a window to take a photograph but there is some serious clanking and it feels like the glass might fall out. Ian is hissing at me to leave it alone! :-)

Now to wander around the pretty narrow streets of the old quarter. There are a number of impressive churches built in the baroque style and some leafy squares to rest a while. In one of the squares, Plaza de 1 de Mayo, we see the old town hall with its open balcony. From here, local dignatories used to stand to watch victims of the inquisition burn - gruesome!

The Palacio del Dean Ortega, now a hotel, has a long line of classic limousines outside. Unfortunately the main Palacio, usually open to visitors, was covered in scaffolding and sheeting - clearly closed for major refurbishment. I’m sure it will be very nice when it’s finished.

We walk up to the old city walls to admire the vista of miles of neatly planted olive groves. We’ve completed our circuit of the old town so now we return to collect our car and drive on to Baeza, just 10km back down the road and said to be twinned as it also has an old town of baroque style buildings.

Once more, I congratulate myself on locating a car park on the outskirts of town so no frightening rides down the narrow old town streets! There are a number of empty spaces so Ian takes his pick.

Another pretty town and an enjoyable walk. We decide to enjoy a drink in one of the central plazas in our way to the cathedral. The route takes us through an old town gateway, through to the top of the town where the cathedral overlooks a wide plaza and a fountain in the form of a triumphal arch. The walk continues downhill to a 1521 gateway, overlooking another wide plaza and fountain.

A slow walk along the Paseo de la Constitución - a wide tree-lined avenue, flanked by businesses and eateries set in 18th century buildings - followed by a narrow arch through an 11th century Moorish tower, and finishing at the Palacio de Jabalquinto - another gothic facade on an Isabella-era palace.

We’re exhausted and would love to eat, but as usual, our timings don’t coincide with the Spanish so nothing is open! We decide it’s time to return to Granada.

The motorway is fairly clear until we reach Granada with just one hiccup on one spaghetti junction type interchange…we end up heading towards Jaén but it’s an easy recovery by looping all the way around a roundabout. It’s a pretty drive back now that we are driving in daylight. There are lots of olive terraces, mountain tunnels and mountain vistas.

Back around the outskirts of Granada we find ourselves back in the thick of the traffic, but we are familiar with the route so make it back to the hotel in one piece. As suspected our parking spot is gone and we are now even further up the hill and on a narrow section of road at that. Oh well, it’s the best we can do!

A couple of hours siesta and we amble down to the city for our evening meal. The restaurant we had planned won’t start serving till 8pm, an hour away and a little late for us. We comb the streets p, finding it’s the same story nearly everywhere…unless we want fast food snacks (we don’t). Eventually we find a restaurant that will feed us now…the guy takes us through the inside to outdoor seating in the front…unbelievably it’s right next door to the restaurant where we started! Oh well.

Time to head back. The bus is much busier tonight and we are lucky to manage to get the last two seats. It’s our last bus ride here as we will be moving on in the morning. The bus passes our car…it’s still OK, phew. And now to watch a final sunset over the city and the Alhambra!

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