All my posts this season are “inspired by” a letter of the alphabet!

The Iberian peninsula, so named, it seems, for the River Ebro, which stretches from Cantabria across the North of Spain, to Tarragona.

Look at Spain on a map of the world and it barely signifies. Just as Europe itself is tiny compared to the larger continents, the Iberian peninsula is almost an afterthought of land, stuck on the end, surrounded almost entirely by water. So it is small, in the greater scheme of things. And yet, travelling around the country, you can find the whole world.

So I wanted to pay homage to my adopted country. I’ve struggled for a while to decide how to frame this article. I’m not a travel writer, and would need a book to share all my experiences of working, living and travelling in Spain, and would definitely be incapable of doing it justice. So I wanted to just share a few tidbits of some of the places, by no means all, which have stayed with me, for whatever reason and in no particular order, but which, in my opinion, exemplify the diversity of the country.

There are 17 autonomous communities in Spain and two autonomous cities. Here goes (in Castillian Spanish); Galicia, Asturias, Cantabria, Pais Vasco, Aragón, Cataluña, Comunidad Valenciana, Murcia, Andalucía, Extremadura, Castilla y León, Navarra, La Rioja, Castilla La Mancha, Madrid, and the archipelagos of Baleares and Canarias, which I will talk about in another blog. Phew! Between touring, (shout out to Moving On Theatre Company) and holidays, I have been lucky enough to set foot in all of them, except for the two autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla.

So why don’t we start with beautiful Galicia, one of my favourite regions in Spain. It’s like another country. It has its own language, a beautiful mix of Portuguese and Spanish, with a lilting quality, which when you listen to it, helps you to relax as soon as you arrive. And the landscape is very reminiscent of Cornwall; on the coast rugged cliffs, lots of rain and mist penetrating the atmosphere, so green everywhere, when you can see it! Celtic myths and iconography abound. The people are relaxed, polite, welcoming and non-judgemental. It feels like they have nothing to prove. Why would you have in such a magical place? Hidden gems abound in this territory, like the Castle of Soutomaior. But the jewel in the crown must be Santiago de Compostela. It is said that the cathedral is the final resting place of St James the Apostle, and the Camino de Santiago leads to this sanctuary. Various different routes can lead pilgrims to their destination. But regardless of your religious beliefs of lack thereof, it is a unique experience to approach the Plaza del Obradoiro, with its cathedral and the oldest hotel in Spain, now a Parador. And if you experience it in the rain, even better. The way the stone and cobbles glisten is incomparable.

We cross over to Asturias, land of cider, more Celtic myths, and beautiful coastlines. Although not an official language, Bable is widely spoken in the region, and you can more or less understand what’s going on even if you only speak Castellano. Aside from many small towns, Gijón is a delight, with its enormous city beach and small old town, peppered with sidrerías where you can enjoy watching the bartenders escanciar like there’s no tomorrow.

We move through Cantabria, green hills and valleys, the blue of the sea, the old resorts of the English who landed in Santander, and we come to the Basque Country. We find a warm, welcoming genuine people, whose language is unique. Nobody can really say where Euskera comes from. I learnt a few odd words while touring in the area. There are a lot of Ks and Zs, but the language was beyond my reach. Famous for the system of tapas where you take what you want from plates on the bar, all with toothpicks, and you leave said toothpicks on your plate, take them to the bar and they calculate what you have had and therefore your bill. With a small glass of chacolí, a Basque tapas experience. We see small mountain villages, coastal towns, and the stunning bay of La Concha (The Shell) in San Sebastián, (Donostia). This city is elegant with a distinctly English, almost Georgian feel, think Brighton with a bit more sunshine.

Moving to the Med, although I personally prefer the Atlantic (it moves for a start) sunrise over the Mediterranean is stunning. From Barcelona to further up the coast you can drive for an hour and be in a completely different landscape in the foothills of the Pyrenees, a small town like Berga, in the mountains, built into the rock, clean, crisp and very French. There is even a different kind of Catalan spoken, the closer you get to France. These changes in language, be they influenced by culture, society or geography, are fascinating.

We move down through Castellón to Valencia and Alicante. The name Levante is given to this area, meaning East, the land of the rising sun! Pretty coastlines and small bays, and the coastal motorway one of the busiest in Spain, bringing truckers and tourists alike from all over Europe. The Alicante coastline is one of the prettiest I’ve seen; flowers, bays, clean white sand, extremely blue sea, and apart from certain resort towns, generally unspoilt and not ostentatious. We find picturesque villages giving on to the sea with small unpretentious restaurants in back streets.

Driving through the Valencia area, there is a unique sweetness in the air proceeding from the abundance of fruit and orange trees. Cherry blossom mingles with the scent of the sea as you begin the descent from a hill, it’s sides covered with fruit groves.

Then, Andalucía. Granada is tapas, sea, mountains, history, vibrance and Andalucia itself. As you drive down from Madrid, passing through the province of Jaen, the smell of olives is overwhelming. The vaguely sweet but distinctive aroma comes from all sides, and as you look out, hills upon hills of olive groves stretch for kilometres. It is the main area of olive production and if you stop at a bar and are handed a serving, the size of them is surprising. Enormous yet no less rich for it.

Arriving in Granada, the Sierra Nevada stretches across the top of the city, sheltering its inhabitants, most impressive in a bright Spring light while there is still snow. It is a city full of discoveries, from the vibrant town, the nightlife, to the Alhambra, the Albaicín and then onwards through the province, down to the coast or up to the mountains.

Harmony. The Alhambra provides an intense feeling of peace. The Moorish citadel is an oasis apart from the city, not just another place, but another time, another culture. All the petty worries of your life disappear surrounded by beauty, art, history, and above all, water. Irrigation, fountains, water everywhere, the sound, sight and indeed the physical feeling of the spray and movement cannot be anything other than calming.

Córdoba is a jewel, with its Mosque and patios, and though temperatures reach among the highest in Spain, it’s a must to visit. Maybe don’t go in July!

And what about Extremadura? My first impressions were that it was wild, barren, rural, with an immense sky. I may have been influenced by the film La Familia de Pascual Duarte, from the novel by Camilo José Cela. But it is not as oppressive as it seems in the film. There are reservoirs in the vast areas of unpopulated land, and some beautiful cities, such as Roman Mérida, with its amphitheatre, delightful Plasencia as well as the two province capitals of Cáceres and Badajoz.

The geographical centre of Spain, as well as the capital, is Madrid. Madrid is a mess. And I do mean that in a good way. Majestic buildings and avenues give way to labyrinthine back streets. I’ve always felt the city to be a strange mix of barely organised chaos and noise, and elegance and calm. The city, for me, could almost be described as paradoxical…

Castilla y León; the castle and the lion. I was an Erasmus student in Leon. I didn’t want to go, and if I remember correctly, afterwards I said that I would go back to Spain on holiday, but never to live. Three years later I began my 27 years of living here, so yes, I eat my words. And I thank León for giving me my first experience of living in a foreign country, however bad it seemed at the time! Castilla y León has hidden gems, such as Astorga, very near León, with a population of only around 10,000, and with a Palace designed by Gaudí all of its own! Medieval towns and castles, some immaculately preserved, like Pedraza in the province of Segovia, abound.

Castilla La Mancha, to the south, is, among many other things, Quijote territory; so many small municipalities claiming, rightly or wrongly, that Cervantes based a scene from his masterpiece in their town. Statues, plaques, Calles Cervantes… And all because of the first line of the novel: En un lugar de La Mancha, de cuyo nombre no quiero acordarme… And Cervantes was born and died in the Community of Madrid! But it doesn’t matter, does it? Cervantes was Spanish, was Spain, and belongs not just to the country but to the whole world. So it’s fun to tour the small towns and investigate the scenes from the novel, regardless of the author’s original intentions.

And if we talk about Iberia, let’s not forget Portugal. It is easily accessible from towns like Tui in Galicia, in fact a walk across a bridge over the river Miño. You have to be a little careful of the time as Portugal is on UK time. It seems ridiculous, just be aware of what time you’ve booked a restaurant… Lisbon is a gorgeous city, notable for its trams and flowers! And Cabo da Roca, the most westerly point in Europe, with its rugged Atlantic coastline is a five star excursion.

I wholeheartedly encourage you to look up the places I have mentioned, and many more besides, if you are not already familiar with them, as well as the few words I have written in Spanish… Plus, in the podcast, we mention a few places which I have not repeated here, so have a listen! What I’ve mentioned is the tip of the iceberg… Aragón, Navarra, La Rioja, Murcia, I love you too, and I’m hoping to get to know you better this summer!

Iberia: chaos, beauty, individuality, gastronomy, ancient cultures, many countries in one, diversity of language, traditions, myths and landscapes. Its own history is peppered with changing kingdoms and territories, influences from invading countries, and the result is such a cornucopia (if I am using the word correctly) of culture in the broadest sense that it boggles the mind.

All to be found in one speck on a mapamundi.

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