Andalucia Day 31 Ubrique and flamenco

As part of the days of tourism Arcos has organised free guided visits to the castle which is private and usually closed. There's nothing left of the original castle what with battles and earthquakes through the centuries but it's nice to see the inner patio and there's a splendid Mirador. We are not the only ones queuing outside in the warm October sun.

After, we set off by car to Ubrique,

another pueblo blanco with a small historical centre of winding narrow streets right against the cliff and a sprawling modern part with lots of shops selling leather goods.

There are some picture postcard corners but somehow we are unimpressed and after a quick picnic in the park we set off on the old Roman road towards Benaocaz.

The track is very well conserved and must be a very pleasant walk first thing in the morning, a bit hot at two o'clock in the afternoon when we are usually dozing on a bench somewhere. But, there's a cool breeze occasionally, so we persist upwards. The landscape is quite bare, rocky with some green  cork and holm oak trees  There's a difference in height of about 400m, we meet a few people going in the opposite direction downhill but after about an hour and a half we reach Benaocaz.

It is white, small and seems absolutely deserted. Magical. Magical until we come upon the main square where there are 5 or 6 bars absolutely packed with people eating and drinking. We contemplate a free table still scattered with glasses and dirty napkins and decide it's a better idea to walk back to Ubrique for coffee.

Downhill is a lot better, first of all because it's downhill and the fresh breeze is towards us and very pleasant. When we arrive in Ubrique it's ten to five and the band is playing to announce the start of a bullfight starring new young bullfighters. We had seen the posters before. Since they are unknown and it's just a very local event the entry fee is just 10€.

In the end we decide to go in. The bullring is half full, most people sitting in the shade. To see the first bull killed is traumatic, the first torero isn't very good, gets under the bull's horns and is carried off to the ambulance, the bull itself undoubtedly suffers before dying. After that the toreros are better, there's a strong sense of ritual, undoubtedly it takes courage to do what they do.

Three of the four bullfighters we stop to see end up on the ground in front of the bull. Impossible to pass judgement, I'm glad we went to see what actually happens but would probably not go again.

We drive back to Arcos as the sun is setting and have a quick supper.

In the evening as part of the Tourism days there's a flamenco exhibition just up the road from where we're staying. 

I have never been particularly interested in bullfighting or flamenco despite being attracted by Andalusia and while my feelings about bullfighting remain ambiguous, we were captivated by the flamenco, the power, force, sheer energy of the clapping, singing and rhythmic tapping of feet is totally absorbing from start to finish. Captivating women, not according to a modern concept of beauty but one which stems from invincible inner strength and passion.

A memorable day.

Kilometres by car: 90

Kilometres on foot: 17