My parents came to Rota!!! After our short visit back in North Carolina last month, Mom and Dad weren't willing to wait any longer to see our Spanish home! Hugo and Reynolds made sure to roll in the freshly washed sheets to make sure Gigi and Poppy's pillows were ready for their cuddles, while Mom and Dad began their journey to Andalucia!
Monday, January 8: Kimble Parents Arrive
Well, technically on January 7th, Mom and Dad flew from RDU to Charlotte, then to Madrid, and then down to Sevilla! They landed in Sevilla at 8:40 am and, in true Johnson fashion, we didn't waste any time hitting the ground running!
Oh, and I learned that the pickup location I had sent to my parents was not, in fact, the correct pickup location. I told Mom and Dad I would pick them up in a taxi-only area...so there's that! One small hiccup- but I eventually found them wandering the taxi lane!
Mercury Fountain: Fuente de Mercurio
Now they may have just spent 15 hours in airports and airplanes, but I wasn't going to waste a single second to get this travel trip underway! So stretch those legs and get ready for a walking tour of Sevilla in your comfy flight clothes!
La Giralda
Our walking tour began in Plaza Nueva and made its way down to the old city center, where we learned a little about the city's history and architecture. The tower, La Giralda, dates back to 1171 when southern Spain was ruled by Muslim tribes. La Giralda was the Muslim tower, where someone sang the call to prayer every morning and evening. You may remember a little of this history from Bryan and I's trip to Granada with the pups during the summer, but King Ferdinand united Spain alongside his wife Isabella. Throughout their lifetimes, they continued to push out the Muslim tribes and expand into the current Spanish landscape we know today.
Sevilla Cathedral: Catedral de Sevilla
Along with La Giralda, the Spanish people didn't want to tear down the Muslim tower (it's expensive to build impressive buildings!) so they just added to the Muslim mosque and covered the Arabic writing with crosses and other Christian symbolism.
If you look closely at the tower and Cathedral below, you can see the traditional Muslim arches and repetitive tilework patterns that are alongside the Gothic architecture used to expand the mosque into the now-famous cathedral.
Also, did you know that Christopher Colombus and his son, Diego, are buried in the Sevilla Cathedral? Yep- the University of Granada did a DNA comparison to confirm it a few years back!
Santa Cruz, Seville- Jewish Quarter
As we continued around Sevilla, we visited the old Jewish Quarter which was filled with orange trees and lovely cobblestone streets. I have to admit, it was so much fun to watch Mom and Dad marvel at the stunning city! For two people who were lacking sleep and ready to crash, they hung in there with me!
Lion Gate: Puerta del León
Bryan and I have visited Sevilla several times, but this walking tour was great for me because now I know where (and what exactly) I need to book for us to explore on a future day trip. Sevilla is famous for their Alcazar, and the main entrance to the Alcazar is the Puerta del Leon.
Hotel Alfonso XIII
This historic hotel is located right next to the University of Sevilla and is famous for hosting movie stars like Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, and Madonna. Another fun fact: the gardens of Hotel Alfonso XIII were used to film the Egypt hotel scenes in the Netflix show The Crown!
Spanish Plaza: Plaza de España
We ended our walking tour in the world-famous Plaza de Espana! This breathtaking construction project was designed to showcase Spanish architecture for the World's Fair in 1929 and includes alcoves designed for each providence in Spain. Pretty brilliantly, this place was designed with Muslim architecture in mind as it was filled with colorful tiles, handpainted spindles, and gorgeous archways!
No wonder Star Wars used this place as their Naboo setting!
Realcázar Restaurant
After the three-hour walking tour, I knew I had to feed these people, so we stumbled upon a local tapas restaurant for a late lunch. Mom and Dad weren't a fan of croquettes and Dad learned he likes 100% beef burgers.
Then it was time to head home!
To say they were exhausted was an understatement; Mom cried when she saw the pups and Dad was beyond ready to shower and chill for the evening!
Tuesday, January 9: Chill Day
I'm. not gonna lie: Tuesday was a slow day! Mom slept til 11 am and then took a nap on the couch, while Dad woke up "late" around 8 am and enjoyed the extra chill time! Hugo and Reynolds woke up thinking they had lived the best dream ever, only to realize their dream of Gigi and Poppy was real!!!
I wasn't complaining though- our Sevilla day trip was a long day of walking AND they had the time change on top of that!
Playa de Piedras Gordas
Eventually, the sleepyheads got up and dressed and we walked over to the Pines to see the ocean! The weather wasn't the best with the overcast skies and breeze coming through, but we did find some seaglass before heading back to the house for more puppy snuggles!
We ended the day by walking to Mercadona, our local grocery store, where Dad's face says it all: I don't want to eat the fresh fish! It's funny how Bryan and I have gotten used to overseas grocery shopping, but getting to see it "fresh" from their eyes was pretty humorous!
Not pictured: Bryan coming home from a long day of work to grill out and cook us some amazing burgers on the grill!
Wednesday, January 10: Rota Gypsy Market & Cadiz
Mom and Dad seem to have gotten over their jet lag, so I quickly filled the day with another day trip! But first: the Rota Gypsy Market!
Mom wanted fresh olives, so I knew exactly where we needed to go: the Gypsy Market on Wednesday morning. After exploring all the booths, we ended up with two types of olives, cute socks, a bag of Spanish candy, and some cute pictures of Mom and Dad checking out all the sales!
Plaza de San Juan de Dios
Then we were off for the 45-minute ride to Cadiz for a waterfront day of exploring another old-town district of a historic city! Dad saw a McDonald's and needed a quick mid-morning snack to start the day off right, so we all shared a fry before setting off for more exploring!
Iglesia de San Juan de Dios
Since Bryan and I have done a walking tour in Cadiz before, I was decently confident that I could manage this day trip without a legit guide. The key being: decently confident. Bryan is our normal guide because I am directionally challenged.... so with my Google Maps pins at the ready, we set off to see the main sights of Cadiz.
As I'm navigating to our first point of interest, we walk by an open door. Dad says "is that a church?" to which I follow up with "let's see!"
Dad's eyes go wide and Mom's smile goes into a slight panic face as I waltz in the front door and make myself at home. Clearly, they were a little uncomfortable with me taking pictures of them in this tiny church, but they were in awe at the majestic paintings and ceiling art.
Hearing my Dad say "This is awesome" in the quietest voice just made my day. I have never been to this church before, but I will forever remember seeing my parents stare up in awe at the beauty of their first European church.
All I could think: just wait til we get to Rome.
Roman Theater: Teatro Romano de Cádiz
After our church pit stop, we made it to the first sight of the day: the ancient remains of Cadiz's Roman Theater. Not many people know that Cadiz was one of the biggest ports for the Roman Empire because of its strategic location at the southern point of Europe on the Atlantic Ocean.
During the height of the Roman Empire, this area was filled with Roman citizens. Alongside the ports, fishing, and salt production in southern Spain, these people needed entertainment too, so they built the largest theater outside of Italy in the 1st century BC.
We walk into this ancient excavation sight and stand where the Romans stood in Spain....and Mom spots some sunbathing housecats in one of the apartments overlooking the theater. Yep, right beside a house with laundry hanging out to dry was a window covered in chicken wire with three cats lounging in the rays! You can take Cindy out of America, but she WILL find the cats in whatever place she visits!
As we left the theater museum, all I could think was the next Roman ruins we see will be in ROME. How crazy is that!?!
Parroquia de Santa Cruz
Next stop: another Catholic church. Just like La Giralda and the Sevilla Cathedral, this church was originally a Muslim mosque turned church, and you can tell by the small domed structure out front. This domed structure was originally a wudu used for Muslims to wash their hands, feet, and face before entering to worship. When this mosque was transformed into a Catholic church, they placed a cross on top, and -BAM- now it's no longer Muslim.
Mom and Dad were a little more comfortable walking around this church once they spotted another couple walking around too. We lucked out though, because when we left, the sexton locked the door behind us! Perfect timing!
Cadiz Cathedral: Catedral de Cádiz
By now, the sun was fully out and we were enjoying the cooler weather! I offered to give them a tour of the Cadiz Cathedral, but when Dad heard of the climb to the top of the tower, they opted for lunch instead. I don't think it was a bad choice though, I'm happy Dad is saving his sore knee for the upcoming trip!
CaiCoffee
Instead of climbing the tower, we chose a lunch break in front of the Cathedral at CaiCoffee! Since this is our last day for true Spanish cuisine, I (kinda) forced Mom to share a paella with me. While not a favorite meal of mine, it is a classic Spanish dish that she had to try at least once! Dad skipped out and ate a pizza instead, but Mom and I agree we would skip the mixed paella next time. What we wouldn't skip? The sangria!
Playa de La Caleta: James Bond Beach
Our final "must-see" spot is what we call the James Bond Beach! Playa de la Caleta is the famous (to us) beach from the film, Die Another Day. It was fun to stop here and snap some photos. When Bryan and I visited this spot in the summer, the beach was packed with tourists enjoying the beach. This time around, it was nice to walk down in the sand and watch the clip below and point out the actual setting in front of us!
And if you peep at the last two pictures, you can see Mom attempting to pose like Halle Berry in the movie! (I'm telling you, I can't take this woman anywhere!)
As we made our way back to the car, we enjoyed pausing and taking more pictures of the narrow streets and beautiful surroundings!
Naval Hospital Rota
We timed our day perfectly because as we made it back to Rota it was almost time to get Bryan from work! As we waited for Bryan's text, I gave Mom and Dad a quick tour of base. Then we swung by the hospital for a private tour by our favorite dentist!
While Bryan and Dad started dinner, Mom and I ended our day with a sunset walk on the beach collecting more sea glass! Mom was in awe of the Roman fishing walls down the road from the house. These walls remain from the Romans back in the 1st century BC, who designed an impressive fishing technique. As the tide rises, fish enter the walls. Once the tide goes out, the fish are trapped inside the walls which makes it easy for the Roman fishermen to use nets to scoop up all the fish!
While I haven't seen people out with nets collecting the fish in the remaining walls, I have seen a lot of people walking out on the walls at low tide! With the sun setting pretty fast, Mom only braved out a little way for a picture.
Thursday, January 11: Rota Exploration Day
Our time in Rota has flown by and we are down to the last full day in our hometown, so today we were set to explore Old Town Rota!
Our morning started a little slower, so with coffee in hand Mom played around with some of our collected sea glass while the pups enjoyed extra snuggles and quiet time.
Playa de la Castilla
Then in the afternoon, we headed downtown to explore Bryan and I's town! After parking at the fishing port, we headed to the beach to walk down our stone pier and soak in some afternoon rays!
The Kissing Corner: Rincón del Beso
You can't visit Rota without stopping by el Rincón del Beso for a kiss from your lover! Rota's Kissing Corner is a favorite photo spot for our summer tourists, so we had to get a picture too!
Faro de Rota: Rota Lighthouse
Another photo spot is the old lighthouse wall. While the lighthouse has been replaced with a taller, brighter lighthouse, the old wall is a cool sight too!
Moon Castle: Castillo de Luna
As we wandered the streets, I knew Mom was going to love the face planters- and she confirmed I HAVE to get one made of Bryan and my faces before we leave! We also spotted more of the bitter oranges around town and made a photo stop at Rota's castle.
100 Montaditos
By this point in the afternoon, Bryan was about to get off work, so we posted up by the Rota Sign for a few drinks! Eventually, Bryan scootered to us and we enjoyed the evening sun with a drink in hand! This is what happiness looks like:
Mom wanted to see one more Rota sunset, so we took off to the beach with the dogs in tow. Reynolds was too excited (AKA Reynolds was a terrible listener) so I took her home and began helping Bryan with dinner, while Mom, Dad and Hugo headed back to the Roman ruins for a sunset photo shoot. Look at how perfect they look!
The minute Hugo got home and his feet rinsed, he headed straight to his (AKA Gigi & Poppy's) room to roll in the bed! This boy is spoiled beyond belief with his grandparents here!!!!
After dinner, we enjoyed a fun-filled evening of throwing Hugo's ball around the house while playing card games! Reynolds was happy just to be there and to have her hand held after getting in trouble for her bad behavior earlier on our walk!
These past few days have been a DREAM and I have loved having my parents here to see a small piece of our Spanish life! But the adventure isn't over yet. My parents are in for another peak at our life as we head off for a weekend in a new country!
Tomorrow we head to the land of Pasta and Pizza: Roma!
--Katie
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