Traveling the N-340 is the best possible trip for this Christmas
Since 2020 has been a scarce one in travel. But the reality is that it doesn’t have to be that way, as sad and dull as if the damned disease were superior to us. Every good traveler knows how to adapt to his conditions, he is one of our particular gifts.Therefore, this year it may be time to enjoy a trip through the interior of Spain, adapting to the situation, at a good price and that involves a dose of adventure high enough to last until the ship straightens out next year.
Day 1: Barcelone
The Holy Family.
The starting point in this crazy Cannonball race. The Catalan capital captivates the visitor with its elaborate modernist buildings, gives them sensations of immortality with the sight of the Sagrada Familia, imprisons them with its cosmopolitan movements. The traveler can try to lose himself in the Labyrinth of Horta , one of the longest in Spain, or leisurely walk the city with his eyes attentive to the urban art that colors its walls.
Day 2: Tarragona and Ebro Delta
Herons in the Ebro Delta.
Known as Tarraco by the ancient Romans, today it is one of the cities that keep the most remains of that glorious civilization. What a nice stop it makes when you’re strolling through its Roman amphitheatre, sniffing iron and sweat; the Torre de Pilatos, the National Archaeological Museum of Tarragona and the Provincial Forum end up building a scene that confuses us. Brief glimpses of past lives swirl around the city, and at times we don’t know if we’re stepping into the 1st or 21st century.
The Ebro Delta is an essential stop, even if it is to watch the sun go down and nothing else. A peculiar collapse occurs when the colors of the earth devour the star, the yellow disappears and transforms, reflecting with the river water in a string of purple and reddish tones. A walk along any of its routes also results in pure joy for ornithology enthusiasts, observing the graceful flight of glossy ibis, bitterns and egrets, and the elastic step of flamingos. If you want to pillage in the area, your best bet would be to find one (or two) of their excellent types of rice and buy it to cook back at home.
Day 3: Valencia
Image of the Valencia Oceanographic.
From rice to rice we landed in Valencia, at the exact time to have a paella for lunch. I have always wanted to think that Valencia has a peculiar aroma, like a maritime city. No, I am not referring to a coastal city but a maritime city, lost in the center of any ocean and provided with forms different from any other. We can see this when visiting the City of Arts and Sciences , studying the curves and whites of the Oceanogrà fic from the outside and from the inside .
Day 4: Cartagena
La Manga Beach Club beach.
Cartago Nova is the name with which it was founded and is the ideal stop to rest halfway on our tremendous route. Here we could visit its Roman theater, preserved in excellent condition, or smell the surly taste of gunpowder in its Naval Museum , but my recommendation points to simpler pleasures. Here the traveler can rest from his journey, nothing more than taking a brave bath on the beaches of La Manga .
Day 5: Tabernas desert
Tabernas desert.
The rest on the beach had a trick. It was necessary to moisten the skin before diving into the only desert in Europe, there in AlmerÃa. In addition to assuming a visual spectacle that will not leave anyone indifferent, the reader should know that Sergio Leone recorded handfuls of spaghetti western films in the AlmerÃa desert , with the unmistakable Clint Eastwood leading his cast. The good, the bad and the ugly is a good example. And like an avalanche, they are followed by The Four Rogues, Death had a price.
Day 6: Vejer de la Frontera
Typical street of Vejer de la Frontera.
Barcelona seems very far away, as if we had visited it on a previous trip. The sea that we see from Vejer de la Frontera, one of the most beautiful white villages of Cádiz , is the same that bathed the city of Barcelona but, perhaps due to fatigue or the pranks of the waves, it does not seem the same to us. Here the water clears up, it flows more nervously, it sees the moment when it will be lost in the Atlantic near.
Day 7: Cadiz
Cadiz Cathedral.
Victory Day is celebrated in the oldest city in Spain. Founded by the Phoenicians and inhabited over the years by Romans, Greeks, Muslims and Christians, it fuses the culture of these ancient civilizations in its buildings, just for our enjoyment. Visiting its splendid cathedral falls into the category of obligations and the same happens with savoring a plate of gazpacho, be it winter or summer, even if the seasons collapse.
After whetting your appetite strolling through Parque Genovés, Plaza de San Juan de Dios could be the best place to indulge in these pleasures...
