Thursday 7th March 2019
One of the places we had wanted to visit was the cathedral town of Gaudix. We had passed it last year whilst near Granada but the weather had not been conducive at the time. With the temperatures in the 20’s and the sun shining, now was our opportunity. In hindsight we would recommend visiting the town between a stop to or from Granada.
From our campsite in Güejar Sierra it meant either a journey circumnavigating Granada, which pushed up the mileage or cutting cross country up spectacular narrow windy roads to the main A-92 to Gaudix. (The roller-coaster route which we took whilst towing the caravan to the campsite).
Our reason for wanting to visit was to see the southern part of the town, where many of the inhabitants live underground, in what are known as casas cueva or cave houses.
We followed signs to the Barrio de Cuevas and due to the time of year and lack of visitors managed to park on the road close to the Mirador Las Cuevas.
As we made our way towards the Mirador we passed Joses’ cave house and were invited in. Apart from the small white washed patio and the stone built front façade, the entire house was carved into the land.
The cool ambient temperature inside was apparent and you could imagine how pleasant it would be during the sweltering summer months in this part of Spain.
Inside the cave off the entrance hall were 3 bedrooms, a small kitchen, a bathroom, as well as a living room/dining room with a huge wood burning stove recessed into the walls of the cave. Jose had lived here for 40 years and was proud to show us his home and pictures of his family.
After leaving the cave house we climbed the stairway up to the viewpoint and admired the wonderful 360 degree views of the area.
The surrounding ochre coloured hills contrasted with the white washed buildings and huge chimneys protruded above ground level in every direction you looked.
On the day we visited the tourist office was closed, as was the small museum, which was a pity because they both looked quite interesting.
From here we walked into the main part of the town, a walk downhill of approximately 30 minutes past the remains of the Alcazaba, through the streets towards the large cathedral.
There is a tourist train that operates to and from the church near the museum/tourist office and tickets can be purchased to take advantage of this mode of transport, if the tourist office is open to purchase tickets 🙂 As in many places in Spain – mañana 😉
The large imposing cathedral dates back to the 1500’s and sits proudly overlooking the Plaza de la Catedral and this is where the tourist train would terminate its journey.
From here we headed to the Plaza de las Palomas to seek out a venue for lunch.
This plaza was a delightful find with shaded areas to sit and eat or tables in the sun along the edges of the main central area. Another delightful reasonable menu del día and our visit was complete.
