Roads Less Traveled

I am surveying the triumphant 3-arched facade of the mighty Cathedral of the Incarnation in Granada, Spain, which took nearly 250 years to complete. This Renaissance church was built on top of what was once a mosque. The Reconquista Christians felt so strongly about their one-time rulers that, instead of building the church on favorable footing only 500 yards away, they chose to destroy the muslim house of worship to build on its sandy soil instead. Now, that is carrying a grudge. Continue reading →

I am sitting on the bow of the “Mareatta”, a 39 foot catamaran, and we are slicing through the deep blue sea just south of Palma de Mallorca, Spain, at about 5 knots under full sail and an even fuller sun. I have hired out the boat and crew (of 2), and we’ll spend a week aboard this very livable vessel exploring the coves, inlets, and cities of Mallorca, the largest island in the western Mediterranean chain of the Ballearics.  People have been living and trading in these waters since before the time of the Phoenicians, but it wasn’t until after the Christians evicted the (Muslim) Moors in the 13th century that the present gothic city of Palma emerged. Continue reading →

I am driving through one of the most beautiful roads in the world among the “white hill towns” of Andalusia, Spain when I crest a ridge at around 4000 feet elevation and park my Jeep to get a better view. After a short hike, I’m afforded a spectacular vista that spans what seems like the entire province, which rolls out before me in undulating waves punctuated by some taller peaks on the horizon. Continue reading →