The trip could be done in a day, but we were in no hurry to arrive at our destination. We stopped in Seville for a dinner of tapas before continuing to the small town of Carmona, a walled city dating back to the days of Julius Caesar. We spent the night at the Casa de Carmona, a sixteenth century renaissance palace converted to a hotel in 1991. The palace had seen better days, but it was located in the heart of the walled city and was a good place from which to explore. After a traditional Spanish breakfast in the main square, we continued our road trip east.
Our destination was La Almunia del Valle, a small hotel in the hamlet of Monachil on the slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountains. The owners of the hotel, Patricia and Manuel, gave up Madrid to open this beautiful place where they cook traditional meals using local ingredients. We spent five nights in what felt more like a home than a hotel.
We had decided to divide our time between skiing and exploring the area. We started our first full day by driving the short distance over one of the mountain passes to Sierra Nevada Ski Station. The prices were more affordable than most places to ski in the United States and far cheaper than what we would have paid in Switzerland or France. The mountain is a high-altitude, barren mountain with few trees. The lift lines were short and the après-ski was great. Our last day at the mountain, we decided to snowboard. Hillary and I had both tried it out more than a decade before, but we assumed we would get the hang of it. Just when we thought we did, we would face plant at full speed. We both survived, but we were worse for wear.
We spent one of our days in Granada exploring the Alhambra, a ninth century fortress converted to a Moorish palace in 1333.
One great advantage of La Almunia del Valle is its proximity to Granada, allowing us to go into the city most nights for dinner. Granada is in the heart of Andalusia, home of tapas, so there are numerous bars serving small plates along with drink orders. We discovered Puerta del Carmen, a trendy packed bar that had arguably the best tapas we have ever come across - we made it a point to go back.
We also had dinner in Monachil, where at our hotel, we tried salt fish, a famous Iberian dish in which a fresh fish is coated in thick sea salt and baked for hours to lock in the moisture to create the most delicious fish you can imagine. On another night, we found a small local restaurant that had been carved out of a cave where we had a local white gazpacho soup called "ajo blanco", made with garlic and almonds.
The culinary highlight of our trip, however, was in Granada when we discovered La Oliva. A small wine shop run by a retired lawyer named Francisco, La Oliva is a must-visit on any trip to Granada. Francisco prepares a tasting menu in the back of his shop using local products for a maximum of three tables. The meal begins by sampling local gourmet olive oils from producers he knows personally. From there, the meal moves through around eleven more courses, all prepared on a small camp stove by Francisco. He has only one person helping him with cooking and serving, and she and Francisco were generous with pouring and refilling all the different types of wine which accompanied the meal. Francisco explains the story of each dish he brings to the tables. To end the meal, we had chocolate ice cream, sprinkled with a small amount of sea salt and orange-infuzed olive oil drizzled over the top, creating one of the simplest and best desserts we have ever found. The final treat was a flavorful Andalucian liqueur.
We returned to Lisbon, via a more northern path, spending a night in the western town of Aracena, which is home to the Gruta de las Maravillas, a remarkable cave network well worth a visit.
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