CADIZ
22.07.2011
CADIZ SPAIN
Weather: Fine & Sunny, unbroken sunshine 25c
Since leaving Corfu again we had another couple of lovely sea days, the first especially, with it being absolutely flat calm. As we sailed between Sicily and Malta, on the first morning, while having breakfast on the top deck restaurant, we spotted a dark mark on the water, as we got closer we discovered it was a shoal of fish, feeding on the surface. On this particular trip we haven`t seen much wild life. Due to the long distance and the time we had to travel it, we were about 40 minutes late on our arrival time in Cadiz, it did not affect the time we had there as we left there one hour later. When we arrived at the port, another cruise ship was also in, the massive “Independence of the Seas”, still a fine looking ship despite her size.
We were given some information and usually a basic map of each port we visited. It`s usually about the past history, points of interest of the port, the surrounding area and possible places to visit. And quoting some of that information about Cadiz, it is the oldest inhabited town in the western world, with a 3,000 year history. As with some of the previous places we have visited on this trip it has been ruled by several different civilizations. And being Cornish, it was interesting to read that the Phoenicians used Cadiz as a port when they went to Cornwall for their tin. In more recent centuries it was used by the Spanish for the conquering of the Spanish Colonies in Central and South America, and for bringing back all the gold from these places. Also it was used by Villeneuve`s fleet when Nelson won the Battle of Trafalgar.
We like Cadiz as a port, it is really accessible from our berth position to where the city is situated. And it`s another such place where you can wander and lose yourself in amongst the small narrow streets. We stopped at a couple of apartment entrances which lead off these streets to photograph some lovely ornate tiled hallways. These streets very often open up into plazas or squares as we would say, but which ever word we use these places are very often beautiful, some quiet, others where the café culture is in full swing. It`s a very good place for a bit of retail therapy too, where men seem to be well catered for as well as the women, but they had a lot of shoe shops.
This port, with regards to the weather has been a lot more comfortable for us getting around than we had in the central med. For us at home 25 deg. c would be very welcome and hot, but for us on this trip it felt just nice.
So I hope you enjoy our photos of Cadiz, and for us it`s always a bit sad when you`ve had your last port, which this is. We hope you’ve enjoyed following us on our Mediterranean adventure.
