The Town of Ronda.....

The wild, and impressively picturesque, area inland from the more populous Costas is a world apart from beaches, sun-tan oil and recumbent bodies. It is a different world even from that of the manicured golf course, the luxurious villa and the Ferrari flavoured hot spots of the coastal harbours.

Perhaps it is more redolent of the real Spain, the real Andalucia, where Christians and Moors fought for possession of these lands over such a long period. The interior may not suit us all. There are no beaches, no shopping centres, fewer smart restaurants.

What there is, is a magical, herb scented, vista of mountains and valleys with Los Pueblos Blancos (The White Towns) perched amongst the grandeur of those mountains.

That indeed may suit some of us. Many other non Spaniards are drawn to this enchanting and colourful area of Spain where you may taste some of the real flavour of this delightful and welcoming country.

Ronda is a jewel of this area. If you do nothing else, please drive up the circuitous road from San Pedro de Alcantara to this small, perfectly formed, city, which looks down disdainfully over the deep and impressive El Tajo gorge.

Ronda has sat here for over 2,000 years and you can feel its history in its streets.

You can too, if your conscience will permit it, admire the wonderful Plaza de Toros where, once a year, the Corrida Goyesca is held. This is a bullfighting fiesta with all the trimmings. Many of the locals wear costumes from the time of Goya and enter into the spirit of the thing. The ring itself, dating from 1785, claims to be the oldest in Spain and is home to the disciplined and austere Ronda style of fighting, much preferred by the locals to the more flamboyant and, (some dare say it, more exhibitionist), style of Seville.

We may approve or disapprove of bullfighting. To some of us it is a moral abhorrence, to others a magnificently choreographed drama. We do not judge. Each of us must make our own decision upon that moral dilemma but do, we beg, admire the bullring itself. It is exquisite.

The Romans were here too, as were the Moors later. In fact, the Moors held Ronda until 1485 when the Christians finally persuaded them that it might be a good idea to leave, after some 800 years or so.

Wars tended to ebb and flow around Ronda thereafter too. Napoleon knocked the place about a bit during the Peninsular War, when opposed by a certain, rather feisty, general who later became the Duke of Wellington. The Spanish Civil War cast a particularly sad shadow over the city when the bridge over the Tajo was used as an execution point from whence the unfortunate victims were cast into the gorge below.

That sadness has departed now though. Spaniards are long reconciled and the City has a pleasantly friendly air these days.

Ronda has many delights other than its history. There are splendid shops and boutiques, delightfully cool restaurants and bars where tapas may be consumed in a leisurely and dignified manner. Ronda is a city with character by the bucketful.