Cadiz, Spain: A bustling city with centuries of history!

July 3, 8:31 AMUniversity of Pittsburgh Events ExaminerMattie Vukmir

Cadiz isn’t a normal destination for travelers in Spain. Usually you would think of visiting Barcelona, Madrid, Sevilla, and many of the other larger cities before considering a trip to this section of the coast. I highly recommend taking at least a day or two to visit the city especially if you are in Andalusia (the region of southern Spain). It is definitely worth the trip with its picturesque lanes, numerous squares, its beautiful beaches – which happen to be the cleanest in Spain – and its amazing architecture. If you’re a history buff, this is definitely a great place to visit.

Currently Spain’s currency is the Euro. I just went to an ATM earlier today and the exchange rate is a little over 1.4 USD/ 1 euro. It’s not bad, but not great. There is around a 2% convenience charge for using an ATM machine, which I find is the easiest way to get money. It has the best exchange rate, there are ATM’s everywhere, and they have directions in English! However, do be aware that though this is a great exchange rate, not all of the banks have the SAME exchange rate. When briefed about the city before disembarking, we were given an exchange rate quote of 1.7 USD/ 1 euro.

Sites to visit:

1) New Cathedral and Museum

The New Cathedral or Cathedral Nueva is located in the Plaza Catedral. Make your way to the Plaza San Juan de Dios (the town center) and head up Calle Pelota. The Cathedral is definitely hard to miss; it’s simply massive! I didn’t have a chance to go inside, but I was told that it is beautiful. It took 116 years to construct (1722-1838) and is considered to be the last great cathedral built with colonial riches. When standing in the center of the circular basement on the lower floor, listen to the echo effect of any sounds you make. The museum offers a wide selection of church treasures and you can make your way through the crypt – which I heard is spooky and enjoyable – to view the remains of Manuel de Falla, a famous composer from Cadiz.

The Cathedral is open Monday – Friday from 10:00 am – 1:30pm (10.00-13.30) and 4:30pm-7:00pm (16.30-19.00), Saturdays from 10:00 am – 1:00 pm (10.00-13.00), and Sunday only for services. Admission is 3-4 Euros except from 7-8pm (19.00-20.00) when it is free.

2) Fine Arts and Archaeology Museum

The oldest section of the Museum – the late-Neoclassical building – was designed in 1838 by Juan Daura and overlooks the Plaza de Mina where a vegetable garden once stood. (Be sure to check out the two palm trees in the garden which hold 2 parrots nests – home to over 40 parrots!) What used to be the convent of San Francisco is now full of archaeological finds dating as far back as the year 500 BCE. Visit the two Phoenician stone sarcophagi, the male found in 1887 and the female in 1970, from the 5^th century BCE. Various other finds related to the history of Cadiz are located throughout the first floor archaeology section of the museum.

The first and second floors house the fine art and ethnographic/contemporary art collections. The works located in this museum take the visitor through the 16^th century to the 20^th century with paintings by Luis de Morales, Zurbaran, Rizzi, and Rubens. Room VII on the first floor contains works from the later half of the 20^th century by local artists such as Abarzuza, Ruiz Luna, and Prieto and Godoy. The second floor of art contains the more recent modern art of the 20^th century as well as a marionette/puppet collection such as those used in traditional street shows.

I definitely recommend checking the museum out if you are interested in anthropology and archeology especially in this region. The age of some of the things that are still preserved is astonishing!

The museum is open on Tuesday from 2:30pm – 8:30pm (14.30 – 20.30), Wednesdays – Saturdays from 9:00 am – 8:30 pm (9.00 – 20.30), and Sundays from 9:00 am – 2:30 pm (9.00-14.30). Admission is about 1.50 euros.

3) Tower Tavira (Torre Tavira)

Tower Tavira is the cities highest watch tower. Approximately 35 meters from the street, it provides an excellent view of the city, which is useful with all of its narrow streets! The tower is part of a baroque style house/palace which now is home to the Municipal Conservatory of Music. Not only is this a great place to see the city and the bay, but it also houses a camera obscura which makes you feel as if you are standing inside of a camera!

The tower is open daily from 10:00 am – 6:00 pm (10.00-18.00). Admission is 3.50 Euros for adults and 2.80 euros for students and children.

4) Plaza de Las Flores

This was one of my favorite places to visit during my stay in Cadiz. It was full of street vendors and little shops located in the plaza that sold fresh flowers. It smelled so great! The post office is located right off of this square as well which was convenient. Once on Avenida Ramon de Carranza, turn right on one of the side streets after the Plaza de Espana. Continue until you hit Calle San Francisco. Turn left (or right depending on what side street you chose – have a map handy) onto Calle Columela which will lead you straight into the square. This plaza is relatively close to the Plaza de La Catedral where the New Cathedral is housed and the Plaza de San Juan de Dios.

5) Shopping on San Francisco Street and Columela Street.

Both of these streets and probably a few around them (I didn’t have a chance to check them out) have great shopping. Most of the stores are higher end, so be prepared for high prices. I had fun just wandering down the street and window shopping, but if you are all about cutting edge European fashion, these are the streets to check out! There are also great cafés and cafeterias located along the streets to sit and people watch with a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice or café con leche!

6) Flamenco

Southern Spain is the home of Flamenco. Typically when you think of Flamenco dancing, girls in flashy dresses with big dresses dance while flashing their layers of skirts around to some sort of semi-up beat passionate music. While some of this is true with a few of the almost 70 variations of Flamenco, it doesn’t represent a vast majority of this genre at all. Flamenco was first created by the gypsies that came into Spain. It wasn’t until recently that Flamenco became public when people started practicing it outside of their homes and private clubs.

There are 3 forms of Flamenco, Cante - song, baile – dance, and guitarra – the guitar playing. Usually there is a singer and a guitar player with the guitar player following the singer’s unusual rhythms. The guitar player and singer are usually male although there are some female singers. The dancers are either male or female. The women are more graceful and fluid and use their curves in their dances whereas the men do more stomping and strong dancing. I had a chance to meet with several Flamenco artists for one of my field studies. They gave the group of us a private performance and we were able to ask questions, which was a great learning experience. We learned about the passion behind Flamenco artists. It is something you feel and connect with they all said. There is no gray area, either you hate it or you love it!

Flamenco singers often have a harsh voice and it usually sounds as if they are screaming. However, when you see the passion of the singer and dancer and guitar player, it turns a harsh sound into something beautiful. There are many Flamenco clubs all over Cadiz, Sevilla, Cordoba and all of the other Spanish cities. I would recommend asking a local where the best Flamenco can be heard, they will be more than willing to point you in the right direction! Don’t go somewhere where Flamenco is used as background music for a meal at a fancy restaurant. You won’t really get a good feel for the art!

Cadiz is a great city. It has beautiful beaches, great shopping, and many historical sites to visit! If you are planning on heading to the Andalusia area (Seville, Cordoba, Grenada) and have an extra day or two, I would definitely recommend a short stay in Cadiz. Be sure to pick up a map though, the streets in Old Town do get confusing. The people are friendly and it is known to be the safest city in Spain!

Hungry? Check out my article on Spanish Cuisine focusing mainly on Andalusia!