Between Christmas and the New Year we spent our days exploring the rural area where olive trees and grape vines grew on the fertile hills. The olive harvest started in October and didn’t finish until the following February.
It was the holiday season and, although there were plenty of restaurants around, they were usually fully booked at lunchtime. If we were lucky we were able to grab an early table at, say, 1.30 pm. By the time we were leaving at 3 pm the diners who had made reservations were piling in, often in family groups of ten or more. The restaurants were huge, seating 80+, usually in several separate dining areas. The food was honest and rustic with big portions; a meal would cost €20 to €30 a head for two or three courses with a glass of wine.
We visited Antequera, a medieval town with narrow cobbled streets and dominated by a mountain called the Peña de los Enamorados, which looked like a sleeping giant. Nearby was the Torcal Nature Reserve where the soft limestone created strange rock formations.
The weather was chilly at night with the temperature dropping to 4°. During the day with perfect blue skies we enjoyed 20° in the sunshine.
