Pueblos Blancos or white villages are towns built in the Sierra de Grazelema in the province of Andalucia. These towns began as fortresses on the frontier between the Christian and Morrish realms. They have survived the test of time and now many are thriving agriculture centers. We had expected them to be quite small villages, but we found that many of them are quite large. At the right is the village of Grazelema, tucked neatly into the hillside near the summit. As you can see from the photo, this is very rugged country. This was taken in December, 2000.

The pueblos seem to grow out of the hillside, though occasionally you find one tucked into a sheltered valley. The pueblos are located about 1/2 hour apart, so you end up driving along the good mountain roads, feeling like you are all alone in this beautiful country with the ancient pines, huge granite boulders and brilliant blue sky. Then you come around a corner and suddenly there is this picturesque white village in front of you, as if it were a mirage. True to their name, all of the buildings in the villages are painted white with red tile roofs.

We spent the night in Ronda, one of the larger cities in the area. The picture at the left was taken from the edge of town - the edge that was a vertical precipice overlooking this agricultural valley with the mist rising in the distance.

At right, the view from a vantage point near Ubrique where we stopped for lunch and a stroll through their many leathers shops. From clothing to handbags and wallets. if it is leather you want, this is the place to find it!

We returned in February 2002 with our friend Nancy visit Ubrique where she bought several nice leather items and Jim finally got his leather jacket. While there were several English-speaking folks wandering around the place, most of the bargain hunters are Spanish. In fact, very few of the shopkeepers speak much English. Its a nice change from the touristy crowds at the coast. After Ubrique, we took a side trip to visit Zahara de la Sierra (right), a wonderful white village perched on top of a hill, complete with the old castle tower on the rocks above. The town is somewhat idyllic to us as it nestles in the hillside, overlooking the olive groves below. On the other side of the town, there is a fantastic reservoir at the base of the hill, conveniently close to town. Looks like a wonderfully peaceful place, doesn’t it?

We also visited Ronda in February with Nancy, and our friends Michael and Mary from Ireland. Ronda is one of our favorite towns and is one of the larger, more visited Pueblo Blanco. One of its unique features is the geography of the area. Ronda sits on top of a mesa-like hill, with a steep gorge along one side. This trip we took our hiking boots and hiked to the bottom of the gorge to get a view of the town from down below. It truly is amazing. At left is Jim, Mary and Michael about halfway down into the gorge. After we got all the way down, we found there is a van that will bring folks down to the gorge to take pictures! While it might be a bit easier, it can’t be as much fun! It is a bit difficult, but if you take it slowly, it is not too taxing. However, hiking shoes are recommended if you want to go all the way to the bottom as the trail turns very rocky about a third of the way down (the top portion is paved).

From below, you get a great view of the 18th century “new” bridge (at right, behind Michael and Mary). The bridge spans the gorge between the old town (on the right) and the newer town on the left. We can’t imagine building a bridge of this magnitude at that time, so it appears quite a feat to us. The old bridge is still used, but is on the other side of this one, and crosses the river just above the river level.

Of course, you can get some fantastic views from the top (left) if you choose not to exert yourself or if time is limited. This picture was taken from the old town area, near where the trail leads to the gorge below.

Ronda also sports one of the oldest bull rings in Spain (1785) and you can take a self-guided tour for a nominal amount, which includes a small bullfighting museum. However, one of our favorite stops in the town is the restaurant next to the bull ring, Restaurante del Escudero. We chose this restaurant to celebrate Michael and Mary’s 20th wedding anniversary and had a wonderful meal. The food is superb and the service is excellent . 

Approaching Ronda from the west, one can get a great view of the gorge, as seen at right. 

If you find typographical errors or have any other problems when looking at the site please contact the Webmaster describing the problem and the page involved.