Discovering Andalucia

Over the first five days of the October half-term the Modern Languages Department took 17 pupils into the heart of the southern Spanish region of Andalucia to give them a taste of the history and culture of the ‘real Spain’. The group were based in Jerez de La Frontera, the world capital of sherry-making, home to the magnificent Andalucian horses and the birthplace of pure flamenco.

On the first day the group were taken to see a show in the open countryside (A Campo Abierto) near to one of the famous white villages, Medina Sidiona. The show recounted the history of the horse in this part of Spain and how both the Arabs and the English breeders over the centuries influenced the evolvement of the “Carthusian” pure white dancing horse. The show also explained the background of the fighting bull and one of the highlights was seeing these magnificent animals being herded into the arena by riders, some of them as young as 7!



Afterwards the group had lunch in the seaside resort of Conil and had a chance to paddle in the crystal-clear waters of one of the stunning beaches along the Costa de La Luz (Coast of Light) off which the Battle of Trafalgar was fought. The party then moved on to Cadiz, the oldest city in Europe dating back over 3000 years, to see some of the historic sites and have a chance to do some shopping. That evening the students were invited to a private flamenco club in Jerez where they were able to witness the inauguration of a new show.

The following day there were visits to the Alcazar in Jerez, an 11th century Arabian fortress, mosque and Arab baths, the beautiful 12th century cathedral and finally a guided tour of one of the few remaining family-run sherry wineries, Gonzalez Byass, world renowned for its famous “Tio Pepe” sherry and this year celebrating its 175th anniversary.



The final day was spent visiting the stunning city of Seville. In the morning the group were taken around the Royal Arabian palace, ( Los Reales Alcazares), opposite the beautiful cathedral which is the third largest religious building in the world and where Christopher Columbus is buried. Lunch was taken in “Tapas” bars in the city centre and then the final visit was to the Maestranza bullring, the most prestigious and famous in all of Spain.

The pupils certainly got a flavour of the “real” Spain which will hopefully inspire them to greater interest and success in their studies and encourage them to re-visit this fascinating region in years to come.