Trevor Huxham

I step into my hotel’s elevator, hit button zero for the ground floor, and rub my eyes. I’m exhausted from jetlag , culture shock , and apartment hunting . When I open my eyes, I notice that a bullfighter has joined me. She’s a slim twentysomething sporting a bedazzled jacket and multicolored tights. The doors close and I ponder how in my first week in Spain I’ve already encountered not my first torero , but torera . Telling the receptionist “ hasta luego, ” I head south down Villanueva del Arzobispo’s main drag and am immediately confronted by a white-and-goldenrod Moorish Revival bullring where it seems half the town is pouring into. Posters advertise a Gran Novillada —a bullfight where novices face off against young bulls. My elevator companion meets up with her family and heads beneath one of the horseshoe arches that support this modern-day Colosseum. Iznatoraf I walk against the current of bullfight attendees and soon my destination comes into view: an imposing hill ou...

Of the eight provincial capitals in Spain’s southernmost region of Andalucía, Jaén too often gets short shrift in favor of historic cities that overwhelm you with their monuments— Sevilla with its gigantic Gothic cathedral, Córdoba with what remains of the Great Mosque, and Granada with the country’s crown jewel, the Alhambra palace—or in favor of coastal cities that entice you with their beaches and fresh seafood— Málaga , which needs no introduction, Cádiz, Europe’s oldest city, Almería , secluded away behind deserts and mountain ranges, and Huelva, where Columbus set off for the Americas. Jaén cathedral I ponder this as I grow more and more impatient with the intercity bus I’m on…and more and more nauseated. The air coming from the A/C vents smells like a dirty bathroom, the advertised on-board WiFi has ground to a halt, and that hot summer sun is really bearing down on the windows. I’m reminded of the bad first experience I had with Jaén (pronounced “khah-EN” [xaˈen]) ...

There’s a lot to love about Jaén, the Spanish province where I lived and worked for the 2012-2013 school year . From olive oil to Renaissance architecture, to free tapas and natural parks, Jaén is one of my favorite corners of southern Spain. I talked about all these things in a guest post I wrote on Young Adventuress a year ago, but I completely forgot to mention one of the biggest draws to Jaén, its castles! Castillo de Santa Catalina, Jaén Fun fact: the province of Jaén has the greatest concentration of fortresses and castles of any region in Europe! Due to its strategic location as the frontier between Christian Castilla and Muslim Granada in the Middle Ages, almost 90 castles in this province alone have survived to the present day. When I lived in Úbeda , I only had the chance to visit half a dozen of the myriad of castles this province holds. Most are within walking distance of major city or village centers, but a few are in isolated mountain towns that are difficult...

Cazorla Back home in the States, I’m really fond of cities that snuggle up to the foothills of nearby mountain ranges. Although cities like Hot Springs, Ark., Jackson Hole, Wyo., or Estes Park, Colo., all have a lot to offer, they still manage to keep a really cozy, comfortable mountain atmosphere about them. I was reminded of these kinds of towns when I took a daytrip last year from Úbeda to Cazorla, which sits at the boundary between the sea of olive trees that governs most of southern Spain and a triplet of mountain systems that range southwest to northeast. Pronounced “kah-THOR-lah” [kaˈθoɾ.la], this town of only 8,000 doesn’t feel like a sleepy, middle-of-nowhere pueblo ; instead, monumental reminders of the village’s past stand alongside busy streets filled with open-air patio bars and restaurants. Ruins of the Church of Santa María What would have been Cazorla’s major church is also, uh, open-air today. It was built in the 1500s as yet another work by local Renai...

I have to admit, I’m extremely spoiled getting to live in Galicia, the Spanish region with perhaps the best food in the whole country. From fresh, affordable seafood to a variety of cheeses and sausages and even tasty almond cakes, my stomach is certainly satisfied with my decision to move up north this year. However, while living down south last year in the Andalusian province of Jaén, I grew very fond of several traditional dishes and snacks, some unique to the area and others shared across the south. If you’re ever passing through Jaén, make sure to try some of these for me when you stop for a bite to eat, because I miss them a lot! 1) Lomo de orza (Source: JJ Merelo ) Lomo de orza  or  pork loin confit  takes its name from the large clay jars— orzas —it was traditionally preserved in (it’s pronounced “LO-mo day OR-thah” [ˈlo.mo de ˈoɾ.θa]). Before refrigeration was invented, people would buy cuts of pork after the annual pig slaughter, cook them, place the...

Tranco Reservoir There’s a lot to love about the province of Jaén, a cozy corner of eastern Andalucía in southern Spain. You’ve got the lovely villages of Úbeda and Baeza , graced with Renaissance architecture, as well as countless other sleepy towns scattered among the endless olive groves. There’s the capital city of Jaén , with its charming, Moorish-style old town and free tapas scene. Although there’s no doubt that people here talk with a thick Andalusian accent, it’s not nearly as difficult to understand as that of Cádiz, for example, on the coast. And who could forget that the best olive oil in the world is made in almazaras  (factories) in every village’s industrial park? Sierra de Segura But while I’ve expressed my love for the region in many posts on this blog, I haven’t written yet about the sierra , that unmoving wall of mountains that serves as the eastern limit of the province and the region. Countless sunsets I saw from Úbeda’s eastern lookout poin...

Sabiote Castle Just a short 10km from the southern Spanish city of Úbeda , the village of Sabiote offers a lot despite its small size. You might be surprised to find a Renaissance-era castle and well-preserved set of medieval walls in this passed-over corner of Spain, but it’s no wonder; after all, the province of Jaén is the region with the greatest number of castles in Europe! Sabiote Castle I would have never even given Sabiote the time of day had it not been the hometown of my bilingual coordinator, Pedro. One afternoon after school, he took me and a group of teachers out for lunch to his  pueblo and afterwards led us on a tour of town in which we got to explore the inside of the recently restored castle. Standing upon the fortress’s battlements at sunset, I really enjoyed getting to survey the whole countryside, which was covered, of course, in gridded, green olive groves. Church of San Pedro silhouetted at sunset While training for the Camino de Sant...

Interior of Baeza’s cathedral I talk a lot about the Spanish town of Úbeda on this blog, and for good reason—I lived there for eight months, after all! But I have no reason for barely even mentioning next-door Baeza so far; forgive me! Pronounced “bah-AY-thah” [baˈe.θa], this village of a little over 16,000 is often thought of as Úbeda’s little sister mainly because of its shared Renaissance heritage. During the same time that idealized, stately palaces and churches were being built in neighboring Úbeda, similar structures were constructed in Baeza as well. For example, the soaring local cathedral (whose bishop shares his seat or cathedra with the cathedral in Jaén ) seems almost out of place in a village of this size, but its ethereal, light-filled interior will shoo away any misgivings you may have. Winding street near the cathedral Like any good Andalusian city, its old core will make you feel like you’ve gone back to Moorish times—tortuous alleyways and quiet, ar...

So far, I’ve written an homage to Úbeda —the city where I lived for eight months while teaching English in southern Spain—as well as a post outlining my favorite restaurants in town. To conclude Úbeda Week on the blog, I’d like to present a (free!) guided tour of this really nice village I once called home. Famous for its Renaissance architecture, its tradition of pottery that dates back to Moorish times, and its bottles overflowing with high-quality olive oil, Úbeda is a small city with plenty to keep you occupied. Holy Chapel of El Salvador So I’ve put together three itineraries in this post that you can follow, combine, or rearrange if you like. Obviously, opening and closing hours may not always correspond with the given path, but hopefully these routes give you an idea of what there is to see in town so you can put together your own personalized plan of attack. A Tourist Map of Úbeda by yours truly (click to enlarge) I’ve also drawn up a map of Úbeda (thanks Go...

Although living in a town of only 35,000 sometimes had its drawbacks, something I found really refreshing about living in Úbeda this past school year was that there were virtually no chain restaurants (especially American ones), which forced me to patronize local restaurants and eateries instead of corporate carbon-copies. Okay, so there was a Telepizza, but that was it. Eight months of hanging out with friends and going out for tapas later, and I think I may have formed an opinion or two about what places I like in Úbeda. In this post, I’d like to follow the “48 Hours” guide popularized by publications like the New York Times and the Independent , but focusing solely on food. Get hungry! Day 1 Breakfast If you’re craving some chocolate con churros —long, crunchy donuts that you dip in molten chocolate—then  Churrería ANPA is where you need to go. Nº 18 on the busy Avenida Ramón y Cajal (northeast of the Hospital de Santiago), this simple but popular churros joint is wel...

Although most people encounter the medium-sized town of Úbeda as a quick daytrip on tours of Andalucía, for me it was something quiet different. Úbeda was where I lived for eight months while working in southern Spain, my first introduction to Spanish society, my home. From appreciating Renaissance architecture, getting lost in Moorish-era streets and alleyways, eating ALL the tapas, to adopting the local accent, a year abroad in this town of 35,000 was one of the best experiences of my life, and I will (read: already do) miss this place a lot. Holy Chapel of El Salvador Now, I’m sure you wondering, where is this crazy town Trevor keeps blabbing on and on about on his blog? Well, Úbeda (pronounced “OO-vay-dah” [ˈu.βe.ða]) is one of the biggest cities in the southern province of Jaén , about three hours south of Madrid, two east of Córdoba , and two north of Granada . As it’s located in northern Andalucía below the Despeñaperros mountain pass, Úbeda is at the crossroads of...

Jaén,  the capital city of the province of the same name, the province where I lived and worked for eight months in southern Spain this past year. Jaén, a city I have really come to love, a city that, despite its central location, is completely bypassed by tourists on their way from Granada to Sevilla . Jaén, this anonymous yet very typical Andalusian city, enchanted me over the course of the school year until I nearly teared up leaving town for the last time back in April. But it wasn’t always this way. Panoramic view of the city from the castle I remember my first visit to Jaén (pronounced as a throaty “khah-AYN” [xaˈen]) in late September; my bilingual coordinator was taking me to apply for my NIE and TIE (residency) since the oficina de extranjería  or foreigners’ office in the capital was the only place you could do so in the whole province, about the size of the state of Connecticut. We hopped on and off new stretches of highway that crossed through the horde...

Browse through the pages of any major travel guide for Spain and you’d be hard-pressed to find even a single reference to Linares, a city 61,000 strong in the southern province of Jaén. More people live in Linares than in the tourist hotspots of Segovia and Ávila, yet hardly anyone has heard about this place. This is a real shame, because Linares is a decent-sized, typical Spanish town but without the hordes of tourists that mob Granada or Sevilla. Although a fairly anonymous, workaday town, Linares makes up for its lack of cathedrals or castles with a significant cultural heritage and an accessible setting. Find out why Linares should have its name on your map after the photo! Plaza de San Francisco 1) Bullfighter Manolete died here Monument to Manolete in front of the bullring If you’re like me, you probably don’t know a thing (or care) about the history of Spanish bullfighting, but apparently The Most Famous Bullfighter of All Time was Manuel Laureano Rodríguez Sá...

Well, it’s been almost a year since I moved to Spain and worked for eight months as a language assistant, yet I still  have not written ( almost ) anything about the town where I worked, the town responsible for me being abroad in the first place! So in this post, I would like to share a little bit about Villanueva del Arzobispo, a village of a little under 9,000 people in the middle of Spanish olive oil country. Church of San Andrés The surrounding region Villanueva seen from above Like I said above, Villanueva del Arzobispo (that nine-syllable mouthful referred to hereafter as simply “Villanueva”) is located in the heart of Spain’s olive oil country. Pronounced “bee-yah-NWAY-vah dayl ahr-thoe-VEES-poe” [ˌbi.ʝaˈnwe.βa ðel ˌaɾ.θoˈβis.po], the city belongs to the province of Jaén, which alone produces a third of Spain’s annual olive oil total. Because of this, virtually all non-urban, non-mountainous land is devoted to endless olive groves that carpet the l...

LAST UPDATED NOVEMBER 2012 If you’re a language assistant in Spain ( auxiliar de conversación ), by now you’ve applied for the program , gotten your visa , and at last arrived in the country. But, because your student visa is good for only three months—and because you’re supposed to be working for eight—you need to apply for an NIE ( número de identificación de extranjero ) , a foreigner’s identification number, and get the corresponding TIE ( tarjeta de identificación de extranjero ), a foreigner’s identification card. This will make your stay in Spain valid for around a year after arrival. Sweet! So, how can you get one? My provisional foreigner’s card (TIE) with my number on it (NIE) Well, I’ll get to the nitty-gritty details, but first, let me say that my experience was totally abnormal from what you should expect. As I’m teaching in a town in the province of Jaén (northeast corner of Andalucía), I had to go to Jaén capital to get the NIE. I made an appoint...