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Medina Sidonia a hilltop town with a low profile

Lisa Bremner relishes the traditions and history of the very traditional Spanish settlement of Medina Sidonia.

Driving across the plains from the coast, you can’t miss Medina Sidonia. Standing out on its rocky outcrop against the blue sky, it’s the perfect picture postcard of a whitewashed Andalusian town.

Perched above mile upon mile of ripening crops, bull ranches and horse stables sits a jumble of thick stonewalled townhouses clustered around the Iglesia Mayor de Santa María la Coronada – the town’s highest and grandest church. From the hilltop behind the church, Medina has glorious 360-degree views of the countryside and, on a clear day, even the coastline and the Atlantic Ocean are visible.

Medina is often overlooked in favour of its more affluent and upmarket neighbour, Vejer de la Frontera. The two towns are very similar, but as Vejer is closer to the sea it is often the visitor’s first choice. For this reason, Medina hasn’t (yet) experienced the same influx of foreign residents.

Despite throwing up the occasional British or other northern European accent, Medina is still a staunchly traditional Spanish town – mostly populated with large families that have lived in the town for generations. Nowhere is this more obvious than in Plaza de España on a warm summer evening around 10pm. The entire town comes out to mingle and chat; everyone from grannies in sleeveless sun-dresses to babes in pushchairs, kids running round, families, neighbours, courting couples – all talking ten-to-the dozen as though they haven’t seen each other for years.

Plaza de España is Medina’s heart and soul. Lined on one side with the impressive Renaissance facade of the ayuntamiento, everything happens here, planned or impromptu. When Cádiz football club were promoted to the Primera Liga a couple of seasons ago, the entire town (football lovers and haters alike) all rushed from their TV sets at home to the plaza to sing and dance with every other flag-clad fan and bemused onlooker.

The plaza is popular with both tourists and locals, particularly at mealtimes. Families flock from the surrounding towns and villages, especially on Sundays to lunch here in their Sunday best and then visit one of the pastelerias to buy the local speciality – alfajores, a sweet, gooey, twisted stick of honey and almonds, the exact recipe for which is a closely guarded secret.

Outside the main plaza, the rest of the casco antiguo (old town) is stuffed with character; hardly a single street is straight, all are cobbled and the houses are painted glaringly white with huge wooden doors – a hangover from the days when horses were brought in to drink through the front door. Rejas (the metal railings in front of every window) are uniformly glossed black – except for the odd rebel house that ignored the town hall’s edict several years ago and continued to paint them bottle green.

Medina has its fair share of rebellious characters. The most wellknown has to be the current Duchess of Medina Sidonia, Doña Luisa Isabel Álvarez de Toledo y Maura, see the profile in laluz issue 15 (November/ December 2006) an outspoken socialist and descendant of the most famous Duke – Alonso Pérez de Guzmán El Bueno, renowned for leading the Spanish Armada in a spectacularly unsuccessful attempt to attack the English by sailing into the English Channel.

The town’s historical significance goes back much further than the oldest ducal seat in Spain. Medina’s elevated hilltop location seems to have enticed many occupiers – and none was more enamoured with Medina Sidonia than the Romans.

Asido Caesarina, as it was known then, is thought to have been an important place in the days of the Roman Empire. Several Roman stone heads have been found in the town, including Livia, the wife of a caesar. A wander through the streets today shows several original Roman columns which have been incorporated into the present-day houses. Various tablets are embedded in the town’s walls; one can be found in Bar Ortega on the town’s main plaza and another in the main church. Remnants of a Roman street, including a children’s game scratched in the stone, are preserved and can be visited on tours via the museum.

Entertainment in Medina today is still mostly home-grown. Huge efforts are made for every town fiesta. Lavish home-made costumes, good enough to grace a professional stage, are created for every event from semana santa and feria in spring through to the fancy dress night at nochevieja. On one of the days between Christmas and New Year the entire town centre becomes a stage as every street, plaza and shop front is converted in a matter of hours into a Hebrew township – a living Belén or Nativity scene. Present-day Medina has a slightly scruffy look of faded grandeur. One area where the name Medina Sidonia is still revered is bull breeding. Many of the most prestigious corridas use bulls bred in the wealthy ranches surrounding the town in every direction. Perversely, Medina doesn’t actually have its own bull-ring and so it’s quite easy to ignore the purpose of the breeding and just enjoy the sight of hundreds of jet-black bulls dotted in the fields surrounding the town.

Medina has seen plenty of development in the last few years with greatly improved communication links and lots of new building and redevelopment in the town itself. Many hopes for economic growth were being pinned on a planned multi-million euro development project of over 2,000 homes which was to include a golf course and equestrian centre.

The project has become bogged down in planning delays and new regulations on golf complexes, but the developers say they plan to push forward once the imminent elections are over. The town is holding its breath to see what’s next.

Restaurants

Bar Cádiz
Daily menu, tapas and traditional Spanish menu. Generally regarded as the best place to eat in town. Has shaded parasol tables on the plaza in good weather.
Plaza de España, 13
Tel: 956 410 250

La Duquesa
Just outside the town on the main road road to Vejer, but the food is considered worth the short trip. Ctra Medina-Benalup km3.
Tel: 956 410 836

Accommodation

Casa de Medina
Is an Andalusian-style town house in one of the town's old narrow streets. It has been beautifully renovated to offer four guest rooms round a Moorish courtyard, with a pool and a roof terrace with views to the coast.
casademedina.com
e-mail info@casademedina.com
Tel: 646 489 069

Things to do

Tourist Office
Free map of the town and basic information point. Plaza Iglesia Mayor, s/n - medinasidonia.com

Roman Street
Entry arranged via the museum on C/ Ortega, 6. Calle Sacramento, 5

Castle and Alcazar ruins
There’s not much left to see, but the views from the old site are worth the puff to the top of the hill

Plaza de Abastos
Market for fresh meat, fish, fruits and vegetables next to the Plaza de España. Calle San Juan, s/n

Iglesia Mayor de Santa María
Climb the bell tower for 360-degree views of the town and surrounding area. Plaza Iglesia Mayor, s/n

Town walls and gates
The old town walls have three gates, Arco de la Pastora, Puerta de Belén and Puerta del Sol

Where to buy alfajores

Sobrina de las Trejas Plaza de España, 7
Nra Sra. de la Paz Calle San Juan, 14
Convento de San Cristóbal
(known as Monjas de Abajo) Best sampled with a coffee from Paco Ortega’s bar on Plaza de España