My favorite part of our stay in Andalucia were the days we drove east towards the mountains and visited various 'pueblos blancos'. Most of these towns were founded by the Moors, some built on Roman foundations. Most of the buildings are painted white in order to deflect the summer heat. The towns are striking from a distance because you spot them as you round the corner of a mountain road or dip down into a valley and they show up looking like foaming water cascading down the mountain sides.Our general approach was to park on the outside of the town we were visiting, thus avoiding the narrow, steep streets and unexpected one-way signs, and walk into the towns. After wandering around for a bit soaking up the sun and that town's particular atmosphere, we would rest in the main plaza, bribe our children with ice cream before going on to the next town. We spent time in 5 different towns over the course of 2 days - El Bosque, Grazalema, Zahara, Ubrique, and Benaocaz. The 2 pictures above are from Zahara and the Moorish tower there that we climbed up the hill and peeked into.
