You might remember from my last post (Glamping in Tamarit) a little talk about the ancient Spanish port city of Tarragona.  Believe it or not, nobody actually knows when Tarragona was established – it’s literally THAT old.  Historians believe the city was likely founded by the Phoenicians who named it Tarchon or Tarraco (citadel) because it is slightly elevated above the sea.  However, the Catalans believe the city was named after Tarraho, the great-grandson of Noah, renown ark-builder extraordinaire.  Regardless of its origins, Tarragona has phenomenal history, much of which has been preserved and/or carefully restored, and is frequently decorated and celebrated by locals and tourists alike.  In fact, the many Roman ruins that fill this city have all been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. When you stand in the citadel and gaze over the massive amphitheater and toward the sparking blue Mediterranean Sea, it is extremely easy to see why the Romans would have named this their capital Iberian city and why, even today, it is the capital of its own province, Tarragona.   At the end of this busy day, I had the same type feeling I have on Thanksgiving afternoon – sated almost to the point of discomfort from gorging on the smorgasbord laid out in front of me. My Tarragona holiday, however, was less gastronomic in nature. It was more of a visual, mental and physical experience; although I did end up rubbing my belly in the warm sunshine. Some things are universal, I guess.  

Our tour of Tarragona started on the most beautiful and sunny day we could ask for in the very early Spanish springtime.  As we are wont to do, without any planning or forethought, we somehow magically discovered a parking garage (PAVAPARK) located immediately underground below the Ajuntament (Town Hall) and in the very center of the medieval Old Town itself.  ¡Perfecto!  From there, we were easily able to explore the entire area, inclusive all the Roman ruins, churches, circus, amphitheater, forum, fountains, and many shops and restaurants, on foot and without any great physical investment (although the trip down to the amphitheater was admittedly easier than the trip back up).

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We left Plaça de la Font and headed northwest towards Via de l’Imperi Romà, starting our excursion with the Portal Del Roser, a massive, lavish portal in the medieval walls that provided entrance to the city from the west through the Torre de l’audiencia (gate).  From here, we were clearly able to see the enormous stone Muralles Romanes de Tarragona (Roman walls of Tarragona) that once surrounded the entire area.  Much of these walls remain intact and are visible even today. We frequently would exclaim “There’s MORE of it!” and point to the wall we glimpsed among the buildings as we traveled clockwise around the Old Town area, winding through the narrow old city streets as best we could.  

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Plaça de Sant Joan eventually led us past the monastery, Carmelites descalces, the Arquebisbat de Tarragona (Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Tarragona), a lovely museum filled with beautiful religious artwork, Museu Diocesà de Tarragona, an impressive neolithic building, Casa dels Canonges, and ultimately, the massive and awesome Catedral de Tarragona (Cathedral of Tarragona).  The Cathedral is an impressive Romanesque and Gothic structure constructed on a well-established religious location. Apparently, this specific location once housed a Roman temple, a Visigoth cathedral and a Moorish mosque.  Amen!

The cathedral itself has an octagonal tower-dome, a large, 230 feet tall bell tower with very loud bells, and an impressive facade with three main portals.  It is surrounded by an expansive and ornate gate with ancient cast iron doors and about 20 (at least) different chapels of varying sizes, shapes and shrines.  The complex also includes a lovely cloister with a beautiful, peaceful courtyard dotted with fountains and well-groomed gardens.  As is true for most Spanish landmarks we have visited, both Arabic and Moorish influence can be seen hidden among the architectural designs in the buildings, gates and gardens, even here, in this obviously Roman place.  

We ambled past Palau de la Cambreria, Casa Canals, and Museu Nacional Arqueològic de Tarragona, until we popped out from behind a wall and suddenly found ourselves standing at the Circ Romà (Roman Circus), one of the most well-preserved of its kind.  This circus is nothing at all like what probably pops into your mind when you hear the word “circus”.  No elephants, jugglers, glittery horses and riders, clowns, or trained, performing dogs to be found here.  This was the place of races.  Kind of like ancient NASCAR actually.  Built in the first century, it is both open-air and underground (similar to the original olympic stadium in Greece) and is a huge oval spanning over 1,000 feet long and nearly 400 feet across with the capacity to seat around 30,000 spectators.  This track was home to all of the area horse and chariot races.  Allita and I closed our eyes and imagined what it would be like to observe a race in this beautiful place, where the blue Mediterranean colors the background and the brilliant sun streams down from the sky warming the stone benches around us.  

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The Circ Romà also includes the Praetorium, which is a gigantic building with a tower that once connected the lower city with the forum by way of an indoor staircase and underground passageways.  We were not able to go inside the Praetorium but we could see most of the structure from our vantage point outdoors.  Even as we goggled over the awesomeness of this structure, Allita smirked at the irony of the history of the place.  You see, the Praetorium was once modified into a palace for the Crown of Aragon monarchy, then, in later years, it became a prison.  It’s gone from riches to rags, so to speak.

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Directly across Via Augusta from the Roman circus and Praetorium is the massive Amfiteatre de Tarragona (Roman amphitheater), which interestingly was about half the size of the circus with seating for only about 15,000 people but appeared to be so much more grandiose.  We literally only had to turn ourselves around in order to be able to see it.  This is the place where all the typical non-race Roman entertainment would occur – such as gladiatorial venationes (wild animal fights) or the fiery persecution of Christians.  The amphitheater itself has a history not unlike the circus; after it was no longer used for its original purposes, some of the stones were repurposed to build a basilica to commemorate the martyrs who died there, the place was abandoned, then it became a convent, and eventually a prison, until it was finally “recovered” to it’s current and “almost original” state.  

SIDE NOTE: “Almost original” reminds me of “Almost Free“; a similarly paradoxical phrase we learned in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico some years ago.

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El Balcó del Mediterrani (The Balcony of the Mediterranean) is precisely as the name implies.  It is literally a balcony over the sea – a promenade that stretches across the coastline of the city but higher than the shore and offers sweeping views of beach as well as the Parc de l’Amfiteatre and the port.   This is where the pace of our journey slowed significantly (possibly also in part due to having climbed the trail from the amphitheater up to the balcony ledge) and we stopped to savor the experience of modern-day Tarragona.  The lovely little park area included many benches available for just this leisure activity.  Mom had her own specific private bench upon which to enjoy the sunshine and crisp sea breeze.  Actually, many benches were labeled with large red circular stickers indicating those spots were reserved for people older than 65. 

Giving priority to mayores (older people) is not new to Spain as I have mentioned in many previous posts.  I also noticed that while the park was filled with families, youths, businessmen and others, the seniors were, in fact, the only ones sitting on their dedicated benches, which often possessed the best views and most dappled shade. Furthermore, every single person we saw was actively wearing a mask and social distancing.  This should be evident from some of the photos I am including in this post.  

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We ventured into an Ale Hop, of course; waiting patiently in the line outside at the front of the store until it was our time to enter.   We made a few purchases, as we frequently do in this particular chain store.  It reminds me of Spencer Gifts – do you remember that store? – once a staple of nearly every mall I ever visited in the U.S.  Allita was highly entertained by the cow statue in this particular locale since she was also wearing a mask.  So they took a socially distanced photo together.  The Ale Hop employee regulating pedestrian traffic at the store entrance was amused by our antics. 

We wandered leisurely down Rambla Nova, the walking mall, which was on Mom’s list of places to visit, and enjoyed a large quantity of window shopping and people watching.  Tarragona is much like any other typical Catalan city.  The old city is really ancient with tiny, narrow streets paved centuries ago in meticulously laid stones that fit perfectly into a patterned design.  At ground level, some of the buildings have what appears to be garages suitable either for a moto (motorcycle or moped) or a Smart (Smart car) as nothing bigger could surely fit!  Others have little shops like bakeries, ice cream parlors, shoe stores, pharmacies, restaurants, or various markets like fruits, veggies, fish or meat.  Most of the old city buildings are multi-leveled structures with residences on the top floors.  Their little balconies filled with furniture, plants and sometimes clothes drying in the sunshine and fresh breeze.  Frequently we could see someone standing outside in the sunshine on their tiny balcony – sometimes talking on the phone, reading a book or just sitting peacefully with their faces lifted to the sunshine, enjoying the peaceful day.  

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Eventually, we made our way to the remaining three sites we wanted to visit: Fòrum romà (Roman Forum), Teatre Romà de Tarragona (Roman Theater) and Monument als Castellers (monument to the Castellers).  Along the way we also passed the lovely Fuente del Centenario (fountain).  By now, we were absolutely exhausted and way beyond hungry, since lunchtime was two hours prior, so we trudged back to Plaça de la Font, which was generously lined with a multitude of novel restaurants, making a mental note of the gelato place (Heladeria Tiramisu) just off the main drag.  After some exploration and negotiation, we settled on a good, sunny location outside at Podium29, where we enjoyed fantastic tapas including pimientos de piquillo (cod-stuffed piquillo peppers), patatas bravas (Catalan potato wedges with spicy brava sauce), tires de pollastre (chicken strips), bunyols de bacallà (cod fritters), and, of course, Cava.  It was a most fabulous experience and a trip well made.  Even if my feet hurt.  

We made a u-turn at L’Ampolla and headed back north toward Tarragona and the Costa Dorada (Golden Coast) for the second week of our first trip of 2021.  This route is half of the “Camino Real” (Royal Route) between Valencia and Tarragona constructed in Roman times and utilized still today.  The path contains many, often breath-taking, views of the Spanish coastline and is generally traversed only on foot, much like the Cinque Terra in Italy.  It is a surprising regional secret that includes several interesting facets such as agricultural, civil and religious buildings, monumental trees, unusual places, stately homes, anecdotes and legends.  The coasts are dotted with fabulous beaches and have attracted many visitors to this region over the years.  Tarragona is the Denominación de Origen Protegida for Catalan wines – thus offering yet another reason why a visit there is so important.    

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On the way north from L’Ampolla, we stopped for lunch in Miami-Platja (Miami Beach).  How delightful is that?  Yes, we all had a good laugh about having driven so far and long that we suddenly found ourselves in southern Florida.  Ha!  

Miami Beach, Spain is about 30 km south of Tarragona; making it an excellent half-way point for our picnic lunch.  It’s a small town on the Costa Dorada with lovely, sandy beaches spread among rocky coves and cliffs and accessible by winding trails and steep staircases that lead down from the road above.  In some places, this area is not unlike the Costa Brava (Trip to Costa Brava 2020) where the beach is a bit of a hike from your parked car.  You find yourself doing a mental cost-benefit analysis before schlepping back up the hillside for the sunvisor you forgot.  

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We spent about an hour enjoying our freshly prepared bocadillos (sandwiches) and quinoa salad in the shade and watching Allita climb the massive rocks and play in the sand of a nearly private sandy cove.  We also drove all around the town and the seaside on our way in and out of the area – it was such a beautiful place and I could easily see myself spending a week-long vacation in one of the many oceanfront condominiums we admired.  I know, I know… I’m not a huge fan of the beach, but this place has a golf course.  Hello!  

Along the way to our next resort campground, we also passed through port city of Tarragona with its complex web of narrow streets winding in and around the ancient Roman structures in the center of the city.  Tarragona was once the most important city on the Iberian peninsula and we all agreed that we would invest at least one full day exploring this lovely ancient area during our stay. 

Camping Tamarit (https://www.tamarit.com), the self-proclaimed “fabulous beach resort” was our destination.  Of course, we had reserved a Safari Lodge tent located in a campground right on the beach for our luxurious glamping adventure.  Why not?  Who knows how many other trips we will be allowed to take this year?  Might as well make the most of it and in the least “mainstream” way possible – as we are inclined to do.  No boring hotel rooms for us.  No sir-ee!  Bring on the large, opulent, canvas tent with built-in kitchen, wooden deck with BBQ and private bathroom and shower!  After all, we had some serious wine-tasting and beach luxuriating to do!  

Now this next statement is probably going to be a bit of a surprise for some of you.   Where I have historically complimented and even recommended some of the places we have resided during our many travels over the last few years, the resort in Tamarit was a disappointment.  Furthermore, I have struggled to find enough positive words to describe our experience there.  In large part, that is why this post has taken so long for me to complete.  

Don’t get me wrong.  The campground was “OK” overall with many amenities.  Perhaps in warmer months or prior years, our experience might have been different? It was understandable that not everything was available because of the pandemic, yet the prices were still very high for off-season (March!), which was not understandable.  Further, the resort staff did not appear to be fully informed about what was happening at any given time.  It was somewhat disorganized and there was a fair amount of miscommunication.  Worst of all, we had considerable technological difficulties that I later discovered were well-known issues at this resort, and had been previously experienced by others (including locals we met during our day trips around the area).  Obviously, I did not do the best job of researching all the pros and cons before we booked our stay.  Shame on me.

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In a nutshell, the wifi here was MUCH WORSE than any we have ever experienced.  EVER.  Although advertised otherwise, it was unreliable and weak at the best times.  Attending online school was extraordinarily difficult if not impossible.  Many times over the week, we had to walk to various locations all over the resort just to be able to find a signal sufficient to access the classroom.  I also found it hard to just get the weather report – never mind checking my email.  This was particularly bothersome as I like to keep in touch with property managers and pet sitters when I’m away from home.  You know, in case there is an emergency?!  

Whereas the previous week, at Camping L’Ampolla, we had five different wifi options and all were free, at Tamarit Beach Resort, which was considerably more expensive and only a tent instead of a bungalow, we had two options: one free and one “premium”, which required a purchased access code.  Our first day, we were granted access to the “premium” wifi to “test it out”, but regardless of what we tried, we saw no difference in performance between the two signals.  Ultimately, Mom and I found ways to manage and Allita suffered through with dropped Zoom classes and the frequent inability to access servers.  It was only a week after all and the school records each class so Allita played catch up when we got back home.   

We did, in fact, stay in what they called a Safari Lodge (tent).  It is described as the premium of the “glamping” offerings.  It was quite a surprise to go to a colder location and switch from actual walls to canvas panels!  Thankfully the tent came with a lovely heater that was able to keep us satisfactorily warm in the evenings and through the night.  In fact, the only reason we stayed at this particular resort was because of the tent which we fell in love with from the website photos.  How silly is that?  But we don’t often have the opportunity to “glamp” and what’s the point in having an adventure without actually trying something new?

The tent was basically a single room built on a platform.  The side walls were canvas with screened windows covered by flaps of canvas that we were able to roll up in order to get natural light and roll down in order to have privacy and heat.  Inside were two twin bunk beds and a large double bed for sleeping, four chairs and a very small table, a small refrigerator and microwave, a bench, a drying rack, and a single wardrobe (a portion of which was the utility closet with mop, iron, etc.).  The “kitchen” was part indoors and part outdoors and it came complete with cookware and place settings for four.  The stove was gas and it was a camping stove, of course. We were glamping, after all. 

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After we arrived and unpacked, I returned to the office on foot to ask if they could please deliver a tank of gas for the outdoor stove so that we could actually warm our dinner.  Our parking space was near the tent but it was tricky to access and I had no interest in attempting it a second time that day.  The tent did have a bathroom with shower and small sink in the rear.  This was the main sink available except for a large dishwashing and laundry area conveniently nearby.  There was also a toilet in another small room in the rear of the tent.  Of course, our tent was located right next door to the bathhouse and showers, so we didn’t really need the private bathroom but it was nice to have, especially in the middle of the night.  The hot water was absolutely boiling and made me long for a bathtub for the first time in years.  Finally, the platform included a covered patio area where the “BBQ” was located along with two lounge chairs and a large table.  We moved 3 chairs outside so we could eat at this table later in the day when it was warmer and we used the fourth chair and the bench inside for breakfast at the tiny table.  It was quite cozy but overall nice and not unlike what I expected “glamping” to be.  

One of the best features of this resort campground is their proximity to Tarragona, Denominació d’Origen Penedès (the cava region of Spain), and, of course, the actual Playa de Altafulla beach.  This particular beach came fully-equipped with a well-preserved medieval castle (Cala Jovera or Castell de Tamarit) as well as two light houses (Far Altafulla-Tamarit and Far de Torredembarra).  The beach here is quite lovely with fine sand dotted with a multitude of flat rocks (they look like river rocks, actually) in multiple colors and sizes.  As you can imagine, Allita spent a fair amount of time perusing the rocks and selecting one or two (hundred) for her growing collection of beach detritus.  

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Another good feature of this area is the grocery store, which is nearly full-sized, and has a small take-away restaurant next door that is sometimes open.  The resort has two main restaurants they told us were always open but we didn’t eat at any of them.  The three times we were at any of the restaurants, they were both closed and the employees on site indicated they wouldn’t open until the weekend.  However the take-away place was fantastic and had delicious roasted chicken and medium-sized pizzas, which we did enjoy.  

The final good thing about this resort was the day trip they arranged for us at a local winery.  Of course, we had to drive ourselves to the actual winery, but we were able to pay for our tour in advance and only had to produce our tickets in order to be included.  Further, the tour we joined was offered in English so we were able to understand most of it.  WIN!  

Tarragona was the Roman capital of Spain and the hub of their wine-growing industry.  In fact, Catalan wines were traded with Egyptians by the Phoenicians many hundred years before the Romans even arrived on the Iberian peninsula!  Catalonia is the second largest producer of Spanish wines (after Rioja).  Cava, of course, for which this region is the most famous, is what interested us most.  Bring on the bubbly!!  Interestingly, Spanish Cava wines can be traced back to French Champagne techniques and were at one time called “champán”, but when the EU granted protected geographical status to that region of France, the name was officially changed.  While many Americans call any type of bubbly alcoholic beverage, “champagne”, by international law, only those wines that originate in that specific French region can be considered true Champagne.  So the Spanish have Cava and Frissante and the Italians have Asti Spumante and Lambrusco (for example).  Fun fact!  

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Casa Mas Vincenç winery is located in the Tarragona region.  It has been family owned and operated for many generations.  We met the mother and both her sons during our tour and she pointed out that in true Catalan tradition, the winery is also their private home and includes a stable for their animals.  They grow 12 different types of grapes and, as such, have lots of different wines available.  The younger vineyards are about 10 years old, but some of the older ones are 90+ years established and still produce fantastic grapes.  The vineyard is quite large but the winery is small so they only use about 40-50% of their grape harvest to make wine.  They sell the remaining grapes to the local Cooperative.  They also grow olives and make olive oil and vinegar, almonds, hazelnuts, and a variety of other items (honey, seasoned crisps, etc.) which they sell in their little boutique on premises and also through the local Cooperative.  We got to see all the equipment and the underground oak barrel storage area.  The tour guide (the oldest son) explained much of the wine making process to Allita who did a very good job of appearing interested and listening intently.  Mom and I spent our time tasting and enjoying the sunshine.  

It was a lovely outing and we wandered our way back to the resort campground taking the long way along the coast and through almost every little town we could find.  I enjoyed every moment of it but admit that we were all a little hungry and tired by the time we arrived back at the campground.  We stayed a week in Tamarit and enjoyed lovely weather, albeit colder than our week in L’Ampolla, plus a few days of adventure and exploration, which were both fun and fantastic.  Look for a post about our time in Tarragona and tour of Denominació d’Origen Penedès next.  ¡Salut!