Ronda Hotel San Cayetano

... only seven suites, Hotel Claude is a stylish little sanctuary in the bustling historic center of Marbella!
This is the place you want to go when you are looking for a quiet and romantic break in an authentic Spanish village, but also perfect for any relaxing long stays if you wish to feel at "home"!! Not a place for those "Nikkie Beach" and "Puro Beach" party animals!!!!

Welcome to the house of Claude

This is by far the most beautiful city I have visited in Spain! Ronda is where the first bullfight took place and is home to the oldest bullring in Spain. The other students and I started out the day listening to one of our professors give a speech about the history of bullfighting, very interesting but after three hours I was ready to see Ronda. We then went to the bullring and had the opportunity to go inside where the fights take place. It was a feeling like no ...

... order to get an early start in the morning.

Shae question for daddy: She's riding on his shoulders..."Daddy does everyone have hair in their ears? or just you? It's white hair"

Another one, Daddy is trying to get out of the parking garage in Ronda. It's very steep. He stalled the car 5 times and someone was behind him.. I'm laughing hard and Shae is laughing. She says, "Daddy you're a knucklehead." I really don't know where she gets that...;)

... He loved it! Shae and I did a hike which was beautiful. These mountains are massive. We saw a couple of riders and thought of Bob. I'm sure the Spaniards train here for the tour. They are so steep and it's crazy climbing. Bob would have loved it! We drove around the area and then headed back to a town called Olvera where mike saw another great shot he wanted to take, but unfortunately we arrived after magic time so ...

... also visited a bathhouse that I believe is over 500 years old. I think it's really neat how the Muslims appreciated bathing in bathhouses back then. It almost reminds me of the hot springs that we have in Pagosa Springs. We also saw the "Corridor de Toros", which stands where the original ring was first built in all of Spain. Even though I am not a big fan of the idea of bull fights, it was really neat to be there and get an idea of what ...

... over 650 years ago. Islam stresses cleanliness, so when a traveler comes to town, the first thing you reach is the Baths. They are always located right outside the defensive town wall, beside a stream from which they draw the water. Apparently, the Arabs were very clever at hydraulics using wheels, screws and aqueducts to transport water. The Baths had 4 rooms: reception/change area, cold, warm and hot baths. The warm room ...

... more
recent town by a mindblowing bridge over a very deep gorge, ravine or
canyon with views of the aforementioned spectacular surrounding
countryside. The views of the town and bridge from the bottom of the
gorge, ravine or canyon also require a photo or 2 dozen. Ronda's the
home of bullfighting in it's current form and the town was used in
Hemingway's "For Whom the Bell Tolls" - it's ...

We made our way from Seville to Ronda by way of Zahara de la Sierra, a leafy and quiet and incredibly gleaming white town tumbling down the flank of a rugged mountain topped by a domineering Moorish tower and ramparts. Scenery in this, the northern border of the Parque Nazional de los Arcornocales is like a strange mix between the Nevada desert and the Scottish Highlands. Isolated abadoned stone houses and desolate swathes of hilly red ruggedness. Ronda wasn ...

... So, Catlin needed some dramameen for the bus ride and so we went into one of the gazilllian paramies on just that street (THERE SEEMS TO BE A PHARMACY ON EVERY STREET CORNER IN SPAIN). We walked in a low and behold there is Antonio and Carlo behined the counter. Ok, so maybe he did look 29 in the day light, and Im sure I probably looked younger. But he was still really cute, and at the disco tech he asked me if I had a boyfriend. Oh well, all I said was ...

... a bit more into the city. By nightfall, I felt better enough to go out to eat. We went to this amazing vegetarian restaurant and had lentil soup and this crazy vegetarian lasagna chockful with carots, sprouts, broccoli and cheese. Probably the most unique meal we´ve had since we´ve been here. Definitely an experience, but after the rip off prices typical of tourist locations (other than our find), we were happy to head off, back into the city.