Spain

Photos from Spain – Photography of Andalucia - Iberian Peninsula Images

Andalucia, the most southerly region in Spain has a population in excess of 6.5 million. It stretches from the province of Almeria in the east to Huelva in the west. Within this vast area are the great cities if Cordoba, Granada and Seville and a huge variety of landscapes, vegetation and climate; the desert of Almeria, the snows of the Sierra Nevada, the rolling hills of Cordoba Province, the craggy mountains in the centre and the marshlands of the west.

The images here are taken in the provinces of Granada, Cordoba and Malaga. From Malaga heading north towards Antequera are many famous white villages typical of the region. El Torcal is famous for its spectacular limestone pillars and wind cut formations that make this a must for the passing traveller. Ibex roam wild and crocus cling tightly to crevices like jewels in springtime.

To the south of the town of Loja, the Montes de Loja are a secret treasure to be explored where purple iris carpet the slopes in December and high above, the craggy rocks sprawl and stretch into the distance as flocks of sheep graze on the sparse carpet of grass.

To the north of Loja is a different world; a seemingly never ending expanse of rolling hills covered as far as the eye can see with olives neatly laid out row after row, echoing the contours of the land. Abandoned fincas lie in ruins as a generation has sought wealth away from the toil of the land.

Further north lies the famous city of Cordoba with the beautiful Mesquita hugging the banks of the Guadlaquivir. This fertile area has been combed and cultivated for generations by farmers and the fields are a delight to behold in any season.

And finally to the east is Granada and the Alhambra, a jewel of Moorish architecture protected by the mighty snow covered Sierra Nevada towering above. The countryside here too has other surprises with regular lines of poplar plantations and fields of feathery asparagus as well as beautiful wild flowers carpeting the land in spring.