Today we took a drive outside of Cadiz to the area known as Bolonia, which is about an hour's drive.

Lily, our guide from yesterday, accompanied us. The main attraction was to visit Baelo Claudia, the ruins of a Roman city which was abandoned by the Romans in the 7th century A.D. After it was abandoned, Baelo Claudia was covered over by sand blown from the nearby beach. Since it was covered by sand, the town is substantially less "ruined" than most Roman ruins.

Before arriving at the Roman ruins, we took a walk along a gravel path in the hills above Bolonia, which is the name of the present day village where Baelo Claudia is located. It was a beautiful walk. We saw cattle grazing alongside the road, and also some goats perched upon rocks above the same road. With all the recent rain the landscape was lush and the flowers were just starting to bloom.

A cow grazing along the road.

Pilgrims headed for the ocean.

Beautiful Spanish countryside

We made it down to the shoreline where we were treated to the sight of a working lighthouse:

Lily brought along a little snack of carrot sticks, guacamole and strawberries, which tasted just great in the shadow of the lighthouse with the ocean below. Across the Strait of Gibraltar we could see Africa in the distance.

We clambered back up the hill and made it over to the Roman ruins in just a few minutes. They were stunning, even more so because the sun came out. What a day.

A roman temple.

The central square of the Roman town.

After our vigorous walk around the ruins it was time for lunch. There is a wonderful restaurant sitting on the beach right beside the ruins called Otero Belonia. We got a really nice table looking out over the beach and the ruins. I ordered tuna meatballs with tomato sauce served over fried potatoes (mmmm...good) and Cath got sea bass which she pronounced "fabulous". For dessert Lily suggested we try a dish known as leche frito (fried milk), so we got that and also a piece of cheesecake (tarta de queso payoyo) because I had seen one go by to another table and it looked really good, and in fact it was really good. Probably one of the best slices of heavenly cheesecake either of us has ever had. Sorry, no photos, we were busy eating. You can let your imagination run wild: light, creamy sweet cheese....

On the way back to Cadiz we stopped to see Vejer de la Frontera, one of the "white villages" which dot the hillsides in the Cadiz region, so called because the buildings are always painted white. We enjoyed seeing it and made a note that it would be a nice place to spend a night or two if we come back this way.
Vejer de la Frontera

A windy road in Vejar de la Frontera.

I made this collage of several whimsical tiles that lined the exterior wall of a restaurant in Vejar de la Frontera:

After such a busy day we were a bit tired upon our return to Cadiz, so we decided to go back to the Italian restaurant next door for dinner. It was still great.

So that was our Day 3 in Cadiz. Tomorrow it's off to Seville! Ole!