From Portimao we sailed to Albufeira and then Faro. We were planning on a day sail to Mazagon, but the winds were so nice we decided to press on to Cadiz, knowing that we wouldn’t get in till late. The sailing was absolutely beautiful, but one distressing thing did happen. Throughout the late afternoon and into the evening we could hear radio calls frantic in tone but hard to understand. After a while it became clear that the message was ‘we are a fishing boat, please don’t shoot!’ The Tarifa authorities put out a call to be on the lookout for a boat with 24 migrants. It was unlikely that we would see such a boat as we were at the northern geographic boundary of the call, but it was a distressing reminder of the desperation that some are still in and the measures they take to escape.
We had planned on anchoring just outside the Cadiz marina, and we were sussing out the anchorage at 0100 (1:00am), a little blearily, when a polite voice came on the radio. It was a Cadiz pilot boat (they guide cargo and cruise ships in and out of the port) informing us that we couldn’t anchor there and had to proceed further into town. We did as instructed, passing half a dozen tiny, two-man fishing boats (at 1 AM!), and dropped the hook in what felt like the middle of the river to maintain a decent depth. After a few hours of rest, we headed into the marina. Of course we got there at lunch, and despite the reassurances by radio that someone would be around, everyone was on a lunch break. I’m proud to say we managed to maneuver ourselves to the welcome pontoon as well as to our slip without any help. Whew!
Unfortunately by now, Trip decided we needed to replace the transmission cable, as well as tweak the mixing elbow riser once again. Thus began a few days of long work during the day, followed by showers and nights out on the town (luckily the Spaniards are night owls). Cadiz is considered to be the oldest continuously inhabited town in Western Europe, and the fortifications and other artifacts are still present everywhere you look in the city. You can do self-guided walking tours of the city that walk you through the ages of the Carthaginians and onward.
And the food and wine! Portugal was good, but this was a whole new level. We would arrive at a tapas bar (Casa Manteca and La Tavernita were our personal favorites) around 8:30, where you’d order a beer or glass of wine or even sherry. And then you’d go through the tapas list. Fried shrimp fritters, iberico ham, pork cutlets in sherry sauce, octopus, spinach and chickpeas, you ordered until you were full, or ready for the next bar. Quite by accident we found La Candela, a famous local restaurant, where we wound up sitting next to Kit and Kaia, a lovely pair of Brits on holiday who took us to their favorite little bar around the corner. They explained that Cadiz was such an incredible place because it really doesn’t see many tourists. It’s 2 hours to the closest airport, and despite the number of cruise ships that pull in, I think most people board buses and head to the Jerez region to drink sherry. It makes for a really charming town that doesn’t feel overwhelmingly touristy.
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