We’ve ended the Spain trip on a beach note. Valencia was the start of this and Sitges will be the end. In between was a nice 4 days in Tarragona. In hindsight, it would have been better to spend more time there and less in Valencia, but you don’t know what you don’t know.
The trek to Tarragona was easy although the train ride took us through the back end of Valencia, lots of abandoned buildings, dock and port infrastructure, and general run-downiness. Not what the tourists are seeing on the other side. The Spanish train system was fast and efficient as usual, and we arrived in Tarragona in good time. It was hot but being right on the Mediterranean made it seem cooler and the walk to the new place was very pleasant. It reminded us of Tavira in that the airBnB was a little out of town and to get there we had to walk along stretches of highway with no sidewalks. But we made it in one piece and the accommodation and the hosts, were fabulous. The ground floor suite had a lovely private terrace/garden and overlooked the ocean which was essentially just across the street.
Since we are winding down, we hadn’t planned on doing a whole lot besides getting the groceries. Tarragona is an old Roman settlement with tons of long beaches, so that pretty much set up the agenda for us right there. We needed to get some transportation details sorted out and day one was in town checking out all the Roman stuff complete with old amphitheaters, crumbling walls, aqueducts, the Pretorium (Tower), the Necropolis, and the Roman circus. A lot of the relics we did not see, as they are out of town and we needed a car. And of course, there’s a really nice gothic cathedral to see as well. Tarragona is a world heritage site and suffice it to say there are a lot of interesting things to see. The port city has no real founding date, but best guesses are sometime before 5th century BC and some of the old wall foundations pre-date the Romans. Definitely worth visiting.
And if you are into beaches, also definitely worth visiting. Day two and three were beach days and a nice change from the constant walking and relic touring. We found the beaches clean (unlike Valencia where the beach seemed to be covered in cigarette butts), not too crowded, and very relaxed (aka, clothing optional). Both days were hot, and the ocean was warm, salty, clear, and inviting and while I did mention earlier about never, ever swimming in the ocean, it was just too damn nice not to. Live a little, I say. Screw the sunblock, get a burn, swim with the sharks. Seriously, could have used more time there.
