Typical dishes from Ubeda and Baeza

As for typical dishes from Ubeda and Baeza, andrajos are famous as an idiosyncratic local stew, while anything involving cordero segureño is worth trying. This is a breed of lamb that takes its name from the Segura mountain range and is delicious. Alcauciles, meanwhile, are a kind of semi-wild artichoke, and are certainly worth trying if a restaurant serves them fresh and in season, rather than from a jar.

Snails as a tapa in Ubeda and Baeza

From spring to mid summer you’ll also see signs up in many bars in Ubeda and Baeza announcing that “Hay Caracoles”, i.e. snails are available. During their season, they’re perhaps the most popular tapa among the locals, who’ll cross town to find a bar that serves them to their taste. These snails are dinky little things, a far cry from what you’ll encounter in Madrid or France. They’re gently stewed and the art is in the ingredients that the chef adds, orange peel and mint often being put in.

A tapa of snails in Ubeda, Spain

Ochios from Ubeda, ochios from Baeza

So, what tapas are local specialities in Ubeda and Baeza? Well, mini rolls called ochíos are definitely widespread. They’re made with olive oil and paprika, and are served with various fillings. Here's a photo of a tapa of ochíos for two, served for free with a drink:

Ochios from Ubeda, ochios from Baeza

Antonio Machado in Baeza, Spain

Baeza will be forever related with the name of the poet Antonio Machado, who lived there for seven years between 1912 and 1919. The town’s international summer school is named after him and the locals are justly proud that Baeza should figure in some of his most famous poems, as in the following example:

“De la ciudad moruna
Tras las murallas viejas
Yo contemplo la tarde silenciosa
A solas con mi sombra y con mi pena.
El río va corriendo
Entre sombrías huertas
Y grises olivares,
Por los alegres campos de Baeza.”

In reality, his relationship with the town was somewhat tortuous, as is hinted at in this poem. Having moved to Baeza after the death of his wife, he associated its small-town atmosphere and agricultural surroundings with his grief. However, it can also be argued that these very surroundings spurred his creativity on, his literary output in this period being excellent.

Behind Baeza Cathedral

Behind the cathedral is another Baeza that many tourists don’t reach yet is a real discovery and a great way to end your walk after such a glut of monuments. Cobbled lanes are flanked by dry stone walls that find themselves overhung by palm trees. Few cars disturb a lovely and surprisingly shady stroll that ends up with a lovely view down over hills and endless olive groves. 

Behind Baeza Cathedral

Baeza Cathedral, Baeza Spain

Baeza Cathedral (16^th Century, Renaissance) is a National Monument and is more than worth a closer look, as can be seen in the photo below:

Baeza Cathedral

Fuente de Santa Maria, Baeza, Spain.

The Plaza de Santa María is another square that seems frozen in time, but is far larger than the Plaza de Santa Cruz. All its surroundings are completely in tune, without any concrete at all to strike a duff note. The old seminary is on the right as you enter, while  the Casas Consistoriales Altas are on the right. A Gothic complex, this currently houses the local music college. As you cross the square, you'll walk  past the 16^th Century Fuente de Santa María.

Fuente de Santa Maria, Baeza, Spain

Seminario Conciliar de San Felipe Neri, Baeza, Spain

The Seminario Conciliar de San Felipe Neri (old seminary) is a huge 17^th/18^th Century building that runs along the right-hand side of the street of the same name. It was restored in 1990 and is now the hub for many courses in the Universidad de Verano “Antonio Machado” (the Antonio Machado Summer School). The inner patio is cool and inviting in the summer.  Students graft in the classrooms that lead onto it, kept well away from the heat outside. The seminary had a chapel that can be viewed from Calle S.Felipe Neri, while the old seminary’s Baroque main frontage can be viewed from the Plaza de Santa María at the end of the street.

 Seminario Conciliar de San Felipe Neri

Dinner in Ubeda and Baeza

Evening dinners (mainly 9-11 p.m.), however, are different. Some people do go out for a sit-down meal, but many will go to a bar rather than a restaurant and have some tapas over a beer or wine. The terminology for ordering the following is as follows: a caña is a small draught lager, a tubo a bigger one and a botellín a bottled lager. The most popular wines are from Rioja or Ribera del Duero, as most local consumers haven’t yet woken up to the gorgeous wines being produced in other parts of their own country. 

Lunch in Ubeda and Baeza

Lunch is normally the main meal of the day in Andalusia; it’s served 1.45-3.30 p.m. and usually involves a set menu or à la carte meal. Set menus tend to be cheaper – and sometimes nastier – although they can be excellent value for money and often throw in cheap plonk as part of the deal. As for ordering your food, it’s important to remember that many restaurants will hand you an à la carte menu when you walk in, but have a set menu available if you ask. N.B. The carta is à la carte, while the menú is set!

The starters are usually larger than in the U.K. and may involve a stew or salad, while the main course is invariably meat or fish with a very limited range of veg. Don’t forget that veggies struggle in Spain, and Úbeda and Baeza are no exception. Even peas or artichokes are served with diced ham, while pulses are popular, often as a starter, but in stews that also contain meat or sausages of some description.

A typical breakfast in Ubeda and Baeza

Let’s move on to the meals of the day, inevitably beginning with breakfast. As the working day starts so early and lunch is so late, many people leave the office for a few minutes mid-morning to have breakfast out. This leads to many bars specialising in the first meal of the day. Some of them have made quite an art out of a humble slice of toast, often revolving around the omnipresent olive oil that the locals love so much. Toast is served with oil to be poured over it, freshly grated tomato to be spread on it, garlic to be rubbed on and salt to be sprinkled over it. 

Tapas in Ubeda and Baeza

it’s worth mentioning that Úbeda and Baeza really stand out for their tapas. It's worth noting the differing culture that lies behind tapas in different parts of Andalusia: around the Seville area (i.e. western Andalusia) you have to pay if you want a tapa with your drink, but in many parts of eastern Andalusia you get a tapa or aperitivo for free. In Úbeda and Baeza these are often famously large and you can even make a light supper out of them. Bigger appetites can order any extra dishes, called raciones, to share. 

Iglesia de Santa Cruz, Baeza

The Iglesia de Santa Cruz (late 13^th Century) is Romanic, the only one of its kind in Baeza to have remained reasonably intact. There’s beautiful architecture wherever you look in this square and it’s worth just standing and taking in your surroundings. Few old towns in the whole of Spain can claim to be as intact as in Baeza and the effect is magical as you seem to be transported back in time, not a block of flats in sight!

Iglesia de Santa Cruz, Baeza

El Palacio de Jabalquinto

From the Antigua Universidad you’ll follow straight on down Calle Beato Ávila until we reach the Plaza de Santa Cruz, a gorgeous square where two of Baeza’s most prized monuments stand opposite each other. They’re highly unusual in style in the context of so much Renaissance architecture, as the Palacio de Jabalquinto is Gothic, although with an inevitable Renaissance touch in the shape of its patio. 

El Palacio de Jabalquinto

Calle Romanones in Baeza

Once in the old town, I recommend taking Calle Romanones, and it’s here that the barrage of monuments really starts as the Antigua Universidad - old university - and the Iglesia de San Juan Evangelista (16^th Century), which used to be the university chapel, both come into view. Outstanding examples of Baeza’s architectural riches, they’re just a taste of what’s to come.

Calle Romanones in Baeza

La Casa del Populo in Baeza

Continuing with our tour of Baeza, at a right angle to the Antiguas Carnicerías is the Casa del Pópulo (16^th Century, Plateresque), also not to be sniffed at. It is now home to the local tourist office and is thus definitely worth a stop before continuing on our tour by entering the old town via some steps that lead up from the left-hand corner of the square.

Baeza Town Hall and the Antiguas Carnicerias, Baeza

In Baeza the sights begin with the Town Hall (Plateresque), a National Monument which is located down Calle Gaspar Becerra, a street off to the right of the Paseo de la Constitución. Making your way back to the afore-mentioned Paseo,  a left turn at the end of it will find you immediately in the Plaza del Pópulo. 

The most impressive building in the square is the Antiguas Carnicerías (16^th century, although it was actually moved brick by brick from its original position in Calle Atarazanas in 1962/63), where the local law courts are now housed.

Antiguas Carnicerias in Baeza

Baeza, Spain

The old town in Baeza is far more compact than in Úbeda. However, before exploring it, ttere's a lovely short walk to be had from the Plaza de España, heading along the Paseo de la Constitución. The monuments will come later, but here’s a chance to sample life in an Andalusian town. This is really the nerve centre of Baeza society. Bars with terraces for a coffee abound under the archways, while the pedestrianised central area is where pensioners stroll and kids play. If you’re lucky, the bandstand might even be in use.

Accommodation in Ubeda and Baeza

Many aspects of finding suitable accommodation in Úbeda and Baeza are similar to elsewhere in Europe, although there are a couple of interesting options that benefit from some extra explanation, such as the fact that Spain possesses an excellent group of publicly owned hotels called Paradores, often set up in renovated period buildings, one of which is in Úbeda. Paradores aren’t cheap, but they offer a unique set of surroundings instead of anonymous modern hotels. 

Tapas in Ubeda and Baeza

Úbeda and Baeza are renowned throughout Spain for the tapas that are served in their bars. This is because in much of Spain you have to pay if you want a tapa with your drink. However, in Úbeda and Baeza you get a tapa or aperitivo for free. They’re often famously large and you even make a light supper out of them. Bigger appetites can order extra dishes, called raciones, to share.