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El
Puerto de Santa María is a lively spot both day and night. By day its
prime attractions are its beaches and marina, its history-drenched
promenades and the fine food on offer. After soaking up all these
pleasures we can then look forward to the night-time entertainment. . .
The
old town, lying on the banks of the River Guadalete, contains most of
the picturesque sites and historical attraction. A good starting point
for any tour of the town is the Town Hall on Plaza Polvorista. From
there Calle Fernán Caballero leads to the bullring, dating from 1880
and recalling a Roman coliseum. The Calle Santa Lucía then leads on to
the Plaza España with the fifteenth-century Iglesia Mayor Prioral, the
church devoted to the towns patron saint, the Virgen de los Milagros.
A few metres away stands the handsome Castillo de San Marcos,
a twelfth-century Arab castle with Roman, Visigoth and Mudejar
features. Hard by stands the Palacio de Medinaceli, the erstwhile
palace of the lord of the Port, Duque de Medinaceli. Upriver lies the
Plaza de las Galeras, one of the liveliest spots in the old town. A
visit to the fishing port is a must, called the ribera del marisco (seafood shore).
Twenty
five kilometres down the road from El Puerto is Sanlúcar de Barrameda,
a cheery town blending historical tradition and modernity. Near the
centre, in the higher part of the city, stands the Castillo de
Santiago, built in 1477. Walking downhill from the castle towards the
Plaza de San Roque we come to the Town Hall, standing alongside the
fourteenth-century Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la O, its parish
church. The same square is also home to the Palacio de Medina-Sidonia,
where the dukedoms archives are kept. On the Cuesta de Belén stands
the Palacio de los infantes de Orléans, the palace of the Dukes of
Montpensier. Alongside stands the seventeenth-century shrine called
Santuario de Nuestra Señora de la Caridad with the fifteenth-century
Covachas at the end of the same street. We then come to the Plaza del
Cabildo. On one side stands the sixteenth-century Iglesia de Santo Domingo,
a parish church that formerly belonged to the old Dominican Convent.
From the other side this square leads on to the promenade and 12 kilometres of beaches.
Special mention must go to Europes biggest nature reserve, the Parque Nacional de Doñana, on the other side of the city.
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