One of the great pleasures of Vejer is simply walking around the quiet backstreets and cobbled lanes that wind their way through this very Moorish village. It is so easy to imagine being in another time, where history is not distant but happened only yesterday. Vejer de la Frontera is not grand or oppulent as Seville, Granada, or Cordoba are, but the history of the town is palpable, real, immediate, from conquering Phoienicians and Carthigians circa 400 BC, to the imperialist Romans, marauding Visigoths, civilizing Moors, to the reconquistador times in the 1400's.
The ancient town walls still trace the outline of the old village perched on the sides of several hills. In places they appear as they once must have been strong defenses against enemies; but the walls also disappear into homes and you'll just as likely see washing being hung on the ramparts. Heavily restored in places, the walls were built in the 15th century as part of the defensive investment after the Christian reconquest of the region.
Several arches lead into the old town through the walls and, unlike many other towns in Spain, all the original gateways still exist and are part of everyday life of Vejer. The old moorish 'alcazaba' is tucked away down a narrow backstreet with the town built right around the castle. The Church is built on the site of the old mosque -- the minaret is still standing now but houses a belltower. The church consists of two contrasting styles -- the front of the main aisle is visigothic while the remainder is mudejar. The interior of the church was damaged during the Civil War & little remains of the usual riches.
The Plaza de España or 'Plaza de los Pescaitos' is a beautiful plaza, ringed with date palms and bouganvilla. The Plaza de los Pescaitos (Plaza of the Little Fish) gets its name from the goldfish that swim around the fountain. Decorated with bright ceramics & 4 spouting frogs, the ornate brightly tiled fountain is not as old as it seems and dates only to the early 1900's.
Vejer is located just a few km. from the beaches at either El Palmar, Trafalgar Bay or Los Caños de Meca. Vejer itself is made up of 2 parts, the old medieval quarter & the newer part of town carefully designed in the style of the 'pueblos blancos' of the region. Vejer has many monuments to visit, flower filled courtyards to peer into & turreted walls to see views from. Vejer is surrounded on 2 sides by the 'Las Breñas' Natural Park a 5,000ha. forest of pine wood running down to the coast & the 'Marismas' Natural Park a smaller nature reserve through which the Barbate river runs through & home to an important collection of birdlife. Both parks have walking trails running through them & are perfect for day walks.
A short walk away is the recently restored roman acueduct of Santa Lucia, usually still working in the summer, with a water supply that feeds the small lush valley nearby where avocadoes, pomegranate & other semi-tropical fruits are grown. A myriad of walking trails & wider cañadas run through the local countryside.
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