The White Villages Route in Andalucia.
Andalucia Popular Architecture Routes.

The White Villages Route

CADIZ AND MALAGA

Situated on an arc which extends from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean, in an area characterized by the last foothills of the Bético system –the Sierras of Cadiz and Ronda- the white villages constitute one of the archetypal routes of popular Andalusian architecture. The omnipresent lime and their commanding position- on hill and mountainsides or in gorges- make these villages appear as round white blotches on a landscape dominated by pine trees, holm oaks, cork oaks and, a true botanic rarity: Spanish firs.

The fact that they were “frontier villages” in the secular struggle between Moors and Christians explains the profusion of castles and the Muslim influence, and this together with their characteristics of mountain villages, marks many features of their popular architecture: steep, narrow, winding streets, alleyways affording access to the houses or patios, arches across the narrow roads propping up the facades. There is also a predominance of tiled roofs.