Tarifa, Spain

An ancient city built on the windy shores of the most southern tip of Europe.

Turquoise water under a pastel sky in Tarifa, Spain.

Tarifa is the first place I wanted to write about since deciding to start this Substack. It’s the first place I fell in love with on our world tour, and also one of the first places Andrew and I landed after leaving Texas. I think it holds a special place in my heart for that reason, the nostalgic feeling of wanderlust that was so strong beginning our adventure. It was only supposed to be a launching pad into Morocco but the experience became so much more…

View from the beach with Morocco on the horizon.

why i love tarifa

There’s just something about the simplicity of the sea combined with the carefree spirit of Spanish culture. It’s whitewashed buildings make it feel like summer all year long. It’s the perfect blend of historic charm met with a relaxed modern feel. The coolest fact is you can see Africa from the beach and take a ferry to Tangier, Morocco in less than an hour.

We visited during the winter season in early December, which was quite nice thanks to it’s southerly location and Mediterranean climate. We appreciated how quaint it felt during this off season. Like we had discovered a secret oasis hidden behind the old fortress walls.

For three nights we sipped €4 glasses of Spanish wine watching the sunset on the beach, listening to the sound of the waves, and staring deep into the ocean. It was exactly the calming medicine we needed after spending the entire month prior moving all our belongings into storage. We finally had time to pause and reflect on the fact that our lives were forever changed. We were on the cusp of a transformational year.

I realize now that I’ll never experience those exact same thoughts and feelings from the special circumstances of that moment ever again, but that impermanence is a beautiful thing. Just like the sky looks different at every sunset so does the gaze of the inner witness.

Tarifa sunsets did not disappoint.

We met an interesting couple during one of these sunsets on the beach. They had hitchhiked from northern Spain all the way to Tarifa. They told us they preferred to hitchhike when traveling and would sleep in a tent on the beach rather than a hotel. According to the woman, “Who needs 5-stars when you can have a 1,000 stars?”

I felt that. I became a little envious of their chosen lifestyle. I wish I could be less materialistic. However, I was not so jealous when we later crossed paths (unplanned) on a rainy night in Morocco and she said, “The trees will be our canopy tonight.”

We spent most of our time in the historic old part of town, but there’s even more to explore in the beautiful surrounding nature. Horse back riding through the giant sand dunes on the beach at sunrise was one of the highlights.

An extra special early morning horseback ride among giant sand dunes on the beach.

Tarifa is popular for wind sports and you’ll see many kite surfers flying across the shore. We never got tired of watching their acrobatic skills and how they harnessed the wind to soar to impressive heights then splashed back down into the water.

The original fortress walls still surround the old town. Within it are typical Moorish features with pointed archways, maze-like cobblestone streets, and narrow alleys that provide shade all-day long (necessary for the hot summers). It’s colorful with flower beds and ceramic tiles laid atop the white stucco walls. The small restaurants and cafes throughout feel intimate and serve excellent food, red tuna being the specialty. There’s lots of great bohemian-style shops and I had a really hard time not buying anything — in an effort to keep my bags light and to ensure our travel funds would last all year. (This was only the beginning.)

The plaque reads in Spanish, “Very noble, very loyal, and heroic city of Tarifa won from the Moors during the reign of Sancho IV the Brave on September 21, 1292.”

Due to it’s proximity to Africa, the Mediterranean Sea, and the Atlantic Ocean it has a fascinating history which I was captivated by when reading all the stories touring Castillo de Guzmán El Bueno (translates to Castle of Guzmán the Good). Built upon the edge of a cliff on the sea, and named after a governor who sacrificed his son to save the city from besiege.

After just one day, I was already considering (1.) whether we should stay longer than the three nights we planned and (2.) that I could see myself living here. We loved it so much we visited again six months later to experience the summer vibes during a roadtrip. It was a much more lively scene, especially the nightlife where you could find small pockets of alleyways filled with people spilling out from the tiny bars and restaurant patios overflowing with people on the sidewalks throughout the old town. The atmosphere was very typical of Spanish summer nightlife.

some quick food porn

Dinner at La Garrocha deserves a special mention specifically for the tuna and croquetas de choco (cuttlefish croquettes). We ordered a plate of the tosta de atún con trufa (tuna toast with truffle) and a plate of their lightly seared sashimi specialty. We ate here twice, during our visit in December and again in June, it was that good we thought about it for six months and had to come back for seconds.

Tuna toast with truffle and cuttlefish croquettes.

The seared tuna sashimi plate seen here is the reason we went back to La Garrocha again, but you can find this special tuna served in many different ways in most of the restaurants.

an accidental discovery

We actually discovered Tarifa by accident through first accidentally discovering Gibraltar. We unexpectedly decided to go to Gibraltar when looking for cheap flights to Morocco after our original flight to Marrakech had been canceled. Our new plan was to take a ferry from Spain. Morocco was the first destination on our travel list because of a quote from my favorite movie character, Penny Lane, played by Kate Hudson in Almost Famous.

“I’m gonna live in Morocco for one year…Do you wanna come?” - Penny Lane, Almost Famous

Gibraltar is a small British territory that would appear to be randomly located on the southern tip of Spain, but it’s a strategic location that has been fought over by civilizations throughout history. It’s most famously known for the Rock of Gibraltar. I had never heard of the Rock of Gibraltar prior to this, but it seemed like an interesting stop and we snagged a good deal on a one-way flight out of Austin. We stayed in the bordering Spanish town La Línea de la Concepción for two nights and spent a day exploring Gibraltar before making the 1-hour drive to Tarifa. It was an interesting juxtaposition to cross the border (on an e-scooter, lol) from a modest Spanish town and suddenly be in a bustling British city.

(Above) View of the Rock of Gibraltar from La Línea. (Below) Plane ride descending into Gibraltar.

The Rock of Gibraltar is an impressive sight and deserves a little appreciation here. It’s massive cliffs form a peninsula that juts out into the Straight of Gibraltar, like Tarifa, it’s a gateway to both the Mediterranean Sea and Atlantic Ocean. There’s historical connections to Greek mythology and evidence of prehistoric humans. You can easily spend several days exploring all there is to do on the giant rock which includes a nature reserve, more than 150 natural caves, a Moorish castle, and tour a large series of man-made tunnels. The tunnels were carved into the limestone rock during the Great Siege of Gibraltar (a battle between the British, French, and Spaniards during the American Revolutionary War) and then expanded upon during WWII. The rock is also home to the only wild monkeys on the European continent and roam freely amongst the visitors, sometimes jumping right over your head!

It’s a great place for history nerds, but the beautiful coastal views from atop the 1400 foot rock with the African coastline less than 10 miles in the distance makes it a pretty spectacular place for anyone. I could write more about Gibraltar, I thought the town itself was really charming, and I would love to go back to visit again.

We didn’t have any set expectations for Tarifa or Gibralter, we didn’t even know they existed before these plans were made. I think that’s partially what made them feel so special. The surprise and delight to have just stumbled upon these places by chance, and not knowing we’d love it (and learn) so much. We probably wouldn’t have chosen to visit these places under normal circumstances, but it did indeed influence our openness to discover other unknown places the rest of the year.

next stop: morocco

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The ferry that took us from Tarifa, Spain to Tangier, Morocco. The windy atmosphere makes for some large waves = a lot of seasick passengers, including myself.