Oasis in the clouds: Vejer De La Frontera

Ninety minutes south of Seville can have you transported to another era. Vejer de la Frontera was controlled by the Moors for over five hundred years, and this influence can be seen throughout the village. The town is situated on top of a cliff, which kept it protected from invasion. The Spaniards took back the town in 1200 from the Moors and added De La Frontera to the name. The medieval design is seen throughout the town: the windy roads, blind turns, and roads stacked on top of each other. The population of twenty thousand keeps this world alive through their daily life and restaurants.This hidden gem feels like the island life. The sun shines on your face for three-hundred-days a year, and the siesta is a must in the afternoon. Relaxation and taking your time are the only things that you need to bring with you. The wind rolls up the mountain to give you a little smell of the Mediterranean air. The beach is a twenty-minute drive, but you feel like you are water side on every street. Bleached-white houses line every cobblestone street while oranges hang from every tree. It is a town where you instantly think that you could live there.Restaurants and cafes line the walkways, with everything in walking distance. Everything becomes alive at night. The day is for getting yourself ready for the life at night. Plaza España is the main plaza that always gets filled with wine drinkers and families. It is centered around a water fountain which puts the beauty of the town on display. Here is where the locals have conversations with some wine. Plaza life is on full display. You look out over the wall of the city, and you can see miles of Spanish land. In Vejer there are not many reasons to be in a hurry.After a few days in Vejer, we felt like one of the locals. Seeing the same people in the wine store or bakery had us on first name basis. The conversations made the town become apart of us; especially where we stayed. Casa Shelly felt like a home away from home. They told us about the details of the city: where to go for breakfast, what wines to have, where to see flamenco dancing on the balcony, and what secret beaches there are.The people made this town come alive. This is the biggest-smallest town I have fallen in love with.