The "theme park" comment is certainly not meant to offend, but it fits. Absence of heavy industry, abundance of architectural and cultural wealth, starting with the magnificent Alcázar and Cathedral, the Arenal or Asunción squares Among other things, there are the numerous wineries that proudly display their charm and advanced age, and that perfume of Jerez wine that fills any space with its unmistakable aroma.
We are in the middle of the season of Jerez FestivalThirty years and still going strong. It has become one of the most emblematic events on the cultural calendar of this city steeped in culture. Since the time of Shakespeare The wine produced here is traded, the famous sherrySherry, a deformed word from Jerez, is a sweet wine in English that's very popular with elderly British women. And if you don't believe me, try ordering sherry outside of Spain and you'll see how they serve you a muscatel, telling you "it's the same thing, for crying out loud."
"During the Festival there are in the peñaIt's a wide-ranging program of free performances, tastings of typical dishes and other cultural activities that make Jerez de la Frontera intensely taste of art. jondowhich, after all, is the reason for this great cultural encounter."
The city is full of new faces, and they keep arriving, course participants looking for shops selling course materials. flamencos, or the peñas, or the terraces with tapas, or the taverns with performances."What is tobacco“?”, a young man with an accent, wearing flamenco boots, asked me yesterday. It’s a word that doesn’t appear in the 868 pages of the Illustrated Encyclopedic Dictionary of the Flamenco (1988) of Jose Blas Vega y Manuel Rios Ruiz, despite being a word that features prominently in an essential chapter of cante flamenco In Jerez, former wine shops in the area began to fulfill a social role as meeting points where songs were sung. canteTypical of Jerez, marking the beat on wooden tables without guitar accompaniment, giving rise to the bulería “pa' escuchar”, “bulerías al golpe” and other labels that circulate in Jerez, without being accelerated soleares as many fans think.
Today, several tabancos in the city have been restored, preserving their historical atmosphere and offering performances of flamenco like small stages. The word tobacco It is believed to represent a place for the dispatch of controlled products, watertight, phonetically crossed with the word tobaccoThe tabancos of Jerez offer a humble source of income and a testing ground for young artists in the city, and a place where tourists can access the flamenco without complications.
Hey, look, there goes Paco Cepero!
Another piece of the puzzle is the peña flamenca. Since the nineteen-fifties these semi-private groups have been excellent meeting-places for the sharing of cante, dance and guitar. During the Festival de Jerez the peñas have an extended program of free shows, food tasting of local specialties and other cultural activities that make Jerez de la Frontera live intensely the art of flamenco, which after all is the reason for this encounter.
