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By
Jo Williams
Set in a countryside of olive groves
and cereal cultivation, Utrera is a large agricultural town with
a few fine churches and mansions. It is considered to be one of
the principal grain-producing regions in Spain and is also in the
heart of a cattle-rearing region, where toros (fighting bulls) are
raised.
The
older section of the town is clustered around the 14th-century castle,
the most important fortress in the Moorish series of the defensive
fortifications, the Banda Morisca, which protected the kingdom of
Granada. Between the Santiago and Santa María churches are
the remains of a defensive enclosure.
In
this historic quarter are two of Utrera's most interesting churches,
the Iglesia de Santiago and the Iglesia de Santa María de
la Mesa. Opposite the castle is the Gothic Santiago church, dating
from the 14th century, which has a magnificent Renaissance portal,
one of the finest in Andalucia. The Iglesia de Santa María
is another Gothic church and also has an impressively elaborate
16th-century portal, the Puerta del Perdón, and a beautiful
tower, partly designed by Hernán Ruiz, with a Baroque belfry.
It is flanked by some fine mansions in the adjacent streets.
 Utrera
is peppered with grand Baroque houses, such as the one now occupied
by the Casa de Cultura on Calle Rodrigo Caro, near the Plaza Santa
María de la Mesa, with a beautiful colannaded courtyard.
The Casa de Cultura houses the tourist office, 955 860 931.
On
the edge of town is the Sanctuario de la Consolación, a sanctuary
dedicated to the town's patron saint, the Virgen de la Consolación,
who is represented on the gilded 15th-century altarpiece. The sanctuary
also has a superb artesanado coffered ceiling.
Apart from these churches, Utrera's
other redeeming feature is its renowned flamenco festival, the Potaje
Gitano; like many flamenco festivals, such as the Gazpacho in Morón
de la Frontera, it is named after a dish popular in Andalucia -
in this case, the Gypsy's Stew. Established in 1957 by the town's
gypsies and dedicated to the cante (singing), the festival is held
on the last Saturday in June every year.
The
17th-century poet Rodrigo Caro was born in Utrera and is most well-known
for his poem on the Roman
ruins of Italica.
Just
outside Utrera is the Utrera
Natural Reserve, a series of lakes noted for their wildlife,
especially birds.
Places
to stay in Utrera include the two-star Veracruz, on Calle Corredera
44, 955 865 252, in a restored 18th-century mansion or, if you fancy
splashing out, the five-star Hotel Cortijo Soto Real, on a country
estate outside Utrera on the Las Cabezas de San Juan-Villamartin
road, Km 13, 955 869 200.
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