This UNESCO World Heritage Site is something I'd only vaguely heard of prior to researching for…read morethis trip. I'm embarrassed that Americans don't seem to be more familiar with this amazing city and it's Palmeral planted in Roman times, improved by Moors and enjoyed for centuries in the farming of dates. Prior to our visit I couldn't really decipher from maps where the Palmeral actually was within the city. It wasn't until we got there that we could see there are just palms EVERYWHERE and the city basically IS the Palmeral. Yes, there is an official park space with signage, big Spanish flag, groomed landscape and extensive paved paths. However, to miss the ravine area adjacent to the main park is to miss A LOT! We arrived at lunch time, hungry, so our restaurant location fed us into the ravine area before we could work our way to the park proper. The ravine is just out of a dream. It was something to paint, to sit and stare at for days, just so intense and incredible. This city should be so much more well-known, it's fantastic and I need to go back and spend more time. I definitely recommend dedicating at least 3 hours to wandering the length of the ravine. It has up to 3 levels of trails at certain points, meaning street level gets super high up as the ravine gets deep, then trail level, then the riverbed is a dry paved area with small channel in it for permanent water flow. But the paved riverbed is painted with vibrant colorful murals and the locals use it as las ramblas, taking dogs, strollers, bikes, etc down for their daily exercise. While the ravine seems to be the sporty exercise area, the formal park is more for nanny excursions and lunch hour in nature. Everyone there was more dressed up and out for a city folk type stroll. There are waterfowl in one area that had extra temp fencing up--thank God--which made me feel better with recent Bird Flu concerns. Many public art sculptures, statues of historic Spanish figures, and creative water fountains and hardscaping. Plenty of seating every so many meters, as well. There are Palmeral tours which I wish we'd been able to schedule but scheduling was off during Semana Santa. This is definitely something I want to do next time! They show you the process of date harvesting and even offer the option to climb a palm tree (with gear)! Just an absolutely stunning place to visit! Well worthy of UNESCO's recognition!

A high needle type monument colloquially known as "The Needle" in English and "El Pirulí"…read more(multicolor conic-shaped candy) in Spanish. Probably named after the Torrespaña TV tower in Madrid also known as "El Pirulí". Located at the entrance to the city and seen from many places in the neighbourhood. The official name is unknown, not sure if it exists. Maybe they just forgot to name it :) Also El Pirulí was not on Google Maps until I put it there (it's listed as "El Pirulí" now). This town definitely has naming and mapping issues! A little local landmark that deserves to be on Yelp! Some local officials say it looks ugly and "third world", what do you think?