The American image of Spain is Andalucía: the home of bullfights, flamenco, gazpacho, and pristine whitewashed hill towns. This southern part of the country feels more quintessentially Spanish than perhaps anywhere else. When visiting this area, I always make a point to venture into what’s called the Route of the White Hill Towns (Ruta de los Pueblos Blancos), a charm bracelet of cute villages perched in the sierras.
Acros de la Frontera makes a good starting point. Arcos is a classic hill town, blanketing its little summit with a mosaic of whitewashed buildings and a tangle of shady lanes. The labyrinthine old center is a photographer’s bonanza. I can feel the breeze funnel through the narrow streets — so narrow that drivers can only enter the town on one side and leave on the other. If you miss your stop, you need to drive out of town and circle all the way back to your starting point. The best advice: Park outside the old center and walk….