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Ruta Bancos Gigantes or Huge Bench Route in Andalucia

A new rage is slowly spreading across Andalucia with its beginnings in the province of Malaga and that is huge benches are being installed in beauty spots across the region. The Huge Bench Route or  Ruta Bancos Gigantes #rutabancosgigantes can be found on Instagram  where they are more active with updates on the new installations of these enormous benches and they have a   Facebook  page too. Map of the Ruta Bancos Gigantes The initiative started by Forest Green an agrobroker company that supplies and works with treated wood to large construction and environmental companies in Spain. The huge bench route is steadily growing, with constant new installations spreading across Andalucia. The enormous handmade wooden benches are 4 metre long and 2.3 metre high, with the seat being 1.3 metres above ground and needing steps to get onto them, appearing in natural beauty spots hopes to encourage people out into and  enjoy the views and of course take photos to be ...
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Famous Bandits and Highwaymen in Andalucia

When you´ve watched films like Entre Lobos, walked the rugged interior, checked out Sierra de Cazorla, Segura and Las Villas natural park and wondered how the Moors scoured the countryside and built watchtowers on remote hillocks it´s easy to imagine the wild interior being controlled by bandits.

The most famous bandelero in Andalucia was José María el Tempranillo who during the 19th century XIX roamed and ruled the towns of Palenciana, Corcoya, Jauja, Benamejí, Casariche, Alameda and Badalatosa.




The story begins near Lucena in Cordoba province, José Maria born in 1805, fled to the hills at the age of 16 after killing a man who had attacked a female member of his family. Knowing he couldn´t go back he joined a group of outlaws much older than himself. This is what gave him his nickname ´Tempranillo´which means ´early start´.

The gang stopped and robbed travelling parties in daylight and without violence, and it is said with style. "Such beautiful hands need no such adornment, give me your rings".

For more on bandit country, guided tours and el Tempranillo visit this website Tierras de José María el Tempranillo, you can even book to be held up and robbed!

In The Tales of the Alhambra, Washington Irving writes about bandoleros in more than one instance:

....Sometimes the road struggles through rugged barrancos or ravines, worn by winter torrents, the obscure path of the contrabandista; while, ever and anon, the ominous cross, the monument of robbery and murder, erected on a mound of stones at some lonely part of the road, admonishes the traveller that he is among the haunts of banditti, perhaps at that very moment under the eye of some lurking bandalero.


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