Begur and Calella: The Indianos, the Coves and the Habaneras

Begur grew rich on the indianos — local men who crossed the Atlantic, above all to Cuba, made their fortunes and came home to build — and five watchtowers against Moorish pirates stand round its castle. Below it are some of the best-known coves of the Costa Brava: Sa Riera, Aiguafreda, Sa Tuna, Fornells and Aiguablava, where a parador was built on the cliff in 1966. A few kilometres south, Calella de Palafrugell has kept the feel of a fishing village; on the first Saturday of July it holds the Cantada d'havaneres, the songs popular in Catalonia's fishing villages, in the Port Bo, and above it on Cap Roig are the botanical garden and the summer festival.