A lot of thinking has gone into the acceptance of these two towns on the World Heritage List. The site was deferred twice, and not many beneficial terms could be found to recommend it: the historic city centres aren't special enough on the Spanish scale, the Renaissance areas are no match for those in Italy, the concept of 'twin towns' doesn't appeal to ICOMOS and the restorations lack quality. The final decision made by the World Heritage Committee applauds the introduction of Renaissance ideas to Spain.

Úbeda and Baeza are well signposted from the highway near Jaen. Both towns are very proud of their long-sought-after status as 'Patrimonio Mundial', and have various colourful roadside signs pointing that out. I started my visit in Baeza, an atmospheric little town despite the fume-blowing factories in its outskirts. The Renaissance monuments are scattered around the city center, amidst many more recent buildings.

Úbeda is much bigger and sees a lot more traffic than its counterpart. It took some time before I could find the famous Vázquez de Molina Square. Many of the palaces here are designed by Andrés de Vandelvira, whose statue also is located in this square. Many of the buildings are now in use for official purposes or as a parador.

Although Úbeda and Baeza are worth a short visit, I would rank them at the bottom end of the World Heritage list. The best part of the day was the drive there from Granada, passing endless olive plantations.