May 23rd - 31st 2007
Written by Geoff Forster
We're up at 05:30h. We're off to Colmenar - Riogordo - Periana - Alcaucin and La Vinuela in Axarquia to the East of Malaga. Plus a few other places in between. So a busy day with a very early start.
We drove to Ronda it wasn't pitch black but sunrise was still an hour or so away.
Sleepy Ronda.
We took the road to Campillos and passed Teba which always smells of pig farms.
Then on passed Antequera we turned down towards Malaga but turned off near Casabermaja.
Casabermeja.
We then drove to Colmenar our first stop.
We parked up and walked down into the pueblo. We had a coffee in a bar. A stall opposite was doing a good trade in some very fatty Churros. It tasted like fried bread. Artery clogging food. A few old boys in the bar were dipping them in Anis. It was a very friendly bar and served good coffee.
Below are a few images chosen at random from our Colmenar gallery. Which you can go to see enlargements and the rest of the Colmenar photos by clicking on any of the photographs below.
We've started to get people visiting the forum and gallery although it is still a work in progress (Google likes it which is good!). If anyone wishes to join and contribute you are most welcome to do so.
If you have photographs you'd like to upload please select an appropriate gallery and upload your best photos only please.
This is Riogordo taken from Colmenar. The early morning mists were burning off.
We set off back across Colmenar to the car and then on to Riogordo.
We drove across to Riogordo. Parked at the bottom of the pueblo near the river.
Riogordo translates to 'Fat River', so we were expecting quite a wide river especially after the recent downpours.
More of a 'fat trickle'.
The terrapins liked it. Quite a few were swimming in the stream others were beginning to bask in the sun.
Here are a few photographs, again taken at random from our Riogordo gallery. Click on a photo for enlargements and more photo's.
We'd liked both pueblos, Riogordo perhaps a little more than Colmenar.
We had a coffee in a popular bar on the corner. It slowly filled with English ladies, quite a few Brit's live in this area it seems. It was market day and someone said a lot of Brits live in the campo around and choose Wednesday to come into Riogordo to pick up mail, visit the market and do a bit of shopping.
More photos of the other pueblos as I process the photographs.
We've caught up with a little sleep after a long day out and about yesterday.
We took lots of photographs, Jane took her camera too. So lots of hours ahead on the PC processing and sorting them.
I've made a start looking through them.
I've upoaded a few more into the gallery. Click on the photograph if you'd like an enlargement.
The Costa del Sol Photo Gallery gallery also has quite a few more photographs which we took on our trip, not published here.
We left Riogordo, we got held up for ten minutes by a digger and lorry plus two guys with familiar traffic directing lollypops.
Our luck was out, the lorry was empty. We watched it filled scoop by scoop then the lorry backed up and trundled off. The digger backed to one side and the road was brushed by a guy with a broom who'd been watching the digger load the lorry from the side of the road.
The guys with the lollypops decided to make us sit a little longer and let us watch the other line of traffic that had been held up from the other side trundle passed staring into each car. A Spanish habit, everyone knows everyone, and they like to check out every car, just in case they might know one of the occupants.
We'd bought bread and cakes in the panadería in Riogordo, we stopped at the roadside and had Camenbert and tomato sandwiches followed by a small cake.
We took are a few photographs of the countryside between Riogordo and Periana. Including Rio Sabar and Mondron.
These pretty birds are Red-rumped Swallows. We don't get too many of these in the Genal valley. They are very beautiful.
As you can see there are some limestone sierras with open rolling hillsides between.
Not many trees (except Olives).
It was beginning to cloud over.
We could hear a bird calling 'Hoo Poe' repeating it quite regularly. We stood and looked in the direction of the call but couldn't spot the bird. A few minutes later a pair of Hoopoes left the Olive grove and flew over head with their undulating flight caused by their large round ended wings.
Periana wasn't the prettiest pueblo we've ever visited. There were construction sites everywhere. It is definitely 'up and coming'. We headed on to find Alcaucin which we planned to visit.
More tomorrow when these photographs are ready.
We went for a walk to the Restaurante Kábilas for some fresh air after being on the computers all day.
We sat in the sunshine on the sun terrace and enjoyed the birds singing all around us.
Not a bad way to chill out and relax at the end of the day.
More of our Axarquia trip tomorrow.
More overnight rain.
We've no plans today.
We're both working on the computers. I'm still sorting photographs from Wednesday's Axarquia trip.
Wednesday's trip to Axarquia ... continued.
We'd visited Periana and were looking to go to Alcaucin when we drove through Puente Don Manuel. Puente Don Miguel isn't really on the map yet. It's just a town growing at the junction of the RioGordo - Velez Malaga road junction. The road to Alcaucin crosses the bridge (puente) and there is a small Ermita here. There are two estate agents with large offices and a bar full of Brit's. Most of the people living in and around the hamlet/pueblo are also British.
This was taken on the edge of Alcaucin. The whole valley seems to have been carved up into small plots and detached country houses/villas built.
Unfortunately the beautiful morning was turning into a hazy overcast afternoon. Not great for photography but if you haven't visited the area or towns it should give you a bit of a clue as to what they are like.
We both liked Alcaucin. It was a little more like the mountain pueblos of the Serranía de Ronda where we live.
The streets were typical of Andalucian pueblos, white washed and clean. All the Spanish people we met during the day were pleasant and spoke, some stopped to chat with us. All the British (except one man in Colmenar) kept their heads down avoiding eye contact and didn't speak.
We left Alcaucin and drove back down to Puente Don Manuel, where topped up the petrol before heading on to La Vinuela.
We arrived in La Vinuela and parked near a large Health Centre.
We walked back up to a Bar where two English ladies sat outside (eyes down), four British guys in the bar were drinking pints and had obviously been there a while.
We sat and had a coffee.
We thought La Vinuela was quite large. We drove around near the bar but there were only some 'Andalucian' council houses.
We drove passed the health centre down a narrow street stopping by the Ayuntamiento (Town Hall) to take a photograph before heading down to a small stream where we parked and walked around a small park.
La Vinuela didn't seem as big as we'd expected. It is also not on the lakes edge, again a presumption that was wrong.
We drove around the southern end Lake Vinuela and as we drove North out of Axarquia we completed a lap of the lake. Although we'd never been that close to it. Getting only a few distant glimpses of it.
The weather was looking very threatening. It looked as if we were in for a storm.
Strangely as we drove out of Axarquia and turned passed Antequera towards Campillos the skies brightened and we had a lovely sunny evening ... weird weather.
Three views of the same Sierra taken from the car as we drove passed.
We turned off towards Ronda stopping quickly near Teba to photograph the gorge. A little further on we stopped near Cuevas de Becerros to have a snack and take some more photographs of the campo and sierras.
We drove around Ronda and through the Genal Valley to Benarrabá.
A long tiring, but rewarding day.
We enjoyed our visit to Axarquia, some beautiful countryside, lots of development which surprised us. Lots of British residents, again the scale of the inland invasion here was a big surprise.
Friday Evening: We worked all day before settling down to watch 'Captain Ron' a very funny comedystarring Kurt Russell.
We're off to Ronda.
We're meeting up with friends Marilyn and Michael O'Loughlin.
The weather isn't great but hopefully it won't ran.
We've put raincoats and an umbrella in the boot in the car just in case.
We were just approaching Ronda when a car flashed at us from behind. It was Marilyn and Michael.
We parked near Calle Benarrabá. Close to the Plaza in the Barrio de San Francisco.
We left the raincoats and brolly. Big mistake.
We walked up to the Puente Nuevo. The gorge is still green as is the campo in both directions.
We went into the art gallery near the bridge where there is a Toulouse-Lautrecexhibition.
An interesting style.
This is the main shopping street in Ronda.
Next we went to the Hotel Macias Bodega Verdad for a coffee.
While we were inside it started to rain.
We had another.
From the bar we went to Da Vinci's for a pizza. Excellent.
Then we went to a pastelería for cake and coffee.
Amazing cakes. I had one full of fresh cream and covered in walnuts. Lots of calories. I'll walk it off going to see the donkeys ...?
We had a quick dash back to the car. We were a little wet but not too bad, we'd dodged most of the heavier showers.
We said goodbye to Marilyn an Michael who went on to Torre-Alháquime.
Good to see them again.
We got back to Benarrabá and spent the evening working on the computers.
We're watching a Japanese animation from Studio Ghibli 'Princess Mononoke' It is good but we keep falling asleep we've had two or three attempts to watch it already.
After yesterday's rain we were hoping for some fine weather because it's Chris Band's 50th birthday party. Being held at Chris's farmhouse El Chopo Banda in Estación de Cortes de la Frontera this afternoon.
We set off at 14:00h. The weather looked changeable but no rain so far.
We arrived just after 14:30h. the party was going well and we were pleased to see some familiar faces.
We found Chris wished him all the best.
Chris is very keen on barbequed food. He has rather a 'state of the art' Weber gas barbeque. We're impressed, everyone was impressed. It's a serious piece of kit.
Here are a few photos taken at the party. Lots more by clicking on one and going through the gallery.
A big thanks to Chris and Gilly for the invitation and for a wonderful afternoon.
We really enjoyed ourselves.
The food was amazing a couple of huge steaks cooked to perfection by the birthday boy on his Weber.
The chicken sizzled with hot spices, that had a few eyes watering.
So did the English mustard Chris gave to his Spanish neighbour to put on his steak.
Everyone left with 'moggy' and 'doggy' bags of steak. We left with donkey bags full of large heads of lettuce. Thanks, the donkeys will love it.
It is Chris's birthday on Tuesday 29/05.
It is however Domingo's birthday today. Our lovely male donkey is three today, Feliz cumpleaños Domingo amigomio.
Lots more photo's in the gallery.
Chris Band's 50th Birthday Party
A really good day and the weather was perfect.
A beautiful day. Temperatures are good, not too hot, however the forecast for the rest of the week looks like summer has arrived.
We walked to see the donkeys.
They look well. We took them the lettuce, kindly given to us for the donkeys by Chris and Gilly Band.
We'd been keeping an eye and mainly an ear on a nest in a hole in a dead tree.
Every time we walked passed in by the sound from inside from noisy young birds as been fantastic.
We had never seen the parents flying in to feed their young. I'd thought the hole was too big for a Nuthatch, besides they fledged their young weeks ago. There are lots of Great Spotted Woodpeckers in the area, rarely a walk goes by without seeing or at least hearing one at work. Today we were rewarded not by a returning parent but the head of an adventurous, soon to fly, young woodpecker.
Click the photograph to enlarge it and to see other photographs from the Birds Gallery at 1CostaDelSol.com
Birds Photo Gallery
A beautiful summer day, blue skies and hot sun.
We spent the day around the house.Jane has been potting up some plants and we've been topping up our tans doing jobs outside.
I spent quite a few hours sorting out photographs taken at Chris Band's 50th Party.
Chris is actually 50 today. Feliz cumpleanos Bandy.
When friends Lyngard, Jean and Jo visited last week Lyngard left me a disk with a few of his photographs.
Here are some of them. Views of Andalucia by Lyngard Simpson.
Benadalid.
Gaucin cannon.
Moon over Montejaque.
Praying Mantis.
My favourite.
Stormy Skies over Zahara de la Sierra.
Finally but never least.
Ruin in Benarraba plaza.
Thanks to Lyngard for his photographs.
If you have any you'd like to share.
You can either email them as attachments to us.
Or you can now upload them to our gallery yourself.
Andalucia Photo Gallery
In the evening we worked until after midnight.
The Photo Gallery now has close to 1000 photographs of Andalucia in it. We're adding more as fast as we can sort the best ones out.
We're also pleased with the membership rates at the forum.
Thank you for joining up and posting.
If you haven't joined yet, please do.
It's easy.
1CostaDelSol.com Forums
A beautiful day.
Hot and sunny, so we're off down to the Mediterranean for a paddle in the cool, calm waters.
We stopped in Manilva for refreshment.
This is the Ayuntamiento (Town Hall).
Jane enjoying the sunshine outside Bar Rojas Manilva.
We called into the English Bookshop, then shopped in Mercadona.
Next stop the beach.
We walked to Puerto de la Duquesa.
We enjoyed a refreshing drink at a Chiringuito (Beach Bar).
Chiringuito Cubanga near to the marina at Puerto de la Duquesa.
We walked back along the shoreline to San Luis de Sabinillas.
Next we did a big shop in Lidl's before heading inland up the road near the river to the cement works roundabout.
Then we left the coast for the mountains and drove home with hardly another car on the road.
A glorious day.
We enjoyed a sunny evening at the side of the house which catches the last of the days rays.
Back in Benarrabá we worked most of the evening.
This Japanese animation is taking a long time to watch.
It's not as good as some of the other works by Studio Ghibli.
It does however make a good cure for insomnia.
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We spent a quiet day around the house.
Jane continues to wash and clean. Then later she did some gardening and skilful moving of plants and pots ... 'to make it all look better', and it does.
Another busy day catching up on the blogs and uploading photographs to the gallery.
Here are some not in the gallery. Sent to us from last year's 'Tour of Spain' La Vuelta cycle race which started in Malaga and the first few stages were held in Andalucia towards Granada.
A big thanks to Tom Wright a huge 'Spain' fan, who combines his love for the country with his love of cycling by coming each year to follow part of 'La Vuelta'.
Here are some of Tom Wright's photographs of the race and the people watching and waiting for the pelathon to arrive.
The first shows the Spanish cycling legends, Abraham Olano and Miguel Indurain (5 time Tour de France winner).
'Arty Farty' - Caba de Gata near Almería
Hotel Comerico in the very charming town of Guadix. 100km east of Granada.
Climbing to Calar Alto observatory north of Guadix, Andalucia.
Family near the finishing line in Granada.
Sierra Nevada on a cold September day.
Another race shot, north of Jaén and west of La Carolina.
This one is on La Pandera near Jaén. A devil of a climb with gradients as high as 18%.
A big thanks to Tom Wright for his photographs and descriptions.
Do you have any which you'd like to share with us?
Please, you can either send them to us as attachments on e-mails or upload them to our new photo gallery.
Andalucia Photo Gallery