Castillo de la Duquesa

This 18th century castle (only a few minutes from my place) was built as a barracks for the military of the day. When I first visited it, forty years ago, it housed 13 families. Several families would share a living space, just separated from their neighbours by a simple curtain.

All around the site there was was an important Roman settlement and bath house. The industry was fishing, and making the popular fish paste - Garrum. The jar below is said to be a Garrum jar. The site is in the process of being excavated. In the castle there is a Museum of Archaology to house many of the 'finds'; pottery, glass, jewelery, fishhooks, etc. Now the Castle is used for cultural events; lectures, concerts, and as a wedding venue.

The Castillo also has a Museum of Fencing, which it is defined as swordmanship in general. With this broad definition, it is possible to include the weapons used in cave paintings - and certainly King Arthur's sword Excaliber.

Cork trees

Photo taken near Grazelema by A.W.G. Reid

Cork Oaks grow in many Mediteranean countries, and live for 150-200 years. They have a thick rugged bark, which acts as a shield against forest fires. The core of the tree is alive even when the outer layer is scorched. To harvest them the lower parts of the trunk are stripped of their cork bark by hand. The men who do the work are specialists and know when the tree is ready to 'give' the cork. It comes away cleanly in large pieces. Then it takes 8-12 years to grow another layer that is thick enough to harvest again. Ecology is undamaged by cork forests, and as none of the trees are felled, and no chemicals, pesticides or herbicides are used, they maintain environmental bio-diversity. And, after use, cork has the marvelous property of being biodegradable.

Cork grows on the mountains, less than half and hour from where I live! When they
have been freshly cut the trunks often look bright red - as if the trees are bleeding. The cork is stacked in huge heaps for drying. Cork has multiple uses. Since ancient times it has been used to make wine bottle stoppers; for roof and floor tiling; for fishing nets floats and for making bee hives. In more recent times for shoe soles, life jacket filling and sports equipment.


One tree can provide cork for 4,000 bottles of wine! But real corks can crumble, causing oxidation and making a percentage of wine undrinkable. So, wine growers are increasingly using plastic bottle stoppers and screw on caps which have zero taint. If this continues, cork forests with their eco-system benefits, will become a thing of the past.

Big Boys Toys and Glamour for Girls at Banus!

Instead of spending a day in the country, visit a haunt of the seriously wealthy! See their 'playground' at Puerto Banus. Most guys I know love to walk along by the harbour to look at the boats, and decide which one they'd like to own. The cars parked all along the harbour are gorgeous too! Watch out for these low slung snarling beasts!

Most women I know are more interested in window shopping there. All the big fashion names have a shop in Banus! Most of the clothes, shoes and jewelery are very beautiful, with very expensive price tags! But there are some reasonable places!

In between the shops there are restaurants and ice cream places. Relax and enjoy!

Endangered Species

The Andalucian Donkey is an endangered species; with only about 120 purebred animals in existence. Friends of mine, Stephen and Marlene Bird have a project, http://www.ancraa.org/ where they run a successful breeding programme. These donkeys are known as Giant Donkeys because they are about half as high again as the usual donkey. They were used extensively in agriculture before mechanisation, but farmers have little use for them nowadays. The temperament of these donkeys has earned them the name 'Gentle Giants'. Every Sunday morning Marlene and Stephen welcome visitors to 'Cuddle a Donkey', and to learn about the herd of 20 or so individuals they care for. As with any endangered species it is important to keep the animals in several places to ensure they could not be wiped out by a single epidemic. Donations are welcome to help with their heroic task of saving these animals from extinction.

Sabinillas Sunday Market

Wander the lanes between the stalls of the Sunday morning market at Sabinillas, and see an extraordinary range of items for sale - in no particular order! Apart from colourful fruit and veg, there are antiques and art works, crafts and clothes, books and bangles, toys and tools, herbs and plants, besides gadgets and gismos of every kind! I bought a cheap toy metal detector - but it didn't work! No matter. The idea of it was fun!

Gaucin

Dream of Castles in Spain!
Drive for an hour through beautiful countryside to visit the castle of Gaucin. Take some refreshment in one of the outdoor cafes, then ask you way to the 'Castillo'! Its a steep climb up to it, but the views are worth it!

The village has many resident artists. Every year there are Open Studio weekends. http://www.artgaucin.com/ I love to visit the artists to see their work and the places that inspired them.

This cottage is beside the garage, where you can fill up with petrol. Drive in either direction from there for fabulous mountain and forest views of 'real' Spain!

My Love of Special Places in Spain

These Roman baths are off the typical tourist beat, in a hidden valley, along a very bumpy pot-holed road. The spring that feeds them runs year round with sulphur in the water which gives it the blue colour. It is said that the water has been used for healing since Roman times. The water runs into a stream outside - still pale blue.

This delightful place is less than half an hour from my rental property! However, as there is not much parking space, I avoid going there at weekends.