My Top 10 places to visit in Andalucía
Which are your top 10 places to visit in Andalucía?
Jack Frost in Andalucía
It has been a very cold winter in the Serranía de Ronda. Paul Whitelock was inspired to write about Jack Frost by the continuing icy mornings he is experiencing where he lives in the campo outside Ronda
High-speed rail route through Ronda shelved?
Is it possible that the controversial plans for a high-speed rail freight route through a beautiful valley near Ronda are about to be dropped? If so, it will be great news for hundreds of local residents who have been objecting since the plans were announced in October 2011
Fish for Christmas and no gifts?
Paul Whitelock checks out the Christmas scene in Spain in general and Andalucía in particular
More and more Spanish noise
Having written recently about how noisy Spain is Paul Whitelock has discovered some interesting new noises that have recently added themselves to the local repertoire
My Top 10 places to visit around Ronda
Following a request from a reader, Paul Whitelock chooses his Top 10 places to visit around Ronda having already shared his Top 10 places in Spain and in Andalucía and his Top 10 favourite spots in Ronda itself
Inheritance Tax scrapped in Catalunya
Paul Whitelock looks at the detail of the decision and provides further information about this potentially punitive tax for residents and non-residents with assets in Spain
The geography and politics of Spain
Whilst the history of Spain is long and complicated, the geography and political set-up are fairly straightforward. Paul Whitelock takes a look.
Doppelgängers in Andalucía
You’ve all heard the rather wacky theory that John F Kennedy, Elvis, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Princess Diana et al aren’t dead at all and are living on a remote island somewhere in the world, well Paul Whitelock thinks that Andalucía is also a hiding place for the rich and famous
Bars galore in Andalucía!
Andalucía has more bars than any other region of Spain. But did you know that there are 53,046 of them down here in the south of the country? Overall Spain has over 300,000 bars and restaurants, which equates to approximately one bar for every 150 people. In our village here in the mountains there are 15 bars/restaurants for 1003 people – that’s one per 66.87 persons!
From North Devon to South Spain in six decades – Part Three
After three decades of regular visits to Spain, it got to the millennium and 25 years of married life
Wet, wet, wet!
Paul Whitelock has had enough of water lately - flooded houses and gardens, rising damp, sewage, a drowned horse and dirty well water. What else could go wrong?
AVE high speed trains coming to Ronda
After years of waiting, it was announced this week that the proposed high speed rail link between Antequera and Ronda is to go ahead. The proposals are now out to public consultation
From North Devon to South Spain in six decades – Part One
Well, it took nearly 60 years but I made it in the end! When I was born in 1950 I didn’t yet know that Spain was my destiny; when I was 17 I didn’t know that Spain was my destiny either. But by the age of 20, I knew.
Beating the Spanish tax man … or not?
It used to be standard practice when buying and selling property in Spain to under-declare the value in the escritura, or deed, in order to avoid tax
Spätzle auf Spanisch!
Montejaque and neighbour Benaoján, in the Serranía de Ronda, featured on German TV’s SWR channel this week
Put a cork in it!
The Spanish cork industry is struggling as the demand for cork, particularly from the wine industry, has dropped dramatically. Can anything be done? Should we boycott wines which have plastic corks or screw tops?
Wir sprechen Deutsch in Montejaque!
I was spending my first Christmas in Montejaque. When we went out for a few drinks, we got a proper linguistic shock - everyone was speaking German!
What is a guiri?
We all know the term guiri, or, if not, we should - it’s what the Spanish call us foreigners
From North Devon to South Spain in six decades – Part Two
The first night in San Sebastián (Guipúzcoa,) where I had arrived at the age of 20 to start my year abroad from university, had been an orgy of cheap wine, pintxos and music by Santana. This had led to the worst hangover of my life.
Last Sunday in September
A typical autumn day for Paul Whitelock in Montejaque?
Four Spanish weddings …
Paul Whitelock has had the good fortune to have been invited to four weddings on Spanish territory
The most stunning place in Spain?
Two cities which have recently become official “sisters”, Ronda (Málaga) and Cuenca (Castilla–La Mancha), are arguably two of the most stunning locations in Spain
In a Spanish country garden
After a gap of a few years Paul Whitelock has a garden again
My Top 10 places to visit in Spain
Recently Paul Whitelock wrote about his Top 10 places in Andalucía. Here he selects his Top 10 in the whole of Spain
“Rain, rain, go away… ”
Paul Whitelock contemplates the wet weather last winter and this, and the Spanish origins of the nursery rhyme "Rain, rain, go away...!"