KARETHE LINAAE
A common expression often heard these days is Corona-fatigue. After a year of masks, disinfectants and almost exclusively pandemic-news (except the US election…), is it any wonder that we are starting to get fed up with the entire thing? I can quite understand that people are feeling impatient and wanting to not give a damn….
When we bought the ruin that eventually became our Spanish home, the former owner did not know how to write her name on the sales contract. Granted she was over 90, but I had not expected to find illiteracy amongst the older populations of southern Europe. Was this still a common phenomenon in these parts,…
The Costa del Sol has long been known as a golfer’s paradise. The coast is home to some of Europe’s most luxurious golf clubs and has more than 70 of Spain’s 400+ golf courses, with several more under construction. The major attraction is the Mediterranean climate. With an annual average of 320 sunny days, balmy…
Visitors to Spain may have a few misconceptions about the weather on the Iberian Peninsula. Winter in southern Spain is not hot by any stretch of the imagination. Granted Spain is the closest one can be to Africa while still being on European soil, but that doesn’t mean that we don’t have winters. Our town…
Historically speaking Scandinavians have not been known as the world’s most exciting gourmands. “But this has changed in the last couple of decades,” explains Fredrik Andersson, chef at Finca La Donaira, which is outside the village of El Gastor in Andalucía. Fredrik is part of the new gastronomic wave that favours simple dishes using only…
Las Vías Verdes is a network of Greenways that spreads all across the Iberian Peninsula. Since 1993 more than 3000 km of Spain’s abandoned train lines have been converted into these bicycle and pedestrian routes, as part of the European Greenway system. They can be used free of charge by cyclists, walkers, wheelchair users…
We live in strange and uncertain times. There are days when I prefer not to watch the news, as whole countries go back into lockdown, economies plunge, the USA segregates into Republicans and Democrats, and record numbers of CoVid cases are counted. It is easy to get a bit down by it all, but since…
Ever since I read Jules Verne’s book ‘Around the World in 80 Days’ in my youth, I have wanted to fly in a hot air balloon. What could be more timeless and irresistible than floating wherever the wind takes you? Since we moved to Ronda in southern Spain, I have often seen balloons over…
Ronda with its world famous bridge and to-die-for views should be on everyone’s bucket list. This Andalucian mountain pueblo simply lives and breathes history, having been ruled by Celts, Romans, Visigoths, Moors and Catholic Kings. In the 18th Century, the infamous bandoleros and other law-breakers practically ran the town. It was also the birthplace…
If the last time you had Sangria you drank three carafes by yourself and ended up on the floor of a Benidorm bar, I can understand why the mere mention of the word turns your stomach. However, Tinto de Verano, Sangría and other Spanish summer drinks can be quite refreshing. And they are just as easy…