Gualchos

The village of Gualchos (Province of Granada, pop. ca. 700) is located midway between Almería and Málaga, both with international airports, and is about two hours´ drive from either. To get to Gualchos you turn off the main coast road at Castell de Ferro and climb into the hills for 5 kilometres (se map below).

The village is at 1200 ft in a natural enclave, encircled behind, to the north and west, by the Lújar and Sierra Nevada mountain ranges and overlooking the Mediterranean to the south. It is one of the many small, whitewashed villages scattered throughout the mountains wherever there is a natural spring; villages which have changed little in their way of life since the middle ages, although there is now electricity, running water and the access roads are more easily negotiable.

 The immediate attractions of living in Gualchos are those of being part of a small friendly Spanish village while at the same time having the coast within five minutes´ reach. The coast itself is very busy and lively in the summer months and it is a great advantage to be able to go down and swim, eat fresh fish in the beach bars and enjoy the holiday atmosphere, but then return in a few minutes to a cool quiet house away from the constant heat and bustle of the coastal fringe. Surprisingly, the continental tourists never venture away from the beach and so five minutes and five kilometres separate two different worlds. The height and mountain environment also mean that there is always some breeze and you are never overwhelmed by the summer heat.

On a wider scale Gualchos is conveniently situated for visits westwards to Marbella, Ronda and Gibraltar, eastwards to Almería and El Gabo de Gata and inland to Granada, the provincial capital. Granada was the last Moorish stronghold to fall to the Christian invaders at the end of the 15^th century and it still retains many vestiges of its Arab heritage, both in its customs and in its architecture, especially in its royal palace, La Alhambra. Apart from its historical interest, however, Granada is a university city and among its many cultural activities plays host for the whole month of June to one of the most renowned classical music and ballet festivals in Europe. The ski station in the Sierra Nevada, just to the south of Granada, is open for six months of the year and from Gualchos it is quite easy to swim in the Mediterranean and ski in the Sierra Nevada on the same day, should the mood so take you.

For more information about the province of Granada and Andalucía in general it is interesting to read Gerald Brennan´s, “South from Granada” and Laurie Lee´s, “As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning” and “A Rose for Winter”.

Motril, only 18 km along the coast, is a sizeable market town with a busy fishing port and a yachting harbour.

In fact it isn´t necessary to leave the village very often; there is a well-stocked shop, three bars, and, above the village in summer, an open-air barbecue with one of the most beautiful nighttime views of the Mediterranean to be seen along the whole coast.

Easter in Gualchos