In Search of the Sotogrande Sun

One of the benefits of living in the UK is being able to travel to other countries with relative ease. When the weather begins to get you down in London, jumping on a cheap flight to one of many different countries with warmer climates is simple. One country that we enjoy visiting is Spain and so a few years ago, Jackie and I bought a house there, right down in southern Spain, at a place called Sotogrande, in the province called Andalucía.


My brother Tim, with his wife, Oh, live a long way away in Thailand, so we get to see them rarely. They are however, spending a few months working in Switzerland, so are relatively close for the time being. Tim and Oh had never been to our house in Spain, so we just had a week there together. Two of our sons, Charles and Jeremy came along as well, as did Jeremy’s girlfriend, Amy.

Spain became a very popular destination for the British back in the 1970’s when cheap package holidays meant that travelling abroad was affordable for a lot of people for the first time. That soon expanded to people from other European countries holidaying in Spain and many resorts appeared on the Spanish coastline to accommodate all of these visitors. It was the coastline with its very good weather that was the main attraction. Over the last thirty or forty years that expansion was continued and today, most of the coastline is built up. According to Wikipedia, in 2007, Spain became the second most visited country of the world after France when in that year, almost 60 million foreign tourists were received. That has changed and today Spain is the fourth most visited country, after France, the United States and China. Spain is still hugely popular with the British.

About thirty minutes drive from the house is a town called Casares, which clings precariously to the hillside. Casares dates back to the 12th century and was once run by the Romans and Julius Caesar supposedly was cured of a liver complaint here, thanks to the sulfuric waters that still pour out of the local spring. The buildings are Moorish by design and to reflect the heat of the sun, are all white....

While we were there, the wind was strong in Sotogrande and this prevented us on most days from trying out my sons new wakeboard. Jeremy is a keen snowboarder and wanted to try wakeboarding, but the sea was just not quite calm enough to make this possible. Wakeboarding will need to be saved for our next trip.

One of the days we were there, we drove to Puerto Banus for lunch to celebrate my birthday. The port is where the rich and famous gather. The main part of the town is it’s marina where mega yachts are moored....

We found a terrific place to eat on the front facing the marina. From left to right, here are my wife Jackie, Oh and Tim, eldest son Charles, Amy, myself and middle son, Jeremy....

We walked around the marina, peering into its shops where prices are so high, none are displayed. I think as the old saying goes "If you have to ask, you can't afford it".  You can buy a handbag here and pay as much as some pay for a good sized car. We only bought ice creams!

Jeremy and Amy....

The back ends of many boats....

On a different day, we returned to go check out the local street market, near the bull ring in Banus. This was Jeremy, Amy, myself and Oh in a local cafe just before hitting the market....

At the market, Tim and Oh went on a small shopping spree, buying t-shirts and local souvenirs. We spotted the local police motorbikes and posed for a picture. Many of the local Spanish Police are very friendly and laid back, so they didn’t mind....

Not many people would be able to get away from the Police when they ride these bikes....

Back in the port at Sotogrande, there was a classic car gathering taking place. It wasn’t a proper car show, more just the drivers out for a drive and a good lunch....

Adorable car with great colour combinations....

A cracking Mercedes convertible.....

A lovely old Jag....

A very unusual hood decorative figurine.....

I have no idea what car this is, but it is beautiful and was my favourite....

An old classic Ford....

A classic Chrysler....

Great colours and shapes....

To my delight, there was also a small collection of motorbikes, mainly Montessa....

I had seen this custom bike before, at a bike show in London and also in Sturgis. It seemed a little out of place amongst the classic cars and bikes, but I was pleased it was there....

The port in Sotogrande is a great place to show off old bikes....

Lunch in the port for Tim and Oh....

and Jeremy....

For some of my food admiring blog readers (you know who you are), this was Charles' salad lunch. Funny, when a boy he wouldn’t touch anything that was green....

Son Charles in the centre, taller than his Dad (left) and Uncle Tim (right).....

All my sons are taller than me.  That does't seem fair to me.

Due to the wind spoiling taking the boat out, a few of us drove along the coast to Gibraltar. This is a British Overseas Territory and is at the gateway to the Mediterranean Ocean.

Formed mainly of a huge ‘Rock’, Gibraltar was captured by the British and Dutch in 1704 during the War of the Spanish Succession. Gibraltar determines its own affairs with all local decisions being made by its own Government. National issues like defence and foreign affairs are handled by the main UK government in London.

The Spanish government and people want to take Gibraltar back and for it to once again become part of Spain.  However this is resisted by the majority of Gibraltarians, who want to keep with the current status of being British. It is a sore point between the two nations and getting into and out of Gibraltar is unlike almost every internal border within Europe, with strict controls requiring a passportto get in or out.

Gibraltar is just 2.6 square miles but its strategic position at the entrance to the Med makes it an ideal location for the British Naval base that has been there since 1704. Gibraltar’s main feature is the Rock of Gibraltar, a 1,398 foot / 426 metre high limestone hill, from which views into north Africa as very good.

As we approached Gibraltar, we could see one side of the rock and its top was covered in cloud. This was as shame as the views from the top would be compromised. We rode the cable car to the top and the view looking down into the city wasn’t very good....

It was an eery sight, seeing the cloud blowing up one side of the rock. Note how the right hand side of this picture is in cloud and the left is relatively clear....

The Rock of Gibraltar is home to around 230 Barbary Macaques, the only wild monkeys found in Europe. They are very tame and will approach you and steal any food you might be carrying....

This one seemed upset we didn't have any food....

Charles with a new friend....

They look very cute, but can bite and steal just about anything from you.

We keep our replica AC Cobra in Sotogrande. I love driving this car! Charles adores the car as well and was often seen in it with a huge grin on his face!  He kept asking for the keys.....

Sadly, we were only in Spain for a week on this visit, but it terrific to see so many family members there at the same time.

It is a great place to be able to go there when we can and Jackie and I are lucky to be able to do that whenever we can.