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Review 289: Inter-Sol, Calle Lucena

Recommended. Review by Hans and Shelley from Seattle, WA

1bed/1bath apartment in Nerja, Andalusia - Costa del Sol

When

Spring 2002

Review

We are wrapping up our trip in Europe, and decided to spend our last few weeks vegetating on the beach in Spain.

This has been a perfect holiday! In three weeks, it rained once, lightly, at night. For Seattleites like us, it is unreal to wake up EVERY morning to sun. Nerja is on the Costa del Sol, and if you are looking for a beach vacation, you cannot beat this!

The apartment is great. There is a big living/dining/kitchen area with a comfortable couch and chair, coffee table, lamps, and a hutch that holds a tv with satellite. There is a table that seats four or five. The kitchen is modern, well-equipped, and there is a washing machine. One of my favorite touches, is a little appliance for making juice, and we have enjoyed fresh-squeezed orange juice every morning!

The apartment is on the back of a new house, in which the owners live. There is a swimming pool, which we are free to use. The bathroom has a big shower stall, sink and commode. The bedroom is good-sized, with bed, nightstands with reading lamps, a dresser and an armoire. We have plenty of storage space. A fan and space heater are provided. There is also a small outdoor courtyard with table and chairs and an umbrella, where we have been doing lots of sunbathing. The apartment is new, tastefully decorated, with lots of attractive tile. Well-done!

The landlord and landlady have been practically invisible, but are very nice and helpful when we do see them. Each week they present us with a fresh bag of linens. They speak Spanish, and some English, though their daughter speaks very good English. While we were here, she presented them with their first grandchild which was exciting for us as we are waiting for our first now, too!

The apartment is about a 10-minute walk, down the hill to the beach. The beach is fantastic! It’s sandy, in a protected cove, with unlimited people watching. Along the beach, there are a number of areas where you can rent a beach chair and an umbrella (3.50 euros per day), but you can also lie on your beach mat in the sand if you prefer. There is a walkway along the top of the beach where you can walk the length of the cove, and continue on into the next cove, then up a set of stairs to the old town. Along this walkway, there is a string of open-air restaurants on the beach. Nearly all of them cook paella over woodfires all day so the beach smells delicious all the time. The food is wonderful! Fresh seafood, scrumptious avocados, grilled meats and vegetables, tapas ... and of course, gazpacho, which I have learned to love. You will not go hungry in Spain.

Across the street from the beach, there are a number of small stores that sell beach mats, towels, sunscreen, swimsuits, cold drinks, beach toys ... anything you could want for a beach vacation. There are many tourists here from all over Europe so you will find newspapers and books in English, Italian, German, as well as in Spanish.

Nerja is a bustling little town, situated on a cliff above the ocean. There are many tourists, and so, a lot of shops. The apartment itself lies on the edge of town, about a 1/2 hour walk into the main section, but only a 10 minute walk to a big grocery store. We walk into town every day to use the internet, but also just to stroll through the squares and parks. There is a famous main square, called the Balcon de Europa, which juts out into the sea, and is lined with palm trees. There is a 15th century church on this square, lots of sidewalk cafes, and nice little shops. There are many, many restaurants, and none have disappointed us so far.

Nerja is also a fishing village. In the morning, the fishermen push heavy, wooden dories across the sand on logs. The boats are shoved toward the water, then the log at the back of the boat is carried to the front, and the boat is pushed forward another few feet. This process is repeated all the way down to the water’s edge. In the evening, the same process occurs in reverse, until the boats are safely away from the waves. People often meet the fishermen upon their return to haggle for fresh fish for their dinners. And, the many feral cats that live in the brush on the cliff also meet the fishermen each evening in hopes of handouts.

Let’s see ... we’ve only been in Spain a few weeks, but just a few observations ... Nerja is about an hour away from the Alhambra, in Granada. Yesterday, we drove down the coast to a little town called San Pedro, where we could see Gibraltar, and across the Mediterranean, the shores of Africa. We visited the Caves of Nerja, in which there are cave paintings, and where human skeletons and artifacts were found. These caves were inhabited from 25,000 to 2,000 BC! If you have a car, there is lots to see and do nearby.

We drove here from France, and the scenery was spectacular. We drove through hundreds of miles of orange and lemon groves, and the air was perfumed all the way. There are enormous cactuses along the roads and in the hills. The flowers are gorgeous and exotic, as you expect tropical plants to be. The route along the southern coast of Spain is very beautiful.

We have stayed at a number of the paradors, run by the Spanish government, and they are terrific! They are more expensive than many of the other hotels, however, in general, we have been pleasantly surprised by the prices in Spain. Everything, from accommodations to groceries costs less here than the other places we have been. The people have been gracious and helpful. If you are coming to Spain to relax and enjoy the sun, Nerja is a great place to do that, and this apartment makes a wonderful base of operations!

This review is the opinion of a Slow Travel member and not of slowtrav.com.

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Review 289: Inter-Sol, Calle Lucena

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