Away for a While - Costa de la Luz

.It must have been a cold grey day sometime back in February when Janos and I decided that we didn't want to spend next winter in Munich. We have been through this before. We rode our bicycles in Thailand. We spent one winter in a camper traveling the Portugese and Spanish coast. Yes, we have found escapes, but they aren't quite as viable today as they were some years ago. Cycling in Asia is a big undertaking - to put it more honestly, we are feeling too old for that kind of adventure. We are very glad we did it when we did. The camper was also good - for a while. But it meant living at very close quarters, and when it rained, and it does rain in Spain in the winter and not only on the plains, it was a bit cramped. It was a fun adventure, but we've been there, done that, and knew when it was time to say goodbye to the camper.

The new plan was to rent a small apartment on the Spanish coast for part of the winter. That is what we did and that is where we are now. We were lucky - we found a rather perfect place through Air B&B and as it is off-season the price was right. It might be off-season officially, but I wouldn't want to be here any other time. There are almost no tourists here now, in the summer the population is four times higher, mainly Germans and Brits. Fortunately, the town of Conil is big enough to exist in its own right. Shops and restaurants are open, you see children on their way to school in the morning, there is life in the streets. Of course it's not Florida or Arizona, not as warm. But we are enjoying the sunny days and knowing that we won't have to contend with ice and snow. I don't think a few rainy days or cloudy skies will be able to spoil our time here.

Our apartment has a view to the ocean. We can see the surf, on stormy nights we can hear it. We can walk to the beach in three minutes. For good reason it is called Costa de la Luz, Coast of Light. The light here is magic. And the sunsets magnificent.

A few photos from my walks in and around Conil in the first week.