Today we decided to go inland to start. We travelled east from Nerja to Salobrena and then north to Velez de Benaudalla. The town is set in a valley with beautiful mountains all around it. Velez de Benaudalla is a small but lively Spanish working town and as such is well equipped with amenities of all kinds, including shops, banks, bars and restaurants. The main industry would be agriculture as it is surrounded by avocado farms. I am told that the Guadelfeo river is where the locals head in the summer for a refreshing swim.
I always hope that something so high on the mountain might have a sea view but it was set in a dip. There are beautiful mountain walks all around, which allow you to take in the scenery and the air is really fresh up here. You can actually feel pockets of cold air in the heat, it is quite strange.
We travelled north from Velez de Benaudalla on our way back to the motorway and found a huge dam crossing the Rio Guadalfeo. A beautiful sight with the mountains behind.
We got back on the motorway and had a drive around Motril, which is a lovely town, before heading back down to the coast at Salobrena.
Salobrena
Salobrena is a very pretty town with narrow cobbled streets leading to a 10th Century castle. It enjoys a lively cultural and social scene and there are some excellent tapas bars and restaurants around town, hidden corners are home to more little bars and it has an authentic charm. The castle used to be the summer residence of the sultans of Granada, there is clearly plenty of Moorish history here.
We didn’t walk far up into the town at Salobrena and the reason is simple. We are looking for somewhere to live and when you look towards the sea from Salobrena you look over agricultural plantations and a few plastic greenhouses. The view didn’t really do it for me and I was not sure about the feel of the place.
The beach, Salobrena Playa is long with a promenade that runs the full length and is actually set off to the left of Salobrena Pueblo as you look toward the coast. There is apparently an artificial reef here for snorkelling. Beachfront properties are not all that pretty and I found myself wondering what it would be like if you took the sun away. I realise the season has passed now but there was quite a bit of litter on the beach and it generally looked a bit tired. We sat and had a coffee at the western end of the beach it was pleasant enough and the people walking past looked pretty smart. Salobrena Playa seems a bit soulless to me.
A Spanish Adventure 