We headed out east today, past Motril to the town of Adra.
The thing that overwhelmed me more than anything (despite being surrounded by beautiful mountains) was the sea of plastic. This is true agricultural land and every spare centimetre of land is covered in plastic. It is tropical fruit growing country, big time.
Adra
What the tourist book says:
The countryside and beaches (blue flag) surrounding Adra are of particular natural beauty; located just south of Sierra Nevada en Baja Alpujarra (low Alpujarra) the area is boasts great ecological value with an abundance of flora and fauna.
This might be true outside of the town itself. The town is industrial, built up around the docks. It is a Spanish working town and doesn’t have any particular charm. The beaches would be beautiful had they not been strewn with litter, I am not sure they would pass the blue flag test that the guidebook mentions. I am guessing this is not a particular holiday destination for anyone. To be fair, I don’t think it is trying to be, I think it is set up for the distribution of tropical fruit to the rest of Europe. That is it’s job and it’s sticking to it!
La Rabita
The tourist book says this has a beautiful sea frontage.
I think maybe 20 years ago, that might have been true. This is greenhouse city and everywhere you look away from the main sea front you see plastic. It is a kind of haven away from the plastic but when you reach the end of the promenade the plastic is there right in front of you again.
The beachside apartments look very tired. I feel the need to apologise for my words but I am finding it very difficult to say anything positive. Take the sun away and you are left with a very sad looking seaside town.
I notice also that there is no grass, it has been replaced with astro turf. We are moving over towards arid lands.
Los Yessos
We are not even stopping here, I am taking photos from the car! Don’t listen to what the tourist books say. Enough said I think!
Castell de Ferro
Not stopping here either! Drove through the town and I guess it has a couple of nice areas beside the seafront.
It is a big improvement on its neighbours but still a little rough around the edges for me. The scenery around is stunning that is true and the tourist book says that if you want a coastal resort with a difference this is for you – ain’t that the truth! The difference being that there is hardly anywhere to eat and the beach front is not particularly appealing. Not going to be tasting the succulent prawns today, it’s a drive by!
Sat nav very kindly took us out on dirt tracks amongst the greenhouses, so we managed to have a look at what was going in and in most cases that was not a lot, they were mostly empty so it must be the wrong time of year. Not good for the car tyres at all!
A Spanish Adventure 