All about
THE
GUADALHORCE VALLEY
November 2024
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NEW MEMORIES OF OLD SPAIN W
HEN I first visited Andalucia in 1990 my girlfriend (now wife) and I knew remarkably little about the region. After settling into our holiday flat in Mijas Costa, we got out the road atlas (remember them?) and started to plot a route to explore Andalucia. After ticking off Marbella and Puerto Banus, we decided to head off to discover the ‘real Spain’. But where to start? The likes of Cordoba and Granada sprang to mind, but they would have to wait for a later holiday being a
It is not quite the land that time forgot, but the Guadalhorce Valley certainly gives more than a glimpse of how things once were couple of hours away. Instead we literally drove inland away from the teeming costas, up inland first to charming Mijas village, then followed an intriguing windy mountain road signposted to exotic sounding ‘Alhaurin el Grande’. Within just 15 minutes we had discovered the Guadalhorce Valley, with all its Arabic influenc-
By Dilip Kuner es and amazing views in every single direction. Easily one of Malaga’s best-kept secrets, we found the fecund valley full of rich history and authentic Andalucian charm. We had come across, almost by accident, an
escape into rural Spain just a short trip inland from the bustling coast. The fertile soils were clearly perfect for market gardening and the heavy, sweet scent of orange blossom (so distinctive it has its own name - Azahar) followed us everywhere on our spring adventure. Indeed, so productive is the land, the Arabs gave it the name ‘Allah’s garden’ - which has come down to modern times as Alhaurin (both Continues on next page
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EXPLORER: A young Dilip on his first visit to the stunning Embalse del Conde de Guadalhorce 35 years ago