Well, we were. After a good but long, hot summer we were ready for a little break – one that would take us away from crowds, traffic jams and the stresses of work. A lot of people, including those that fly down to Spain for their holidays, say they want to get away from the rat-race, only to end up in a different kind of one. Perhaps it’s the advantage we have in living here that we can firstly call Marbella crowded and stressful, and secondly find our way to beautiful out-of-the-way spots within a few hours of our own doorstep.

Normally, beach holidays are not our thing. In fact, most holidays will see us soaking up a little culture and excitement in a major city or alternatively heading into the mountains for a weekend retreat from modern life. After a summer of dodging the heat, however, the idea of lazing on the beach sounded just right, and where better to do it than the sandy shores of Spain’s southern Atlantic coastline. (more…)

The Costa del Sol has come a long way from the sleepy collection of fishing villages and mountain settlements that it once was. Back then, age-old practices still applied and those who wanted to settle down here, build a home and conduct business had to adjust to an altogether new set of rules and realities. Today, many of the old limitations have disappeared along with the craftsmen who built homes in the traditional Andalusian way. Not only have the construction process and the appearance of homes changed greatly, but as the scale of operations increased, property developers have had an increasingly dramatic effect on the physical landscape that we live in. At this stage of the region’s development, and with its long-term interests in mind, it might be good to look into the prospects for sustainable development.
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by Michel Cruz

Cork vs. Plastic

Have you noticed how many wine bottles have plastic corks these days? I couldn’t help wondering why. After all, aren’t we meant to be replacing synthetic products with natural ones where possible, to help clean up our planet—not the other way round? Intrigued, I did a little research, and found the wine industry is in the midst of turmoil.

For centuries, in fact for about as long as people can remember, wine has been sealed with cork stoppers. So close is this link that you can’t really think of the one without the other, and indeed, the humble cork is a wondrous thing. Wholly natural, it is flexible and durable, forming an excellent seal to a bottle, yet one that allows itself to be extracted with relative ease. What’s more, it forms the basis of a noble, age-old industry that has become a part of the physical landscape and human fabric of countries like Spain and Portugal.

This industry is also eco-friendly and sustainable, as the cork is harvested by removing the barks of the region’s cork oaks in a seven-year cycle, and the cork stoppers themselves are biodegradable natural products. Why then, is this industry in peril as the market has suddenly become flooded with plastic substitutes? Although plastics manufacturers have clearly put a lot of effort into making their creations look like the real thing, they cannot hide the tactile proof that they’re plastic—and far from beneficial to the environment.

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by Michel Cruz

Pollution, global warming and climatic change have been a source of debate for as long as most of us can remember. Recent events suggest that we may not have the luxury of debating about such issues for much longer.. (more…)