JANUARY IN GUAJAR ALTO

It was very late by the time we got to bed on New Year’s Eve, and what little sleep we managed to snatch was disturbed by a commotion caused by one of the cats bringing in a dead rat and depositing it in the bathroom. Our animals are in the habit of disgracing us whenever we have guests.

We had seen in the New Year in one of the village bars, where we were given the traditional twelve grapes, one to be eaten with every chime of the midnight hour, for luck. Afterwards, we danced the night away at another bar, decked in party streamers and wearing silly hats.

The next day was fine and warm, so we decided to take our guests on an excursion over the mountains, to the neighbouring village of Lentegí. They are interested in buying land here, so we stopped en route so that they could look at a large finca of olives and almonds which is for sale. It’s location is beautiful, with a superb view of the distant Sierra Nevada. In a week or two, the almonds will be in blossom, and the contrast of the pink flowers, the blue sky, and the dazzling whiteness of the snowy peaks will make a wonderful picture.

While we were walking around the finca, enjoying the warm sunshine and the sound of birdsong, we saw two mountain goats on a high ridge above us. Their ears were pricked up, and they watched us with suspicion. The mountain goat is a cross between the ibex and the domestic goat, and we have quite a number of them roaming the mountains of Guájar Alto. They are intelligent creatures, considerably more so than their domestic counterparts.

The mountains, capped with misty clouds, were looking exceptionally beautiful in the soft, early spring light as we crossed the highest point and began the descent to Lentegí. Arriving at the top entrance to the village, we parked the car and walked down to the main square by means of a most delightful, paved walkway, newly-fenced and bordered by immaculately tended trees and shrubs. At each bend, there were seats where you could admire the views and take photos. Lentegí is a village which has recently benefited from the investment of a good deal of money, and this was evident everywhere we looked. The streets and public paths are clean and litter-free, and there are even public conveniences, something you do not expect to see in a mountain village.

We had a tapas lunch in a bar by the church, accompanied by local wine. Lentegí has rich, fertile soil which produces high quality grapes, and this was evident in the taste and fruity fragrance of the wine. The tapas, too, were very good: home-made tortilla, fried whitebait with cherry tomatoes, and deliciously crispy, fried chicken wings.

We stopped to take more photographs on the return journey because the golden light of late afternoon, silhouetting the dramatic outlines of the distant mountains of Málaga, created a spectacle which was truly awe-inspiring.