THE END

After four happy and stimulating years we sold our cortijo in Guajar Alto last month. We shall miss the beautiful mountain scenery, wonderful walks, the fascinating flora and fauna, our friends and the ambience of Spanish village life.

Unfortunately it has been extremely difficult to earn a living in Los Guajares. The remoteness, lack of cultural interest and a market for art were the main problems. We feel we have experienced everything the area offers and it was time to move on.

We have bought an olive farm in El Poniente Granadino near the towns of Loja and Huétor Tájar. The new property, although you have to ford a river to get to it, is within easy reach of Granada city and many historical towns - see www.countryhouseinspain.wordpress.com.

The landscape, although not so dramatic and awe inspiring as the mountains of Los Guajares, is very pretty with its rolling hills of olives, river valleys and the vega of Granada with its backdrop of the Sierra Nevada. There are going to be endless subjects to paint and we are converting outbuildings into a studio for me and a room for an office and print production.

My current blogs www.margaretmerry.wordpress.com and www.margaretmerrypaintings.wordpress.com will continue and my guajar blog will be replaced by a new blog - www.lifearoundloja.blogspot.com although I will keep it posted as it is a useful refernce for people interested in Los Guajares.