Day 102 - Charming Riogordo in White Washed Andalucia
/I think it has finally happened. We have finally arrived at a location that I love just as much as I loved Ireland (and maybe a tiny bit more thanks to the hot weather).
Last night, we arrived very late at the house that we are staying in for the next month. Since we are off the beaten path, somewhere in the mountains outside of Riogordo, it was very dark and we could not see much of anything.
This morning, we awoke to a gorgeous view outside our doorstep. In just a few minutes, we all fell in love with our new "home" and its surroundings. It is quite fascinating how people have built houses randomly on the mountains here. All the houses have the famous white washed Andalucian look and are very easy to spot. The roads can be a little scary, as you are generally driving on the edge of a mountain, and in parts they are not paved, but it is all part of the charm and we are loving the tourist free aspect of it.
We headed into Riogordo, about a 10 minute drive from the house, in search of a supermarket to stockpile our kitchen. Although the town is very small, it definitely has a lot of character, and we managed to find a good size grocery store to buy almost everything we needed.
According to the welcome pack the Air BNB hosts left for us, the house we are staying in is about 120 years old, and it was built one room at a time by goat herders. The family that bought the house in the 1990s slowly renovated the house, but made sure to leave in a lot of the original designs. The walls of Andalucian houses are built with mud and stone and are very thick, perfect insulation against the heat and hot sun of summer days and the cold winds of the winter.
We spent the entire day settling in and enjoying what the house has to offer. We are so happy to be out of a cramped city apartment and back in spacious nature. In addition to all the extra space available to us, both inside and out, the kids are also really enjoying the small splash pool. They already feel very at home, and are coming up with all kinds of games and making art inspired by their new surroundings. I am also loving the kitchen, with the large stove and oven. Hurray for being able to cook everything at once for a meal :)
I think we are going to like it here :) What's your ideal get away spot? Do you prefer staying in big cities or being away from the hustle and bustle and instead be surrounded by nature?