Unspoilt treasures of Spain's Costa Del Sol (3 days, 3 great things)

When you hear the words Holidays and Costa Del Sol you may start thinking - long crowded beaches, cheap and nasty high-rise hotels, sun-burnt British beer bellies, bad karaoke, English breakfasts and chips with everything....Right? Wrong! 

Scratch underneath the well-worn tourist surface of this sun-baked stretch of southern Spain by heading just a few miles inland and you will find there's so much more and that the Costa's ebullient Andalusian spirit is stronger than ever.

Our long weekend on Spain's sunshine coast started at the regional capital Malaga, whose airport is served by budget airlines Easyjet and Ryanair. From here it was a one hour drive east along the coast to our home for the weekend, the picturesque white-washed village of Torrox, (around ten miles from the resort of Nerja). Like many of the villages in this area Torrox has both a 'costa' half - a modern beach town - and a 'barrio' half - an historic Andalusian village clinging to the steep mountainside and now separated from the sea by southern Spain's coastal motorway.

Our weekend's accommodation in Torrox (the holiday home of a friend's parents) was a quaint Andalusian town house set over three-levels with the most beautiful surprise to be found at the top of a very steep flight of stairs. From our secluded crow's nest roof terrace, we were treated to a spectacular view over the whole village of Torrox and beyond, all down the way to the Mediterranean sea. Needless to say, this roof quickly became our favorite place.

Thank you for this view Mr and Mrs Walsh!

Day 1: The Flamenco festival of Torrox

We had journeyed to Torrox for a low-key girls weekend, thoroughly expecting to escape the crowds and quietly enjoy some tapas on the sleepy town square before strolling home through the quaint Andalusian streets for an early night's sleep...

...And so rounding the corner on our first morning and finding this gang of colourful characters enjoying a early afternoon sing-a-long at the local cafe, was quite a surprise. Clearly, something was afoot.

We soon found out that we had arrived in sleepy little Torrox during their annual festival, which this year had proven to be the biggest yet. Young and old had travelled from villages and towns across the area to eat, drink, dance, flirt, see and be seen.

The first day of the festival (Friday) celebrated that most famous and fiery Andalusian tradition - flamenco. From eight years old to eighty years old, hundreds of local women of all shapes and sizes began to stroll into town, resplendent in the most show-stopping outfits possible and more than ready to dance, sing and generally set male hearts aflutter.

As the sun gradually lowered its fierce glare and the village square began to swell with people, our jaws hit the floor. From the colour-coded ruffles and elaborate embroidery designed to accentuate every sumptuous Latino curve, to the spectacular hairstyling, death-defying heels and matching traditional jewellery, scarves and fans, it was all very clear - we had found that most coveted holy grail of every foreign holiday, the chance to experience genuine local traditions unspoilt by the commercial hand of tourism - and, on the Costa Del Sol!

Buoyed by the realisation that we had lucked out on our short-break holiday in ways we had never expected, we then proceeded to do what we had originally come here to do in the first place - gorge on tapas, enjoy some rioja and generally catch up, way on into the wee hours - satisfied in the knowledge that we had unintentionally scored ourselves some extra-value-added people-watching, live music entertainment and generally all-out Spanish revelry to boot.

Day 2: Granada and the Alhambra

Now, I must add here that our whole weekend-away was not solely devoted to having a big lie-in everyday and hanging out at the local tapas bar. We also harboured serious intentions to soak up some history - which is why we woke up at a shade before 6am on Saturday morning to drive around two hours to the city of Granada, home to one of Spain's most celebrated historical sights, The Alhambra.

The Alhambra is regarded as one of the most spectacular examples of Islamic architecture in the world, and dates back to the last days of the Moors in Spain. Amazingly the elaborately carved palaces of the Alhambra complex were only inhabited for around two hundred years, before the Muslims were violently forced out of Southern Spain. 

These masterpieces of Islamic art have been very lucky to survive the ravages of subsequent centuries. It is largely thanks to writers such as Washington Irving and passionate 19th Century Spanish archaeologists, that restoration of the palaces began in earnest in the start of the 20^th Century. The Alhambra is now recoginsed as one of the most important palaces in Spain, and indeed all of Europe, and work is constantly underway to restore and preserve the buildings' delicate mosaics, intricately carved marble friezes and pillars, awe-inspiring courtyards and stunning gardens and waterways.

Back at the Torrox Festival later that day, we were disappointed to find that traditional costume had been replaced by modern clothing. However, in return we were also treated to a huge party of more modern entertainments. Popular local pop bands played the stage, women performed choreographed dances wearing cheerleader-style outfits with 'Torrox' emblazoned across their chests and just when we thought it was all over for the night, thousands (literally) of youngsters descended down the hill from the village square to gather on a disused waste-ground which had temporarily been transformed into a giant open-air nightclub. You won't be surprised to hear that this big Torrox Festival dance party didn't even get into full swing until 2am - oh yes, welcome to Spain!

Day 3: Unspoilt beaches just an hour from Malaga

On our final day before heading back to the airport, we all agreed that we couldn't leave the Costa without sampling some fresh seafood by the beach and dipping our toes into the blue waters of the Med. Armed with a recommendation gleaned from some locals, we drove off to Nerja (around 15minutes from Torrox) in search of a small beach called Malo.

Happily Malo Costa was everything the locals had promised it would be. A lovely little beach for those looking for somewhere small, quiet and basic to rest up, blissfully free from preening youngsters and the loud music who follow them. The short beach cove has toilet and shower facilities, a handful of sun loungers and a delightfully simple beach shack-style cafe serving freshly grilled fish and immense mixed seafood platters. Even if you are not interested in taking a dip or spending the day lounging on the beach, it is worth visiting Malo's little seafood shack anyway, as it offers both outstanding value for money, unforgettable fresh fish and this picture-postcard view.

hmmmmm, fish

Needless to say, if it weren't for the fact that I live all the way down in South Africa, I'd be spending every October in Torrox with these three ladies!

My best friends - the ultimate holiday dream team

The Essentials:

Where to stay in Torrox: Torrox village has two main hotels the Al Andaluz and Hotel La Casa. There are also two village apartments listed for rent on airbnb.com and many more on tripadvisor.com. Be very careful not to confuse your booking with Torrox Costa which is about 5 km away.

Dates of next year's festivals: Torrox Festival 3 - 5 October, Nerja Festival 10 - 12 October

Getting Alhambra tickets: As the complex is understandably very popular only a certain number of entry tickets are printed each day. You can reserve your tickets and book an entry time online at ticketmaster.es and then pick them up at the entrance when you arrive. Take note that every ticket will be marked with a specific time at which you may enter the main palace - the only time we could get was 08:30am, hence our very early start. The worst times to book tend to be midday as this is when the largest tour groups arrive.

Finding Malo beach: Follow the signs through Nerja to Malo Costa. Make sure you drive all the way down the hill road until you can actually see the beach. There are many car parks along the way, but these are in fact aimed at visitors to the village of Malo not the beach and it's a hell of walk from the village.

Cockermouth and the Taste Cumbria Festival #MyHomeTown

My home town Cockermouth is a small market town of about 9,000 people on the edge of the Lake District in north west England (we are just 3 miles from the national park border). Cockermouth has been given the prestigious 'Gem Town' label for its beautiful Georgian architecture, vibrant independent shops and cafes and tranquil riverside setting. In my opinion (please don't think I'm biased here, it's not too long ago when I considered my town to be just another boring backwater), on a sunny day this 'Gateway to the Lakes' is actually a pretty darn nice little corner of the country.

Cockermouth is famous for being the birthplace of the celebrated 18^th Century poet William Wordsworth (and his lesser known poetess sister Dorothy), Pacific mutineer Fletcher Christian (played by Mel Gibson in the film Mutiny on the Bounty) and one of the early fathers of Atomic Theory - John Dalton, amongst others.

John Dalton refused a knighthood  because he would not bow to any man - even the King!

We are also locally well known for being the town which was almost completely destroyed during a freak, once in a millennium flood, back in 2009. The Great Flood of Cockermouth affected almost a thousand homes and businesses in the area, including my own childhood home which was under two metres of water after two days of torrential storms. The interiors of buildings in the town centre were almost entirely destroyed. Metres of flood water swept through practically every local business ruining old pubs, bookshops, restaurants, cafes, banks, bakeries, pharmacies, hotels, community centres and craft shops.

Watching as the river bursts its banks and engulfs our street

My little brother filling up a skip with our destroyed furniture

In the aftermath, the whole of Cumbria rallied around our little to town to help it get back on its feet, carefully restoring historic buildings, sourcing business essentials such as heating, computers and phone lines and finally, giving everything a fresh coat of paint. Getting the town back to its best was a real communal effort and as this interesting recent BBC report highlights, it's brought this close-knit community of typically dour, pragmatic West Cumbrians, closer together. Four years on, in my opinion, Cockermouth has never looked better.

We now have a huge selection of attractive cafes (at my last count 12), historic pubs (at least 10), art galleries, gift shops, antiques vendours and restaurants. The town centre is a veritable tourist delight, positively beaming with elegant shop windows which nod to the town's historic past and an enticing cafe culture which even the flintiest locals cannot resist. 

Inside the Victorian Ironmongers

They have all the bolts and screws you need

And at last the secret of this long over-looked gem town is out. My revitalised home town has gained renewed interest from the annual tourist hoards who would usually head for the more established tourist areas of Cumbria such as Grasmere (home to Wordsworth's Dove Cottage), Coniston (Beatrix Potter country) and Ambleside (a jumping point for much of the area's best mountain climbing). Exact tourist figures are still sketchy, but simply roam around the Main Street and it is quite clear - quaint little Cockermouth is on its way to becoming a 'must-do' for any visitor to the Northern Lake District.

Taste Cumbria Food Festival

Alongside its genteel small Georgian town buzz, Cockermouth has in recent years also gained a reputation for being a bit of a foodie destination. The town's most popular restaurants and cafes proudly sell food sourced from high quality local farmers. Savvy shoppers buy their groceries from the local fruit and veg shop (which has been at the same location for at least two generations). They queue out the door to pick up freshly made pies from the local butcher and order their Friday supper fish from the fishmonger, who in turn stocks up his shop from local fishermen just eight miles away on the coast.

One of many street cafes in Cockermouth

Arguably this new way of looking at the shopping basket reflects national and even global 'Buy Local' trends and there is certainly no denying the impact it has on this local High Street. Cockermouth's culinary industry has gone from a struggle to survive some 10-15 years ago, to a need to expand into vacant space - and all that despite the existence of four supermarkets.

There was no bigger endorsement of this new breed of foodie shopper than the recent Taste Cumbria Festival, which brought some 25,000 hungry visitors to Cockermouth over the space of three days. The whole of the Main Street of the town was taken over by vendours from across the county selling everything from fresh smoked fish, farmhouse cheddars and traditional Cumberland sausages, to exotic jams, homemade sweets and the ever popular, calorie-packed, sticky toffee pudding.

Famous chefs from across the UK  (many of whom also boast the coveted Michelin star after their name), such as Paul Rankin and Aldo Zilli descended on the town to host a series of sell-out cookery workshops in a most incongruously dramatic setting - the local church.

Salmon mousse and trout fishcakes straight from our river!

Fresh smoked fish

Cumbrians love their sausages and pies

Gingerbread ladies

Homemade sweets from the local traditional sweet shop

Beer lover that I am, for me the best part of the weekend was the craft beer festival held in our very own brewery, Jennings (N.B Joburgers, you can buy Jennings ale in The Griffin!). There were more than 50 brews on offer produced by microbrewers from across Cumbria with names like Fell Ranger, Dog'th Vader, Thirst Rescue and Roundabout (named after a recently opened and much-needed, local roundabout). There was everything from light, refreshing golden ales to dark and moody more serious beers on offer and special local ingredients included everything from blackberries to nettles. 

Live music and some unexpected glorious sunshine rounded things off perfectly. On a weekend like this I found it pretty impossible not to feel rather proud of my home town's spectacular comeback.

The Taste Cumbria Festival takes place annually in the last week of September. Other similar events to look out for in Cockermouth include the Georgian Fair (May 3rd 2014) and the Cockermouth Agricultural Show (August 2nd 2014)

P.S I realise some readers may find the name of my town absolutely hilarious. Good for you! I grew up here so have not had the chance to find it even remotely funny :)

Modern, Creative, Moscow

*(I don't think I really need to tell you here...but I will anyway - this post is also not about Africa!)

An article which I wrote a while back for Indonesia's Garuda airline inflight magazine about my former expat home Moscow, has finally landed in my lap and I'm feeling pretty pleased with how it turned out. If you are not much interested in the vibrant sights of the Russian capital, then by all means skip this one - I'll be back in Africa soon, I promise! However, if you are interested in Moscow and its heady mix of ancient, modern, quirky, Soviet, hipster and just generally all-out bling sightseeing opportunities...read on. And when you're finished do yourself a favour and go buy a plane ticket and head over to enjoy the new modern, creative Moscow for yourself. Spasiba!

Modern, Creative, Moscow 

(originally published in Colours, the inflight magazine of Indonesia's Garuda airline)

A new wind of change is blowing through the Russian capital as creative Muscovites transform the relics of the Soviet city into the art and design capital of Eastern Europe.

Standing in Red Square, the undisputed heart of Russia, is to be embraced by history. From the colourful domes of St. Basil's, to the gloom of Lenin's mausoleum, Red Square is a living, breathing open-air museum, where the different influences of Russia's grand and turbulent history are on full display. However, step beyond the cobbles and into the city streets and you are in a vibrant 21^st Century metropolis which is constantly reinventing itself. In this new Moscow imposing Soviet architecture mixes with modernist skyscrapers, fashion shows take place in old bottle factories and the hip and fashionable party in crumbling 19^th Century mansions. Moscow may still be a billionaire's playground, but it is also fast becoming the hippest city this side of Berlin.

A creative renaissance in Gorky Park

The undisputed centre of Moscow's creative renaissance is Gorky Park, an area whose transformation mirrors that of the city itself. Founded in 1932, in its early days Gorky Park was an idyllic communist 'people's park' where the proletariat could enjoy ice-creams and rousing Russian music from military bands. By the time the Soviet Union collapsed however, the park had become dominated by drunken paratroopers, cheap kiosks and precarious fairground rides. Finally in 2011 it all changed again when the new Moscow mayor stepped in, with the financial backing of the oligarch Roman Abramovich, to set about an ambitious redesign of the iconic park.

The Gorky Park of today is an internationally admired model of how to rejuvenate public parks. On any given day you can enjoy free yoga classes by the river, dance salsa under the setting sun, watch the latest films at the open-air cinema, catch a free history lecture or jazz concert, play ping pong or French boules, get sketching at a free art class, read a book from the open library, join the local jogging club, rent a bike or just feed the squirrels and birds with seeds bought from special vending machines. And, it doesn't stop there. Abramovich's art curator girlfriend Daria Zhukova has also gotten involved, choosing the park as the venue for her new modern art gallery Garage designed by the celebrated architect Rem Koolhaas.

Industrial chic

Just a few kilometres along the river another old communist institution, the Red October Chocolate Factory, has also taken on a new look. Behind the factory's red brick walls Russia's favourite chocolate brand was once produced. Nowadays it is the place where the country's new architects, and graphic designers are gathering their inspiration at the Strelka Institute for Media, Design and Architecture. With a keen eye on design and a spectacular rooftop view of the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, the Strelka Bar is the place to see and be seen, while the Institute’s programme of open lectures, concerts and film screenings in English have a wide appeal.

Following the arrival of Strelka, the gentrification of the rest of the area was sure to follow. The Red October now boasts the popular Lumiere photography gallery, three restaurants, seven rooftop bars and nightclubs, independent TV studios, exhibition spaces, publishing houses, a boxing club, an alternative travel agency and numerous pop-up shops. Meanwhile if you are looking for Russian artistic expression from older masters like Kandinsky, Chagall and Malevich, the world's largest collection of Russian art, The State Tretyakov Museum, is just a short walk away.

Venture out of the city centre and you will find other once derelict industrial buildings and neglected parks are also being revamped. In the north of the city the old Flacon bottle factory is filled with cult design shops and now boasts an urban beach with its own swimming pool. Just south of the city centre near the Kursky railway station you can find Winzavod, a former wine factory turned modern art gallery and just round the corner is the ArtPlay complex, where design studios and exhibition halls share space with cafes and rooftop bars. Furthermore the architects who helped redesign Gorky Park have been invited to give suburban parks such as Sokolniki a facelift installing swimming pools, sports facilities, concert stages, beaches and stylish cafes catering to Russia's burgeoning middle class.

'Moscow Never Sleeps'

Modern Muscovites are certainly developing a taste for quirky artistic spaces and elegant parklife, but there's one old habit they still love more - spending money. On Red Square at the historic GUM department store you can buy Sochi Winter Olympics gear from designer sportswear label Bosco, and just a few streets beyond you will find three more high-end department stores to browse, numerous luxury five star hotels and even a Lamborghini dealership.

Across town at the Moscow City development, over the last decade the Russian financial industry has been pumping billions of dollars into a huge landmark office, retail and housing complex designed to accommodate 300,000 workers and residents. The area has left its mark on the Moscow skyline with 16 skyscrapers, including the 93 storey Federation Tower, now the tallest building in Europe.

With its irrepressible energy, there's a lot of truth to the popular local phrase 'Moscow never sleeps'. The street cafes of the medieval Kitai Gorod district are open all hours, traffic jams can occur at 3am, rooftop parties kick off at midnight and the city's business elite can always be found tucking into their caviar at fine dining restaurants long after the sun has gone down. This city can be both brash and chic, chaotic and yet tranquil. It's a place of skyscrapers and domes, vast green spaces and hidden courtyards. Whatever your tastes are, you certainly won't be bored.

Sound - The Bolshoi

Recently restored to the tune of almost $800 million, the opulent Bolshoi Theatre has never looked better. Internationally renowned for its innovative approach to Russian favourites such as Onegin and Swan Lake, a night at the Bolshoi is an unforgettable experience. The 238^th season opens on September 5^th. www.bolshoi.ru

Taste - Caucasian cuisine

One of the great legacies of the country's Soviet past is the popularity of flavoursome Caucasian food in Russia. One of the most popular city centre places to enjoy Georgian favourites like sizzling shashlik kebabs, spiced vegetables and freshly baked cheese breads is the hip cafe-style restaurant Hachapuri. Hachapuri.ru

Touch - Street Life

The cobbled pedestrianised streets behind the Bolshoi Theatre are filled with colourful Russian designer boutiques, flagship stores from the likes of Chanel and Gucci, street musicians, bustling pavement cafes and restaurants. For designer window shopping head to Stoleshnikov lane, for cafe culture grab a table on Kamegersky and to enjoy street performers take a stroll along Kuznetsky most.

Sight - Moscow Metro

The impressive Moscow Metro system has 12 lines and 188 stations making it the best way to bypass the city's notorious traffic jams. Its magnificent stations are intended to function as 'Palaces for the People' and feature beautiful stained glass windows, mosaics, marble floors, frescoes and chandeliers. Use the Metro's free wifi network to download the Moscow Metro app for foolproof navigation. engl.mosmetro.ru