Real Spain is where they measure how long the piece of string is.

Ha-ha -I was just in the process of composing my reply when you posted that - read on!

I suppose that where I am is pretty 'real' ie not touristy - just life being lived as it always has been.

Our 75 yr old neighbour has worked on the land since he was 10 and can't read, write or tell the time. When he wants to buy something that needs measuring he takes a length of knotted string to the fereterria. The old timers take their wives to the village on market day with the wives perched on a wooden chair tied down in the trailer at the back of the tractor!

We have frequent power & water cuts and find ourselves sitting by candlelight in front of the open fire and fetching our water from the local spring - that takes me back to my childhood staying with my grandparents in rural Ireland!

Very few Spanish in the local area speak any English and the menus are all in Spanish. No-one in the brand new health centre speaks English - if you don't speak Spanish you must be accompanied by an interpreter.

To add to the authenticity - the mayor of a nearby town was arrested last year on charges of bribery, corruption & money laundering.

All this, & we're only 40 mins drive from the coast!


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Don't know which part of Axarquia you are but in some parts there are plenty of Brit bars and shops, Brit farmers markets too. Just because it's the campo and the people are illiterate doesn't make it any more "real". Matter of opinion, the real Spain could be a rich enclave of Madrid.

I agree - and I was just talking about my local area. 20 mins drive away is an expat enclave such as you are describing but it may as well be on the moon if you never venture there!

I'm also not saying that being illiterate makes it any more 'real' - I was just describing the local area & people and how far removed it is from a lot of people's idea of what Spain is like!


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The question is impossible to answer.

Reverse the question to the UK and you see how futile it is to even try.

Is Blackpool "real England"

Yes, of course it is folks are supporting their families, kids go to school, some have good jobs and others not so good ones. Some are happy, divorced, depressed, skint, rolling in money, fat, thin, old and young, drivers, smokers, alcoholics, drug addicts, theives, nuns. and so on.

Is central London "real England?

Yes, of course it is folks are supporting their families, kids go to school, some have good jobs and others not so good ones. Some are happy, divorced, depressed, skint, rolling in money, fat, thin, old and young, drivers, smokers, alcoholics, drug addicts, theives, nuns. and so on.......and on......and on......and on.........like this thread and similar ones in the past.

what he said

real spain is my village of la mela near sorbas in the mountains old customs donkeys still worked local dont speak amy english lovely wonderfull place going back in time to th 70s brill.

It sounds lovely, but its not real Spain, its old fashioned Spain and I guess thats what the "real spain" issue means. I love that idea too and live somewhere quite similar. But lets face it, most young spanish people, regardless of british or tourist intervention dont wanna travel on or work with donkeys etc. They want the bright lights, fast cars, any car, good jobs, money, internet, modern music, night clubs, fashion.... all the things that other modern countries have. So you find some of the modern towns in Spain ARE real Spain, but have a cosmopolitan feel cos thats what the real spanish want. The town near to me is an example of that. Alhaurin de la Torre, it hasnt been built for the tourists, its been built for the Spanish an overspill of Málaga city. Its bright, modern has restaurants and bars from all nationalities, a big leisure centre, a night club, internet cafes, shops, supermarkets, most of the schools teach bilingual lessons, not for the expats, but for the Spanish who see english as the worlds business language and the way forward (hhhhmmm?! chinese might be a better option lol)...... In fact you could be anywhere. But it is real Spain, and there are some little side streets that are in the old style, but it all has a thoroughly modern feel

Jo xxx

The French omelette is not French, it is Spanish. Has its origin in the napoleonic wars, when in the blockades, became scarce the foods, for example the potato. When removing the potato, the omelette stayed in a poorer omelette, and the Spaniards of that time they called to this omelette " French omelette " ironically

he he he. I love stories like that

Nice one. Now if you could make the Russian salad Spanish too, and maybe Heinekens is now brewed in Madrid (I think it might be), then I will have truly spent a day in real Spain yesterday.

What’s on for the day in real Spain today? Mercadona beckons, the Spanish dog’s been walked, my wife’s out interpreting at a Spanish hospital, and I’m waiting for a Spanish sun bed to be delivered, the dog chewed up the other one.

Oh, and I’ve been watching the Spanish news, apart from a quick glance at Sky to make sure we’re not at war again.

I have only talked about the origin of a food, in this case a type of omelette. But I don't know what you really mean with your comment

I for one like little snippets of info like that about the omelette.
Lots of things have been "invented" by mistake or as a result of trying to do something different.

There is the story about builders who were building a house and they ran out of bricks for the second floor.

The site forman said "well, just bung a low roof on it, then.

Hence the bungalow was invented.......

Where is real Spain?

well it's in the same place the Real Britain is - in your mind !!!

but I think we tend to mean the traditional unspoilt 'days-gone-by' way of life, probably before mobile phones, TV and the internet... village life !?!?!?!

... maybe !

I think most of Spain is Real Spain. Except for totally Brit dominated areas and of course other areas totally dominated by other cultures.

However Spain is a diverse country. Which is what I love about it. 20 minutes down the road and youre in a totally different type of area. Some of the pueblos in the mountains are quaint and I guess could be defined as real Spain. Getting off the beaten track is always good. But Spain has always been such a great holiday area too. Most people (including spanish) have enjoyed what the coast has had to offer. The beaches, lines of restaurants and bars etc. So that is also real spain also!

Its all good!