Monday, 15 January

This morning, I arrived early in the hotel to send out those e-mails to the publishers for the guide books. I sent out 4 as that is all I had and one to restaurant client from April 2006 who has a friend at a UK paper and will ask this friend to consider a piece about the area based on what I wrote. I was a bit late in sending the article (8 months late to be exact) but hopefully they will still send it on to their friend.

We then went to Ronda to run some errands as per usual. We stopped by the office of CIT Serrania de Ronda which is a tourist office for the area which aids businesses such as ours. The main guy there is Alfredo, the same Alfredo who penned a letter to the Malaga government on my behalf about our hotel road signs.

Among the things we spoke of today was the Ronda Festival in May. We as a group, are going to start discussions shortly for this festival where, last year, there were cooking demonstrations by various restaurant chef in the valley and Ronda. Ivan participated in that and will do so again this year. We also talked about the jazz festival. I will send out an invite again with a couple of options on dates to have first meeting and will hope to have the festival for 2008. There definitely is interest in seeing what we can accomplish with this.

Other point, even Alfredo is frustrated with the lack of support from any official agencies supporting tourism. All the publicity goes to the coast and it seems at every turn, the government, whether it be the Junta de Andalucia, the Malaga government or the Patronato de Turismo de la Costa de Sol , puts obstacles in the path of tourism here, nothing to makes life a bit easier for any of us.

Anyway, we also covered the fact that I will be sending out invites for a meal, lunch or dinner, to owners of the valley businesses, an idea I had last summer but failed to follow through on, including Alfredo. This could possibly develop into a forum to discuss common concerns, issues or problems amongst business owners and maybe even develop into an owners association of some kind for the Serrania de Ronda of hotels and restaurants, something lacking in this area at the moment.

After we finished with that, Ivan & I headed to Estacion de Jimera de Liber (one valley over from ours named Guadiaro Valley) to try out a restaurant called Quercus which apparently has a good reputation run by a Spanish lesbian couple. After a 25 minute ride to get there (we did not have telephone contact details to call ahead), it was closed and probably closed for the whole month of January and perhaps February as well. So we decided to head to Estacion de Cortes de la Frontera to try a restaurant there that we heard of run by an English couple. Again no luck, they closed their doors permanently a couple of months ago. Not surprising as they had come to our place for tapas once and told us about their place but they didn't really want to continue with it too much longer. So we decided to head back to the village of Jimera de Liber and have lunch at a place run by Javier, someone we know, a small hotel and restaurant. When we arrived, the place looked a bit different and Javier was no where to be seen. Of course, we soon discovered that he left the place two months earlier. So no luck really!! We headed back into the Genal Valley and in Atajate we lucked out... the venta (roadside restaurant) was still serving lunch even though it was already 4.15. Most places in Spain will stop serving lunch at 4.00 and the kitchen closes, period. And then back to Juzcar.

The weather is a bit foggy today, a damp haze everywhere you look and low hanging clouds/fog over the mountain tops. However, all the almond trees started to bloom about 3 days ago and every day there are more flower blossoms appearing in pink or white.

THIS is something I've written for inclusion in guidebooks, hopefully. I'm sending this some publishers I've come across for their next revised edition of their guides of this area.

The Genal Valley of the Serranía de Ronda, Málaga
(for inclusion in Costa del Sol Guide, Andalucia & Spain guidebooks)

The quiet and restful Genal Valley has a history that goes back hundreds of years. It is located in the Serrania de Ronda just to the south of the bustling white village of Ronda. It is sandwiched happily between two national parks, La Sierra de las Nieves and Grazalema. There are two main roads that access the valley, the A369 which is known locally as the Ronda - Algeciras road and the A397 (formerly known as A376), known as the Ronda - San Pedro road.

Each road has a turn-off to the Upper Genal Valley. Following the A397 (formerly A376) from the town of San Pedro de Alcantara on the Costa del Sol, the turn for the Valley is located 11km before Ronda. The A397 is a winding mountain road with plenty of traffic, especially in the summer months. It will repay you with the fantastic views of the coast, Gibraltar and, on a clear day, the mountains of North Africa. Following the turn for the Genal Valley, one will see six of the seven white villages of the upper valley, Parauta, Cartajima, Júzcar, Puerra, Faraján and Alpandeire. All have populations of less than 300 and all have very traditional lifestyles. Mobile vendors still pass through these villages on certain days of the week selling a wonderful variety of wares: bread, fish, vegetables, melons among an orchards worth of fruit, as well as fabrics.

Because the upper Genal Valley is still not widely known or developed, it is not heavily travelled; it is therefore a recommended destination for those looking for peace and quiet in a traditional Spanish environment. Each March until May, the valley is filled with wild flowers. As many as 2,000 species growing in this area in springtime with different blooms appearing weekly. The Genal Valley is also chestnut country. In May, the upper valley is filled with the pungent odour of the yellow chestnut flowers in bloom. In autumn, there is a swath of autumnal colours burning across the valley as the chestnut leaves pass through their seasonal change.

Along the boundary between Cartajima and Júzcar lies another area which is worth a visit. This is Los Riscos (literally, "The Cliffs"). It is a wild area in which millennia of winter winds and rains have worn the limestone of the terrain into a series of wild natural sculptures. Although these are not as spectacular as others in the province of Málaga, they are worth seeing as a reminder of how desolate and remote this area was in the days before paved roads and the combustion engine and of the days when a handful of hardy Berber Arabs made their way into the mountains from the coast on mule and on foot and decided to stay.

The Valley is a great destination for motorcyclists, cyclists, walkers, bird watchers, star gazers, rock climbers painters, photographers, writers and nature enthusiasts. For bird watchers especially, this area is a must. It is right on the north-south corridor for the annual bird migrations. It is not unusual to see soaring griffin vultures, eagles, falcons or other birds of prey above the mountainous terrain. With all the natural subjects to paint (ruins, mountains, rooftops, churches, valleys, villages, trees, flora, etc) and changing light, painters could spend endless days painting and not run out of subjects. And all of the villages of the Valley have annual traditional fiestas and Semana Santa festivities, August being the month of fiestas for the Upper Valley.

The lower Genal Valley has eight villages which are all located along the Algeciras – Ronda road. Travelling north from the coast, one first comes to Gaucin, the most southern village on the A369 and then to Benarrabá, Algatocin, Benadalid, Benalauría and finally Atajate. All the villages are similar to those of the upper valley in terms of size but all have their own unique charm. Some offer museums, all offer at least one place to stop for a drink or a meal and some offer accommodation.

Júzcar also boasts La Fábrica de Hojalata (the Tin Factory). This was the first factory ever built in Spain which operated from 1731 to 1905 producing tin for the king’s armoury. Alpandeire was once home to the much revered Friar Leopoldo, a local friar who lived out his life in a monastery in Granada but is still admired by many in the Serrania de Ronda; it is not uncommon to come across his portrait in any number of shops, bars and restaurants in Ronda and the surrounding area.

Lodgings and restaurants are available in varying shapes and sizes throughout the valley be it a hotel, casa rural (country house) or other accommodation, bar or restaurant. La Casa Grande in Alpandeire, opened in January 2006, offers 10 double rooms along with a restaurant and bar. Hotel Bandolero in Júzcar, opened in October 2004, offers eight double rooms with sweeping views of the valley and theme painting holidays. Its restaurant, La Bodega del Bandolero, offers creative tapas and country cooking which can also be enjoyed in the bar or on the terrace. Hotel Los Castaños in Cartajima, opened in 2004, is a bit higher end with five luxury doubles, a roof top terrace, sweeping valley views and an in-house residents only restaurant. La Casa del Llanete in Alpandeire opened in 2005, offers bed and breakfast rates as well as creative and therapeutic holidays by the English owners. Restaurant Anafe in Parauta offers a range of game meats while Bar Torricheli in Júzcar offers a variety of tapas as well as combination plates. Restaurant Remidios in Faraján also offers a variety of meat selections on its menu. There is also a camping site in Júzcar, Nuestra Virgin de Moclón, alongside the Genal River for those on a budget opened in the warmer months with a bar / restaurant and a wonderful natural swimming site in the river itself. Hotel Banú Rabbah in Benarrabá has 10 rooms, a restaurant and a good size swimming pool for the summer months. Meson La Molienda restaurant in Benalauría is a museum and restaurant with fantastic views of the valley.

Then there are locally based outdoor adventure companies offering services such as rappelling in the Genal river, paint ball, mountain bikes, hot air ballooning, organised hiking, guided bird watching, quads, amongst others.

Genal Valley - Accommodation and Restaurants

Hotel Bandolero * *
La Bodega del Bandolero
Cl. Tercio Mora Figueroa, Nº 11
29462 Júzcar (Málaga)
http://www.hotelbandolero.com/
Telf:+34.952.183.660
E-mail: reservations@hotelbandolero.com

Hotel Banú Rabbah * *
Restaurante "Kábilas"
Cl. Sierra Bermeja s/n29490 Benarrabá (Málaga)
http://www.hbenarraba.es/
Telf: +34.952.150.288
E-mail : hotel@hbenarraba.es

Hotel Hacienda La Herriza
Crta. Gaucín - El Colmenar, Km. 6
E-29480 Gaucín (Málaga)
http://www.laherriza.com/
E-mail : info@laherriza.com

Hotel Salitre & Restaurant ***
Ctra. Comarcal 373, Partido Salitre
29491 Algatocín (Málaga)
http://www.turismosalitre.com/
Telf: + 34.952.117.172
E-mail : complejo@turismosalitre.com

Hotel Los Castaños * *
Cl. Iglesia, Nº 40
29452 Cartajima (Málaga)
http://www.loscastanos.com/
Telf: +34.952.180.778
E-mail : reservations@loscastanos.com

La Casa del Llanete
29460 Alpandeire (Málaga)
http://www.casadellanete.com/
Telf: +34.951.166.057
E-mail : info@casadellanete.com

La Casa Grande & Restaurant
Cl. Barranco Nº 76
29460 Alpandeire (Málaga)
http://www.avired.com/
Telf: +34.952.180.400
E-mail : hotellacasagrande@yahoo.es

Mesón La Molienda
Cl. Moraleda, Nº 59
29491 Benalauría (Málaga)
http://www.molienda.com/
Telf: + 34 952152548
E-mail : angarilla@avired.com

Mesón La Sierra
Ctra. Ronda-Algeciras, Km. 18
29494 Atajate (Málaga)
www.atajate.net/lasierra
Telf: + 34.952.180.165
E-mail : lasierra@atajate.net

Restaurante La Fuentecilla
Cl. Cerrillo Isidoro s/n
29491 Algatocín (Málaga)
http://www.hotelruralfuentecilla.com/
Telf: + 34.952.150.371
E-mail : lafuentecilla@depcapc.com

Bar Torricheli
Cl. Ereta, Nº 3
29462 Júzcar (Málaga)
Telf: +34.952 .183.677

Camping Ntra. Sra. de Moclón
29462 Júzcar (Málaga)
Telf: +34.659.682.898
Telf: +34.606.802.211

Restaurante El Anafe
Cl. Calvario, Nº 1
29451 Parauta (Málaga)
Telf: +34.952.181.035

Restaurante Los Labraos
Ctra. Ronda-Algeciras, Km. 83´300
29493 Benadalid (Málaga)
Telf: + 34 952117058
E-mail: loslabraos@hotmail.com

Sunday, 14 January

YESTERDAY, Nicky stopped by with a stack of English language newspapers. Nicky, along with her partner Phil, is the owner of a bed and breakfast in Alpandeire where they do creative holidays, painting instruction, therapeutic holidays or plain B&B. Nicky is helping this new publication, called the Olive Press, by taking it around for distribution in the upper valley. The publisher is an Englishman who has worked for a couple of the English dailies and is now starting this one here in the Ronda area for the English speaking community. Nice idea.

NICKY also enquired about the Jazz Festival and how it was going. I told her that as I had not had any responses except one to the last email I sent out there for a meeting and apparently there was not much interest; as it is now January, it is a bit late to get a festival organised for the coming May. She told me that Phil had responded to my mail with some suggestions and that they are interested in attending participating... I did not receive that email. So I think I need to reignite the whole idea for next spring. Since apparently there are people with an interest, I think it would be a good idea to try again to get it organised.

YESTERDAY, we also had a reporter stop by called Lola. She is writing the article for Geo magazine, the same magazine I mentioned in an earlier entry when the photographer came by. She told me the magazine has a circulation of about 30,000 in Spain and she did not think the article would appear in other European issues of Geo but one can hope. So Ivan and I sat with her and her husband for a while and talked about being here in Juzcar, local activities, the valley, the hotel and what it was like building this business.

IVAN sold another cake yesterday to a village person. It looked yummy, I must say.

OF the two TVs I took to the technical shop for repair the other day, one is for the bin and the other one works. I simply don't understand these TVs... I've had problems with them before where a guest complains the TV is not functioning. I have exchanged TVs between rooms and it seems to work. This time that did not happen with one of them as the technician told me it would cost 70 Euros to repair and I can buy one new for about 100 Euros so he recommended tossing it. The other one did not function for me or Francisco but the technician said it functions so back to the room with it. And now I need to purchase a new TV for the room. Or perhaps I should take the over sized TV I purchased months ago for our bedroom at home (I was not thinking clearly at the time of purchase obviously as it won't fit in our bedroom and so is still in its box) and put it in Room 11 and take that small TV and put it in our bedroom.... now that would work! All I need to get is a TV stand big enough for this TV.

ONE more thing to mention today. We had an unpleasant experience with a hotel guest this morning who stayed for the last two nights with us. She was clearly not all there in the head from the start. On Friday evening, Ivan came to me here in reception from the bar to say someone enquired about a single room. He also said she was acting strangely as she was laughing out loud to herself alone in the bar. When she came to reception, she said all she wanted was a bottle of Baileys and wanted to pay right away for the night, all the while smoking.

THE next morning, yesterday, she came to the bar about 12.00 and stood in same place in front of the bar with two packs of cigarettes, smoking, staring into space with two glasses of wine in front of her that she did not drink. Eventually she went onto the terrace for a bite to eat, food she ordered and then did not eat. She came back into the bar in the evening and did the same thing, stand at the bar and smoke.

THIS morning when I arrived in the reception area, I found my computer unplugged, disconnected from everything, reception desk disorganised, answering machine unplugged, radiator cover off, sign on the dining room door attached backwards, lamps unplugged, floor lamp in the middle of the floor, and this woman stretched out on a sofa in the salon, smoking with an electric radiator going next to her. I said to her "what are you doing here?" She said the heat in her room did not work (not true as I checked it last night and it did work). I told her she had to pay and leave right away as I was not impressed with her actions at all. She then broke into song when she noticed a Tarot book in my bookcase. I grabbed the book from her and told her to stop singing and to go wait in the bar. She yelled at me, "In the street?!? In the bar!??" I said go to the bar and followed her.

SHE finally paid me in cash after speaking to me in bad French and acting very, very strangely. I went and checked her room and found that the tub had been filled with water and teabags she had requested the day before. The room stank of tobacco and the ashtray was full ( I opened the windows of course). It was later when I was checking over my PC and putting it back together that I noticed my computer mouse was missing. She took it I assume as it was there last night when I closed up. I did not even know if the PC would function as she had apparently opened the tower as well so who knows what she was doing. Clearly all was well or else I would not be writing this blog entry now. Hopefully, we won't have another experience like that one, ever! But that is the problem when one has a public business such as ours.... you never know who you will encounter. Poor thing, she should not be let out alone as clearly she has issues or perhaps she is not taking her meds regularly!!

WEATHER today, not so nice, overcast and cool. Feels a bit damp too but it has not rained here in weeks and I think we could use the water. I spent some time on the terrace yesterday watering all the potted plants as they were all dry.

FRIDAY, 12 January.... Already!! I don't feel like writing much today so I thought I would upload a couple of snap shots I've been wanting to include in this blog. The first two photos you see are of the crocuses that are covering the hillsides at the moment. As I mentioned in a recent entry, they are purple with hints of yellows and appear as miniature French irises.

THESE next two photos are of the cakes Ivan made for the Three Kings Day, 06 January, last Friday. They are not very sweet and are flavored with essence of orange blosom, orange and lemon zest, some whiskey and brandy, sliced in half horizontally and then filled with whipped cream and are topped with candied fruits, toasted almonds and toasted sugar. They were yummy!! Remember, Ivan made 44 of these cakes, we sold 40 of them.

Chef Ivan making Roscones de Los Reyes with assistance of Dani

AND finally, this next and last shot is of the valley yesterday as I drove back from Ronda. You can just see some of the plumes of smoke because the valley is a bit hazy due to the smoke itself. But as I mentioned earlier, this is the time of year for clearing the groves of chestnut trees of excess limps and all the dead leaves. Everyone who burns must obtain a license from the village hall and this goes on until late March.

WE just had a single woman arrive and ask for a room for tonight.... one can never say what will happen when running a small hotel in the obscure mountains of Andalucia.... can one?

HAVE a nice weekend!! Hasta la proxima!

Thursday, 11 January. We went into Ronda this morning to take care of a couple of errands. No great loss being closed as it is dead quiet here at the moment even though we do arrive back in time to provide lunch to anyone interested in eating.

Yesterday, I spent some time sending a few emails to artists about possible workshops. I am encouraged by the fact that we now have three painting workshops booked for the coming September and October and perhaps that could be four and one now firmly booked for May 2008. But we need to have more of this business in other months to even out the cash flow. Perhaps 2008 will very cash flow, I just have to keep plugging away at those emails.

I cut the lavender plants back on Sunday. They were enormous and I didn't have the right cutting tool so my hand was very sore afterwards. We're hoping that when they come back, they'll have even more flowers.

We received a one night booking at half board yesterday for that family from Malaga that came around the other day. They booked seven rooms as that was all that was available that weekend, in February. And another one reservation for late February, two singles, English. It will be a big family affair for the family in mid-February with 14 people.

We also had a bit of passing trade for lunch yesterday and the two days before. Nothing today. A group of Danes was sitting on the terrace having tapas when I arrived from Ronda after morning errands. Ivan attended to them until I arrived. The first thing they did was ask if I was English? Eventually we were talking about me the American, being from New York City and how they had just been talking about NYC themselves and how much they just love New York! I told them I love it too and do miss it!! Very friendly bunch, as usual.

Well, not much else to say at this point except we are waiting eagerly for our holiday next week. Not sure what we're going to do during the second week of holiday... could just stay here and do nothing but go stir crazy. Or go on a few days trips to places in the area that we have wanted to visit but just did not have the time. Maybe even take the dogs with us.

Ivan is now in the kitchen making sushi for us for dinner. It's gotten a bit chilly but as in the last few days, the weather is quite warm and comfortable during the day with bright sun, cloudless skies, no breeze. But the valley is becoming all smoggy because of all the chestnut burning going on at the moment. The annual exercise of trimming the trees and burning them along with the leaves.

Sunday, 07 January - my cousin Jennifer, her husband Rob and a couple of their friends dropped by this afternoon. They all live in NY but are here in Malaga on holiday. When I saw them at Christmas, they promised to come up and have a look a the hotel. So here they were today. They had a tour of the hotel and then a walk around the village and then back here for some tapas on the terrace. When all was done, they headed off to Ronda and then back down to the coast. That was a nice surprise as I did not know when they would be here.

Again, the weather today has been glorious, sunny, warm and very comfortable. Hope this will last for the next 10 weeks.

Iris did not show for work yesterday as we expected. She went to Belgium with her family for Christmas and we thought she was going to be back yesterday but no word. Guess we'll see if she turns up for work next weekend. Actually, things have been so quiet, better not to have to pay an extra employee when we are not making so much.

This week promises to be quite boring... actually I think it will be this way until after our holiday. We had a family stop by yesterday to look the hotel over in planning a family Saturday night for dinner and stay. They would book the whole hotel in the first or second week of February, a Saturday night.

I have some marketing work I need to get on to. While I was in London on my layover coming back from NY after Christmas, I was checking out some guide books in an airport bookshop on the Costa del Sol and Andalusia to see what they said about this area. Needless to say, there was very little about the Genal Valley or the Serrania de Ronda... there was something in a couple of them but not enough. All of them provide a write in address if a reader knows of an error or omission or a simple update. So I have to write a blurb about this Valley including the other hotels and restaurants and send it in to be considered. That should be done sooner rather than later because I'm guessing the publication date of an update is imminent. I also need to get a few more letters of solicitation out to that list of artists provided to me by Maggie.

I sent a few before Christmas but have received only one response which was not promising. There are a lot more potential artists to write to about workshops and if I want to get the reservation book full, I need to get cracking on that.

I took the Christmas decorations down in the bar this morning and will have Francisco get rid of the lights and tree on the terrace tomorrow. I've taken a couple more bookings for March in the last few days as well. Need more though. And I want to update the website too. Always something to keep one busy when you have a hotel and are building a business.

Happy New Year. It's been a while since my last entry but I've been busy and distracted.

Ivan had to make 40 cakes for yesterday afternoon, ordered by the village hall for the village people. Today was the day of the Three Kings and it is Spanish tradition to have a particular cake with secret gifts inside covered with dried fruits and sugar and filled with whipped cream (which I made). So Ivan made 40 over two days .. we also provided them with some liquors and hot chocolate. That was a nice little event in the school. This is because there are elections this year and someone is thinking on his feet, campaigning already. This was a first for Juzcar or so we are told.

New Year's Eve was just alright. No one we knew was here for the dinner. Ivan's parents could not make it either , a first. We had seven rooms booked so seven couples for dinner and no one else, which was a bit disappointing. In the last two years, there were people from the village in for the dinner as well and this year, nothing. So it was small. Last year, we also had a group of our friends that came down from London & NYC to spend NYE here. Some we already knew and others were new friends but it was nice and a fun evening. This year was missing that.

Anyway, we had people in the hotel until 03 January so a bit extra business. And yesterday the cakes and chocolate for Juzcar which was good.

This afternoon, after Ivan and I took the dogs for a walk, Francisco came by with our new coffee table that he made from the old front door of the house. He then invited us to stop by his finca as he and his brother-in-law were in the process of making homemade liquor with lemon flavour. So we went up there and had a few tastes of his recently made wine, mosto, and liquors, not to mention some homemade sausage. There were quite a few guys there by the time we arrived. Francisco has so much booze that he's made both from his grapes and liquor and any which way you count it, he has a lot of it! I asked him what he was going to do with all this and his response was that it goes quicker than you would think. Late afternoons like this very one helps to kill off a good portion of his supply... after all there were at least 10 of us there.

The weather here recently has been just gorgeous. I've been wearing shot sleeves and there have been guests dining on the terrace, outside. This is the kind of weather I would have expected for southern Spain, not the cold we've had the last two winters. But then, I know this is not normal weather either. It's so mild in the day that the house in the evenings is not cold at all. It feels more like we've gone directly to spring. And the purple crocuses are already out all over the mountain. This is normal for this time of year already. If this warmth keeps up, I would expect to see some wild flowers already starting to bloom. We shall see... depends on how long this mild climate keeps up for. I'm talking 18 degrees cel here on 06 January.

Anyway, we will be closing for a few days from 19 January for our vacation. We're going to visit some friends. Francisco will take care of Diego everyday providing his meals and taking care of the dogs.

I want to post some of the photos I took of the 40 cakes Ivan made while making them but they're not ready yet so I'll do that next time.

So that's it for now. Time to prepare some dinner.