16/06/18 – 20/06/18 – Playa Las Mimosas, Mabella
We took a chance on a wild camping site listed on searchforsites.co.uk , that had no reviews or photos but only mentioned it’s popular with the locals. It was so worth it. 6kms along the coast from central Marbella beach, Playa Las Mimosas was truly a lovely find. A small woods not impacted by tourism, predominantly frequented by Spanish for camping. By camping I mean big groups of friends and family spreading out, enjoying drinking, eating, laughing, listening to music. Not surprisingly, there was that aroma of cannabis in the air…again. We were so happy that we could do the same [spread out I mean) and that it was free.
Being the weekend, It was absolutely packed. Fortunately we arrived just in time to bag ourselves a pretty huge space amongst the trees, which we then made home for the next 3 nights…for free!. Just a short stroll away we found the long stretch of white sandy beach which had a couple of bars including a lively one called Ranchon Cubano. It played a mixture of Cuban, Salsa and Ragaton music at full volume. We went that night for a few drinks and enjoyed the live band. It was a great laid back atmosphere. We met a family with a cute girl who had fun playing with Marley. It was great to see two guys happily dancing salsa together on the floor too.
Once the weekend was over, lots of people disappeared we assumed for work on Monday. We’d enjoyed the vibrant atmosphere, but the peacefulness was now equally enjoyable, as we almost had the place to ourselves.
One day, we gave Marley a long overdue hair cut to help him cope with the increasing temperatures. Given he wasn’t going to put up with Dan’s clippers, I think we did a pretty good job with scissors and I’m sure he’s much happier despite the grumpy ‘after’ photo.
During our stay, we didn’t do much else bar relax, eat our first homemade Paella (thanks Chef Dan) drink and go to the beach morning, and afternoon to sunbathe and play with the pup. It was bliss! Marley being on the beach was another unexpected bonus about Marbella, but we were pretty sure it would be very different further down the coast.
While staying here, I’d noticed a group of children who seemed as though they were living in the woods with their family. We saw the children in groups of 3 or 4 (without an adult) going back and forth to the local restaurant to collect bottles of water, but also frequently trying to sell bracelets they’d made. When they spoke it sounded like a language they’d developed between themselves. They looked clean and well nourished, and their family seemed to have plenty of things, but their eyes looked sad…the type of look I’ve seen too many times before as a Social Worker. My mind of course went haywire….are they ok, are they on the run?! It me feel uneasy, but I had no idea of their nationality nor their culture, which could well be very different to English parenting.
