Only an hour out of Granada, Salobreña is a small hillside village that also has a playa tucked into a cove of the Mediterranean. This mini micro-region is protected by two mountain ranges coming down to the sea and is blessed with a semi-tropical climate. You´ll find mangoes, avocadoes, papayas, and other exotic fruit for sale in the markets. We left Granada in the cool morning with rain threatening and arrived back in summer in Salobreña. Topless at the beach in mid-Oct.! The local bus cost 5 euros one way and left at 11, returning at 5:45 pm, perfect for a relaxing afternoon at the beach!
The day we visited Salobreña was a Spanish national holiday -- Columbus Day. The newspapers urged all Spanish to show their national pride by flying the flag but it seems that the Spanish are a disobedient group -- very few flags were on display and there were no signs of any kind of national fervor. That type of display smacks of fascism and most Europeans still have a horror of any kind of blatant nationalism.
A newspaper article in the International Herald Tribune reported that all reminders of Franco were to be dismantled as soon as possible, including the last remaining statues. This period brings out a lot of emotional response from those who still want an apology for the Civil War atrocities as well as right-wingers who might not be adverse to the return of Franco. On the other hand, a very popular TV series, called Love during the Revolution, depicts Spanish life during the Franco years, with women controlled by their families and husbands and the police generally hovering just behind everyone´s shoulders, an oppressive force that could invade one´s life and home at any time.
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