Anyway, the other day I overheard Steve on the phone to an upcoming guest who was asking Steve about the practicalities of being au naturel on the drive down to Vera Playa. Not wanting to be a party pooper but nevertheless conveying his sense of public duty, Steve had to explain why this may not be such a good idea. 

The Spanish traffic police (Tráfico) will certainly have something to say if you are stopped or worse still, involved in a road incident.

It may – on face value – sound petty that you can be heavily fined for, say driving shirtless, or for driving in flip-flops. You could also be fined if your passenger puts their feet up on the dashboard. Even I, Mister Health and Safety Inc. rolled my eyes heavenward when I first learned of these arbitrary fines. But actually, having read up on the reasoning behind it, there are very good reasons for your own safety why ‘driving au naturel’ along with a host of other do’s and don’ts must be observed when driving in Spain. 

So our advice is to remember that even though you are in holiday mode, keep in mind that these laws are there not to be fun-killing, but to protect you from being killed. For more information on the laws regarding driving in Spain visit http://n332.es/ 

So, at the start of last weekend, the world enjoyed a special lunar eclipse. Apparently, one of the best places in the world to observe this phenomenon was the east coast of Spain! Some of the bars/chiringuitos on the naturist beach stayed open til the early hours so that lunar followers like us could enjoy the view right on the water’s edge. The famous ‘Pirate Bar’ was our venue of choice. VP’s resident professional photographer Tony Unwin was there for photographic evidence and someone had set up a telescope on the sand. A very nice Norwegian couple staying in our ‘Mediterráneo' apartment were there and him being a fisherman and captain of his own boat, was regaling us with all sorts of technical information about the lunar eclipse. 

“Do you know all of this stuff because you are a fisherman?” asked someone? “No” came the reply “I just Googled it.” How honest of him I thought. 

Sadly, a misty evening made the view of the moon a bit, erm, disappointing, but the warm breeze of the evening, the sound of the waves lapping and the good company as we sat looking over the Mediterranean Sea more than made up for it. 

On a different topic, I am personally relieved to see that the town hall are continuing to upgrade the old clanky boardwalks along the whole playazo (means ‘massive beach’ of which the naturist section is a part). While the old fashioned wood planks are somewhat romantic and make a nice clanky sound as you step along them, protruding planks are a trip and splinter hazard. I have witnessed a few people have their whole lives flash before their eyes and last year, yours truly fell spectacularly ‘arse over tit’ so to speak. 

The new upgraded walkways look just like the real wooden thing but they are actually look-a-likee concrete pathways. They don’t perish and become a trip hazard nor do they need to be taken up over the winter. So the naturist beach is even more accessible year round. 

Talking of accessibility, last year, the new walkway included a new covered area for wheelchair users – right by the lifeguard tower and the lifeguards themselves assist people with mobility issues in and out of the water on specially adapted water buggies! No reader, it’s not Lourdes but we’ll give them a run for their money. 

It’s nice that the town hall are committed to keeping our beach accessible and nice, thank you Vera council! 

On Sunday, it was time to say goodbye to our Norwegian guests only to find that Mrs Guest had hand knitted, in true Nordic fashion, two dining placemats as a gift to Steve and I (see the pics below). We were over the moon (pardon the timely pun) with them and we made a deal that if they come back next year, then she’ll knit us another two so we have a complete set for four. It’s a deal. They loved their time in the apartment, saying that it was “the best holiday in all my history.” Perfect and music to our ears! 

While we were getting ‘Mediterráneo’ ready for the new people arriving later that day, doing the laundry etc., down on the beach a group of Spanish people had set up a trestle table with food, drinks, balloons and bunting. A short while later, a young lady appeared to the sounds of ‘Happy Birthday’ being played on toy harmonicas. She was on cloud nine and we watched her little birthday party from our terrace. Nothing quite like having a bird's eye view! 

After we had met the new arrivals and showed them around the apartment, Steve and I decided to treat ourselves to a few late afternoon hours on the beach. We were just taking a dip in the sea when all of a sudden out of nowhere, there was a huge thundering sound and we looked up to see right above us and flying very low the ‘Patrulla Águila’ – the Spanish equivalent of the Red Arrows - returning to base from a display at the festival Aéreo in Torre del Mar, Málaga. An unexpected but very welcome treat. 

And so the summer rolls gloriously on in paradise. What a joy to behold!

‘Til next time…