I live very happily with my wife, Nalini, in Santa Maria Del Cerro, near the village of Villanueva De La Concepcion. I was teaching in England, and Nalini was an HMI, when this life journey began for us townies in 1999. We bought land, a green field plot on a hillside, and decided where to site our house on the land, and what it would be like. Later we also bought two rental properties, to realise the dream of working for ourselves in our chosen environment. Without intruding on our guests' privacy, we like to impart our enthusiasm for what we value and appreciate in our life here in rural Andalucia. We try to imbibe the culture of this people, inasmuch as a foreigner can gain an insight. For the most part we like the local people we meet for their warmth, their self-possession, and their unpretentious charm. To relax I explore the villages, towns, cities and countryside of Spain. I enjoy eating out with friends and family. We entertain our children and grandchildren here. The beauty of nature and the climate encourage, and enable us, to spend time working and relaxing outdoors. Life here, which is so different from what we were used to in England, continues to please and satisfy us: we are still “on holiday” every day. Nalini is a practising artist, who is inspired as a result of what she experiences here in Andalucia. When I visit England, I am conscious of missing what I leave behind here, such as the bright light and space – as in wide open spaces, as in enough space to park ten cars; as in having space in the day to talk to my neighbours. Here I relax, and enjoy the simple pleasures of driving into the village, the first view of the Torcal a few minutes into the journey, or going round the Torcal, and later the view of the castle on the approach to Antequera. Here, I, the boy from the East End of London, know that I have come a long way, as I gaze across the swimming pool at distant mountains, but I also enjoy days out with family and friends down on the coast.