Guest Blog Posts

Gaucin is one of the most spectacular and unspoilt of the renowned “Pueblos Blancos”. 626 meters above sea level, with spectacular views to Africa, the Sierra de Ronda and The Alconocales National Park. Charming white washed houses range along a lofty ridge, vultures and eagles wheel overhead, surrounded by miles of sun-dried hills. 

Lee and I have owned a holiday cottage in Lower Normandy for 10 years now, so we are quite familiar with all things “French”, including the stunning architecture.  One thing newcomers to France may notice is a proliferation of Chateaux.  Castles in the UK are few and far between and most are tourist destinations; many are looked after by The National Trust and other similar organisations.  Not so in France where many historic beauties are empty, discarded, unloved and some in ruins! 

`Caminante, no hay camino, se hace camino al andar....`.  This famous quote by Antonio Machado translates as: `traveller there is no path, you make the path by walking`. To me, this sums up our journey - when we found our wonderful finca it was wild and beautiful, it still is but now you can experience it, live within the atmosphere. 

I’ve lived on the island of Mallorca for over seventeen years, arriving from Scotland after falling in love with a Mallorcan. We lived in a rural area known as Es Pla – the fertile plain at the centre of the island - and during my first few years there I learnt the language by immersion, gave birth to three boys and had a crash course in Mallorcan culture including wine making, becoming familiar with the old tales called Rondaies and the folk tunes sung to the traditional drum the ximbomba.  We grew our own fruit and vegetables, had solar panels and water from our own well and I began to develop an English language school using art, music and drama, working only with Mallorcans in the local area.

We write to you from Gavinburn Cottages, five fantastic self-catering country cottages, set high in the Kilpatrick Hills. They all enjoy stunning views of the River Clyde and are only ten minutes from Glasgow and Loch Lomond.