Cost of Living: East of Málaga, Spain August 2012

Posted on August 13, 2012 by Marianne under Axarquía, Slice of Life

Whenever I travel, I´m always interested to know how much things cost, and every day, people from around the world find my blog by searching for the cost of living in Spain.

I was interested in an idea I saw on My Sardinian Life, where Jennifer published receipts for her everyday grocery shopping. Alyson at the Algarve Blog and Diana of Canadian Travel Bugs also posted their grocery receipts from Portugal and Shanghai, China respectively.

I wanted to do something a bit different, so I decided that rather than post the prices of random items of shopping that you may, or may not be interested in, I would come up with a list of standard grocery items, which I will update the prices of, three or four times a year. This list can easily be changed, so if there are any other basic items you would like me to include, please let me know in the comments section, below. This way, if anyone else wants to do something similar, we can have a direct comparison between countries.

For this month´s prices, I used the Spanish Supermarket – Mercadona

Standard Grocery List

Milk (semi –skimmed UHT, own brand), 1 litre 0.54 €
Loaf (white, baguette 250g) 0.45 €
Eggs (12, medium) 1.35 €
Chicken breasts (1kg, boneless, skinless) 5.50 €
Apples (1kg, green, Golden Delicious) 1.35 €
Oranges (1kg) 1.39 €
Bananas (1kg) 1.25 €
Potatoes (1kg) 0.92 €
Lettuce (1 head, Iceberg) 0.85 €
Water (1.5 litre bottle) 0.45 €
Domestic Beer (1 litre bottle, Cruzcampo) 1.29 €
Fish (1kg Salmon steaks) 8.75 €
Toilet rolls (pack of 6, own brand) 1.95 €
Washing powder (Box, 35 washes, Elena brand) 5.94 €
Olive oil (1 litre, extra virgin, own brand) 3€
Coca-Cola (1.5 litre) 1.09 €
Butter (250g, own brand) 0.98 €
Sugar (1kg, white) 0.95 €

I´ve also included my store receipt for the few groceries I bought – mostly of items not included on my standard shopping list.

Currency Conversion from XE €1 = 1.23   USD
0.78   GBP
1.17   AUD
1.22   CAD
1.52   NZD
9.99   ZAR

Other household expenses

Gas: We don´t have mains gas here, so we use bottles of butane gas. A 12.5kg bottle of Butane gas costs 16.45 €. One bottle lasts (on average) 21 days (for two people… though around 4 weeks in summer) for all hot water, showers and cooking.

Electricity: For a 3 bedroom/2 bathroom detached house in the countryside with a swimming pool, we pay an average of 80-90 € per month. The cost of consumption for us is slightly lower in winter with heating/lighting, as opposed to air conditioning/lighting/swimming pool pump running for 8 hours a day, in the summer months.

Water: We are not connected to mains water, so when we bought our house part of the purchase cost was for a share in a local water company. We have a water deposit to store our house water. Our water share gives us an allowance of up to 17500 litres of water each week at reduced cost, after which the price rises steeply. Needless to say, we don´t use this amount of water, even allowing for swimming pool top-ups and garden irrigation. Our annual water bill is approximately 60 €

IBI – Council Tax: Paid yearly to the local council. This year´s bill is 338€

Internet: 29 € per month with unlimited downloads (within reason). Speeds up to 3 Mbps

Petrol/Gasoline: 1 litre of 95 octane petrol is 1.49 €

Vehicle excise duty: We have a Peugot 307 1.6 and pay 51 € per year.

Eating out: Glass of wine or beer, including one tapa is 1 € – 1.50 €. Menu of the day (three course meal, served at lunchtime, including bread and one glass of beer, wine or a bottle of water) 8 – 10 €

How do prices compare where you live?

You might also enjoy these articles:

All at sea with the Virgen del Carmen

La Noche de San Juan: Families, fires and football!

Patatas a lo pobre: Poor man´s potatoes

A Slice of Life: A Trip to the Post Office

Posted on August 6, 2012 by Marianne under Axarquía, Laws and Customs, Places, Slice of Life

Living in the countryside (el campo), east of Málaga, means that many of the things we might have taken for granted, living back in England, are done a little differently here.

Take the postal system, for example. Our mail isn´t delivered to our home by the postman, so we have to jump in the car and take a trip up to the village to collect any mail from our post office box at the Post Office.

Being an enthusiastic driver, I enjoy the challenge of negotiating the picturesque, curvy mountain roads. The beauty and tranquility of the local landscape is enough to lift the spirits, even on the greyest of days, especially when you come face to face with a herd of ninety goats meandering along the road. I love meeting the goats and always wind down my car window to say “hola” and pass the time of day with the goatherd, as well as telling the goats what good girls they are!

It´s amazing how even though some of the goats climb up the rocks above the road to nibble at whatever plants take their fancy, and some stray perilously close to the edge, they all stay pretty much together. I dread to think how many would be left in the herd if I was in charge of them!

Just before the road drops down into my local village, I often stop at the Gaudi-esque mirador to marvel at the sight of the white village tumbling down the hillside overshadowed by the majestic backdrop of Monte Maroma.

This also gives me chance to drop off our rubbish bags and empty bottles at the rubbish and recycling centre (basura y reciclaje) next door, before making my way into the village.

Once I´ve parked the car, it´s a quick and easy job to walk to the Post Office (correos) and unlock our individual post box (apartado de correos) to see if there´s anything to collect. After exchanging a few pleasantries with the Postmistress, I might wander around a few of the streets photographing the pretty balconies and their flowers, or have a cool drink at one of the many bars or cafés in the village.

Every Saturday morning there is a street-market on the main car park of Cómpeta village, making it convenient to pick up fresh fruit and vegetables, before heading home along the mountain road once more, having spent a most enjoyable couple of hours.

It certainly beats having the post popping through the letter-box or queuing outside an English Post Office on a cold, damp December morning!

Which everyday job do you enjoy doing? Do you sometimes go out of your way to make it last longer?

You might also enjoy:

Churros served with thick hot chocolate

A Slice of Life: The Spanish Postal Delivery System

The heart of Cómpeta: El Paseo de las Tradiciones

Back to the Future: An Evening at the Medieval Market

Posted on July 24, 2012 by Marianne under Axarquía, Fiestas and Festivals, Laws and Customs, Places, Slice of Life

During the past weekend, a Medieval-themed market took over the main square of the white village of Torrox in the heart of the Axarquía region. Organized by the Ayuntamiento (town hall), there was lots of medieval bunting to transport you back to the 15th century, with suitably dressed character actors to set the mood.

There were various stalls selling crafts, jewellery, cheeses, traditional craftwork in metal and wood, as well as lots of food.

Huge wooden chess tables had been set up for anyone to enjoy a game of chess in the evening sunshine.

The most popular attraction was in one corner of the square where there was a roped-off area with many different birds of prey on display. Their handler gave a demonstration of the birds´ hunting prowess, which thrilled and delighted the crowd, especially the many children. The birds appeared to be well cared for and made an impressive sight sitting on their perches, patiently waiting their turn to swoop over the gathered crowd.

All of the bars and restaurants in Plaza de la Constitución had their outdoor seating areas overflowing with people all eating, drinking and enjoying this year´s Medieval Fiesta!

I have merged my responses to this week´s Photo Challenges: Travel Theme: Tradition as well as the Weekly Image of Life: Colours.

Whilst you´re here, why not have a look at:

All at sea with the Virgen del Carmen

Photographs I love …. and why!

Flowering snapshot of a January day around the garden

Fifty Shades of Grey: What´s going on?

Posted on July 23, 2012 by Marianne under Axarquía, Slice of Life

The rain in Spain may fall mainly on the plains – but today it´s arrived east of Málaga! I can´t remember when it last rained in July.

Anyway, I´m sure it wont rain for long and it´s great for the garden as well as the toad who came out to enjoy the unusually damp weather!

It hardly ever rains here in the summer months. The following posts are more typical of what to expect, east of Málaga:

Summer Breeze – makes me feel fine

Phew – what a scorcher!

East of Málaga: The Weather in Summer

All at sea with the Virgen del Carmen

Posted on July 17, 2012 by Marianne under Fiestas and Festivals, Laws and Customs, Slice of Life

In a festival that dates back several hundred years, many coastal towns and fishing villages in Spain celebrate the Fiesta del Día de Virgen del Carmen as the protector of mariners and fishermen.

Every year on 16^th July, spectacular maritime processions of decorated fishing boats known as jabegas head out to sea carrying their precious cargo, an effigy of the Virgen del Carmen, to bless their fishing grounds.

The vessels, many decorated with brightly coloured flags and bunting, each crowded with people, gather under the late dusk sky patiently waiting for the official party of sailors, fishermen, clergy and authorities to bring the Statue of the Virgin on board the boat that will lead the procession.

But before that, the Virgen del Carmen is paraded through the streets for all to see. There is an air of excitement with people surging forward for the best views as the parade passes by, before making its way to the water´s edge.

Celebrations vary slightly from town to town along the coast, east of Málaga. My photographs show last night´s celebrations in La Caleta de Vélez, situated at the mid-coastal point of La Axarquía.

The video below shows the celebrations held last year in the town of Torre del Mar, just along the coast from La Caleta de Vélez.