San Pedro de Alcántara

Time flies - a week has already passed, the jet-lag’s gone and our body and minds have settled into Estepona life. Although we’ve noticed that evenings during the early part of the week are significantly quieter, the daily life of this Spanish coastal town is busy. As children go to and from school, and their parents and other members of the work-force goes about their daily life, we’re lucky enough to be able to be amongst them - shopping at the same stores and using the same local cafés. Having rearranged our lives to accommodate a more leisurely (and thrifty) way to travel it’s something we enjoy doing, while living in a community away from home.
At a local store we sourced out and bought a shopping buggy (which we still refer to as “bluey’ in memory of the very first one that we bought during our European travels!). Although we’re only a 5 min walk from 3 grocery stores, this one has already served us well when we’ve “stocked up” on supplies. These popular shopping carts even have a lock-up area of their own, situated at the front of most supermarkets.
This week we’ve walked the Paseo from end to end and wandered through the narrow, flower-filled streets of the old town, getting to know its nooks and crannies....our “steps” increase daily - as does our “mileage.”
At the opposite end of the promenade to the marina, the sandy beach turns grittier, and rocks get larger - it’s a place where dogs and their owners come to play and solitary beach goers tend to spend their time. We stopped at a charming, old chiringuito - a little more rustic than the ones in town - that provided a pleasant place to sit and enjoy the ocean and this area.....and they serve a very nice, bone-dry rosé!
By mid-week we were ready to meet the challenge of the local bus-system and venture out of town. Having first arrived at the “new” bus station, we knew it to be about 1/2 hours walk away from our apartment and that it was used for mid to long distance journeys......local buses don’t stop there.....in fact they’re “not allowed”.....bus companies here are very territorial!
So.....here’s more bus info that we learned - and feel it’s our duty to pass on to anyone who may visit Estepona! First - there’s a couple of local buses that do a bit of a circular route in and around town - price is under €2 a ride - cheaper with a pass for multiple journeys....but apparently this pass is difficult to get from the bus drivers - so good luck with that one! We were more interested in another bus that’s a bit of a “secret”.....the (infamous) #79.....****Tourist note - the #79 bus travels to smaller towns up and down the coast, going as far as Marbella....and it’s a lot cheaper than taking a bus from the bus station....there is however a catch. Getting on and off the bus is easy - it stops in a few places in town - just pay the driver the fare (they appreciate exact change - large bills make them grumpy). Once out of the the municipal area of Estepona, passengers can get off the bus - but not until then.....in other words #79 cannot be used to get from one side of town to the other. (remember there’s a local bus for that). The same applies upon return, get on the bus, pay the fare and get off at your destination...but once back inside Estepona the bus only lets passengers get off (no one can get on!).....repeat:- bus companies here are very territorial! ****
For less than the price of a small Starbuck’s cappuccino, we caught the #79 and arrived in San Pedro de Alcántara. This small coastal town, just over 20km from Estepona, with the Sierra de Ronda mountain range only a few minutes away, was once an ancient farming community. The Plaza de la Inglesia in the town centre has an attractive modern fountain and a parish church. The narrow streets surrounding the square have a few small shops, plus what seems like an an over abundance of cafés and bars, given the size of the town. We enjoyed a late breakfast coffee, plus a “flute” at one of the cafés. These popular “flutes” are thin baguettes with a choice of fillings. Ours was filled with paper thin, Iberian ham, which when heated quickly in a “press” was salty, hot and yummy!
At the lower end of the Calle Marques del Duero is a large park - San Pedro Boulevard - built over the coastal highway, with an eye-catching footbridge, this park was designed and built to reflect the sea. Popular with families, cyclists and joggers, It has 6 different playgrounds, an outdoor amphitheatre, public toilets and several restaurants.....and it effectively separates the two distinct parts of San Pedro.
We crossed over to the “other side” of town, walked down the Avenida del Marques de Duero for about a kilometre in order to reach the beachfront promenade. With the ocean and beach on one side, the other has an attractive wide avenue filled with palm trees, apartments and town house style resort complexes. The promenade is a continuation of the Paseo Mediterranean which joins the coastal towns. Like the one is Estepona, it’s wide, well serviced with public facilities and chiringuitos....and perfect for walking....which we did - for quite a long way!
Having successfully caught the #79 bus back home....we’d “clocked” 12 km of walking on this day of 34C temperatures - not bad for our first “outing!”