La Playa Naturista

Beautiful Playa de Catarrijan Beach along the Costa Del Sol.

            Helpful hint to tourists: If a beach contains the term naturalista in its title, the term may not just be describing the flora and fauna.  Case in point: Playa de Cantarrijan beach on the Coast Del Sol.  Let me explain.

This way to the playa naturista!

Since travel guide Rick Steves had been on fire with his advice as of late, leading the world of khaki-clad wonderers with a 95% suggestion-enjoyment ratio, we decided on our second day to heed him once more and venture 20 km east of Nerja to a tranquil local beach.  According to the guidebook, Playa La Cantarrijan offered a “more relaxing experience, with two pristine beaches – one for people with bathing suits and one for nudists – separated by rocks and a pair of restaurants offering fresh fish and cold drinks.” What the book failed to fully elaborate to the more modest visitor is that the aforementioned rocks separated the fully-nude beach (naturalista) from the mostly-nude beach.  Put it this way: had we not been exposed to the notorious saunas of Austria, we would have been in for a bit of a shock.  But this trip was about adventure and we were excited to check it out.   

 The beach crowd was evenly split between the naturalistas (in all their glory), a splattering of laid back Europeans (mostly Germans and Spanish), and the British.  It was easy to distinguish the latter by their choice of garb – either modestly covered bodies in multiple layers of clothes, or bare skin the color of lobster.  I find the British mentality towards sunbathing to be completely fascinating, or in this case, bloody peculiar.  After spending six months cloaked under dense clouds back in England, those that emerge here on the Costa Del Sol attack the sun as if Vitamin E was in limited quality, like a crack-addict fresh out of rehab.  More bluntly, they go after it in the same manner Italians approach a line.  Either way, the closest analogy I could come up with is that of the way I would toast my marshmallows beside the campfire when I was young: straight into the fire, burn one side, burn the other, DONE.  No messing around here. 

            We secured a pair of chairs from beachside vendor (the best 10 euro investment, EVER) and spent the afternoon lounging in the sun.  To be honest, I did “look” a few times, but only at the extremely obese and those engaged in naked public displays of affection, which by the way are much more interesting than fully clothed public displays of affection.  I swear.  (And besides, with the crowd that was at La Cantarrijan, we were way more likely to see Margaret Thatcher than Penelope Cruz emerge out of the water.  And when was the last time you laid awake at night dreaming of a naked Margaret Thatcher?)    

Is there anything more beautiful than naked love?  I have about 50 captions for this picture...

The most interesting moment, other than when a flaming Spaniard began to sell his sarongs using a bell and some sort of tribal dance, came when we ate lunch at La Barraca (not Obama).  Their specialty was fresh sardines skewered whole and grilled over an open flame.  You get five sardines for seven euro.  We were invited for a close-up look by the chef, and if you have never watched a small fish cook before your very eyes, than you are letting an interesting experience pass you by.  We opted for French fries. 

Christie's new friend, Senor Sardine

It would suck to be a sardine.

The infamous sarong salesman.

WHERE'S WALDO?  (Click to enlarge)

Beautiful blue water

The whole experience at the naturalista beach taught me to relax my conservative American viewpoint and be more open and laid back.  At a rudimentary level, what’s the difference between the three year old splashing naked in the sand and a twenty-five year old?  Other than her implants, nothing! (Sorry, that joke was intended for Miss California.)  We stayed until nearly sunset, enjoying the warm rays and letting the beach slowly clear.  It was the type of day that you never look at a clock, and to me that is what vacation is truly all about.  It was refreshing for us to experience here in Europe, as the vast majority (ok, all) of our past trips centered on historical cities and landmarks.  Never just relaxation, which may mean we are becoming more adapted to living over here.  It also further hammered home the value of having a rental car while exploring Europe, because it lets you reach some fascinating and beautiful areas you might not otherwise reach on public transportation. 

Fully content in Spain

~ J. Twice