Personal Beauty of Puerto Banús
With an increase in demand for travel, many more people are travelling around the world. As an EU citizen, I have always been grateful for the opportunity to freely travel around the EU. I have visited many cities in many different countries. From the city of love in Paris, to the traditional Christmas markets in western Germany. But for some reason I am always drawn back to Spain. The weather is a large plus but its more than that. The culture compliments my personality as well as contrasts it. I am allowed to feel like I am on holiday, changing my daily regime to fit in with the locals. After all isn't that what travel is all about; to learn and live like the local people. You eat their food, drink their drinks and sleep in their hotels. You are living their lives, in a way that suits you. See, when I’m in Spain, I would like to make good use of the siesta. There is no way I would sleep in the middle of the day in the UK but for some reason, in the Spain it makes sense. Siesta translates to 'nap' in English and that is what it is. The locals have a nap in the middle of the day to miss the hottest weather. I have to say, it is a very good idea and I feel rather refreshed after but when you pay a lot of money to get some vitamin A on your skin, a siesta feels counterintuitive.
I always stay on the outskirts of Puerto Banús and love the walk back to the apartment because as you walk away from the rich pretence on the harbour, you begin to appreciate the small things. Now don’t get me wrong I love the harbour and walking along, browsing in the shop windows looking at clothes and accessories I only wish I had, is a dream. But, for me it is about appreciating the many small businesses on the way back. Everyday families sitting eating everyday meals enjoying the time they have with their families. For me it is more than just a holiday resort, it is a home and a dream for many. Many people will walk along the harbour, like I, and wish they had money to buy the expensive clothes and bags, jewellery and shoes but as I walk through the streets now, I wish for a healthy, loving family, just like the ones sat in the local, family-run restaurants, who I will be close to forever. I see this in those families enjoying their meals in these small businesses.
Occasionally, however, we spend the whole night down by the harbour and I am taken aback by the beauty that can come of such fortune. We walk through the harbour and get tempted by products that any regular person I know would have to take out a second mortgage to afford. But for some reason, it feels like home. Whether it is because I have been there many times now of whether it is just a friendly place, it seems to pull me back every year. But what I love most, is that many of us are the same…tourists admiring the presented lives of those who have arguably more. Many of whom have parked their Lamborghini’s, Porsche's and Ferrari’s by the harbour to travel on their private yachts. We do not know one another, yet we fit in so neatly into a large demographic of people who are aspiring for more. As an admirer I have, too, fallen into the temptation of looking intently at the cars wishing they were mine, but knowing too well that I’m way too bad at driving for an expensive car! I think I will stick to the Fiat 500! I look to the left and see ocean and to my right are expensive shops. But all around me are people…people who, like me, have travelled from their home towns to visit this extraordinary place. With over 17 million visiting Spain from the UK in 2016, it is easy to say many of these visit Puerto Banús are Brits. But as the day draws to a close and the sky changes, the demographic, too, changes as the restaurants illuminate to attract new customers.
I get up at 7:00 and go for a run. I find the town of Puerto Banús so back to front; as I am just waking myself up with a morning run…I see restaurants and bars just letting their staff clock out after a long overnight shift. But unlike other countries and cities I have visited, they don’t seem to exhausted. This commitment is what I love. They are happy and willing to work at all hours to support themselves and their family. This determination is inspiring. The tracks I run on are mostly sandy, which can be slippy, but it allows me to feel apart of something. The mad fitness fanatics that get up early in the morning after being out late the night before in the restaurants, in twenty-something degrees Celsius! I am able to walk over the tracks of thousands of others who have walked there before me. Some local, some not but you have no idea. All represented by their individual footprint. Each footprint has its own identity and belongs to a specific person but this information remains hidden for future runners and walkers.
Every place we visit we see it with our own eyes. So travelling is entirely personal. This is the beauty as it allows you to witness undiscovered parts and visit unique scenes. Everyone has a unique perspective, a way of viewing things. And getting to know this perspective feels great. So I will continue to travel, explore, capture, edit and share my stories to all who are interested.
