One of the things you quickly discover when you spend a summer in Andalusia is that the beach is not quite the same experience as it is in Northern Europe. In The Netherlands, we like our personal space. Quite a lot of it, actually.
Put your towel on an otherwise empty beach and, without even thinking about it, you will probably choose a spot at least several metres away from the next person. If someone then comes along and puts their towel just 50 centimetres from yours, you may wonder quietly: Is there something I don’t know? Is this their beach now?
Here in Andalusia, 50 centimetres is not a problem.
50 centimetres is perfectly normal.
In fact, if there is enough room to put down a towel, there is probably enough room for another family. And then another.
The beach as a family living room
One of the most charming things about Spanish beach culture is that the beach is not necessarily somewhere you go for two hours with a book and a bottle of water.
For many families, it is more like moving the entire household outdoors.
You may see a large family arriving with chairs, cool boxes, umbrellas, inflatable mattresses and enough food to feed a small football team.
And then comes the pièce de résistance: the beach tent.
Not a tiny pop-up tent for one person.
We’re talking about a proper little shaded living room.
Inside there may be grandparents, parents, children and grandchildren. Someone is preparing food. Someone is talking. Someone is eating. Someone is swimming. Someone is shouting to someone else who is 15 metres away.
And somehow, it all works.
The beach becomes a social space rather than simply a place to lie down.
Nobody is looking at you
Perhaps the biggest cultural difference is something you notice only after you’ve been here for a while.
People simply don’t seem particularly interested in what everyone else is doing.
You can be sitting there in your swimsuit, trying to find a comfortable position on a towel that is slightly too small, while a family settles down half a metre away.
And nobody cares.
Nobody is secretly analysing your body.
Nobody is wondering why you brought that particular umbrella.
Nobody seems to be thinking: Interesting choice of swimwear.
There is much less of that Northern European feeling of looking and being looked at.
People are there to enjoy themselves.
They eat, talk, swim, laugh, sleep, play cards and occasionally disappear into the sea.
And if you happen to be sitting right next to them?
Well, that’s simply where there was space.
A little less modesty, a lot less fuss
There is also something wonderfully relaxed about bodies on the Spanish beach.
Children run around. Older people change clothes behind a towel. People of every shape and size walk along the shore without seeming to worry too much about how they look.
It feels less like a fashion show and more like real life.
Perhaps that’s because the beach isn’t primarily a place to be seen.
It is a place to be.
And that difference is surprisingly liberating.
From solitude to togetherness
Of course, there are quiet beaches and secluded spots in Andalusia too. And sometimes you can still find a place where you can hear nothing but the sea.
But when the Spanish families arrive, the atmosphere changes.
Suddenly there is conversation.
Children are running towards the water.
Someone is calling ¡Mamá!
A cool box opens.
A chair scrapes over the sand.
A group of friends arrives.
And somewhere, inevitably, someone has brought enough food for everyone.
It can look chaotic to the untrained Northern European eye.
But look a little longer and you start to see something else.
Togetherness.
The beach is not necessarily an escape from other people.
Sometimes it is a way of being with them.
And perhaps that’s the lesson
Living in Andalusia teaches you that some things we consider normal are actually cultural habits.
Personal space is one of them.
Privacy is another.
And the idea that a day at the beach should be peaceful, quiet and perfectly organised?
Definitely another.
Here, the beach can be crowded, noisy, wonderfully relaxed and slightly chaotic — all at the same time.
And somehow, nobody seems bothered.
So next time you find yourself lying on your towel with a family setting up their entire summer household just 50 centimetres away, don’t panic.
Move your towel if you really need to.
Or better still, stay where you are.
You might just discover that 50 centimetres is enough space after all.
And if not, there is always the beach at 9 o’clock in the morning.
Before everyone arrives. Before the umbrellas. Before the beach tents.
A little taste of your Andalusian holiday
Perhaps this is what we love most about living here. An Andalusia holiday isn’t only about sunshine, beautiful beaches and spectacular places to visit. It is also about experiencing the little things that make everyday life here feel different.
The way people use the beach. The way families spend time together. The way nobody seems particularly bothered by being close to the next towel.
These are the small cultural details that stay with you.
And after a day at the beach, there is something rather nice about returning to your own little corner of Andalusia — perhaps with a cold drink on the terrace, the evening air settling in and the noise of the beach far behind you.
Welcome to Casa Lima. Welcome to your holiday in Andalusia.