When we rented our beautiful house for the winter months on the Costa del Sol, I felt a little guilty to have all this space just for two people and a 3 kilo dog. I also thought that it might be a little lonely being away for this long.

Terry and I like to share and entertain so, it was only natural to offer a visit to family members and several close friends. I then explained that we would not be tour guides and what we offered was a place to stay for a few days while they explored the area.

A total of 10 people came and stayed with us. Two came in January and February and 8 in March. What fun we had to see them all and be able to share our beautiful little town we love so much. All of our guests have been fabulous. Everyone was truly awesome in respecting the house we rented and gracious even if the weather was not the best at times.

Most wanted to come in March of course, when the temperature crosses over to 20 Celsius normally. However, we had a full month of unsettled and cold weather when most of our guests were here, from the end of February to end of March. It was the rainiest, windiest and coldest winter in Spain in over 50 years! We had two “deluges” during that period. I had never seen so much rain before. Not even in Vancouver. Can you believe that!!

While we enjoyed our time with them very much, it became redundant towards the end. We had developed a schedule and sightseeing route including the best restaurants and cafés which we repeated with each one of them. Think about what it is like to do the same circuit 6 times in a row over the span of a few weeks. Oh la la!

Entertaining for this long, this many guests is quite tiring as well. You had to plan breakfasts, some full meals and bites with aperos. You have to plan walking routes, excursions, have alternatives in case of bad weather. Some guests don’t always want to do what you have planned for them. And of course, you have to wash sheets, towels, clean bathrooms and the rest of the house non-stop.

One thing I would do differently however would be to spread out the visitors or bunch them up together. It would be much less work and redundant for us to have two or three couples at the same time instead of three couples one after the other.

One group per month would be ideal and 3 or 4 days is perfect to see the sights in the area. This way, we will be refreshed and looking forward to spending time with them.

All in all, we feel blessed to have had such good guests. Everyone picked up after themselves, did not make one complaint and were a true pleasure to have around. There was not one awkward moment. It strengthens every relationships. We made memories to cherish forever.

Thank you Universe for allowing Terry and me to have such abundance of great relationships in our lives. In the end, sharing and caring for each other is all that matters!

Here were our guests this year!