Cuevas del Almanzora

Traveler  The lavadero is so beautiful. It is interesting to see it so "museumed." The first one I ever saw was the one in SMA when I lived with you both there. And that one, although not often, was still used by locals. I suppose the hand washing was left behind long ago here as people bought washing machines for their homes. It is probably not used in SMA anymore either. Progress creates a more privatized way of doing things. I suppose I wouldn't miss having to go to the middle of town to do my laundry every week and hand wash it all but there is that sense of community that is lost as we mechanize so much of our lives. From shopping, to cooking, to laundry things have changed a lot in our lifetimes and that of our parents.

Laurie Reynolds  Totally agree with Nicole that the lavadero is beautiful. I have seen a lot of lavaderos, but never one with those individualized cubicles. And to piggyback off what Nicole said, I remember walking on the Vdlp, in a town whose name I now forget. I went to the old lavadero so I could soak my aching feet, and an old woman came out to chat. She told me that she really missed the days when she would gather with her friends to wash clothes and gossip. Now they all had washing machines and never saw each other. Not to romanticize what must have been an awful daily task, but we have lost something in the process.

Traveler  The church reminds me a little of the fortress churches in the Basque area! Very beautiful. Were the bells in tune? Tom and I always have commented on how out of tune most Spanish bells are.