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Spain
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Section: Hippie Havens | Category: Place | Area: Spain | Topic: Hippiedom
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Spain is the European country that is closest to Morocco, with more than 1500 years of cannabis and hash smoking history. "Here are a couple of places in Spain that you NEED to visit:
Altea (in the province of Alicante)- Paradise! A beautiful little Mediterranean town where everyone's as free as he wants to get.... Don't miss "Franky`s Place", in Benidorm (just 5 miles away), a little 20 year old semi-underground bar where you can find the "relax" and good music, having a peaceful smoke.
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Visitor Comments about Spain
Posted by Michael on 2005-08-06 07:15:59
My Score: 
Comment: I''ve been in Spain several times over the years, beginning in the 80s, and
most recently in ''98. The "liberal backlash from the (Franco) dictatorship" is long
over - I was astonished at the changes merely between ''94, when it was in its
last stages, and ''98. when it seemed that the young people in particular were getting more conservative and the permissive atmosphere was dissipating. However it still is a wonderful, beautiful country with a great culture and as capitalist and money hungry as it has become the old spirit I''m sure is still there.I''m surprised there''s no mention of Las Alpujarras in the Sierra Nevada, in the southern region of Andalucia (Granada province). Tons of hippies there, and a fascinating history - it has a long reputation for witchcraft and sorcery.....
Also, as far as Spanish hippiedom goes, Tarifa should be on your list - a beautiful little town, the southernmost town in mainland Europe and the last town on the Med before you''re on the Atlantic coast -it''s full of neohippie kids and surfers but not totally touristed out like so many Spanish beach towns. It was built by the Moors in the middle ages and still has that look to it, plus wonderful, wonderful food.....
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Posted by Timetraveler on 2003-11-20 17:51:52
My Score: 
Comment: I first came to Spain in the summer of 70 riding in the hold as a deck-class passenger aboard a Turkish freighter that I had caught in Athens. The ship had stopped in Napoli and Marseille along the way, but I was really impressed with Barcelona when we arrived in that ancient port city. I spent the first day there with three French drug smugglers who had introduced me to Cous-Cous in Marseille. I slept on the train station floor along with several other young backpackers. Pack for a pillow and a partially unrolled sleeping bag for a mattress, my blanket was a British Army jacket I''d picked up in the Plaka in Athens. Madrid was huge. I stopped at the American Embassy there to register for the Draft since I had just turned 18. Had trouble giving them an address. I usually slept out-of-doors, taking a room when a regular bath was necessary. Tortillas (not the mexican kind) and coffee for breakfast, large cheese and salami bocadillas for lunch. Gambas Ajillo, Tapas of all kinds, and wine. Hours were spent at a small town''s Bodega, little wine shops with large barrels of Fino, Moscatel, Solera. Wines with body for a few cents a glass was many times cheaper than a coke. Spain had always been one of the best destinations for Hippies or anyone else for that matter. The culture, food, customs and people were unique and intriguing. Sevilla, the gypsy capital and home of the flaminca; Cordoba''s Mesquite; Gibralter''s fish and chips; Marbella''s british sub-culture. But it was the little villages, little islands of humanity where you sat outside a Venta and talked and girls danced the Sevillana as you clapped time. The economy was one of the more suppressed of the main European countries and therefore most things were very cheap or affordable on a very limited budget (and I was dirt poor). Everywhere around Spain were cheap pensions or hostels. The food was great and every village had picturesque Ventas to eat, drink, writes journals, talk to locals and meet other travelers. The pace of life was slow and personal. That all changed in the late 80s. Franco died in the mid-70s and the new King, Juan Carlos, brought democracy and economic prosperity to Spain. Inclusion of Spain into NATO and the EC brought a flood of money and credit to Spain who has spent the past decade and more replacing the traditional and old world beauty with condos, modern design and new landscapes. It''s no longer cheap, it''s no longer Old Spain, but it''s still Spain.
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Posted by melissa on 2003-03-31 15:34:37
My Score:
Comment: Also check out toledo; very authentic, ancient town in the middle of some happenin'' youth. The entire party scene is awesome. The country is in the middle of a liberal backlash from the past dictator so all of us are sure to enjoy the freedoms. Most endulge in hash which is a big change from where I live state-side. It''s difficult to tell which is better old toledo inside the wall, or new toledo outside.
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