Canalaejas, Spain-A Sheep Village February 1963 – June 1965

When we first moved to Spain, we ended up in quarantined in our hotel room. All six of us kids caught German measles at varying rates of time, and our poor mom was stuck in the room with us the whole time. It was summertime and we could see the pool through the hotel window, but were not allowed out to enjoy it. After we were finally given clearance to leave, we moved to a small sheep village in Canalaejas. We were in a gated community of about five town homes with a pool at the far end. In the summer, we cleaned the pool out and filled it up for endless fun and entertainment. Even though we were gated, we left to catch the bus for school, and we also left for many adventures in the town square and beyond. There was a gated sheep farm directly across the dirt path from us and we enjoyed watching them leave for their daily walks to the fields. The town square consisted of a few shops, including a Panaderia, and a cement watering pool that was ankle deep for washing clothes. I have many stories to tell of our time, which I will share in later posts. We moved closer to Madrid in June of 1965 to 21 Santo Angel Street. The advantage of this move was having a tranvia (street car) with a direct line to the heart of the big city.

Madrid, Spain 21 Santo Angel Street June 1965 -June 1966

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Benidorm, Spain

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https://www.campingbenidorm.com/en/the-campsite/

Benidorm was an annual pilgrimage for our family while my dad was stationed at Torrejon Air Force Base from 1963-1966. Every summer we piled into the VW bus and headed out to Camping Benidorm. I have incredible memories of tent camping, the large pool, and the long walk to the beach. Looking back, I realize the importance of structure and routine with a large family of eight. We got up early in the morning, ate breakfast, and headed to the beach. Around noon, we headed back for lunch and quiet time. After nap time, we headed to the pool until dinner. After dinner we played board games, or otherwise amused ourselves at the campsite, then went to bed with our favorite reading material. There were no apartments or hotels that I can remember. I would love to hear from anyone who remembers Camping Benidorm from this time period and how it has changed. Any ideas of where I could stay that has reliable WiFi and reasonable rates? My plan is to revisit this area and post my reactions.

Valley of the Fallen, Spain

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https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/valley-of-the-fallen

While living in Spain, we visited Valley of the Fallen twice. Once with our nuclear family of eight and once with my mom’s parents from England. Even as a child, I knew it was a special place. I encourage anyone who visits Madrid to take the time to visit. I have added some historical information above.

Vamos a la Cama-Spain

This short clip played each evening at 8:00 pm to let us know it was time for bed. We figured if our parents said 8:00 pm was bedtime, and the TV said it was bedtime, it must be bedtime. The only other television programs we had in Spain included Bonanza, Bronco Lane and pageant shows.

Royal Oaks, Spain

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Although I did not live in Royal Oaks, I did go to the school and made many friends there. Those who lived in Royal Oaks walked to school and had access to the pools, a theater and a small commissary built on the school property. They also built basketball courts and baseball fields. Our family frequented the pool in the summer when not vacationing in Benedorm, Valencia, and Barcelona. If you look closely at the center map, you will see the area labeled La Moraleja. This was a neighborhood where many movie stars built their homes and lived while filming in Spain. It was not uncommon to run into Ava Gardner, John Wayne, Bing Crosby, Ty Hardin, Telly Savalas, Clint Eastwood and many other famous actors.

During my years in Spain, the Italian producer, Sergio Leone, filmed a “spaghetti western” anthology starring Clint Eastwood, Eli Wallach, and Lee Van Cleef. The trilogy included A Fistful of Dollars (1964), For a Few Dollars More (1965), and The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly (1966). These were breakthrough movies for both Clint Eastwood and Sergio Leone. Clint Eastwood lived in Spain during filming, and for the final film, he was given $250,000 and a Ferrari. The Battle of the Bulge (1965) starring Henry Fonda, Robert Shaw, Telly Savalas, Charles Bronson, and Ty Hardin was also in production during this time. I went to school at Royal Oaks with Ty Hardin’s daughter, and I remember my mom getting all dressed up to take me over to her house for a play date in hopes of meeting him. Prior to filming The Battle of the Bulge, Ty Hardin starred as Bronco Layne in the television series, Bronco, from the fall of 1958-1962. This western was shown mainly in England, which is why my mom knew of him. The Clint Eastwood films and Ty Hardin’s television shows were set around the Civil War era.