It never ceases to amaze my friends who visit from England just how many bars and booze outlets there are on the Costa del Sol. The fact that you can do your shopping in the local supermarket and then relax in the cafeteria/bar beside the groceries, over a few beers or a bottle of Rioja, is a real treat! I remember one of the supermarket bars in Calahonda being renamed the Winchester Club (after the bar in the Minder TV series) by a group of friends who lived nearby and took full advantage of the cheap prices and rather accommodating opening hours! But the top tip here is – don´t do your frozen food shopping before you relax in the bar! One memorable session in the ´Winchester Club´ lasted 8 hours while frozen peas were dripping through the supermarket bags!!

Brit friends also find it strange that many local workmen drink a glass of anis or brandy with their coffee – whether it be at 7am or after lunch, and then return to their jobs. Such is the difference in our cultures, one liqueur after a meal is seen by the Spanish as an aid to digestion, not as the start of a ´good session´ as, amusingly the English tend to see it.

The Cafeteria Marbella was always a favourite of mine – vibrant, lively and great for people watching, this hotbed of intrigue and fun used to be open 24 hours a day – obviously I was younger in those days and much more likely to be looking for coffee and croissants or a tapa of tortilla at 5am – or a hair of the dog depending where we had been the previous evening. Most of the early morning customers were made up of hungover party dwellers or local workmen partaking of a cafelito before the toil and grind of another hard day. Whatever you were looking for, at whatever time of the day, you could find it here.

If you are looking for somewhere a little different from the norm, in which to partake of a beer or two, probably the best bar in the world is the Bar Sevilla in the heart of the beautiful city of Seville. Nestling down a back street close to the Cathedral, the first thing that hits you when approaching the entrance is the loud, booming, religious music. My friend and I, on stumbling across this bar by accident, first thought it was some type of shop selling religious regalia, such was its proximity to the imposing Cathedral. On closer inspection we realised it was decked out with crucifixes, effigies of Christ, rosary beads and several TV screens showing the Easter Processions and video recordings of the holiest days in the Catholic Calendar. Loud, atmospheric and totally addictive was the pull of this place. The cold beer and plentiful tapas of Chorizo and Manchego cheese were delicious and we had to drag ourselves away to continue our tour of this amazing City.

Last but not least, and definitely the strangest place to ever open a bar has to be at the Mortuary in one of the largest hospitals in Malaga. Having become slightly lost while trying to find the blood donor clinic, I stumbled across this cafeteria/bar. I couldn´t quite put my finger on why, but for some reason I decided not to order the tapas! No doubt many a stiff (excuse the pun) brandy has been downed in here, I thought, as I pondered what to order next before closing time!