Al Ebi
Restored Apartment to Rent in Tarifa
Description
AL EBIA TARIFA GETAWAY ON THE COAST OF LIGHT, SPAIN
Words: Liam Mulkeen. Photography: Jens Nagel
Behind an ancient castle and imposing town walls, off a narrow winding cobbled street, a little treasure is to be found. These old stones have had new life breathed into them by husband and wife team Ingrid & Esteban. It was Esteban who first discovered the Spanish town of Tarifa on the Cost Del La Luz. He was posted there in 1984 as part of his year of national service and immediately fell in love with the tiny fishing town. Nights were often spent camped out on the beach and looking over at the twinkling lights of Morocco with his then girlfriend Ingrid. Married soon after, they have become a formidable team in the art of renovation and hospitality.
When they first saw this property it was in very bad repair yet Ingrid's artistic eye was able see through the decay and neglect to something unique and beautiful. The first title deeds for the house dates back to 1877 but it is clear that the whole building is much older. Thick walls and a courtyard entrance seem to remove it from the busy cobbled street at its front. It is in the very heart of the old town yet seems as calm and quiet as a monastery cloister. The design philosophy was simply to make it beautiful again. Where ever possible old masonry was re-pointed and left exposed. The electrical wiring in the exposed walls had to follow the channels between the stones and then be covered during the re-pointing; it was painstaking work. Where they did re-plaster, the plaster was a mixture of white cem
ent, white sand and lime. This is the traditional plaster of the region, favoured because the lime repels insects. As with most traditional techniques the effect is one of timelessness as you move from the inside of the house out into the surrounding old town.
The roof had to be resealed, this was done with a fibre glass blanket and resin. All this was to be hidden underneath a terracotta floor tiling later. Prior to tiling, a hole was cut in the roof to allow access from below and a new stairs was commissioned. "Now we have our own private roof terrace", Ingrid exclaimed with delight. The terrace is very private and affords lovely views of the roof tops of Tarifa and of the great imposing castle of Guzmán El Bueno, which dominates the harbour. At certain times of the year vast bird migrations between the continents of Europe and Africa can be seen passing overhead. The washing machine and other utilities are tucked away in a neat corner of this sunny viewing platform.
A couple of metal joists were needed to be installed across the 
ceiling of the room downstairs and a new floor was poured throughout the house (concrete on steel mesh). All this was
eventually hidden under traditional Spanish tiles. The tiles are unique and beautiful and are wonderfully typical of this region. A mat of these colourful tiles carpet the sitting room.
The entrance hall is long and inviting and lit by a wide window at one end. Little alcoves, which were used in an ancient form of scaffolding, are now on display. Rotted oak joists were replaced in the wooden ceiling and an amazing custom-made metal studded, thick pine door was installed. There is a jailers viewing hatch in the door; a reminder that Tarifa was a frontier fortified town. Anyone breaching the walls would soon find that every house was a miniature fortress and like the narrow streets below, easily defended. Old rounded clay roof tiles were found in the rubble on the roof during construction. These have been pinned to the walls covering light bulbs giving a beautiful up lighting effect at zero cost. Ingrid's favorite space is the bedroom, mainly because of the exposed ancient stone wall and the stone details around the window and above the bed where you can still see part of the old roof.
Use of space here is very important. Ingrid has turned an alcove into a beautifully lit kitchen and converted a storage room into a bright bathroom. She is herself a ceramic artist and has hand crafted all the wash hand basins and splash back ceramics. They are unique pieces of functional art. The craft used to construct these pieces is centuries old. Not surprisingly the pieces look right at home here. The furniture is also interesting. Two old wooden plough handles have been used as the sides of a beautiful set of
shelves. The table, shelves and coat hanger were bought in a local shop but originally came from Bali. Clothes hangers are hung from an improvised suspended rail. A length of wood joined to the ceiling at either end with two pieces of string. It is simple, cheap and looks great. Ingrid chose an old style SMEG refrigerator as a stand alone unit in the living room again subtly blurring the line between utility and beauty. The result is that it is impossible to see where the new work has been done. This apartment looked one hundred years old the instant the last coat of paint had dried.
Inside, every space has an organic clean functional design that is so at ease with itself you get the feeling it must have evolved over a long period of time. As always in spaces like this, the mind is put at ease and the body relaxes knowing it is finally home.