Just returned from a week at Casa Algeria. It's just as beautiful as the photos. We enjoyed being in the neighborhood. Many things were familiar, but many things reminded us we were in a foreign country. Walking around the neighborhood you see the modest homes and homes that have even less. There are many small markets, schools, day care, lots of home improvement projects happening, vendors driving and walking the streets selling water, fish, baked goods and more. In the mornings you see kids walking to school in their uniforms, parents walking towards the ocean to work in tourist oriented businesses. You hear the sounds of all of the above plus dogs barking, chickens, lots of birds, music from homes, markets, vehicles, people walking with boomboxes etc. This is a much different experience from being in a resort or hotel. We shopped at the markets, made most of our own meals, enjoyed a dip in the beautiful swimming pool multiple times a day and walked to the ocean many times. There were 4 women and 2 children in our group. We all had comfortable, air conditioned bedrooms in this very spacious home. Living the life of luxury among folks who have much less is a bit disconcerting because I have never thought of myself as affluent. We tried to be good neighbors and we got lots of smiles and friendly greetings. I was never worried about our safety. Even the neighborhood dogs were fine - many were not on any kind of restriction, but none that I encountered were aggressive at all.
The homeowners were wonderful to answer all my questions before we arrived. Rafael (speaks English!) was there to greet us and show us around the home. He also gave us great information about the local area and a beach that was very child friendly, Playa de Manzanillo. The housekeeper, Natalie (speaks some English) came 3 times to keep everything in good order. We were very comfortable in this beautiful home and had many new experiences. I give it a very high recommendation.
