The number of people living to the age of 100 in Almeria has doubled, figures show.
According to Spain’s National Statistics Institute (INE), there has been a historic leap in life expectancy across the province.
Some 20 years ago, in 2005, Almeria counted just 2,082 residents aged 90 or over. By 2025, that number has nearly tripled to 5,877 – an increase of 182% in two decades.
Another striking change is among centenarians. Some 20 years ago, only 51 Almeria residents had reached 100. Today there are 118, more than double.
Domingo Vizcaino Gonzalez, the oldest resident of Canjayar, will turn 101 on January 5.
Born in 1925 in the tiny hamlet of Cantabufo, Domingo’s life stretches from oil lamps to fibre optics, from mule tracks to motorways, from hunger to relative prosperity.
The son of shepherds, he spent his youth tending livestock before moving to Canjayar at 16, where he met Paca la de Mariana, the love of his life. Together they raised three daughters and worked the vineyards that once supplied the famed uva de barco grapes exported by ship to northern Europe.
Domingo’s working days began before dawn and ended at sunset. But retirement didn’t mean slowing down. Instead, he enrolled in the adult education school, determined to learn to read and write.
Later, at the local Guadalinfo centre, he discovered computers and a passion for painting.
‘He filled notebook after notebook with drawings,’ recalls his daughter Francisca, speaking to local newspaper Diario de Almeria.
‘He loved colouring them in, he had an amazing eye for detail.’
That constant curiosity, she says, is what’s kept him young. ‘He never stayed still. He liked chatting to people, taking part in everything. His mind never stopped working.’
Now approaching 101, Domingo still enjoys good health. ‘He only takes one pill for his sugar levels – nothing else. He never complains,’ added Francisca.
‘He’s grateful for everything. When I ask if he’s happy in the care home, he always says yes and thanks everyone.’
‘He never drank or smoked. He’s always lived simply, worked hard, loved his family and kept a positive attitude,’ she added.
‘The other day he told me, “I’m getting a bit old now”, but he said it with a smile.’
Until his nineties he still walked the streets of Canjáyar daily, and well into his mid-nineties he was still attending adult classes. In the care home he’s become the unofficial welcoming committee, greeting newcomers with questions and stories.
Domingo represents a growing generation of ‘Almerienses’ who are ageing well, balancing work, relationships and emotional wellbeing.
Women dominate the statistics, as of the 118 centenarians, 78 are women and 40 are men – though many live with fewer resources and more solitude.
Read more Andalucia news at the Spanish Eye.
