Isidora and Pepa: the centenarian Malaga residents linked by their children's marriage

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Isidora and Pepa: the centenarian Malaga residents linked by their children's marriage

Both were born in 1922 and, with the exception of the occasional ailment, enjoy excellent health

Añádenos en Google Pepa and Isidora sitting in a park near the day centre for the elderly in Malaga's Puerto de la Torre district. (Migue Fernández)

Raquel Merino

09/06/2026 a las 15:51h.

Isidora is the first to arrive for the interview. Accompanied by her daughter, she walks slowly. From a distance she seems fragile, but as she approaches, her eyes and smile convey vitality. "Are you here for me?" she asks. "How wonderful!"

Pepa appears behind her, using a walking frame because she had hip surgery a couple of years ago and still experiences some discomfort. And yet, she was on her feet the day after the surgery and walked out of the hospital six days later. She's dressed in beige trousers and a shirt, a pink cardigan and her completely white hair is styled in a youthful way. She's quite the flirt, you can tell from afar.

Who would guess they're both 104 years old... Well, Pepa turns 104 in July. Both were born in 1922 and they met in Malaga, although Isidora is from Salamanca province and Pepa is from Jaén. Fate also decreed that Pepa's son and Isidora's daughter would meet and eventually marry, which made the two family.

They have their ailments, but these don't prevent them from walking or climbing stairs. Has fate led them to reach 104 years in good health and with their memories intact or is it the way they have faced life?

Both belong to a tough generation, one that went through the anguish of the Civil War and the bloody post-war period in their youth. They have managed to maintain their joy of living despite these obstacles.

When asked about the secret to their longevity, they answer simply, as if surpassing 100 were easy. "I think it's because you get there, because that's your destiny and that's it," Pepa says. For Isidora, it's eating well: "A good stew does the job."

Pepa Anguita Lara, proud of her independence

"Do you know what it's like to be your own boss? I thank God every day"

(Migue Fernández)

Her father, a bookseller, decided the whole family should move to Malaga because of its pleasant climate. Once settled in the province, Isidora showed ample evidence of her restless and enterprising spirit. She ran a grocery store in Cruz de Humilladero, across from the old provincial prison.

Her daughter Trini recounts how her mother would go to Mercamálaga (the main wholesale market) and fill aluminium buckets with fish, which she would then carry herself.

Isidora also worked at a restaurant in Fuengirola known for its "counter full of tapas". She was in charge of 14 waiters and ran the kitchen herself. On days when there were bullfights, the establishment was packed, not because it was nearby, but because her specialties were so popular.

When someone lives past 100, one might think it's due to good genes or even an easy life, but listening to these stories, perhaps the secret lies in the vitality and energy with which they face life. Isidora has plenty of both. So much so that she didn't hesitate to travel around Spain by car with her husband and two children, a boy and a girl.

"Wherever we stopped, we looked for an inn and slept there. If there wasn't an inn one night, we would sleep in the car." Simple as that. Why complicate things with unnecessary problems?

Her daughter Trini says that her mother "has always been a force of nature in everything". "One of those people who are always around you and before you know it, she's already done everything," Trini says.

Isidora only regrets that, since her eyesight and hearing have been failing, "she's declined a lot".

Trini says that both her mother and Pepa have lived good lives. "They've eaten and breathed differently. Above all, they've never stopped," she says. Isidora even says she wants to live many more years. "Whatever God wills, I don't know how far I'll go, but I'm not in any pain and I always have strength."

Pepa and Isidora perfectly embody the secrets that have helped five places join the list of the so-called 'blue zones', known for their high concentration of centenarians. They have a purpose in life, a good diet and a desire to keep moving.

The conclusion is: never back down from anything and face your long lives always with a smile.