Spain 2018 Blog II

A Big "Hola" to all from Spain. 

Our apologies for the lack of communication over the past weeks.  Most of an ongoing issue with Google has been resolved and our blog is back.  

Tres Desastres – Basta!

Maybe I’m innately superstitious (I hope not) or maybe just acutely aware that we’ve been through a rough patch.  To be blunt, we’ve had some pretty devastating luck over the past 5 months.  From the passing of my dear sister, Lottie, to damage to our house, to a ridiculously stupid accident here in Fuengirola, a pattern seemed to have developed.  To this, I say “Basta”.  It’s come in threes and now:  On with the good!    

“Intercambio”

They say there is a silver lining in every cloud  ... or maybe a rainbow after every storm! 

Despite the seemingly devastating effects of that very silly accident, one wonderful thing did come out of it. 

My doctor, Dr. Carlos, and I had a little time to talk after an appointment during which I mentioned that I was looking for someone with whom to practice Spanish. 

The Spanish term is “intercambio” and the way it works is that you essentially meet for coffee, once or twice a week, and devote equal amounts of time to conversation in both languages.

To my great surprise and delight, I received a WhatsApp text from Dr. Carlos’ wife, Zaira, who wanted to try out the idea. 

Both she and Dr. Carlos had lived in England for a number of years and she wanted to get back into practice.

Long story short, it’s really been a blessing and a ton of fun. 

We’ve met lots of times over coffee and recently, Linda and I went with all the family to a basketball game in Malaga ...

... where Unicaja Malaga, was struggling to remain in the European League. 

But we did win!! 

....  and Malaga lived on to fight another day! 

40 Days and 40 Nights

For us sadly, the rains in Spain were the highlight of the entire 
month of March.  In fact, the deluge, almost biblical in nature, caused severe flooding all over Spain.  Today, in the North, it continues to do so.

In Andalucía, where tourism is king here, everyone was in a real quandary.  Sure, the flooding was impacting their bottom line, ....

Our favorite chapel in the mountains surrounded by cloud.

.... but the protracted multi-year drought had depleted the country’s water supplies.  Severe water rationing was all but imminent.  That too was a bombshell.  

That is …. until “The Beast from the East” arrived … with a bang.  Quite suddenly, the heavens opened up… and for weeks, it poured ...

 … a necessary inconvenience that brought so much rain that the average level of water reservoirs rose nationally to about 68% …

... and the national level of relief???

Oh, to about… 100%.  

... As we hide from the rain at a café in Mijas.

The worst of it came during Jim and Beth’s visit, when at night, the noise of the downpour, pounding on not one, but seemingly, on all sides of the building at once, was so much more than just “audible”.  

I’m sure, that despite their brave assurances to the contrary, Jim and Beth didn’t sleep much either.
But then,  I guess exhaustion-induced sleep is still sleep.  

The Mediterranean Blues 

In Andalucía, where tourism is king, the health of the industry is monitored as if it were a patient in ICU (Intensive Care Unit).  The fixation isn’t quite obsessive-compulsive (yet) but it is bordering on hypochondria.  For example, this recent headline appeared in all of the local papers:

“Andalucía’s foreign tourist figures fall for the first time in 33 months.” 

Oh dear, the sky is falling!  The sky is falling!  And what was this very dire news?

There had been a dramatic 0.3% loss in tourism this month.  What to do?  Who to blame? 

Hey, why not those other pesky Mediterranean destinations like Turkey, Tunisia and Egypt. The nerve of them trying to regain some lost business.  Oh, what to do?

Well, Little Chicken …. could that 0.3% dip not be due to all the damn rain we’ve been having?  Couldn't we just say that Nature literally rained on our parade ... and move on?  Really, unless they had plans to build an Ark …. chances are savvy European tourists (or at least 0.3% of them) decided to cut their losses and face that Beast from the East (Russia) in the comfort and safety of their own homes. 

Cloaked in Tradition:

During the break, boys will be boys! 

The Costa del Sol woke up early from its very wet winter slumber just in time to see the early arrival of Easter.  Holy Week, Semana Santa, in Andalucía is an event quite unlike any other celebrated in the world.  

One example is the procesión:  a parade of elaborately decorated floats with Jesus and Mary statues, groups of pointy-hooded Nazarenos (penitents), and shrill brass bands, all making their way slowly through the streets of every town and village here.

Again, this year, despite a certain level of immobility on my part and some inconsistent weather on the weatherman’s part, Semana Santa proved to irresistible.  And how could it not be? 

The historical, cultural, culinary, and religious bonds that tie Andalusians together are best seen in this most important of religious week.   Not even in Rome, is Easter celebrated with such deep passion and devotion as here in Andalucía …

... where the term “public penitence” is still part and parcel of the psyche … It truly is one of the world’s most unique cultural experiences. 

An “Oasis” arrives:

During Semana Santa, Malaga is like a super magnet.  Always a busy place, the city pulls out all the stops at Easter, and this year, despite the weather, was no exception. 

Besides the processions, there was another bright light  Literally! We saw it as it passed in front of our place coming in from France the previous night, all lit up like Times Square.  It was the world premiere of the Royal Caribbean “Oasis” Class", Symphony of the Seas, the world’s biggest cruise liner.  

Carrying nearly 9000 passengers and crew, this sea giant’s unveiling took the spotlight, albeit for just a few hours, during this most important of European Christian Holidays in Malaga … and fittingly, thousands showed up for the ship’s christening … a baptism done by tugboats directing streams of water towards the ship, ...

… to which the Royal Caribbean ship captain responded by sounding his horns euphorically…

Yowser! I guess there’s a little devil in all of us … even at Easter.

A tad frightening?  Sure but it was nothing that a little food and drink couldn't cure!

The Old-Farts Card:

This year, Linda and I are benefiting (A tad late!  We could have done it last year!) from a program for old folk called La Tarjeta Dorada.  It gives us reduced costs for all train travel both local and afar.  The total cost of the card was about 6 Euros and, of course, it seemed to pay for itself in the blink of an eye. 

In a week, we’ll be heading to Madrid on Spain’s AVE high-speed train. With 3,100km of track, these trains operate on the longest high-speed network in Europe. They say that speeds can reach 310 km/h, but Linda says she’ll want off if that happens… Yuk! Yuk! … it’s non-stop to Madrid.

Back for another year!

Will we ever return? Oh, will we ever return?

Well, despite our disappointment in the weather, ....

.... and its impact on the many who came to visit from afar, ...

...Linda and I have decided to return to Fuengirola for at least one more year.

Others will be returning as well.  Nikta and Fred, Russel and Tracey, and Mike and Louise,  have all found a place for next year, as have we. 

Linda is really starting to enjoy learning Spanish and although we’ll call our place here in Fuengirola home again, we’ll be travelling a lot as well. 

We realize that there is so much more of Spain’s vast history and geography to explore, not to mention its deeply-held traditions, groupings, and rituals.   

As they say here: “Come back!  Or you will never see anything like it again!”

Blessed!

Since our last blog, we have had the great pleasure of having family and friends here with us in Fuengirola.  

James and Sally and Jim and Beth were our house guests. Thank you for the wonderful visits.

We recently said good-bye and “Hasta la próxima” to fellow snow birders, our friends Nikta and Fred and our new friends, Russ and Tracey.  Soon to be gone as well are Dwight and Barb and Mike and Louise.  Yes, it looks like we’re closing up shop here.

What a great line-up it was, and next year looks promising too.  

Thanks for reading our blog.  We're so glad to be back on line and up and running, so to speak!

See you in Madrid!

A Return to Andalucia, Spain 2018.

A todos, “Hola de España”. 

Sometimes we think our mantra should be:

“We haven’t been everywhere, but it’s on our bucket list.”

…. and yet, a return to Andalucía was absolutely the right choice.  

That had always been clear in our minds but until our approach to Malaga, over the sparkling blue Mediterranean waters, we hadn’t felt it in our hearts.  

Oh, yes, it was nice to be back in España!

As some of you may know, our return to Fuengirola marks a new chapter in our travel habits.  

We’re calling it “Savouring Andalucía” and serendipitously, that’s exactly what was needed after some difficult patches over the fall and winter. 

Returning to our familiar digs in this lovely little coastal town avoided those pesky stages of settling in ... to a new, well, everything, and that was wonderful. 

I guess it was like sharing a creamy cup of hot chocolate on a cold blustery winter’s night. 

Although, there’s a familiarity in that first aromatic whiff, it still warms the nose and awakens the senses. 

Happily, the Mediterranean is our hot cocoa this year …. leaving us to wonder what Spain had in store for us.    

So, here’s to familiar tones and new experiences!

Viva España!!

But first things first. 

Before coming here, we inserted a five-day layover in London, where we visited our friends Jeremy and Jo. 

It was a big year for them.  Both had become head teachers (principals) and together they purchased their first home.

Jeremy’s school was one in which he had previously worked for a number of years, both as a teacher and an assistant-head,

....with the result that he already had a profound knowledge of the school’s strengths and needs.  

It was my very good fortune to able to spend an entire day with him and his team at Three Bridges School Primary School, 

....marveling at the wonderful work being done there.  

It goes without saying that I was enormously proud and extremely honoured to see this gifted school leader weaving his magic.  

But sun and sea awaited us and soon we were sitting on the balcony of “our” little place, basking in the Andalusian sun,

…entranced by the view of the oh, so lovely Mediterranean and the Zen-like sound of waves rolling gently to the shore.

What a nice feeling, to be back... but with a difference!

Fred and Nikta with friends John and Lucy

... and you know who.

Two sets of Ottawa friends, who had also chosen this area as their 2018 winter holiday destination, had already arrived.   

Fred and Nikta, both incredible and wonderful hosts, have a beautiful apartment, just about 2 kilometers as the crow flies down the coast from us in Benalmádena.

It boasts a view of the Andalusian sunset that sometimes paints the sea and sky in shades of red and pink.  Predictably, their balcony has already become a hub for friends and family visiting from Canada.  

Benalmádena is, in itself, a wonderful long-term destination with attractive beaches and interesting places. 

Thanks to Nikta and Fred, we’ve discovered Colomares Castle. 

Interestingly enough:  Colomares Castle was the accomplishment of a life-time dream of a Spanish doctor who, having made his fortune in the U.S., ...

...  returned to Spain and set out to build a memorial to his hero, Christopher Columbus, whom he believed to be under appreciated here in Spain. 

Like many of those somehow involved with Columbus, he, too, ended up bankrupt and died. ☹

As well, we learned about the 33-meter-tall Benalmádena Buddhist Stupa, the largest in Europe,

the Benalmádena Marina and ...

the Benalmádena Cable Car. 

Enough practice, ….now can you say Benalmádena three times quickly?  😊

A curious note:  Although our two apartments face the same shoreline, (we can actually see their building from our balcony), their orientation allows them to see a beautiful sunset while ours allows us to witness incredible sunrises. 

Oh, the magic of Spain!

Another set of friends, Barb and Dwight, live right in the centre of Fuengirola. 

A brisk 35-minute walk along our promenade has us standing right in front of their building.  They, too, are real explorers and continue to discover places and restaurants that we knew little about. 

This week we set off with them to Torremolinos where, high up on its mountain, we visited a beautiful botanical garden featuring amazing water displays, statues, ancient grist mills, aviaries, and an oasis of Palm trees. 

A walk and a wonderful meal down on Torremolinos Beach topped off a great day.  (Yes, the beach is only meters away from the promenade.😊)

We, too, have had some guests here as well.  Our friends Jeremy and Jo visited us for a week of relaxation, dining, and exploring. 

At the same time, Karli, a terrific former Pinecrest staff member, took a room in a

house nearby for a couple of days.  For a number of years (4 over 5 program), she had been saving with one goal in mind: to travel for six months with her son, Jonah, throughout Europe and Northern Africa.  To our delight, she found a couple of days to spend here before setting off for Morocco. 

After seeing Jeremy and Jo off at the airport, we continued on with the light-rail train to Malaga to meet up with Jim and Beth, our long-time friends now living in Halifax. 

Our afternoon flew by, what with all the walking, catching up, and of course, delicious Mediterranean cuisine to savour.  Their plan is to do a week-long tour of Saville, Cordoba, and Granada, and then to return here to spend 7 days at shore’s edge…. and perhaps beyond. 

This year, Linda and I are both taking Spanish classes. I am amazed at how much Linda is learning in her course.  Her teacher, Rocia, has a program for beginners that has simply captivated her interest.  It’s really fantastic to see. 

We take Spanish on alternate mornings which, unexpectedly so, is working out fabulously for our fitness.  

40 minutes of walking to our little sun-lit church plaza (where we meet to have a café con leche or even lunch after class) and then 40 minutes back get us our 10 000 daily steps pretty quickly. 

Ugh, if only Spanish cooking weren’t so d_ _ _ (can you spell “darn”) good!

Recently, we met two of Fred’s many relatives, Kathy and Robert, former Newfoundlanders now taking up residence in Nova Scotia. 

Curious wanderers of the world, they have seen and done much.  The highlight of the evening was when Robert pulled out a bottle of Scotch, made to commemorate the storied Shackelton 1907 Antarctic Expedition, in which 11 surviving bottles of whiskey had survived in the cold Antarctic waters. 

An interesting story indeed, but one which can be Googled.  Even more interesting was savouring a dram of Shackelton on the shores of our blue (and warm) Mediterranean.

And on that note, we shall see you all, hopefully, very soon.

Hasta la vista!  And thanks for reading our blog.