This morning we let Kaitlin sleep in as we thought we were only going to go spend the day in Malaga. Went downstairs to the Info Desk only to be told that the Picasso Museum was not open on a Monday. Plus we tried to book tickets to La Alhambre in Granada only to find that while we were deciding whether or not to have lunch on the tour, that the last tickets were sold - really annoyed about that but she said that we were top of the list for any cancellations and to check our phone for messages as they would phone if they managed to get 3 tickets for us. Got in from our day out to find a message saying they had 3 tickets for Thursday so we are off there on Thursday. After finding out that the Picasso Museum was closed on Mondays we had to have a chance of plan - off to Marbella and Ronda. So back up to the room - change out of socks and runners and into thongs and down to the car. It takes forever to navigate our way out of here as there are so many little windy, twisty roads with no road names and Gloria gets a little confused sometimes about how many exits a round about has !!!!
At least we had programmed the hotel address in so knew that we could get back from wherever we went. We drove into Marbella - couldn’t find the Info Kiosk I had asked Gloria to take us to but did drive past another one (too close to turn into) so managed to find a parking garage where we got 2 hrs free parking if we spent 12 euros at the shop, parked the car and walked back to the Info Centre. We got a map of Marbella and the lady showed us where the Old Quarter was as well as the very flash marina. We took a stroll around the Old Quarter - tiled and cobbled streets - wee little alleyways, very different architecture to what we have seen previously - more Mediterranean than other places. Quaint was the word that came to mind while walking around there.
We managed to get back to the parking garage without any problems - knew we were over our 2 hrs so hadn’t really hurried back - only to find that they charge over the 2 hrs by the minute - not if you are over you pay for the whole hour anyway.
From Marbella we headed into Ronda - this is a little town on top of a mountain - not my favourite place to be - driving up was bad enough so I swopped seats with Kaitlin on the trip down and just lay with my head on the seat until we got to the bottom of the road. Not sure what Gloria was thinking (or what road she thought we were on) but on the way up the two lane windy mountain road she told us to “Turn left” - we all called out words to the effect of “Not bloody likely !!!!!” and then had a laugh saying “Sometimes you just can’t believe everything she tells us to do” !!!!!!
Ronda has one of the most famous bull rings in Spain - Alan and Kaitlin did the tour - I wasn’t interested and so just lay on the grass and wanted outside for them. Again, a lot of old buildings with narrow alleyways and a bridge across from the old town. Al took photos of that - I wasn’t getting anywhere close to that.
Had a nice soak in the lovely long bath we have at the unit as my back and legs have really been giving me a bit of a hard time - not entirely uncalled for given how much walking we have done as well as how badly I am sleeping on the bed we have.
Tomorrow is another day - will probably do the tour around Malaga as we have to pay for our tickets between 10am - 6pm and we won’t make those times if we go to either Seville or Cordoba.
http://picasaweb.google.com/kal20m/MarbellaRonda24Sep07
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Malaga 25th September 2007
This morning we got up and went down to breakfast (hot and cold buffet for 6 euros) before heading to the Info Desk to pay for our tickets for La Alhambre (in Granada) on Thursday. After that we hit the bus stop to catch the bus into town for the Hop On Hop Off bus tour. We would have got there a little quicker if Kaitlin had actually asked the bus driver to tell us where to get off rather than deciding she knew without asking him and getting us off at the wrong stop and then having to wait to get on another bus going - not to the right stop - but taking us a lot closer than we were when we got off the first bus !
We got onto the bus at about 12 and our first hop off was at Castillo de Gibralfaro - great views of the city - we then got back on and hopped off at The Alcazabar and had a climb around there - have really tried to cut back on my eating as I am sure that I could be losing heaps with all the hill walking we are doing !!!! Mind you, drinking Coke instead of Coke Zero won’t be helping me any ! We went to the Picasso Museum - like the art work we saw at Prado Museum, I’m glad we went but really, I am sure that I could draw some pictures and you would be hard pressed to tell whether Picasso had done them or I had done them - even in his pictures of real people, his proportions weren’t that flash and of course with his abstract stuff, anything could be anything (pretty much like if I had done it !!!). But, once again, it was good to see and it is something that nobody can take away from me.
We wandered around the shopping boulevard for a while - Kaitlin finally found a Pull and Bear shop and bought a top which I am sure will keep her happy for a while !!! We walked past the Cathedral and a few other of the monuments before finding out where we had to go to catch the bus back to Benalmadena (the suburb of Malaga where we are staying). This trip takes about 45 - 60 mins but at least it was time we weren’t having to be walking somewhere !!! We got back to the unit and Kaitlin stayed behind to work on her legal assignment while Al and I went off to collect our washing - YAY some clean clothes to choose from in the morning. Then we picked up the most delicious pizzas for dinner and came back to the unit to eat. We dropped off another two loads of washing which will be ready on Thursday - in time for us to pick up before we leave for Alicante on Saturday morning.
It is extremely hot here - in Toledo it was 31 degrees at 7pm when we were there. The car was showing an outside temp of 41 when we went down yesterday mid morning - most days the temps are in the mid 30’s and at night, while it does cool down, we still need to run the aircon - although it doesn’t seem to make it around the corner into the bedroom where we are sleeping - am thinking about moving the mattresses onto the floor in the loungeroom tonight.
It is now time to bath and go to bed - tomorrow will be another big day for us with an early start in the morning. Seville is about 220kms north east of Malaga plus it takes us about 30-45 mins to navigate our way out of Benalmadena. We don’t want to be out too late tomorrow night as we have an early start on Thursday to Grenada.
http://picasaweb.google.com/kal20m/Malaga25Sep07
We got onto the bus at about 12 and our first hop off was at Castillo de Gibralfaro - great views of the city - we then got back on and hopped off at The Alcazabar and had a climb around there - have really tried to cut back on my eating as I am sure that I could be losing heaps with all the hill walking we are doing !!!! Mind you, drinking Coke instead of Coke Zero won’t be helping me any ! We went to the Picasso Museum - like the art work we saw at Prado Museum, I’m glad we went but really, I am sure that I could draw some pictures and you would be hard pressed to tell whether Picasso had done them or I had done them - even in his pictures of real people, his proportions weren’t that flash and of course with his abstract stuff, anything could be anything (pretty much like if I had done it !!!). But, once again, it was good to see and it is something that nobody can take away from me.
We wandered around the shopping boulevard for a while - Kaitlin finally found a Pull and Bear shop and bought a top which I am sure will keep her happy for a while !!! We walked past the Cathedral and a few other of the monuments before finding out where we had to go to catch the bus back to Benalmadena (the suburb of Malaga where we are staying). This trip takes about 45 - 60 mins but at least it was time we weren’t having to be walking somewhere !!! We got back to the unit and Kaitlin stayed behind to work on her legal assignment while Al and I went off to collect our washing - YAY some clean clothes to choose from in the morning. Then we picked up the most delicious pizzas for dinner and came back to the unit to eat. We dropped off another two loads of washing which will be ready on Thursday - in time for us to pick up before we leave for Alicante on Saturday morning.
It is extremely hot here - in Toledo it was 31 degrees at 7pm when we were there. The car was showing an outside temp of 41 when we went down yesterday mid morning - most days the temps are in the mid 30’s and at night, while it does cool down, we still need to run the aircon - although it doesn’t seem to make it around the corner into the bedroom where we are sleeping - am thinking about moving the mattresses onto the floor in the loungeroom tonight.
It is now time to bath and go to bed - tomorrow will be another big day for us with an early start in the morning. Seville is about 220kms north east of Malaga plus it takes us about 30-45 mins to navigate our way out of Benalmadena. We don’t want to be out too late tomorrow night as we have an early start on Thursday to Grenada.
http://picasaweb.google.com/kal20m/Malaga25Sep07
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Malaga 26th September 2007 (Seville)
This morning we left at about 7.10am - it was still dark outside which we hadn’t realised when we got up as the curtains were closed. We were on the road quite quickly but it still took us nearly 4 hrs to get there (220kms away) as it takes so long to get out of the windy windy roads of Benalmadena and then find our way to a parking garage in Seville. There are even smaller roads there so we were very pleased when we got into the parking lot especially as the lanes in the parking garage were not that wide and the parking spaces not that wide either - no wonder everyone here drives such little cars !!! Definitely don’t see many Valiant’s or Falcon’s etc.
On the drive over Gloria got a few wrong turns but we followed the signs and managed to find our way there without too many detours - Al is doing a great job with his driving over here although every now and again threatens to let me drive - not bloody likely !!!!!
We found a hop on hop off bus tour of Seville - compared to the 15 stops in Malaga - the 4 stops in Seville really didn’t cut it. There was so much walking in between places as the buses just didn’t stop. On the way there we saw so many castles and cathedrals on lonely hill tops as well as the ones which towns were built around - the cathedrals are still the tallest buildings in these little towns.
Once again the olive groves lined the autovia / autopista (highways) - they seem to grow in really stony soil. We drove past hills and hills and hills of plantations. Every now and again there is a big black bull on a hill - we did see one little matador but didn’t manage to get a photo of him and since then have not seen any others. Al thought he may have been an advertisement for a store nearby.
One thing we can’t get used to is the graffiti that is around - everywhere. There has been no city that we have been to where there has been minimal graffiti - it covers just about every wall you come across. The other thing since moving south has been the flies - they are worse than at home - actually at home we hardly ever come across flies but here we often find ourselves doing the Helensvale Dance if we land up having to stand for any length of time as they settle quite quickly. They are also not very fast and if you have a hop on hop off map in your hand, it is quite easy to kill them but of course, there are a gazillion still out there waiting to take it’s place.
The other thing we noticed is that if cars slow down on the motorway - they all put their hazard lights on - very convenient for anyone coming up behind them as it does make it easier to see that they have slowed down and you can slow down a little earlier than you would have.
The cathedral in Seville is amazing - and that it just from the outside. We didn’t go inside as the queues to get in were too long - the same with the Alcazar (muslim fortress) - but we did take photos from the outside of the architecture but I am not sure that they will do it justice. We walked around in front of La Giralda and then into the Barrio de Santa Cruz - another old area with the little windy roads and homes with balconies (no more photos of balconies though !!). The architecture in Seville is quite different to that around the other places we have seen - there seems to be a more Arabic feel to it with lots of tiles used in the decorating of buildings. It is very interesting to see the different styles of architecture used in each of the cities we have been to - while all quite similar in some instances, very different in others.
We saw lots of Pabellon de (put a country name in here) but have been unable to find out what that is - we are assuming that it is either the consulate or the residence of the ambassador but can’t find out if we are on track with that assumption or not. The styles of each of those are extremely different.
We drove past the first manufacturing plant built in Seville way back (can’t remember when) where the person who designed it, based it on manufacturing plants in USA. It was a tobacco factory and it was staffed by only women. It was surrounded by a moat - not sure why as they didn’t mention it at all - we only saw it from the bus. It is now a faculty of the University of Seville - a world renowned university.
As is usual with towns in Spain, we drove past past and recent palaces - some of which are now government buildings and some have been turned into museums. There is one palace which is used by the current king when he is in Seville.
The Plaza de Espana is a massive semi-circle arena which was used for a world expo in 1929 when the economy of Spain was struggling and they used the expo to improve the economy (which it did). We were amazed to read that Seville is a port 100km up the river - there is a huge container depot in the port so, although we didn’t actually see any sea going ships there, we have to assume that they do make it that far up the river !!!!!
Our last stop before heading to the car park (under a fish market so quite easy to know when we were in the correct street !!!!) was the bull ring. We did not do the tour (30 euros - which we felt was a little extravagant) and, as Al and Kaitlin had already done the tour in Ronda and I had absolutely no interest in doing the tour myself - we wandered around, took some photos and then headed for the car (just following our noses !). We found the car and managed to get out of Seville without any hitches and it wasn’t long before we were headed home. One stop along the way to stretch our legs and the next thing we were taking the Torremolinos turnoff (not the way we would have gone but sometimes when Gloria talks we just listen !!) and heading along towards Benalmadena Costa and our hotel.
Tonight we got home at about 7pm, came up to the room and dropped our things off before going out again - managed to find an internet café and sent a couple of e-mails and then went to Boo’s Bar for dinner. We had seen it last night and were going to eat there except that Kaitlin was at the unit doing some homework and it would have taken too long to get back, collect her, get back to the restaurant, eat and get home in time to have an early night. So, as a reward to Al for his fantastic driving, we went there tonight. He and I both had gammon steaks, pineapple and chips and Kaitlin had a cheese burger and chips. The gammon steaks could have been a little thicker but they were more like the gammon steaks we used to have in SA than the ones we can get in Australia (a small price to pay for living in such a fantastic country !!!!). We have already decided that as we only have two dinners left in Benalmadena we will have gammon steaks one night and the lovely pizzas from last night on the other night - nothing like being on top of our plans for dinner !!!!!! Considering quite often it is 6 or 7 pm and we don’t know what we are having, knowing two nights in advance is certainly good planning !!!
It is now 10.30pm and we have an early start tomorrow - have to be downstairs in front of the hotel by 6.30am so will be signing off for today - plus I haven’t labelled any of the photos from today so had better get those done before Al forgets what he took photos of and I have to leave even more unlabelled than I normally do !!!!
http://picasaweb.google.com/kal20m/Sevilla26Sep07
On the drive over Gloria got a few wrong turns but we followed the signs and managed to find our way there without too many detours - Al is doing a great job with his driving over here although every now and again threatens to let me drive - not bloody likely !!!!!
We found a hop on hop off bus tour of Seville - compared to the 15 stops in Malaga - the 4 stops in Seville really didn’t cut it. There was so much walking in between places as the buses just didn’t stop. On the way there we saw so many castles and cathedrals on lonely hill tops as well as the ones which towns were built around - the cathedrals are still the tallest buildings in these little towns.
Once again the olive groves lined the autovia / autopista (highways) - they seem to grow in really stony soil. We drove past hills and hills and hills of plantations. Every now and again there is a big black bull on a hill - we did see one little matador but didn’t manage to get a photo of him and since then have not seen any others. Al thought he may have been an advertisement for a store nearby.
One thing we can’t get used to is the graffiti that is around - everywhere. There has been no city that we have been to where there has been minimal graffiti - it covers just about every wall you come across. The other thing since moving south has been the flies - they are worse than at home - actually at home we hardly ever come across flies but here we often find ourselves doing the Helensvale Dance if we land up having to stand for any length of time as they settle quite quickly. They are also not very fast and if you have a hop on hop off map in your hand, it is quite easy to kill them but of course, there are a gazillion still out there waiting to take it’s place.
The other thing we noticed is that if cars slow down on the motorway - they all put their hazard lights on - very convenient for anyone coming up behind them as it does make it easier to see that they have slowed down and you can slow down a little earlier than you would have.
The cathedral in Seville is amazing - and that it just from the outside. We didn’t go inside as the queues to get in were too long - the same with the Alcazar (muslim fortress) - but we did take photos from the outside of the architecture but I am not sure that they will do it justice. We walked around in front of La Giralda and then into the Barrio de Santa Cruz - another old area with the little windy roads and homes with balconies (no more photos of balconies though !!). The architecture in Seville is quite different to that around the other places we have seen - there seems to be a more Arabic feel to it with lots of tiles used in the decorating of buildings. It is very interesting to see the different styles of architecture used in each of the cities we have been to - while all quite similar in some instances, very different in others.
We saw lots of Pabellon de (put a country name in here) but have been unable to find out what that is - we are assuming that it is either the consulate or the residence of the ambassador but can’t find out if we are on track with that assumption or not. The styles of each of those are extremely different.
We drove past the first manufacturing plant built in Seville way back (can’t remember when) where the person who designed it, based it on manufacturing plants in USA. It was a tobacco factory and it was staffed by only women. It was surrounded by a moat - not sure why as they didn’t mention it at all - we only saw it from the bus. It is now a faculty of the University of Seville - a world renowned university.
As is usual with towns in Spain, we drove past past and recent palaces - some of which are now government buildings and some have been turned into museums. There is one palace which is used by the current king when he is in Seville.
The Plaza de Espana is a massive semi-circle arena which was used for a world expo in 1929 when the economy of Spain was struggling and they used the expo to improve the economy (which it did). We were amazed to read that Seville is a port 100km up the river - there is a huge container depot in the port so, although we didn’t actually see any sea going ships there, we have to assume that they do make it that far up the river !!!!!
Our last stop before heading to the car park (under a fish market so quite easy to know when we were in the correct street !!!!) was the bull ring. We did not do the tour (30 euros - which we felt was a little extravagant) and, as Al and Kaitlin had already done the tour in Ronda and I had absolutely no interest in doing the tour myself - we wandered around, took some photos and then headed for the car (just following our noses !). We found the car and managed to get out of Seville without any hitches and it wasn’t long before we were headed home. One stop along the way to stretch our legs and the next thing we were taking the Torremolinos turnoff (not the way we would have gone but sometimes when Gloria talks we just listen !!) and heading along towards Benalmadena Costa and our hotel.
Tonight we got home at about 7pm, came up to the room and dropped our things off before going out again - managed to find an internet café and sent a couple of e-mails and then went to Boo’s Bar for dinner. We had seen it last night and were going to eat there except that Kaitlin was at the unit doing some homework and it would have taken too long to get back, collect her, get back to the restaurant, eat and get home in time to have an early night. So, as a reward to Al for his fantastic driving, we went there tonight. He and I both had gammon steaks, pineapple and chips and Kaitlin had a cheese burger and chips. The gammon steaks could have been a little thicker but they were more like the gammon steaks we used to have in SA than the ones we can get in Australia (a small price to pay for living in such a fantastic country !!!!). We have already decided that as we only have two dinners left in Benalmadena we will have gammon steaks one night and the lovely pizzas from last night on the other night - nothing like being on top of our plans for dinner !!!!!! Considering quite often it is 6 or 7 pm and we don’t know what we are having, knowing two nights in advance is certainly good planning !!!
It is now 10.30pm and we have an early start tomorrow - have to be downstairs in front of the hotel by 6.30am so will be signing off for today - plus I haven’t labelled any of the photos from today so had better get those done before Al forgets what he took photos of and I have to leave even more unlabelled than I normally do !!!!
http://picasaweb.google.com/kal20m/Sevilla26Sep07
Monday, October 15, 2007
Malaga 27th September 2007 (Granada)
This morning we were up and waiting outside by 6.35am - in the dark - not sure of where the bus was going to pick us up. By 7.05 we were wondering if they had forgotten about us but the bus arrived just after 7.10 and we hopped on. It was a double decker bus and we were able to sit upstairs as there were only about 12 people or so already on the bus. It took us another hour to pick up everyone else on the tour and then we were heading to Granada. It was really good to be able to sit back and let someone else worry about the traffic and everyone else’s driving - but after spending the day with the wrinklies - we know why we don’t do the tour thing very often. Not only are they slow, they have to be told more than once what time and where to meet back, complain about how many stairs there are in the fortress and there is always one who is loud !!!!
Al and I napped a little on the way there as our early night which was supposed to happen last night didn’t as we downloaded the photos from the day and labelled and deleted those not staying in the albums. We stopped after about an hour of driving once everyone had been picked up which was great as we had not had breakfast before we left. Then it was about 40 mins later before we arrived at Granada. We walked to the cathedral and alcazabar before being left to wander around the Old Town by ourselves until it was time to meet for lunch. Once again, it was the little windy cobblestoned streets but the architecture was slightly different to what we had seen previously. A lot of use is made of painted tiles - used as frames around names, pictures, doorways etc.
After lunch at Hotel Carmen (a most sumptuous hot and cold buffet) we hopped back on the bus and were off to La Alhambre - what an amazing place. We were split into groups according to language spoken and our tour guide was Martin. We started in the gardens and then moved into the summer palace. After that we moved into the fortress and then into the Kings Palace. I have to admit that I am all cathedral’d, alcazabar’d and alhabre’d out now but, having said that, today was just fantastic. It was so educational listening the all that the guide had to say (when everyone could keep the noise levels down to an acceptable level) and I learnt so much. When you compare and contrast the difference in the buildings built by the Muslims and the Christians - the Muslims built to hide what they had whereas the Christians built to show off what they had. I just loved the running water that they had everywhere - little fountains about 2 inches off the ground which lead into little ponds - these are all fed from water that comes in via the original waterways off the mountains. This is the one way in which they keep the fortress and palaces cool during summer. If only we could incorporate it into our home. It is so peaceful and relaxing to hear and watch the water run. There are different rooms which are used during the different seasons - due to the fact that the temps get to between 40 and 45 during summer and -10 and -15 in winter - they used the rooms with high ceilings, small windows at the top and lower level rooms during the summer and the smaller, higher level rooms during the winter. I don’t know if they photos are going to do any of the places we visited today justice but once again, what we saw today will stay with us forever.
We got home at about 7.40 and as we drove past the laundromat saw that it was already closed (which considering he told us he closed at 8 to 8.30pm each night means that he told us a porky pie !!) so we weren’t able to collect our washing (hope we get back from Cordoba early enough tomorrow otherwise we may have to delay our departure to Alicante so that we can get our washing. Don’t think we would be able to manage another just over 2 weeks with the few clothes which aren’t at the laundromat !!!!
One thing that happens when you travel is you get to find out just how clever you are (or not !!!) at working out how toilets work - sometimes they put the lights on the outside and when it is on a timer, it can be a little difficult to manage once the light goes off if you haven’t finished !!!! The next thing is working out whether the door opens in or out and if the lock on the inside actually works. If you manage to get all those right, the next thing is working out how to flush the toilet - we have had a few laughs at how we eventually managed to work that out at times. After that comes how to get some water out the tap to wash your hands - it is automatic - do you push - do you pull - can you switch it off when you are finished or do you just watch it all wasting away down the drain. Drying your hands is not that easy either - again, is it automatic - is there a button to push - are there towels to use or do you just have to drip dry as you walk out the door. There is definitely more to travelling than just hopping on a plane and getting to your destination !!!!!
Tomorrow we are off to Cordoba to see whatever we can see there - I am sure that, like all the other day trips we have done, there will be plenty to do and we will once again come home happy travellers.
Tonight we went to the pizza place and had pizzas - they really are such good pizzas - I said to Al maybe I would order one tomorrow night when he goes back to have his gammon and pineapple again !!!!! When we went to pay they gave us a shot glass of Lemon Cello and tried to explain how it was made - from what we could gather (and what we felt after we drank it !!) they used alcohol (about 80% proof from what we tasted !!!!), lemon rinds and sugar - it lies for 3 months with the occasional shake and then they serve it chilled - well it certainly warmed me the whole way down and for the next 10 mins or so !!!! I was thinking on the way home in the bus that we could maybe sit and have a quiet drink tonight but the evening seemed to get away from us and it is already 10.30 and we still have to shower, do the photos and get to bed for another early start tomorrow.
http://picasaweb.google.com/kal20m/Granada27Sep07
Al and I napped a little on the way there as our early night which was supposed to happen last night didn’t as we downloaded the photos from the day and labelled and deleted those not staying in the albums. We stopped after about an hour of driving once everyone had been picked up which was great as we had not had breakfast before we left. Then it was about 40 mins later before we arrived at Granada. We walked to the cathedral and alcazabar before being left to wander around the Old Town by ourselves until it was time to meet for lunch. Once again, it was the little windy cobblestoned streets but the architecture was slightly different to what we had seen previously. A lot of use is made of painted tiles - used as frames around names, pictures, doorways etc.
After lunch at Hotel Carmen (a most sumptuous hot and cold buffet) we hopped back on the bus and were off to La Alhambre - what an amazing place. We were split into groups according to language spoken and our tour guide was Martin. We started in the gardens and then moved into the summer palace. After that we moved into the fortress and then into the Kings Palace. I have to admit that I am all cathedral’d, alcazabar’d and alhabre’d out now but, having said that, today was just fantastic. It was so educational listening the all that the guide had to say (when everyone could keep the noise levels down to an acceptable level) and I learnt so much. When you compare and contrast the difference in the buildings built by the Muslims and the Christians - the Muslims built to hide what they had whereas the Christians built to show off what they had. I just loved the running water that they had everywhere - little fountains about 2 inches off the ground which lead into little ponds - these are all fed from water that comes in via the original waterways off the mountains. This is the one way in which they keep the fortress and palaces cool during summer. If only we could incorporate it into our home. It is so peaceful and relaxing to hear and watch the water run. There are different rooms which are used during the different seasons - due to the fact that the temps get to between 40 and 45 during summer and -10 and -15 in winter - they used the rooms with high ceilings, small windows at the top and lower level rooms during the summer and the smaller, higher level rooms during the winter. I don’t know if they photos are going to do any of the places we visited today justice but once again, what we saw today will stay with us forever.
We got home at about 7.40 and as we drove past the laundromat saw that it was already closed (which considering he told us he closed at 8 to 8.30pm each night means that he told us a porky pie !!) so we weren’t able to collect our washing (hope we get back from Cordoba early enough tomorrow otherwise we may have to delay our departure to Alicante so that we can get our washing. Don’t think we would be able to manage another just over 2 weeks with the few clothes which aren’t at the laundromat !!!!
One thing that happens when you travel is you get to find out just how clever you are (or not !!!) at working out how toilets work - sometimes they put the lights on the outside and when it is on a timer, it can be a little difficult to manage once the light goes off if you haven’t finished !!!! The next thing is working out whether the door opens in or out and if the lock on the inside actually works. If you manage to get all those right, the next thing is working out how to flush the toilet - we have had a few laughs at how we eventually managed to work that out at times. After that comes how to get some water out the tap to wash your hands - it is automatic - do you push - do you pull - can you switch it off when you are finished or do you just watch it all wasting away down the drain. Drying your hands is not that easy either - again, is it automatic - is there a button to push - are there towels to use or do you just have to drip dry as you walk out the door. There is definitely more to travelling than just hopping on a plane and getting to your destination !!!!!
Tomorrow we are off to Cordoba to see whatever we can see there - I am sure that, like all the other day trips we have done, there will be plenty to do and we will once again come home happy travellers.
Tonight we went to the pizza place and had pizzas - they really are such good pizzas - I said to Al maybe I would order one tomorrow night when he goes back to have his gammon and pineapple again !!!!! When we went to pay they gave us a shot glass of Lemon Cello and tried to explain how it was made - from what we could gather (and what we felt after we drank it !!) they used alcohol (about 80% proof from what we tasted !!!!), lemon rinds and sugar - it lies for 3 months with the occasional shake and then they serve it chilled - well it certainly warmed me the whole way down and for the next 10 mins or so !!!! I was thinking on the way home in the bus that we could maybe sit and have a quiet drink tonight but the evening seemed to get away from us and it is already 10.30 and we still have to shower, do the photos and get to bed for another early start tomorrow.
http://picasaweb.google.com/kal20m/Granada27Sep07
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Malaga 28th September 2007 (Cordoba)
This morning it was about 8.30 before we hit the road - our beds were too inviting to get out plus the unit doesn’t get much light so it isn’t as though the daylight wakes you up.
We got there at about 10.30 and parked just outside the Jewish Quarter. Had a lovely wander around there and bought a couple of little things before managing to find the Information Centre and getting the tourist map. Once again, it was filled with tiny little roads - some barely wide enough for a car to drive down and be prepared to jump into a doorway if you are walking down one of these streets when someone drives past. You can always see the locals driving compared to the tourists who are heaps more careful when making their way along these streets.
We found a shop which made the nicest baguettes and stopped there for lunch before going off to visit the Mesquita which was originally built as a mosque and then later changed into a cathedral. There were 3 additions to the original building and it was amazing to see how each person while trying to keep things the same, also wanted to make them slightly different to show just where their alterations took place.
I think the guide said that the original mosque took 200 years to build and when you see the hand carvings which were done, it isn’t hard to see why it took so long to finish. The muslims all face Mecca when they used the mesquite and then the Christians all faced Jerusalem when they used the cathedral. There is a lot of restorative work being carried out in the Mesquita currently. Having said that we have seen lots of signs to indicate restoration work or road works around Spain but it is very seldom that we have actually seen anyone working !!!!
It took us just over 2 hrs to do the tour of the Mesquita and by the time we were finished with that we were ready to come home - the Alcazabar will have to wait until we visit again - we also figured that, given we have seen quite a few of those, this one would probably not be that different inside - a fort is a fort is a fort (I think anyway !!!)
To date, we have only had 1 siesta - the second day we were in Madrid. Here’s hoping that when we get to Alicante - we will have time for more !!!!!
We left Cordoba after a little more walking around in the hope that we would make it back to Benalmadena in time to collect our washing from the Laundromat - managed to get it in time so that was good. When we got back to the unit Kaitlin went for a swim - the temps here during the day are really hot. Normally we get back to the unit too late to swim as we thought the pool closed at 7pm but it actually only closes at 8pm so Kaitlin could have been swimming most nights much to her disgust !!!! It’s quite funny getting back and seeing all the pommies looking like lobsters - why they don’t use block out or get out of the sun sooner I don’t know.
Kaitlinism’s to remember later when reading this - kes ku se ? set un schat / sanj. You can consider your donut as good as gone. I am a tree you can’t see me. Bat woman. Guys seeing some action at the topless restaurant - the restaurant without a roof !!! Sachet - sa shet. E for Espana.
I think I am coming down with something - have had the worst runny nose and sneezing the whole day. The three tissues I had on me didn’t go very far and by the time we were finished in the Mesquita, I had used the two Kaitlin had from the hotel which were as good as using newspaper they were so hard. My poor little delicate nose wasn’t very happy at all - we tried to find a chemist or grocery story open but no such luck as it was siesta time so I continued to use the awful wet tissues I had. Luckily we had some tablets left from the when Kaitlin had a headcold in Madrid so I took those when we got home - at least they stopped my nose running. We found some tissues at a servo on the way back from Cordoba which we bought but they were as bad as the batch the Kaitlin had from the hotel. Then we managed to find a Carrefour (supermarket) just up from the hotel and bought some tissues and Vaseline there - while not the best they are a slight improvement on those from the servo.
Al and Kaitlin went out and got pizzas for dinner and came back and we ate those before bathing and going to bed. Al had a time moving us both around as Kaitlin went to sleep in my bed and after I got out the bath lay down on her bed and before I knew it I was asleep - next thing I remember was waking up in my bed. Al was telling us at dinner tonight how he moved us and we were laughing like anything - poor bugger !!!!!
(Only typing this up at Bahia Azul - wasn’t up to updating anything last night)
http://picasaweb.google.com/kal20m/Cordoba28Sep07
We got there at about 10.30 and parked just outside the Jewish Quarter. Had a lovely wander around there and bought a couple of little things before managing to find the Information Centre and getting the tourist map. Once again, it was filled with tiny little roads - some barely wide enough for a car to drive down and be prepared to jump into a doorway if you are walking down one of these streets when someone drives past. You can always see the locals driving compared to the tourists who are heaps more careful when making their way along these streets.
We found a shop which made the nicest baguettes and stopped there for lunch before going off to visit the Mesquita which was originally built as a mosque and then later changed into a cathedral. There were 3 additions to the original building and it was amazing to see how each person while trying to keep things the same, also wanted to make them slightly different to show just where their alterations took place.
I think the guide said that the original mosque took 200 years to build and when you see the hand carvings which were done, it isn’t hard to see why it took so long to finish. The muslims all face Mecca when they used the mesquite and then the Christians all faced Jerusalem when they used the cathedral. There is a lot of restorative work being carried out in the Mesquita currently. Having said that we have seen lots of signs to indicate restoration work or road works around Spain but it is very seldom that we have actually seen anyone working !!!!
It took us just over 2 hrs to do the tour of the Mesquita and by the time we were finished with that we were ready to come home - the Alcazabar will have to wait until we visit again - we also figured that, given we have seen quite a few of those, this one would probably not be that different inside - a fort is a fort is a fort (I think anyway !!!)
To date, we have only had 1 siesta - the second day we were in Madrid. Here’s hoping that when we get to Alicante - we will have time for more !!!!!
We left Cordoba after a little more walking around in the hope that we would make it back to Benalmadena in time to collect our washing from the Laundromat - managed to get it in time so that was good. When we got back to the unit Kaitlin went for a swim - the temps here during the day are really hot. Normally we get back to the unit too late to swim as we thought the pool closed at 7pm but it actually only closes at 8pm so Kaitlin could have been swimming most nights much to her disgust !!!! It’s quite funny getting back and seeing all the pommies looking like lobsters - why they don’t use block out or get out of the sun sooner I don’t know.
Kaitlinism’s to remember later when reading this - kes ku se ? set un schat / sanj. You can consider your donut as good as gone. I am a tree you can’t see me. Bat woman. Guys seeing some action at the topless restaurant - the restaurant without a roof !!! Sachet - sa shet. E for Espana.
I think I am coming down with something - have had the worst runny nose and sneezing the whole day. The three tissues I had on me didn’t go very far and by the time we were finished in the Mesquita, I had used the two Kaitlin had from the hotel which were as good as using newspaper they were so hard. My poor little delicate nose wasn’t very happy at all - we tried to find a chemist or grocery story open but no such luck as it was siesta time so I continued to use the awful wet tissues I had. Luckily we had some tablets left from the when Kaitlin had a headcold in Madrid so I took those when we got home - at least they stopped my nose running. We found some tissues at a servo on the way back from Cordoba which we bought but they were as bad as the batch the Kaitlin had from the hotel. Then we managed to find a Carrefour (supermarket) just up from the hotel and bought some tissues and Vaseline there - while not the best they are a slight improvement on those from the servo.
Al and Kaitlin went out and got pizzas for dinner and came back and we ate those before bathing and going to bed. Al had a time moving us both around as Kaitlin went to sleep in my bed and after I got out the bath lay down on her bed and before I knew it I was asleep - next thing I remember was waking up in my bed. Al was telling us at dinner tonight how he moved us and we were laughing like anything - poor bugger !!!!!
(Only typing this up at Bahia Azul - wasn’t up to updating anything last night)
http://picasaweb.google.com/kal20m/Cordoba28Sep07
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Malaga - Denia 29th September 2007
This morning I only woke up just after 8am. Didn’t have a very good night last night. We managed to pack most of our things up last night and just had to put the last few things into the cases before we went down and had breakfast in the hotel.
I think it must be more than hayfever as my balance isn’t quite right and in the car today my teeth and my ears have been really sore. Kaitlin very kindly offered to sit in the front of the car and let me have the back seat so that I could sleep if I wanted to. She and Al did a great job of navigating us to our accommodation for the next week although Gloria is really out of date with the maps she has loaded. Quite often we were driving in the middle of nowhere with “Go to the nearest road” at the bottom of her screen.
The scenery was very different (what I saw of it) - it was very mountainous in area and at times it was exactly the same as driving along Chapman’s Peak (a drive in SA from Siminostown to Cape Town) only much longer. It was amazing to see how the houses have been built into the sides of the mountains. Just how they got the building materials up is anyone’s guess and I am glad that I don’t have to drive anywhere close to those places.
While we thought we were staying in Alicante, that isn’t exactly true. When we put the address into Gloria - she found it no problem. But as we drove and were getting closer to Alicante, she was telling us we still had 120kms to go. I was awake at this stage and Kaitlin asked me to check it so I did and it looked like it had been entered correctly. Then I looked at the Hertz map - we are actually staying in Denia which is about 100kms north of Alicante even though the address on the RCI sheet says, Les Marines, Denai, Alicante. Then I thought it might be the state but the state in Valencia so really not sure what is going on.
But, we finally made it here, unpacked the car and were off again to find an information centre. They gave us the local tourist map as well as a map of walking trails in the national park at the foot of the mountains and 7 x day trips in and around the area. Not sure that we will do all of them as I would really like some time to just sit and relax and not worry about having to set the alarm to get up by a certain time each morning. The lady at the resort said that they had had miserable weather but that it had cleared up today and they were expecting it to be nice until about Wednesday.
We drove through an area which looked like it had been flooded very recently as you could see all the mud on the streets and collected against the road barriers as well as people cleaning out shops and trying to fix up the damage. I did see something on the news when we were in Madrid but couldn’t follow what they were saying although Al said he thought it looked more recent than that.
We took a drive around Denia this evening and stopped and did some shopping for breakfasts this week. After that we had some dinner along the way - Al and I shared a paella (not quite a nice as the one I had in Toledo - and too oily for my liking or to warrant a second visit) and Kaitlin had spaghetti with napolitana sauce. Then we came home as my head isn’t feeling very good at all and I thought I would catch up on the diary from yesterday and today before going for a bath and an early night.
The unit looks very nice - there is a bedroom and bathroom upstairs and a kitchen, laundry, toilet, diningroom and loungeroom / 2nd bedroom downstairs. The stairs are little wee round the corner stairs which I would hate to have to navigate every day on an on-going basis and I certainly wouldn’t like to have to try to get any furniture up and down them !!!! The good thing is there is a washing machine so we won’t have to pay for that to be done - I have a load on now and will hang that out before going to bath. The resort seems to have quite a few different swimming pools - we have two balconies from our unit. While we cannot see the sea, we only have to go to the end of the resort and through a gate and we are there (not that that has any appeal to us but if we wanted to we could !!!) I think we could have a quiet few days here with maybe some relaxing time in the morning and then some sight-seeing time in the afternoons. With us being this much further north than where we expected to be, our drive to Castellon will be a lot shorter - plus it is closer to Valencia than we thought and so will have a couple of day trips there when we are at the next timeshare.
http://picasaweb.google.com/kal20m/MalagaToDenia29Sep07
I think it must be more than hayfever as my balance isn’t quite right and in the car today my teeth and my ears have been really sore. Kaitlin very kindly offered to sit in the front of the car and let me have the back seat so that I could sleep if I wanted to. She and Al did a great job of navigating us to our accommodation for the next week although Gloria is really out of date with the maps she has loaded. Quite often we were driving in the middle of nowhere with “Go to the nearest road” at the bottom of her screen.
The scenery was very different (what I saw of it) - it was very mountainous in area and at times it was exactly the same as driving along Chapman’s Peak (a drive in SA from Siminostown to Cape Town) only much longer. It was amazing to see how the houses have been built into the sides of the mountains. Just how they got the building materials up is anyone’s guess and I am glad that I don’t have to drive anywhere close to those places.
While we thought we were staying in Alicante, that isn’t exactly true. When we put the address into Gloria - she found it no problem. But as we drove and were getting closer to Alicante, she was telling us we still had 120kms to go. I was awake at this stage and Kaitlin asked me to check it so I did and it looked like it had been entered correctly. Then I looked at the Hertz map - we are actually staying in Denia which is about 100kms north of Alicante even though the address on the RCI sheet says, Les Marines, Denai, Alicante. Then I thought it might be the state but the state in Valencia so really not sure what is going on.
But, we finally made it here, unpacked the car and were off again to find an information centre. They gave us the local tourist map as well as a map of walking trails in the national park at the foot of the mountains and 7 x day trips in and around the area. Not sure that we will do all of them as I would really like some time to just sit and relax and not worry about having to set the alarm to get up by a certain time each morning. The lady at the resort said that they had had miserable weather but that it had cleared up today and they were expecting it to be nice until about Wednesday.
We drove through an area which looked like it had been flooded very recently as you could see all the mud on the streets and collected against the road barriers as well as people cleaning out shops and trying to fix up the damage. I did see something on the news when we were in Madrid but couldn’t follow what they were saying although Al said he thought it looked more recent than that.
We took a drive around Denia this evening and stopped and did some shopping for breakfasts this week. After that we had some dinner along the way - Al and I shared a paella (not quite a nice as the one I had in Toledo - and too oily for my liking or to warrant a second visit) and Kaitlin had spaghetti with napolitana sauce. Then we came home as my head isn’t feeling very good at all and I thought I would catch up on the diary from yesterday and today before going for a bath and an early night.
The unit looks very nice - there is a bedroom and bathroom upstairs and a kitchen, laundry, toilet, diningroom and loungeroom / 2nd bedroom downstairs. The stairs are little wee round the corner stairs which I would hate to have to navigate every day on an on-going basis and I certainly wouldn’t like to have to try to get any furniture up and down them !!!! The good thing is there is a washing machine so we won’t have to pay for that to be done - I have a load on now and will hang that out before going to bath. The resort seems to have quite a few different swimming pools - we have two balconies from our unit. While we cannot see the sea, we only have to go to the end of the resort and through a gate and we are there (not that that has any appeal to us but if we wanted to we could !!!) I think we could have a quiet few days here with maybe some relaxing time in the morning and then some sight-seeing time in the afternoons. With us being this much further north than where we expected to be, our drive to Castellon will be a lot shorter - plus it is closer to Valencia than we thought and so will have a couple of day trips there when we are at the next timeshare.
http://picasaweb.google.com/kal20m/MalagaToDenia29Sep07
Friday, October 12, 2007
Denia 30th September 2007
We had a lazy day around the unit today - didn’t get up until about 9.30 and then had breakfast in bed at about 10am. The washing we did last night still wasn’t dry so we took it out to the front balcony in the hope that it would catch a breeze there or else maybe the afternoon sun.
The office was open from 12 - 2pm so we took a walk around the resort before going there - not open so we took a walk down to the beach. Kaitlin went and felt the water and said she thought it may be a little warmer than the pools at the resort. Then went back to the office which was open to get a double bed sheet for the fold out bed as they had supplied a single bed sheet. Also got a kettle for Al to make some coffee in the mornings.
Then Kaitlin and I spent 45 mins at the pool - no loungers so had to use the plastic chairs from our balcony - not the most comfortable way to sit and read !!! After that we came back to the unit and then went for a drive o Xabia - of course it had to be along a high windy mountain road - jeez I hate these mountains. It doesn’t matter where you go in Spain - there are mountains - well most places anyway and to me, it seems to be more often than not !!! We drove around there for a while before coming back to the unit to have a bit of a read before dinner.
Al thought he had seen a pub that had Sky TV so we went there to see if they were showing the SA / USA rugby union game - no such luck - they were showing pommie football !!!! And, they weren’t serving food - only drinks - so thought we would try somewhere else. We went to a place called Restaurant Vienna which we had seen earlier - they were advertising pizzas for 6 euros. We were in denim shorts, T-shirt / singlet and thongs and we walked into a really posh looking place with chair covers on and really flash centre pieces. Anyway, sat down and saw the menu - Al had pork cordon bleu, Kaitlin had spaghetti carbonara and I had grilled chicken breast with gratinated potatoes, carrots, cauliflower and broccoli - all extremely delicious. After we had finished eating Kaitlin said she thought we should go back there on our last night in Denia - and I think she may be right !!!!!
We came home and played some cards until it was time to go to bed - once again, 3 happy travellers off to sleep although I have to say that I am soooooooo looking forward to my own bed and pillow - this sharing one long pillow and the sheets with Al is for the birds !!!!!
The office was open from 12 - 2pm so we took a walk around the resort before going there - not open so we took a walk down to the beach. Kaitlin went and felt the water and said she thought it may be a little warmer than the pools at the resort. Then went back to the office which was open to get a double bed sheet for the fold out bed as they had supplied a single bed sheet. Also got a kettle for Al to make some coffee in the mornings.
Then Kaitlin and I spent 45 mins at the pool - no loungers so had to use the plastic chairs from our balcony - not the most comfortable way to sit and read !!! After that we came back to the unit and then went for a drive o Xabia - of course it had to be along a high windy mountain road - jeez I hate these mountains. It doesn’t matter where you go in Spain - there are mountains - well most places anyway and to me, it seems to be more often than not !!! We drove around there for a while before coming back to the unit to have a bit of a read before dinner.
Al thought he had seen a pub that had Sky TV so we went there to see if they were showing the SA / USA rugby union game - no such luck - they were showing pommie football !!!! And, they weren’t serving food - only drinks - so thought we would try somewhere else. We went to a place called Restaurant Vienna which we had seen earlier - they were advertising pizzas for 6 euros. We were in denim shorts, T-shirt / singlet and thongs and we walked into a really posh looking place with chair covers on and really flash centre pieces. Anyway, sat down and saw the menu - Al had pork cordon bleu, Kaitlin had spaghetti carbonara and I had grilled chicken breast with gratinated potatoes, carrots, cauliflower and broccoli - all extremely delicious. After we had finished eating Kaitlin said she thought we should go back there on our last night in Denia - and I think she may be right !!!!!
We came home and played some cards until it was time to go to bed - once again, 3 happy travellers off to sleep although I have to say that I am soooooooo looking forward to my own bed and pillow - this sharing one long pillow and the sheets with Al is for the birds !!!!!
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