Costa Del Sol (Y Lluvia)

This weekend I rented a car and hit the road! After a couple of weeks of feeling like I'm not really making the most of my time in Spain I decided to use my weekends to the fullest. La Costa Del Sol (Coast of Sun) is super close and the weather reports SAID it was going to be sunny and in the 60's. Well, you know what they say about best laid plans...



I started out with a loose itinerary of Malaga and the various small beach towns scattered around it. Malaga is about 45 minutes away and one of the larger cities on the coast in Adalucia (...the part of Spain I live in. They are responsible for the fast-talking, lispy Spanish I find so hard to master). I visited Malaga, Marbella, Mijas, Torremolinos, Antequera and another town I can't recall. I only had two days so for the most part I blew through towns using my gps to get me to the scenic spots. I didn't get to any museums or cultural hotspots- seeing the beaches was my main goal. Most of the towns on the coast are touristy (like, Brits) but very lovely. Each beach was a little bit different. The prettiest was Marbella (for me) but it was getting dark when I got there and the pictures of the twinkling lights on the horizon don't show up on film very well. I did enjoy a solid hour of sitting and watching people fish, gather wood for bonfires and listen to the pounding surf. Sigh.



Bored yet? Should we get to the slide show? Ok! *Beep*



Uh. This is the town I can't recall. I think it's Neja. Or Naja. Something like that. But look at that church! All through Spain there's this very orderly countryside with trees in even lines and green plots of crops, rolling over shallow hills and then every now and then POW, you get a grouping of these white houses on a hill with a big church in the center. It's very pretty but doesn't photograph well. Just get in my head and pretend to remember it, k?



It was nice to see that Black Angus is just as popular in Spain as it is back home...

Old stuff and blue skies...

Break time! I know it's weird to think an Ikea is like a little slice of home, but those meatballs taste JUST the same here as they do back in Seattle. It was nice to be somewhere familiar, if super different, you know? Plus I got some stuff for my place, like a blanket for 2 Euros so I can stop using my sleeping bag. I know it's awfully indulgent, but...

Did I mention I decided to sleep in my car? For some reason everyone thought this was crazy but I didn't want to blow 30 bucks just for a bed. Sleeping in your car for a bit is just like taking a nap while someone is driving but you're not actually moving. I just found a safe little neighborhood and snoozed. I did wake up in a dreamy panic that I was running out of oxygen at one point and rolled down the windows for a second to let fresh air in. It was raining super hard and I was paranoid about having an open window while I slept so I groggily waved my pillow around like a maniac to try to bring in as much fresh air as possible before I going back to sleep. All was well in the morning, though.

If wet.

Sunday was all rain, all the time. Also lots of fog, so my pictures aren't as great.

Fuengirola, I think. I had breakfast here and got to watch the Olympics for the first time this season. Granted, it was in a Euro tourist restaurant. I've looked and it's not to be found on Spanish TV. My roommates looked at me like I was asking when Bunny Rabbit Boxing was on. Winter Olympics: Not a big deal in Spain.

My rental car. I sure do like Volkswagons.

Antequera. More churches! More white houses!

And very narrow streets that a Volkswagon just fits through. Phew!

Laguna de Fuente de Piedra and the HIGHLIGHT of my weekend!!

A flamingo refuge!!!!! Seriously, I squealed the whole way into this place. This is one of Europe's two main breeding grounds for flamingos. I regret I won't get to see the chicks hatch in April, but seeing these lovely pale pink birds in person was awesome. In Spain! Who knew??

The grounds:
The birds:
So cute!

It was nice to have a weekend to drive around wherever I wanted to go. It's been two months since I've driven. I miss being able just to go.

Next weekend is the big one: Morocco! It's my birthday present to myself. The nice girl from my class (Angela) and I are going to go. Did you know the tip of Africa is a mere 9 miles from the bottom of Spain? It'll be nice to knock one more continent off my "been there" list. Plus, MOROCCO!