Day 1: Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Today we got up very early (4:30 am) to catch the early flight to Malaga, Spain. We slept for 2 hours of the 4 hour flight. Then we had a 30-40 minute drive to the Marbella area where Per's mom Mariann has a condo in a resort area called Elviria. When we arrived we cleaned the apartment and unpacked before heading out to dinner across the street at a placed called El Brindis.
The condo resort has about 18-20 buildings constructed by a Norwegian but in a Spanish style. Each building and apartment is different, and they are all built for summer comfort in the heat for maximum air flow. The condo we are in is on the ground floor and has 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a dining and living room, a kitchen, and a large terrace. It is very nice. We cannot see the Mediterranean from here, but it is a short walk to the pool and tennis courts and a very short drive across the main road to the beach. You can see the Sierra Nevada mountains behind the resort.
Today we got up very early (4:30 am) to catch the early flight to Malaga, Spain. We slept for 2 hours of the 4 hour flight. Then we had a 30-40 minute drive to the Marbella area where Per's mom Mariann has a condo in a resort area called Elviria. When we arrived we cleaned the apartment and unpacked before heading out to dinner across the street at a placed called El Brindis.
The condo resort has about 18-20 buildings constructed by a Norwegian but in a Spanish style. Each building and apartment is different, and they are all built for summer comfort in the heat for maximum air flow. The condo we are in is on the ground floor and has 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a dining and living room, a kitchen, and a large terrace. It is very nice. We cannot see the Mediterranean from here, but it is a short walk to the pool and tennis courts and a very short drive across the main road to the beach. You can see the Sierra Nevada mountains behind the resort.
Day 2: Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Today, Per and I got up and played some very bad tennis while Tom slept in. After tennis, we woke up Tom and we all went swimming at the pool. We then had a light lunch before going for a walk at the beach. The beach is beautifully groomed and there are restaurant/bars every hundred yards or so. The Mediterranean is very cool in temperature, and we enjoyed walking without our shoes at the edge of the gentle waves. The sea was very calm today and the waves were very small at the edge of the sand. We also picked up some rocks for my mom and some shells for Tom's mom.
After our walk, we stopped back at the condo to clean up for a night out in the downtown area of Marbella. Per took Tom and I to the Old Town center where all of the streets are very narrow and there are plenty of shops, cafes, and restaurants. It is so beautiful - most of the buildings are white and every apartment above the shops has smalle little balconies with flowers hanging from wrought iron railings. There were also many pretty squares with fountains and gardens, the largest of which was the Orange Square lined with orange trees, of course.
Tom and I purchased a decorative plate, some tiles, and Heidi bought some light skirts. We also found a really great art gallery that is run by 4 local painters. The artwork ranged from abstract to realism to slightly surrealistic. There were some amazing abstract pieces that we would have purchased had they been a little less expensive. We did purchase 2 oil paintings of scenes from Marbella - one of the Orange Square, and the other of a panoramic view of the beach, sea and mountains in the background.
Next we stopped for dinner at a restaurant in orange square, and we sat out on the sidewalk area. We each had amazing meals. Heidi had Iberian pork tenderloin which tasted like an incredibly tender beef, Per had a steak with green pepper sauce that was very tasty, and Tom had a grilled sea bass! I was so amazed that he ordered it and even more amazed that he ate it after it came to him with the head and tail still attached!!! The fish was butterflied open (gutted and deboned of course), then grilled and served with a butter garlic sauce that would have kicked any American's butt for how garlic-y it was! We even had amazing desserts: tiramisu (Per), creme brulee (Tom), and orange crepes (Heidi). I've included pictures of our amazing meals below.
Before going home, we walked a bit more in the old town and saw a beautiful, old church. Then we crossed the main street to the newer shops on the seaside area of downtown. There's a long walking "Avenue of the Sea" that leads to the sea and has about 10 different amazing bronze statues by Salvador Dali. We walked along the seaside road then went home and swapped pictures before heading to bed.
Today, Per and I got up and played some very bad tennis while Tom slept in. After tennis, we woke up Tom and we all went swimming at the pool. We then had a light lunch before going for a walk at the beach. The beach is beautifully groomed and there are restaurant/bars every hundred yards or so. The Mediterranean is very cool in temperature, and we enjoyed walking without our shoes at the edge of the gentle waves. The sea was very calm today and the waves were very small at the edge of the sand. We also picked up some rocks for my mom and some shells for Tom's mom.
After our walk, we stopped back at the condo to clean up for a night out in the downtown area of Marbella. Per took Tom and I to the Old Town center where all of the streets are very narrow and there are plenty of shops, cafes, and restaurants. It is so beautiful - most of the buildings are white and every apartment above the shops has smalle little balconies with flowers hanging from wrought iron railings. There were also many pretty squares with fountains and gardens, the largest of which was the Orange Square lined with orange trees, of course.
Tom and I purchased a decorative plate, some tiles, and Heidi bought some light skirts. We also found a really great art gallery that is run by 4 local painters. The artwork ranged from abstract to realism to slightly surrealistic. There were some amazing abstract pieces that we would have purchased had they been a little less expensive. We did purchase 2 oil paintings of scenes from Marbella - one of the Orange Square, and the other of a panoramic view of the beach, sea and mountains in the background.
Next we stopped for dinner at a restaurant in orange square, and we sat out on the sidewalk area. We each had amazing meals. Heidi had Iberian pork tenderloin which tasted like an incredibly tender beef, Per had a steak with green pepper sauce that was very tasty, and Tom had a grilled sea bass! I was so amazed that he ordered it and even more amazed that he ate it after it came to him with the head and tail still attached!!! The fish was butterflied open (gutted and deboned of course), then grilled and served with a butter garlic sauce that would have kicked any American's butt for how garlic-y it was! We even had amazing desserts: tiramisu (Per), creme brulee (Tom), and orange crepes (Heidi). I've included pictures of our amazing meals below.
Before going home, we walked a bit more in the old town and saw a beautiful, old church. Then we crossed the main street to the newer shops on the seaside area of downtown. There's a long walking "Avenue of the Sea" that leads to the sea and has about 10 different amazing bronze statues by Salvador Dali. We walked along the seaside road then went home and swapped pictures before heading to bed.
Day 3: Thursday, July 31, 2008
Today we walked across the street to the small grocery store, had a nice big breakfast, played more horrible tennis, and scheduled Tom & I for a guided trip to Grenada for Friday. Then we got ready for swimming at the beach. It was very, very hot today so the sand was blazing hot on your bare feet. You had to wear your shoes/sandals everywhere there was dry sand. But the water was amazingly cool. The wind was up today so there were lots of waves and people were trying to surf and boogie board. The beach is very shallow for a long time so you can go quite far out before the water gets up to your neck.
We only stayed at the beach for about 2 hours before heading back for showers. This evening we went to the mountain village of Mijas, very near Marbella. The main part of the downtown area is old buildings built right into the slope. The lower lying buildings are newer construction - less than 20 years old I would say. We walked and shopped and took in some amazing views from the tops of cliffs. You could see the Sierra Nevada mountains stretching on as far as you could see, and the views of the towns below and the sea were beautiful. We ate in Mihas at a nice restaurant built onto the edge of a cliff. The panoramic views of the town and sea out their open windows were amazing. Tom and I had paella - Spain's national dish.
Goodbye for now from Spain!!!
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