Up and down, up and down!

Saturday, October 09, 2021

Leaving at 7.30am, while it's still darkish, on an unmarked trail up some mountains you've never seen before? Just what my human is into. No surprise she got back to me some hours later with a few new scratches, but with a smile on her face.

On the way she passed a herd of goats. So far, so good. But one goat she had to do a double take on. Because this goat was a vulture, sitting right in the middle of them, seemingly thinking: "I have plenty of time, guys! Whenever you are ready."

The thing about the Sierra Nevada is, there are no real summits. All the hills and mountains are kind of rolling along. You never really know whether you are on the summit right now, or whether it's actually 50m that way. Or that. At least on one of them was a summit cross, the first one we have seen in Spain.

Not sure what this is

The afternoon was spent by the pool, chilling in the hammock, reading. Things you do on a holiday. Oh, by the way, we just passed the 100 day mark!

The next morning, after Yoga, Spanish and filling up with water, we left this cozy place to drive to Màlaga.

Parking in this city is a nightmare. The couple of spots we had marked were already full. So we got closer and closer to the city center, which we usually avoid at all cost. Finally we found a spot in a side street, some 2km from the center. Just after parking a car on the other side of the street left and promptly a large, old Mercedes arrived, trying to get into the spot that was just vacated by a Fiat Punto. Surprisingly enough, he had trouble getting in. The wife kept waving him in from the sidewalk, he bumped the car behind, then the one in front and still wouldn't recognize the fact that he was way too big for this spot. I was feeling for the cars, my human for their owners. Eventually he resigned and left.

The weather was a bit sketchy and it looked like heavy rain was only a matter of time. After walking up to the old fortifications to get a nice view over the city, my human headed for the harbor and the old town. Surprise, Màlaga also has a Roman theater. It's like the Ferris Wheels, remember? Every town needs one!

After spending a few hours in Màlaga, we drove on to Benalmadena, to spend the night there on a lot set aside for caravans. The spot was close to the beach, so my human went right down there for a swim. There was a little drizzle in the evening, but not nearly enough to give me the wash I need. That's a topic I need to address shortly.

We spent a quiet night and were off after breakfast to meet the guy who would fill up the gas bottle.

It's a bit of a problem here in Spain. We have a set of adaptors, but you also need another go-in-between part, which you can buy here in hardware stores. But because the bottles are a little different here, you can't just exchange a German bottle for a Spanish one. So you hire a Spanish bottle and give it back when you leave. But where to with the other bottle in the meantime? So my human searched and found someone who fills up bottles of all kinds.

We met him at a parking lot, he took our bottle, saying that he had one like that already filled up, left and was back 10 minutes later with a full one.

I guess the old one would have lasted a little longer, but the thought of making coffee in the morning and then running out of gas - not what you need!

On we went to Ronda, a city slightly inland a friend had told us about just a day before. The edge of the city hangs above a steep sandstone cliff, looks really cool. There used to be a river flowing through a gorge, dividing the city, but it's only a trickle these days. To unite the two parts, they built some bridges. The latest one they call "El Puente nuevo", the new bridge. It was built in the late 18th Century.

The 18th Century "New Bridge"

We had planned to spend the night here, but the parking wasn't great and the city seen by 4pm. So we changed the plan and headed in the direction of Gibraltar, our next stop. On the way lay Casares, a "Pueblo Blanco", apparently one of the prettiest in Spain's South. Now we can agree. We parked just outside at the old tourist information, next to a couple other caravans.

A little walk around town, up, then down, up again, and Casares had a new fan. It's really pretty, tiny alleys, all houses decorated with flower pots and plants, really nice vibe. Besides the dog poop everywhere. There are some places in Spain where people do pick up after their dogs, but most do not. Which is a bit of a shame and doesn't add to the picture.

After dinner we watched the sunset next to a French couple, which, having parked in the prime spot, was sitting in front of their van, drinking wine. They invited us to join them, offering wine and beer, and so we sat down and had a really nice chat in English, Spanish and French. It was slightly confusing but very entertaining.

In the morning my human and Carmelo went for another hike down a cool gorge. On the way they met a young English couple with a small child and they walked together for a little bit. After passing a gate, a pack of dogs approached them, barking, but seemed not to be aggressive. The horse a bit more so. It stood in their way and didn't want to let them pass. My human had an apple in her backpack, so she got that out, fed it to the horse, made friends with the prettiest of the dogs in the meantime, and after paying this way tax, the horse let them pass.