Malaga

2008, 3.31 Malaga, Spain

In the morning, Wes, Nate and I all woke up and started getting our things together at the condo. Before long, it was time to say farewell to Wes who was catching a bus to Malaga where he would be later boarding a flight back to London. It was strange to say goodbye, as it didn't seem like it would be very long before I would see him again, but I suppose that is due to our many comings and goings at this point--with all of the trips throughout the six and a half months. Anyway, it was sad to see him go. Not too long after he left, Nate and I were ready to head towards Malaga, as well. We checked out of the condo and thanked the staff of the condo (very friendly owner who treated us very well). We were then on our way to catch the bus to Malaga.

The bus ride was not too terribly long. We finally passed by Marbella, which we had been meaning to visit all week long, but never did--the beach was just too wonderful to give up any time away from it. It looks like we didn't miss much, anyway, really. We took the city bus to the bus station in Marbella where we, luckily, were just in time to catch the next bus to Malaga. Pretty soon we were seated on the bus to Malaga. It was a pretty drive along the coast with ocean views along much of the way and mountains on the other side of us.

In Malaga, Nate and I found the train station so that I could buy a ticket for a night train from Malaga to Barcelona. We put our bags in a locker, and then went out to explore the city.

A flower stand on our way to finding some lunch

After wandering a bit, we found a charming little restaurant with outdoor seating to enjoy some lunch. There were street musicians trying to woo the patrons into paying them money. It was rather enjoyable music, but I was short on cash. For lunch, I ordered some cous cous--similar to what I had in Morocco.

Cathedral

Malaga had a Picasso museum; however, it is not open on Mondays, and therefore we missed out on experiencing it. Instead, we decided to check out the parks and the old fortress at the top of a mountain in the city. It was a lot of climbing, but felt good, and was worth it for the beautiful views along the way.

View overlooking Malaga's port from the nearby mountain that Nate and I climbed

View of the bull ring from above--Nate and I could see matadors practicing from where we were standing

Pretty view looking towards the east of Malaga

Park at the top of the mountain in Malaga

Walking back to the train station along the board walk

Before too long, it was time to head back to the train station so Nate could catch his train to the airport. I had a few more hours before my nightrain departed. We found our way, stopped at an ice cream shop to get some yummy coconut icecream, and then got our bags from the locker. We had a nice goodbye and then were on our separate ways.

Time went by quickly and pretty soon it was time for me to board my night train to Barcelona. I found my way to the platform, got my documents (ticket, passport, rail pass) ready and boarded the train. Once settled in, I chatted with my coachmates (four women who all spoke mostly Spanish), journaled catching up on the past several days, and then eventually retired to my bed (it was a sleeper car with a fold down bed complete with pillow and blankets--pretty comfortable, actually). In the morning, I would be in Barcelona for the second time. Malaga was a short but sweet experience.