Málaga, España

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Went to Málaga on this day to see the ocean because one the students hadn’t seen an ocean or been to the beach. It turned out to be yet another bluebird day. It was a perfect day to go to the beach; well not entirely because the waves were quite high and it wasn’t exactly swimming weather. The students did roll up their pant legs and go wading. They enjoyed themselves doing this.
Málaga is a modern seaside tourist town. Since the mountains come down fairly close to the ocean, the town itself is strung out along the beach. To my eye it lacks the charm of say Portofino or Amalfi. This area is quite popular with the Brits and to my understanding it is virtually overrun by them during the high season.
We once again had an exasperating adventure trying to park our giganticus van. We did manage to squeeze into one parking lot…just by the hair on our chinny chin chins however. This by the way is the underground parking lot to the bullring. The ring itself was undergoing some extensive renovation and so there was no photo op for the place. We weren’t far from the beach so there was an upside to the location.
As you can see in the photos there really isn’t anything distinctive about this place and it merely reinforces my antipathy toward the beach scene.
While the students were on the beach with Jill, Beth and I headed for lunch. We ate at a place called La Equina. It is a very nice place and we were the only customers. The head waiter was a very friendly and attentive guy. We started off with my fave, the pimientos de padrón. These are the oldest non-hybrid peppers. According to legend two Franciscan monks brought them to Spain from Mexico in the 18th century. They became popular in the town of Padrón, Galicia and to this day there is a one day festival in August to honor these little peppers.
These are rare peppers in the USA and not found easily outside of Spain. I love them and ate them at every opportunity. They are fried in olive oil until brown and then sprinkled with salt. I think that I may have found a source for them in the USA – I hope so because I will order some.
Anyhoo….Beth had some tasty beef cheeks and I had a steak that resembled Bistecca alla Fiorentina, although not quite that large. It was a very nice lunch. Afterwards I chatted with the waiter and another employee. The chef also came out and I complimented him on the food preparation. They were very friendly and wanted to know if we were enjoying our visit to Spain.
We regrouped and then took the kids to a tapas bar. It was a husband – wife run operation. The husband did all the cooking and everything was prepared fresh for the day. They were very friendly and I chatted with them extensively. They also asked a few questions in simple Spanish for the students. It was a great experience for the kids. At the end of the meal, the wife brought out a very light dessert wine and tiny little glasses. I told her that unfortunately the kids were not allowed a drink but that the adults could indulge. It was very good and reminiscent of a very light port. We thanked her and then we headed back to the van and drove back to Las Pinedas.
Our next destination would be Granada.

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Photos

Modern, modern
Lots of hotels along the beachfront.

Ho-hum beach
Not many sunbirds out today.

La Equina
They were happy to have customers.

Lots of privacy
And they had very nice loos!!!