Málaga>Competa>Granada
We only spent one night in Málaga, but almost right away we knew we were fans. We arrived late Saturday evening 23/03 and thought we would instantly crash upon arriving to our room, but instead we found we had a surprise surge of energy and went to wander in search of a drink and a snack. We happened upon a little quarter on the edge of town with lively restaurants and bars - just the kind of energy we were looking for.
After a late night pina colada, vermouth, some tapas and a shared pizza, we called it a night (or early morning).
The next day we linked up with our friends Laurence and Grace, and burnt some time wandering around the city. We walked up to the Alcazaba fortress and the ruins of an ancient Roman Theatre in Málaga, ordering some mandatory sangria (of course) over tapas later. Once Fred picked up the rental car we piled into the back and made a stop off at the supermarket on the way to our next stop; Competa.
Competa is a little village about an hour inland from Málaga - 20 minutes from Nerja on the Costa del Sol. We spent about a week here in a villa with it's own mandarin, orange and olive trees. Unfortunately, we'd happened to pick the one week that torrential rain seems to start making an appearance across most of Spain, so we were stuck inside for the majority of our stay. We had an evening or two of being able to venture out though, along with getting caught right in the middle of a spSpanishonsoon one morning. We went to a flamenco show in Nerja one evening, headed into the local township for drinks another, and spent the rest of the week playing card games, cooking, and drinking various concoctions introduced by various members of the group (Fred=Tinto de verano, Fraser=Zaperroco, Maggie=Sangria de whatever fruit and alcohol/mixers were in the villa). The house had a fire place which definitely brought the standard of the house up substantially, as the rain storms brought the temperature down lower than we'd really anticipated.
Some people in the group (not me), still braved the swimming pool despite the less than ideal weather conditions.
After an unforgettable road trip to Granada, consisting of; Haribo, endless musical 2010s throwbacks and a newfound appreciation for the Swedish record producer Max Martin (if you know, you know), we made it to Granada. After a few days more of precarious weather and another leaky roof at our accommodation, we settled in for a few days of relaxation and a bit of sunshine.
I also discovered one of the best new things I've stumbled upon in a while: toffee grapes. Toffee apples were always my favourite as a kid, but seem way too much of a tooth risk. I'm definitely going to be making this alternative at home!
On Easter Monday we headed for a hike nearby and enjoyed the sun finally peaking out from behind the clouds. That evening, we headed to the Alhambra to take in the stunning views of and from the Medieval Moorish Palace grounds.
As Fraser and I are working while travelling, we find it best to avoid moving between locations until the weekend, so we stayed in Granada a bit longer than our friends. On our extra days there, we explored the arts district a bit more and went on a few additional strolls throughout the narrow streets of the town. A deep tissue and reflexology massage was a highlight of this particular week. Not a regular occurrence but hugely beneficial after sleeping on worn-out mattresses and finding an old foot injury of mine flaring up from all the walking.
And just like that, we were leaving Granada eagerly on a bus back to Málaga for the following leg of our trip. Next Up: Venice & Sicily, Italy.
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