Day 10: Tuesday – today I made my way to Fuengirola from Málaga. I took a bus that took me directly there. It was about a 50 minute ride. I departed early (11am). I made a reservation at a hotel that was not too far from the bus station, maybe a 15-18 minute walk. After getting checked in (and since it’s not the busy season, a room was available at this early hour – hooray!!), I asked the Receptionist how to get to the beach. She pointed out two different ways to get there and said, “well, frankly, all roads lead to Rome” as it were. We both had a chuckle. It was only a couple of blocks and there I was… beautiful, right?
I walked along the boardwalk for a bit, and I must say it was quite cold. Colder than Málaga. So I decided to walk about 20 minutes to the shopping center. It was very nice and very big. I needed a heavier jacket than the wind breaker I brought with me, so I started looking for one. I found one I Iiked and so glad that I did, as I´ve been wearing it daily ever since! Here are some pictures of the mall and the restaurant where I had lunch. It was on the top floor (3) of the shopping center with quite a view. Take a look!
It was quite a day, the travel from Málaga and then the walking. Whew! I went back to the hotel and rested a bit, then went to the restaurant next door for dinner. I just wasn´t up to walking too far. I´m glad I did. It was very good. I had a fish soup and fried anchovies. Yes, they were both very good!
Day 10: 17,488 steps
Day 11, Wednesday – I was still in Fuengirola. This hotel did include breakfast, so I stopped in for a tostada (breakfast sandwich – make it yourself from the small cold buffet) and a good hot cup of tea. I spent the day walking around the old town. It is really quite something. So very cute. Many of the small streets are for pedestrians only, and are covered in restaurants and bars. These are all on the street level, and above them apartment buildings. Yes, also some souvenir shops. On other similar small streets, also for pedestrians only, there were real estate agencies, hair and nail salons, women´s clothing boutiques and I even found the Post Office.
I also walked a lot this day. I just loved this little town. Could it be a future home for Lola and I? I do think that it could be. One of my requirements is a boardwalk on the beach for long walks. And there’s a beautiful one here! I didn´t have a shopping mall on my ¨must have¨ list, but I did like this shopping center and it has a movie theater, too! I stopped for a tea and empanada in the early afternoon at a gluten free coffee shop (not looking for that, but walked in and decided to stay). I went back to the hotel for a bit of a rest and to write some postcards. Once I was ready for dinner, I walked back to the Post Office in the middle of town. I had stopped by earlier and found that they closed at 8:30pm (!!). The stamps were almost $3.00 each USD. Wow, huh?
Dinner was a competition between each restaurant’s Maitre D’, as you walk by they try to lure you in by showing you the menu. One caught my eye when I was told they served Paella for one. What??!! Everywhere you go, Paella is for two. So they had me at Paella, and in I went. I started with the chef’s appetizer of a small serving of cold gazpacho soup. I ordered a wonderful smoked salmon salad. When I tell you it was absolutely delicious, I mean it was fantastic! It was beautiful, too. And then the Paella. I ordered it “mixed” which included both chicken and seafood. It was very good. It had chicken livers in it, a pleasant surprise. Of course, I had a glass of white wine to accompany my dinner. And, yes, I ate at around 8:30pm.
This ended a wonderful day in a beautiful town. Fuengirola is surely at the top of my list, though Almería is a close second. Stay tuned!
Day 11: 17,196 steps