Málaga

Today we went into Málaga. We had intended to go to Granada today, but couldn't reserve any tickets by phone for today (we were assured reservations were a must), so instead we reserved for tomorrow.

We arrived and parked, and decided to have a Moroccan meal — Mila said she was tired of having to work so hard to avoid pork and shellfish all the time. The Moroccan restaurant recommended by our guidebook was a few blocks away from our parking lot, in a neighborhood full of Moroccan restaurants and sex shops. This restaurant was particularly covered in traditional Moroccan design. The food was very good — we started with fresh pita and hummus that was positively swimming in delicious extra virgin olive oil (yum) followed by a plate of kefta. Then Eli, Eric, and I had couscous (veal, chicken, and mixed, respectively) and Mila had a tagine of chicken. We finished with hot mint tea and pastries. Every song that they played was something Mila recognized from her belly-dancing classes; they even played the Cheb Mami song that Mila and Eli use as a tool of last resort to get Yelena to sleep. When the waiter asked us if we knew how to eat hummus, I thought, he does not know who he's talking to. The restaurant was unfortunately too stimulating for Yelena, and we ended up taking turns walking her around outside.

After lunch we headed to the old town, eventually ending up at the Alcazaba, which is the ruins of an old Moorish military citadel. We toured the ground and decided to visit the Castillo de Gibralfaro, a sort of ruined castle that is attached to the Alcazaba by a long connecting wall running up the mountain. The wall is off limits, though, so you have to walk along side on a footpath. It seemed like a good idea before we started, but it turned out to be murder. Basically, we walked up a mountain in the middle of the city. The views at the top were spectacular — we were so unbelievably high up. We were also worn out and cranky, and decided to walk down the long way, the road the accesses the top for cars and busses.

At the bottom, we decided to grab some food and head home — stuffed baked potatoes, a regional specialty (Eli: just butter; Eric: mayo, cheese, ham; Mila: mayo and vegetables; Me: mayo, cheese, ham, corn, and olives), which we took home with us to eat at the apartment. Then we stopped for ice cream at a place on Marques de Lario, a large fancy pedestrianized street in town — sort of their Michigan Avenue. The ice cream was very good. The potatoes turned out not to be such a great idea; all that mayonnaise didn't sit well with me, for one thing.

A fun day nonetheless. And we played euchre again.

Labels: journal, personal, spain

posted by Tony at 11:46 PM