Paradise found

We left Barcelona on Wednesday to drive south to Nerja where will be staying for one week. We drove about three hours and spent the night in a grand hotel along the coast in the city of Valencia. After life in hostels, it was like heaven. A tub and shower (as Aimee said, "Big enough so that my tush doesn't brush against the wall when I bend over"), television (though, entirely in Spanish), free wifi, and extra long fluffy towels were just some of the luxuries we have been missing lately and were able to enjoy. Today we drove the rest of the way, about six hours, to the southern tip of Spain. The trip went relatively well except for a few wrong turns coming and going in the major cities. The apartment we are staying in is just steps from the beach. We ate dinner tonight on the terrace looking out on the Mediterranean. It can't get any better than this.

After dinner we walked down to the local bar and watched Espana play Chile in La Copa del Mundo. We made some more amigos nuevos named Bill, Roger, Colin, Sue, and Nikki. You guessed it; they are not Spanish. They are all from England and have retired here. It's funny that the first people we meet in our new Spanish town are English! LOL. They gave us some invaluable insight into life in Nerja and made some good suggestions about how to spend our time here.

Speaking of how we will spend our time, on the drive down Aimee (the passenger)entertained Sarah (the driver) by reading a brochure with some tourist information about the town of Nerja and its main attractions. We thought you might enjoy these two highlights. This is exactly how it was written in the tour guide.

First,
MANOLO!
(there is photo of man with a satchel and carrying a business card)

"Manolo is a familiar figure in Nerja. Profoundly deaf, he is one of seven brothers, all with hearing difficulties. He may place a card depicting the alphabet for the deaf on your table, returning a few minutes later, hoping to receive a donation. He is the only person licensed by the Nerja town hall for this type of work."

We couldn't help but chuckle that this was actually highlighted as a 'must see' in an official brochure for the town. It harkened back to the days of circus freak shows.


Second,
RESCUE CENTRE
(there is a photo of two sweet donkeys peering over a low fence)

"Nerja has a rescue centre for donkeys, ponies, mules and horses, and is a long term sanctuary for recovering animals."

This part sounded nice, but then we kept reading and...

"Visitors are welcome, especially if you want to bring a swimsuit and help out with a shampoo and set for the animals."

Uh, no thanks. We will pass. Though we might like to go feed a carrot or two to the donkeys.

As for our plans for the next week, we may do some daily road trips to places like Gibraltar, Granada, or Cordoba, but the only thing set in stone is a daily siesta and watching the sunset. Ahhhh! Life is good for these two chicas Americanas.