Hotel Elba Motril

... travail, je peux laisser mes pensées venir puis les laisser s'en aller... je récolte du maïs, puis désherbe le champ à la pioche; je grimpe dans les arbres pour cueillir des oranges (mmmhhh que de bonnes odeurs et de goûts délicieux); je désherbe un canal pour amener l'eau de la montagne dans les champs; je récolte du basilic, des amandes et je fais du pesto maison!!! mmmhh que c'est bon d'être en contact avec la terre qui me nourrit...

... called Competa. We finally visited a winery - it was pretty rinky-din. Wine tasting in this area is nothing like in California. They only served white wine. Very sweet, almost like dessert wine. It was interesting. We then headed to another nearby town called Torrox for dinner. We were told by several people that El Chicla was the best ...

... He was so friendly and informative. Of course, Mike picked his brain about anything and everything to do with this area. He has 3 little boys who Shae befriended. We're noticing the language barrier when she meets kids. She just can't communicate with them yet. She understands what they are saying but she always answers in English. She definitely misses playing with kids her own age. We enjoyed our lunch and then went into Nerja again for dinner. We ...

We started out today by visiting a donkey sanctuary in nerja. Shae was so excited to see the donkeys. It's a great place that rescues abused and neglected animals in the area. They have more than just donkeys (goats, sheep, turkey, pot-bellied pigs, dogs, cats, etc.) it's run by a family from the uk and solely survives on donations from visitors. It was so sad to see all the animals, but they are being well cared for and seem to enjoy their new home. Shae ...

... we're told in the months of july/august and sometimes september this place is a zoo. Tons of people, no parking. We're able to go to any restaurant and not wait for a table. It's fantastic! We found a great little playground on the beach and right next to a restaurant with tables in the sand. Shae loved it. She played in the playground and dug in the sand for 2 hours. We headed back to the house and then drove into Nerja (5 min car drive ...

... shy, but offered great insight into the cultures of the east. They wrote my name in Korean letters. I vowed to keep it forever. I lost it that night...shucks. As fate would have it, I actually ran into them in Barcelona randomly...weird =P Oh yeah, Kumar, the crazy american-indian who is attending law school in new York. I swear, he has to be the *worst* dancer in the history of dancers...and watching him get molested by a random polish girl while he begged me to escort him to the ...

... Mudéjar walls to add his own palace. A gigantic, gray, blocky, circular, monstrosity with a colonnaded central courtyard large enough to throw bullfights in, with iron bull rings studding the walls and concrete balustrades. And you wonder whether the Moors augmenting of their environment rather than the Christians' need to stomp it into submission (architecturally speaking) are what make you want to linger in the Casa Real and do a very quick circuit of the Palacio de Carlos V.

Sailed to Gibraltar overnight and i just missed seeing "The Rock" this morning. it was very early and i made it on deck just after we had passed it though most people said it was pretty hazy and grey anyway. hopefully i will have another opportunity at some point in my life spent the day exploring hte park, and the wildlife including the roaming packs of very uninhibited Barbary Apes. Sailed in the afternoon ...

After being waved off by family at Plymouth docks, we left Bronwen feeling small sitting with all the lorries down below & looked forward nervously to 19 hours of uninteresting sailing to Santander (why people choose to go there and back just for the fun of it, I shall never know). But hey, we've made it to mainland Europe & travelling starts here! Head straight for the Picos de Europa National park and the Covadonga lakes, where we spent a couple of days relaxing. The lake ...