puente

My blog has become more of a place for reflection and questions and reminding my readers of the importance of joy and flexibility and adventure.

And so this post is dedicated to all those things that I love: wandering, exploring, and finding those small things that bring all sorts of laughter and love into view.

And it is dedicated to you, that you might feel a little bit of love and joy through my eyes, if just for a moment.

Puente. A little word meaning bridge, but that in Spain transmits pure happiness. This bridge happens to be mean extra day(s) of vacation that you get when a holiday falls mid-week. Wednesday holiday? That means a five day weekend. I love you Puente de Mayo. And I certainly took advantage, by making my way south….

I love Madrid, but there is just something about the south… sun and sand, multicultural even in the architecture, a spicy flavor full of reds and torro silhouettes.

Roadtrips

Different countries, different roads, different company – but something in common: Freedom.  The wind in your hair, sun in your face, love all over kind of feeling. Time stops – frozen in a land of wide open spaces that take you anywhere and everywhere.

Hot Pink Sunsets

And the long journey is completely worth it, when after a short run, your feet sliding, just passing over the smooth white grains of sand, you can catch the last twenty seconds of a hot pink sunset. A seemingly man made color – yet completely natural. And it slips before your eyes, which longingly hang on for one more glimpse.

Fresh frutos del mar

And you swear, that if you drove these long hours just for a thirty minute glimpse of this glory and you had to take the long trip back – it would all be worth it. But you´re lucky: this is the beginning, and you sit down for a pile of fresh mariscos, feeling open and free.

Sandy feet

And after a long hard sleep – you wake up when your body allows – pull on your running shoes and bounce out the door, heading five gorgeous kilometers down the stretch of beach and open sea. You breathe deep and stretch further than normal and let the changing sand and tide lead your running bones. And you can’t believe this is real.

Breakfast on a terrace

Work hard, roll through the door – knock the sand out of your shoes – and friends serve you breakfast. Oranges, sweet liquid filling and hydriding. Magdalenas. A fried egg to renew energy. And a heaping cup of black coffee. Bright blue sky and a sweet little terrace, and your wonder if this is real life. Showers and suits and to the sandy shores we race again.

Las Calas de Roche

Playa, pura playa. Five solid hours on a small, nearly private stretch of ever changing sands –smooth, sinking grains which heal the skin – to rich sea glass and rocks, sparkling in the small waves which carry them to the shore and then drag them away again. Soak in the deep golden rays, nap, explore along the rock formations, read, see the beautiful weekend family getaways. Let the salt and sand and air cleanse you. Heal you.

Cádiz, Cádiz

Chiclana – a little pueblo about twenty or thirty minutes outside of Cadiz – relaxed, quiet, warm and breezy – fresh and purified air. But an afternoon and evening in Cádiz capitol nos vino super bien. Strolling along beaches, families playing sports, high school groups practicing in marching bands, local restaurants filling up with dinner guests. Cathedral, kissing streets, evening cañas, setting sun.

El Ajilbe

Our dinner spot on a quiet, yet busy side street, eating below palm trees and old stone buildings. Cañas. Queso de cabra con pan de nueces y salsa de arañdanos. Patatas bravas. And tortillitas de camarones caseras, the typical dish of Cádiz. And to finish it off: crepe de dulce de leche. Mmmm…

Allow me to translate: beers, walnut bread with grilled goat cheese and blueberry sauce, brave potatoes (fried potatoes with a sauce made of tomato sauce, vinegar, olive oil, garlic, and cayenne or something spicy – hence “brave”… in general, Spanish food is NOT spicy whatsoever).

Finish walking around the streets of Cádiz and an evening stroll along the coastline. Pitch black, the sky line lost and the only hope of light: piercing stars.

Solo

Solo Morning run along the beach in Chiclana. Warm, wind in your face, salt on your skin, open sky and open sea.

Together

Making breakfast  – coffee with orange peel/cloves/peppercorn/salt, oranges, grilled apples/queso fresco/caramelized hazelnuts/membrillo (a sweet jam like paste made of qunice) all grilled inside a tortilla. Breakfast with everyone on the back patio. Discussions about language, love, family.

We checked out of our Chiclana weekend get-away apartment and Lola, our host, suggested that we costear instead of taking the autovia, because the drive is incredible – to see pueblos, and the beaches, and a must-see stop in Tarifa, to see Africa! Don’t be in a hurry – just cochear y callejear.

Love these little made up verbs:  costear (to coast, to drive along the coast), cochear (to drive your car around), callejear (to wander around all the small streets)

On the Road Again

So, On the road again. And Lola was totally right! Driving from Cádiz to Málaga with a long afternoon stop in Tarifa. Beautiful. Magnificent. Glorious. Your name is glorious – precious places que te dan ganas de hacer nada sino alabar y agradecer y arrodillarse antes del autor de la creación.

The little pueblo of Tahivilla – where upon admiring lovely rose gardens lined up in front of houses, a gentle old lady greeted me from her window. “Te gustan las flores? Coge uno si quieres.” And I told her of the beautiful gardens my grandmother kept – full of roses, not much different from these.

Rolling mountains, deep valleys, pastures of sheep and lazy cows sleeping under trees and shadows of the clouds. Beaches with hundreds of kite surfers.                       

Four Places at Once     

Tarifa. Africa. Mediterranean. Atlantic. Lunch. walk and photo session. Clear waters, baby shells. Coffee in a beautiful coast side cafe. Running across the bridge separating the oceans – sand pelting our legs, due to the wind of the open sea.

City Lights

Finally arriving to Málaga at nightfall, just enough time to fall in love with the lit up cityscape. A few hours of rest, eating dinner underneath the night sky lit up by the huge cathedral.

Showers to scrub off all the Tarifa sand, and off to bed.

Sleep in and made breakfast as everyone is waking up. Café con leche (hold the leche in my case), strawberries, and toasted bread with cheddar cheese and membrillo.

And off to the city. We had planned to leave by 2 or 3 at the latest, in order to reach home base – Madrid – at a decent hour, in bed and ready for Monday. But as soon as we saw Malaga by day… We knew that our road trip home would begin much later than anticipated.

Unexpected and Underrated

First the long street leading to and thorough the center. Wide sidewalks lined with palm trees and sun shine for pedestrians to enjoy the walk – small kissing streets and old city walls on one side and the port on the other. Palm treed parks with secret sitting places to enjoy the afternoon. We made our way to muelle uno – with restaurants and shops – artesenia and local artists.

Moments of banter and friendships with incredible artists sharing their talents with the world.

Pit stop for a typical vermouth, caña, y patatas at 100montaditos.

Realizing it was already 2:30, we planned to slowly make out way back to the apartment. But our slow saunter found itself among many adventures.

Precious views of the center from afar – including the alcazar and old city walls. Fountains and statues. Old trees with roots hanging from branches. Free Sunday entrance to the Alcazar meant that we wandered and climbed to see the city from above and precious hidden gardens, and small stone windows which revealed gorgeous views. Callejeando found us among a famous restaurant where many famous people come for the raves about wine and leave their faces and signatures for all to see. Lot passageways with streaks of sunlight through the open patios and urban gardens. The more we walked, the more we fell in love with this underrated city.

We had to stay just a little bit longer. 4:30 is the perfect time for a typical lunch at El Gato Negro, surrounded by locals eating pulpo, salmorejo, jamón Serrano.

Brightly colored street performers, it couldn´t have been a more perfect way to say hello and goodbye to beautiful Malaga.

Rumbo a Madrid

Black silhouette of the mountains, deep blue sky, flood of stars. Meteorite!!! Bright red stripe in the sky.

Literally finishing the trip with a bang. Lots of laughter and asking “is this real life?” and feeling blessed without enough words of thanks.