I´m on a boat!

For my last weekend here we decided to aprovecha the warm, beautiful, perfect weather and do some exploring around the Costa del Sol. And to fulfill our final goal: get on a boat.

Friday we spent the day in Torremolinos at a restaruant/bar/beach club called Cafe del Sol. It was a great day and much more affordbale than a day in Marbella, only €4 for a lounge chair, versus €100 at Nikki Beach, but the crowd was OUT OF CONTROL. I´m talking The Jersey Shore (TV show) moved to the Costa del Sol. Leathery, tattooed, topless, fake breasted mothers frolicing around with their sons. CREEPY. The people watching was ridiculous, not sure if I would like a repeat in the near future though.

Saturday we woke up early and went to Benalmadena. We explored the boardwalk which was filled with restaurants, shops and sunburnt UK citizens. At night we went to Plaza de Sol y Mar, also known as 24hr square and were bombarded by bachelor and bachelorette parties.

Sunday we accomplished the ultimate goal we´ve had while living on the Costa del Sol and took a boat ride around the Mediterranean. While our inital dream had been an invitation by some Euro bachelors on their massive yacht, we paid €10 each for a 2hr ride on a Dolphin Cruise and it wasn´t too shabby. Although we didn´t actually see any dolphins, there was free sangria, fishing, swimming and breathtaking views of the coast.
Above: I´m. On. A. Boat! Above: LC, Alina, Me, and Chrissy at the Puerto Marina in Benalmadena
Above: Chrissy and I jump in the water and hold on to the buoys for dear life.
Above: Chrissy and I bid the boat farwell
Above: Stranded in the Mediterranean Sea. Not too bad.

Inspirational Quote #20

"Don´t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive" - Howard Thurman

Mercado Atarazanas

The renovated Mercado Atarazanas opened about a month ago, and it's conveniently located right across the street from my flat. It's a historic landmark and had been under construction since we arrived in September. There are rows and rows of fruit and vegetable stands on the right hand side, fish stands in the middle and meat stands on the left. They also have nut, olive, bread and pastry stands. Everything is extremely fresh and well priced. As you can see from the first picture below there is a giant stained glass window in the back of the market- not your average supermarket! Today I bought 5 apples, 5 pears and a cucumber for a total of just 3euro. I'm going to miss grocery shopping here!

Limbo Love

At some point in the night we always whip out a game of limbo. It became a common recurrence after Spring Break 2009 in Florida. Many times there is not a traditional "stick" available so we improvise with other props. Here are some of my favorite limbo moments from my travels this year:

Above: Benalmadena, Spain. Plastic alligator.

Above: Marbella, Spain. Towel.

Above: Lagos, Portugal. Pashmina.
Above: Madrid, Spain. Pashmina.
Above: Lisbon, Portugal. Pearl necklace.
Above: Malaga, Spain. Arms.
Above: Cadiz, Spain. My costume.

Finding Faith

This week has been an emotional roller coaster for a lot of reasons. But what I have been thinking about the most is my friend Kyle and trying to grasp where he is now. I feel very lucky and fortunate that I have yet to experience the death of someone close to me in my life. My great grandmother died when I was around 12 years old and she was in her 90s and although I was very sad, she had lived a long full life and I knew that this was "normal." I´ve known parents of friends, and grandparents of friends, and friends of friends who have passed away, but Kyle is the first person, the first friend, someone my age, I´ve known to die. It´s been very hard for me to conceptualize where he is right now. I was raised Catholic and attended Catholic school in New York until 5th grade. I receieved my First Holy Communion, Confession and Confirmation. Even though I wouldn´t consider myself very religious I pray almost every night and when I can´t sleep I recite my "Hail Marys" and "Our Fathers" in my head. I´ve always believed in heaven and that is where you go when you die. Heaven looks down on Earth. Everyone wears white robes with gold belts, kind of like the ancient Greeks. They walk on clouds and it is always daylight. There are beautiful waterfalls, rivers, flowers and butterflies and someone is playing the harp. Our deceased family members and friends can float down to Earth and whisper into our ears when we need help.

Now that I am actually experiencing what it is like to lose someone, especially someone who was so young, with so much ahead of him, someone I used to see every day and didn´t think much of it, I have so many questions. Death isn´t something that my friends and I talk about every day like we do relationships, food, working out and travel plans. You hear about people dying all the time, but it sounds so far away and isolated and factual- Kyle Craig died at 1am May 22nd. It sounds so...abstract...

Kyle´s funeral is today. Will his ghost be there, sitting next to his family, watching them remember him and honor his short life? Will he try to call out and touch them like Patrick Swayze in "Ghost?" Has his spirit been born into someone else´s body? Does everyone end up in the same "heaven" regardless of race, age, and beliefs?

While I am feeling extremely lost and pensive about what death means and if there is life after death, I am certain that everything happens for a reason. Many times it is not obvious right away, but I know that it is true. Eventually, weeks, months, years later you cope, not to forget the past, but to understand and see how events fit into some greater plan in life. No matter how devastating, tragic and upsetting these events were, everything has a purpose. You can spend all day asking why this happened, why Kyle, why now, and I have the same questions, but I don´t think you or I will get the exact answers to those questions we´re seeking. I want to spend my time remembering Kyle and honoring his life, and to find faith so that I can truly believe and understand where he is right now. For now I´d like to think that Kyle is somewhere where he can do the things he loved on Earth, play music, sports, surf, and swim. That heaven is different for every person, it´s your favorite place and things about Earth, but every day. I hope he knows we will never forget him, and I hope to continue to be reminded of him every day.

Alamos 38

Alamos 38 is my new fav spot in Malaga. It´s a restaurant and bar, but I´ve only been to have drinks. The ambience is so cool- so NOT Malaga. When you walk in there is a bar area to the left and if you just continue straight there are antique couches and chairs set up in a courtyard type square, giving it a "lounge" feel. There are plants and vines covering the walls and columns which gives it a very relaxing feel, like you´re in a garden. It is trendy, but not pretentious. Other apsects that I enjoy are the private rooms and dual function as an art gallery. Behind the "garden" area there is an open room with dinner tables. Behind this room there are other private rooms with more dinner tables and a really exotic feel. The drinks are well priced and they give you great bar nuts and candy with your order. Every time I´ve been they´ve surprised us with free shots at the end of our stay! Last time was a rum shot that looked and tasted like a ice cream sundae.
Above: The "garden" courtyard room near the entrance
Above: Carmen sitting on a couch in the entrance

Pleasantville

We are back to Pleasantville weather on the Costa del Sol and boy is it about time. There is nothing like seeing 80degrees and sunny (no cloud picture) on weather.com for my last week here. Really time to hit the beach and work on that tan!