We arrived into Algeciras Port after a very brief and calm ferry ride from Tangier by early afternoon and after a very quick reccy on our best option to get back to Pinot, some 400 K’s away , we plumbed for a bus to Malaga.

It’s quite an experience to stand onboard the ferry and see both North Africa and Southern Spain. I’m unsure in the shot below whether Amanda is waving a fond farewell to North Africa or a welcoming wave to Spain and the prospect of a long awaited for chilled glass of wine,or a room temperature red……..or indeed an icy cold beer, either will do.

We Made a quick decision to hop off the bus in Malaga and get a Hotel room. Great find near the Sea and just a 5 minute walk into the old town. We dropped our bags at around 5.00pm and asked the Receptionist where a nice local drinking hole was (we’d been tee total for 10 days and we were so looking forward to a cold beer. She directed us to a bar just a 2 minute walk away. What an absolute cracker of a place full of locals. It’s actually a very hip micro brewer with great live music called …….la Fabrica …highly recommended if you’re in Malaga.

Then onto a little restaurant for Tapas before pulling stumps and heading to bed……before retiring we booked into the Hotel for another evening so we could spend the day mooching around Malaga.

Up and at em, well actually a very leisurely start to the day and headed into Town which is only 5 minute walk away. We’ve been here before on a previous visit with our Daughter several years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it and this time has been no different. A lot of walking (no shops open it’s Sunday hooray) through the new part of Town and then up to the top of the old fortress at the very top where the view is fantastic…….a warm sunny day and everyone is out to enjoy it.

From the top of the Old Town we could hear music drifting up from the Marina area so meandered down the hill/mountain to find the music. We found an area beside the Marina where a group of about 60 were dancing enthusiastically to some swing music and we spent half an hour just watching the antics. After each song everyone would swap partners for the next dance……great to watch from the sidelines, but as I often say to Amanda…..I’m happy to just dance on the inside! Another half an hour spent looking at the markets (Amanda had to have another leather bag)….see what not dancing does !

A nice dinner in Town followed by a beer at the aforementioned micro brewery and off to bed after a fabulous day. So after a couple of days in the City , We were off in search of a more rural smaller town hit. So next morning after breakfast we caught a train to Malaga Airport and hired a car for a month, then off up into the hills to visit the spectacular Town of Ronda……home of the oldest Bullring in Spain and another haunt of Ernest Hemingway….good god that bludger got around in the day. The Town is split in two by a magnificent gorge and we took a couple or 50 photo’s to try and capture it.

The oldest bullring in Spain….apparently, I think they all claim this.Fabulous scenery indeed and maybe I should stop cutting my own hair lolSome fantastic walking around these parts.…

We ended up spending way too much time enjoying Ronda and given it was at least a 3 hour drive back to Pinot and we had nothing to rush back for, we booked a Hotel for the night and went out for a cracking meal Amanda found on Trip Advisor. ....Who needs a travel agent when we have Amanda……seriously lousy navigator but can find great restaurants, hikes, tapas bars , must see places etc all of which are making this wee trip of ours so bloody special……ok I lost it for a moment there so enough compliments for this post. To be fair though, after 15 consecutive nights sleeping in Hotels and eating out every breakfast, lunch and Dinner, we are ready to head back to Pinot for a much needed rest and of course to catch up with the crew on the site back in Mojacar.

the trip back was nothing less than spectacular. Beautiful twisty roads through gorgeous countryside as we wound our way from Ronda toward Granada then soaring Snow capped mountains of the Sierra Nevada as a backdrop. If you get a chance then take this road trip.

Safely back to Pinot and some great crack with our fellow campers……. lots of Sundowners, evenings out and a lot of walks. We are here for almost 4 weeks so I’ve joined a gym….only €35 for one month unlimited use….dead set bargain.All in all we have thoroughly our trip to North Africa and finished off with a little side trip through Southern Spain. We are now settled back in Mojacar and enjoying the odd beer with this very sociable crew.

Love and best wishes to all our friends and family………….xx