On my way back from coffee this morning, I bumped into four of our year-round neighbors. Our building is fairly empty much of the year. During the summer months, out-of-town owners, many from Córdoba, come down to enjoy time at the beach.
The building will be completely full during the month of August. But throughout the rest of the year, we have it (and the pool... and the elevators!!!) primarily to ourselves.... except for those four year-round neighbors I mentioned earlier. They're all charming and two, especially, are extremely stylish.
WATERMELON!!!
ALWAYS A DIVA. SHE LICKED HER LIPS, DEMANDED THE WIND MACHINE,
AND GAVE ME HER BEST SIDE.
Not everyone is a fan of the style. However, if I had hair, I would probably try a man bun.
But, trust me, even if you have a serious aversion to the man bun (for example, Natalie at Knatolee's World), you might actually find something else to like in these photos taken around Fuengirola.
Saturday, we began the night of the Fiesta de la Virgen Del Carmen watching from our terrace as the procession arrived from the church in the centre of Los Boliches and turned west onto the Paseo. Then we headed downstairs to watch their progress. We slowly worked our way onto the beach to greet their arrival, entry into the sea, and the fireworks that followed.
I stood happily ankle-to-hip–deep in water (that unpredictable surf) while I took pictures. San Geraldo stayed dry but within shouting distance. We were tired and blissful when we walked home hours later. The Virgin and her entourage continued through Fuengirola. for another hour (or more) and the partying on the street below continued into the wee hours of the morning.
From our terrace
Down on the Paseo
ON THEIR SHOULDERS.
HIGH OVERHEAD.
Onto the beach
Into the water
The fireworks
THIS FAMILY OF THREE STOLE OUR HEARTS.
THEY STOOD LIKE THAT THROUGH THE ENTIRE SHOW.
Today is the Fiesta De Nuestra Señora Del Carmen, The Virgin of Carmen, patron of mariners and fishermen everywhere. As in years past, the virgin will be paraded through the streets of of our neighborhood of Los Boliches before she's floated into the water (and back out again). I plan to get plenty of pictures tonight of the procession and the fireworks that follow. Meanwhile, here's what it looked like around town earlier today.
(Do I have to tell you to click the images to enlarge?)
RED FLAGS MEAN ROUGH SEAS.
I SURE HOPE THEY CALM BEFORE TONIGHT.
ALTHOUGH SWIMMING IS OFFICIALLY PROHIBITED, THE LIFEGUARDS
LET PEOPLE GO IN THE WATER IN AREAS THEY DEEM SAFE ENOUGH. NOT HERE.
THIS STRETCH, VIEWED FROM OUR TERRACE, IS CONSIDERED SAFE TODAY.
BUT TWO LIFEGUARDS FLANK THE OUTER EDGES AND WATCH CLOSELY.
TINY REPLICA OF WHAT WE'LL SEE TONIGHT.
ON DISPLAY AT THE FISHING PORT INSIDE THE COMMERCIAL FISH MARKET. (SPONSORED BY THE FISHERMEN'S ASSOCIATION.)
AT THE JETTY NEAR THE PORT, FIREWORKS SET UP AND BEING GUARDED.
Paula, the daughter of our friends Elena and Tynan, celebrated her 14th birthday Wednesday along with a bunch of her friends at an afternoon party on the beach. San Geraldo told Paula he would bake the birthday cake. What did she want? Chocolate!
As is always the case when San Geraldo bakes something, it was beautiful and mouth-wateringly delicious. Adorned with fresh strawberries, the cake had two layers with strawberry preserves between. It was covered in two layers of chocolate frosting (a "dirty" layer and a finish coat) made with nearly four large Lindt Supreme Dark Chocolate bars (and, of course, butter and sugar).
But don't worry, it was better than it sounds. (If you click the images, you can almost taste it.)
CHOCOLATE CAKE ON THE BEACH.
THE HAPPY AND DESERVING BIRTHDAY GIRL. (14 WAS JUST ABOUT HOW MANY KILOS THE CAKE WEIGHED!)
San Geraldo made more than enough frosting to put between the cake layers, as well. But he then decided to use strawberry preserves instead. So, we have a bowl of left-over frosting.
Tuesday marked our five-year anniversary in Spain. Fifth is "Quinto" in Spanish. Our "quinto anniversario." So, my apologies, Zachary Quinto really has nothing to do with it.
As for me, I'd prefer five years in Spain (or anywhere) with San Geraldo. When you've got San Geraldo, who needs Zachary Quinto? (No offense, Zach.)
We went out Tuesday night to our favorite place in Fuengirola, Meson Salvador, and had a celebratory dinner with our friends Tynan and Elena — two more reasons to be grateful for our lives in Spain.
Tuesday afternoon, I went for a long walk in the 39C (102F) heat. I'd tell you there was not a cloud in the sky on our anniversary, only that would be a lie.
There was A CLOUD in the sky. Exactly one. But it wasn't around for long. (Click for bigger pictures... except for Zachary Quinto.)
LOOKING EAST TOWARD HOME AT THAT CLOUD IN THE SKY.
THE PORT OF FUENGIROLA.
THE CLOUD BECOMING A MEMORY.
WEDNESDAY MORNING COFFEE ON THE BEACH WITH SAN GERALDO. YEAR SIX, DAY ONE.
Another of the great 'before' photos on display in town stands in front of Hotel Casa Consistorial. The hotel opened just a couple of years ago after being constructed on the site of Fuengirola's original Casa Consistorial (Town Hall), which had stood on the plaza since 1868. The hotel was under construction when we moved here and I had no idea what had stood there before. It's about a 30-minute walk from home. (Click the images for a closer look.)
TOWN HALL GOT A NEW FACADE IN 1959. HERE IT IS IN 1961.
AND NOW A 4-STAR HOTEL.
LOCAL POLICE, 1957.
THE NAME OF THE PLAZA IS LOS REYES CATÓLICOS (THE CATHOLIC KING & QUEEN).
A STATUE OF LOS REYES WAS INSTALLED AFTER THE HOTEL OPENED. (I'M NEITHER A FAN OF LOS REYES NOR OF THE STATUE.)
JUST LEFT OF CASA CONSISTORIAL, A NEW ARTISAN ICE CREAM SHOP.
MAYBE THIS WILL GET SAN GERALDO TO TAKE THE WALK WITH ME.
Continuing my series on old and new Fuengirola (click here), here's Castillo Sohail (Sohail Castle). Built in 956 AD by Abd al-Rahman III, the castle was restored in 2000. (Click the images for a closer look.)
CASTILLO SOHAIL IN THE 1960s, FROM THE DISPLAY ON THE PASEO.
San Geraldo just discovered yesterday that he's got a family connection to the castle.
Abd al-Rahman's grandfather, (Abd Allah ibn Muhammad, Emir of Cordoba) was the first husband of San Geraldo's 34-greats-grandmother, Onneca Fortun de Pamplona, a Basque princess from the Kingdom of Pamplona (later known as the Kingdom of Navarre).
Great-grandma was a very rare case of a Christian princess marrying Muslim royalty. The union created strong ties between these Muslim and Christian rulers of the Iberian Peninsula.
Some years later she returned to Pamplona and married her cousin, Aznar Sánchez of Larraun with whom she had a son and two daughters. Both daughters married kings.
San Geraldo is descended from one of those daughters (I can't remember which) from that second marriage. Otherwise I'd be asking for the keys to the Castle!
NOT ON DISPLAY. ANOTHER IMAGE FROM THE 1960s.
AND TODAY, ALMOST THE SAME VIEW.
And a map to confuse you even more... (just because I find this all so fascinating).
I was so caught up in la musica (the music) and Los Mellis yesterday that I completely forgot to include some photos of Teatro Cervantes, built in 1870. It replaced the previous theatre (destroyed by fire), which had been built in the early 1500s to celebrate a royal visit by Queen Isabella II.
Years of neglect, and poor management and planning culminated in Málaga City Council acquiring Teatro Cervantes in 1984, then obtaining public grants to renovate and restore the space. (Don't forget to click the images.)
CEILING BY BERNARDO FERRÁNDIZ, 1870. AN ALLEGORY OF THE CITY OF MÁLAGA.
PHOTOS TAKEN PRE-CONCERT. MY QUICK COMPOSITE TO GIVE YOU A SENSE OF THE INTERIOR.
When I talked about "palmeros" in yesterday's blog post, I might have confused some of my readers. So, I've provided a couple of photos below to clarify the difference between "palmeros" and "palmeras."
San Geraldo and I went to Teatro Cervantes Friday night to see a performance by Argentina Maria Lopez Tristancho, known simply as Argentina. She's a brilliant cantaora (flamenco singer). Her voice and delivery are magnificent. Her two guitarists, percussionist, and three "palmeros" — those are the accompanists who clap and perform other percussive effects using their hands — were equally magnificent.
The dialects, the additional (traditional) sounds and non-words added into the lyrics, and all the other variations made it difficult for me to follow more than a small bit of the Spanish. But my favorite performers are the palmeros, who also sang. Some of their skills:
Palmas
— hand clapping; an intricate art requiring skill and knowledge of compas (the measure, and the rhythmic skill of a performer.
Palmas Altas (Palmas Claras, Palmas Agudas)
— percussive effect performed with the fingers of the right hand on the left palm, resulting in a sharp sound Palmas Sordas (Palmas Graves)
— muted clapping (more often done by Argentina)
During a moment between songs, I commented to San Geraldo, "How do you like the twins?"
"Which ones?" he asked.
"Uh... the ones that look exactly alike?"
It turns out the twins are equally famous performers. Like Argentina, the brothers are from the town of Huelva, about an hour west of Sevilla. Their names are Antonio and Manuel Montes Saavedra, but they're known as Los Mellis. (One of the words for "twin" in Spanish is "mellizo.")
Paula, the daughter of our friends Elena and Tynan, celebrated her 14th birthday Wednesday along with a bunch of her friends at an afternoon party on the beach. San Geraldo told Paula he would bake the birthday cake. What did she want? Chocolate!
As for me, I'd prefer five years in Spain (or anywhere) with San Geraldo. When you've got San Geraldo, who needs Zachary Quinto? (No offense, Zach.)
