Go Ahead, Back Up

As you probably remember, San Geraldo and I rented a car during the week and drove to a few garden centers. I told you about our plants (and our psychic) and I forgot to tell you about our "defective" rental car.

OUR TERRACE: THE WORK IN PROGRESS.

After visiting the second garden center, we had to back out of our diagonal parking space. San Geraldo couldn't get the car to shift into reverse. He tried pressing down on the stick. He tried pulling up on the stick. He tried again and again. Finally, I just got out and pushed the car out of the spot and hopped back in. We tried again to no avail at the third garden center. So, I got out and pushed again.

TIME TO GET CHAISE LOUNGES.

When we returned to the second garden center (where we ended up making all our purchases), San Geraldo had the "brilliant" idea to pull around into the diagonal spot so that he could drive right out, and therefore not require me to push when it was time to go.

IT'S RAINING AGAIN. (BUT I'M NOT COMPLAINING.)

San Geraldo didn't tell me about his brilliant idea. I simply watched his maneuvering and figured out where his addled brain had taken him. As he turned into the spot, I asked smartly, "So, what's the plan?" He realized the car was facing the right direction but now needed to be pushed backwards into the parking spot.

"Oops," was his response.

I got out and pushed. Just as he was about to turn off the engine, San Geraldo noticed a little ridge just below the knob of the stick shift. He discovered that if he simply pulled up on the ridge — and not the entire knob — the car magically went into reverse.

Who needs Abbott and Costello when there's Mitchell and Geraldo?

The Sun Will Rise and the Moon Will Set

The planting is done. So is the arranging (mostly). Now I'm just waiting for the sun to come back out (tomorrow? Sunday?) so I can get some good photos to share. The day started off sunny and warm but, by the time we finished planting and sweeping, clouds had moved in and it began to rain.

LAST NIGHT FROM THE TERRACE (THE SILHOUETTE OF ONE OF OUR NEW YUCCAS).

Since my view in the morning can be breathtaking (and so can the cats), I now sleep with my camera beside the bed. I woke up near sunrise to see Dudo trying to figure out how to open the bedroom window. Fortunately (for us), it requires thumbs.

DUDO.  "LET ME OUT!"

A BRIEF MOMENT OF PATIENCE (OR RESIGNATION).

A Moose and an Alpine Village on the Costa del Sol

One of the things I used to find magical about a winter day in Palm Springs in the California desert was the experience of floating in the pool in the sunshine while looking at snow on the mountaintops. And, although I haven't been floating in a pool lately, the view of the snow-covered mountains in Andalucía has been just as magical. Walking along the beach or just out on our terrace is glorious.

THE DAY AFTER WE ARRIVED, LOOKING NORTH.
(CLICK TO SUPER-SIZE-)

TODAY FROM THE TERRACE, LOOKING PAST BENALMÁDENA TOWARD MÁLAGA..

A few days ago, I took another long walk on the beach in the sunshine and I came across a "snow-covered" alpine village made entirely of sand. Amazing to create something with so much love and care (and talent) knowing it's so temporary. There was a thunderstorm the next day that I'm sure melted the snow (and much of the alpine village).

OUR ALPINE VILLAGE WITH A (REAL) FISHERMAN IN THE BACKGROUND.

AFTER ALL THAT SNOW, I WAS GLAD TO RETURN TO "SAND BAR,"
WHERE THE SAND SOFA AND THE SAND DRUNK HAVE BEEN REPLACED WITH A WORKING FIREPLACE.

ANOTHER NEW ADDITION AT SAND BAR, LIVE MUSIC WHERE THE BOOKCASE USED TO BE..

Meanwhile, San Geraldo and I have made great progress on the terrace. San Geraldo has been doing the planting. I've been doing most of the heavy lifting and the clean-up. Dudo and Moose help as they can — by inspecting every plant and pot, chasing bugs, and monitoring our every move. The plants haven't been arranged yet, but all but one of the new plants have been transplanted. We ran out of soil and had another delivery this afternoon. Once the last plant is done, San Geraldo will move on to the 12 bougainvillea we brought with us from Sevilla. The 12 individual plants will be merged into 4 large planters. Then, we can rearrange everything. And then I can show you what it looks like.

A MOOSE SIGHTING EARLIER TODAY.

Mr. Greenjeans and the Psychic

I like to give people nicknames. Poor San Geraldo (Jerry) has a million of 'em, as you may have noticed. When it comes to gardening, I call him Mr. Greenjeans (of Captain Kangaroo fame). San Geraldo grew up around farms and amid a farming family. His grandparents and father had beautiful home gardens and the most incredible rose gardens. Lawns at their homes looked like perfect carpets.

NO GRUÑON (GRUMPY) TO BE FOUND AT THE GARDEN CENTER.

We both love to garden, but the research and planting gives San Geraldo so much pleasure that I tend to step back and let him enjoy himself. Most of the plants here are very familiar to us from our time in Southern California but, since we're right on the beach, San Geraldo researched plants that are great in containers, happy in full sun, and are hardy enough to endure the sea air and sometimes heavy winds.

I THOUGHT WE LEFT THESE BEHIND IN SEVILLA.

We rented a car (right downstairs) and drove into the hills (about 10 minutes away) where we were told we would find several large garden centers. The day was glorious. The garden centers were amazing. The Dowager Duchess would have been in her glory. My mother loves garden centers, loves to garden, and is amazing at nursing plants back to health. When we visit her next month, we're sure to go to a garden center just so she can get her fix. When I was around 20, the entire family went to Germany for a few weeks. We visited a spectacular palace and, while out in the gardens, The Dowager Duchess climbed over a tiny box hedge to pull weeds. She just couldn't help herself.

GARDEN CENTER #1.

WE BROUGHT TWELVE WITH US FROM SEVILLA. NO NEED FOR MORE.

We went to three garden centers and had tapas at a café inside the third before returning to the second to make all our purchases. On our first visit to the second nursery, we met a British expat. She began a 20-minute conversation while we were looking at large yuccas. In that time, we learned that she is a twice-divorced psychic; her second husband was a drunk; she had extramarital affairs (while married to the first husband who was decent but not while married to the "lying, cheating, drunk"); she has three sons (she and they are all at times suicidal); her 13-year-old granddaughter in Japan is also a psychic; she believes in reincarnation and knows she was a man at least twice; she believes she must have been an awful man in past lives and that she's paying for it now; she has to scrape together money every month to pay her electric bill because if it gets turned off it won't get turned back on and she'll be evicted since she and most of her neighbors live in illegal housing. There was so much more — like her three dogs and two cats, her former collection of purebred Siamese, her son's mother-in-law's wealth, her few past jobs. All in 20 minutes. I'm not always a complete skeptic, but taken altogether, it was a bit much.

A VIEW FROM GARDEN CENTER #3. IT WAS WORTH THE EXTRA STOP.

DURING LUNCH AT GARDEN CENTER #3.

Needless to say, I didn't give the psychic our contact information. (Anyway, she probably already knows it.) Besides, she told us to never, ever, trust a Brit. Never! (We asked if that included her, but she didn't say.) She said there was a newer, better garden center that had much lower prices than the enormous one we were currently visiting. Although she was British, we trusted her and went to the other center further into the hills. It was beautiful and worth the drive, but it was considerably smaller than the previous garden center and had a much more limited selection. Additionally, it was more, not less, expensive.

AS MY NIECE, ERICKA, USED TO SAY: YOTS AND YOTS OF COYOS. (LOTS AND LOTS OF COLORS.)

GLORIOUS SUNSHINE FOR OUR DAY IN THE HILLS.

When we told the story at breakfast this morning, Tynan, our British waiter, laughed and said, "Well, two thoughts: She told you to not trust anyone who's British, she did. Furthermore, I've found it to be good practice to not trust anyone who appears to be crazy."

WONDERING IF WE HAVE ROOM ON THE TERRACE FOR THE WATERFALL

Everything was delivered a few hours ago. We've had rain, and thunder and lightning since. Too bad. San Geraldo Greenjeans has a lot of work to do.

OUR TERRACE NOW LOOKS LIKE THE GARDEN CENTER.
(HALF THE DELIVERY.).

JUST BEFORE THE THUNDER AND LIGHTNING.
THE DELIVERY GUY KINDLY TRANSPLANTED THE 3 YUCCAS... JUST BECAUSE HE WANTED TO.

LOOKING AROUND THE CORNER.

Close the Door!

I don't know who was more embarrassed, Dudo or I.

It was partially my fault. I left the house without pulling down the shade on the den window. Dudo was clearly indignant. But, come on, he's the one who didn't close the door.

"CAN'T A GUY GET ANY PRIVACY?!?"

Stalking the Gray-Tufted Gruñon

This afternoon, San Geraldo and I went to Bioparc Fuengirola, the Fuengirola Zoo. I love zoos. Not the old-fashioned kind with the cages and the unhappy animals. I like the new zoos. The zoos with natural environments. The zoos that save and protect. The Fuengirola Zoo used to be an old-fashioned, depressing, zoo. It's now an amazing "Bioparc," with large, natural environments (with different animals sharing spaces) and vast conservation and education projects. It's not huge and it's right in the center of town. But when you walk through the front gate, you enter a different world. As they say on their website: "There is today no ethical sense in keeping wild animals in captivity unless this helps to preserve their species in the natural world."

Several exhibits were being spruced up or renovated in preparation for "season." But there was still plenty to see. And, since we bought annual passes, we can go back whenever we want. I thought I might have to go to the zoo alone today. But I was very fortunate to have company. Otherwise, I never would have seen the very rare, Gray-Tufted Gruñon in such a natural environment. Standing over 6 feet tall, the Gruñon is hardly ever seen in public.

NOT THE GRAY-TUFTED GRUÑON.
THERE IS ONLY ONE LEFT IN THE WORLD.

ALSO NOT A GRAY-TUFTED GRUÑON.

Gruñon means "grumpy" and it's the name given for Grumpy in the Spanish version of "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs." Gruñon has also become, in the past year and a half, another name for San Geraldo. Yes, he can be "gruñon" and, yes, he is one-of-a-kind. Oh, and yes, sometimes when he's being "gruñon," he is on my endangered list.

THE GRAY-TUFTED GRUÑON IN HIS NATURAL ENVIRONMENT.

Today, however, the Gray-Tufted Gruñon was the perfect companion. Well, to be honest, the Gray-Tufted Gruñon is always the perfect companion, gruñon or not. We had a great time at the zoo and walked home through town and along the beach, stopping for lunch at the waterfront. Once we got home, he even filed away at one of the lobby door keys and got it to work! Back to calling him San Geraldo.

SOMETIMES IT'S GOOD TO KEEP SOME DISTANCE.

SCRATCH-N-SNIFF. UNBELIEVABLY SWEET.

The Keys to the [Roman] City

When we moved in, we were given three keys by the porter in addition to keys to our own apartment. The three keys were for the lobby door and also for the back gate and back door of the building. Well, one of the keys also opens the back gate and the back door of the building. The other two don't even open the lobby door. I told the porter and he said they were copied from an old worn-out key.

I went to the nearest hardware store and had three new keys made. They didn't work either. I went back to the hardware store. Instead of refining the three keys that had already been made, he made three brand-new keys. Of course, they didn't work either. Today, I went to a different hardware store and had two new keys made.

THE KEYS DON'T WORK THIS GATE EITHER.

I decided to reward myself for performing this boring (and redundant) task by going for a walk around the neighborhood, this time heading northeast away from the beach instead of southwest toward the center of Fuengirola. I couldn't believe what I found. There's a fairly new park still being landscaped  and developed, Parque Yacimiento Romano (Roman Archaeological Site Park). It's the site of a dig begun after the discovery of Roman ruins in 1970 when a new railway line was being built. In 1987, when a road was being widened, the main Roman steps were discovered. Major excavations were begun and major discoveries were made.

THE MAIN STEPS UNCOVERED IN 1987.

Unearthed were the remains of what is referred to as a Roman industrial complex — a fish-salting factory, pottery factory, thermal baths, and gardens. I couldn't tell what was original to the gardens. Maybe the layout. All else was completely contemporary and far from finished. But the fish-salting factory, the ovens, and the thermal baths are fascinating to see, especially so close to home. The complex was built during the 1st Century AD and maintained and added to through the 5th Century. (We had an old house in San Diego, California. It was built in 1924.)

FISH-SALTING FACTORY.

ONE OF FIVE KILNS FOR FIRING THE CLAY PRODUCTS.

ROMAN THERMAL BATHS.
IN THE BACKGROUND, CERCANÍA, THE EXCEPTIONAL COMMUTER TRAIN.

THERMAL BATHS: THIS WAS A CLOISTERED COURTYARD.

CLOSER VIEW OF MOSAIC FLOOR IN THE CLOISTERED COURTYARD.

THERMAL BATHS: HOLDING TANK. 
DO YOU SUPPOSE THAT'S THE ORIGINAL ROMAN WATER?

THE CISTERN:
A SMALL BUILDING FOR STORING AND DECANTING WATER FOR THE THERMAL BATHS.

The cistern photo made me think of a poem I learned in high school. It was part of a collection from the early 20th Century called "Ruthless Rhymes for Heartless Homes" by Harry Graham.

Into the cistern little Willie

Pushed his little sister Lily.

Mother couldn't find our daughter,

Now we sterilize our water.

LOOKING BACK BEFORE HEADING HOME.

After exploring the ruins for an hour, I took my 5-minute walk home. I made a point of passing the Roman pillars at the entrance to Los Boliches Beach across from our building. The pillars came from the excavation.

I was really looking forward to letting myself into the building with one of my two new keys. Neither one worked. Who knows what I'll discover tomorrow!

Olivia de Lopez y Los Boliches

As you may remember, we have a friend (made of cement) who has traveled with us around the USA and across the Atlantic. Her name is Olivia and she was given to us by our friend Judy (in Seattle and not made of cement). Olivia was first adopted by Judy and given to her parents who had a cabin on Lopez Island, part of the San Juan Islands north of Seattle. When Olivia arrived in Sevilla, we decided to christen our home "Casa de Olivia de Lopez." Now she's here with us in Fuengirola; click here for the story of Olivia in Irvine and click here for Olivia's first sighting in Sevilla. Her new incarnation: Olivia de Lopez y Los Boliches.

OLIVIA, AT HOME ON THE MEDITERRANEAN.
(CLICK TO SEE HER IN ALL HER GLORY.)

Still Sharp
When I lived in the USA, I never saw a wandering/whistling knife sharpener. As you might remember from my post back in Sevilla in May (click here), knife sharpeners strolled the streets with their sharpening equipment strapped to their bicycles or scooters. They played a ditty on a pan flute to let people know they were in the neighborhood. Neighbors would then bring their knives down to be sharpened right on the street.

KNIFE SHARPENER, SEVILLA STYLE. 

Our new neighborhood, Los Boliches, is more modern (and much easier to navigate on wheels) than Sevilla. We still have knife sharpeners, but from what I've seen they carry their equipment in vans. Our local guy was already out front working one of our first dreary afternoons here when I returned from shopping. I wasn't around for his arrival and therefore don't know if he uses a pan flute to announce himself. Given that he's so much more modern, he probably plays "smart phone pan flute."

KNIFE SHARPENER, LOS BOLICHES STYLE.

Brotherly Love

It was a beautiful Sunday morning in Fuengirola... for a while. Rain and clouds quickly returned (and left and returned, and left and returned), but not before Dudo and Musy (aka Moose) got to enjoy some of the sunshine and fascinating views. Their favorite spot (among many) is the front bedroom window from which they can see the entire beach. San Geraldo opened the window this morning and both cats climbed out (Dudo more readily than Moose). Dudo is very proud of himself when he jumps down to the terrace and comes back in through the living room. He runs through the house until he's in the bedroom again. He struts into the room and heads right back to the window sill. If he had hands, he'd probably throw them up in the air and say, "Ta da!"  

DUDO. "I'M NOT IN TROUBLE, AM I?"

The sun is back out for a while and Dudo has made his "ta da" tour three times in the 10 minutes I've been sitting and typing. If I don't acknowledge his return, he barks at me (one of those little cat barks). By the way, click on the photos. Some of them will cat-apult themselves to enormous proportions.

MOOSE, NOT QUITE AS SURE OF THINGS AS HIS BROTHER. 

DUDO, EASING MOOSE ONTO THE LEDGE.

DUDO HAS TO INSPECT EVERY SQUARE INCH.

I HEADED OUTSIDE FOR A DIFFERENT VIEW.

BFFs.