Roemin abit

Its a beautiful start to the the day, but then it would be cos we have to go home today. After packing and breakfast we wandered down to the little shops and bought a couple of cheap t-shirts for motor homing. There was enough time for a last coffee and churros in the sun (24 degs)  before picking up the cases and taking a taxi to the airport (only €17). Arrived to find that French air traffic are on strike again so we were delayed for an hour. Then a strong jet stream added 25mins to the flight and made for a bumpy ride at times. At least our taxi was on time and we arrived home at 8:00pm, later than planned but enough time to sift through the mountains of junk mail before retiring. My two pairs of sun glasses (ordered for the holiday) arrived while we were away of course. 

The wind and sea fell calm overnight and its going to be a nice day today. However Mark and Christina have to fly home this morning and we bade farewell to them straight after breakfast. We are going to promenade down to Benalmadena this morning/afternoon and be back in time for Katie to catch her flight this evening. We walked down the promenade to Benalmedena in a mixture of sunshine and clouds with a bit of shopping en route. Stopped at Larry's for lunch, paella with a bottle of wine, on special, accompanied by some of Katies favourite boquerones. Bit more shopping then stopped for coffee and watched a flock of migrating birds, that had been sitting on the sea, take flight and circle to gain height. They were almost out of sight above us before they headed off north. Rosemary had a huge piece of chocolate cake and Mark Whatsapp'd us to say they had arrived home OK. There was just enough time to catch a few rays on the hotel balcony before we accompanied Katie to the s...

According to the local weather channel we are in a "nightmare" scenario this morning, with strong winds and 6 ft waves in Malaga. Must admit there are lots of white horses on the sea and the palm trees are swaying a bit,  but nightmare is a bit OTT. We played a lot of games in the hotel while the nightmare continued outside. A deck chair was blown into the pool and bits of palm tree were observed on the road. The rains had stopped by the evening and we were able to run across the road to get some tapas for a late lunch. There was even a bright rainbow over Malaga for a short time but the wind continued after dark. Some of the carnival events in places on the Costa were cancelled and flights from as far away as Gibraltar and Seville diverted. Its not been a good season for carnival weekends. We hit the cocktails again after dinner and played Triominoes until (almost) everyone had won one a game. It was almost 1 am.

The first rain since we arrived here today. Just walked along the prom in the direction of Malaga for coffee then back again for lunch, when it started to rain. Made a short detour to see a fine old house built for the Navajos family and gifted to the community in the 90's. Not a lot to see except the ornate building construction, with lots of typical tiling. Played Triominoes (3 sided dominoes) in the Copacobana restaurant after a long tapas lunch, including sardinas, until it stopped raining, then took the elevator into town to shop. Katie and Christina bought flashy new hippie tops. We played 9 spot dominoes after dinner until midnight. Rosemary had her first cocktail (of the holiday), a decaff Espresso Martini.

Nice sunny day again. After breakfast we caught some rays around the pool and Mark taught me how to play Backgammon. Katie is flying in today but her flight was delayed by 40 mins. We met her at the station where they are erecting a huge marquee, presumably for next weeks carnival. After getting Katie booked in we walked around the promenade towards Benalmedena looking for a sunny bar to have some tapas. Then we walked back along the shore collecting shells and paddling in the med.

Its Rosemary's birthday today and Mark and Christina are joining us later. They have been in Copenhagen for a few days break where its been rather cold, so it will be a nice surprise when they get here. We had a late breakfast, with a glass of Cava and Bucks Fizz, then Rosemary went to the hotel hairdresser while I relaxed around the pool and read some more of my book. Rosemary was pleased with her Spanish style hair cut. Mark and Christina arrived just before 2:00 after walking the long way round to the hotel. When they had checked-in we all went for lunch at the Banana Bar. We showed them where the supermarkets can be found and they caught up with some sleep after two flights and a late night in two days. Made contact with Katie who is coming to join us tomorrow.