Lots of walking, and a little hunkering down...

 Hello from Estepona-

It's been another week, a full month since leaving Cazenovia in the deep-freeze, and we've been a little chilly here ourselves this week.  Most of the weather this past week has been in the high 50's in temperature, but blustery low clouds, occasional rain, and strong winds (20mph+) off the Mediterranean have made things a bit more challenging for outdoor activities.  

We also decided to stay mostly indoors for about 5 days as a precaution, as we both may have picked up a mild Covid infection at the end of the week before (we each had a sore throat and felt lethargic for +/-3 days beginning last Sunday)... it didn't result in a positive using our home Covid tests, but we've read that's often the case for those with boosted vaccination status, and with Omicron being milder to begin with... at any rate, better safe than potentially spreading anything to others!   We did get out for a few walks along the beach, and one up into the local hills once we started feeling a bit more energetic, but Scott even took a full week off his bike so as not to overstress his immune system ;-)  

We were pretty much back at full strength by the weekend, and that's when our local weather began to turn for the better as well, so we're looking forward to the coming week!   Yesterday the sun was out and the temp hit 68F, and I managed to decipher the local cycling club's Facebook & Strava pages (Union Ciclista Virgen del Carmen Estepona) and joined up with their weekly Sunday ride.   

That was really interesting experience, as we went out for 70 fast miles with a very international group.  Ultimately I ended up riding with 3 Spaniards, a Brit, a Russiona, and a Ukranian; we quickly decided that no politics would be discussed!  Unlike most of the groups I ride with in the US, this one ranged widely in age (21 up to me at the oldest at almost 63; and alomst entirely male--- one young woman out of about 35 or so).  Still-- a very nice group to ride with and some great scenery!  I hope to rejoin them next weekend :-)

Our lone venture out at the end of the week was up to Castello de Castellar de la Frontera, a tiny little village still entirely enclosed within the original 12th century Moorish defensive walls, atop a rocky promentory looking down toward Gibraltar. 

Most of the housing in the village had been converted to hotel units, and there was a single very nice restaurant, where we were able to get lunch in out of the wind.   

It was our first indoor meal since arriving in Spain, and we decided this was the place to give that a try, as we were the only people eating there!  It was also the first time that we had been asked to show vaccination cards to be seated :-)

We also noticed that there were bunches of what appeared to be monarch butterflies... And lo and behold, there is a non-native naturalized population living in southern Spain! Apparently the castello is one of their homes :-)

 That's about it for this week from Spain!

Cheers!

Daytripping on the Costa del Sol...

Buenos dias!  Well... it's the weekend, so it's time for another update from Estepona :-)  This week has passed by quickly, with both Norma and I settling into daily routines, as well as a couple of days out to travel along the coast to see something new or interesting.  Most days start later than at home in Caz, as the sun doesn't even rise until nearly 8:30 (a quirk of being on the far west of the single European time zone!).  With our generally good weather holding here (dry, with morning clouds, & afternoon sun), I've taken to walking into town to look for something to sketch in the mid-morning, while Norma works remotely on her SU development stuff.  Then I've taken several bike rides mid-afternoon to take advantage of the warmest part of the day--- usually with temps in the high 50's or low 60's. I did one long loop up into the mountains last week of about 100km, but with the amount of climbing thaty entails (8,800'), BIG rides are the exception, not the rule for getting exercise :-) 

 Norma gets out daily for a walk, either a longer one along the beach boardwalk, or shorter and up & down the hills in our neighborhood.  

We also took a couple of day-trips to get out and see a few new things and places.  Top of the list was a day out to Tarifa, the southernmost point in continental Europe. 

There is a really cool set of Roman ruins Baela Claudia) nearby that we visited in the morning, before having lunch in the old Moorish section of Tarifa.  Baela Claudia has been extensively excavated by archeaologists over the past 50 years or so, and there is a really nice museum on site that supplements the opportunity to walk around the ruins. 

Tarifa is also very well know for it's gorgeous beaches, and it's kite-surfing.  With it's location just out into the Atlantic beyond the Strait of Gibraltar, the wind blows pretty consistently year round--- and particularly well in the winter months... and the wind-surfers and kite-surfers really take advantage!

Yesterday afternoon we also drove east onlong the coast past Malaga to visit Nerja.   It's a small city about the size of Estepona, and sounded interesting from what we could see on line.   It turned out to be not too different from Esterpona, aside from being set on cliffs along the beach--- kind of reminiscent of Laguna Beach in California... a nice outing with a good walk & a little sktching thrown in :-)

On one of my afternoon bike rides this week, I drove 20 minutes down the coast to try a "re-do" of the loop that I got lost on last week.  This time I loaded the course onto my Garmin, and immediately figured out where my path got off xourse last week!  Most roads are very well marked here in Spain, with directional and distance signs posted regularly and in logical locations; but every now and then, particularly within a village or small town, they completely miss one, and that was the case last week ;-)  This week's ride ran up the Guadiano river valley from San Martin through orange & avocado groves to a "pueblo blanco" named Jimena de la Frontera, and then looped back down a second river valley to return to where I parked the car. 

 A beautiful ride with a bit more like what I'm used to in terms of climbing back in central New York (34 miles, 1500' of climbing :-)

The big "happening" this week in Estepona occured on Friday, when a HUGE dead whale washed up on the beach in the middle of town.  It was identified as a "Fin Whale" and measured about 12 meteres long (about 40'). 

Several hundred curious bystanders (Norma & I included :-) hung around while the local emergency services folks tried to figure out how to remove the whale from the beach, including a crane to load the beast onto a flatbed truck!  It was a miracle the bloated whale didn't burst while hanging in the air above the truck, while all the emergency crews tried to figure out how to best balance a load that was essentailly a giant bag of jello.  Yesterday we read in the local news that after getting the carcasse loaded and moved, it was refused at the landfill, so they ultimately brought it back to the beach, and dragged it back out to the water, and towed it well off-shore there they weighted it down and sank it... "concrete shoes... or fins in this case I guess?" ;-)

That's about it for week three in Spain... we hear it's a bit on the chilly side at home in Cazenovia, but not much snow, so hopefully folks are keeping warm!

Cheers

Settled in in Estepona

Hello all- Not much earth shattering going on here in Spain this week. We're mostly settling into everyday life- international version, in Covid times ;-) We've been walking regularly, Scott's been cycling up into the mountains every-other day or so, and both Norma and Scott have spent about half of each day working on various projects (Norma continuing her development work for SU, and Scott working on both pencil & digital sketches). 

The weather this past week was a bit on the cool and blustery side- mid-to-high 50's and mixed clouds and sun, with a smattering of rain blowing in off the Meditteranean. Our big news for the week was renting a cheap local car (a bit beat up Ford Fiesta :-), that for $340 per month, will make lots of things a bit easier/more convenieint! One thing having a car makes possible is getting to lot's of intersting places for walks or bike rides. On Satuday, I decided to head to out to ride a set of valley's inland from Guadiaro, about 20 minutes south of here on the coast - where the terrain is not quite so dominated by mountains (I like climbing, but having no choice but to go only up or down gets old :-). With a planned loop of roughly 30 miles, I proceeded to get pretty remarkably lost on roads winding through orange groves and lined with Italian cypress & Eucaluptus. I eventually ended up about 10 miles west of where I thought I should be (thanks very much Google maps - not! Although user error was clearly part of the problem--- one does need to "zoom out" occasionally!). So after figuring out a bit more prcecisely just where I was, I started trying to head back to the car on the most direct route I could find. Sooo... one of the other shortcomings in Google maps is that it does not really differentiate much when it comes to road size or surface-- i.e., as far as Google is concerned, its either an interstate highway, or a local road. So I headed east on a promising, "numbered" road, equivalent to a county highway in upstate NY. After about 5 kilometers, it still was marked with mumber designation (CA-0575) signs, but it was getting narrower and narrower... then, it turned to hard packed gravel, and finally, sort of a well traveled goat track (still had those road signs though!)... 

After stopping to again check Google for about the 10th time, and comparing that to the map on my Garmin, about 10 guys on mountain and gravel bikes rode up from the opposite direction. I managed to communicate where I was hoping to go in Spanish, they confirmed that I could eventually get to Guadiaro if I kept going "a la direcho!" :-) ...after another couple of km's, the road changed back to pavement, but turned south toward the coast, and up over a ridge... which, of course, turned out to be about the highest point anywhere on the way to Guadiano ;-) At least it meant after climbing almost 500' up, most of the rest of the way back to the car was downhill. In addition to bike riding, we're trying to get out to enjoy a little bit of local cuisine now and then, but until it gets a bit more consistently warm and sunny, we're tending to save our pennies and eat at home (particularly with so many interesting things to try from the grocery store!). But... with the weekend, yesterday we did venture down to our nearest neighborhood "chiringuito," or beach-side restaurant/bar. It was cool, but not so much that we couldn't enjoy a glass of wine and a plate of really good fried baby squid (chipirones).

 Then today (Sunday), we drove up and over the Sierra Bermeja to a really cool litle pueblo blanco, Genalguacil.

The town is set on the end of ridgeline, deep in a side-valley of the Rio Genil. After wandering the winding, cobbled medieval streets, we had a nice lunch in a tiny cafe with all of three tables on a sun-dappled terrace.

We then enjoyed a great 4 mile walk along the road through the cork oaks, olives, and flowering almond trees... absolutely gordgeous!

Until next week- Cheers!

Week two... Winter in Spain

 "Regular" life in Spain...

So... Norma and I have been here for one full week as of today, and so far, we are enjoying "semi-retired" life very much! After a week of running errands and getting out of twon to see a few interesting spots this week while we had a car, we drove back to Malaga yesterday and dropped it off at the airport and took the bus back home to Estepona.  We are now officially pedestrian, bicycle,  and mass-transit users only for at least a little while.  While in Malaga, we walked along the port quayside, and then in and around the old city center, which was first built up in Roman times (there is even an exensive Roman amphitheater that's been excavated right on the edge of the downtown).   We stopped for a nice light lunch and some sketching at a cafe in the "old town" where we once again were floored by how inexpensive things are... Cafe con leche (made with a double shot of espresso) was only $1.50, and my bacon and cheese sandwich on a perfect baguette was $2.50! Much as I love Starbucks, this was far superior ;-)

How long will we go without a car?  We're not completely certain, but Norma has been digging on line and found a local company (purplecars.es) that rents "well used" but mechanically sound cars for as little as $249/month.  As soon as one of their cars gets returned, they are supposed to call us and perhaps we'll get a "cheapo" reantal for a couple of months to get around & do the grocery shopping :-)  More on that when we actually hear back...

As noted, we have been getting out an about pretty regularly for exercise.  Scott has taken three pretty good bike rides up into the mountains (up to 3500' today), and the two of us have been walking several miles a day, and often more.  Over the weekend, we took a long hike up the service road that goes from the Puerto de Penas Blancas (the mountain pass directly ubove Estepona), to a "refugio" that has a small restaurant operating Friday to Monday for hikers and campers.  We each had a bowl of the most fantastic home-made tomato soup we've ever tasted!  It might have been partly due to having walked 4 miles to get to it, but it was damn good even without the walk :-)  Here's some picures of the views along the hike...

One of the things we really enjoy about living abroad is getting to do all of the routine things we do at home in a whole different setting.  Stuff like grocery shopping takes on a whole new shine when everythings looks, smells, and tastes a little different.  Even when some things are the same (we have found the local Aldi supermarket-- which even though I love our little Aldi in Cazenovia, is FAR superior here in Estepona).  Maybe it was the $3.00 bottles of brut champagne, or the chesse section that runs about 30' long, or more than likely, the boxes of heavenly dark chocolate truffles for $1.25... yes, we really need all that walking and cycling so we can still fit on the plane to fly home in May :-)  

Tonight we celebrated our first week in Spain coming to a close with the "great truffle taste-off."  The afore-mentioned truffles from Aldi's, matched up against the $1.00 truffles from the Carrefore market, which we stumbled on coming back from this afternoon's walk.  While it was a tough one to choose, I definitely leaned toward the Aldi truffles...  

That's all for now...  Time to settle in with a glass of wine, truffles, and a nice wood fire in the fireplace... Cheers!

Getting to know Estepona...

Welcome back to the sunny Costa del Sol!  

Norma and I have been settling in for the past several days, and so far all is well! Our apartment is working out well, and we love the neighborhood- about a 5 minute walk to the beach, or to the grocery store. We have a gorgeous view out to the Mediterranean with Gibraltar in the distance...

We've rented a car our first week, so we are getting out for some short drives to walk in neighboring towns, and after a two day delay, my bike finally arrived last night ;-)  Today was a good example of a near perfect day wandering... A bike ride in the morning about a third of the way up the Puerto fel Penas Blancas climb (+1200') to see how my assembly went (perfect!), then a drive up to the village of Casares for a walk, lunch, and some sketching!

Lunch was at a great little cafe with this view onto a little plaza. Goat stew for lunch- really good! Norma and I wandered all over the village, up and all around, with spectacular views from the old Moorish castle!  

.Needless to say, we got our exercise today  ;-)

We have our car for another couple of days before we return it to the airport in Malaga, so we'll probably get out and wander more in the countryside over the weekend, then stay closer to home next week when we are pedestrians :-)

Cheers!

Off to Spain!!

Welcome to the Spain 2022 blog!

Over the next 4+ months, I’ll be posting periodic ramblings to bring everyone up to date as Norma and I travel for our first post-retirement/sabbatical journey to warmer winter climes. In this case, we will be spending 3 months in Estepona, Spain, on the Costa del Sol, just east of Gibraltar.  We left Cazenovia in light snow & freezing rain, and got off to an inauspicious beginning by boarding on time, and then sitting on the plane dealing with a mechanical issue in for 90 minutes without leaving the gate in Syracuse… So we ended up missing our first connecting flight in Chicago, and after spending several hours in various lines to get rebooked (including an aborted attempt to route us through London instead of Madrid (which required a rapid Covid test!), we headed off to rough it overnight at the airport Hilton (both Norma and I both are way too old to sleep at the gate- retirement upgrade #1). The American Airlines booking agents were kind, but clearly frustrated with all the chaos they were being asked to unravel- our’s declared that we had the most screwed up booking they had ever seen!  

So... have you ever wondered how far you walk when your are in airport hell? Just for kicks, I tracked our day two wandering in O'Hare on Strava... apparently it's quite a lot! 5.8 odd miles going back and forth in one line after another ;-)

Eventually, we managed to board the proper flight to Madrid, 24 hours late, and that brings us here to the Priority lounge where I’m putting this post together.

Norma snagged us a great deal on a credit card (Chase Sapphire Visa) that includes access to private airport lounges all over the world, and it’s paying for itself nicely today.  It’s comfortable, uncrowded, and includes free food that is a big step up from the typical airport fare at ridiculous prices ;-) (retirement upgrade #2!). We have an 8 hour layover here, so it’s really nice to be able to relax and take advantage of this, as well as the free WiFi!

So… so far, so good. We are enjoying being in Spain already, as we breezed through customs and the Covid health check points, and we’ll be on our way to Malaga this afternoon.  From there, we have a rental car that will take us to Estepona, and our home-away-from-home for the next three months!  More on that in the coming days! Cheers :-)