El Carro has true grit: Inside Malaga

 A necessary errand in Malaga changed sour lemons into lemonade after El Carro drove like a champ and I held on for dear life.  My eyes flew from the rear view mirror, side mirror, traffic lights, roundabouts and pedestrian walkways.  I dodged cars and crazy motor cyclists when they wove between the cars on narrow streets or zipped in front of me.  Despite biting holes in El Carro's seats,  with two sets of eyes, we found our way.  Even though I missed the parking garage, Rina spied a parking space on a dead end street and I swerved in.

We'd overshot El Pimpi by a few streets, the restaurant my friend Vicky introduced me to last week.  But with a map and her phone GPS, we were back in tune and found the Plaza Merced.  A short walk.  A glass of wine.  Ambience.  My ensalada malagueña con patatas, salmorejo, naranja y bacalao asado and Ahumados: Salmón, juliana de cebolleta, crema de queso y huevo for la comida sent me to food heaven.  Rina laughed at the bliss on my face as I bit into that salmon.

We ambled over to the Roman ruins to marvel at the old stone and imagined the events that took place so long ago.  When we walked through the large square near Picasso's childhood house, we found him on a bench!  Rina whispered sweet somethings in his ear.  I told him we shared the Ruiz name.

We tasted sherry at El Pimpi where I bought two adorable espresso cups with its logo...red, my fave color with polka dots.

And then?  We had the car event waiting for us...because the afternoon adventure included Lyn M. in Los Nuñez, la casa redonda, the dogs and the panoramic view I longed to see again.  She welcomed us with open arms, like always.  She is a rare gift.   We had a lovely visit in the hills.

On the way through the villages toward Calahonda later, I swerved into Venta Gloria at the last minute to say hello to cousins and we enjoyed café con leche with rice pudding!

And then we whipped some lemons into lemonade again!

I can now drive through the entire length of Campanillas from Cártama and wind my way back to the correct highway...toward Torremolinos and Calahonda.

When we followed the Mediterranean Sea west again, past Benalmádena, Fuengirola, Mijas Costa, Cala de Mijas, Riviera and back up Calle de España toward home, the sun was going behind the mountain.  A slight breeze eased the 80 degree temps and the house welcomed us home.

TOMORROW (Thursday) Granada!  Rina will share her old memories with me of this grand old city as we create new ones.  She promises the lure and magic of flamenco dancing in the caves of Sacromonte and the wondrous magic of the Alhambra before she flies back to America.

But we won't count the days before she leaves, only the days she will continue to share my Spanish adventure and meld it with her own.