Benagalbón is a village near the Mediterranean where our ancestors lived before moving to small villages on the other side of Malaga. This man, Miguel Alba Trujillo has helped me find documents. He is a historian and author of several books about the village. Over the years, I have met his wife Isabel, known as Isa, and the friendships are sweet. Saturday, he and Isa walked me and Steven around the village and then treated us to a wonderful lunch with flowers everywhere. The iglesia, Parroquia Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria, was nearby to remind us that our great grandfather was probably baptized there.
Chocolate and churros! Marcos García Narváez, in Malaga, and I have friends through the Hawaiian Facebook page for several years and when he suggested chocolate for our meetup, it was a definite yes. He led us through a few narrow streets from Calle Marqués de Larios, more simply known as Calle Larios, a magical street in central Malaga. He led us to the Casa Aranda, promising the wait would be worth it because this place was the best. Of course it is, as it’s one of our Spanish ancestral names…It did not take Steven and I long to agree. Creamy chocolate and freshly, made churros. Delicious
And then, our Wine and Tapas walking tour with my friend, Javier Fernandez Elena at 6:00 after retracing our walk from Casa Aranda to Calle Larios, a popular meeting point. Javi was the translator for the film crew when I was in the documentary, Pasaje a Hawaí in 2017. Since then, he changed occupations and he’s the best tour guide! This is tour number three for me, but Steven’s first. The oldest tavern in Malaga is Antigua Casa de Guardia, 192 years old. The back wall is lined in wine barrels and people stand at little tables or the bar. No chairs. It does move the people along. The tapas were grilled peppers and another with pickled onions, anchovies and green olives. I liked the olives… The wine was a Málaga wine (por supuesto-of course) and not a big favorite, but it is one of their signature vinos, Muscatel. Javi pointed to the doorway after leading all twelve of us through a wide alley; no tavern sign “because everyone knows where it is.” However, Steven found another door and took a photo of the front, with a sign.
The right bottom photo is intriguing. While I was taking photos as Javi described the history of the bar and the wine being served, this man needed to open the cabinet beside me. He reached into the dark space and removed two empty wine bottles and walked to one of the barrels. Grabbing a funnel, he filled the bottle and then moved to another barrel to fill the second one. You point to the wine barrel with the wine you want and he fills it on the spot. I didn’t see money exchange hands and briefly wondered how much a personally filled bottle would cost.
We stopped at one tapas bar and two restaurants where we were served wine and very interesting and good tapas. The Chinitas Restaurante was my favorite because there were so many photo opportunities. It is one of the most popular restaurants in Malaga. I lagged behind as Javi led the group upstairs to a private dining room. I sat on the step to take the photo of the little girl. When I saw the señorita painting, I squeezed into another corner for her. Beautiful decor, very old wood and excellent tapas; croquettes, fried rosada (fish) and rioja wine. The little girl in the 1989 fería advertisement reminded me of my youngest daughter…
Steven enjoyed his last swim.
I packed my bags.
Steven made us bowls of fresh gazpacho filled with avocado, cucumbers and tomatoes.
It is so nice to be waited on by my brother, who is a smiling cook.
I inhaled the last day of sea breezes and the sounds of the city where the culture is slow and easy.
Tomorrow, a train ride to Madrid.
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