Pat and Tom on the GO!

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

Three M's -Maureen, Mijis, and Malaga, Spain

Maureen Haggard came from Brussels for MLK weekend. We had a fabulous time and she got some sun for one of the days! These goofy chairs are in the lobby of the MS Aramagua where we stayed for 19 days on the Costa del Sol.

Mail from home. Such a warm hug.

Mijas a small mountain town near the Costa del Sol.

Characters in Mijas. (Mee kass)

The bull ring in Mijas

Tapas and beer for a great lunch in Mijas.

Malaga - the Cathedral.

The roman ampitheater in Malaga.

It was a rainy day in Malaga but still had a great day.

Lunch in Malaga.

The Picasso Museum in Malaga. He was born there and lived there until he was 10 years old.

Some of my paintings done in Spain.

A sunny day in Malaga, and a rainy one in Malaga.

Monday, January 12, 2015

A trip to the Rock of Gibralter, UK

A great violin concert at our favorite restaurant - The Canto del Agua

Gibralter, UK

A mosque near the Rock - there were 9,000 Morrocans who came to Gibralter to work after Franco closed the Spainish border and prevented the Spanish from working in Gibralter when the referendum failed to have Gibralter revert back to Spain. A mosque was built for the Muslim Morrocans.

The Rock, A light house on the point and a very windy day.

Beautiful.

Quite a view of Gibralter from the rock.

These tailess monkeys were brought by sailors to Gibralter during the 18th century. There are about 240 of them on the rock and they all have a name. This inquistive monkey reached out to touch the cord on my jacket.

A Statue commemorating the defense of Gibralter during WWII. There are extensive tunnels under the rock built by the Canadians for possible defense and hospitals - they were never needed.

The home of the govenor is a former convent.

Tom is checking out a square on the main street of Gibralter. Good news: I found yarn in Gibralter. I had run out of my stash I bought in Brussels and was in a sheer panic!

Saturday, January 10, 2015

Granda and more

This is the "And more"

Mail from home. How sweet it is...

Missing you too.

Restaurants on the strand in Torremolinos.

Our favorites: Canto del Agua and the Chinese Hong Kong.

The Alhambra in Granada, Spain

This is a walled city which began with the Moors. They were conquered by the Catholics, and later the Catholics were conquered by Napoleon, who destroyed many of the buildings.

Beautiful gardens and fountains in the patios which were the most important rooms in a palace or home.

Doorways, archways, all very old and very beautiful.

Tiles, sculpture, mosaics on the walls and ceilings. Some of this is writing in Farsi which can be read today.

Upper left is a mosaic from the Catholics.

Middle left is an example of the ceiling in the Sultans palace.

The city of Granda. Lower left is a university building. Upper left is a cathedral.

The lower picture is the old silk market.

Columbus bowing before Queen Isabel before he left on his voyage which would bring him to America.

The city of Granda was also a walled city.This is a remnant of the wall. There are homes dug into the mountain where the gypsies live to this day. All you can see is the opening to the caves.

Laundry done at the hotel. Can you guess how much this cost?

One pair of jeans, one hanky, five shirts.

56.00 Euros.

Monday, January 5, 2015

Torremolinos, Costa del Sol, Spain

Tasty treats in a bakery in Torremolinos, The Feast of the Three Kings -one of the kings at the outdoor square on January 5, and ice skating in a square in town at 65 degrees.

Our hotel, The MS Aramagua.

An artist on the beach making personalized necklaces, A beautiful statute in the square on the beach, and really cool paddle boats for rent with slides on them.