OK, I think it´s Wednesday morning right now- the days run together and I get a little confused at times. i´m in the bus station in Malaga waiting for a bus to nerja, and there happens to be an internet cafe here. how convenient.
Anyway, my solo travels so far have been excellent. Cordoba was absolutely delightful. My hostel was precious, on one of those tiny european streets with a courtyard and a fountain, and a rooftop terrace. i spent a lot of time chillin by the river, wandering through gardens and relaxing at outdoor cafes.
i came to Malaga on Monday. i was definitely not impressed at first. i´ve read about there being a really high crime rate here, and when i arrived it basically looked like a trashy mediterranean city. i watched to cab drivers get into a very animated screaming match while i tried to make my way to the hotel, the hotel wouldn´t let me check in for an hour and a half, and when i tried to go for a relaxing walk i stumbled into an enormous, DISGUSTING, smelly meat warehouse/open market. then i watched some people looking through the raw meat in the trash, and went to sit by the concrete river for an hour. that is definitely the moment that my crankiness started.
my grouchiness reached its peak about 24 hours later when i was on a filthy bus up to ronda. a grimy man sold me my bus ticket, the bus took almost 1 1/2 hours longer than it should have, a big, fat, sweaty german was in the seat next to me taking up half of my seat, and we wove through the mountains on the tiniest, most curvaceous roads i´ve ever seen. not only did this make my german companion lean all over me around every 2nd turn, but i had to pee soooooo badly. it was quite a ride.
the funny thing about being in a bad mood here is that it´s just me, ya know? i´m only getting on my own nerves. so anyway, my crabiness was officially undone by the unbelievable landscape of ronda and some quality time hanging out on the edge of a cliff. i got back to malaga last night and explored the classier part of town, including 2 awesome, ancient palace/fortress type things.
i´m going to what is supposedly a really pretty part of the coast today, and maybe to visit some caves, too. i´m really having a wonderful time, to the point that it actually surprises me a little. there was one moment when i first stepped of the bus in cordoba when i thought, ¨ok, where am i? where am i supposed to go right now? what am i doing????¨ it´s the same feeling of being free/exhilarated/terrified that i felt when i got my first car and my first apartment. it felt strange at first to know that there´s no one looking for me, no one waiting for me, expecting me, etc. i´m genuinely alone here. crazy.
anyone, i haven´t driven myself nuts yet. i haven´t felt an ounce of loneliness (which is a relief.) and i´m reading books like it´s my job. life is good in andalucia. xoxo-k
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