Marbella Day 4 - Travel Photography

Our last day in Marbella consisted of beach, beach and more beach. After such a hectic day yesterday, it was certainly nice to be able to relax for most of the day. 

Before dinner, I had a chance to walk around the Casco Antiguo (Old City) of Marbella, hitting some of the spots that I missed on Saturday. I was also able to get into the cathedral which was really beautiful but had to leave quickly as a service was about to start. As I stopped in the square outside the cathedral to put away my camera, a pigeon took the opportunity to relieve itself directly above me (don't worry, the camera is fine). Whether it was spite from heaven for leaving the cathedral before the service or just a freak coincidence, I cannot really be sure but all I know is that the outcome could have certainly been worse than the quarter-sized bird dropping that landed on my shoulder.

We leave tomorrow morning for Sevilla so stay tuned for more adventures!

Gibraltar - Travel Photography

After much hype, today was the day of the day-trip to Gibraltar. The line to get across the border from Spain took far longer than the 40 minute drive from where we are staying.

No matter how many photos you see of the place, none of them can quite capture the sheer size of 'The Rock.' Not only is it just a huge shining white beacon at the mouth of the Mediterranean, it has a decidedly different feel from the Spanish mainland. The streets are narrower, architecture follows more of an English style (whatever that means) and every square inch of available real estate is used for either a building or sidewalk.

Probably the highlight of the day was the Upper Rock Nature Reserve which also included some of the most dicey driving of the whole trip. Going up a 30 degree incline, inches away from a cliff that is hundreds of feet tall is certainly an interesting sensation to say the least. Wild Barbary Macaques roam the reserve freely and are very playful (and sometimes just a little bit devious) around tourists who tend to crowd around them as they sit on the side of the road, minding their own business. At one point, one adventurous ape jumped on the back of a tourist down the road from us and seemed to get caught in her hair. Rather than panic as any normal person would do, the woman calmly shook the monkey off her back and went about her business as if nothing had happened.

After finishing up with the macaques, we went about the rest of our tour through the reserve, stopping at St. Michael's Cave, The Siege Tunnels, Moorish Tower and Grand Casemates Square where we saw glassblowers making wine glasses. All were of significance to the visit as a whole but could not really compare with the monkeys on the rock. 

Marbella Day 3 - Travel Photography

Not much to shoot today on our hike and subsequent siesta for most of the afternoon. I do really like the photo I was able to get from the top of the hike of Marbella and the Mediterranean but that is really the only one from today.

Headed to Gibraltar tomorrow. Hopefully we will see some of the famous Macaques that roam the rock!

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Not pictured is the 40% grade that we had to hike up but I'd say it ended up being worth it.

Marbella Day 2 - Travel Photography

If I had to use only one word to describe our first real day in Marbella, it would have to be 'Relaxed.' We spent a good part of the day on the beach enjoying the absolutely perfect weather (which apparently is the same for 300 days a year). In the late afternoon, we went to the old city where we walked around the tile streets taking in the sights and sounds. I happened to stumble upon a wedding reception outside the main cathedral of Marbella which was certainly unexpected but interesting to see the differences and similarities to American weddings and receptions.