Bittersweet Goodbyes

I spent a wonderful week with my parents, exploring Spain and sharing with them all my favorite parts of Málaga. It's funny how fast time goes by when you think back; when I first arrived in Spain I didn't think my parents would ever get here! They were planning on staying for about 6 days, but Spain had different plans for them. On Thursday when they were scheduled to fly out, a "Huelga General" or a General Strike was held nation wide in Spain. I have never experienced a strike firsthand, nonetheless in a different country, but it was interesting to be here during the strike and to learn more about the culture. 

I not only had the opportunity to play tour guide and show off all of my favorite parts of the city, but we also took two trips to neighboring cities. My dad is a brave sole and we decided to rent a car to make our trips a little easier. There is never a dull moment when traveling with my parents and our first adventure to Ojen and Marbella led us onto a back country road. The GPS recognized the road as a road on the map, but the donkeys and the pile of rocks in front of our car begged to differ. I wish I had thought better on my feet and video taped the event, but talk about commitment, my mom was so determined to get us through that she got out of the car and starting chucking rocks out of the way. Our attempts were unsuccessful and we had to break down and ask for directions. Lesson learned- do not trust the GPS. We then had lunch in Ojen and explored the Spanish version of mountains that do not even compare to our mountains in Colorado. We then continued onto Marbella and spent the rest of the afternoon appreciating the architecture and wandering the tiny city streets. 

City of Ojen

Our next adventure led us to Gibraltar to see the apes. My dad corrected me and they are not monkeys, they are apes. What a cool experience! I have never in my life been so close to an ape, granted that I was still the one to scream and run away at the slightest sudden movement. My mom was the brave one and one of the apes even grabbed her shoulder to pose for a picture. Scary! Gibraltar was a much needed break from Spanish as my parents were definitely putting my Spanish skills to the test. The only disappointing part of the trip was that it was too cloudy for us to see Africa. 

The Rock of Gibraltar

The strike was a blessing in disguise, that gave me a few extra days with my parents. It was hard to say goodbye, but this starts the countdown... less than 1 month until I come home. I'm trying to take in as much as I can in the next month.