Work

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Balancing Act

Another very full working day has come to a close. This past week has been exceptional. I have nine active clients at present. I have regular steady work with two of them, a few check in several times during the month, and the rest tend to appear right around the time I archive them as inactive. I’ve never had to balance orders from more than four or five clients in a week, and those were exceptional weeks.

This past week, I have had large orders from all nine! And as if I didn’t have enough on my plate, one of those clients took a look at my skill set and shipped me off to another part of their department to have me do a test to see if I’d be any good at doing QA (quality assurance) for their web designers, something I’ve been wanting to get into for some time. So between the typing, I’ve been doing my homework ahead of the test, which I hope to complete satisfactorily tomorrow…

Let me tell you, after a solid month of almost nothing, it’s good to be this busy! But moreover, I love that I continue to move forward as my business continues to grow and new opportunities present themselves. I’m at the point where I’m starting to think about hiring a virtual assistant. Unfortunately, most of my contracts don’t lend themselves to being farmed out, ie. in my letting someone else do the grunt work while I manage the project, but that’s something I’m serious considering getting into, especially if I continue to get movie projects where I’m working directly for the client. If my Mexico plans work out and I settle down for a bit, it’ll definitely be time to start focusing on work more instead of only taking opportunities that work with my travel schedule.

It’s funny that I haven’t taken the housesitting into account as a job when it really is, but, really, so much of the work part of it is stuff that I would have to do if I was living in my own home. I certainly don’t consider making a cat breakfast or having to contort myself to write a blog post because the cat is hogging my lap and I have to put my computer at an odd angle a chore. My next sit will definitely be more work. Yes, I’ve lined up another one to replace the one that got cancelled and the dates are actually better as they will take me to just a few days before departure for Canada. With this one, I will try my hands at… puppy sitting. It’s going to be a huge responsibility, but I’m excited about it!

Well, I supposed it’s time to turn off the fire, coax the cat off my lap, and turn in so that I can start all over again tomorrow. It’s going to be another busy week, but one of the projects is ending on Friday and unless something exceptionally exceptional happens, I should have the weekend free. Who knows, I might get away to Leeds for a day. It’s really a balancing act, this peripatetic lifestyle, sometimes all play, sometimes all work, but I’m never bored!

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Boosting Morale

Work has gone from a 1/10 to 15/10 on the busyness scale after a much longer holiday hiatus than I could have expected. The last few days have been trying and there’s currently no end in sight. I really can’t complain and since I did so much touristy stuff in Amsterdam, I’m not having much trouble getting back into the work mode I was in in Spain as it feels like I’ve been on holidays for a solid month! I’ve only had just enough small jobs to keep me going into the red, but barely. I’m grateful to be at a point in my freelancing career where I was able to weather a break like that easily and without too much stress.

At any rate, I’ve been putting together a care package for a friend and promised to get it off to her this week. So that left today or tomorrow and I was planning on tomorrow so I could get everything with a hard deadline off to the clients by tonight. But it was actually sunny today, so going down to the village made sense. I headed out around 1:30 and got the final items for my friend, then went to the post office where I was able to package it all up for her and send it out. It was a much more positive experience than the last time I tried to mail something from the UK.

Then, I had lunch and what I’d been craving all week, Marco’s pizza! I was going to get a pizza from Tesco as the ones I like (Dr. Oetker) were on offer for £1.50, regular £2.50, but I’d rather pay the extra £3.50 and get real pizza! You know what I mean. Pizza that looks like this:

This one wasn’t quite as good as the one I had the first time as the crust was cooked a bit too long, but I’m being fussy. I love the super garlicky oil the drizzled over top and that a thoughtful server brought me some tap water before I had a chance to ask him for it. What a treat lunch was!

I’m rather shocked by how far my money is going here. The exchange rate compared to last June is definitely helping (then, £50 got me about 92CAD and now it’s only about 82CAD!). I am nowhere near being able to have the standard of living I had in the Balkans or Mexico in terms of being able to eat out or for a beer whenever I want, but the UK is proving to be yet another country where my dollar goes further than it does in Canada. What a surprise.

Well, my sunny trip and lovely lunch certainly boosted my morale. Back to the grindstone I go!

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The Royal Palace of Amsterdam

One of my orders for today never showed up (not a huge surprise with that client) and another one was mostly blank air — that I still get paid for in full. So I was done for the day by noon! Woohoo! I decided to head to Chinatown for lunch and then visit the Royal Palace of Amsterdam. Other than doing a proper tour of the Rijksmuseum, that would cover me for all the major Amsterdam Museums in case work really did end up pouring in. Spoiler: I really won’t have time to go out the next two days. And with the weather being as close to freezing and as foggy as it was today, I don’t think I would have made it out had I not had my Museumkaart as motivation, so yay for it!

Downtown Amsterdam has these neat electronic billboards with a switch that you can press to bring up a city map. I did that when the map suddenly switched to this amazing advert for “Sherlock,” whose next season I am ridiculously excited about being able to watch in real time (one episode here in Amsterdam, one in Hebden Bridge, and one at the cinema in Halifax!). This was very effective advertising and I actually caught several as I headed towards Dam Square.

For some stupid reason, I cannot stop using Google Maps even though it is a waste of space on my phone, so I ended up wandering around the Red Light District/Chinatown in circles trying to find the restaurant I was headed to. So yay for some extra sightseeing, if I want to be positive. But the app finally got deleted! Good riddance to rubbish taking up precious space on my phone.

You know how folks seem to think that French looks and sounds all pretty? Let me just say that the translation of that text is not lovely!

I found the New Season Chinese restaurant that had good reviews and was listed as a favourite by locals as well as considered “cheap eats” by Amsterdam standards. I really wanted some meat (trying to eat vegetarian at home to respect my vegan hosts), so I ordered a chicken and veggie stir fry with udon noodles and added very spicy red chile paste. SO good!

The server spoke perfect English and was very friendly, making me feel very welcome. She was quick with my drink order (beer, of course, since it’s practically the same price as anything else) and checked up on me. 13 euros total, which, believe me, is a good price for a sit down lunch with a beer in the parts of Amsterdam that I’ve been!

I then doubled back to Dam Square, which was VERY busy.

I have no idea how people find their bicycles!

Lots of people and pigeons in front of the Royal Palace. Darth Vader was playing a lament, presumably to Princess Leia. RIP.

One of the most amazing things that has come out of this great European adventure was seeing this sign and being able to giggle at the fact that I could recognise that they dropped the ball with the Russian! For those who are curious, the first word of the second line should be the second word of the first line, ie. in the big letters. “Welcome” is two words in Russian, so they basically have the Russian as “WEL (new line) come to…”

There was a very long queue to get into the Royal Palace. As I got closer to the ticket booth, a security card called out to anyone with a ticket or membership card of some type to go to him. I figured I qualified, so I did that and was able to not only get ahead of about two dozen people, but snag one of the last free audio guide players! The benefits of the Museumkaart aren’t just monetary!

The reception area was very busy, so I was surprised that there was barely any wait at the coat check.

I’m surprised by how much I love these monochromatic and rather posh Christmas decorations, considering how I tend to prefer bright colours and rougher textures.

The following is verbatim from several informational placards in the lobby area.

“The Royal Palace was built in the 17th century as the Town Hall of Amsterdam, after a design by Jacob van Campen. Its paintings and sculptures were made by some of the most distinguished artists of the time and allude to the city’s influence and prosperity in the Dutch Golden Age.

“In 1808, Louis Napoleon, brother of the French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, became King of Holland and converted the Town Hall into a Palace. The superb collection of Empire furniture, clocks, and chandeliers date from that period. The collection of Empire furniture is one of the best preserved and most complete collections in the world.”

“The Royal Palace of Amsterdam is one of three Places used by the Dutch Monarchy, notably for State Visits, Award Ceremonies, New Year’s Receptions, and other official functions. The building plays a role in royal marriages and in the abdication and investiture of the Monarch. When the Palace is not in use by the Royal House, it is open to the public.”

The tour was too fast paced and crowded to take notes, so I unfortunately have to rely on memory for everything the audio guide told us as there is very little actual signage within the palace. You also cannot use a flash, so most of my pictures are terrible. I’m going to include a few to show just how magnificent the building is, but, really, I cannot do justice to it. Do know that the building was embellished and turned into royal apartments during a two-year period at the start of the 19th century.

I started my tour in the last room because it wasn’t too crowded. This is the Tribune, where sentences were carried out in view of spectators in Dam Square.

There are three scenes portrayed in marble. This one is from the story of judge who would take both eyes of a rapist found guilty. One day, his son came before him and so the judge’s sentence was that his son lose only one eye and he, the judge, would lose an eye of his own.

This story was memorable. Two women are fighting over a child and there is a dead child at their feet. The judge has to decide who is the real mother of the child. So he rules that the living child will be cut in half. At this ruling, one of the women relinquishes her claim on the child, identifying her as the real mother.

Looking up to the Proclamation Chamber:

If you’re surprised that these snakes caught my eye, you haven’t been reading my blog for long.

The doors into the tribunal were also works of art:

This is the lectern where the sentence would be read.

People in Dam Square would look through these grates to see justice carried out.

Lady Justice is blind.

I then headed upstairs to the main part of the palace and all the public rooms available to view.

You enter into the magnificent Citizen’s Hall, which was meant to represent the World. It was originally a public space, then became a reception hall for the monarch. There are maps on the floor and the room is anchored by Atlas. Like in all the rooms, the audio guide explained the original purpose of the room when the building was the town hall, then the royal purpose, and finally, the modern purpose. You could also listen to optional audio about various objections. So, really, that was a lot of information to remember!

I could see Nova Scotia and Acadia (New Brunswick) on this map.

From this room, halls lead to the north and south galleries. The space is confusing to get around, but the audio guide does a good job of getting folks from one room to the next in a logical fashion. I got misplaced at one point, but a very helpful security guard got me sorted.

At this point, I was being bombarded with information, so I’m just going to give the name of each room and a picture or two. They all started to look alike and, frankly, I can’t remember which room with the word magistrate was once a queen’s apartments or the difference between the different treasuries!

Magistrate’s Chamber:

Little hallway space leading to the next room (I liked the floor).

Bust of the monarch Louis Napoleon (I think that was his name…).

Commissioners of Petty Affairs, where small things like neighbourly disputes were settled. I do remember that if you swore in this room, you had to pay one guilder!

Treasury Extraordinary:

This is the first room I encountered that has a bed. Get this. It’s actually a bedroom when the palace is closed to the public and has visitors. Can you imagine trying to relax in this room???!!! It was at this moment that it truly sunk in that I was not in a museum, but in a working building.

We exited into the South Gallery.

The Secretary’s Office:

Here’s the Treasury Ordinary, which is another bedroom:

Then the Burgomasters’ Cabinet:

And the Burgomasters’ Chamber:

I found myself in the Balcony Room/Proclamation Gallery looking down to the Tribune. This room leads to a balcony overlooking Dam Square where the Royal Family will present children, kiss at weddings, and do other such things, just like we see at Buckingham Palace in the UK.

Next up was the very cheerily named Execution Chamber, where the condemned would be brought up from the tribune to pray before being executed. After the building became a palace, it was a reception room for the Queen.

Next up, the City Council Chamber. This is where the modern monarch abdicates and the successor has his or her inauguration. Abdications and inaugurations? I’m not up on the protocols of the Netherlands royal family either, but it is quite different from that of the UK.

Then, I got lost on the way to the next room and found the Insurance Chamber, where I learned that insurance rates in Amsterdam were so low that people came from all over to buy their insurance.

Then, the Bankruptcy Chamber, where Rembrandt’s bankruptcy was processed (these two rooms appear to be mirror images of each other):

I made my way back to the Citizen’s Hall and a staff member directed me to my next destination, the Orphan’s Chamber, where the lives of children with only one or no parents were administered. Orphanages were also run from this room, which is now a bedroom for state functions. I’m trying to imagine myself as a guest sitting at that table writing a blog post…

Then, the Chamber of Accounts, whose bed actually looks comfy:

I can almost imagine curling up on that sofa. Almost.

The Chamber of the Magistrates Extraordinary:

That concluded my tour. I headed back out to Dam Square through these heavy doors. The wind was bitter and needling rain that threatened to turn to snow stung me.

One last glimpse before braving the weather.

The famous balcony:

The Royal Palace of Amsterdam is a breathtaking space, especially its Citizen’s Hall, and I learned a lot about the administration of Amsterdam during three periods of history. It’s definitely a must-see!

Fancy lamp post base on Dam Square

I stopped at the large Albert Heijn behind the Royal Palace to get some groceries and was rather overwhelmed by all the offerings and how Dutch can look so much like French and English in many regards, but not where it matters, like on ingredient lists! I was hoping to get sushi for dinner, but this store only had large plates of it.

Tired of throngs, I decided to try to make my home home through quieter streets and maybe even find the Albert Heijn where I got sushi over the weekend. Well, I made my way there with no detours! They had the smaller plates of sushi (yay!) and I was able to get home without any problems, although I didn’t take the exact same route I took on Sunday. It’s amazing to be getting somewhat orientated in such a confusing layout of a city. Once again, I am so very grateful to have the chance to truly live in Amsterdam in a proper home in a non-tourist area.

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Walking Tour of Amsterdam

I slept really well last night! I’m so lucky to be staying in yet another place with true blackout blinds. I left home around nine since I had a walking tour booked for 10:30 and I hoped to be able to buy my Museumkaart at De Nieuwe Kerk beforehand as it was the best recommended place to get a Museumkaart (little to no lineup) and right on Dam Square, where my tour would start.

Google got me to Dam Square without any problems, but it seriously overestimated how long it would take. Here are some things I passed along the way:

Very expensive tacos:

A quintessential Amsterdam scene:

The work of a crazy person who drove an RV in downtown Amsterdam:

Houses leaning forward (I would later find out why):

And now, Dam Square:

And De Nieuwe Kerk:

Magna Plaza shopping centre:

And the Royal Palace:

I had almost 30 minutes to kill before De Nieuwe Kerk opened, so I wandered around a bit, sort of thinking of getting a coffee, but I was put off by the prices of 3 euros or more for a basic espresso. It was cool and damp, but I was comfortable. After I had almost circled back to De Nieuwe Kerk, I found a café that offered me an Americano for just 2 euros! I later learned that a coffee here is about 2.50 (compared to about 1.20 in Spain). So I did very well! It was still pricy and wouldn’t be a daily treat, but I was pleased. The clerk even assumed I’d want it to go. I had it black since milk was extra.

I continued my wanderings in the gloom.

The Royal Palace is included in my Museumkaart so I may squeeze it in.

The National Monument.

Another shopping centre. So pretty with all the lights.

 

De Nieuwe Kerk opened right on time and there was no lineup. My Museumkaart was just shy of 60 euros (almost 90CAD) and came with a really cute shopping bag that folds up into a pouch. Nice bonus! If I see all the museums on my list (not counting any of the possible extra ones I discovered on this tour), I will save 90 euros, or almost 140CAD! I really love this kind of card because it’s a one-time expenditure that forces me to get out so I maximise my value.

See the ship at the top of the Royal Palace? It symbolises the Dutch empire and its trading all over the world.

So that was the first thing of real note on my free Amsterdam walking tour with Marius. I picked this tour because it had the best reviews. The tour was a bit slow to start as people were really late showing up, long enough for me to realise that I was going to be cold if we spent a lot of time standing, just because the damp was seeking into my bones. But we finally set off. I will not be able to do justice to everything Marius told us as he was full of trivia, but I’ll do my best!

We headed first into the Red Light District and stopped outside Condomerie, which had a very festive Christmas tree in its window that should tell you everything about what the store sells.

We then went into an alley way and were directed to this plaque above a doorway, showing what would have been sold in this building in days gone by (this is apparently a roll of fabric, not rotten sausage).

These blue and white signs indicate that the home had collapsed in the muddy, unstable foundation and been rebuilt.

I noticed a store advertising all manner of magic mushrooms.

And then we went to see “the girls.” That was surreal, to say the least and I refused to ogle. It was interesting to learn about how prostitution works here. The ladies pay 150 euros per day to rent a window. This is double what they paid a few years ago because the government is trying to cut down on how many windows there are and so landlords jacked up the prices. Each woman is an independent contractor who pays taxes and has some benefits. I’ve known a range of prostitutes from the ones who are in the business to support a hard core drug habit to those who do it because they genuinely love it and find it an easy way to earn good money. So I definitely cannot generalise about the lives of these women. All I can say is that prostitution has always existed and so will likely always exist. The way to protect women is to empower them to do this job legally and safely, not to force them into back alleys.

On we continued.

This is the old church, as opposed to the “new” church at Dam Square.

An illegal sculpture that popped up one day.

The houses are crooked because the foundations are bad. There is now work being done to find the houses that are in really bad shape and about to collapse. It costs about 150,000 euros to secure them.

At the height of the tulip craze, a single flower was worth the price of a house!

We didn’t go in, but this is the entrance to a museum for a hidden Catholic church in an attic. Another one I may have to squeeze into my stay!

This house is crooked both to the front and to the side.

 

See that hook? Many of the houses slanting towards the front have them. They were used to bring goods up from boats on the canal. If the house had a straight façade, there would have been more risk of damage if an item moved in the wind.

Look at how high up the water comes!

I asked a few questions at this point.

  1. Do people routinely fall into the canals? Yes. They’re usually drunk.
  2. How deep is the water? 3 metres, 1 of mud, 1 of bicycles, and 1 of water.
  3. How dirty is the water? Not at all. It is renewed daily and only looks grungy because of the plant material. Any garbage floating on the canals is routinely cleaned up. (The canals do not smell at all!)

This is the oldest secular building in Amsterdam, the Waag (weighing place).

This was a hard place to stand, right where the Jews of Amsterdam were herded onto trains to be sent to concentration camps. Marius even showed us a period photo of the Waag surrounded by barbed wire.

Now looking towards what had been the Jewish ghetto. So many houses were left abandoned for decades until the 1970s, hence the more modern look to these buildings. There had been an attempt made to build a subway, which makes no sense for Amsterdam. The idea started a riot.

A skinny house (to save on taxes), but ornamented to show the owner had money.

Headquarters of the… Dutch East India Company.

Canal boats, even as modest as these, can go for 1 million euros or more. You pay for the spot, not the boat. The boat is worth nothing if you don’t have a place to park it. They have sewer, water, power, internet, etc.

This guy is going around looking for illegal parkers. Parking in Amsterdam is some of the most expensive in the world. Notice the three Xs? They are a symbol of Amsterdam. There is an urban legend that they stand for the great fires that prompted Amsterdam to be all rebuilt in brick, the Black Plague, and the flooding. But the use of the symbols actually predate the Black Plague.

A Banksy! At the University of Amsterdam.

There was another one here, but it was ordered covered up by this minister of education is apparently wants to jack up tuition prices.

Courtyard in the university.

A row of expensive homes, as signified by the fact that they are white and many have stairs leading up to the front door.

This cosy alley would have been very smelly back in the day. It is behind the rich houses.

Entrance to another hidden church. This is a residence for women only.

One of the last remaining wooden houses in Amsterdam.

Marius told me that Van Gogh liked to come here as he found it quiet and contemplative.

We did not go into this church.

But we did go into this one. It is not a museum so we popped in and out and were quiet the whole time. It was very beautiful. And warm. I was pretty cold by this point!

We then went into the lobby of the Amsterdam Museum, another one to add to my list…

Here’s those crosses again.

And Napoleon.

More of those occupational plaques, taken from torn down buildings.

“Woman riding a surfboard,” LOL.

“The dancing nun taking a selfie.” LOL!

Our tour ended shortly after this. Again, I have not done justice to how much information Marius shared. He was a wonderful guide, very warm and knowledgable about his city.

He directed me to an area with restaurants, which happened to be on the way home, so I headed that way. I thought I’d grab lunch and go to a museum, but I realised that I was done for the day as I’d already walked a ton. I haven’t broken in my new boots yet and so didn’t want to push their limits too much yet as they’ve been rubbing a bit since I don’t have the right socks to wear with them. Plus… work came in. Yes, after my clients told me not to expect anything, every single one of them bombarded me. Thankfully, it’s all easy work and will not ruin my weekend.

I investigated restaurants and prices were all above 10 euros. There are a number of Ethiopian restaurants around my house only open in the evenings that I really want to try, so I decided to go home and make a late lunch there instead since I had everything needed to throw together a curry. I mean, why pay for a meal out when I had a treat waiting for me?!

I got to this foreboding church…

…and cool house when…

… my ?@$%@% iPhone went from 40% battery capacity to dead. Amsterdam is not an easily city to get orientated in and there I was who knows where with no map or way to find my way home. I had a stroke of genius, if I do say so myself, that I could follow a number 1 tram back. I was too close to home to make it worth actually taking the tram, though.

That worked a treat and I got back to familiar territory very quickly, even if that route was a little less direct.

Amsterdam is a very dark, gloomy, and damp city, but there’s a vibe here that I wasn’t expecting. The city feels very much alive and its residents seem to be thriving. Most are friendly, even if the cyclists have no mercy, and being able to get served in English is a bonus. Dutch is really hard to pronounce, having a lot of guttural sounds, and there’s almost no point in trying.

Most food packaging at the grocery store has Dutch and French on it, which is awesome for me. Even though there are tons of words that look like English, I actually find Dutch food labels more intimidating than Bulgarian ones were because words that are not like English are not like anything I’ve seen and I can’t even make an educated guess. A good example is chicken, which is “kip” in Dutch. If there hadn’t been a picture of a chicken, I would have had no idea what was in the package. In Bulgaria, though, I would have seen пиле, sounded it out as “pile” (pi-lay) and thought, oh, that sounds almost like the French poulet (pou-lay) and made an educated (and correct!) guess. Or how about grapes, which are “druif” in Dutch versus “grozdov” in Bulgarian. The food available here is most like what I’d expect to find in a North American supermarket, with lots of foreign foods, and it’s easy to get things like unsweetened almond milk (my host picked up a carton for me!).

Tomorrow and Sunday will follow a similar pattern of an early morning of tourism (I have a time slot at nine both days!) and then coming home to do a little work. I’m actually rather glad for that because it’ll save me from burning myself out while I’m here.

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A Quiet and Dreary Weekend in Málaga

It’s been a cold, wet, miserable weekend in Málaga. I’m actually rather grateful for it because I desperately need to get gradually more accustomed to cold, wet, miserable weather as that’ll be normal for Amsterdam and Yorkshire. I got two rather large orders, so I had an excuse to stay in both Saturday and Sunday and work. But I did manage to go exploring a tad to start getting a sense for Málaga!

So Saturday, I headed out in the mid afternoon, during a brief lull in the rain, with the main intention being to do some focused shoe shopping. It was at the El Corte Inglés department store that I realised what I need to buy is a good hiking-type boot, something that’s been on my shopping list for a few years (my last pair was the one I bought for the Chilkoot in 2010 and I’ve worn them through), but which I’ve been putting off because they’re a $400 to $500 investment in Canada. That is the only footwear that will take me from the moors of Yorkshire in England to a humid Mexican jungle by way of the rainy streets of Amsterdam, all with just a change of sock type and so a much better purchase than something that’s tailored to the English experience only. I found exactly what I want, but did not buy them because even at much less than I would pay in Canada, they were expensive and I wanted to check reviews of the brand, sleep on the idea, look for other brands, and also find a coat before committing to such an expense.

I then walked around the neighbourhood for a bit.

Here’s a church right by my flat:

I headed towards Centro and found some decent falafel for a very late lunch across from this scene:

It’s always a good sign when the falafel seller barely speaks the local language and asks you if you know English! I had falafel in the Balkans, but it was pretty disappointing, so this was my first truly satisfying version of the sandwich since that fabulous one I had on Baker Street in London almost six months ago!

I do not tire of European building façades!

There wasn’t much open and I was cold, so it was time to head in. I did find on the way one of those Chinese bazaar shops that had a lot of clothing and a coat that looked promising for about 40 euros. But I found a charity shop that I can scope out Monday morning before I commit to such an expenditure. I’ll be happier about the boot purchase if I don’t spend a ton on a coat that I won’t need when I move to the tropics six months from now!

Today, Sunday, I worked until about 1:30 since an attraction I wanted to visit was free from two onwards. I headed into Centro and was surprised by how much was open on a Sunday. Oh, right. Sunday before Christmas.

Another church:

A lively square. I liked the moon and star decorations. I might check out that Far West (Lejano Oeste) exhibit…

Another impressive church.

But not as impressive as this hospital!

I wandered through a warren of alleys filled with treasures.

Until I found Alcazaba of Málaga, the best preserved alcazaba (citadel or fortress) of Spain and which was built by the Hammudid dynasty in the early 11th century. Entry was free after two and I was early, so I decided to look for a quick and cheap lunch, something that is very difficult to do in Spain.

In front of the fortress is an ancient Roman amphitheatre.

Like in Sofia, there are underground ruins covered by glass at the surface.

Found a street named after my truck. 😉

Puuuuuurty!

Got in some unexpected Cyrillic practice. Red book says All of Andalusia and the bottom one Malaga: Costa del Sol. Hey, don’t want to lose those skills! 😉

There was a proper tourist info kiosk across from this stand, so I stood in line for ages to get a city map. Soon as the person ahead of me left, the clerk yelled in English, “We’re closed! Go away!” before slamming down her window. It was 1:55 and the sign said she should be open till two so I wasn’t having it. As soon as she stepped out the door, I chastised her in Spanish about closing early and told her I just wanted a map. She apologised profusely and got me one. All that for nothing, though, since the map was surprisingly crappy!

I finally found a bakery with reasonably priced sandwiches compared to what everyone else was charging for the same thing and got serrano ham on a whole grain bun. What I really wanted was a slice of real pizza, but I’ve accepted that such things do not come to pass in Spain. I think it says a lot about the state of fast food in this country that the restaurant with the longest queue was Burger King! There were a few places I could have had a menú del día, though, at a very reasonable price, but I’m trying to keep the food budget thin this week since I suspect I’ll be eating out quite a bit in Amsterdam.

At any rate, it was almost 2:30 by the time I got back to the alcazaba.

I immediately knew I was in for a treat. Just look at that gorgeous stone and brick work!

Málaga feels very lush.

So many orange trees!

I started to climb above the city.

Looking down to the port.

The Ferris wheel I passed on the bus.

A colosseum.

Loved the marble “bath tub”!

Notice that this roof is cross-shaped.

These marble columns were unexpected.

Everywhere I looked, some exquisite detail.

Found an interior room with heavy wooden shutters.

And heavy wooden doors.

Mossy roof.

I must have stared at this ceiling for a whole minute.

A recessed bench.

There were several of these pools. Watch your step!

Another impressive ceiling.

I couldn’t figure out what they cooked in this giant oven (el horno)…

Until I found an informational panel that made me realise it’s a kiln.

Love this floor!

I liked these blue roof tiles. Nice contrast to the terracotta I normally see.

I was surprised when I eventually circled back to the entrance. Alcazaba de Málaga was like a labyrinth!

I went out and was told I could go into the amphitheatre…

…and that the Castillo de Gibralfaro (Gibralfaro castle), which towers over the alcazaba and dates back to the 14th century, was open and also free on Sunday afternoons. My research told me that if you can only do one, do the alcazaba as there is a lot more to see and it is a very long hike up to the castle if you don’t have a car. Up I went because I have this weird OCD type thing where I can’t not climb up to a fortress if I have the option to do so.

The climb was steep and tiring after all the exploring I’d done in the alcazaba.

But the views were worth the effort!

These didn’t photograph well at all. They were red and orange.

There was a small museum at the top, but nothing really photographed well. It gave the history of the area and the castle’s role in city defences. One of the more interesting facts I read was about how the Germans blocked access to Málaga’s port during WWI, demonstrating how vulnerable the city is.

There wasn’t much to see outside and both my knees were killing me by this point thanks to the dampness. I have no idea how I did this sort of day when I was heavier, to be honest.

Here’s that Ferris wheel again.

Interesting tree.

It was raining by this point and sections like these were slick!

Little did I know, I was heading into a dead end!

This marble threshold was unexpected.

Looking back up.

Here’s another super steep and slick section.

Málaga…

I was able to navigate myself home through a different route without a map, to my immense surprise.

Here’s the back of that church by the hospital.

I think I will investigate the Ferris wheel since I’m apparently obsessed by it!

Look who I found! Do you recognise him? He visited Spain in 1862 and had many kind things to say about Málaga.

I think I just found the Málagan equivalent of Mexican Tositilocos: baked potatoes with everything on them…

I’d earned a gelato by this point and found a shop with several dozen flavours. The clerk asked where I’m from and when I said Canada, she recommended the peanut butter. LOL! But she was right! I haven’t had peanut butter since the Balkans so, dang, this really hit the spot! (By the way, look at my hand — it’s been five whole years this week that I quit biting my nails!)

Yet another lovely church…

Interesting artwork on the side of it.

Finally, some pretty blue tiles against a yellow wall.

I definitely managed to get a taste of Málaga this weekend and I look forward to doing some proper exploring tomorrow, especially if the promised sunny weather materialises!