Last Saturday we decided to head to the beach while we still could - that is while the weather was still nice and it's not too cold. We took a day trip to
Nerja, a small town on the
Costa del Sol. It's actually part of Málaga province, but is just 2 hours from Granada by bus. Lyle and I actually missed the morning bus, so we got there in the afternoon, but with still enough time to enjoy the city.
The forecast said that the sun would be out, but it actually rained on and off the whole time we were there. Despite that, we still managed to enjoy. It was raining when we arrived in the city, but we were able to find Elisa (our roommate) and two other Irish girls we met the day before, Paula and Orla. We ducked into a café to get away from the rain, and Lyle and I had a late lunch. Paula and Orla had to leave a bit after (they had been there since the morning), but Elisa, Lyle and I went about the city.
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| The light wasn't great because of the grey skies, but it's pretty, coastal town. |
We headed to the
Balcón de Europa, a mirador which gives you a lovely view of the sea.
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| Lyle, Elisa, Me |
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| Beautiful view! |
The name of the mirador was given by
King Alfonso II who was a statue at the Balcón. Here's a Elisa posing with said statue.
We walked around the city for a bit, and when the rain subsided, we headed down to the beach. There are several beaches (but with very short shores) side by side. This one we visited was
Playa Calahonda, just down the steps from the
Balcón de Europa.
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| Cute little house by the beach |
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| Walking along the beach, we found a nice little cove |
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| Elisa climbed to the top |
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| While Lyle tested the waters |
Elisa and Lyle braved the cold and went for a swim. I chilled on the beach and took pictures.
It was actually the week of the
Feria de Nerja while we were there. I didn't know that Nerja was celebrating its
feria that week, so it was a nice surprise. The feria is celebrated in honor of the Nerja's patron saints
La Virgen de las Angustias and
San Miguel Arcángel.
The whole city is pretty festive and they have a small fair which has rides, games booths, food stalls, etc.
During the Feria there are plenty girls and women dressed up in the traditional Andalucian costume. The dresses are long and tight-fitting with ruffles on the bottom.
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| Lots of stores and stalls selling them too |
We headed back to Granada at 7pm via
BlaBlaCar. BlaBlaCar is a European ride sharing service which lets you find drivers that are going the same way you are, and sharing a ride with them, usually at a much cheaper price than a bus, train or plane ticket. On the website you input your destination and dates, and it shows you drivers who are going that way and how much they are charging. You can choose which driver you want to go with, but like CouchSurfing, the drivers also get to approve their passengers. You can also read reviews of the driver and see how many rides the driver has given, etc. It's a safe and cheap alternative for getting around. Our driver was a Spanish guy who lived in Granada but was in Nerja for the weekend. We paid €6 euro/person (the bus ride was €11/person) and got back in an hour (half the time it takes when traveling by bus). It was our first time to take a BlaBlaCar and all in all a good experience.
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