Benalmádena, Spain & Fuengirola, Spain
This morning, I got up, ate breakfast, went to class, and after class, I went to the front desk to buy a ticket to Ronda for tomorrow. Technically, I’m supposed to be in class, but the professor gave Ula and I permission to do something cultural instead. She’s going to Gibraltar, and I wanted to go to Cadiz (the oldest city in Europe) but due to various extenuating circumstances, I settled on Ronda instead.
I bought tomorrow’s ticket, then headed for the train. For some reason, the train was packed with people, so I had to stand. The guy next to me instantly began chattering animatedly in what appeared to be gibberish. At some point, he realized I had no idea what he was saying, and asked (this time in Spanish), “You mean you’re not Arabic?” Mark it on the calendar! This is a new one for me. I’ve been mistaken for Mexican, Puerto Rican, Native American, Costa Rican, Indian (free gulab jamun out of that one), and basically anywhere in South America, but never in my life have I been mistaken for Arabic. Once I was able to explain that no, I wasn’t from Morocco, but actually from the United States (which he had never heard of, by the way), he promptly asked if I would like to be his girlfriend.
I politely declined, using my existing boyfriend as my main argument. In his somewhat broken Spanish (with a thick Arabian accent to boot – I was saying “What?” after every sentence) he asked if this boyfriend was actually here with me. No, I answered reluctantly, he’s back in my country, but he is still my boyfriend. That’s OK, he agreed cheerfully, I’ll just be your *Spain* boyfriend.
This completely threw me for a few minutes until I realized the the harem-and-many-wives mentality apparently also applied to tourist girlfriends. I feigned sudden deafness and tried to back away as best I could in a crowded train car. I had a few moments of fear when he continued to argue the point and I discovered we were getting off at the same stop. I managed to give him the slip in the train station, however, and breathed a sigh of relief to still only have one boyfriend.
In Fuengirola, I made my way to the sea and bought a one-way cruise ticket to Benalmadena for 7E. On board I took a bunch of pictures, ate a deelicious ice cream cone, and happened to notice the woman seated across from me suddenly decide to sun bathe topless. I think I see at least one pair of breasts every day. If not on live persons, then on advertisements. Here, nudity isn’t anything to be self-conscious about. People are no more scandalized when they see a nipple (when breastfeeding, for example) than they would be to see an ankle or a knee. Here, your body is just your body.
I got off the boat in Benalmáadena amid a sea of yachts. I walked along the port, which was filled with people, shops, and cafes. I found the aquarium and went directly inside. They gave me the student discount (4.50E) even though I didn’t have my card on me.
The aquarium was small but nice, with a variety of fish organized in logical sections (Amazonian, etc). The tanks were very clear and brightly lit. This was great for my photos, but I don’t know if it is good for the fish. (Anyone know?) I saw a few fish that I don’t think I’ve ever seen before, which was neat. One was colorful and shaped like a needle and about as thick as a small crochet hook. (I didn’t get the name of it.)
After the aquarium, I made my way to Tivoli World, which was more complicated than I anticipated. There is only one train stop for Benalmadena / Arroyo de Miel, but that train stop is apparently over 6 km from the port – a bit of a hike. I ended up walking maybe a kilometer, waiting fruitlessly for a bus (several stopped, but they were all heading elsewhere) and ended up taking a cab. As it turned out, the taxi driver wasn’t going to Tivoli World (then why did he pick me up?!) but bizarrely enough, he dropped me off (free of charge) at another taxi, who would be going there. The new taxi cost me 5E, but since I had no idea where I was going, I figure it’s 5E well spent. The train stop ended up being maybe half a kilometer or so from the park, so it was really easy to get home afterwards.
(I had heard of Tivoli because I saw ads for it on the train. I will admit, it was a good month later before I learned what and why it was. But I’ll get to that when that day comes.)
It only cost 4.50E to get in to Tivoli World. The rides (and there were a lot more than I anticipated) operated on the ticket principle. One ticket (or one “tivoli”) was 1E, but armbands for unlimited rides were only 10E. There was a Jurassic area with a giant dinosaur and an American Old West section, which was kind of funny (and for some reason called the “Far West” instead of the “Old West”.) There were fountains everywhere and go karts, bumper cars, and even bumper boats. There were haunted houses, a different Ferris wheel in almost every section, and a wild-mouse style roller coaster. Fearless as I am, the piercing shriek of its brakes on every turn prevented even me from trying it.
I ate dinner in the china section, but without question, my favorite quarter was the Andalusian (southern Spain) area. There was a flamenco show, which was fabulous. The dancers were great and the costumes were amazing. When the show ended, I stopped by a churrería who served me some hot, fresh churros and a cup of steamy hot chocolate for only 2.50E.
