Costa del Sol – The Spanish Riviera

On July 18, 2016 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Spain11 Comments

We spent two weeks in Spain a couple of years ago and we chose the town of Estepona as our “home base” while we were there. We had rented a car, so it was the perfect location to launch from to get to all of the surrounding cities and towns. In addition to being able to get out to the surrounding area, it was a gorgeous destination in and of itself. Estapona is a short drive from Marbella, which is the playground for the rich and has vacation homes for many celebrities in the area.

The beaches are wonderful and there are resorts all along the coast from Malaga to Estepona, but we were there during the off-season, as usual, so it wasn’t too crowded. There are plenty of opportunities for shopping in the area as well with shops that offer everything from clothing to souvenirs. We could have spent hours just wandering through the various shops and talking to the owners who were extremely friendly and welcoming.

It isn’t all just sunbathing and shopping, though, the food in the area is absolutely fantastic. We’re huge lovers of seafood and it is truly a food-lovers paradise. We were told by everyone that we had to visit the mountain town of Benahavís, which is located a short drive from Estepona as you drive toward Marbella. It is renowned for its restaurants and is considered the gastronomical center of Costa del Sol. We were not disappointed, we only wish we’d have had time to go there more than once as there were several restaurants that we wanted to try, but ended enjoying dinner at a lovely little family owned restaurant.

Eating and drinking our way through Estepona, Marbella, Benahavís, and Malaga was truly a wonderful experience. Although we spent a lot of time driving and going to cities like Granada and Seville, when we were at the resort area, it was more of a true vacation than actual travel. We were able to truly relax and decompress, which made our trip to Spain an incredibly rewarding experience. Clearly we hope to visit there once again and, when we do, we will make it one those vacations where you simply sit on the beach, get tanned, eat and drink too much, and watch the sun set over the Mediterranean Sea.

Gibraltar – A Foreign Outpost

On June 27, 2016June 29, 2016 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn England, Spain28 Comments

When we were in southern Spain a few years ago, we visited Gibraltar, which is a British territory located on the most southern end of the Iberian peninsula. Gibraltar is more of a sovereign city than a country, but despite its size, you still have to pass through customs and border patrol in order to enter and leave. The Rock of Gibraltar is the most famous landmark of the region and is strategic due to its location on the entrance to the Mediterranean Sea from the Atlantic Ocean. It is also the location of an important naval fortress that is built into the hills of the Rock of Gibraltar. Gibraltar is distinctly British despite its location in southern Spain. The pubs, the people, the atmosphere of the city almost all go out of their way to emphasize their allegiance to Britain and the United Kingdom. It was very interesting to visit, but in many ways it was very odd, and to say that there is controversy over the ownership of Gibraltar would be an understatement.

View of the Rock of Gibraltar Towering in the Distance

Before going, we talked to several people in Spain who had very strong opinions about this tiny country within a country. First and foremost, the people of Spain believe that the land should be theirs and they believe that the citizens of Gibraltar are occupying foreign land. In addition to that, the other thing that we were told was that there were huge problems with people going into Gibraltar and buying cigarettes and alcohol where it is cheaper and then selling it on the black market in other parts of Spain. There are strict limits on how much alcohol and tobacco can be brought across the border, but due to the number of people crossing on a daily basis, obviously there is the opportunity for smuggling. Regardless of the political friction, it was still an interesting place to visit.

Sunset from the Top of the Rock of Gibraltar

Visiting the Rock of Gibraltar and walking the trails that led to the top was certainly the highlight of our visit there. The views of the Strait of Gibraltar were certainly stunning and definitely worth the hard hike in the heat, even though we were there in November. One of the more well-known, yet still interesting, things about the Rock of Gibraltar is the population of Barbary macaques that roam wild throughout the park area. Although these monkeys are definitely cute, they are wild animals and have been known to attack people at times, but are more likely to steal anything held too loosely. So, even though they make for great photo opportunities, don’t approach them and keep an eye on your possessions while you’re around them.

Walking through the caves and tunnels that make up the fortifications was also quite fascinating. There is also a cable car for those that don’t want to hike the steep trail to the top of the giant rock, but we would recommend only taking the cable car one direction and taking the time to either hike up or down since that is the only way to go into the fortifications that have been carved into the hillside. The fortifications are no longer in use today and we couldn’t imagine how claustrophobic it must have been for the soldiers who manned the canons within the tunnels. We definitely earned a pint by the time that we finished hiking around the Rock of Gibraltar.

Despite the controversy that exists over the ownership of the Gibraltar, it is definitely worth visiting while in southern Spain. Stepping across the border, you are immediately transported into a different world with thick British accents, the Union Jack flying everywhere to be seen, and restaurants serving typical English food such as fish and chips, bangers and masher, and kidney pie. We have to admit, we did take a couple of bottles of wine back to our hotel with us since the prices were so much less than what we were paying throughout the rest of southern Spain. All-in-all, it was a very interesting day, but a day was about all of the time needed to visit this country within a country.

Daily Post Photo Challenge – Partners

On June 25, 2016June 25, 2016 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Photo Challenge, Spain10 Comments

There is more to a great partnership than just getting along. After over twenty-five years of marriage we think that we have a pretty good idea of what makes a successful partnership. Obviously for a marriage to work, you need to love one another, but there is a lot more to it than just loving each other. For any type of partnership to work, you need to have compassion and empathy for your partner. You have to care about their feelings and opinions and do your best to understand how they feel. A successful partnership also means challenging one another, which can cause tension at times, but allows growth in the relationship. We’re not going to tell anyone else how their marriage or partnership has to work, but we can share what has worked for us. First and foremost, we are best friends who truly enjoy each other’s company and share common interests. Those common interests weren’t necessarily there when we first met, but because we wanted to understand what each other liked, we learned to care about the same things that we wanted to spend our time doing. Also, we very much have an “us against the world” mentality. It isn’t that we’re literally combative towards other people, it is just that we have to solve whatever problems we face, and there will be problems, as a couple. Nobody else can fix it for us. We decided to share this photo of us from the time that we were in Spain for this week’s challenge on partners. However, we also wanted to share the picture of the two lion cubs working together to get a fresh drink of water, what teamwork.