USA2SPAIN: Málaga end of week 4 of 12, July 26, 2011 Tuesday

¨Concrete On Tile¨. No, it’s not a Picasso; it´s the way every worker that lays tile leaves the site. The tile is down, the job is done. A few lifetimes later, someone will tear up this tile, make a repair underneath, and install new tile over it without cleaning the concrete on the new tile. Ay. Yet, there is hope. I have seen some tile being replaced on the streets and it is clean, at least for now.

¨Chewing Gum On Tile¨. This place is actually very clean, it sometimes looks dirty because of the black blotches on the bricks and tiles in the streets and sidewalks. Let’s face it, even in the US, people can be pigs. Scraping these blotches up would be lifetime job. So if you´re going to chew gum, chew responsibly (yeah, right).

FUENGIROLA DAY TRIP

It’s time to head west, down the coast. Here’s the Málaga María Zambrano train station in Málaga capital. It is really easy to get to by bus (C1 from, and C2 back to, Alameda Principal and Calle Larios). I love the bus service here.

In the lobby, a beautiful lady came up to me, tapped me on the shoulder, and offered me a Chase credit card, and I flashed back to getting robbed in Quito, Ecuador. I'm fucked for life (mentally). I think I scared her when I jumped back, grabbed my bag, and started weaving turns. I did stop short of shouting ¨Don't rob me!¨. Isn't that sad? Spain is safe, but it could happen anywhere.

Everything at the train station is computerized. The fare to Fuengirola is 2.95€ each way, 4.50€ RT. A machine reads your ticket on the way in AND on the way out. The system probably calls the pasma (fuzz) if someone tries to jump a gate.

Once past the turnstile-like gate you can take an elevator or escalator to the underground tracks. (I took the picture after I boarded the train)

The train shows up a few minutes before the scheduled departure time, and leaves as scheduled.

A man started complaining about a pain in his chest just before getting to the airport’s train stop. (I hate surprises) Someone must have called ahead as the EMTs were on the platform waiting to take care of him when we got there. (Us old farts have got to start packing aspirins) Policemen also showed up in case this was a case of funny business (it wasn’t).

There is a little town (5^th stop out of Málaga) called Los Alamos. It is beautiful. American-type houses with garages. It looks fairly new. I wish I had a car to come drive the side streets.

¨You Gotta Get This Thing¨ -- Prodigy online services. The electric train is fantastic! Quiet. Smooth. The only time you hear the wheels grating the track is when a turn is not banked (tilted). And the only time you hear a wind noise is when it goes through a tunnel. The train has a power line above it that it touches with 2 bars, and ¨shoes¨ (electrical plates) that touch the tracks (electrical ground). The motor(s) in between is so quiet that I never found out where it was on the train.

Just about every little town along the way has a MacDonalds, a Burger King, an Eroski grocery store, a Corte Inglés and/or Carrefour retail store. Fuengirola (fooehn-hee-DOH-la) also has a KFC and a Subway.

Downtown Fuengirola. Nothing especially noteworthy, but okay.

On the west side of town, there is a castle, Castillo de Sohail (kahs-TEE-yoh DEH soh-AEEL). It was not opened to the public at this time.

On the way to/from the castle, there’s a ¨foot bridge¨ (concrete, suspension cables, metal rails, but no tile. HA now you'll have to put your gum in your hair!).