So it’s been a whopping long time since I’ve blogged (eek sorry), and I only happen to have an excuse for the past week. Which is that I’ve been on holiday. I am currently riding on post-holiday blues, resigned to PJs at home watching Friends, lamenting the sudden death of my social life. What happened to the limitless energy I could somehow summon at 3, or 8 in the morning? And why has singing songs from musicals at the top of your lungs on an average street suddenly become unnatural? I blame the sun. Costa del Sol did live up to its name, after all. While I laze around aimlessly, it feels only right that I give myself an aim for the next twenty minutes and mull over some of my holiday highlights. Let’s call this bit the “Travel and Lifestyle” section.

Staying between Marbella and Fuengirola (aptly nicknamed “Fun Gorilla” by us tourists who cannot for the life of us pronounce Spanish words.), we had enough local bars and restaurants to keep us more than satisfied, and both towns were only a short bus ride away. Marbella is really great for the beaches and for shopping (especially SHOES!) whilst Fun Gorilla never sleeps. On our first day, the porter had mentioned “party time” at Fun Gorilla, but it wasn’t until we went there that we realised it offers the same vibes as your infamous party zones like Zante, Magaluf, Kavos and the like (basically what you see on BBC’s “Sun, Sex and Suspicious Parents” but not as extreme). Full of bars where virtually everyone is English and streets ridden with the drunk and sober (me), it’s actually a very exciting environment. If you ever happen to visit it, the most popular bar when we went was “ForePlay”; don’t be too put off by the name as it’s actually a pretty decent place (bar the millions of bras on the ceiling as decoration…)

A majority of the holiday, however, was all about chilling. Whether it was by the pool, in the apartment or at the beach, relaxation was a haven. We stayed at “Miraflores Beach and Country Club”, a gigantic resort of apartments and little villa-type buildings with restaurants and bars on site. We had a shared pool with our nearby neighbours which was one of my favourite places to be; I hadn’t enjoyed swimming in years, and I’d never been on a holiday where reclining on a sunbed was a popular pastime. (My holiday history has mainly consisted of sightseeing, seeing sights, and sighting stuff.) The beaches on the coast are mostly sandy with (supposedly harmless) jellyfish as constant company. You pay a few Euros for a sunbed and a majority of the day is sorted! Of course, there is the occasional interruption of street-sellers trying to get you to buy sunglasses/DVDs/watches/handbags, and by the end of the week I was feeling increasingly guilty at saying “No thank you!”. So I have come up with the proven successful formula of “No thanks, but have a good day!”. Add that to the sweetest smile you can conjure up, and it works 9 times out of 10. (Panic did set in during that odd one time.)

The best souvenirs, in that area of Spain in particular, were bracelets. A whole gorgeous collection of friendship bracelets, leather bracelets and anklets were on display practically everywhere we went. I couldn’t resist buying a few to bring back home (average 3 euros per bracelet), as well as experiencing other Spanish classics before leaving – paella, sangria and pina colada. Yummy. Speaking of yum, Spanish Haribo are the best I have ever tasted. They have fruit jellies and a “Favorito” packet which I so badly wish I’d bought more of. Word of advice: If you go to Spain, buy Haribo!! And then buy me some too...

Flying straight back into the embrace of British rainy weather is a sharp shock from Spanish 30 degrees C at midnight, but I guess there are plus-sides to being home. I can walk round about a thousand shades browner than I used to be, I can relive memories through the many, many photographs taken and talk fondly of my holiday, I can bore my friends and parents (and you) of all the details, and well – I’m home. And home is good.

Until next time – or should I say…adios! 

Bev x

(I never really did perfect my Spanish, by the way. “Es muy bonita!” (at the sights), “Si por favour” (to any question), “Gracias” (my most-used term) seemed to do the trick. And gesturing. Lots of gesturing.)