A Lazy Sunday... Exploring Benalmadena Pueblo...

The light awoke us, the sun was rising and the last sliver of the old moon was showing her presence... a time for final cleansing, meditation, releasing old patterns to be ready for something new... how beautiful and colourful... the sea glimmered.  Breakfast was served, coffee con leche enjoyed... and it was time to explore the area, find a golf course, a sunday newspaper and a place in the sun to sit and relax...

We decided to take the mountain road to visit Benalmadena Pueblo... we were very impressed... with a 10 minute journey by car to the top... After parking the car we walked to the Plaza de Espana where the popular sculpture 'La Nina de Benalmadena' stands proud.  She is twinned with the 'Manekken Pis' situated in Brussels.  We enjoyed a lovely cup of coffee on the terrace outside the Restaurant 'La Nina'.

Next we wandered to the Church of Santo Domingo Guzman, that stands on the site of the former Moorish Castle and is surrounded by the Jardines del Muro and wonderful views of the coast. Of course I'd heard about the Buddhist Temple, La Estupa de la Iluminacion and went to visit it... What a marvel, a majestic building 33 metres high and 25 metres wide... such serenity... my heart opens with joy to see it... to feel it... The temple represents Buddha's enlightenment... the nature of an awakened person... I hope that many people will take the time to see this... to feel the peace it radiates and allow it to initiate their awakening...  

For lunch we drove to the top of the village where there are some shops and restaurants.  We sat on the terrace of Le Parador, a spanish restaurant and enjoyed 'a spanish pizza with oregano' 4 staggoni and Le Parador ensalade with a glass of their house rioja...  We had beautiful views of the village below and the Mediterranean sea...

Sunday evening we returned to the port of Benalmadena, and headed directly to the
Angus Restaurant, Puerto Marina, Benalmadena Costa... Reservation 952 57 57 98 
as we wanted to taste the famous Argentinian beef.  As we stepped into the restaurant from the cold and windy evening, we were pleasantly welcomed by a lovely warm room and friendly smiles.  We ordered an Argentina Cabernet Sauvignon 2010, Goyenechea, a very full and fruity red wine which complimented our dinner.  We were given a taster of their delicious homemade pate to tempt the taste buds... we followed this with a medium rare filet mignon accompanied with a jacket potatoe, sautéed vegetables and corn on the cob.  We loved the Argentina tango music playing in the background, the romantic atmosphere and the view of the sunset and moored yachts bobbing on the water...  An excellent experience, food, wine, atmosphere and service...

January 2013... New Times...

You can feel it in the air around you, something different... life feels different... It's as if life is communicating with us on a higher frequency... the air feels charged... the dynamics have changed and it calls for ACTION...  and we are off on a journey down south... to explore a town Benalmadena on the Costa del Sol... We'd heard several people mention the place, so we thought it was about time to take a look for ourself...   It took us a good 5 hours from our home in Mazarron, with a short stop... to arrive at the four star Hotel Benalmadena Palace... We eventually settled into a great room... (we paid half price for an upgrade to have a room on the front with more sun).  This was quite a strange happening, because at the check in when we were given room no 313, I made a point of saying 'my lucky number!'   So you can imagine how disappointed we were upon entering the room, we felt quite 'unlucky' for a moment... It was situated at the back corner end of the hotel and was very dark.   We didn't like 'this unlucky' feeling and quickly took this opportunity to practise communication skills and changed the room.  

Now time to explore the hotel... down one floor from the reception area which has much 'local' information, a wifi section, library and comfy sofas to relax inside and outside on a small terrance...we found the snack bar/cafe and sat outside on a terrace, facing the 2 swimmings pools and sunning area... they served us 2 lovely bocadillos and refreshments.   Next door was the restaurant that serves breakfast, lunch and dinner.  Down another pair of stairs or by lift was the Spa with indoor swimming pool, gym, beauty & hair salon... same floor as the indoor parking.

Just before sunset we took a brief walk to see the surrounding area... we walked towards the port, the marina... but after quite a walk, we realised the port was a long way... and we needed the car... We drove to the port, a good 10 mins away by car, parked up and walked around the marina...  which we thought was very impressive... lovely apartments (Las Islas) in the middle of the water and shops and restaurants circling the outside of the marina... very majestic... We stopped for a cocktail in one of the bars before deciding to indulge in some 'Benalmadena' cuisine...

We finally chose the Italian Restaurant Metro, Puerto Marina, Benalmadena Costa... Reservation 952 446 460.   We ordered a glass of the house red Rioja... very tasteful... We shared a Classic Caesar Salad to begin with, followed by a Puerto Marina Tagliattelle - a delicious dish with red mullet, shrimps, cherry tomatoes, zucchini, garlic and white wine...  and the Bolo Classic - Spagetti Bolognaise...  It was a very good choice, friendly staff, richly decorated room and tasteful cuisine...

Metro Italian Retaurant