A WEEK IN THE LIFE OF A PHOTOGRAPHER, IN SPAIN. DAY 4.

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A WEEK IN THE LIFE OF A PHOTOGRAPHER, IN SPAIN.

DAY 4.

We wake up to another day in paradise, blue sky, crisp air and lovely sunshine.
It is now Monday, so, at last we will see 'normal' life?
Yet, it seems so quiet? Too quiet! The shops are closed, and it is eerily still. Of course! It is the first of November, a catholic holiday, All Saints  Day, tomorrow All Souls Day, when people visit their dear lost ones at cemeteries, bring flowers, remember... even more than other days.
We drive to a part of the 8 km long of beaches we have not visited so far, we are attracted because of the wave-breaker, we love sitting on the rocks, surrounded by the sea.
The tranquillity of transparent waves gently braking in a regular rhythm, peaceful...
Three people pass us, demure, silently huddling together, a bit further they stop, an older lady and the younger one grab each other's arm, the guy clambers to the edge over the rocks, as close to the water as possible, he carries two bunches of flowers, throws one into the water, they  all watch as the sea gently rocks and carries  the flowers away, the ladies lean into each other... the second bouquet is tossed and they quickly gather, they walk off, turning back now and then with a visible sigh.

I'd been debating whether to photograph or not, always a dilemma for me, but I did, not the women, that I couldn't do, one shot of him and the flowers... (1)

It was a very personal moment that we witnessed, we are subdued.

Soon after, a dad arrives with his two girls, bicycles, pink, laughter and joy! Isn't that just life for you? (2)
We decide to move on, drive the whole length, to see where it will take us.(3)
We end up back on the main road, and we get to Benalmádena.

The municipality has three main urban areas:
Benalmádena Pueblo, the original village, which lies about three kilometres inland at an elevation of approximately 200 m above mean sea level. Its core consists of a typical white-fronted Andalusian
village, although including numerous recent buildings in modern architectural styles. The town of
Benalmádena also has an archaeological museum with locally-derived artefacts dating back to the Bronze Age.
Benalmádena Costa, promenade along an urban agglomeration on the coast.
Arroyo de la Miel, originally a separate village, is in the interior between the other two areas. It has become the main residential area, and is also the most commercially active. Buildings are tightly packed and tend to be apartment blocks. Arroyo de la Miel translates as "Stream of Honey" in English.

The town is also home to the Enlightenment Stupa, the largest stupa (a structure important in Buddhism) in the West, standing 33 m tall and was built in 2003.(4) (5) (6)
Unfortunately, when we get there... it is their closing day! High up, we take in the view over the Mediterranean. We see Fuengirola, the harbour and the BULL!!!(7)
A real ‘beacon’ when you drive ‘home’.
It is extremely windy, a sudden haze is cooling the temperature, not at all pleasant; we move on and drive alongside the mountain, only to discover that we are heading back to... MIJAS!!!
Great!

When we get to the center, it is remarkably more quiet than the previous day, the horses once more on duty, in this image, it looks like a NO Joy-ride, lol.(8)
The light is great, we walk around and take our shots, pure pleasure.
There is a museum of everything BULL, which we give amiss, but do admire the colourful ceramics.(9)
We find side streets tiled with more of  the famous Hispano-Moresque ceramics and decorations.(10),(11),(12),(13).


It is getting cooler, and on our way down to the car, we discover A HUGE free-standing rock, half covered in greenery, we see where the chime came from, the massive bell on the top, a chapel is carved out and is a much visited place of worship, like most information, it tells you in ‘tiles’ that it is the Santuario de la Virgen
de la Peña.(14)  (for more info about the chapel and the legend, click this link):
http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Europe/Spain/Andalucia/Mijas-261102/Things_To_Do-Mijas-TG-C-1.html

There are visitors from all over the world; a Japanese lady stays behind from her group, for a short prayer.(15)

When we come out, the sun has disappeared behind the mountain, cold and tired with sun, sea, wind and photography, we decide to head home… It’s been another fantastic day. And we are keen to download and view our images!

Thanx, M, (*_*)