Well I’m here in Malaga and I already feel the first impact of how traveling without Ron is going to limit sightseeing for all of us.
Normally, on an airplane, the cabin crew got to know us right away because Ron ordered this drink he designed all by himself. The flight staff liked to ask incredulous follow up questions to make sure he was psychologically fit enough to fly based on his beverage of choice.
Here’s the famous beverage. I’m going to keep the recipe private out of respect for Ron but I can reveal that a key step is curdling the Bailey’s Irish Cream so that the entire libation creates fun airplane conversation of is it a drink or is it a bodily function in some Delta glassware:
No matter, though, because the drink always bonded us to the flight staff and had Ron ordered that drink last night, we’d all be here on my blog, marveling over pictures of the Aurora Borealis, but we are not.
Instead, I have this picture of E.T., which is likely a copyright violation:
Why? Well, unlike Ron, I’m low maintenance on a plane. I refused all drink offers last night, stuck with my bottle of water and therefore, of course, didn’t get to know anyone at all on my flight.
And so mid-way through, when the In-Crowd, with their fancy/regurgitated drinks and chatty repartee, discovered that we were flying right through the Northern Lights, well no one told me and so I just kept right on watching E.T. like a person who doesn’t appreciate a good spoiled libation.
I did spy this pink sky at some point, which is apparently called the Belt of Venus, and then I liked all that cracked ice down below.:
And then this is on final approach into Malaga:
Here is a picture of the car and driver I paid 58 Euros for. The key thing was to have the driver be waiting for me outside baggage claim with my name on a sign, to make my first solo trip smoother. Instead, I got off the plane to 10 frantic messages from Ruben. Not only was he not at the airport, he was at least 30 minutes away and would I mind making my way out to the parking lot, using this handy map that I think he drew while he was driving, and wait around until I saw a black van with this license plate:
Finally, I promise to give you some Malaga information tomorrow but it’s late here and I’m tired. For tonight, I offer the first shower of the trip, which is a good one if you like to soap up the sheets while you bathe:
And some street art near my hotel:
Travels with Valerie 