Marbella – The Watchtower and the Waves
Marbella, the glittering name only footsteps away from the modern resorts on the western coast, yet still a place of hidden beauty. The beach in this part was picturesque, the ocean endless in blue tones that colour-changed with the sun.
Indeed, the Torre Ladrones served as a reminder that this stretch of coast used to be a territorial border that required guarding. It was a solitary tall heritage tower to guide the boats in near what used to be this moorish region. Once vigilant for invaders from its peak, now it simply gazed at the tide. As it stood still, centuries had come and gone, vigilance had turned to leisure, but the sea, whilst everchanging, kept coming, kept going.
La Cala de Mijas provided us with a gentler taste of the Mediterranean beautiful seaside village of Marbella. The town, which seemed like it is meant for walking, had restaurants and little shops along the way. But afternoons stretched into evenings there, and the air weighed with salt and olive oil.
And the food here was remarkable too. Crisp, lustrous, golden plates of fried calamari presaging the sea. Seafood pasta, tangled with prawns and clams was indulgent, but the lemon and fresh herbs brought a beautiful lightness. Every dish here had a bit of the coast inside it. Eating in Marbella was to dissolve time away, to allow flavors to bubble conversation and laughter up.
Calahonda, Málaga and Marbella showed us the southern coast of Spain in all its contradictions. The taste of Calahonda offered us the cadence of the sea and the fullness of the table. In Málaga, it revealed itself a city of layers that music, art, and history are inseparable. Marbella maintained its blend of past and present as ancient towers held court over plates of seafood and wine from the modern world below.
All of it was relaxation. Of strolling through tight alleyways as harp music trilled, of cracking calamari with the ocean seconds away, of gazing at a cathedral that may eternally be incomplete yet is wholly brilliant, of toasting a cup of Andalusian wine to the horizon.
