[iceberg]

The wife and I are staying in Mijas, Spain in the Costa del Sol. We are about 20 miles from Malaga, which is where Pablo Picassa grew up and also Antonio Banderas. So far, we've checked out a lot of old European architecture, art museums and lotsa food (Tapas, Paella and Concas (Spanish Pizza)). Sites to see in Malaga are an old Roman Theater (1 ad.), huge Fort/Palace, Bullfighting ring, Mediterranean beaches and a bit of shopping. I'm really enjoying the strong European coffees for half of the price of Starbucks. Unfortunately, there are no casinos near us, so no reports on that.

Spain uses the Euro currency and the people drive (like maniacs) on the right hand side of the road. Although, I'm not too fond of the traffic circles. I know just enough Spanish to get us around and many people here know some English. Most of Europe have decent train and bus service so renting a car is not a necessity. Topless sunbathing is not a big deal around here (unless the wife catches you drooling, lol).

At first, I had trouble getting internet service and had to sign out a USB WIFI connection from our Resort. WIFI service is limited to the front desk area. PLUS getting a power connection is a challenge. I have to use two adapters in order to power/charge my laptop.

Just a quick summary ... Later

[UofTNick]

Sounds like a great time Iceberg. I would definitely like to visit Spain sometime during the course of my life.

I went to Germany, France, and Switzerland with my family in 1998 - but i was only 11, and couldn't truly appreciate the experience.

I hope to go back sometime soon

[iceberg]

We added a little side trip to Marbella today and once again it was a nice clean tourist city on the Mediterranean Sea. Most shops are closed Sunday and the only things open are a few bars, restaurants and dessert shops. Travelling by bus is not too bad here. We hope to hit France for two weeks next year.

We had noticed on the news that oil hit $75 a barrel and the US$ dropped a cent in exchange from 0.77 to 0.76 Euro to the dollar (ie. $100 US will get you 76$ Euro). Withdrawing money thru the ATM has been a pain with the Bank of America Debit card for us. I guess we need to give them a call ahead of time for acceptance. I recommend Amex travellers checks.

Gas is about 1 Euro per Liter, which is about $5 US per gallon, which is not too bad since most people here drive tiny cars, take transit or scooters.

[doflovespoker]

Our family just finished a trip that involved a lot of driving. We experienced the gas prices first hand. Our choices for trips this summer are going to be very much influenced by those prices.

I am glad you are having a good time over there. Relax and enjoy.

[iceberg]

Man, I've never carried so much change around with me before. The Europeans have: $0.01, $0.02, $0.05, $0.10, $0.20, $0.50, $1.00, $2.00 coin denominations and some very colorful paper money. Since most Europeans travel via mass transit, they always have a huge bulge in their pants from carrying all this friggin change (lol).

I thought it was bad when the Looney came out (when I was in Canada in the 90's).