Praslin - Curieuse

On Monday morning, wake up at 6am in order to catch the first boat and not lose any more time; The luggage is supposed to be delivered to us in the evening.
One more thing to be bought before we can go hiking with our hiking boots and swimming suits (yes, that was sexy!!!!): sun screen. Not a lot of choice, but there is a local one with a maximal protection rating, which looks suitable. Wrong choice, we will realize it at the end of the day. One more week to be spent in Seychelles, and I altready look like an over cooked lobster :(

Let's stop complaining: between 2 series of problems, the scenery is incredible, with crystal clear water and white sand everywhere you look.
Even more breathtaking than what you can see in magazines.

 

After a few hours of hiking and enjoying the local wild life in Curieuse, then snorkeling in Saint-Pierre, we head back to Praslin in order to check if our beloved luggage finally made it.
And yes it did! Incredible how good it feels to wear clean clothes after a shower :)

On the second day, we start a 5 hours hike in order to cross the island and reach Anse Lazio beach. More swimming, snorkeling, and sleeping under the trees (looking for the shade, I got enough sun yesterday...)

Seychelles: from Paris to Mahé

Bonzour!

The flight to Dubai is 2 hours late, but I am waiting at the airport with Martin Fourcade, and am about to board an A380 for the first time ever, therefore it could have been worse ;)
 

Things start getting a bit more complicated for the connection in Dubai: we land 5 minutes after the expected take off time of the second flight, for which the "last call" is announced when we rush out of the plane. The information screens inform us that the boarding gate is 21 minutes away. 15 minutes of running up and down the stairs, and between the passengers in the corridors, we reach the boarding gate, as hot and exhausted as if we had run a marathon. Good news: the plane is still there. Bad news: it was not worth running, the plane will still be there 2 hours after that.

When we reach Mahé, our luggage is not there (don't forget, it is winter in Europe, we are wearing jeans, long sleeves tee shirts and walking boots, whereas the local temperature is close to 30°C, with as much humidity as you imagine (or may be even a bit more than that)), and we have missed the last boat to reach the island where we were supposed to sleep tonight.

Fortunately, we manage to find a small supermarket which is still opened on Sunday at 7pm in order to buy water and a toothbrush, and a local market where everything is about to close but we arrive just in time to buy the last 6 swimming suits they have for the 6 of us. That was close...

 

Malaga

Last stop of the holidays, before heading back home, with the house where Picasso was born

the cathedral

the Alcazaba fortress and the Roman theater 

Local aperitive in a typical bar

and the best meal of the holidays, to celebrate the end of the week.
If you ever go to Malaga, rush to the Tapeo de Cervantes, their food is properly amazing (and, yes, I ate all of this, I wished I could have tried a few more)

On the following day, I climb up the hill to the fortress and to the castle ruins, in order to eliminate some of the calories from yesterday's evening, and have a view on the city.

 

A last fruit juice, and it is time to head to the airport, forget about the sunny terraces, and come back to reality...

El Torcal

For today, there were different options:
- going to the Tabernas desert in order to visit Far West movie locations
- horse riding in the Sierra Nevada
- hiking in the Torcal, near Antequera
My choice was eventually for the Torcal, and for sure I didn't regret it!

The limestone blocks have been subject to both dissolution by water  and freeze-thaw splitting action which, working on the horizontal beds, resulted in the various shapes visible today.

Enjoy!