Spanish football: It doesn´t get any bigger than this!

Spain is buzzing with excitement as the countdown to La Liga´s El Clásico begins, when all eyes will be firmly fixed on the two Spanish footballing giants.

Sunday evening (7th October) sees old rivals Barcelona and Real Madrid battling it out at the Camp Nou stadium, in an eagerly awaited clash that could prove pivotal in Real Madrid’s title defence, as their Catalan rivals are already eight points clear after only six games.

Let battle commence.

This is futbol.  Not soccer.

futbolImage credit Flickr CC: Mingo.nl

MAKE SURE TO CLICK ON THE TWO LINKS ABOVE TO SEE GREAT PROMOTIONAL VIDEOS OF THE GAME ON YOUTUBE

UPDATE 7TH OCTOBER: After an exciting 90 minutes, the match ended up a 2-2 draw which, under the circumstances,  seemed a fair result!

Related posts:

Top 10 Best Football Players in Spain today

La Noche de San Juan: Families, fires and football!

Venturing further afield: A long weekend in Santander

We love to travel not only locally, but throughout Spain, so I will also include information, from time to time, about where we have visited.  Usually these places can either be driven to within a few hours of our home, east of Málaga, or we will have flown there from Málaga (AGP) airport.

Banco de Santander

It´s pretty easy to pick up some cheap flights from Mágaga to Santander, the elegant capital city of the province of Cantabria, which is located on the northern coast of Spain, between Asturias and the Basque Country, overlooking the Bay of Biscay.

The port city of Santander has many clean, golden beaches and is home to the magnificent coastal resort of El Sardinero, which became popular with the Spanish upper classes during the late 19th century.  The wonderful beaches together with the promenade and the Magdalena Peninsula are some of the main attractions for tourists.

El Sardinero Beach, Santander, Spain

El Sardinero Beach views, Santander, Spain

Santander fell victim to a great fire in 1941.   Fanned by a strong southerly wind, the fire burned for two days, destroying the greater part of the medieval town centre and gutting the city’s Romanesque cathedral.  The historic quarter includes a number of majestic buildings which are situated against an incredible natural backdrop of sea and mountains.

In the early part of the 20th century King Alfonso XIII chose this part of the Cantabrian coast as his summer retreat and many fine buildings sprung up to accommodate the needs of the aristocracy and court officials who followed the King and Queen.

Elegant buildings in Santander, Spain

Santa Iglesia Cathedral, Santander, Spain

Town Hall, Santander, Spain

Of course, one of the more pleasant things to do in Santander is to bustle along with the locals towards the many superb tapas bars in the old part of the city.  It´s amazing what a good glass of Rioja Crianza and a mouthful of seafood can do for you!

We spent our evenings strolling along the streets seeking out the busiest tapas bars – with their customers spilling out onto the pavements outside –  and diving straight in there, to try out our next round of  scrummy pintxos.

Rioja and scrummy tapas at a bar in Santander, Spain

Santander also provides a great base for touring many well-known cities and sights in northern Spain, which are located right on it´s doorstep.   There´s the  Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, the Picos de Europa – wheresome of the highest mountains in Europe are to be found, as well as the gastronomic delights of the picturesque city of San Sebastian in the heart of Basque country – but you´ll have to wait for me to tell you about those another time!

You might also enjoy:

The heart of Cómpeta: El Paseo de las Tradiciones

A Weekend Away: Santiago de Compostela

CBBH Photo Challenge: WINDOWS

Whether your first thought is of panes of glass or Operating Systems

– the CBBH Photo Challenge theme for October is WINDOWS!

Pretty window in Cómpeta, Spain

I found my first window as I wandered around the streets of the white village of Cómpeta.  You´ve heard me mention this village many times before, because it is the closest to my home in the nearby countryside.  Many of the very pretty village houses have plants outside their windows but inside the metal grills that are a common feature on houses in the area.

Stained glass window depicting St George slaying the dragon

This beautiful stained glass window is in St George´s Church, the oldest Anglican church in mainland Spain.   St George´s Church can be found within the grounds of the English Cemetery, about 300m east of the bullring in the city of Málaga.

Malaga´s Atarazanas market

Staying in the city of Málaga, here is another stained glass window, but this time it´s inside the Atarazanas Market.  Offering fresh, local produce at fantastic prices the Mercado Central de Atarazanas is most definitely worth a visit if you happen to find yourself in the city.  Joining the bustling crowds of discerning locals at the stalls offering an abundance of seafood, fruit, vegetables, meat, spices and dried fruits is a wonderful way to buy fresh, local produce.

The ivy-clad windows of the Parador in Ronda, Spain

Here are some of the ivy-clad windows and balconies of the Parador in Ronda, where we were fortunate enough to spend a few days last summer.   Paradors are state-run hotels, often located in castles, palaces, monasteries and extraordinary Spanish national heritage buildings. The Parador of Ronda is a luxury hotel in the former town hall, which sits on the edge of a gorge.

Derelict sugar factory in Maro, Spain

Do you remember when I visited the derelict San Joaquín sugar mill, on the old N340 coast road between Nerja and Maro?   Though the glass in this window is long gone, it was still interesting to peer through at the interior of the building, though unsafe to wander inside given the state of the roof.

Flying over the snowy mountains of northern Spain, heading south.

The window of an aeroplane gives a unique look at the world from a totally different perspective.  Whenever I fly, I always request of window seat because I love the spectacular views of the world from 35,000 feet!  Here you can see the snowy mountains of northern Spain, as I am flying south, back home from a visit to England.

Window and pretty balcony in Nerja, Spain

There is always a lovely display of flowers on this particular balcony in the nearby town of Nerja.  I always think it must be delightful to look out of this window and see all the different shades of pink and purple of the many flowers.  The patterned tiling underneath the balcony is very typical of the area, and I also like the way that the white building opposite and the deep blue sky is reflected in the panes of glass.

Ice on car windows in Spain

My final window might surprise you, as most people think that it´s always hot and sunny in Spain – all year round.   This photograph was taken a couple of years ago over the  Christmas holidays, whilst we were staying in one of the cave rooms at El Ventorro near to Alhama de Granada.  Being only about 50 kms from the city of Granada with the nearby Sierra Nevada mountains and ski resort,  we awoke one morning to find our car completely iced up.  We didn´t have long to wait though, because by the time we had eaten breakfast, the sun had come up and all the ice had disappeared!

This month´s CBBH Featured Blogs:

** Sally at Deliberately Delicious describes herself as a “Collector of sand dollars.  Adventurer.  Writer.  Weather girl.  Back up singer in a little black dress.  Dancer.  Poet.  Soccer mom.  Bond girl.  Teacher.  Diva.  Walker of beaches.  Seeker of truth and all things delicious in life.”

I have so enjoyed reading about Sally´s adventures this summer, sailing with her friend, Dan, on the western coast of Canada, near to her home in Victoria, British Columbia.  She writes with an easy-reading style, and has  many stunning photographs on her blog.  Deliberately Delicious has quickly become one of my favourite blogs to escape to.

** Whilst we are on the subject of delicious, Natalie at Cook Eat Live Vegetarian features amazing recipes and photographs that you just want to dive straight into!

Diagnosed with breast cancer in 2009, though fortunately now fully recovered, Natalie attributes her swift recovery to a combination of conventional and alternative treatments and to her following a whole foods, mainly plant based diet.

She is  a freelance food writer, photographer and stylist, specialising in delicious vegetarian and vegan cuisine that you wont be able to resist trying!

So that´s the CBBH Photo Challenge for October, folks!

Remember, all you have to do is post your entry by the end of the monthlink back to this blog and, most importantly,  don´t forget to add links to any two blogs that you´ve commented on during the past month, so that we can all HOP OVER and have a look.  Make sure you FOLLOW THIS BLOG so you don´t miss next month´s exciting challenge!

For more information on how the CBBH Photo Challenge works click here.

I hope everyone taking part enjoys the exposure the CBBH Photo Challenge offers to featured blogs and, who knows, you may end up finding a new favourite!  I´m looking forward to seeing your interpretations.

[CBBH logo Image credit: (cc) Mostly Dans]

Don´t fret about the missing WPC: Two Photo Challenges in Two Days!

Fresh vegetables on display at Atarazanas market, Málaga

I wonder what happened to the WordPress Photo Challenge for this week?

If you like regular Photo Challenges and you´re tired of waiting, why not join in with TWO CBBH Monthly Photo Challenges in TWO days? 

Today is the last day for entries in the CBBH September Challenge on REPETITION and, as tomorrow is the start of another month, October´s brand-new CBBH Photo Challenge will be posted first thing in the morning.

YOU´RE GOING TO LOVE IT – I PROMISE!

Anchovies in vinegar in Atarazanas Market, Málaga

Find out how the CBBH Monthly Photo Challenge works here.

What are you waiting for?

Other photo challenges you might enjoy:

Travel theme: Curves

Sunday Post: From a Distance

Weekly Image of Life: Colours

Travel Theme: Foliage

Baby lemons growing on the tree after the rain

When life gives you lemons …… these little beauties are only babies yet, but it´s wonderful to be able to go into the garden to pluck them from the tree to squeeze over freshly-barbecued fish!

This post is my response to this week´s Travel Theme: Foliage

Related posts:

When life gives you curves, flaunt them!

CBBH Photo challenge: REPETITION

Cheeky Monkey: Now you see him, now you don´t!