DAY 203

Monday 30 January 2012

Feeling better, we got up at 10, had eggs, bought groceries (including a surprise treat of Nicole’s UK favorite Walker’s Salt & Vinegar ‘crisps’) and were out the door from Camping El Pino barely by checkout time.

Camp supply refill

Yes, we parked outside the gates because of checkout time and remained an additional TWO HOURS searching for our phone and both our phones’ chargers. We ultimately abandoned the search and drove on. It's amazing how with such limited movement and such a small living space, things could disappear.

After a ways of driving, now late in the afternoon, ol’ Excalibur-White Rabbit (our van) started making noises. It became too big to ignore so we pulled into Marbella Automechanica which, with tons of cars parked out front and in the garage, seemed like a good bet. As always happens when taking a car to a mechanic, it stopped making the noise as soon as the workers were listening. At last it started “clunking” again, and they set to diagnosing the problem. Meanwhile in the office, two men argued with the owner, complaining about a price that was exorbitantly higher than what they’d initially agreed on. It made us a little nervous about the integrity of the business, but we talked to the two men and they kindly said just to “Make absolutely sure what the price is beforehand, or at least don’t let them do anything without your  authorization.” We took this advice to heart and watched them work on our car like hawks. Nicole and Dian watched them work for a while but upon feeling slightly awkward they began to walk away, though they were happily beckoned back by a mechanic who said it was fine to watch. It was then that the two witnessed him crack our hubcap!

G'bye, camp

Perhaps it was because he felt bad about the hubcap, but just as he was finishing up our car he motioned us over, holding an additional battery, and still gave us our old battery, whispering “¡rapido! ¡rapido! (quickly! quickly!)” so as not to be discovered by his boss. Along with this lagnappe and a fair price, they said we could stay the night in their lot, it being 7 by now and dark. We drove in search of a place to get some grub (Nicole muttered something about a desire for lentil soup), and randomly picked a place that, wonder of wonders, served lentil soup with chorizo! The young man (and the only one on duty in the place) was kind enough to take Charles and Nicole to the kitchen to show them the soup. Nicole waited for it to be warmed while Charles went next door to buy a gyro (too robust for Nicole’s stomach at the time). As the young man handed Nicole the bowls of soup he added an array of cookies, smiling shyly and saying, ''gratis'' (free).

Back at Marbella Automechanica we were just about to turn in when we heard a ruckus at the 24 hour gas station next door. Some crazy woman was clearly upset by something and was so vocal about it that the gas station workers had locked the doors and called the cops. She eventually left, though, and we slept peacefully.