Concerto

I arrived at Bristol airport, after a wonderful Sunday roast in Taunton, with what I felt was not enough time margin. But security was so efficient in BRS Airport that I ended up with lots of waiting time, which is better than running stressed. Boarding was a very civilised affair and we walked out onto the parking apron to board the aircraft by front and rear steps. I always enjoy boarding with the stairs because you can see everything that is going on, whereas in the airbridge you are cut off in a sterile environment.


Departures area of Bristol airport


An Aurigny Airlines plane on the apron at Bristol airport


Boarding the easyJet flight to Geneva at Bristol

Again there was a friendly welcome from what turned out to be an excellent crew, who delivered the BoB service with efficiency and took care of general passenger needs, such as little children. Those little children were the only annoyance on the flight in fact, because they were immediately in front of and behind me and were very noisy. On the other hand, it was thanks to the families that we played seat ballet and I ended up with an aisle seat, rather than my allocated middle seat.


View down the interior of the easyJet flight to Geneva


View of the Mt Blanc Massif


Leaving the easyJet flight at Geneva, with the Jura mountains in the background

Because I had had Sunday roast earlier today back in Taunton, I didn't purchase one of the menu combo deals, but I fancied a Segafredo coffee despite the late hour of the afternoon. Somehow easyJet managed to serve it at the perfect temperature, not too hot, not too tepid. A snack was offered for half price with it, so I opted for sour cream and onion flavoured Pringles (I also had with me the uneaten muffin from breakfast at the Mendip Inn two days ago). The remainder of the flight was pleasant and calm, with an on-time landing at Geneva. However, the chaos of arriving Brits meant that passport control took some time.

Rating 8*
Seat 19B - 18D
Aircraft 32A
Registration G-EZTL

rapidex

I can't believe we had a review of Tesco and not the sunday roast

Concerto

It's true and I was thinking about that beforehand. I didn't want to put my hosts too much on the spot here in an internet forum. We all know FT is okay but for them it's a different world and it would have been hard to show anything without personal elements being present in the pics. And I also didn't want to start taking loads of photos during what was a family meal. Next time, maybe...

Concerto

I really wonder how this is going to end. There is an absence of water in Alps and this situation has been going on for some time now, at least since the beginning of the pandemic. Occasional news stories highlight the total lack of base snow in the Alps, with pictures of endless fields of rubble and boulders. Another extremely hot and dry summer is going to kick the remaining glaciers into their final melting phase. And when there's no more water in the Alps then the problems are really going to begin. I actually like dry conditions and a mild climate, like most people, but I should be looking for that in the Mediterranean, not in the Lake Geneva region.


Yet another view from the lakeside at Montreux


Statue of Freddy Mercury at Montreux

There have been some glorious days redolent of a premature spring but there hasn't been any time for serious hiking mainly because my three trips (Seville, Bristol and Malaga) have used up any spare time. Grouping free days so that I could make these trips means that I had to work extra hard at the Conservatoire during the remaining days. But I manage to achieve between 6,000 and 10,000 steps every day, according to my step counter, just walking from the train station to work and home.


Lac Léman (Lake Geneva) is endlessly photogenic


Interesting quotation of Victor Hugo at a bus stop in Montreux: "Music, it's noise that can think".

Concerto

What a total mess Geneva airport was when I arrived some 2 hours before my flight. Skiers and lost travellers were milling everywhere, victims of endless flight delays and cancellations due to general strikes in France. Oddly, security took me exactly three and a half minutes to go through, mainly because I chose the line with the new scanners. I sat upstairs where the lounges are, along with hordes of other people and I really missed not having lounge access before today's flight.


With all the cancellations due to a French air traffic control strike, Geneva airport was quite a mess


Luckily I did not book the nonstop easyJet flight to Málaga, which ended up being cancelled


The area outside the SWISS business lounges became a squat zone - I myself had no lounge access before my flight with Vueling

This was my first experience with Vueling (VY), a Spanish low cost airline belonging to the same IAG group that British Airways and Iberia hail from. Online, it appears to have an extremely bad reputation with its customer service as well as constant irrops and cancellations. When tracking my flights during the preceding days (GVA-BCN-AGP) I found that there was not a single day on which I would have made my connection in Barcelona and actually reached Málaga. The boarding process at the downstairs A gates (A6) was perfectly civilised, although we boarded onto a bus (hence the ground level gates). I quite like climbing up the steps onto planes, so I was happy with that.


Boarding my first flight with Vueling on the apron


The interior of the Vueling cabin reminded me of Ryanair, with the bright yellow headrests

The flight was a surprisingly positive experience and staff were really friendly, much better than the aloof dismissiveness of Lufthansa and SWISS crews. Having read so many bad stories and reviews about Vueling I was kind of expecting the worst, so almost anything was going to be a pleasant surprise. Seat comfort was similar to that on A320 aircraft used by other European carriers, guaranteed to give you a sore back, but the seat pitch was quite good and I had no issues with room for my knees. The buy on board menu contained a number of nice Spanish things, such as tapas and bocadillo sandwiches, as well as a selection of wines and cocktails. I settled for an IPA beer made by Spanish beer company Mahou (€4.50), which was pleasantly smooth. Trolley service in the aisle progressed quite slowly, probably because there was quite a lot of uptake with people ordering hot food items (such as Barilla pasta dishes). Even though the flight was completely full with every last seat taken, I enjoyed my first Vueling flight and I would fly with them again.


I had a Mahou IPA beer from the onboard menu and it was very good


Arrival at the gate at Barcelona airport

Rating 8*
Seat 20A
Aircraft 32N
Registration EC-JSY

Fabo.sk

If I see right, there's a whole of 3 flights on that board that are not delayed or cancelled (yet).

Certainly a day I would like to not be at the airport.

Concerto

I think I got out with about 15-20 minutes delay on the GVA-BCN flight. Maybe a bit more, but nothing significant and I had plenty of time to catch my next flight at BCN. I'm not sure how French ATC thinks it has the right to hold the whole of Europe ransom. Something has to change there.

FlyingFinn

Wow, somebody actually called Vueling's seat pitch "quite good" :-o

Do they have new seats or something - the last time I flew them was around 15 years ago and I labeled them "the no legroom airline" on that trip.

Fabo.sk

I flew Vueling metal in days of short-haul Level. It was OK, not generous, but in line with other A320 LCCs.

I wonder if actually LCCs have better seat pitch in the back than full service cariers, as number of rows tend to be the same or similar, but legacy tends to have better pitch in front than in the back, achieved by having one less row before emergency exit (A320 legacy exit is typically 11-12, LCC typically 12-13(14) )

Concerto

I was surprised at how good the seat pitch is on Vueling, because I expected a lot worse. The general flight experience was ok, somewhat like a network carrier. The flight even carried codeshare flight numbers for Qatar Airways, which really surprised me. Can't imagine what it's like stepping off Qatar business class in Barcelona, only to board a Vueling plane!

Concerto

I found the transfer process in Barcelona airport to be incredibly civilized and calm. The flight from Geneva docked at Terminal B and Vueling sent me an SMS to announce that the next flight would leave from gate B39. This turned out to be a short distance from where we arrived. Once at the gate the overhead monitor displayed boarding as being at 21h05, the exact time when I was there, but the Vueling website announced a delay of about 20 minutes and Flightstats showed a 30 minutes delay. In the end we picked up about 30 minutes delay, which wasn't too bad. Again, I met very pleasant people while standing waiting for the delay to pass.


Barcelona airport is pleasant enough but it resembles dozens of other airports


Boarding my Vueling flight to Málaga


A view of the Vueling cabin before it began to fill up

In the end we all boarded once the gate staff turned up, again a civilized boarding process (I was allocated group 1) and once again the plane turned out to be totally full. After take-off we immediately hit turbulence and the seatbelt signs were illuminated for the first half of the flight. Once it began, service was reasonably efficient and I ordered a white Verdejo wine along with a wholegrain snack packet called Sun Bites (total €9.45). Again uptake was quite strong, which I did not expect for a Spanish domestic flight. In the end we hit the runway at Málaga airport just 10 minutes behind schedule. Another good experience from Vueling, so here's to the next one!


A closer look at the seats on the Barcelona to Málaga flight


The Vueling inflight BoB menu


I had a small bottle of Verdejo white wine and a snack

Rating 7.5*
Seat 16F
Aircraft 32A
Registration EC-LOC

Fabo.sk

Sounds like I could really have gone with Vueling for my flight to PMI.

I was considering easyJet (as discussed previously), Vueling, Transavia and Air Europa.

easyJet turned out to be expensive by the time I got around to them, so was Transavia from Rotterdam.
From Amsterdam it was in the ballpark, but bad timing and I would have to pay extra to get XP.
So it was between vueling and Air Europa. It was close, but UX won because it was a codeshare flight with KLM leg to MAD so I figure I can snag the exit row on the long leg and the check-in bag is included so I don't have to drag it around on transfer. Plus if I got it right I will be getting 10XP.

At the same time, unlike easyJet, I would have no issues buying vueling. I've flown short-haul Level before and if it's anything like that I'm happy.

Concerto

I don't know how we managed to achieve it, but on the Sunday afternoon following my arrival in Málaga we managed to hit five cultural sites one after the other. If you get the timing right you can visit several museums one after the other and our strategy resulted in an overall saving of €85 for two persons! It involved a LOT of walking (around 25,000 steps) and began with the climb up to the Gibralfaro fort which afforded spectacular views over the city and port of Málaga. Walking around the ramparts up there resulted in me getting rather sun burned (so bring a hat and sun cream, even in winter). After returning down to ground level there followed a visit to the medieval Alcazabar, a bit like a miniature version of the Alhambra in Granada. If you do it this way you're going to share your space with hordes of other directionless people all milling around, going in the wrong directions and trying to take photos of themselves in stupid places. I have to prepare myself mentally for this because I'm not very good with crowds and get a bit nervous and impatient with people. So a bit of preparation helps a lot. There are still hundreds of places where you share your space with barely a soul, so all is not lost!


View of Málaga port while climbing up to the Gibralfaro


View of the bullfighting ring from the Gibralfaro


Up at the Gibralfaro, the highest point in Málaga
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A view of the fortifications of the Gibralfaro

Concerning museums there is now a glut of really good ones in Málaga. I began with the Carmen Thyssen Museum with its excellent collection of Spanish romantic art spread over three floors of nicely spaced galleries. Then I hit the Picasso Museum, which is one of my favourites and is a modest and well displayed collection which can be viewed in under an hour. It closed at 19h00 and I quickly moved on to the Centre Pompidou, an offshoot of the famous museum in Paris, housed in a rather pointless and space wasting multicoloured cube down in the rejuvenated port area. This was really good and 45-60 minutes was just about right to view the rather interesting and well chosen collection, which includes some works by George Braque and even by Picasso himself.


Inside the Alcazabar, which is lower down the hill than the Gibralfaro


One of the ornate pools in the Alcazabar


What used to be the main entrance to Málaga cathedral


Here, you can see how one of the towers of Málaga cathedral has been left unfinished

I managed to get into the Baroque style Catedral de Málaga for free by turning up at 08h30 on Monday morning at the door and waiting for the sacristan to turn up with his big key (he came rushing up a bit late, apologizing). The cathedral can be visited free of charge between 08h30 and 09h00, which saves a whopping €8. I completely understand that they need to charge tourists for visiting the cathedral, especially when I saw the army of cleaners at work inside the massive building. But I find €8 (or €12 if you want to visit the roof) a bit on the high side when compared to Seville's amazing and somewhat unwieldy Gothic cathedral, where there is a large amount of important art work in the various chapels and alcoves. Málaga cathedral was beautiful and airy, wonderfully devoid of people so early in the morning, but lacking in wonders like those hidden away in Seville. It also lacks a tower on one side, which was somehow left incomplete, which gives the building a lopsided appearance. From the cathedral we crossed over to Recyclo, a bicycle repair shop which, oddly, doubles up as a great breakfast joint - scrambled eggs, croissants, olive bread, Caffe con lece...


The Centre Pompidou in Málaga, an outpost of the famous museum in Paris


Interior of the bizarre Pompidou building


I avoided posting any photos of artworks, but this will give you an idea of the interior of the Centre Pompidou, Málaga

The other gem I visited on Monday was the Museo Jorge Rando, a bit outside the tourist center of Málaga, which was really quite impressive and well worth a visit. The building in which the work of living artist Jorge Rando is exhibited is really well designed and the museum is a pleasure to visit, as well as being free! There was to be a vernissage next Monday, in the presence of the artist himself who must be in his 80s, to which I was warmly invited, but unfortunately I will be hard at work back in Switzerland.


The Roman theater in Málaga, on the same hill as the Alcazabar and the Gibralfaro


Spectacular interior of Málaga cathedral


Another view of the interior of Málaga cathedral, looking in the opposite direction

Concerto

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Funny scene at the entrance to an apartment rental outfit - the figure on the left is a mannequin


Portable bookstalls in central Málaga


Churros in Casa Aranda in Málaga


The waterfront at Málaga's rejuvenated port area

My companion on this trip was someone with whom I had shared an apartment back in university days and he did a very good job of keeping me from making unnecessary trips to various tempting bars that we went past. Oddly, in Málaga I was quite good at picking out spit and sawdust places that served cheap drink and food. The key is easy, just go a couple of hundred metres outside the touristy pedestrianised center and you will find a plethora of places, although Sunday evening was a bit grim because everywhere was closed. Andalusia appears to be a part of the world where you don't get free tapas if you order a drink, unlike most of the rest of Spain. I certainly looked hard enough. Near the Museo Jorge Rando there was a bar who offered soft drinks and water for less than 1 Euro and a large Malagueña beer for less than 2 Euros. Here, the tapas looked good, displayed in refrigerated kitchen dishes behind the counter a bit like the way the bones of various saints are displayed in some Catholic churches! I never saw these trays of food actually being dug into in the busy bars that I visited, but I suppose the food turns over so quickly that there are low chances of food poisoning. Food and general hygiene is a bête noire of mine but Spain seems to be mostly quite good.


Sundown over the port of Málaga


A famous tapas bar near the Roman theater called El Tapeo de Cervantes


The Barber of Seville, literally


A typical Malagueña dish, a sort of soup with chickpeas and spinach

Another bar that my nose told me would be quite good was Los Pueblos. Not only was it good, it offered us a menu del dia for €10.50, which included a first and second course, a drink (beer!), bread and a dessert or coffee. We had cocido Malagueno, a local soup of chickpeas and spinach, arroz paella, and grilled dorada and merluza fish with either salad or french fries.. outstanding, very simple cooking which pleased me much more than the series of tapas which cost us €67 at the Tapeo de Cervantes the day before (but having said that, the food was good, the service was extremely friendly and they had an excellent wine menu). Casa Lola, in the heart of the tourist area, charges a lot less for its Vermouth, of which I had several. My suggestion, if you are not alone, is to order the smaller tapas first (like Pintxos, they often come served on a slice of bread), then order a couple of larger plates a bit later on (which will work out cheaper than lots of little portions), at the same time as ordering your second glass of Vermouth or wine (we had a substantial lamb stew). That way things will come in the right order, unlike the way I did it.


Los Pueblos, a bar and restaurant with proper low prices from the old days


Another tapas bar, with the hams lined up over the bar


The beach of the city of Málaga, La Malagueta


Casa Lola, probably my favourite tapas joint in Málaga

We did manage to stagger down to the city beach, La Malagueta, by using the circular C1 bus. This very useful bus does a downturn circuit taking in a number of major sights, costs €1.40 a ride and you can use it as an extremely cheap bus tour of the city! The beach is lovely, although the water was jolly cold, and it was a nice place to hang out in the sun despite quite a stiff, cool breeze. I have to explore the neighbouring urban area on a future visit because it's probably full of authentic bars and tapas joints. Near the apartment that we rented, across what passes for a river (but in reality is an extremely ugly wide and dry ditch with homeless people camping in it), there was a decent breakfast bar. On a busy arterial street, this place served the best coffee of the trip, along with hot toasted ham and dripping cheese rolls - total cost for 2 people including second coffees came to €7.


The excellent food in Casa Lola, in chilled display cases


The busy interior of Casa Lola, Málaga


An alleyway in Málaga, where the underlying stonework can be quite slippery

Concerto

One thing I discovered during this visit to Málaga was, due to the proximity of the rented apartment to a suburban train station, that there a perfectly efficient train service to the airport which costs only €2.30. This is a better option than the much slower bus which costs €4. The train takes 11 minutes, the bus takes at least 30 minutes, depending on the traffic.


Living area of the Limehome apartment, Málaga


The same living area, taken from another angle

The Limehome apartment complex is in a modern part of Málaga about 15 minutes walk to the west of the central pedestrian zone. I didn't like it very much, there was nobody there to greet you or explain anything, it's all done remotely with codes for entering the building and rooms and the place was characterless and sterile. It was also exceedingly soulless but the apartment was quite spacious with two bedrooms. Accessories, however, were very much on the cheap side and the fridge itself was pure junk. It should be called "Draindwelling" instead of "Limehome" because the toilet and shower room had a serious issue with the plumbing and stank. In addition there was a synthetic odour throughout the whole flat. I slept very badly on the first night there, but the second night was better, thankfully.


Sleeping area in the Limehome apartment in Málaga


This is the second bedroom in that apartment, not another angle of the room in the previous shot

The previous night in Málaga had been spent at the Holiday Inn Express at Málaga airport, because my flight arrived very late - I made it to the hotel after midnight and enjoyed a free platinum member drink with my old university flatmate. The young guy at reception managed to fix one or two things in my smartphone. I wish I'd got him to look at some other things but I was so tired with the late arrival and not really thinking straight. The room was perfectly decent even though all HIX rooms are made equal, here in Europe anyway. The bed was comfortable enough and the bedding was decent so I had a good night, although I had forgotten my mosquito burner and killed one of the beasts just before putting the light out. Logically, the temperature was still too cold for there to be many mosquitoes, but they were there anyway. The room was on the ground floor right at the end of the wing, opposite a service room and entrance across the corridor.


The bathroom facilities in the Limehome apartment look good, but there was a major drainage problem and an awful smell


I didn't take any pics at the Holiday Inn Express Málaga Airport, but the cookie cutter hotel is visible in the middle of this pic

The breakfast was ok in the usual Holiday Inn Express way, not anything special but not particularly great either (the coffee from the machine was crap as usual). What I did not like was that once again it was noisy and jammed with people - I am the quiet breakfast type and really loathe all this milling around and loud jabbering. Luckily I noticed a side room there that nobody had worked out you could go into, so it was possible to escape the crowd. Of course and as usual, the moment I went in there, people started following me.


The Limehome apartment complex in Málaga had pretty dire surroundings - this is the so-called river that runs through Málaga, with homeless people sheltering under the bridge


The streets near the Limehome apartment complex have a number of missing buildings, where the sides of the neighbouring edifices are coated with some yellow substance