We have got family over at the moment, so me and El Rubio went to the zoo with his cousin Cecilia who is 1.5 years older and my sister, her mum.

I have heard good things about that zoo previously, but never been. And I was really pleasantly surprised.  The last time I was in a spanish zoo was 22 years ago on a holiday in Santander in Northern Spain. I was 12 and camping with my mum and sis (and I kissed a boy on that holiday, but that is another story…) and ate spaghetti bolognese and oxtail soup.

No idea what the zoo we visited was called (give me a break, it was 22 years ago, and I have had a baby since then which is a way of getting senile, seriously I cannot remember a thing any more these days). But the zoo was not a pretty sight. Kinda like the animal version of those Rumanian orphanages. There was big cats in tiny circus-like cages pacing back and forth (you know the type I am talking about: small box, bars on one side and solid wall on the remaining three). A stench of animal piss and shit, no stimulation for any of the animals who all seemed to have various manic-nervous behaviour issues. We didn’t stay long and my sister and I were in tears.

So went we went to the Zoo in Fuengirola, I am happy to say that it was as far removed from my previous horror experience as possible. I will tell you more about it soon, but someone is clinging to my leg making typing difficult.