Thursday, 12 September 2019 – Florence to Málaga: Lost Luggage, M&M Fans, and a Crunchy Dinner

Today was one of those classic travel days—two flights, one missing suitcase, and a fish Ros may never forget.

We started early in Florence, boarding a Vueling flight to Barcelona. 

A quick layover in Barcelona, then we were off to Málaga. Simple enough, right? Except Mick and I nearly missed boarding because we got distracted by a shop selling M&M-branded fans. Yep—actual handheld fans. Worth it? Yes. But we did make the flight, just in time.

We arrived, except one small hiccup—Carwol’s bag didn’t make it. Somewhere between Florence and Málaga, her luggage decided to take its own Iberian adventure. Trying to get information from the baggage desk was like decoding Morse code underwater, so we called in reinforcements: Fernando, our Spanish-speaking saviour, who jumped on the phone to try to make sense of it all.

Eventually, we gave up chasing luggage and chased sangria instead.

Dinner was at the iconic El Pimpi, a local institution known for its tapas and atmosphere. Everything was going smoothly until Ros ordered what she thought was whitebait. It was small, crispy, and deep-fried, so she just popped the whole thing in her mouth—bones, eyes, the lot. All seemed fine… until the waiter brought out a small forest of toothpicks for her and the staff started laughing softly from the kitchen.

Turns out, you’re not supposed to eat the entire thing. You’re meant to nibble the flesh off the bones—who knew? Apparently not Ros. Crunchy memories were made, lessons were learned, and the chefs likely had a story to tell all week.

Despite the chaos, Málaga greeted us with warmth (and wine), and even without a suitcase, Carwol still had a sangria in hand by sunset. Not a bad way to end a travel day full of detours.