Take me to Malaga, please

When I was living in Spain I made a trip to visit my favorite British ex-pats and it was an escape from the heat of the city, from tasteless food my body hated, and the whir of a foreign language constantly slipping through my ears. Homesickness had taken over and all I wanted to do was find some ruby slippers to click. Apparently hopping on a RyanAir flight to see Gerald, Liz and Lizzie would be just as good.
In Malaga, my bed had fluffy bedding, not thin, worn blankets. Instead of having to fight the heat without even a fan as a weapons, I got to sleep in a room with air conditioning and a cat curled up under my chin. The TV showed programs in English, even some American sitcoms. Doors opened up to an ocean view instead of a busy plaza and then there was the food. Porridge, fresh fruit, roasts, potatoes, vegetable soup, cherries on ice cream, shrimp cocktail: extravagant and comfort food all at once.
While the physical accommodations were priceless, it was getting to be with people I consider family that really made my short trip the most relaxing vacation I took during my six months abroad. I got constant hugs, pats on the shoulder, linked arms and hours to catch up on years apart over tea. Palm trees, fresh picked oranges, a house full of cats, and surrogate family; I need to plan a trip.

Trade-offs

I have a friend.
His name is Dan.
He is in a band.
We used to salsa together.
In Spain.
On random stages in the park.

And we listened to music.
Lots.
While drinking beer that tasted like a brick wall.
On the ground.
In my plaza surrounded by roses.
With Chey at night.
It was great.

Recently the social monster that is facebook has brought us back into closer contact and I found myself with a dilemma...
Talking to Dan on a regular basis made me miss him more, but I so enjoy him that I didn't want to stop talking to him.
I decided it was worth the pain to keep in touch (which he thanked me for) and we have been chatting a few times a week. One thing I HEART about Dan is that he has an awesome knowledge base of music, and all sorts of music at that. He is a very talented musician himself but he also has a knack for knowing what music a person might enjoy or even need. When living in Madrid we often loaded up our respective flash drives, met at the fountain of a plaza, and traded mixes filled with great songs. Everything from CCR to Ben Harper to remixes he did himself.
Now that he home in Philly and I am, well, not, it makes trading music a bit harder. We have still managed...I him told about the new Jason Mraz album (which he now loves), and he just sent me Ryan Adams, "Easy Tiger" (which I now love). I suppose we'll have to settle for zipped files and facebook chat instead of hanging out in the plaza with my ipod drinking Mahou with Chey.