After visiting Benalmádena's butterfly park Thursday, we crossed the street to visit the breathtakingly situated Enlightenment Stupa (Buddhist Temple). We can see the temple from our beach (it's less than 7 km/4 miles away), but until the other day, I had no idea what it was. It's a monument (built in 2003) for world peace, prosperity, and harmony. And it's a place to learn, reflect, and meditate. It's the largest Stupa in the Western World.
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| CROSSING THE STREET FROM THE BUTTERFLY GARDEN TO THE BUDDHIST STUPA. |
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| THE TEMPLE FROM THE FRONT. THE FUTURE SPANISH SOCCER TEAM (?) HEADING FOR THE STAIRS. |
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| BUDDHA TOOK ONE ARTIST TWO YEARS TO COMPLETE. |
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| ONE OF THE HAND-PAINTED WALLS. FOUR ARTISTS, 6 MONTHS. |
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| THE VIEW FROM THE TERRACE. FUENGIROLA COASTLINE IN THE DISTANCE. |
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| A SAND MANDALA. MADE FROM SAND AND RITUALISTICALLY DESTROYED ONCE CEREMONIES AND VIEWING ARE OVER. IT SYMBOLIZES THE BUDDHIST BELIEF IN THE TRANSITORY NATURE OF MATERIAL LIFE. |
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| HEADING BACK OUT TO THE TERRACE AND THE VIEW. |
The Amphibious Gruñon
After our inspiring visits to the Butterfly Park and the Buddhist Stupa, we took advantage of the fact that we had a rental car and drove down from Benalmádena Pueblo (the old town) to Benalmádena Costa (the beach town) to visit "Sea Life," a marine-life center. We had a so-so lunch at a tourist trap before heading next door to Sea Life. We all agreed that, if the butterfly park rated an A+, Sea Life rated a C–. They are clearly well-intentioned but we found the place to be sadly outdated and overpriced. So, I've only included one photo from our hour there. One fish reminded us all of San Geraldo during a "Gruñon" (Grumpy) phase — click here and here for that story.
If we hadn't first been enlightened yesterday, we might all have ended up like this guy.
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| GRUÑON THE FISH. |
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