Mad dogs and Englishwomen........

I needed to go into town to pay the irritating water bill. The only utility bill that needs to be paid at the water office and that I can't pay in a bank or a post office.

It being warm (30 plus degrees) and sunny, and me having to cart back a few things to Gib for Partner including his spray gun - but fortunately not the compressor, I decided to get the bus from the village.

But as the bus time drew nearer, I went off that idea. I was feeling particularly chilled and rushing for a bus didn't seem so appealing. What would be nice would be a leisurely wander down the dusty track, enjoying the countryside.

So off I went. Down the river bed which amazingly even had a trickle of water in it. Left onto the old railway line track. Past Greedy One. The big black horse with the fearsome teeth.

I like Greedy One because he is not a hypocrite. He does not come up for strokes or slop like that. He comes for food and if there is no food he is not interested. He was eating hay or whatever horses eat. He glanced up briefly, saw me, saw the total absence of carrots or apples and dismissed me with a flick of his ears. Back to the hay.

It was hot down the track. Sun blazing out of totally clear blue sky. But at least there was a breeze. My bag seemed to be getting heavier. The water office shuts at one, so because I'd not set off till noon, the leisurely wander wasn't quite so leisurely. More like a fast march. I began to think the bus might have been a better idea after all.

Anyway, the fast march worked well. Into water office, pay bill, and wait for the bus to Málaga. I sat there absolutely dripping sweat. I am surprised there wasn't a pool of water at my feet. I licked my lips. I tasted very salty. I should probably have gone and bought a bottle of water at this point but I really didn't feel like water swilling around in my empty stomach.

The bus arrived early. Not only did it arrive early, it left early. Unprecedented. Arrived in Málaga with enough time to go for a sandwich and a drink. Salad sandwich I thought, without yucky mayonnaise.

The good thing about Spain is that bars are usually just so flexible. If they have the ingredients and you want something they will make it. You need to know this though, and you also need to know what you can reasonably ask for.

So, although the bar had a load of sandwiches piled up, there was no salad one (with or without mayo). Maybe because salad ones would go soggy anyway. Or maybe not many people eat salad sandwiches - with or without tuna, chicken, ham. Anyway, it's on the menu, as are various salads so I asked if he could make me one.

Big smile. Of course he could. I don't want the mayo, but do you have anything else you could add like cucumber or onion? He looked very apologetic and said no, but then asked if I would like some green pepper as well. This sounded a fine sandwich. I went down the counter to get my drink. I decided some olives would be nice. I was starving. Gets a small bowl of olives.

Paid the bill. Normally if you ask for something to be excluded you don't get anything off the price, but sometimes they add extra stuff onto the sandwich. Asking for something different like peppers is borderline, depends on the bar and the staff. No extra charge for the green peppers. No charge for the olives. What a fine and very reasonably priced lunch.

The rest of the journey was uneventful but relaxing. I snoozed and gazed at the Mediterranean. Arrived at the flat about 7pm to find the two Sleeping Beauties (Partner and Dog happily snoring away together).

The next day I woke up feeling slightly groggy. No, it wasn't the sandwich. I hadn't got food poisoning. It wasn't the pasta and pesto that Partner had cooked on my arrival.

Eventually I twigged. It had been ages since I felt like that so it took a while to work it out. Too much sun in the heat of the day. No hat. No water on the walk. I should really know better. Maybe next time I will take the bus from the village.

Moral of story: Never, but never, disrespect the sun and the heat. Always take a hat and a small bottle of water.