by Chet Fiedler
Day 4 in Spain was Carmelo’s last day at the Bancaja World of Basket Camp. Carmelo spent the entire morning signing autographs and taking photos with over 300 kids and staff. After a few hours in the blazing hot morning sun, Carmelo said his final goodbyes to the campers. “Always practice harder than everyone else, and follow your dreams,” he said with his goodbye to the
camp.
Once camp ended, Melo enjoyed his first afternoon and evening off since his arrival in Spain. So he decided to relax and take in more sights and culture of the area.
Walking throughout the shopping streets of Malaga, he visited the church where Picasso was baptized. And he also happened to come across a store called Zapatos Melo’s (Melo’s Shoes), but don’t expect to find any of the Jordan M5s inside. You’re more likely to find a pair of the slip-on leather loafers so popular with the locals.
Later in the afternoon, he would work his way toward Marbella to check into a beachfront resort called the Don Carlos Hotel—where he would spend his remaining time in Spain.
There is an area of Marbella called Puerto Banus, a marina where luxury yachts are docked and streets are littered with vacationers from what seemed like mostly England or Ireland. Although in the south of Spain, English was still the predominant language.
Puerto Banus is where you would also find the nightlife and the shopping, both of which Carmelo experienced.
Walking along the marina, he stopped to shop at stores like Gucci and Tom Ford, and then posted up at spots like Sky Lounge and Lola’s for music and people watching.
The Marbella club goers didn’t seem to notice Carmelo much (some clubs remain open until 6 a.m.), but occasionally someone would see him walk by and freeze in their tracks, grabbing their friend’s attention and pointing to say, “Is that Carmelo Anthony?”, “We love you Carmelo!”, “Carmelo, can we please take a picture?”, “We are your biggest fans Carmelo!”
“I can’t wait to sleep in tomorrow,” Carmelo said, referring to the fact that he’s been working non-stop since he’s arrived in Spain (with hardly any time allowed for jetlag recovery). Tomorrow would be his first, and only, day off.
