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A day trip from Malaga to Granada sounded like the perfect plan for us. With just 1.5 hours between the two Spanish cities by train, we thought, “Why not?”

My friend and I booked a 9am outbound train and a 6pm return, ready for a full day of exploring.

The morning journey went smoothly, and we reached Granada without a hitch. The charming city welcomed us with winding streets, and Moorish architecture, while that first glimpse of the Alhambra Palace peeking through the trees was magical.

Our first destination was the Albaicin quarter, a maze of narrow alleys, whitewashed houses, and cobbled paths clinging to steep hillsides. When I say steep, I mean “take-a-break-every-five-minutes” steep. But the climb was absolutely worth it.

At the top, the view of the Alhambra with the Sierra Nevada mountains in the distance was breathtaking. We lingered for a while, but eventually, it was time to head back into town for lunch.

We made our way downhill to a halal restaurant we’d found earlier. As we sat down and placed our order, the waiter approached us looking apologetic. “I’m really sorry,” he said, “... but there’s no electricity. The kitchen is dark. We’re trying our best.”

We laughed it off, assuming it was a temporary glitch or maybe just an issue with the restaurant.

“No worries!” we assured him. But soon after stepping back outside, we noticed something odd: there were no lights in any of the shops and the locals had begun gathering outside on the kerb.

That’s when it hit us – this wasn’t a small glitch. Granada, and as we’d later learn, the entire Spain, was experiencing a major power outage.

No electricity meant no working ATMs and no way to use our credit and debit cards. Even the Internet and cell services were down. Between us, we had about €140 (RM693) in cash.

And then came the worst part – the train station was closed. No trains. No announcements. Just stranded travellers, all wondering the same thing: How do we get home?

Our best bet was to catch a bus back to Malaga. We asked a taxi driver to take us to the main bus terminal. “Todo vendido,” he said of the bus tickets – everything’s sold out. What about a one-way taxi ride, then?

“Doscientos euros” or €200 (RM990). He did not take cards. Of course.

We walked away from the grumpy driver and tried to figure out the bus system. We asked another bus driver if his route went to the main terminal.

“Si (yes),” he said with a poker face. Relieved, we hopped on and hoped for the best.

But as we rolled past shopping malls and busy plazas, the city slowly gave way to quiet suburbs, then rural outskirts. Something wasn’t right. We asked the driver again. He shook his head – no terminal here. Sigh.

Finally, we flagged down another taxi (with a friendlier driver this time) and made our way to the correct bus terminal. Once there, we joined the long line of travellers, all with the same idea. We were told we could buy tickets directly from the bus driver. We headed to the platform with cautious optimism.

By 6.40pm, our scheduled departure time, the bus still hadn’t opened its doors. Tension rose. Ten minutes later, still nothing. Just when nerves were about to fray, a driver opened the door of a different bus and called out for passengers to Malaga.

Chaos ensued. People sprinted, luggage in tow, racing to secure a seat. Thankfully, we managed to get on. As the bus finally pulled away, a spontaneous round of applause broke out – cheers of exhausted, shared relief.

We arrived in Malaga late that evening but there was still no power. We couldn’t get any dinner so we just got into bed at 10pm, phone batteries drained and legs sore from walking half the city.

At 1am, the lights finally came on. Phew!

It wasn’t the day trip we expected, but it’s certainly one we’ll never forget.

The views expressed are entirely the writer’s own.