USA-Cruise-Europe-Day 23

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Day 23

During the night around midnight, our Cruise Ship went through the Strait of Gibraltar into the Mediterranean Sea.

Our Cruise Boat came into Malaga around 7 am in the morning.

Malaga was settled by the Phoenicians more than 3,000 years ago.The city lies approximately 120 miles northeast of the Strait of Gibraltar along Spain's Coastal Plain. Malaga is the capital of the Costa del Sol, which is approximately 300 km. long, stretching from Cadiz in the west to the Gulf of Almeria on the east. Malaga is also the birthplace of Pablo Picasso.







We rode the port shuttle bus to the end of the terminal, then we walked along the port road, past a Lighthouse to Malagueta Beach.







We walked around Paseo De Parque to find the Tourist Information Office, passing the Town Hall (Ayuntamiento), Bank of Spain & Rectorado University of Malaga.









On the other side of Paseo De Parque, we saw a oudoor theatre in the park while waiting for the City Sightseeing bus.







We took the bus to Plaza De Toros to see the Malaga Bullring.







Next we rode the bus up into the hills getting off at The Gibralfaro Castle. The Castle was built in the 14th and 15th centuries by the Muslim King Yusuf, on the site of a Phoenician lighthouse known as Yabal-Faruk, and an older Muslim castle built by Abdar-Rahman I who was an 8th century Cordoban emir.

We were surprised that there was no staff at the Entrance booth. To enter you had to buy your tickets from a machine. Problem was that we did not have much cash & we had to juggle funds between the 3 families to be able to buy the tickets.







The 360-degree views from the castle were quite impressive.



















We ate some lunch, while waiting for the bus. Next stop down in the city was the Alcazaba of Malaga. The Alcazaba is a Muslim Palace-Fortress dating from the 8th century although much of it was built around the middle of the 11th century.

Our entrance ticket from the Castle allowed us into the Alcazaba as well. We went inside around 12:30 pm.







After walking through the Arch, we along a path, past orange trees & some old artefacts including a fountain. The path led us to a garden at the Patio de los Surtidores & then a pool at the Patio de la Alberca.













After Alcazaba, we saw a Calesa driver looking for business & an excavation of an old Roman Theatre (Teatro Romano).







We then saw the house where Picasso was born, on the corner of Plaza de la Merced. In the Plaza there was a statue of Picasso, seated on a chair.









Walking along the streets we saw the Picasso museum - you are not allowed to take photos in the museum, so only Joan & Riza went inside, while we looked at the souvenir shops outside. We walked past the San Agustin Church on the way to the Catedral de la Encarnación.













The Catedral de la Encarnación is the Cathedral of Malaga, constructed in the 16th century, on the site of a former Arab Mosque. It took
two centuries to complete. We had a walk around the gardens in the church grounds where we saw old Bell & other objects. We did not go inside the church as you had to pay a fee.







After that we made our way to the main shopping plaza, looking for an ATM machine to withdraw cash. I saw a statue which I thought was real, but it turned out to be one of those living statues. Saw a gigantic typewiter at one end of the plaza.







After a bit more walking, we decided to take the bus back to the port. The bus took so long & the traffic was slow, that it probably would have been quicker for us to walk.

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