Malaga was where it all started for Picasso. He was born in the city and in his later years helped the city to pull together a collection of his work. This museum tried to provide an understanding of how his work was influenced by his exposure to classical art and then later artists like Cezanne, Matisse, Courbert and others. Seeing the works up close really underscored how raw and unfinished his brushwork was and there was a wonderful little video of him painting some of his most recognisable images. I have a theory that Picasso was a massive influence on the Aussie painter John Olsen. The You Beaut Land very much reminded me of the same brushwork and muddy colours that Picasso used.
By the time we'd finished with the museum and spilled out into the street, there was a light drizzle but that just became an excuse to find a cafe. There was a busy cafe in the Plaza de la Merced, where apparently Picasso spent a lot of his childhood. The institute Picasso was housed in an imposing building facing the square and hosts all sorts of educational events and research associated with the artist. This grand plaza was also the place where Isabella and Ferdinand paraded once they had succeeded in taking the city in the 15th century. It was late morning so a cuppa was extended into brunch with a tomato and bacon baguette. The cafe was full of young uni student types ostentatiously smoking and talking loudly to one another (about the next Centrelink payment no doubt).
We took the path (and let me tell you it was a very long and very steep path) up the hill to the Castillo de Gibrelfaro. It was a vast fortress that protected the city in times past. This dated back to the 10th century. The castle was built in 929AD by Abd-al-Rahman III, Caliph of Cordoba. The original lighthouse building was extended by the Sultan of Granada at the beginning of the 14th century, and it was at this time that a double fortified wall down to the Alcazaba was built. The castle was famous for its three-month siege by the Catholic monarchs, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella who attacked the fortress but only defeated those within when they launched a siege and the Malaguenos were starved into submission. There were some amazing views of the city and across the Malaga port and out to the surrounding mountains to be seen on the climb up and still more from the tops of the fortified walls. I left those to John while I waited within the fortress walls. We thought we had earned a beer on the rooftop terrace. It must be magic up there on a hot summer night, nursing a beer and watching the sun extinguish itself in Malaga harbour.
Coming a little way down the hill we went into the Alcazaba. This moorish fortress was built between the 8th and 11th centuries on the site of a Roman town. The palace that we walked through was built in the 14th century by Muslims. There were lovely, restful courtyards and the ubiquitous rounded arches opening up the steep site into a series of garden rooms. The peace lilllies, cyclamen, kolocasi and cycads flourished in this garden. We felt like we were walking in the footsteps of the English gardener, Monty Don as we followed the water through the site, as it was collected and diverted into pools and fountains. This fortress and palace were connected to the Alzacaba by a passageway in the past. There were spectacular views over the old town, the port and the Málaga bullring.
Just outside the walls of the Alcazaba and on the fringes of the flashy cafe district we found Roman ruins. The city spans 3000 years of history. The Roman Theatre dates back to the third century. It was only discovered in 1951 during excavations for something else. It was built during the Empire of Augustus but the Arabs used parts of the theatre for their own building purposes. They took capitals and column shafts for their own Alcazaba fortress as support for the horseshoe arches over the doorways. Nearby, under a glass pyramid the excavations reveal some rectangular roman underground chambers. They look perfect for use as solitary confinement chambers for talkative students being punished with detention.
We took a long walk around the historic part of the town, following the route suggested by an app that Johnny had downloaded. Johnny found a marvellous wine shop where the wine is stored in barrels and when you want a taste you turn the tap on and fill your glass directly from the barrel. You can also order a plate of tapas to see how the wine wil go with food. Now that really is a wine shop.
We walked through the Malaga market but were so late we only say the clean up and preparation for the next day. Still the massive stained glass wall was worth seeing. It was then a short walk through the Calle Larios, which was the main shopping street in the centre of Malaga. The Larios family built the street in the nineteenth century to provide access to the new port. It was a good place for a stroll, with shops, cafes and plenty of restaurants. Johnny had his eye on an "iconic ice cream shop" that had been on the site since 1890. Yes we did have ice cream and it was a good day to have it as it would have melted really quickly if it were any warmer. In the streets around our hotel and in the shopping district of Central Malaga there was little evidence of the very high unemployment that Spain is said to be suffering. Fit young people were parading with full shopping bags and their friends were filling the restaurants and bars even in the mid afternoon. More power to them!
Tonight it will be our last night in Malaga and then in the morning, off by car to cordoba via Torremolinos.
Tonight it will be our last night in Malaga and then in the morning, off by car to cordoba via Torremolinos.
