Malaga Marina

A trip out today to the beautiful city of Malaga and in particular to see the new marina that opened in December 2011, or the Muelle Uno as the area is known.

Arriving on a very warm 33°C morning, we parked easily in the cool of one of the nearby underground car parks before heading into the heat to begin our wanderings. Here, the ferry to presumably the Balearic Islands.

 The whole area was really pleasant with a large variety of shops and a wide range of bars and restaurants. 

Our boat!!.

 On one side of the L-shaped marina is the "Palmeral de las Sorpresas", a promenade area with lots of seating and garden area's, in particular the palm garden with its hundreds of palm trees. 

The Plaza del Agua.

 We sat for a while in the shade of one of the many inviting restaurants on the Paseo de la Farola, slowly sipping our iced drinks, just watching the world pass by.

 The Paseo de la Farola.

And Calcetines came too of course.

 The pool in front of this building was obviously becoming a place where wishes are made, and hopefully granted, judging by the coins in the bottom.

  We left the marina area and headed past the lighthouse towards the cruise ships that we could see in the distance.

   The P&O cruise ship Arcadia.

 The Playa de la Malagueta. How inviting did that water look with the sea like a millpond.

This was a brilliant day out, in an area that's right in the centre of Malaga and within easy walking distance of all the major attractions that this beautiful city has to offer.

Malaga and Monet

We headed south to Malaga this morning with the intention of visiting an exhibition of art at the Carmen Thyssen Museum.

In particular, Anne was interested in seeing paintings by her favourite artist Claude Monet amongst the art being displayed.

Arriving at just after ten, we parked the car in a nearby car park and walked through the pedestrianised area of Marques de Larios, heading for the Plaza de la Constitución, just beyond which was the museum.

Malaga is a very modern and cosmopolitan city, as reflected in the statues and shops along the street.

We stopped off at one of the many bars and restaurants for a couple of very expensive coffee's......no Olvera prices here!.

The pretty Plaza de la Constitución is at the end of the pedestrianised area.

Here, a classical picture of beauty to match any old master.
























The museum was just around the corner from the Plaza

We paid our entrance fee of €4 each and were directed to the lift taking us to the third floor.
The young desk clerk did look at me however and asked if I was entitled to a concession for pensioners....I should have said yes.
Now, where's that Nivea skin lotion and cement!!.

Photos were not permitted except in the patio area near to the entrance.

Arriving on the third floor, we admired the paintings, trying to spot a Monet or three. In the end, after wandering around for a while, Anne asked one of the many assistants, who directed us to the only Monet in the exhibition, "The House among the Roses" pictured right.

Yes, there were other old masters exhibiting, including Picasso, Mattise and Miró but only ONE Monet.

Disappointed, more so for Anne, we left the building and with no plan B headed to the nearby Cathedral.

Heading back to the car we stopped for some burger comfort in Burger King, which was ideally situated near to the car park.
To cap it all, on exiting Malaga I took a wrong turn that eventually led, after visits to several trading estates and lots of right, left and u turns, to the airport complex and even then I went around it twice.

So after being asked if I qualified as a pensioner, disappointment for Anne at not seeing more Monet's and an unwanted drive around Malaga, a very frustrating end to a quite disappointing day.

Malaga City

Today, we drove into the centre of Malaga. The last time we were here, about a year ago, we were in a mild state of panic, having missed the turning for the airport, ending up in traffic jams, roadworks and whistling policemen directing us to streets that we didn't know and with no idea where we were or what direction we were facing.

Today however was a lot calmer, driving straight into the city centre on the main A-357 road from Campillos. Arriving about 90 minutes after leaving Olvera, we parked in one of several available car parks and started to explore this busy, cosmopolitan city.

First things first, find the tourist office which wasn't too easy as there weren't any obvious signs but we eventually found it in just off the Plaza de la Constitución.

This was the older part of town, lots of little cobbled streets and pedestrianised area's. Plenty of bars and cafe's to sit and people watch, which we did over a coke and sandwich.

Continuing on, passing by the Cathedral which you could visit for a 4,50€ entrance fee (each), we eventually arrived at the old Moorish Palace of the Alcazaba, constructed mainly in the 11th century.

Entrance to the Alcazaba was 2,10€ each. It was quite extensive with many garden and patio area's and some exhibition rooms but for me the best part were the views it offered looking over Malaga.

Looking up to the Castillo de Gibralfaro, accessible from a footpath below the walls of the Alcazaba. A trek for another day perhaps.

The Plaza de Toros...Bull Ring.

A statue in honour of Hans Christian Andersen who visited Malaga in 1862.

Anne particularly liked Malaga for it's diversity of shops and boutiques.

As always, after about three hours or so, we were starting to flag a little in the heat but with so much more to see, another visit is inevitable in the future.