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| Bull Ring, Malaga |
The main sightseeing thing that we did in Malaga was to see the Alcazaba and the Castillo de Gibralfaro. Although in general the weather wasn't all that good for our time in Spain, though it was still considerably better than the UK, here in Malaga it was very hot and sunny, which made for a tiring climb.
We did the Castillo first, to get the walk up hill out of the way before it got even hotter. At least along the way, the vistas of the city and out to see were good. We got an excellent view of the bull ring.
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| Casillo de Gibralfaro, Malaga |
The site had long been in use even before Abd al Rahman III, Caliph of Cordoba, built the first castle here in 929. Its name, Gibralfaro, comes from the Arabic and Greek words gebel and faro, meaning rock of the lighthouse, because of the old Phoenician lighthouse that already stood here.
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| Casillo de Gibralfaro, Malaga |
In 1340, the Nasrid King Yusuf I strengthened the castle to provide better protection to the Alacazaba below. It was considered the most impregnable fort, and in 1487 was the site of a three month siege when the Catholics invaded the area. They didn't get in, but eventually hunger forced those inside to surrender, and Ferdinand was victorious. This was reputed to have been the first conflict where both sides used gunpowder.
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| Casillo de Gibralfaro, Malaga |
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| Casillo de Gibralfaro, Malaga |
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| Casillo de Gibralfaro, Malaga |
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| Casillo de Gibralfaro, Malaga |
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| Casillo de Gibralfaro, Malaga |
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| Alcazaba, Malaga |
Back down the hill, is the Alcazaba, the oldest in Spain, and better preserved than that in Granada. It was built on top of roman remains and you can see the old amphitheatre at the bottom of the hill.
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| Alcazaba, Malaga |
Accounts of who built what and when seem to vary, but broadly, it seems it was started by Abd al Rahman I, the first Emir of Cordoba in 756-780, and added to by the Sultan of Granada, Badis Al Ziri in 1057-63. The building was further adapted after Muhammed II Ben Al Ahmer took control in 1279.
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| Alcazaba, Malaga |
Regardless, it is an impressive citadel, and whilst of course it is not a patch on the Alhambra, as we were to discover in our next stop, it is very much worth a visit.
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| Alcazaba, Malaga |
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| Alcazaba, Malaga |
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| Alcazaba, Malaga |
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| Wine Museum, Malaga |
We managed to get ourselves along to a couple of museums too. One was a museum of wine, which was OK, but not that interesting.
We did, however, very much enjoy the Museo del Vidrio y Cristal, or the Glass Museum. It is a little out of the way, housed in an 18th century merchant house bought and restored specifically to house the owner's huge private collection of glass.
Gonzalo Fernandez-Prieto is the owner, along with British professor Ian Phillips, and it was he that showed us around. His tour is part of the attraction, as he is passionate and humorous about his collection. He is proud of his aristocratic heritage, but at the same time, happy to tell us about getting himself into financial difficulties when he just had to buy another piece of glass.
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| Glass Museum, Malaga |
His collection here numbers around 3000 pieces, and that isn't even all of it. He has stained glass windows - British, because apparently we were the very best at that, art glass, drinking glasses and all sorts besides.
It is beautifully displayed, with the house fully furnished with antiques. Apparently there was something important about the piano, which is why he insisted he should take our photo next to it, but I can't remember what.
Even if you're not especially interested in glass, this is a great museum - the enthusiasm and joviality of the owner makes it so.
