We set out from out hotel on a sunny (surprise!) morning. Our target destination:
Málaga's Gibralfaro Palace. This slanty statue seemed to be pointing us in the right direction.
We detoured along the water toward El Parque de Málaga. En route, we spotted this huge, fat, and spiky tree. Don't mess with this guy!
El Parque de Málaga is a tree-lined park filled with interesting fountains and statues surrounded by two major roads.
For the most part, the foliage shields walkers from the surrounding hubbub of the city. Here we spotted another unusual tree that seemed to be covered in pine cones.
We emerged from the park at Málaga's City Hall.
Just beyond, we could see the old Moorish Alcazaba (fortress) up the hill.
We walked past this impressive bank and around and up toward Gibralfaro Palace.
The hike up was no joke! It started steep and only got steeper as we continued our climb.
We were rewarded, however, with beautiful views over Málaga. Here we can actually see into the local bullfighting ring.
We finally made it to the top after about a 20-30 minute uphill climb.
We walked around the wall of the old fortification drinking in the sprawling views below.
We even spotted a rich neighbor who had constructed a hotel complete with swimming pool on the hillside. What a life!
We completed our circuit of the wall and then headed downhill (thankfully) toward the Alcazaba.
We entered the Alcazaba and relished the imposing facades.
Much like the
Alhambra, the Alcazaba in Málaga featured fine Moorish-era architecture.
Ornate window openings looked out over the city and sea.
Various fountains added a quiet calm to the place.
One of the things that really had me curious though were the oranges. There were huge trees laden with fruit everywhere at the Alcazaba and all around Málaga in fact. I was so tempted to just pluck a piece of fruit from the tree and sample it right there. It's a good thing I didn't though! I learned from
+Malaga Spain on
Google Plus that the oranges around town are sour oranges and aren't good for eating. The city of Málaga collects them and uses them for compost.
We concluded our afternoon of vigorous uphill climbing back near sea-level. We admired these views of the old Roman Ampitheatre with the Alcazaba bathed in late afternoon sun above.
Time for drinks and tapas!
