ANDALUCIA REGION
The Andalucia region, has eight provinces, of which Malaga is one. The city proper of Malaga has a population of 547,000. Other popular towns in the region are Seville, Cordoba, Granada, and Ronda. Malaga, with an international airport is the launching off point to the Costa del Sol and makes a great base point for exploring Andalucía.
Festivals in the Andalucia region are celebrated with greater fervour than in other parts of the country. The Holly week festival, Semana Santa and the April Fair, Feria de Abril are two religious festivals worthy of a visit to Malaga and the Andalucia region.
The region has the most famous and oldest bullfighting rings in Spain.
Malaga inspires the arts and is the birthplace of Picasso, and also Antonio Banderas.
Malaga is a pretty portside city with a lovely promenade, Paseo del Parque lined with old jacaranda trees. The city is over 3000 years old and has a number of tourist attractions that you can fill your time with exploring before you head off to the beach strip of Costa del Sol. Artefacts and structures have been found dating back to the Carthaginians, the Romans and the Moors.
The most popular tourist attraction is the military fort, Alcazaba. This fort was built between 1057 and 1063 and has Moorish influences. At the base of the fort is a Roman Theatre. Malaga was under the control of the Moors from 743 until the Catholic conquests in the 15th century.
In contrast, the Malaga Cathedral and the Plaza Obispo show case Catholicism in Malaga. Construction of the Malaga Cathedral started in 1528 and was completed in the 18th century. The cathedral shows architectural styles from the eras: Renaissance, Baroque and Neo classical. The Plaza de la Merced is also worthy of a visit. Should you want to visit a castle, then Castillo de Gibralfaro will provide an enjoyable exploration.
Malaga has a number of art museums, and the most notable of the group is Museu Picasso Malaga, Picasso Museum. Malaga the birthplace of Picasso holds a number of his art work and other display pieces from the same era. There is also a notable Picasso Museum, Reina Sofia in Madrid should you wish to view more of his pieces. Here you will be able to see the Guernica. In the Barcelona Museums you will be able to see a collection of some of Picasso’s early work.
Malaga’s city Museum is called Palacio de la Aduana. There are other museums such as the Museo de Artes y Costumbres Populares that showcase costumes from early settlers to the costumes of the festivals.
The Andalusia region meshes together the flavours of the Moorish influence with Spanish and the Mediterranean. The region is famous for it’s cured hams (jamon serrano), spicy chorizo sausage, vegetable soups such as gazpacho and fresh seafood (fried fish and calamares).
Typically, Spanish have a light breakfast at home of a coffee with milk (cafe con leche) and toast and jam or churros, and follow up with a more substantial mid afternoon meal of a croissant and espresso. Definitely the most popular way to consume coffee is expresso.
Lunch is the main meal of the day and is eaten before the siesta. Many shops still close between 1.30p.m. – 2 p.m. and 4 p.m., although the practice is lessening with Spain having joined the European Union. The most value for money lunch is the fixed price menu. For a set price, the diner is given an appetizer, main course, desert, wine and water. Wine, beer and sherry are all consumed and Spain is a large producer of grapes but not wine.
Tapas were born in Andalusia. There are many tapas bars around the world sharing the Spanish tradition of having a small morsel of food while you have a drink. Tapas are eaten before lunch and before dinner. In Spain the act of having tapas is called tapeo. Each tapas bar will have a tapas specialty and will recommend that you visit other bars to taste their specialties. Some tapas morsels are very small and are free, while you can also purchase half and full serves of the tapas of your choice. Some examples of tapas dishes are: ham mountain cured (serrano), ham from Andalusian pigs fed on acorns (iberico), olives, cheese, fresh anchovies, calamares, prawns, meatballs, marinated meats, snails, salads and tortilla. Tapas are served both hot and cold. The earliest dinner will be eaten in a restaurant is 9 p.m. and goes onto midnight.
