Málaga & Ronda

After leaving Granada in the summer of 2023, we headed to Málaga for a day. Spain's Costa del Sol is a popular tourist destination and Málaga is a neat, bustling port town with plenty of shops and restaurants.

While Málaga has its fair share of historical sites, nothing could compare to those we had visited in Córdoba and Granada. In fairness though, we spent less than a day there and I know we missed plenty, including the Castillo de Gibralfaro and La Alcazaba fortresses, the Roman Theater (although we walked by it), the cathedral, and the Picasso musuem (the artist was born in Málaga).

We strolled from our AirBnB through town and stopped for cappuccinos at La Bella Julieta, a coffee spot that Vila Sol friends, who have a place in Málaga, raved about. They were so good! After that, we made our way to Puerto de Málaga, where a few cruise ships were docked, and checked out La Malagueta beach and boardwalk. We even saw espetos (sardines) being grilled in an old row-boat – a local favorite, it seems. We headed back into town via the charming Parque de Málaga, lined with palm trees. Since it was early June, the place was bustling but not too crowded. [Scroll left/right to view gallery]

We left in the early afternoon for the drive back to Vila Sol. Our route took us through Ronda, Seville, and Huelva before reaching the Portugal border. On the way to Ronda, we passed an organic olive farm and Jennifer shreaked for me to stop and back up so she could check it out. We wound up staying for three hours or so, went on an organized tour of the place that included a tasting class, and ate a late lunch there. LA Organic, as the farm and business are called, was formed over 40 years ago and, as the name suggests, uses only sustainable methods for growing various olive tree varietals for olive oil, which they produce on-site. The tour and tasting were interesting, and lunch was delicious and healthy. The owners are plowing a lot of investment into this farm (they own another in Majorca), including the building of a visitor/cultural center, LA Almazara, that will also be a museum and mill. [Scroll left/right to view gallery]

After a short drive from LA Organic, we arrived in Ronda. This is a cool little medieval town that's definitely worth a visit if you visit Andalusia. Its big attraction is the Puente Nuevo. Built in the late 18th Century, it is the newest and largest of three bridges that cross the 400 foot-deep chasm of the Guadalevín River. We didn't have much time to spend there, but we walked around most of the town, took in the panoramic views, paid to go inside the bridge (which was over-priced and underwhelming), had ice creams, and drove on to Seville. [Scroll left/right to view gallery]