After a leisurely breakfast we went for a last promenade along the coast. There was a brisk breeze whipping up waves on the sea.
Nevertheless, we were in short sleeves as the temperature was in the twenties and sunny. There was the usual activity on the promenade, dog walkers, roller skaters, joggers and strollers.
There were even some brave sun worshippers on the beach in spite of the breeze.
We were then off to the airport to return the hire car and put James and Helen on their plane. Malaga airport is very close to the town and only about five kilometres from the hotel. The planes arrive and take off over the sea and the flood plane of the river and so cause no noise within Malaga itself. The airport has been recently updated and is very impressive indeed. It is connected to Malaga and the tourist coast of Torremolinos as far as Fuengirola by an electric train which is mainly underground in Malaga.
Having said goodbye to James and Helen we walked to the train station and took a train into Malaga. Our journey time to the centre of Malaga was ten minutes, four stops and the ticket cost €1.40. The train seemed new and had clear displays showing the next station.
The buses in Malaga also seem to be new, gone are the noisy, bone crushers that we took from Benalmadena to Malaga just two years ago.
We wandered around the centre of Malaga enjoying its shops (Pat), buildings and little squares.
We stopped in a square like this, above, to take tea at the Paris Cafe run by a Frenchman.
Malaga has managed to preserve the facades of its old buildings in the old part of the town but even where the buildings are more modern there are squares with cafes, as below.
The historical buildings are difficult to photograph because of the narrow streets and tall buildings but one can capture some facets of them.
Although, even door ways are difficult to photograph when it comes to the side door to the cathedral.
Details from above the front door are easier as there is a little square in front of the cathedral.
Next door to the cathedral is a taxi rank and we headed back to the hotel for a late siesta.
Around 8pm we walked back to the centre, about 6km and discovered the building site for the new opera house which will be by the sea on former dock land. A recommended restaurant from WikiTravel turns out to be closed and we headed for the Plaza de la Merced and its tapas bars.
We entered the old city centre by the truly traffic free Calle Marqués de Larios which is our favorite shopping street in the world - not for the shopping but for the promenading.
As we headed for Plaza de la Merced, where Picasso was born and where he sits, in bronze, on a park bench, we were attracted to a bar with seating in the street - perhaps an apero before we find a restaurant? We tried one of their tapas dishes and realised that we were not in need of a restaurant.
As we ate our way through, anchovies, chili peppers, gazpacho and Porra Antequerana (a tomato dip) we watched the world go by and wondered why the seemingly identical bar on the other side of the street was empty whereas our bar was full to overflowing. The secret seems to be the difference in attitude of the staff. Pat collected the secret of the recipe for the tomato dip and we headed for the cathedral taxi rank.
Pat and John on tour
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