A Jewel Discovered

Ten years ago, Malaga was a sleepy little Mediterranean port. Few people came here except to the airport, where they quickly took a flight to the nearby Costa del Sol to enjoy sun and surf for a few days. Oh! What a difference ten years can make! Malaga has now been discovered. There is something here for everyone. The city is now a Mecca for people interested in art, history, music, dramatic arts, cinema, technology and culinary arts.

The official guidebooks say that the city was founded by the Phoenicians around 3000 years ago. Recent construction work around the cathedral has unearthed artifacts going back to 6000 B. C.

Three Phoenician gates and a Roman theater all predate the artifacts left from 800 years of Muslim rule. Malaga’s impressive cathedral is unique. It was begun in a neo-classical style and finished in a baroque style. I use the word “finish” loosely because the building has never really been completed, even though construction began in 1528. Locals refer to her as “the one-armed lady” because only one of two towers was ever built. Construction of the roof began around 1750 and there have always been plans to complete it “mañana.” Wonder of wonders! Workers actually began working on it two years ago. I asked our guide when the new roof would be completed. She smiled and said, “When Jesus returns.” Still, this Malagueña said that she and her neighbors like the old church the way it is, finished or not.

Malaga was one of the first Spanish cities to adopt industrialization, and now one of the first to convert to a hi-tech economy. Google just opened a new IT center right by the port. Malaga is the Silicon Valley of Spain. This city makes much more than computer chips, however. A mountain of potato chips will be consumed in an international hamburger competition going on now, bringing in master chefs from around the world.

Actor Antonio Banderas grew up here, and now makes his home in a building overlooking the two-thousand-year-old Roman theater. When he was a child Banderas would see the ancient stage and dream of becoming an actor. Once established in his career, he bought a house from which he could see the theater that nourished his dreams. His residence, reports say, is palatial inside.

Another favorite son is Pablo Picasso, who spent the first 10 years of his life here. His family moved away from Malaga, and at age 19 he moved to France to make his fortune. He always wanted to return here, but vowed not to do so as long as fascist dictator Francisco Franco was in power. Unfortunately the dictator outlived the artist by 2 years and Picasso never returned to his homeland.

Malaga has been discovered. With 3 million people now claiming it as home, the city’s growth has been exponential. It is now the third largest port in Spain. The Picasso Museum brings visitors from all over the world. The bull ring hosts bullfights only twice a year, and serves most often now as a venue for concerts and exhibitions. There are more than 40 museums here now, including a recent underground branch of the Pompidou Museum of Paris and a world renowned archaeological museum.

For Malaga today the sky’s the limit. The city is taking its place among the world’s leading centers for technology, tourism and the arts. We thoroughly enjoyed our three-hour walking tour into the old city today. When you come, you may want to stay in one of the lovely hotels called “paradors.” The Spanish government has assisted entrepreneurs in finding historical buildings (monasteries, palaces, fortresses, and the like) in the most dramatic locations and converting them into five-star hotels. Some are on the seaside, some on mountaintops or at the edge of cliffs. All are breathtaking. Or, like us, you could come on a Viking Ocean cruise. I’m sitting out in the veranda on a gorgeous Friday afternoon sipping a cold beverage, overlooking the rooftops and dreaming about how sailors came into this very port a thousand years ago. For a taste of Spain’s most ancient history and its newest hopes for the future, there’s no better place to see both than Malaga. And there’s no better way to see it than on a Viking cruise.
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