Day 54 ~ Malaga, Spain

March 4, 2022

51 degrees with a cutting wind. I had to break out the Viking WC Jacket that Uncle Torstein has given to each of us on board.

NAUTICAL TERM OF THE DAY ~ Know the ropes

Miles and miles of cordage wove through the rigging of a ship. Those who kept track of which rope hoisted or lowered which mast were said to “know the ropes.”

We made our 13^th port of call today, our 11^th  “new-to-us” stop. Malaga (pronounced with the accent on the 1^st syllable) is a popular port for private yachts with 17,000 berths. (We haven’t sited any Russian oligarch’s pleasure craft, but the DH is keep his eyes peeled for another look at the Yaz!)

ruins of Gibralfaro Castle

Like Cadiz and Gibraltar, governance of Malaga has changed hands many times over the years. The long parade of residents began with the Phoenicians, who founded the city 800 years before Christ, to be followed by the Romans, Vandals, Visigoths, Moors, Catalans and Spaniards.

The Viking Star is tied up at the dock in the upper left hand corner of this photo!

Malaga has one of the few bull rings still in use, however it hosts bullfights only once a year. The rules of the bullfight have changed over the years. It used to be conducted on horseback, and now Spain has banned the ultimate killing of the bull. However, no one can ban the killing of the matador.

Kristy and Pablo having a tete-a-tete. She's a retired Kindergarten teacher and the soul of encouragement. I can just hear her saying, "How interesting. Of course it's okay that your people have three eyes and two noses" all the while believing with her boundlessly hopeful heart he'd figure it out eventually. 

 

Malaga has a couple of favorite sons. One is Pablo Picasso. I have to admit I am not a fan. He was incredibly talented, and was classically trained. His early and later representational work shows amazing ability. But once he began his cubist experiment with its tortured figures and fractured points of view, I can’t help but wonder if he wasn’t inwardly making fun of everyone who praised his genius. He was a terrible womanizer and when he ran into money troubles was known to doodle on the checks he wrote betting the merchant would never cash them. Not my favorite artist ever. (Don’t you wish I was opinionated?)

I was surprised by how mountainous southern Spain is.

The city's other stellar son is Antonio Banderas. I am a fan of his, if for nothing more than his speaking voice alone. But he also gives back to his community and our tour guide, Igor was very impressed that he has come back to help carry one of the heavy statues that are paraded from all the churches in the city for special festivals. It's an honor to take part in the parade and is determined by lottery, not because of fame or fortune.

Here's the DH's photo montage:

More soon!