NOOB LEGEND (wait for it) -ary Trans Atlantic Review

[JohnTRN]

On toward the Calabaza, we came across a large Banyan tree in the center of a traffic circle.

 

We walked around the Plaza de toros de La Malagueta – The Bullring at Malaga. In this part of Spain, the bulls are still fought in the traditional manner. But not on Sunday, the day we visit! Many areas of Spain are moving away from bullfights, denouncing them as cruelty to animals. I was told that where they are still fought, it is mostly for tourists.

 



 



 

This is the kind of walkway you find in old cities!



 

Malaga City Hall



 

Stained glass inside city hall. The doors were open and a guard stopped us from coming in. After we explained, in very limited Spanish, that we wanted to take a picture, he allowed us in.

[JohnTRN]

This is the beginning of the steps and ramps that zig-zag their way up Mount Gibralfaro. There are many places along the way to stop and rest and great views of the city and harbor. The picture of the bullring above was taken along this path.

 

The harbor, Carnival Legend and City Hall



 

Yes. It's as steep as it looks!



 

A panoramic view of coastal Malaga



 

In the top-left corner of the picture, you can just see the tail end of the Carnival Legend. The wide green strip along the waterfront is a park full of flowers, trees, statues and fountains. In the center are the gardens adjacent to City Hall, which is just up-left of them. The bullring is out of sight to the left of the picture.

[JohnTRN]

From the bullring, we walked by City Hall, through the adjacent gardens and up a zig-zagging staircase to the top of Gibralfaro. The climb up the stairs and ramps was a bit strenuous, but very doable. Heck, we saw joggers going up and down it!

 

Castillo de Gibralfaro. The name Gibralfaro means lighthouse hill. The castle on the hill was built sometime in the 1300’s and was still in use as a military base up to 1925. A walled passageway connects Gibralfaro Castle with Alcazaba, below the fort. The view from the fort is amazing.

 

Malaga, west of Gibralfaro

 

Malaga, north of Gibralfaro



 

The old and the new



 

The interior of the castle



 



 

The Cathedral of Málaga

Edited October 17, 2013 by JohnTRN

[JohnTRN]

Still in Castillo de Gibralfaro

 

We've been joined by another cruise ship

 

From Castillo de Gibralfaro we walked down Paseo De Juan Temboury toward the Alcazaba



 

This little girl was getting her picture all over town



 

Alcazaba – a Moorish fortification in Spain. The name comes from the Arabic word al-qasbah), which means a walled-fortification in a city. This is the best preserved alcazaba in Spain. Near the entrance are the ruins of a Roman Theatre. We did not realize these ruins were just around the corner and missed seeing them! Walk around the corner to the north.

 

This area was amazing! At its height of glory, it would have had water fountains everywhere, with water running through troughs alongside the sidewalks. Some of it is now overgrown; some of the gardens have been restored/maintained. It would have really been something to see the original fortification.



 

Plaza de la Aduana, Malaga below the Alcazaba



 

Looking down on Paseo De Juan Temboury

[JohnTRN]

The Alcazaba from below

 

Pictures from inside hte Alcazaba



 

The Tall Ship 'Sea Cloud' departing Malaga



 



 

Not sure what was going on with this fellow, but he looked miserable



 

[JohnTRN]

More pictures from inside the Alcazaba

 



 

These troughs ran down the center, or alongside, most of the walkways. Some carried water; most were dry.



 



 

Looking from the Alcazaba, up towards Castillo Gibralfaro



 



 

[JohnTRN]

Another picture from inside Alcazaba

 

We walked around the old city near the Alcazaba and found a nice little place to eat, where we had paella. A strolling musician came by with his accordion; if you look at all like you are enjoying the music, and even if you weren’t paying attention, be prepared for strolling minstrels to hit you up for a donation. Locals just ignore them, kind of like they do the gypsies.



 

The Cathedral of Malaga



 

Can you believe this is how the streets are paved?! Shared by pedestrians, autos, horse cabs, pedicabs . . .



 



 

Our lunch music accompaniment

[JohnTRN]

Pedicab Tours

 

Not sure what this building is. It's located just west of the cathedral.

The plazas and outdoor seating areas are one of my favorite things about these old cities.



 



 

We found a stop for pastries and cappuccino. Another favorite activity. It's all about the food . . .



 



 

We shared two different pastries

[JohnTRN]

This some of the park that parallels the waterfront

 



 

This was located in the plaza below the street level, along the street that leads back to the pier. Lots of businesses down here.



 

We strolled back to the ship with minutes to spare. Watched the push off and got ready for dinner. We were pooped puppies after all the walking we did in Malaga!

 



 

This is a ferry boat that crosses the Mediterranean. This kind of thing fascinates me on the 'how it works' level.



 

 

Enjoyed dinner with one of the couples from CC and then went to the show to listen to a young Welsh man, named Kyle Morgan; a talented singer. On the way back, stopped at the aft bar on the main level. A bunch of the singers and dancers from the ship were having an impromptu party with singing and playing of various instruments. Lots of fun!

Edited October 17, 2013 by JohnTRN

[JohnTRN]

OK. I'm not really sure what this guy is . . . The stewards have a limited repertoire of towel animals.

 

Good night!

[Sarahsmomi]

"Lounge Lizard" is the first guess that comes to my mind!

 

What a wonderful review, thanks for posting and all the hard work. I am eagerly looking forward to more :D

[hockeyluver]

I must admit your review is AWESOME!!! I cant wait to see/read the one you do for our cruise!! :D

 

Hmm with all the great pictures you take I should just leave my camera at home:p

[JohnTRN]

"Lounge Lizard" is the first guess that comes to my mind!

 

What a wonderful review, thanks for posting and all the hard work. I am eagerly looking forward to more :D

 

I'll buy "Lounge Lizard" for a dollar! ;)

 

Thanks. Appreciate the comments - it gives me incentive to finish. More soon.

 

John

[JohnTRN]

I must admit your review is AWESOME!!! I cant wait to see/read the one you do for our cruise!! :D

 

Hmm with all the great pictures you take I should just leave my camera at home:p

 

Thanks hockeyluver! You're to kind! :D

 

Copies will be available after the cruise for a small fee . . . :rolleyes: Of course, it's easy when there's 1700 pictures to choose from. For the Malaga portion of the review, I posted some 60 pictures I think, out of 247 I took that day. Then there's Jody's pictures that I haven't even dared look at, even though I know she has some stuff I don't. This was overwhelming to begin with, but has become easier by breaking it down a day at a time.

 

We are thinking about a new camera to let us do some underwater shots . . . should be fun on the sailing/snorkeling day in Barbados.

 

John

[pghsteelerfan]

John,

 

Wow!!! I'm loving this and your pictures are just beautiful. I loved the scenery in Porta Delgada and just now finished your section featuring Malaga. Such beautiful places. I also watched your YouTube video of the rough seas and swear I'd be sea sick myself if it was any longer. LOL!!! Time for a lunch break but I sure wish I had some of those pastries...those definitely look good. I'm really looking forward to the rest and do not get tired of lots of pictures, so keep them coming. :)

 

Holly

[deladane]

OK. I'm not really sure what this guy is . . . The stewards have a limited repertoire of towel animals.

 

Good night!

 

HAHAHA that is one funny looking towel animal!! I just got off a 12-night Mediterranean cruise on the Sunshine, and I was so surprised that our steward came up with different animals every night (and she never even did the infamous 'seal' that closely resembles a female body part lol) Thanks for taking the time to post such a great review! I gotta say, I am having a bit of sea day jealousy because we only had 2 sea days on our whole itinerary, and we definitely could have used a few more to get that relaxation time you experienced lol Can't wait to see what you did in Barcelona! Our cruise ended there and we stayed for 3 days and I loved everything about that city :)

[JohnTRN]

Can't wait to see what you did in Barcelona! Our cruise ended there and we stayed for 3 days and I loved everything about that city :)

 

Errr, I might have one or two pictures from our three days in Barcelona . . . :p I think I mentioned that we got there the day before La Dia de Sant Jordi (St George's Day). The crowds were amazing and Barcelona was great. We found a great B&B on Avinguda Diagonal, not far from Gracia and walked all over old Barcelona.

 

John

[Kelane]

T Little white convenience bags have shown up in the bathrooms; I snag one as a gift for my brother. Told him I brought him a hand puppet from Spain.

.

 

You know, John...we joke about being brother and sister, but I gotta tell you this...MY "other brother" brought me a "barf bag puppet" from his 1st trip to Europe in '73! I still have it. My 1 souvenir and it came from a plane seat back!!!

That just made me laugh that there is yet another similarity between you 2 little boys! ;)

 

Great review so far...nice to relive the trip again!

 

K :)

[Sfdtiller]

Great review, after posting a question about LCR I googled it and got my answer. Will be playing this next cruise!!

Edited October 19, 2013 by Sfdtiller

[JohnTRN]

Day 14 – 21 April 2013

Valencia, Spain

 

 

Just a quick insert for fun here. I don't remember if I mentioned my shoes or not, so I'll throw a picture in here. Once upon a time, these were a decent pair of shoes. I grabbed them out of their box in the closet and packed them to wear for formal night. Apparently they have not aged well, and the first time I wore them the leather (or is it 'pleather'?) started cracking. Not much shoe shopping in the Atlantic, so I just wore them and hoped nobody was judging me by my shoes. They hurt my feet anyway. Sometime after the second formal night, I tried tossing them in the trash can in the cabin. The next afternoon we came back to the room and they were back in my closet! I tried again another day, with the same result. Finally ended up waiting until we arrived in Barcelona and left them in the trash when we left the cabin to debark.

 

 

We arrived Valencia around 1030, so were ready to head out after breakfast. This is more of an industrial area, so we'll be catching a cab to start touring. We talked several times to a pleasant Carnival Crew Member named Valeria who was from Valencia. She wanted us to be sure we saw some of the 'New' and the 'Old' City of Valencia. We had three self-guided walking tours for the Old City of Valencia in my day pack and probable plans to catch a 'free' guided tour at 12:00 in the Plaza de la Virgen next to the fountain.

 

 

We had two choices for transportation from the terminal. A shuttle arranged by Carnival that had stops in the Old and the New City, or taxis. We started to get in line for the shuttle, until we saw how long it was and how slow it was moving; decided on the taxi option instead. We ended up in line with a couple of women from the ship, who are cousins. Got to talking with them and ended up sharing a taxi to the Old City with them. We would also end up trading our bottle of champagne with them for a ‘Ship on a Stick’ later this night.

 

On the way to the Old City, our taxi driver stopped by the 'New City' for us to take some pictures. The City of Arts and Sciences, is an entertainment-based cultural and architectural complex. The area is located at the end of the former riverbed of the river Turia, which was drained and rerouted after a catastrophic flood in 1957. The old riverbed was turned into a picturesque sunken park. The River of Turia also ran through the Old City.

 

 



 

Edited October 19, 2013 by JohnTRN

[JohnTRN]

I'm really pleased with how this picture turned out

 

 

We were dropped in an area just adjacent to the Old City, near the cathedral, where many buses and taxis drop off and pick up passengers. We ended up back here at the end of the day to catch a taxi back to the port. About a 20 minute ride each way.

 

 

We wandered our way to the Plaza de la Virgen, where we would meet a tour guide next to the fountain.

 

 

Buskers are no stranger to residents of large cities. We don't see them on the streets of our Population 37,000 town



 

Edited October 19, 2013 by JohnTRN

[JohnTRN]

I don't get tired of the architectural details!

 



 

All that polished stone!



 

 

Jamie is from Scotland and came to university in Barcelona. I don't remember his entire story, but it involved some partying, getting out of school and trying to find something else to do for a living. He's now leading tours of Valencia which he seems to have come to love. This young man gave us a great tour through the old city. At one point, he apologized to anyone that was offended by his frequent use of the word f**k. Said it was just a part of his vocabulary.

 

 

I've forgotten a lot of what Jamie told us about Valencia; guess I should have taken notes as we walked! I'll throw in what I remember about pictures as I post them and make up the rest as I go along. It was an easy two-hour walk through the old city.

 

[JohnTRN]

Here's a link to a short

!

 

 



 



 

This was a section of the old wall around the city, containing a gate to the city



 



 

Note the murder holes above the gate, from which defender could shoot, drop stones or pour boiling oil on attackers

[JohnTRN]

This was a scale model of the castle wall and gate for blind visitors

 

Oops! I lied about looking for Blue Crosses for pharmacies, while Green Crosses were in SoCal for glaucoma treatment. Seems I might remember Green Crosses for pharmacies in Italy, too.



 

"Valenbisi" - We would see bikes like this in Barcelona, also. These are a subscription part of the public transportation system in Valencia. With 275 stations in the city, the first 30 minutes of use are free.



 



 

So, Jamie tells us a story about this monument. Apparently there are few people in Valencia who know the history of this monument. Supposedly, there is some inscription around the base of the statue itself . . . up at the top of the pedestal. I don't remember the details, but it seems to have involved alcohol, climbing the juniper next to the column and near arrest . . .



 

[JohnTRN]

 



 

I think I've mentioned that it is common to see Gypsies begging, especially outside of churches. I'm not sure if they were toasting their good fortune, or what



 

Plazas are found everywhere and come in many shapes.



 

I've enjoyed the markets in old cities. Some of the best raspberries I've ever eaten were from street vendors in London

Edited October 19, 2013 by JohnTRN