Málaga Things to Do Tips by blint

For those of you which wee unaware, Pablo Picasso the famous artist was born right here in Malaga.

Therefore all around the the town there are sights related to Picasso such as the house he was born in Plaza de la Merced.

El Museo Casa Natal, as it is called in Spanish, was opened in 1988, but in 1997 it went through extensive renovations. So if you visited before 1997 you may want to take another look if you are in the area.

The house was rented by José Ruiz Blasco, father of the artist, from 1880 to 1884, when they moved from nº36 (nowadays, nº15) to the third floor of nº32 on the same square. In 1891 Picasso's father got a job as a drawing professor in La Coruña, and consequently, the family moved to this city.

OPENING TIMES: From Monday to Saturday, from 10:00 to 20:00. Closed on Sunday afternoon and bank holidays.

PRICE: Museum & temporary exhibition. Admission fee: 1 €

Free admission:
- Senior citizens
- Youths aged up to 17 (accompanied by an adult)
- Students up to 26 years old with student ID

Inside the house you can visit the museum which includes other artist's work from Malaga: Barbadillo, Brinkmann, Peinado, Stefan, Joaquín de Molina, Robert Harvey, Diego Santos, Carlos Durán, Bola Barrionuevo, Chema Lumbreras, Joaquín Ivars and Rogelio López Cuenca.

Plus other spanish artists like: Miró, Christo, Bacon, Brossa, Ernst, Tápies, Chillida, Plensa, Dokoupil, Guinovart, Matta, Moore, etc.

From Picasso you can find: ceramics, engravings and illustrated books.

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Phone: 952060215
Address: Plaza de la Merced, 15
Directions: Go up c/ Alcazabilla to C/ Victoria and you will find it
Website: http://www.fundacionpicasso.es/en/index.html

This is different from the Casa Natal in Plaza de la Merced and is the official museum in Malaga dedicated to Picasso.

Opening hours:
Tuesdays to Thursdays, 10 am to 8 pm
Fridays and Saturdays, 10 am to 9 pm
Sundays and public holidays, 10 am to 8 pm

Admission fees:
Permanent Collection:6.00 €
Temporary exhibitions: 4.50 €
Combined ticket: 8.00 €

Free admission:
Youths aged 18 and younger (children under 12 and younger accompanied by an adult)
Holders of Euro<26 youth card
ICOM Members

The permanent collection and the long term loan collection offer you a wide selection of his art work including pieces such as: Portrait of a bearded man, Woman with Guitar, Portrait of a Woman in a Hat with Pompons. To be honest most of the paintings here are not his most famous pieces which are displayed in larger more important museums such as El Prado in Madrid.

There is also a temporary exhibition of other people's art or photography.

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Phone: 902 44 33 77
Address: c/ San Agustin, 8
Directions: calle San Agustin, a small street filled with teahouses where we find the Palacio de Buenavista
Website: http://www.museopicassomalaga.org

On one website it dared to proclaim that Malaga's Alcazaba was better than Granada's Alhambra. This is a complete falsity as it is nowhere near as complete or impressive as the Alhambra. On the other hand Malaga's 11th Century fortress and palace is beautiful and reminiscent of the tower's of the Alhambra.

If you come to Malaga you must take a look at it and the Roman Amphitheatre below, even if you don't go in it to see the small archaeological museum.

Entrance Fee – 1.90 €
Opening Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.; 7:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.

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Phone: + 34 952 22 72 30
Address: C/ Alcazabilla

Malaga's cathedral was built between 1528 and 1782, typically, around the site of a mosque.

The interior has a mix of Renaissance and baroque styles from the 17th and 18th centuries.

It is nicknamed the Manquita which refers to the fact it was originally meant to have two towers but only one was completed. Manquita is roughly translated as One armed (feminine). It's official name is de la Incarnacion.

Visiting hours: 10.00a.m.-12.45p.m. & 4.00p.m.-5.30p.m. Closed on Sundays. It costs a whopping 3.50 euros to enter.

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Phone: + 34 952215917
Address: C/ Molina Larios

CALLE MARQUÉS DE LARIOS is the main shopping street in the centre of Malaga. It's name is due to the marques of Larios whose family built the street in the XIX century. Still today, many of the buildings along the street belong to the Marquesa de Larios.

Come here to go clothes, shoe shopping(there are millions of shoe shops here and in Malaga in general) or to have a coffee in one of the many street terraces. Beware because at Easter this road is completely taken over by the Semana Santa processions and you won't be able to do any shopping here all week.

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Address: c/ Larios

Yes, our famous malagueño painter was baptised in 1881 right here in the Iglesia de Santiago on Calle Granada which can be found leading off of Plaza de la Merced where Picasso was born.

It is, in fact, the oldest church in Malaga dating back to 1490. It has a mudejar tower and inside there is a mix of Mudejar and Gothic styles.

It also has a large wooden door with what looks like breasts on it. I thought it was my imagination until I saw the willy shapes too! Check out my other photos attached if you think I'm making it up or have a very dirty mind.

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The markets of Malaga not only have nice structures but highly interesting traditional products. I recommend taking a peek inside to have a look at products you surely won't find in your own countries.

I will create some shopping tips which will give you a sneak preview at some of the strange delights you can find there.

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Malaga is a coastal town but many of it's beaches are situated by the motorway or port. Pedregalejo is hidden away behind old fisherman's houses and has a more cool, laid back hippy feel to it. You can see many people walking their dogs, selling jewellery or having a coffee in a beach front cafe.

The beaches are not stones, but nor are they golden or white. They are more of a grey colour and not very light and fluffy. This is true of the Costa del Sol in general. Still the beach around this area seems to be ample certainly worth a visit while you are staying in Malaga.

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The seafront and beach of Antonio Mechado is not far at all from the Centre if Malaga, just past the port which dominates the view.

What can I say, it is a city beach where you can go to catch some rays if you don't have time to go further afield. I don't know if the water is all that clean as it is right beside the port, but It didn't look too dirty to the eye at least.

Of course the sand is grey and thin, but I suppose it is far better than nothing or mud.

There are lots of beach bars which seemed to be open from Spring onwards to have a morning coffee, an afternoon beer or fresh sardines cooked in front of you on little boat BBQ's.

The backdrop of the main road isn't too pleasant either, but you can't have everything. Malaga is a working town not a holiday resort.

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If you have ever been to Valencia and seen the river there you will know what could be done with an abandoned river.

Here in Malaga it is worth coming to see the grass river running through the town even if you have or haven't seen Valencia's magnificent park river.

In fact not all of it has been turned into a grass way used for running down. There is still a small stream that eventually turns back into river (see other photos attached).

It is easy to access the grass and can be used for walking, running, cycling or even to have a picnic on.

A good idea (better than leaving the skeleton of a dead river) but Malaga town hall should consider making it into a more attractive park land. It would be fantastic with benches, small trees, paths, ponds, sports zones, picnic areas, flowers and maybe even a small cafe or the such.

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