Málaga

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\nMálaga is a port town in Andalusia, Southern Spain, on the\nCosta del Sol coast of the Mediterranean. It is the capital of the\nSpanish province of the same name. The city has over 600,000 inhabitants\nin 2003. Malaga is surrounded by mountains, and two rivers, the Guadalmedina\nand the Guadalhorce, flow near the city into the Mediterranean. The inner city of Málaga is just behind the harbour. The quarters of\nEl Perchel, La Trinidad and Lagunillas surround this center.\nThe city has much revenue from the agrarian sector and from tourism.\nThe painter Pablo Picasso, the 19th-century Spanish politician\nAntonio Canovas del Castillo, and the actor Antonio Banderas were born in Málaga.

Table of contents

1 History 2 Tourism 3 Sights in Málaga:

History

\nThe Phoenicians founded the city Malaka here, in about 1000 BCE. The name\nMalaka is probably derived from the Phoenician word for salt because fish\nwas salted near the harbour; in other Semitic languages the word for salt is still melach (Hebrew) or milch (Arabic). About seven centuries later, the Romans conquered the city along with the other Spanish areas of Carthago. From the 5th century CE it was under the rule of the Visigoths. In the 8th century, Spain was conquered by the Moors, and the city became an important centre of trade. At a late\nstage of the reconquista, the reconquering of Spain, Málaga became Spanish again, in 1487. Málaga underwent fierce bombing by the Italian and Nationalist air forces during the Spanish Civil War in 1936. Tourism on the\nadjacent Costa del Sol boosted the city's economy in the 1960s

Tourism

\nThe city is a very popular tourist destination and as such has large numbers of visitors each year. There are various\nvery cheap charter flights to and from Málaga from cities like Amsterdam\nand London. Many people come to appreciate the good weather and fine beaches of the Costa del Sol. From Málaga, other cities of Andalucia, like Sevilla, Córdoba and Granada, can be reached by train, bus or car. A beautiful walk leads up the hill to the castle, which is called the Castillo de Gibralfaro (Parador). From here there is a very beautiful view over the city, as the pictures show. The castle is next to the Alcazaba, which in turn is next to the inner city of Málaga. By taking the Paseo del Parque, a promenade that runs alongside a park with many palm trees and statues, one can walk from the Alcazaba to the harbour.

Sights in Málaga:

\n*Alcazaba\n*Castle\n*Harbour\n*Museo de Picasso\n*Museo Municipal (city museum)\n*Museo de Artes y Tradiciones Populares\n*Cathedral in the inner city \n*Palacio Episcopal (palace in the inner city) \n*Iglesia del Sagrario (church in the inner city)\n*Iglesia Parroquial de Santiago (church in the inner city)\n*Palacio de los Condes de Buenavista (palace in the inner city)\n*Plaza de Toros (bullring)\n

External Links

\n* Information on Malaga\n* http://www.andalucia.com/cities/malaga/home.htm\n NAME="Literature">

Literature

\nGuia Viva, Andalucia, Anaya Touring Club, abril 2000.