drron29

Back to the Square where you cold see the old 11th century fort. But also Roman ruins including a theatre. Alas to get all of this the whole of the old Jewish quarter was destroyed, Now walking towards the Picasso Museum. Now our guide said this restaurant Pimpi was the best in Malaga. Now the original Cathedral built over a mosque.

We have had some really excellent butlers and only a couple hose disappearance would not have been missed. Our first SS butler ended up a Hotel Director on SS before moving on to a very senior management role at another cruise line. So I definitely don't want to see an end to butlers.

Then back outside.

With his drawings he would often start with a natural image and gradually change it to his style.

One side of the square was lined with restaurants. There were 4 in a row open. One was full the others with mostly empty tables. I went and had a look at the menu outside the full one and realised why. Eggs Benedict of course. Now we went to the Picasso apartment where he was born and lived until the age of 10. Said to be Picasso as a boy. His father was an painter and taught at the Art school. One of his paintings that were almost always of pigeons. He can be said to be one of those behind the UN Peace symbol as his son also painted a few pigeons in a different form and it was one of his drawings that became the Peace symbol. I took a few pictures both here and in the Picasso museum of various elements of Picasso's life.

The old 11th century Moor's fort. Extensively restored and may or may not be the way it looked in the time of the Moors. Then to the large square and the buiding where Picasso was born. And the man himself.

This excursion you got a feeling very early was going to be excellent. The guide was a Norwegian fellow who has lived in Malaga for 27 years. Excellent English . He is an Art Historian with a special interest in Architecture. He kept talking most of the time but it was informative and to the point. An excellent knowledge of Spanish history and the context of the various episodes. Also with a bit of wry humour such as the Spanish King has developed a liking for women who want him to give them some money. It was a short bus ride to the outskirts of the old city. Ramadan adversely effected our visit to Cadiz. In Malaga it was the Christians Palm Sunday and large processions that basically blocked off the City centre. So to the pictorial.

And for birds. Our new neighbour. And soon off on our tour - Picasso and old Malaga.

Sunset as we sail away from Cadiz. Still dark as we arrive at Malaga after sleeping in until 7.30 am. Only a little naval vessel. A good place for plane spotting.

Dinner was back in Atlantide. A new daily menu plus a couple og changes in the standard menu with a couple of scallop dishes. I began with the beef tartare and caviar and Rojaan with the mushroom and asparagus salad. Rojaan had her usual Sav Blanc and I a nice French red. I then had the scallop and mushroom soup and we both had the lobster tail for mains.Perfectly cooked. For desserts Rojaan had the pavlova and I the lemon meringue pie. Our waiter was an older Fillipino who told us that there are only 40 Fillipino staff in the hotel department out of slightly over 200 staff. We had an excellent wine waiter from Bali Sri. Her real name is Putu but there are already several other Putu's with Silversea hence a different name.

A lazy afternoon. Took a few more photos from our balcony with the blue sky and sea. And behind the naval ship the bridge that the locals are proud of - the Constitution Bridge. And our neighbour departs. Bombed back again in trivia but struggled to equal third in the putting plus a point for a hole in one.

There is a fast express train from KIX any way. And it always runs to time. Not a minute earlier or a minute later but right on time.

Terry that looks like one of the waiters that served us at the Grill tonight. He had worked at the Royal Livingstone hotel for several years before joing Silversea. He joined to see the world but feels better and in one word he said it was respect.

This though wasn't a totally enjoyable excursion. The guide was more into trivia such as pointing out a shop that only sold goat and sheep products. Didn't appear to have much detailed knowledge of history. Got back to the ship so went straight to Kaiseki for lunch. And our food. One disappointment on the Dawn they had sea urchin on the menu but not now on the Moon. Over the yearsvisiting Japan I have developed a taste for it.

So we are back on the bus. I kept awake for a while so a few pictures of the countryside.Lots of olives and a very green countryside. Before long back in Cadiz. We went past the ship repair yards. And soon back on the Moon.

Although Cadiz has closed it's bullring the "sport" still flourishes. Cheeses.

The last of the Parador and we got permission to walk back to the bus a bit early.

Did you notice the slightly risque one? I really liked this one. Now back to the Parador. A beverage and simple tapas.

The ramble continues. Spanish style electrical wiring. This was a little art gallery. I enjoyed some of it.

Dinner at the Grill tonight and I must apologise to JP. Overcooked my ribeye. On the other hand had a great night. 6 crew served us over the meal and from 6 different countries. Philipines. Nigeria, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Mexico and India. The fellow from India was reserved at first but understandably as he has only been on board for 4 weeks. We broke the barrier when we told him Rojaan’s grandfather was born in Mumbai which is true. By the end of the meal we were getting along famously and he thanked us for chatting. He did work at the Hyatt Dubai for 2 years before signing up.

It certainly was up and down. Occasional cars but the motorcycles were intent on never slowing down. Fortunately no casualties.

The Parador which we will come back to for snacks and a drink. I then went with the group for a walk around the village whilst Rojaan recuperated. At the bottom of this lane they had begun to build a convent but it was never finished. It is now a boutique hotel and it is said the bar is the best in the village.

It was worth it. Even interesting steps. The views from the top were spectacular.

The walk was up a steep hill and Rojaan's hip and back were playing up so we were rather slow. Only a few steps to go to see the front of the church.

Back to the pictures. You might notice that there were very few photos taken from the bus. That is because of the short night after 10 minutes on the bus I was asleep.