Bridges of Ronda

Ronda, Ronda, Ronda - what a day, what a day trip. One of the more visited of the "white villages" in Andalucia, Ronda is known for the 100m gorge that runs between the Old Medina and newer town, and the 3 bridges that cross it. Have this wonderful thing called a rental car this vacation, we decided to get out of Malaga, and take the scenic drive through the mountains to Ronda. The drive out of the city was relatively straight-forward, and once we hit the highway, it was pretty much smooth sailing the whole way. We did make one wrong turn, turning into the small town of Ardales, where we thought the roadway continued, then searching down several dirt roads for the access back to the highway. Eventually, we followed the same route as a tour bus and managed our way back in the right direction.

Ronda is one of those places where you can clearly feel the difference in neighborhoods, and when you've crossed that line from regular to tourists area. We parked far enough out of the center of town that we clearly crossed that line coming in, and made sure we chose a quiet spot for a coffee before starting our adventure. Next to the information centre, we headed into the Plaza del Torros, the oldest and most famous bullfighting ring in Spain. It's curious to see how much distance is put between the bulls and people corralling them, which is very telling of how much anger the animals much already harbour even BEFORE being sent into the rings. Overhead walkways, gates opened with long poles or ropes, gatesways opened via sliding metal bars...these people DO NOT want to come in close vicinity of the bulls! Right now, though, the stables are filled with not bulls, but horses, trained in the art of dressage, and the paddock in used for an equestrian school, when not home to angry, angry bulls.

We toured the museum, admiring the jackets and hats of famous bullfighters, and the mounted heads of famous bulls(which is, admittedly, a little creepy and sad). We also sat in the stands of the ring, and watched as people entered from one side, stoood in awe at the sheer vastness, then ran around with fake horns, or waving a jacket, imitating the fighter and his prey. It made us laugh to see that, in every group, at least one person did this, and honestly, was totally expected. Mario made me do it.

Following the visit, we headed across the bridge to the old medina side of the city, but not before checking out the bridge. Ronda may be a hill-top town built across a 100m deep gorge, but what draws people here are the three tall bridges that cross the gorge. Like most hill-top towns, Ronda was founded here because its high vantage point offered great protection during times of war. Mario pondered on this fact, wondering why people didn't begin to move out and down the mountain since the protection was not longer necessary. He also left me in a plaza while he made his way down the cliffside stairway for better views of the tallest bridge(not true - I volunteered to stay up top and listen to the melody of a far-off accordion).

We traveled in a figure-eight around the medina, first along the left side of town, down a steep slope and across the second bridge, making our way back up through a rose garden-lined terraced park, then along the right side of the medina and back through to the new town. Along the way, we crossed a construction crew digging up the far end of the bridge, accessing some broken pipes, just at the edge of the bridge. They obviously weren't too worried about the strength of the structure below!

Long shadows were making their way across the laneways of Ronda, so we figured it was a good time to start the drive back to Malaga, as we were heading through the mountains, and didn't want to miss out on the vistas due to darkness. We passed through the Sierra de la Nieves National Park, stopping at a mirador(viewpoint)to catch the last waning rays of the sun passing over the mountaintops and into the valley below us.

Back in town, we headed back into the narrow laneways of Malaga to our new favorite spot, El Pimpi, this time going all out and having Spanish-style late dinner. Out on the MASSIVE back patio, we watched the army of waiters efficiently rushing around, serving drinks and snacks to the tables around us, ushering families and couples in and out with great ease. Mario and I enjoyed a platter of the bellota-fed pork products, in season right night, along with simmered pork cheeks and grilled octopus with olive oil, garlic and parsley. Our waiter, noticing how far away we had traveled to enjoy our meal(via my creadit card), offered us glasses of moscatel, a sweetish wine famous in Malaga, to finish off the night. So we sipped, and looked out at the flood-lit Roman theatre, and reminisced of

our travels. Tomorrow, we are off to Granada.