Malaga in November - Day 3 - Santuario Maria de la Victoria and Museo de Malaga

There are various options for day trips for the next day and we select none of them. One of the reasons we decided to spend ten days just in Málaga was to wander around and enjoy the city so we do just that. First we go to see another market close to the apartment - Mercado de Salamanca which would be attractive from an architectural point of view but is being rebuilt. Nevertheless, we have a look at the stalls which are mostly of fish. Most of it seems just as fresh as Atarazanas but prices are decidedly lower. We have really been eating too much fish but succumb anyway and buy two pájaros.

After leaving them back at the apartment we wander vaguely in the direction of Plaza Merced, enjoying the morning sunlight in Málaga's clean streets. We go through the Luganillas area where there's a lot of street art and arrive at our destination for this morning - Santuario Maria de la Victoria. This is an imposing brick built church from outside, it was founded by the Catholic Monarchs in the 15th century and rebuilt in the late 17th century. 

It seems just an ordinary church like many in Spain when we first go in. Instead, there's just a glimpse of something special behind the altar, so following the signs through the open door of the sacristy and up the stairs we get to the amazing camarín, a masterpiece of the most exuberant Baroque style, where we stay for a while with necks craned to admire the details.

In the middle there's a superb golden 15th century German Virgin and Child. The crypt would also be interesting but is closed, probably, I later read on the Internet, because some of the ceiling fell down. Never mind, what we have seen is well worth the walk. Dark clouds are looming so we navigate back through the centre and arrive home surprisingly quickly, the apartment is in a very convenient position.....

It rains a little during lunch so we venture out quite late for a stroll and after a looking at a few shops in the centre visit the Museo de Malaga. Entry is free, so we take a look just at the second floor, planning to go back to see the rest. The floor is dedicated to Archaeology and the first part which also explains the history of the Marqueses de Casa Loring collection is particularly interesting. Another high point is the 6th century BC tomb of the warrior, discovered in 2012. The exhibition proceeds with mosaics and later ceramics but we don't want to spend the whole afternoon inside so we continue our walk along Calle Guellin which also takes us past the University building where we take a look at the remains of the fish salting area and old walls on the floor below. There's also a collection of photos and pictures vaguely on the theme of Californian skateboarding. We walk to the end of the Jardines de Pedro Luis Alonso and then up the steps a little way and back to the centre.

It's time for our stop at Antigua Casa de la Guardia where we choose a not oversweet Moschatel and a Málaga Quina, which is a Málaga wine aromatised by adding cinchona bark. 

An interesting taste but it will probably not become a favourite. On the way home we stop at Mercadona for a few things and buy bread and pimientos asados in the nearby panadería. A quiet but nice day.