Ronda, Help Help Me Ronda

One of our day trips took us inland to Ronda, about an hour drive from Malaga. It is one of the Pueblos Blancos (White Towns of Andulucia) a group of towns with similar styling of white buildings, that stretch across the region. It is a very nice walk-able town set on a plateau divided by a canyon and overlooking a green valley. There were a good number of tourists there, although it looks like it could be a lot more crowded during the high season.

The Bullring (Plaza de Toros) of Ronda is one of the oldest bullrings and was completed in 1785.

From the entrance, there is a path that takes you to some of the behind the scenes areas. Here is Deb outside the training ring pictured below. We saw an instructor teaching two riders on various maneuvers with the horses, very similar to some of the moves we saw in the Spanish Riding School in Vienna.

Passing by a few holding pens for bulls and stables, we came to this corridor that leads directly into the Bullring. These are the holding rooms for the bulls and the doors can be opened and closed above by a series of pulleys – a good precautionary measure when dealing with large beasts with horns.

You’re able to walk out onto the arena floor and we stopped to pose for pictures behind these protective wood barriers. The last part of the visit goes through a museum that includes history about bull fighting in Spain and has several exhibits of costumes, tools of the trade, and memorabilia.

The main commercial area is jammed with cafés, restaurants, and shops. The girls spent some time in a store with many leather goods. We ate lunch in a viewpoint area with sweeping views of the valley below.

The gem of Ronda is the Puente Nuevo that connects the two sides of the city. The “New Bridge” was built between 1751 and 1793 and stretched across the 390 foot chasm. One of its uses was a prison and as a torture chamber during the civil war. It has a very unique construction and looks magnificent between the sheer cliffs. We got great vies of it from both sides of the city; the first picture is from a foot path that takes you down the side of the cliff.

We came to this beautiful square with a small garden in the middle and surrounded by a couple municipal buildings and the Iglesia Santa Maria de la Encarnación.

We visited the Mondragon Palace that was built by Moorish Kings in the early 14^th century, which now houses the Municipal Museum. There were some exhibits explaining the local history, going back to the earliest civilizations in the region. Most impressive was the building itself that several lovely courtyards and a wonderful garden with views over the valley.