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The impressive Alcazaba (Tue-Sun 9.30am-8pm; free) is the place to make for if you're killing time between connections. It lies just fifteen minutes' walk from the train or bus stations, and can be clearly seen from most central points. At its entrance stands a lost-looking Roman theatre , accidentally unearthed in 1951 and now a venue for various outdoor entertainments. The citadel, too, is Roman in origin, and, interspersed among the Moorish brick of the double- and triple-arched gateways, are blocks and columns of marble. The main structures, recently reopened following a costly three-year restoration, were begun by the Moors in the eighth century, probably soon after their conquest since Malaga was an important port, but the palace higher up the hill dates from the early decades of the eleventh century. It was the residence of the Arab emirs of Malaga, who carved out an independent kingdom for themselves upon the break-up of the western caliphate. Their independence lasted a mere thirty years, but for a while the kingdom grew to include Granada, Carmona and Jaen. The complex's palace, restored as an archeological museum , has some fine stuccowork and ceilings and good collections of pottery, for which Malaga was renowned during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. Above the Alcazaba, and connected to it by a long double wall, is the Gibralfaro castle (daily 9.30am-8pm; free), reached either by climbing a path uphill from the rear of the museum or by taking the road to the right of the Alcazaba, then following a path up through gardens, a ramble of towers, bougainvillea-draped ramparts and sentry-box-shaped Moorish wells. You can also approach from the town side, as the tourist coaches do, but this is a very unattractive walk and not one to be done alone after sundown. If you want to avoid the climb altogether, bus #35 goes east from the Paseo del Parque to drop you off just outside the entrance to the Gibralfaro. Last used in 1936 during the Civil War, the castle has, like the Alcazaba, been wonderfully restored and now houses an interesting museum dealing with the history of the Gibralfaro - a wonderful scale model lets you see how the city would have looked in Moorish times. A walk around the battlements affords terrific views over the city, while the nearby parador has a pleasant terrace cafe and restaurant.
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