Silver Spirit Cruise Photos

From: Silver Spirit Cruise Review

Málaga and Alhambra (4)

It was still drizzling when our tour bus reached Málaga. As we drove through downtown late on a quiet Sunday afternoon, there was no doubt that we were in a resort town.

At the Málaga Cruise Terminal, P&O's Ventura (right) was moored near Silver Spirit.

Inside the terminal, electronic signs directed us to our ship.

The modern cruise terminal felt a bit like an airport, with departure lounges and shops. 

Not long after we reached our suite on Silver Spirit, the rain gave way to sun and--by coincidence--P&O's Ventura sailed from Málaga. The ship was so large that it couldn't turn around in the harbor: It had to back out, turning only when it reached the sea.

Silver Spirit wasn't due to sail until later in the evening, so we enjoyed an industrial sunset in the port.

As the sky got darker, Málaga's floodlit Alcazaba snaked up the hillside behind the city. (The former residence of Moorish emirs is even older than The Alhambra in Granada: Most of the structure dates to the 1th Century, when Málaga was the Islamic kingdom's main port. It was later a temporary residence for Ferdinand and Isabella after their troops pushed the Moors out of Spain in 1487.)

We snapped this night view of Málaga's breakwater around 11 p.m., just before Silver Spirit departed on a 33-hour journey to Palma de Mallorca.