December in Andalusia is truly a festive time. The cities are dazzling with holiday spirit. It seems as though every street in Granada, where we are living, is festooned with colored lights and decorations. While there’s more than enough going on here to get in the Christmas spirit, we decided to take two weekend getaways to explore other nearby cities and get even more into the holiday.
First we went to Málaga, which is well known for their Christmas lights. In fact, they spend over €700k each year! The lights did not disappoint, however the crowds made it a little difficult to really enjoy the festivities. I don’t think either of us were expecting so many people. Besides the holiday fun, the Málaga Marathon was also going on that Sunday. We didn’t run it, but it did give us a sense of comfort, given how much races were a part of our life in the US. Maybe we’ll return next year to run the half (maybe!)
The next weekend, we opted for a quieter town, Córdoba. While the city didn’t have nearly as many lights, we definitely felt that it had a lot more charm than Málaga (and a lot fewer people). There was a cute Christmas Market in the Plaza de Tendillas, and a long line of temporary shops along the Paseo de la Victoria.
Málaga
Córdoba
Wonderful photos – glad you enjoyed an Old World Christmas!