Murcia, Spain

Travel days always seem to have a "sameness" about them, with some going more smoothly than others. This was a good one! We took an early morning Uber to the airport, had a basic budget airline check-in, a quick and easy security check followed by the usual array of shops and cafés…..and although delayed an hour, the flight was smooth and just 90 mins from Lisbon to Alicante. Alicante is a modern airport which serves as a coastal hub for tourist arrivals. Our bags were at the carousel and as we were already in the EU, no arrival customs/passport control was needed. The bus stop to Murcia, along with other towns in the area, is just outside arrivals where there's a Starbuck's that's handy for passing time. It takes about 45 mins from the airport to Murcia and the bus station was only a 10 min taxi ride to our new "digs."
Our "host" Ursula welcomed us into the apartment which is larger than many other rentals we've had - with 2 good size bedrooms, a bathroom plus a large open-plan kitchen, living and dining area. There's a small but adequate balcony, that overlooks the street 3 floors below. Modern appliances, furniture and fixtures blend together nicely with some older features that have been preserved - the centre concrete post in our bedroom being one example. All in all it's a great base for a visitor to call "home." Ursula keeps it very well stocked with bath products, kitchen needs and various other supplies….. all are of good quality and better than most rentals. After a quick trip to a local shop, we settled down for an early night - the bed was very comfortable and the usually busy street outside was quiet 👍We took our time settling in the first morning, enjoying breakfast outside on the little balcony. The street was still quiet, but slowly coming to life, with most shops opening 9.30-10 am. Spanish life starts later than it does in Canada, so "when in Rome……" After a late breakfast we set out to explore our new surroundings

Murcia is the capital city of a region that seems to be overlooked and "off the radar" of international travellers - one exception being the city of Cartegna, which is on the coast close by and is a popular "port of call" for cruise ships. The area has a climate that's sunny and mild during the winter months and has a varied and interesting history, which immediately appealed to us.
A short walk from our apartment is a bridge over the river Segura. This oldest bridge - Puente de Los Peligros - is named after the Virgen de Los Peligros whose image can be seen in a shrine on one side of the river. This "old bridge" - as it's called by locals - was built in 1741, but there's been a bridge there since the 15th century. It has a great views over the river and the historic district. We crossed over the busy main road and entered La Glorieta de España - a beautiful pedestrianized square filled with palm trees, fountains, statues and the Neoclassical Town Hall, built in 1848. The 4 beige coloured columns at the front entrance of this building are the same coloured stone that surround the windows and the large clock. It's an interesting colour contrast to the building's salmon coloured walls - unusual, but it works! The flower beds in the square are long and narrow and together with the fountains and their water pools it gives a sense of peace and calm, reminiscent of Arabic gardens. It's easy to linger here at one of the cafés - but just around the corner is "Bishops Square" - Plaza del Cardinal Belluga.
This large open space is often used by the city for public shows and processions - it's the most well known square in Murcia. The main entrance to the cathedral is on one side, but it's currently under renovation. The Bishop's Palace is adjacent to it. Another side is taken up with bars, cafés and restaurants, which are very popular throughout the day and evenings.
Until the 18th century, together with the Cathedral and Bishop's Palace, another palace also occupied a prominent place here. It was owned by a rich and influential family. After the Cathedral's facade was remodelled and the 2 palaces demolished, a new Bishops's Palace was built and the plaza was reopened in 1759. The large open square of today was finished in 1995 after a fountain, garden area and a statue of Cardinal Belluga were moved to their new location - just around the corner and in the previously mentioned La Glorieta de España. For visitors, there's a tourist office in a convenient corner by the cathedral.
After admiring this Plaza we entered a small street that leads to the old city, its shops and restaurants. This small street opens out into a larger area where an alternate entrance to the cathedral is currently being used. The remainder of the space is taken up with a couple of cafés where you can sit and admire this side of the cathedral. On a pedestal in its courtyard is a metal sculpture detailing the building.

We spent the rest of the day wandering aimlessly up, down and across these lovely old streets, admiring buildings, looking in shops and their windows (most shops close from 2-5pm in Spain). Seduced by one window display we entered a panaderia where a friendly and patient lady helped us pick a couple of items, including a hunk of dark chocolate filled with almonds. It's priced by the kilo and broken off from very large blocks…..it's yummy and it's quite possible we may become regulars there!
By late afternoon, ready to sit down, we wandered back into Bishop's Square, found a seat at one of the restaurants and enjoyed an early evening drink while watching the sun go down over the lovely old buildings. Afterwards we strolled along the upper part of the canal promenade, directly opposite La Gloria de España. It was while admiring everything around us we realized that our decision to visit Murcia was going to be a good one and that this city would not disappoint!

The following day we continued to explore by retracing our steps through our friendly local neighbourhood of El Carmen, which could easily be a self-contained small town itself. After crossing over the river, we angled off after passing the cathedral, deciding to wander around the streets until we found anything that interested us. We managed to avoid the panaderia we'd discovered yesterday - and the temptation to buy more chocolate! We were vaguely heading towards a convent in the hopes of taking a look inside, but found that it was closed without any information outside. No worries though as we were in another lovely plaza - Plaza de Julián Romea - named after one of Murcia's famous actors. One large and lovely building in the plaza is The Romea Theatre which is also named after him and is considered to be one of the most important theatres in Spain. It's well known for its beauty, comfort and outstanding acoustics….and it's certainly "the crown jewel" of this plaza. Until his death in 1899 the theatre had 2 other names during its 150 year history. Open only for shows, we couldn't get to see inside, but we spent some time admiring its neoclassical façade which amongst other things has a bust of Beethoven, Listz and Mozart….plus medallions of people we didn't recognize!

The square has some other lovely buildings, including the (closed) Convent Church of Santa Domingo which was built in the18th century. Deciding to enjoy our surroundings we took a seat at a café which was close to the convent/church and also facing the theatre. The square was beginning to get busier as we joined locals and others in the indulgence of "tardeo" - the late afternoon tradition of enjoying tapas, and beer while hanging out with friends.