The start of our day in Benalmadena was pouring rain as we waited for the bus. We hopped on our bus and headed to Ronda, we got on the bus at 8:15 and arrived in Ronda around 11:00. We started our bus ride in the rain and it got less and less the higher we drove. We were driving through many small cities until we arrived at Ronda at an elevation of just over 1000M above sea level.
Along the highway we saw groves of chestnut trees that the leaves have turned brown and it is the time of year for their harvest . One picture shows how high we are with the cloud cover below us and a white village in the distance.
Once in Ronda we were taken on a VERY INTERESTING walking tour, our guide was very knowledgeable and super funny. Our first stop was the cathedral in the centre of town. From here we walked down the path that may have been talked about in the Book by Hemingway FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS. People were herded and beaten down this path from the Cathedral to the gorge where they were thrown over. The guys think this, I have never read the book. 
As we were walking I said This is where the oldest bull ring in China is ......... Ed and Tom both had smart ass remarks and Sharon and I were just laughing. Ronda has the oldest bull ring in all of Spain. In the first park our guide talked about the Lady of Ronda statue and how the women dress here. Then he talked about the statue of the famous Bull Fighter who killed 5612 bulls in his lifetime. I think he fought his last fight in his 80's. Bull fighters go from generation to generation of the same family.
Then we went to Plaza de Toros the oldest bull ring in Spain. We were shown where the bull fighters prayed before their fights, pictures and costumes of the matadors and what it was like for them. Then we went to the actual bull ring, they pay from $250 E to $3000 E per seat for a special bull fight. 22,000 bulls are killed all over Spain every year, the meat is eaten by the people after.
Sharon and I said we would like to watch a bull fight but the kind where they use coloured ribbon and not actually kill the bull .
Next stop was the OMG bridge - it is the youngest of the bridges because it was only built in the 1700 lol. It is called that because when you look down into the gorge, that is what you say. Another bridge picture I take later is the old bridge made in the 1400's. Then we walked around the streets
We stopped at a winery and tasted 4 different kinds of wine - white, red , sweet wine and some sherry. They gave you a tiny plastic cup and you could taste all the different kinds of wine and as much as you wanted for the time we were there. They had taps sticking out of the wall and taps out of barrels, nothing like our winery tasting places.
More walking around the different streets, they are getting all their Christmas decorations up in all the places we stop and visit. Sharon and Ed went to a place to have Tapas and Tom and I went to a different restaurant because Tom wanted something he knew what he was getting. So Tom and Christy lol. Ronda was a very interesting place to see, and the sun came out and we had a beautiful visit.
Back on the bus at 3:00 and we are off to see the old fishing area of Marbella. We drove back down the hill into the valley below to Marbella. About an hour later we are on another walking tour and finding a small area of the bigger Marbella that we would of missed on our own. We saw a small chapel where fishermen would go to pray for safety when they were out on the sea. We also visited another beautiful church and I again lit some candles. We saw one house that used flamingo dresses as window dressing and one walkway was lined with 7 groups of tiles that show the life of people in Spain.We are so glad we paid for the guided tour because we learned so much from him that you would not learn on your own. 
On the bus we had Germans, French, English and Russian speaking people. The Russians had their own guide, the French went with another group on our walking tours and the German and the English shared the one guide. He had some funny lines, one time he said that a man with many wives is a polygamist and a man with one wife is monotony, Then another time he asked if everyone is here and smart ass Ed said anyone not here raise their hand. The guide also said that the winter can get very cold here with snow and super hot in the summer up to 45. Have experienced that heat in Australia and it feels like you are cooking. Ronda also gets the most rain in all of Spain. Another great day even though it started out with pouring rain but it got nice and the sun even came out for us. Life is grand
NIGHT and HUGS