Well well well...Casa Del Rey Moro

The most interesting visit while in Ronda had to be to the Casa Del Rey Moro (house of the Moorish king), well actually into the gardens only, as the house is closed, for essential repairs. It is an 18th century house with an 18th century garden designed by a Frenchman so no Moorish king could have lived there. Perhaps there had been a palace her before then.

 What makes it interesting however is that there is access to a Moorish water mine in the garden. It was used to draw water from the Guadalevin river at the bottom of the gorge when the town was under siege. It had been excavated by Christian slaves who then had to bring up the water climbing over 230 steps.

We paid 10 euros each for the unique experience but after returning via the unusually high risers felt they should have paid us for successfully completing it!

There is a platform at the bottom that offers great views that let you know just how far you have plunged!

Personally I think they should rename it and call it a goldmine as the entrance fee  is collected for what appears to be little or no maintenance being carried out other than a part-time gardener.

You can see more detail about it here. The photo below of the house is from their site as my attempt to capture it fell foul of the sunshine we were enjoying!