History and Landscape
The municipal district of Fuengirola occupies a
narrow stretch of the coastal terrain between the Jardin brook to the northeast and the
mouth of the Fuengirola river to the southwest. In the northern extreme the landscape is
hilly and there, where there are no urbanizations, it is covered with scrubland, while the
rest of the relief has smooth undulations and is practically plain. In these areas, apart
from some really residual plots, the surroundings are urban right up to the border of the
Fuengirola river. To the extreme south, the hill on which the castle stands and the mouth
of the river momentarily interrupt this panorama before it returns in the neighbouring
municipality of Mijas.
The coastal position of Fuengirola, the same as with
other coastal towns, must have attracted the first settlers since old. Nevertheless, the
first datum we have, refer to the Phoenicians, who arrived here in order to make commerce
with the towns of the area. They were the founders of Suel, the name which this locality
would have until the Arab era.
With the arrival of the Romans it acquired great
relevance, reaching the category of a federated city of Rome, which allowed it to maintain
a law-code and their own institutions, the same as what happened with the city of Málaga.
The Arabs changed its name and called it Sohail, the
name of a star in the Argus constellation, which according to tradition, could only be
seen from the castle which still conserves the most part of its walls today. This castle
was built by Abderramán III in the mid 10th century and was practically destroyed in the
Christian conquest of 1487. After this conquest the coastal defence was fortified and some
centuries later, in the 18th century, the castle was rebuilt with the purpose of avoiding
the intense contraband registered in the area. This castle continued to serve its
defensive mission until the War of Independance, in which it was used by the French.
From the 18th century, the town gained importance as
a supply centre for the boats going to the Gibraltar straits and changes its name to
Fuengirola, derived from the term "girona", appointed to the Genoese vessels
dedicated to grocery, of whose presence was frequent in this Málaga port. The term
"boliche" (grocer) has remained in the annexe of Santa Fe of Los Boliches, now
practically united to Fuengirola.
Places to visit
One could say, apart from exceptions, that the
physiognomy of what was once a fishing village, changed from the decade of the 60’s
with the massive development of tourism on the Costa del Sol, where Fuengirola occupies a
privileged place. So the new and modern constructions have formed a new urban landscape
which has nothing to do with its historic past.
The most representative monuments are its parish
church and the Sohail castle. The religious building, situated in the Constitution square
and under the protection of the Virgin of the Rosary, presents a baroque front formed by
two pilasters and a split pediment with a niche in the upper part.
Regarding the castle, apart from its rich historical
past, as an architectural construction which has been entirely restored, it has a square
base, solid turrets on the flanks, and a larger tower standing out in the centre to the
Puerta del Homenaje.
It has been possible to know Fuengirola’s past
by the archaeological sites of Torreblanca del Sol (Roman baths and visigode necropolis).
The fast touristic development has originated the
concentration of interesting places all along the promenade, one of the longest in Spain
and on which there is the marina, nautical club, the fishing port, and the Oceanographical
Investigation Centre.
The promenade, especially the most western part, is
the area to visit during the day, but especially at night for the amount of premises which
exist: restaurants, bars, cafeterias, pubs, clothes shops, handicrafts, etc. As well as
the Zoo, the only one on the Costa del Sol, the streets of the centre have been converted
into open air museums with painted murals on facades by painters such as Barbadillo,
Brickman, Escalona, Sanz, Le Parc, Peinado, Sempere, Asins and others.
Shopping
Fuengirola, on the contrary to what
one may think, is one of the most outstanding handicraft centres in the province, and has
a great number of shops for its commercialization, although they also sell products which
have nothing to do with the authoctonous handicraft products.
In this sense, Fuengirola has a good
number of workshops of master craftsmen who work with pottery, precious metals, and
jewellry, leather, wooden furniture and tapestries, iron forging, and saddlery. The
costume jewellry however has a more manufacturing character with workshops in the
industrial estate.
Gastronomy
The gastronomic offers of Fuengirola correspond to
the cosmopolitanism of the city, but the popular cooking is based on fish caught on its
coast, especially fry up, sardine kebabs, not forgetting rice with shellfish, fish baked
in salt, oven baked fish, shellfish etc.
Festivities and traditions
The main festivities of the town, in honour of the
patron saint of the Virgin of the Rosary, are in October and take place in the permanent
fair ground. The other great protagonist of the festive calender takes place in July with
the purpose of the Virgen del Carmen day. The area of Los Boliches, the fishing town which
still conserves part of its former physiognomy, is the one who organizes the marine
procession on the 16th of July.
