You are now standing at the foot of the Church of Santa María la Mayor, on the Plaza Duquesa de Parcent in the heart of the old town. The building you see today spans more than two thousand years of history: this very spot once held a Roman temple, then a Visigothic basilica, then the great mosque of the medina, before the Christian church was erected after the conquest of 1485 by the Catholic Monarchs. Inside, the three-nave Gothic layout and the large carved Renaissance wooden choir reflect the rebuilding carried out in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries after an earthquake had badly damaged the first Christian structure. The church also preserves a remarkable trace of the Islamic period: the arch of the mihrab from the former mosque is still visible, along with a section of wall decorated with Nasrid-style vegetal motifs behind one of the altarpieces. Looking up, you’ll notice the massive bell tower and the balcony-lined façade added under Philip II, which once allowed nobles to watch the festivities and tournaments held in the square from these viewing galleries. The visit also includes access to the top of the tower, where you can enjoy a full 360-degree panorama over the old town, the Puente Nuevo, the El Tajo gorge and the Serranía de Ronda mountains, one of the finest viewpoints in the entire city.