Attractions Of Melilla

One of the biggest attractions of Melilla, it is that there are different communities (Christians, Muslims, Jews and Hindus) maintaining their cultural identities giving Melilla city contrasts in landscapes and city streets.You could say the same city has four different parts: Christian, Muslim, Jewish and a small Hindu part.

This goes beyond cultural wealth of its people and can be seen on the streets of Melilla, where we find many mosques and churches, and where you can stop to look curiously at synagogues and temples of other religions. One of the initiatives from the Tourism Council of Melilla since 2008 to raise awareness about different cultures and religions of the city to tourists is the famous’ Temple Road, a project which gives people chance to see the inside of the four shrines of different faiths, who are Christian, Muslim, Hindu and Sephardic.

The idea is to give a tour of the Synagogue Or Zoruah (Holy Light), the place of worship of the Jewish community, three-storey building by the architect Enrique Nieto (1924) which is one of the most spectacular of the ten synagogues that exist in Melilla and also the Mandir Hindu Temple. The Hindu Community despite being the least in number, is not lost, both for its cuisine as for its discreet but open attitude to others. The Cerro Zawiya Alawiya de la Palma is also one of the most important mosques. The oldest church in the city La Purisima Concepcion (1657), built in Romanesque style, contains a sculpture of Christ.

With the initiative of promoting different religions, brochures on each of the temples are distributed, as well as information on visiting days, which are 4 per week, Tuesday through Thursday and Sunday morning. What differentiates this type of existing temples in the peninsula is that buildings in Melilla are alive. Throughout the so-called “Golden Triangle” (the streets of the Barrio Heroes of Spain) are other buildings that house other unique temples in the city.

We highlight a visit to the Sacred Heart Church, built in neo-Romantic style and site of the Episcopal Vicariate of Melilla. This is a separate building with three naves built by diocesan architect Fernando Guerrero Strachan (1911-1918). Also, and not least, the Central Mosque Complex, located in a manner contrary to the synagogue, is the work of Enrique Nieto (1945) and is one of the most exotic temples in the streets of Melilla.