Granada
Everyone raved about the Alhambra, and Granada has some of the qualities that intrigue us in a city – a university and an old quarter. We could have almost two full days in Granada if we could catch the early morning bus from Nerja...
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Granada
Everyone raved about the Alhambra, and Granada has some of the qualities that intrigue us in a city – a university and an old quarter. We could have almost two full days in Granada if we could catch the early morning bus from Nerja... | ||
 sunrise behind a vertical village
At first light, we headed inland on a one-lane road that immediately started climbing. As the light improved, it seemed we were headed straight for some of the most precipitous country we've ever seen. Could these mountains be called "snowy" because some of their peaks are white marble? Our narrow road wended through village and towns and past orchards and vineyards clinging to the slopes.
sparse vegetation |
Luckily (although it didn't seem so lucky at 6 o'clock this morning) the only bus from Nerja to Granada leaves at 6:30am, bringing us to our Granada rooms in time for breakfast. And what a ride it was! Spain's Sierra Nevada start spilling into the Mediterrannean in Nerja, and the first leg of the ride seemed curvy and sharp enough even if we could see nothing.
marble palisades
On top, there is not much soil, and hardy surviving vegetation spaces itself according to the sustenance available. There are no trees, and I doubt if there ever were in this forbidding terrain. Sharp-eyed Sienna, lover of mountains, spotted mountain goats, hawks, and rabbits. We passed nary a car, and trailhead parking lots -- this is one of Spain's loosely administered national parks -- were empty. Signs suggested there were rivers far below, but we saw no evidence of flowing water. | ||
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Crossing the last insanely sharp ridge, we were relieved to find ourselves on a long sloping plateau rolling gently toward Granada's smoggy plain. |
 summit plateau | ||
 our first peek at the Alhambra |
We taxied from the bus terminal to our rooms in time for breakfast. It seemed we'd done a day's work, getting across those mountains alive, but the Alhambra winked at us from the top of our street, and so Sienna, Rochelle and I caught one of the red buses and headed up, hoping to get tickets and spend the rest of the morning's coolness exploring. The Alhambra deserves special treatment, and so our visit can be found on the next page. Below you will find the rest of our visit to Granada, an interesting city even without the Alhambra for a crown. |
We deliberately paced ourselves to compensate for the onrushing heat and our early start, and as so often happens when you allow your travels to flow, the day offered us a succession of easy delights. Matilda, the keeper of our place in Granada, let us into our rooms immediately, and we were able to stash our bags safely. |
 our neighborhood |
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Breakfast downstairs was surprisingly complete and reasonable. We wandered down the street to the New Square and tried talking to a couple of ATMs, but they weren't feeling communicative, and we didn't especially care. We stepped onto a little red bus up the steep hill past our hostal to the Alhambra; the little bus's engine blew up in a cloud of smoke halfway up, but another bus rescued us in minutes and we were soon at the top. The ticket line was small, and we easily got tickets, with an entry time for the Narides Palace perfectly timed for a peaceful stroll through the gardens.
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 time for writing on the rooftop |
We didn't try to see the whole Alhambra; all three of us agreed that the Nazires Palace is the gem, and the Alcazaba fortress an interesting coda, but everything built after the Moors left was relatively uninteresting. Better we save our strength, and spend time in reflecting and recording what we'd seen, than to cram in more seeing. Scratch the Cathedral off the list! |
After our explorations, we stayed cool and above the fray on Matilda's rooftop, and then, after watching the sun set on the Alcazaba, we ventured down the hill for dinner. Granada's jewels may be on the hilltop, but its life's blood is the hustle and flash of its streets, an astonishing crush of people promenading, window shopping, and eating in restaurants. We found a restaurant plaza, and one called to us... |  sunset on the Alcazaba from our rooftop |
 The Mirador from the Alhambra |
The next morning, we rode the little red bus up the other hill to the top of the Alzaihin, to the Mirador (beautiful view) where we found an unpleasant reminder of the "911 Event", but also a beautiful view of the Palace across the valley.
an eye-opening reminder -- see Los Torres
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We came up the hill to visit the market, but, more importantly, to taste the famous hot chocolate served in a bakery on the market square, and Yum! Worth the trip: thin rich hot pudding.
The market itself, like markets everywhere, was small but rich, with an abundance of local produce picked ripe and ready to eat. Nearby, a fish market, butcher, and the aforementioned bakery -- what more does a neighborhood need? |  the neighborhood Alzaihin market |
 the courtyard of Granada's archives |
We wandered back down the hill, and out of curiosity, Sienna and I stepped into the quiet forecourt of the city's archives -- suddenly, behind the walls, we were in a quiet green world not unlike the world of the Alhambra's gardens.
In true Spanish fashion, each compound has high exterior walls. Gritty, hot streets, but within, buildings surround a courtyard that provides the hot-weather essentials: greenery, nature, often flowing water, privacy. Public facilities like this one keep an open and inviting gate. |
We spotted a restaurant we'd heard about, and came back at lunchtime for a delicious seafood repast. In Spain, the big meal of the day is typically almuerzo (lunch), and this "half portion" consisting of shellfish, squid, and four different kinds of fish surely sufficed for me. |
 a "half boat" for almuerzo |
 right-angle gate in the city wall
The fine old workmanship may have been spiffed up a few times, but soundness and beauty like this are inspiring. "If you don't have time to do it right, how will you ever find time to do it over?" |
On our way back down the Alzaihin's hill into the New Square (new in 1350), we passed through a beautifully built defensive gate in the old city wall.
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 street scene
From this part of the city, awareness of the Alhambra is never far away, either in its visible presence on the heights above, or the dedication of the squares and streets to the tourism it attracts. |
Below the protective Alhambra and its decorative gardens, life on the Granadan streets is bustling and expressive. Building facades are decorated with bright azulejos (tiles) as well as strings of garlic and careless festoons of electric wire.
the Generalife Towers from Plaza Nouva
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 the Granada pomegranate is everywhere |
Not until the afternoon of our second day did we finally figure out why we saw so many pomegranates -- actually, a jewelry vendor from Jamaica explained it to us. The pomegranate, "granada", is the fertile and jeweled symbol of the city, and appears on fountains, below crosses, and atop the bollards that demarcate sidewalks from streets wherever you walk.
After a light dinner, we dragged our bags down the hill and summoned a cab to to railway station, where we caught our Hotel Train to rattle through the night to faraway Barcelona. |
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