On Thursday, December 19th, I planned to wake up in Sevilla, wonder around some that morning and then take a taxi at 11:00 to the station to head to Granada. I woke up and it was pouring down rain. I mean cats and dogs people. I had been up pretty late watching the Impeachment (thanks BBC), so I decided to be lazy and not venture out.
Thankfully, the taxi that the hotel called managed to pull up on the "street" right in front of the hotel, so I didn't have to walk to the end of the lane in the rain. He took me to the bus station. Now, let me tell you about THAT. I don't really rough it on vacation. I am used to taking first class train cars (or business class because in some countries that's actually nicer than 1st class). I have NEVER taken the bus anywhere. I was taking the bus to Granada because the train tracks were under construction (have been for several years apparently), and if you take the train, then you have to get off the train at a certain point and the train company buses you the rest of the way. All total, you save about 45 minutes to just take a bus to begin with. So I bought a bus ticket with much apprehension.
I was pretty underwhelmed though. I have no idea what this is. This was the free tapas that you got for ordering a drink. It was the best thing I ate.
I ordered two different tapas. One was a ham and cheese, which was fine. The other was pork loin, which surprise, came with a tomato. It wasn't great either. But I wasn't starving anymore, so that was the point.
I walked around for a bit. I went to a pastry shop and bought some snacks for later. I wondered around the Alcaicería, which was a Moorish silk market that sold silver, spices, and silk. Now it's full of souvenir shops. I failed to take one picture! Ugh!
Then I went to the Granada Cathedral.
After the Cathedral I went to the Royal Chapel or Capilla Real (not connected to the Cathedral). Queen Isabel and King Ferdinand, the Catholic Monarchs who drove home the end of the Reconquista, are buried here. They decided to be buried here, instead of in Toledo as they had originally planned, after they conquered the last Moorish capital.
There are actually 4 royal tombs here: Isabel, Ferdinand, and then their daughter who succeeded them and her husband... Philip the Handsome and Juana the Mad. She was said to be nuttier than a fruitcake and was in fact declared insane and institutionalized. They didn't allow pics inside the Chapel, but here is the outside...
I wondered around a bit more and looked at a few more stores and plazas, and then I called it a night.
I was staying at the Eurostars Cathedral Hotel. This is a fairly new hotel, and didn't have a lot of reviews, but I took a chance on it. Now, when I booked my hotel, I knew it was close to the cathedral. But close doesn't being to describe it, so watch this video...
My room was on like a 1/2 floor. That doesn't make any sense, but it was kind of between the first and second floor. There were only five rooms around this little courtyard.
First, I took zero pictures of Charles V's Palace. I did however buy Lola a stuffed lion in the gift shop inside that portion :-)
The is the Alcazaba Fort. It is the original portion of the complex, from the mid-13th Century. This tower defended a town of a 2000 Muslims that lived within the Alhambra walls.
This is looking at where you enter the Palacios Nazaries.
I was early for my entry time to the Nazaries, so I sat inside this gate. There were seats on both sides and it was a great place to read my guide book out of the pouring rain.
This was as you exited the Nazaries into the Partal Gardens.
Part of the palace still stands...
This is the Generalife Gardens... They were the sultan's vegetable and fruit orchards just outside the Alhambra walls.
Seeking a minute out of the pouring rain...
This moody pic matches the weather...
The White Palace. This was where the Moorish kings re-created an Arabian garden. This garden was said to be the closest thing on earth to the Quran's description of heaven, and it was planted more than 600 years ago.
I cut my visit to the gardens shorter than I would have liked, but I was soaked. I wanted to find a taxi back to the hotel, but that didn't work, so I waited and waited on a bus. The bus never came, so I schlepped back to the hotel on foot. It was only about a 20 minutes walk, but again, it was raining so much. I did get to see a large part of Granada on my walk though.
Stay tuned for the Palace. It is truly amazing...
Thankfully, the taxi that the hotel called managed to pull up on the "street" right in front of the hotel, so I didn't have to walk to the end of the lane in the rain. He took me to the bus station. Now, let me tell you about THAT. I don't really rough it on vacation. I am used to taking first class train cars (or business class because in some countries that's actually nicer than 1st class). I have NEVER taken the bus anywhere. I was taking the bus to Granada because the train tracks were under construction (have been for several years apparently), and if you take the train, then you have to get off the train at a certain point and the train company buses you the rest of the way. All total, you save about 45 minutes to just take a bus to begin with. So I bought a bus ticket with much apprehension.
The ALSA bus wasn't bad. It wasn't a first class seat on a train either, but better than I had feared. As I said in an instastory, I wasn't traumatized by it, and I feared I would be. The ride was pretty...lots of olive orchards, hills, some mountains. I watched The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, read, and napped on the 3 hour trip. I arrived in Granada at 3:00 and took a taxi to my hotel (more on the hotel in a bit).
I was starving (and hey! Finally on the Spanish food schedule!) so I headed out to Bodegas Castañeda. The hotel and Rick Steves had recommended it...
The Sangria was not great. More wine than liquor and I do not like wine.
Then I went to the Granada Cathedral.
There are actually 4 royal tombs here: Isabel, Ferdinand, and then their daughter who succeeded them and her husband... Philip the Handsome and Juana the Mad. She was said to be nuttier than a fruitcake and was in fact declared insane and institutionalized. They didn't allow pics inside the Chapel, but here is the outside...
I was staying at the Eurostars Cathedral Hotel. This is a fairly new hotel, and didn't have a lot of reviews, but I took a chance on it. Now, when I booked my hotel, I knew it was close to the cathedral. But close doesn't being to describe it, so watch this video...
I experienced some technical difficulties (something got switched on my camera which made the photos blurry, but I was also having contact lens struggles and I thought it was just my contacts.) so I only have some fuzzy pics of the room. But I LOVED this hotel and room, so I'm showing you anyway!
Here's a video room tour I did on instagram...
On Friday, December 20th, I was so excited because I had tickets to the Alhambra. The Alhambra was the main catalyst for my trip to Spain. You have to get tickets 3 months in advance, as it is a very popular attraction. This was a Moorish palace until 1492, when the Reconquista was completed, and then Ferdinand and Isabel moved in.
The Alhambra is four sights all together:
(1) Palacios Nazaries
(2) Charles V's Palace
(3) Generalife Gardens
(4) Alcazaba Fort
In this post I'm going to cover 2-4 and I'm saving my multitude of pics of the Nazaries for the next post.
The is the Alcazaba Fort. It is the original portion of the complex, from the mid-13th Century. This tower defended a town of a 2000 Muslims that lived within the Alhambra walls.
You can climb to the top of the towers for views of the mountains (the Sierra Nevada, where you can actually ski) and the town, but the weather was just plain terrible the day I was there, that I didn't bother. The views weren't great due to the rain and clouds.
I cut my visit to the gardens shorter than I would have liked, but I was soaked. I wanted to find a taxi back to the hotel, but that didn't work, so I waited and waited on a bus. The bus never came, so I schlepped back to the hotel on foot. It was only about a 20 minutes walk, but again, it was raining so much. I did get to see a large part of Granada on my walk though.
Stay tuned for the Palace. It is truly amazing...
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