Farewell, Granada!
While it seems I've been lingering in this historic Moorish city for a month now, I was actually only there for four days. Today we wrap up my Tales of the Alhambra and continue our Spanish journey…
I’m back on the road, so to speak. Since returning to Montréal after 10 months exploring Europe and Morocco, I put a hold on my detailed travel stories while I took care of some pressing personal matters. But this week I’m back in the navigator seat as we fly back in time to revisit the final legs of my European sojourn in Spain, Luxembourg, Belgium and down the coast of France from Dieppe to Bordeaux.
Today also marks my 50th consecutive week of blogging, for a total of 70 posts! My original goal of two posts a week turned out to be a bit optimistic, since the writing turned out to be much more demanding and it was difficult to find the time to write properly-researched stories while maintaining a tight travel agenda.
But no excuses! I’ll make up for the slack by continuing the blog until I have covered all the major cities I visited at the end of my trip. So hold on to your chaps, we’re back on the road to Spain’s Andalusia region, where I last left you on the doorstep of Granada’s famous Alhambra palace complex
You can visit Alhambra on your own or take one of the dozens of private guided tours or audio-guide tours on offer. But you should book these well in advance, since prices can rise quite steeply for last-minute bookings, especially in peak periods. You will also be offered a choice of which sites to see, since the complex is divided into four different components: the Nasrid palaces, the Alcazaba military fortress, the palace of Carlos V, and the Generalife palace and gardens. If you find a cheap price, chances are the tour does not include all four sites, so check carefully before you book.
That’s why I can’t report on the Nasrid palaces, and why my visit to the Carlos V palace was very cursory, skipping both its Alhambra Museum and the Granada Fine Arts Museum. I booked late and quickly, so I also missed what many tell me is the highlight of the Alhambra experience, the tile work in the Nasrid Palaces.
Spanish king Carlos V had ambitious plans for his own palace on the Alhambra grounds, but the project was abandoned after 110 years. It wasn’t even given a roof until 1967.
Generalife, which I did see, was considered the “summer palace” even though it is only about 50 metres beyond the fortified Alhambra walls. The architecture is simpler and less ornate, with an emphasis on cool comfort, gardens and flowing water. It’s easy to imagine the last generations of Muslim royalty in Spain entertaining and relaxing in a private oasis within easy reach of the fortress in the event of attack or attempted coup.
I was advised that reading Washington Irving’s Tales of the Alhambra essays before the visit would have added a rich background to the tour. I’m afraid that advice was too late for me, but hopefully not for you, if you visit!
But it’s not all palaces and fortresses here. There are lots of other things to do in Granada, from walking tours to live flamenco to pub crawls to hikes in the nearby mountains. (I explored some of those for you in an earlier blog post.) Enjoy the history, but breathe in the air and soak up the culture of one of Spain’s most important regional capitals, and the last Muslim city to fall to the Catholic dynasty of Ferdinand and Isabella.
You never know when a religious procession might wander through the narrow streets of Granada’s Sacromonte district.
As for me, after Generalife, I was on the road again for a return to Sevilla and a few more days in my favourite Spanish hostel. Come along with me for the ride, then we will be hopping a plane to Toulouse and a train north to one of Europe’s smallest countries: Luxembourg.