On Friday morning, we successfully staged our escape from Tangier. We got a taxi at our hotel at 6 am and took a 7 am ferry back across the straight to Spain. At last, Nathan's eyes were safe and we were in a land where we could leave our hotel without locals attempting to force us into this or that shop or restaurant. In Spain, we boarded the train from Algeciras to Granada. (Granada photos here.)
The rail trip through this section of southern Spain reminded me of southern California. For about an hour we wound through hills and canyons that took me back to Malibu Canyon and the Santa Monica Mountains. As we approached Granada, we rode though a large valley with miles of olive trees and citrus orchards, as well as many acres of solar projects (for which Spain is one of the leading nations in the world).
I liked Granada quite a bit, and several friends from college studied abroad there, so it was fun to see the city and university where they spent their semesters in Europe. The city is nestled into hillsides on the lower slopes of Spain's Sierra Nevada Mountains (a couple of which even had a bit of snow, even if it was about 90 degrees outside). Our hostel informed us that at 90 or 95F, it was the coolest weather they had seen all summer.
On our first afternoon, we went to see the Granada Cathedral, which was beautiful and full of light. Like many of the old cathedrals on the Iberian Peninsula, it was built over the site of a former Moorish mosque. Outside of the cathedral, there were vendors selling a wide range of loose teas, and the street was full of their aromas.
My main reason for wanting to visit Granada was to visit the Alhambra, a large Moorish compound and the height of Islamic architecture in Spain. It was neat to see this within a few days of visiting the Alcazar in Seville, as the two are both great fortresses built by the Moors when they ruled Spain (also, both are UNESCO World Heritage sites, as well). The Alhambra sits upon a steep hill in the middle of the town, and Granada's distinct neighborhoods (barrios) are largely characterized by where they lie in relation to the Alhambra. Our barrio was Centro, which is right next to the university--La Universidad de Granada.
We booked our tickets from the States well in advance, and I would advise doing this, as the Alhambra is the most visited tourist attraction in Spain. The compound also contains the very special building called the Nasrid Palace, which was the home of the region's ruling Sultans, and when you book your tickets, you must choose a special time to walk through that.
Some common themes among all of the great Islamic architecture we have seen in southern Spain and Morocco are the beautiful gardens and the extreme attention to detail and craftsmanship. Also, I should explain that one reason why these structures are so different from traditional European churches or castles is that in Islam, it is not appropriate to depict God or Mohammed, so instead of statues and elaborate paintings, these structures feature many geographic shapes and symbols.
(Side note--as I am typing this, it is 7:30 am and I'm watching the sun rise over the Mediterranean while going 200 km/h on the train to Barcelona. Pretty cool if you're a nerd like me.)
The Alhambra was very impressive, and at one time the walls held a fairly self-contained city. The Generalife features beautiful gardens, the Alcazaba was essentially an armory, and the Nasrid Palace was for the sultans.
Later, after Moorish rule had ended, Charles V built a palace within the compound's walls. The palace is a huge circle with a large center courtyard, and I wondered if it was intended to remind one of the coliseum or a bull-fighting ring. Today, this structure houses and art museum and a museum of artifacts from the Alhambra.
We finished the Alhambra after about four hours, and then we explored some of the city's neighborhoods. The Albayzín district sits on a hillside across the river from the Alhambra, and it offers spectacular views of the compound from the outside. Following the river upstream a bit, we ventured into Barrio Sacromonte, a neighborhood in which a number of residents make their homes in caves in the hillsides.
Our last few hours in Granada were spent at the hostel, where we repacked a bit and caught up on e-mail. Our hostel, El Granado, was very nice and clean, and Nathan and I actually had a full apartment with separate sleeping areas and a kitchen. On top of that, the hostel offered laundry service, so for 10€, they did all my laundry from our first two weeks! That was pretty amazing.
After dinner, we caught our overnight train for the 7-hour trip north to Valencia. These are nice--the beds are quite comfortable, you don't lose a day traveling, and you don't need a hotel or hostel for the night. At about 6 am we arrived in Valencia, and that short post will be next.
- R
The rail trip through this section of southern Spain reminded me of southern California. For about an hour we wound through hills and canyons that took me back to Malibu Canyon and the Santa Monica Mountains. As we approached Granada, we rode though a large valley with miles of olive trees and citrus orchards, as well as many acres of solar projects (for which Spain is one of the leading nations in the world).
I liked Granada quite a bit, and several friends from college studied abroad there, so it was fun to see the city and university where they spent their semesters in Europe. The city is nestled into hillsides on the lower slopes of Spain's Sierra Nevada Mountains (a couple of which even had a bit of snow, even if it was about 90 degrees outside). Our hostel informed us that at 90 or 95F, it was the coolest weather they had seen all summer.
On our first afternoon, we went to see the Granada Cathedral, which was beautiful and full of light. Like many of the old cathedrals on the Iberian Peninsula, it was built over the site of a former Moorish mosque. Outside of the cathedral, there were vendors selling a wide range of loose teas, and the street was full of their aromas.
My main reason for wanting to visit Granada was to visit the Alhambra, a large Moorish compound and the height of Islamic architecture in Spain. It was neat to see this within a few days of visiting the Alcazar in Seville, as the two are both great fortresses built by the Moors when they ruled Spain (also, both are UNESCO World Heritage sites, as well). The Alhambra sits upon a steep hill in the middle of the town, and Granada's distinct neighborhoods (barrios) are largely characterized by where they lie in relation to the Alhambra. Our barrio was Centro, which is right next to the university--La Universidad de Granada.
We booked our tickets from the States well in advance, and I would advise doing this, as the Alhambra is the most visited tourist attraction in Spain. The compound also contains the very special building called the Nasrid Palace, which was the home of the region's ruling Sultans, and when you book your tickets, you must choose a special time to walk through that.
Some common themes among all of the great Islamic architecture we have seen in southern Spain and Morocco are the beautiful gardens and the extreme attention to detail and craftsmanship. Also, I should explain that one reason why these structures are so different from traditional European churches or castles is that in Islam, it is not appropriate to depict God or Mohammed, so instead of statues and elaborate paintings, these structures feature many geographic shapes and symbols.
(Side note--as I am typing this, it is 7:30 am and I'm watching the sun rise over the Mediterranean while going 200 km/h on the train to Barcelona. Pretty cool if you're a nerd like me.)
The Alhambra was very impressive, and at one time the walls held a fairly self-contained city. The Generalife features beautiful gardens, the Alcazaba was essentially an armory, and the Nasrid Palace was for the sultans.
Later, after Moorish rule had ended, Charles V built a palace within the compound's walls. The palace is a huge circle with a large center courtyard, and I wondered if it was intended to remind one of the coliseum or a bull-fighting ring. Today, this structure houses and art museum and a museum of artifacts from the Alhambra.
We finished the Alhambra after about four hours, and then we explored some of the city's neighborhoods. The Albayzín district sits on a hillside across the river from the Alhambra, and it offers spectacular views of the compound from the outside. Following the river upstream a bit, we ventured into Barrio Sacromonte, a neighborhood in which a number of residents make their homes in caves in the hillsides.
Our last few hours in Granada were spent at the hostel, where we repacked a bit and caught up on e-mail. Our hostel, El Granado, was very nice and clean, and Nathan and I actually had a full apartment with separate sleeping areas and a kitchen. On top of that, the hostel offered laundry service, so for 10€, they did all my laundry from our first two weeks! That was pretty amazing.
After dinner, we caught our overnight train for the 7-hour trip north to Valencia. These are nice--the beds are quite comfortable, you don't lose a day traveling, and you don't need a hotel or hostel for the night. At about 6 am we arrived in Valencia, and that short post will be next.
- R
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