As Karen and I left Portugal, we needed to find a place to stay that was within several hours of the hotel we needed to be at for the Pueblo Ingles program. We looked at the map and decided we would stay somewhere around Granada. On the way to Granada, Karen read that they had a nice site to visit called the Alhambra, so we decided to try to see it. We arrived to town around 5:00 pm and decided to find somewhere to stay and see the Alhambra in the morning.
We found a nice little camp ground just off the freeway, literally off the freeway. We decided to eat at the restaurant and had a lovely dinner with a French/Thai family living in Vietnam in Spain on holiday. It was a wonderful evening chatting with them.
The next morning, Karen and I got to the Alhambra by 7:30 am. The ticket office opens at 8am with the grounds opening at 8:30 am. Apparently, it is hard to get tickets especially in the summer, but we get lucky and have no problems. Some times, accidents are better than anything you plan. The Alhambra is amazing
The Alcazaba, the Alhambra’s fortress, dates from the 11th – 13th centuries. History in this fortress is extensive. The Nasrid Palace was used by the Muslim rulers in the 13th-15th century and is the centerpiece of the Alhambra. Actually Granada has a history of 8 centuries as a Muslim capitol.
Today what you see is a Christian influence over the historic Muslim buildings, and I must say the beauty of it all is one of the most amazing sights. The site is built with direction of utmost importance and one can definitely see and feel the impact of the direction. We spent over 2 ½ hours exploring the palace alone and even then felt we could have spent longer. We visit the “fort” where the legions of soldiers lived and watched over the Alhambra, what a magnificent views they had of the surroundings
A quick visit to Charles V palace and we must be on our way. We have spent the entire morning here and we wanted more….. I guess that means we must visit once again. I hear the night visit is most spectacular.
A historical bit of trivia for you: the hall of ambassadors, which is in the Nasrid Palaceis the site in which Christopher Columbus received the “go ahead” from Ferdinand and Isabel for his journey to discover the new world.
~Jeff & Karen~
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