But first we had to get to Granada, which proved a little harder than we had thought. Mr. EWP had been in charge of securing train tix from Madrid to Granada, which he did. He bought them, he held on to them, he was very in charge of them. Until the day we were supposed to head down and he handed me the train tix and I realized he had read them wrong - he thought our arrival time was our departure time - we had completely missed our train. Oh, and the tix were in English.
So we rented a car, paid a million dollars to get an automatic, and headed off. It all worked out though, because this way we got to enjoy the Spanish countryside. The plains, the hills, the crazy mountains.
Look! Windmills! This is def the land of Don Quijote...
This is also the land of bulls. There were lots of bull cutouts on our way south to Granada.
After some tears and 5 hours, we finally made it. We had splurged on a 5 star hotel. It was formerly an old convent. And they weren't joking around. Look, the 3rd story was literally right on top of the convent rooftiles, they came into the hallway
And the room had some of the old plaster moldings framed. It was a cute touch. But I was mostly concerned with getting my in-room massage. It had been a long drive. I called down to the front desk and demanded a massage. It was 6PM on a Sunday. They suggested I do it Monday so they could get someone. I said, no. They got someone to my hotel room in under 45 minutes. I was impressed.
Convent/hotel courtyard. It was gorg.
But it was time to actually leave the hotel premises and see the city. First stop: breakfast. I was IN LOVE with these orange juice machines. I got fresh orange juice about twice a day. I wanted to bring one home but it wouldn't fit in my suitcase.
And then it was time to see the Alhambra! Even just the outside fort walls were amazing. This was what we saw as we walked up
And then we entered through "the Gate of Justice" whatever that means.
Some hundreds of years ago, Spain was actually a Muslim country, and the Muslim forefathers of current Spaniards made these groups of palaces up on a hill in Granada. There were in 6 in all, but after the Crusades, Inquisitions, and other blood baths, the Muslims were killed and their palaces torn down. There were only 2 palaces left standing. A fact my tourguide was SO SO sad about. But the 2 palaces were pretty enough to keep us occupied for hours, and take up a million pictures :)
The carvings/moldings were so intricate and beautiful.
This is a ceiling. A ceiling. How are even the ceilings gorgeous?
And then it was time to see the Alhambra! Even just the outside fort walls were amazing. This was what we saw as we walked up
And then we entered through "the Gate of Justice" whatever that means.
Some hundreds of years ago, Spain was actually a Muslim country, and the Muslim forefathers of current Spaniards made these groups of palaces up on a hill in Granada. There were in 6 in all, but after the Crusades, Inquisitions, and other blood baths, the Muslims were killed and their palaces torn down. There were only 2 palaces left standing. A fact my tourguide was SO SO sad about. But the 2 palaces were pretty enough to keep us occupied for hours, and take up a million pictures :)
The carvings/moldings were so intricate and beautiful.
This is a ceiling. A ceiling. How are even the ceilings gorgeous?
The pool was made just to reflect the building, not for swimming. They wanted as much gorgeousness to see as possible. Just beautiful.
Another amazing ceiling. They wanted it to look like stalactites (sp?) in a cave.
Another faux-stalactite ceiling.
Another amazing ceiling. They wanted it to look like stalactites (sp?) in a cave.
Another faux-stalactite ceiling.
Modeling the pretty walls....
And the views from the Alhambra were amazing. We were right by the Sierra Nevadas. Mountains on one side, city on the other. Just breathtaking.
I was excited to catch the sunlight as it came down in between the trees.
And of course, everywhere I went in Spain, I ordered my beloved Fanta Limon. I love you, Fanta Limon!
And then we visited the gardens of the Alhambra. I'm a sucker for gardens. I love love love me some flora.
I was excited to catch the sunlight as it came down in between the trees.
But then it was time to leave the Alhambra and see what else Granada had to offer us.
Next stop: the cathedral.
And of course, everywhere I went in Spain, I ordered my beloved Fanta Limon. I love you, Fanta Limon!
Outside the cathedral were all these vendors selling spices and dried herbs and such. It was pretty neat.
And that concludes my second post on an EWP in Spain. Stay tuned for the next installment...
