It's sad to think this is our final city we will see in Spain and that three weeks has flown by so quickly. But, there is much to see and do in Granada before we say good-bye to Spain.
It was a short easy drive from Nerja up to Granda of only a couple of hours. We didn't check out of the Parador until noon so it was an enjoyable slow morning for the group. There was a small problem loading up the cars. While Theresa and Jim were checking out, I pulled their suitcases down to the cars to be loaded. I somehow added a suitcase near theirs to our car. Yes, I stole a suitcase from poor soul that would end up doing without it for two days. Tony didn't even pick up my mistake as he was putting the suitcases in 'their spot'. He had worked out where each suitcase fit in each car and had it down to a science.
Modern Granada sprawls to cover a large area with a population of 300,000 people but all the sights are within a 20 minute walk of Plaza Nueva. It was an interesting drive into the city to get to our hotel. Many of the streets allow only taxis and buses on them. Our hotel was on one of those types of streets and we just drove right down it past the sign that said "Taxi and Bus Only".
The check-in to the Melia Granada was a slow process and only two men were handling the front desk. Two of the three rooms were ready but Tony and Sheila had to wait 30 minutes while their room was being cleaned. It was time for our next meal and do a little walking to see some of the city near our hotel. I don't have any pictures of that afternoon or our meal…so it must of not been memorable or so good that I got busy eating and not taking any pictures.
The next morning, Sunday, we had a full day tour with Meike. She met us in our hotel lobby and walked us down to a taxi stand to ride up to San Nicolas Viewpoint. This spot offered us a breathtaking visa of the Alhambra and Albayzin across the hill and of the large area that Granada covers.
We walked around the area of San Nicolas and it's charming narrow streets.
Our next sight was back in the Old Town, the Royal Chapel..a lavish 16th century Gothic chapel with the tombs of Queen Isabel and King Ferdinand, "The Catholic Monarchs" and they were all about the Reconquista. Their marriage united the Aragon and Castile kingdoms, allowing acceleration of the Christian and Spanish push to the south. I was not allowed to take any pictures inside the chapel.
From the Royal Chapel, we walked through Alcaiceria. This was originally a Moorish silk market with 200 shops filled with precious salt, silver, spices, and silk. It had armed gates and its own guards. Silk was huge in Moorish times, and silk-worm friendly mulberry trees flourished in the countryside. It was such an important product that the sultans controlled and guarded it by constructing this fine, fortified market. After the Reconquista, the Christians realized this market was good for business and didn't mess with it. Later, the more zealous Philip II had it shut down. A terrible fire in 1850 destroyed what was left. Today's Alcaiceria was rebuilt in the 1800's as a tourist souk (marketplace).
We continued our guided tour to Plaza Isabel La Catolica - Granada's two grand boulevards, Gran Via and Calle Reyes Catolicos, meet a block off Plaza Nueva at Plaza Isabel La Catolica. Above the fountain, a beautiful statue show Columbus unfurling a long contract with Isabel. It lists the terms of Columbus' voyage.
Isabel was driven by her desire to spread Catholicism. Columbus was driven by his desire for money. As a reward for adding territory to Spain's Catholic empire, Isabel promised Columbus the ranks of Admiral of the Oceans and Governor of the New World. To sweeten the pie, she tossed in 1/8 of all the riches he brought home. Isabel died thinking that Columbus had found India or China. Columbus died poor and disillusioned.
The entry tickets for the Alhambra Palace and grounds I had made reservations six weeks in advance on their web site and we had an entry time of 2:00pm. So, we took a taxi to the top of the hill.
Lunch was fast and we had a very limited selection of restaurants. Maike and I had to walk over to the ticket pick-up window for our entry tickets and then she had to pick up her guide pass for our tour.
The group had selected an outdoor cafe with bar tables. They had sandwiches and drinks while we picked up the tickets. I was able to get a few bites eaten before we had to report for our entry time. You can NOT show up late for your entry time or you will not be allowed to enter.
Part 2 will be our tour of the Alhambra…..
Peggy
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