Seville - Granada Day Twenty-Two

Day Twenty-Two

Date:     20 April  2013

Place:    Seville - Granada

Weather:   Sunny and low twenties.  Cool evening

Accommodation:  Hotel Alixeres

After breakfast we booked our accommodation for the night in Granada.  It was only a three hour drive away and we arrived about 2pm however a wrong turn in the city centre in traffic took us some more time.  Karen, our usually dependable GPS, also took us up the hill overlooking Granada to our hotel however there was no access through a boom gate.  After finding the hotel by foot, the car had to be taken down the hill further and accessed by another winding road. 

The weather is much cooler in Granada as it is near the Sierra Nevada Mountains.  The guide book stated that if you only could visit one city in Spain then Granada would be the choice!

After lunch our first task was to obtain tickets for the Alhambra the much lauded monuments sitting atop of the city.  The guide book said the best way to purchase tickets on-line but no matter where I looked I could not find where to buy them.  As the hotel is only over the road from the site we wandered down to join a queue for about 20 minutes and purchased night tickets for the palace (10.30pm!) and tickets for the next day.  The allocation of tickets for the day stands at 6,600 so it pays to be organised for this visit.

More directions later from helpful shopkeepers we were on our way down to Albaicin area of the city via a path below the Alhambra.  The path was very steep and cobble-stoned and we had good views of the ancient side walls.  As we entered the Albaicin we could see it was a very pretty area, old, with maze-like narrow alleys and beside a fast running stream with many pedestrian bridges joining each side.  The area was declared a UNESCO world heritage site in 1994 and it is a lovely area to sit, drink, eat and view the Alhambra on the hill.

Our stroll on the way down with the back drop of the Alhambra.

Taking in a view from the bottom in the Albaicin area....lots of souvenir shops and restaurants.

In the Albaicin area with a view up the street that borders the precinct.



As we neared the main area of Granada we accidentally bumped into the Brisbane couple (relatives of Desley’s sister) who we dined with in Barcelona.  It was great to see familiar faces, speak English and share travel stories and tips.

They had given us the heads-up to walk up the hill to San Nicolas but a little way along we realised we would be too pressed for time as we had to have dinner and queue for the Alhambra at 10pm so we decided to put this plan into fruition tomorrow night.

The alternative return route on the other side of the Alhambra ran through lovely gardens.  Dinner at an Italian restaurant was delicious and we were high tailing our way to the queue for the evening visit to the Palacios Nazaries.

Suffice to say, the information and assistance to access this site is woeful!  We lined up only to find that we were at the wrong entrance (no signage) so we walked briskly to the entrance on the other side.  Ten minutes later we were inside the complex where a few people were waiting.  The views over the city were great and we slowly noticed people grouping.  A Canadian couple who had more attempts at purchasing tickets than you would believe (two trips up the big hill, a blind slammed down in their faces, wrong queue like us and told to arrive at 8pm!) asked if they should line up behind the barrier.  The answer was in the negative so we continued talking to them…..would you believe that the queue formed quickly into hundreds and we were relegated to join the line at the end.  Brother, something needs a shake up here!  We finally entered the building to find that the audio guides (which we'd left in our hotel rooms) were able to be used in the Palacios Nazaries despite the audio guide shop telling us there was not coverage for  that area!!

Eventually finding our way inside the interior was softly lit and breathtakingly beautiful.   Intricate hand-carved patterns are carved into the white walls in every room and there seems to be multitudinous rooms leading from colonnaded courtyards over two levels.   The stucco has undergone a lot of restoration and preservation as the premise for the building was that it was not built to last but be renewed and redecorated by successive sultans.  Arabic inscriptions abound with the fine patterns.

 

Looking out to Granada through the lovely windows.

 



There are three sections and the harem (Patio de los Leones – Court of the Lions) has only been recently restored with the return of the lions under the fountain.  It is a largish area fed by a ground level fountain.  Another courtyard area has a large rectangular pool which reflected the dimly-lit columns beautifully.

In the harem with the famous lions!

Unfortunately, no flash photography was allowed – of course, that doesn’t stop anyone and flashes went off everywhere!

The evening visit only lasts one hour and we were back at the hotel just before midnight.  A long day but a lot accomplished!