Assignment 2: My memorable trip to Granada

Hola chicos!
Now I'll tell you something I really like to talk about- Granada!

My- as I consider it- almost fanatic interest in Spain and its stunning culture began when I went to Barcelona 3 years ago. That was basically the reason why I wanted to return to my favorite to work as au pair after graduating from school. This time I decided for Andalusia, the “typical Spanish” South, and this decision turned out to be the best I’ve ever made! I lived in Córdoba, a charming town in the north of the autonomous community. I fell in love with the city when I arrived on the 2^nd of October when I took a walk- in sandals and shorts- around the center. In February 2013 my family from Austria came to visit me and my kind of new home town.

Listen to that song when you are reading the upcoming part of the post http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBIl1-R3bkg (for those who don't know that movie yet, it is very recommandable!)

We rented a car in which we were touring round Andalusia for one week and enjoyed Málaga, Sevilla, Córdoba (again!), Jerez de la Frontera, Puerto de Santa María, Ronda and Granada. Granada was absolutely stunning! I’ve heard before that Granada was popular because of its unique character and the ambience created by young people who live in the main quarter called Albayzín, oriental markets, Arabian cafés, guitar players and dancers performing Flamenco. We stayed at a lovely self-catering flat of an English woman who immigrated in Spain 20 years ago. From the balcony we had a nice view over the city and its surroundings. We spent our time strolling around the streets and lanes, trying out Tapas and other typical food. The highlight of our trip was visiting the Alhambra, the domicile of the last Muslim king in Al-Ándalus, and Albayzín.  Because of the great crowd around the entire year you have to book your tickets online to be able to enter the area. This procedure turned out to be a bit complicated for my parents but it was definitely worth it! We were enthusiastic about the building and its beautiful gardens and patios full of small fountains and architectural masterpieces. As water meant power in the driest part of Spain, the caliph of Granada expressed his power in a beautiful way as many parts of his ex-domicile had something to do with water and nature. 

la Alhambra

the quarter of Albayzín

We spent hours visiting almost every part of that huge area on top of the city. Afterwards we went on to the heart of Albayzín. We went up to watch the Alhambra from the Mirador

de San Nicolas. This point of view is the most amazing one you can get from the palace, as in the background there are the mountains (mostly covered in snow) from the Sierra Nevada. Unfortunately in the Easter Week we couldn’t see the mountains- they were rather covered in clouds than in snow and it was raining.

...how it could have looked like

 Nevertheless, some funny Spanish (probably tipsy) guys weren’t deterred by the bad weather to sing, play the guitar and dance in front of a small bar.Inspired by that we fled to the next bar to drink some cervecas and to eat some Tapas. Afterwards we decided to walk on the quarter and I felt like arriving in Arabia. The lanes were full of cafés where people drank tea and smoked water pipes, Moroccans were selling sweets which contained dates and nuts, honey and cinnamon and it smelled like spices and herbs in every corner. In the oriental market traders sold jewellery, bags, candles, pictures, tea pots, fabric- everything you can imagine. The lanes were crowded and we had to take care of not losing each other.  It was a unique feeling and I felt very excited about it. 

oriental market in the old Muslim neighbourhood

I think for every one of us this trip is one of the most memorable ones and I would like to go back to Granada eventually. I am thinking about going there for my semester abroad. Then I could also go and see my friends in Córdoba again which would be great!