GRANADA - AKA, the Moorish Jewel

Now we are in Andalucian country, land of the Gypsy people of Sacromonte with their passionate Flamenco; a land with a past of eight centuries of Islamic rule, leaving behind the beautiful Nasrid palaces and a land where you can ski the snowy peaks of the Sierra Nevada in the morning and swim in the sea in the afternoon.

In the caves of Sacromonte, the Gypsy people gave birth to the zambra style of Flamenco, a dance and singing party that originated in the marriage rituals of the Moors in the sixteenth century but transformed into a unique art form.  A dance of the people.

This is our first Flamenco and sitting only six feet from the stage in a darkened cave, its almost overwhelming: the passion, the energy, the emotion, the singing, the clapping, the heels on the stage and the guitar.  It mostly fast and furious but can slow right down with deliberate hand movements, facial expressions and body language.  Its breath-taking.

The performance starts out with the guitar player, joined by two singers who mostly sing one at a time.  The woman seems to have very emotional songs to convey, the intensity can be quite startling.

The dancers mostly do solo performances.  Each one very intense, energetic and unique.  While one is dancing the other dancers and the singers are clapping, using their feet and following the performance with keen interest.

Granada, while quite hilly to walk is fairly compact.  Wandering the narrow, winding streets of the Albaicin (old Arab quarter) area, its a treat to see the Moorish architecture, the merchandise in the shops ranging from fragrant teas, spices and herbal medicines and dried fruit and nuts to colourful lamps and the beautiful views of Alhambra sitting high on a hill and on the banks of the river Darro.

The main reason to go to Granada is to see Alhambra "the Red One", so named for the colour of the rock from which it is built.  

Get your tickets to Alhambra about two months ahead of time if you can.  We did not and it's stressful trying to get last-minute tickets.  Tickets are not sold at the gate (despite what some people suggest on the internet).  They can only be purchased online from the official site.  Tickets are sometimes released when it appears that all are sold out.  We are told to check the internet at midnight, then about 6 am and regularly after that.  We do, and some tickets become available at about 11 am for the following day.  Whew!!

Alhambra, built for the last Muslim emirs in Spain dates from the 13th. Century and is at once a fortress, palaces and a small medina surrounded by orchards, gardens, and fountains.  The plain stone exterior of the Nasrid palace hides the most beautiful carved stone interiors that one can imagine.  

There are many rooms to the Nasrid palace, with no tags to say what each is, so imagination can fly.

Close-ups of some of the magnificent stone carving in the Nasrid palace:

Three painted ceilings in the palace:

Some of the many tile patterns in the Alhambra:

A few of the many gardens of the Alhambra:

So Many Types of Roses:

The one bottom middle is actually a lilac colour

Some of the great views from the Alhambra:

Its been a long, but rewarding day.  If it wasn't for fatigue, we would keep soaking in the beauty, and history.  We are heading back to our hostel in the old town to meet up with Linda for drinks.  We enjoyed her company another evening, so have planned to do it again.  

Random Photos Alhambra:

There are many incredible wood ceilings in the Alhambra

Almost home, stop to get some Euros and the ATM eats my bank card.  Great.  It turns out OK.  The guy at the emergency ATM phone reassures me I can get it back tomorrow, and I do.  The Credit Union back in Canada takes the withdrawal amount on the card down to zero, in case its a scam and will re-instate it when I give the word.  A lovely woman from Finland stops to reassure me that it happened to her the other day and she got her card back just fine.  It would be ideal to have bank cards from two different banks, but all our eggs are in one basket, so our back up is more than one credit card.  If worse come to worse, cash advances on the cards work.

Next, we head off to the Andalusian town of Nerja for a few days of relaxing at the beach, then a few days at Ronda, one of the Pueblo Blanco's in a stunning setting.

Random Photos from Granada: