The Alhambra: The Red Castle

2 April 2015, Thursday

We join other hotel guests for a fantastic breakfast in the dining room. It is far better than the one offered in Barcelona. For the first time we see grapefruit,  pineapple, kiwi, oranges, and melons. There are all kinds of cheeses to choose from as well as an array of sausages, salamis and eggs with bread for toasting. There is yogurt and  all manner of juices -tomato, mango, fresh orange, and pineapple. Pastries of all sorts --brioche, croissant with and without chocolate. And, of course, there is the ever-present and welcome espresso coffee machine.  It is sumptuous and beautiful.

We drag ourselves away to meet our guide, Antonio Brea, for a 10AM entry to the Alhambra or al-kalat al-hamra, "the castle made of red earth."

Our taxi driver drops us at the visitors entrance to the palace. It is already crowded with tourists and visitors. I don't have my paper with the exact directions for meeting Antonio, so we have some concern about the connection. But he finds us and we begin our visit by leaving the crowd and heading to the Alcazaba or citadel where the soldiers kept watch over the vulnerable western-facing side of the complex. Here we notice the stone beds and outdoor toilets afforded the protecting soldiers. The view is amazing as it was supposed to be...vast, sweeping and all encompassing.

We visit next the Palace of Charles V, where we learn about all the members of the Spanish monarchy and their connections to this palace. We move on to the Palacios Nazaries. It is a gem with beautiful courtyards, intricately molded stucco walls, and finely carved wooden ceilings. This is all enhanced by the stunning geometrical patterns, Arabic inscriptions and colorful glazed tiles. All the palace rooms surround the Patio de los Liones with its marble fountain channeling water through the mouths of twelve lions.

We walk toward the Generalife, or Yannat al Arif,  the country estate of the Nasrid kings. Here they escaped palace politics and enjoyed peace and quiet high above the city. The name has been translated to the garden of lofty paradise, an apt rendition as it is peaceful and gorgeous even though it is early Spring and the gardens are not yet in full bloom. The striking thing about this garden is the water gently flowing through channels all along the pathways. These channels are easily altered to water the foliage as needed in the hot Andalusian sun.

As we walk with Antonio, he talks about his own connection to this place. Born, raised and educated, in Granada, Antonio is close to this city. He remembers stories his father and grandfather told about disbanding the gypsies from the Alhambra when it was an abandoned site and the negotiations that followed with both sides. He further reports that during his childhood he played here and, as a rite of adolescent passage, spent a night in underground tunnels before the site was a tourist attraction.

We end our visit and Antonio graciously directs the young taxi driver to a restaurant in the Albaicin with a view of the Alhambra. The ride is interesting as the driver has to navigate through the holiday crowd completely inured to the risks of walking in the street. He almost has to part the throng with his car in order to pass. All this without using his horn.

In the Albaicin, one feels most the Moorish influence. The carmenes or secluded villas with private gardens stand on the cobbled narrow streets. These streets are labyrinthine and steep often beginning with cuesta or slope. We are delivered to just such a place when we step out of the taxi at 2 Pianista Garcia Carrillo and the Mirador de Morayma.  We enter an oasis of cool greenery and a canopy of blooming wisteria. It is quiet and calm. According to legend, this carmen was the residence of Princess Morayma during the captivity of her husband, Boabdil, the last Moorish king of Granada.

We stay all afternoon and enjoy Salmorejo, aged goat cheese and Alqueria-style eggs with fried potatoes. We drink a Rueda Verdejo with our meal.

Once we're sufficiently rested we trudge back to our hotel through the narrow streets passing the Easter processions once again.

We plan to attend a flamenco performance at the Casa del Arte Flamenco, also in the Albaicin, but miss it because we fall asleep awakening just as it is starting. 

Instead we prepare for our journey to Sevilla.