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Friday
Jun182010

Grenada Day 1

Picture Gallery

The first full day in Granada was wonderful. Auldyn told me that Granada was the Spain we all expect or had learned about... and she I right, from the architecture, to the streets, geography, flamenco, and food it is Spain through and through. Not that Barcelona is anything less than Spain, I feel the bringing together of culture from the Islamic Moors to the royalty of Ferdinand and Isabel.

We had a bit of trouble finding a cafe to start our day with our breakfast, but eventually did... when we looked at the guidebook for Granada it mentioned the difficulty of finding a cafe. We had our sweet and salty for breakfast. Usually a chocolate croissant and ham and cheese sandwich... 

We decided that we would take the walking tour and see the Capella Real We headed out from the cafe and up the street a couple of blocks to the to see the crypts of Ferdinand and Isabel... sorry, no pics, no photography allowed. The picture to the left is the view from the cafe. One on the most delightful aspects of the plaza was the small structure were a woman sold bread and pastries from a small wooden structure. We had a bag of fresh cherries and headed out on the walking tour. 

The walking tour took us up a hill that paralleled the Alambra. As we climbed the hill though the narrow streets the we found ourselves in a maze of residential building painted white. The views of the Alambra were terrific and it all cumulated in a fantastic view of Granada, the Alambra, the snow capped mountains, and the plains to the west of the city. The Alambra, considered the top historic site in Granada, and arguably all of Spain, hangs over the city on the top of a hill that extends from a mountain. The strategic location is obvious. More on the Alhambra after we visit tomorrow. We had a beer and tapas at the top of the hill and took in the wonderful view.

Granada from David Matthews on Vimeo.

 

 

 

We were very lucky on the walking tour as we came across a restaurant that had flamenco later that evening. We secured our reservation and started looking forward to an evening of music and good food. On the way down the hill we entered a small quarter with Islamic tea houses and stores filled with goods from the middle east. We stopped in for some tea and a pastry... I had a green and mint tea and Auldyn had the special of the house, a black tea with strawberries. The tea houses are all designed with traditional Islamic inteirors, complex patterns, textiles, cushions, hookahs, incense... beautiful small spaces dense with color, pattern, and exotic spice. 

We were very hungry and set out for a meal that we saw in the streets the previous day. Fried eggs, ham, and fries... Spanish "pub grub" from what I could tell. But for two hungry people it sounded great! We found a small bar open and sure enough they had exactly what we were looking for!! We slit and order, I had a beer and Auldyn a beer/lemon drink mix. It was delicious. 

 

Enjoy the video of the flamenco... I think it tells the story of how we ended the evening well.

 

 

 

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