Granada

When I was very small, I played a card game with my mother and grandmother called “Authors”. A kind of rummy, in which the aim was to collect all the cards representing the works of one of the authors. Washington Irving was one of them, and The Alhambra was one of the cards. He stayed here for awhile in 1829, and wrote about it beautifully. [BTW, the Spanish don't pronounce the "H" at all - not even a glottal stop - so it sounds like allahmbra.]

The enormous fortress (a small city, really) is built on the side fo the Sierra Nevada, above a canyon  with a river. It was built in the 14^th C., when the Nasarids became independent of Moorish Córdoba around the time of the reconsquista. It comprises several palaces and gardens, convents and churches, ruins and restorations. Happily, the main palace is almost perfectly intact. This is a blessing, because the decoration is unsurpassed. 

"Lion" Patio

The pictures speak for themselves. Room after room of eye-popping and jaw-dropping. Everywhere you look there is a picture framed by a Moorish arch, with ornate stucco or plaster-work, looking out at something beautiful like the facing hillside or an inner colonnaded patio with fountains and more decorative stucco or stone-carving. 

Mosaics and stucco with geometric and calligraphic designs, 

and glorious cedar ceilings. 

The gardens go on forever: Italian cypresses – some planted close together and carved into a topiary Moorish wall, complete with arched window, pools and fountains everywhere, more Aleppo pines and oaks, oranges and persimmons (loaded, just now) lots of interesting-looking ruins (baths, &c.),

Ut's all about water.  The Sierra Nevada provide a constant supply. The Moors har4nessed the mountain torrent called the Darro in a complicated network of pools and aqueducts, for fountains,  mills, baths and irrigation. Across the river is the old town – Albaicín –  going back to Roman times and before. 

My guide (see below) informed me that Granada has been inhabited by Tarsinos, Iberios, the Romans, Visigoths, and Arabs. He took me up to the top of the old quarter, where there is lots of lively activity. I stopped in to the taverna to use the servicios, where I had una sin alcohol (very popular here; every bar has non-alcoholic beer, sometimes on tap) and the free tapa which was a large, delicate version of what appeared to be falafel accompanied by some sautéed julienne of red sweet peppers. A couple of guys were singing flamenco on the terrace. This is the locale for flamenco taverns. There is even a school down the hill a bit.  

The taverns  and some ancient residences are built into caves in the hillside. 

Gypsies still live here. If they can afford it! There are such famous views of the Alhambra, with the snow-covered mountains behind, that housing here is very expensive. Even though they have to park the cars on the roof! Most of the houses are built back into the mountainside. Here is where the final battle of the reconquista was fought, and “the Catholics” (as Ferdinand and Isabella are called) wanted to be buried there. 

At the top is the church of St. Nicholas, which had been a mosque and before that a church, going back to the Romans. It got bombed during the Civil War, but it’s all restored and you can see the Moorish bricks, where they purposely leave some of the stucco off, so you can see them.

The whole place on top is called Sacromonte, because of something I only dimly understood. Apparently, there may be there the tomb of Granada’s patron saint, Cecilio, who was a disciple of St. Paul (whom the Spanish claim as a native: Saul of Tarsus, ignoring the Anatolian city of the same name!) Anyway, there is lots of archæological activity there.

My guide was a cab driver, who has an impressive knowledge of history and archæology. He could point out Moorish houses and even Roman vestiges in the old walls. Like all Analucians, he is courteous, modest, and friendly. He gave me a great tour, in clear and simple Spanish which I was able to understand. This was in lieu of a visit to the Carthusian monastery (closed for siesta). I will drop in tomorrow on my way to the train, to check ot its famous baroque interior. 


He told me of his recent trip to Jerusalem and Jordan, and he explained the custom of Spanish Nativity scenes, which are really models of the whole town – called a Belén (Bethlehem), with Herod’s palace and everything. He also took me shopping for some coffee and necessities. I just let the meter run, because his guidance was worth it.

I have to say that Andalucia is giving Catalonia a run for its money in the pleasantness sweepstakes. Madrid, like any capital, is a touch frostier that these provinces, but still a good deal more friendly than Paris. The people seem to be happy. The cleaning woman hums to herself. The cab drivers and waiters are unfailingly gracious.

I really lucked out on the hotel here. For EUR 45/night I get a really elegant and comfortable room with a view of an olive garden. Down the hall, one can stare at the Alhambra wall. The staff is genuinely helpful. I can recommend the Guadalupe without reservation. [Except that, as usual, one can do better for one’s money away from the hotel’s restaurant. Nothing wrong with it, just over-priced for what is served.]

The weather is what I am looking for: around 60 in the daytime, clear and sunny.

Tomorrow it’s the night train back to Barcelona, and from there on to Montpellier, for the night of December 22. It will take me the next day to get to Milan, where I will spend the night of 12/23. This will involve a good many connections, but with any luck, I should be able to celebrate Christmas in Bologna. A day or two there and then south. I want to stop in Sienna, Bari (St. Nicholas), and Reggio Calabria (Greek bronzes) on my way to rent a car in Palermo. I figure I will drive around the island and explore for as long as I feel like it before flying back to Paris from there. If it’s warm enough and if I can find a suitable accommodation (i.e.: a good deal) I may stay for a week or two down by Syracuse or Ragusa. The European financial crisis should be of some assistance in this regard!