All,
It has been an interesting couple of days since I last wrote. Yesterday was pretty frustrating and by the time I got to Granada, just wanted to relax, so I did not get a chance to write.
On Sunday, while we were still in Barcelona, we went to La Pedrera, another Gaudi house, but it was not open when we arrived. However, I got a nice gift for Steve and then we proceeded to a recommendation from Donnette for Vaho Trashion, which sells recycled bags made from street signs. I got a cute fanny pack and then we were off to Las Ramblas to spend our last afternoon walking around and taking in the sights and sounds of the city. The Picasso Museum, which was also a recommendation from Donnette, and had a long line, plus New York has some great museums with his works. After that we were off to the airport for our flight to Granada. Long story short, I left the bag with the gift and my bag in the taxi. I was so pissed at myself. I called the Taxi company when I reached Granada and will check if by chance the taxi guy took it back to the hotel. Aah yah yah!!!! The bag store will be open when we get back on Thursday evening but I am not sure about the gift shop. Anyway, I had to get over it real fast as Granada awaited.
Granada is a small city with about 235,000 inhabitants. Its airport is very small and we quickly got our luggage and proceeded outside to take a taxi to the hotel. It was a short ride from the airport to the hotel and once we reached the center of town, the taxi driver turned onto these cobble stoned streets and our hotel was a little more than half way down the street. When we entered the front door, we could not believe our eyes. It was modest on the outside but the inside was absolutely beautiful. When you walk in the front door, the reception desk is to the right, but if you proceed to the left or the right of the door and the hotel is set up like a riad, which is a traditional Moroccan house or place with an interior garden. It had a beautiful fountain and the furnishings were in a bronze color with the most beautiful curtains throughout in different shades of brown and bronze.
Our room was equally impressive, with very modern elements; great bathtub, separate shower and toilet and bidet. All the built-ins are made of light wood. The name of the hotel is Villa Oniria and it is conveniently located close to the City Center.
After checking in, we relaxed for a while and then proceeded to find some dinner. I have eaten some magnificent food over the last 10 days but I was dying for a salad and so we decided to eat at a place that had a wonderful array of salads. My salad was fantastic and it was topped with the best sundried tomato I have ever had. We had a leisurely dinner and then went back to the hotel to get some rest since we had an early morning tour to see the Alhambra. I had a wonderful bath in the tub and Marcia did her best to channel Steve's bath making abilities. However, Steve still has the number one spot for bath making abilities (lol).
After a wonderful night's sleep, we got up this morning and got ready quickly. Breakfast was a classy affair with loads of fresh fruit, eggs made to order and lots of other continental choices. At 9:30 a.m. our guide picked us up from the front of the lobby and took us to the bus that was waiting on one of the wider streets. We picked up some additional people and proceeded to the Alhambra, which was about 10 minutes away. Once we got to the parking lot of the Alhambra, we saw other groups with their guides waiting to get into the site as well. It appeared at first that we had arrived at a mecca for octogenarians. I felt like I was 5 years old with all these old people around us. You cannot wait until you are 70 and 80 to take this trip for heaven's sake. The tour is three hours long and it consists of lots of walking; uphill, downhill, up the steps, down the steps and there is a large area to cover. There were some people with canes in one of the groups. I did not hear any ambulance sirens and can safely assume that they made it in and around the site without incident.
The Alhambra is a Moorish citadel and palace in Granada. Granada is located at the foothill of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. It is the most visited monument in Spain. In the 11th century the Castle of the Alhambra was developed as a walled town which subsequently became a military stronghold that dominated the whole city. By the 13th century, there was the arrival of the first monarch of the Nasrid dynasty, and that was when the royal residence was established in the Alhambra. The Alhambra became the palace and the residence of the Nasrid sultans and their senior officials, including the servants and elite soldiers. At that point about 2,000 people lived in the Medina.
The first palace we visited was the Charles V palace, only to find out the roof was not put on until 85 years ago. There seems to be a theme here in Spain for unfinished buildings which does not auger well for the Sagrada Familia.
The Palaces of the Nazaries were constructed in the 14th century and are considered to be the highlight of the any visit to the Alhambra. The theme is very Moorish and consists of the Hall of the Mexuar, the Patio del Mexuar and the Patio de los Leones. The palaces are very beautiful and the Sultan was allowed to have four wives, who were allowed to have their own homes. At the time, our guide advised that the concubines had to live together and Marcia and I exchanged smiles with each other, thinking that the concubines got a bad deal. However, we quickly changed our tune when we saw the luxurious quarters for the concubines and thought hmmm, not such a bad deal. Wife or Concubine? Win/Win. Just saying!!!
Please forgive me if the timeline of my facts are faulty. I have spent over one week in Spain and hearing the fake lisp "th sound" is starting to get to me. Speech therapists in the United States would make a fortune here. I wondered to myself today how one would identify someone with a speech impediment if they spoke Castilian Spanish? Hmmmm. Food for thought?
Additionally, there were some interesting characters in our group which caused my mind to wander. We had the Korean who kept falling behind whose husband had the largest camera and kept harassing her husband to take specific pictures. I figured they worked for National Geographic or were becoming "Japanese" or maybe she stopped to copy something. There was the old guy with the bad comb over under his hat. I found it extremely distracting and wondered where he came from. Has he not heard that it's okay to cut your hair and go bald or shave your head. Have you ever heard anyone say, "That's a great comb over. Where did you get it done?"
I also learned today that in spite of precautions taken, there are no guarantees in life. I specifically booked an "English speaking" tour because I knew that my nerves were frayed with the "fake lisp" Spanish. When we got to the parking lot, we were informed that this our guide was going to conduct the tour in both English and Spanish. Oy veh! He was very good but had a very thick accent, which Shahna could not understand for the most part. I told Shahna to come and spend some time with me in Miami. I did not even realize that even while tuning out the Spanish accent at home, that my listening skills have become keener. I guess this is what is called a win/win situation.
After the palaces, we proceeded to the Generalife, which is the garden attached to the Alhambra which became a place of recreation and rest for the Granadian Muslim kings, when they wanted a brief respite. There are 32 gardeners employed to keep the gardens in shape, however, as it is January, the gardens were not the most beautiful and the gardeners were digging and replanting as we walked around today. However, there is a phenomenal view from the top of the gardens and it was still very beautiful.
Our guide asked us to remember that the Alhambra represented a time when Muslims, Jews and Catholics collaborated and created something beautiful. We can now add Republicans and Tea Party members to the mix (lol).
We enjoyed our visit to the Alhambra and went back to the parking lot and met our guide. The bus dropped us off on the main street near to our hotel and we walked around and window shopped. After that we had some tapas, which was not memorable. We got to the tapas restaurant around 2 p.m. and it was packed with people drinking beer. Is that what the siesta means? I thought it was to take a nap. I am not surprised that the Spanish cannot complete the work on their historical sites. Too much alcohol in the middle of the day? Anyway, at the end of the day, I guess it's about enjoying life. Who cares if Sagrada Familia takes another 100 years in the scheme of things?
We went back to the hotel and I took a nap. When in Rome ……. so when in Spain, do like the Spanish do.
We just came back from having tapas on the main street in town. Granada reminds me a lot of the old town in Barcelona with little cobble stoned streets with the little shops lining either side. I am going to take a bath and get ready for bed. Tomorrow we have a walking tour of Granada and we found out that the restaurant at the hotel is a 1 star Michelin rated restaurant so we made reservations for lunch and then we are off to Seville on a 5 p.m. train.
We saw one black guy in Granada on our way back from dinner, so we did the "black people salute." (lol).
I miss MSNBC at night and Matt Lauer in the morning. Which team am I going to root for the in Super Bowl? I will root for one of the Harbaugh brothers. Another win/win (lol).
As I write this, DJ Next Level is channeling Top 40 songs. Last night is was Soca/Calypso.
OMG (featuring will.i.am) Usher
Million Dollar Girl Trina
Carry Out (featuring Justine Timberlake) Timbaland
Get the Party Started Pink
Raise Your Glass Pink
Moves Like Jagger Maroon Five
Down (featuring Lil Wayne) Jay Sean
Leavin' Jesse McCartney
Just Fine Mary J. Blige
Party in the U.S.A. Miley Cyrus
Super Bass Nicki Minaj
Carinos y besos,
Liz
"Mecca for octogenarians?" How yu so wicked. And as to de piipl dem Spanish--when you left the United States of America and migrated to Miami, you didn't know you would have to learn a new language? Good thing you are almost fluent now. DWL
ReplyDelete