Perhaps one of the better known towns in the Andalusia region of Spain, Granada sits adjacent to the Sierra Nevada mountains. Somehow I always pictured the town nestled IN the mountains. In actuality, it’s more accurately situated in the foothills. Technical location aside, it’s a gorgeous setting with the rugged snow capped mountains as a backdrop.

Tapas Culture

Granada is known for its tapas. Specifically, if you’re in a restaurant and order a drink, you’ll often receive a free tapas. These are unwritten rules of course. Often, when asked if you’re eating or drinking, you must say drinking. If you’re purchasing lunch or dinner, no free tapas for you. Sometimes there are certain sections you’ll sit in. Only certain drinks qualify. Each place may be slightly different. Generally beer, wine, sangria and sparking waters will get you a tapa. Not so much with still water. Hard alcohols are a maybe, depends on the establishment and what type of alcohol it is. As soon as someone at the table orders food, no more tapas. Each round of drinks normally equates to another tapa. Also, you generally don’t get to choose the tapa. Think of it as a free surprise.

We went out with friends on our first night in Granada. Our first tapa was a delightful cubed pork dish. Next was a pasta. And our final tapa was fried calamari. Not a bad line up. The pork was my favorite. As a side note, some places do offer vegetarian tapas if you ask.

Pomegranate

As it turns out, Granada is the Spanish word for pomegranate. And The town of Granada is well known for pomegranates. Apparently the Phoenicians, who hailed primarily from modern day Syria and Lebanon, brought pomegranates to the region around the 8th century BC. They were well received and adopted by the city.

Today you’ll see pomegranates represented decoratively throughout the city. They are in the mosaics on the streets you walk through, on top of street posts. They are carved in stone and wood. Sculpted in metal.

Shops sell all things pomegranate. Granada gelato. Pomegranate shaped trinket boxes. Pomegranates on everything from shirts to grocery bags. The one thing I couldn’t find? Pomegranate products, specifically items such as pomegranate molasses and syrups. And I browsed through a number and variety of shops looking.

What To Do

We spent a few days in Granada. There are loads of things to do. Wander the streets of the old quarters, visit the Alhambra, see a flamenco show, visit churches or simply sit and have a drink. If you’re looking for more adventure there’s loads of nearby hiking and even a ski resort.

Basilica de San Juan de Dios

When traveling through Europe one has the tendency to see quite a few churches. I have visited innumerable cathedrals and churches. At this point, it generally takes something grand and just enough different to peak my interest enough to pay to enter. If it’s free? Sure, I’ll generally wader through. With a price? Depends. What have you got that’s unique?

Enter the Basilica de San Juan de Dios. It only took a few seconds of online browsing to nab my attention. I would dub this one the gilt church. Not guilt, but gilt. As in gold. Very pretty, ornate and maybe a tad ostentatious. Sign me up. We chose this one over all the primary cathedrals in town. Funny, this one cost the most to enter. Oh well. It was worth it. Just make sure you have time to adequately admire its gleaming interior. With your ticket price you’ll get a self audio guide to “tour” the church. It details the history and various artifacts within the basilica.

This opulent baroque basilica was built between 1737 and 1759 and is said to house the remains of St John of God. St. John of God was an orphan who dedicated his life to the sick and spirituality. He even established the Order of Hospitallers or otherwise, from what I can tell, a hospital. This man cared for the homeless and sick in Granada until his death in 1550. Surely an inspiring gentleman.

The church has four side chapels. The alter is covered in gold leaf. There are frescos and sculptures. Nearly every surface is highly decorated. The place is the definition of opulent.

Once You’ve had your fill of looking around downstairs, head up. At the front of the church is the sacristy, where St John of God’s remains are enshrined. There’s gold everywhere. And skeletal remains. Lots of skulls and bones with flowers. Each box or set of remains was enscribed with a description which I presume to be a name. I have no idea who those people were, but bones are always fascinating. Especially the teeth. Some were missing various teeth and one had a completely sideways front tooth. I had a sideways front tooth prior to braces. Glad mine’s corrected. Much easier to bite down when your teeth are positioned properly.

There are a surprising number of relics up here. Supposedly a shard of the cross. Also the under ear bones of a catholic saint. Can’t remember who. Fascinating place. Highly recommend.

Alhambra

The Alhambra is Granada’s most visited and well known attraction. For good reason. If you’re planning a visit, get your tickets well in advance. They frequently sell out. And make sure your ticket includes the Nasrid Palace. While you can enter the Alhambra at any time with a ticket, entrance to the Nasrid Palace is on a time slot. Don’t miss your time or you’ll be out of luck.

We began our Alhambra adventure in the Alcazaba, which is an old fortress. This is thought to be the oldest section of the Alhambra and first references to it are the 9th century and it was thought to be constructed during fighting between Muslims and Muslim converts during that time period. The structure was reinforced to its current state by Mohammed I. It’s thought that before the Muslims arrived to the area and took over there were already structures here. The king and his son, Mohammed II, lived in this fortress until the palace was completed. The fortress was then used for military purposes. As centuries passed, the fortress was used in a variety of ways, including as a state prison. It eventually fell into disrepair before restoration work began in the late 19th century.

Now that the history lesson is complete, let’s get to the real deal. It’s an old fortress. You’re allowed to walk through part of it, though they gate off quite a bit of the interesting parts. There’s a courtyard where you can see the foundations of what used to be homes of military personnel. There’s an observation deck with some pretty great views. There’s a tower you can climb up. Surprisingly most people seemed to pass this one and it by far offered the best views. Not sure if people just missed the entry or if they simply didn’t want to bother with the stairs. After that, you can wander along the fortress wall for a tad before it spits you out into the rest of the Alhambra.

After that we walked up through an arched gate into the “medina” area. Here you’ll find a few shops. There are a few ruins off to the side you can overlook and an old bathhouse you can walk through.

A walk through gardens and past a few towers will take you out to the Generalife. This was a summer palace with Moorish origins. There are fountains and gardens. It’s quite pretty.

Nasrid Palace

Nasrid palace is the main attraction within the Alhambra. This palace was built by the moorish Nasrid dynasty in the 13th and 14th centuries. It is a work of art and showcases old moorish architecture beautifully. There are courtyards with fountains and reflecting pools. Geometric designs are found throughout the palace in all types of material, from the tile work to the stucco. In general, figurative art is forbidden under traditional Islamic principles. Meaning no animal or human representation in artwork.

With entry into the Nasrid palace, you’ll wind through the various rooms, and hallways. It takes quite some time to truly absorb the splendor of this palace. The white arches throughout are lovely and highly embellished with intricate detail. Much of it was from plaster moulds, but many things were chiseled out of stone as well.

The Palacio de Carlos V sits adjacent to Nasrid Palace. The exterior is square while the interior boasts a unique two story circular courtyard. The inner courtyard is ringed with graceful columns. The structure itself holds the Alhambra Museum and the Museum of Fine Arts. The inner courtyard is used for events.

Viewpoints

While in Granada, most people seek out a stellar viewpoint overlooking the Alhambra. There are certainly many to choose from and a variety of ways to enjoy the view. We sought out a few view points.

The Mirador de San Nicolás is a popular option. It’s located in the courtyard of the small San Nicolás church. Here you can sit on the wall and gaze out at the Alhambra with the crowd. There’s often local musicians playing here and always loads of people. On the road just below there are a few bars and restaurants with fantastic patios overlooking the Alhambra. On one of our days, we claimed a table and enjoyed a cold beer, while making sure to sit in the sun and stay bundled up to avoid freezing our rear ends off.

For a more laid back and local vibe we enjoyed Mirador Placeta de Carvajales. This one has a small cobbled plaza, complete with trees and graffiti. The Mirador de Santa Isabel la Real is perhaps more scenic with water fountains, mosaic cobblestones and a park like feel. We enjoyed them all.

Flamenco

Granada is well known for Flamenco. Our travel companions had flamenco on their to do list for Granada. Had we been on our own, we never would have bothered as it’s not our thing. However, we went to a show with our friends as they really wanted to go. Turns out there are two types of Flamenco shows in Granada. There are the tourist filled shows and then there are shows where locals fill the crowd. It all depends on what you want. There are benefits to the touristy ones, some are in caves and still deliver a fabulous show. Our friends found a local experience at Peña la Platería. This place was great. I think we might have been the only non locals there. There’s no seating assignment so we sat way in the back as we arrived later. Turned out fine because we could stand up without bothering anyone.

I will admit admiration for the pipes on the cantaores (flamenco singers). Holy smokes were they loud. I thought I was going to be deaf by the end of the show. The dancers were impressive. While Flamenco is still not my thing, at all I can admire the effort and talent it takes to perform well. Plus the ladies dress was pretty. It was equally fun to watch how animated the crowd became throughout the show. They were having a lively good time.

Walking Around

Much of our time in Granada was spent ambling through the streets. In our wandering, we came across some lovely places, such as the Palacio de los Córdova. This is a beautiful 16th century palace with gardens that’s now used as a city hall or as an archive storage depending on who you believe. There’s always the public market offering fresh fish, fruits and veggies.

If you’re willing to walk a little further (or walking to and from the bus station like we were) the Jardines del Triunfo are worth a short visit. Its main attraction is a remarkably long water fountain that’s quite pretty. There’s also the Gate of Elvira that we walked through. Great name and worth strolling through for sure.

Treat Central

If you are like me and love a good treat, then Granada is for you. While I passed on their specialty, the Piononos de Santa Fe, which is a small sponge cake thing soaked in syrup and topped with toasted cream. Sounded like a soggy mess to me. Instead we sought out baklava. And found a delightful “cake” shop that was certainly not cake. There were fig and apricot stuffed cookies. Some sesame delights. And even a gluten free cookie like thing that was delightful.

Take Your Time

Granada is a fabulous city. There’s plenty of history around every corner to appease any history buff. The architecture is stunning. The food is abundant and tasty. There are loads of views to absorb. Even Flamenco, like it or not. The best way to absorb Granada seems to be to stay a few days and wander. Get lost. Taste what smells or looks good. Take a seat in a random plaza and enjoy the scenery.

A Day Of Tragedy

Our last day in Granada was marked with tragedy. Specifically for me. Granted, I’m being dramatic but dang it would these things happen to someone other than me?!?! To start, we went into a little park. Wandered around for a bit and WHAM! I got pooped on by a pigeon. As in it magically splattered all over my face, it hit between my eye and sunglasses. Pigeons defecate a surprising quantity of goop. Nasty. I was horrified. Second time in my life I’ve been pooped on by a pigeon. Both times happened in Spain. Luckily my friend had a wet wipe. Nothing quite like being pooped on to make you feel gross for the day.

A few hours later, in a completely different area of Granada, WHAM. Once again I was pooped on by a dang bird. Luckily this was a smaller bird and the mess much less damaging. Though it got all in my hair. I ducked into a church bathroom to rinse off my head. They gave me a slightly disgruntled look for running in but didn’t say anything. And I really wanted to de-poo my hair. So there it is. Tragedy in Granada. Pooped on twice in the same day by two different birds. What are the odds of that? We looked it up. Grok says the odds are 1 in 25-36 million, depending on a variety of calculations that I won’t bore you with. Apparently I should have bought a lottery ticket that day. Some cultures consider it good luck to be pooped on by a bird. Great. They can keep that luck. My tally for being pooped on by a bird in this lifetime is now up to 5. With the last two on the same day. I must be the luckiest girl alive. Let’s let someone else have all the luck next time.

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