Excursion to Granada
25 May 2015 | Grenada
Joanne
Hired a rental car today for a two day visit to Granada - a must see for everyone visiting Spain -and what a gem of a city it is - 1000 years of history - the Moors were here for a very long time and built the amazing Alhambra- a series of structures from the Alcazar high on the hill overlooking the city to the sumptuous palaces of the sultans and the beautiful gardens - Granada was the last city of the Moors to fall to Spain 500 years ago and then came the Royal Monarchs of Spain who plonked an incongruous palace right in the middle of the Alhambra - many of the Moorish structures were altered or removed over the ensuing centuries the worst vandal being Napoleon who planned on blowing the place up! thankfully that didn't happen and the present day Alhambra is a magical place to visit. Tickets are hard to obtain at short notice but we were determined to visit it so queued early morning for 2 hours to get in. Granada has a great vibe - it is well worth walking up the narrow streets through the old medieval town to view the city and surrounds - a visit of the Royal Chapel adjacent to the Cathedral is recommended as well - here lie the Catholic Monarchs Isabel & Ferdinand ( in lead coffins no less) who were responsible for uniting Spain and finally defeating the Muslims.