The Alhambra is a palace, fortress, and used to be a city. It is now just a building and tourist attraction, that more than 3 million people visit every year! We were just 28 of those 3 million today.
But before all that could happen, we needed to eat lunch. We told Mila that we needed to eat at 2 because we were meeting our group at 3, but when 2 rolled around she was no where to be found in the house. We asked our other roommate, and she said that she heard her leave earlier.. We assumed that she had went to the doctor and wasn't going to return in time to prepare us lunch, so we took it under our own and got lunch at Bocatta. Rachael and I each ordered a baguette with bacon and cheese, a soda, and fries. It was the "economic meal". The place reminded us of McDonald's but Spain style.
When we got to CLM, where we were meeting, we were surprisingly the second ones there. We were expecting to be really late because of our lunch situation. We then ventured off with our group to the Alhambra. We had to climb up a BUNCH of stairs to get there and we were all exhausted when we finally reached the top. There was a great view of the city from where we were waiting and catching our breath. (It has been rainy and gloomy all day today so everyone is using their umbrellas. Sorry that it got in the way but this picture also shows how the weather has been acting lately.)
Following the break time to catch our breath, we walked some more to the entrance of the Alhambra. There we met our tour guide for the next 2 and a half hours and we were handed out those electronic pieces, similar to walkie-talkies and an ear piece to listen to. Rachael and I looked pretty styling, if you asked us!
From there we began our (rushed) tour, all in Spanish, and went into the plaza. In this plaza you could see the Palace of Carlos V. Carlos, which was actually never completed. There was also awesome views of the city and of the Alhambra in other sections.
After leaving the plaza, we began the real tour of the Alhambra because we were now official and with tickets! We had to have our ticket scanned, and the sign said that you could only enter this place one time. Why? I have no idea. We got to the see housing of the soldiers, obviously it has been torn down a bit and the bathrooms, which were separate from the houses.
After the lookout, we continued on our tour and got to see many different parts of the Alhambra. Lots of gardens with vegetation, which is not all that common in Granada, as well as a lot of Arabic tile and ceramic work. Arabs are known for their tiling and it is quite intricate and impressive.
Here are some pictures that I snapped along the way.
We continued on to the palace. In the palace, if you had a backpack, you had to wear it on the front of your body. I am not sure why, I think it is out of respect but I don't quite understand the meaning. The ceilings in the queens and kings rooms were immaculate Amazing! The rooms were pretty small but the attention to detail was definitely not forgotten.
The king had 4 women and the 4 women were all in competition to become queen, by having the first son. Whoever was the first to have the kid became queen. But it wasn't over then, because the other women would "cause an accident" so the child would die and then they would become queen. Competition was mighty and present in the Alhambra!!
This photo is of the courtyard with 12 lions, and the door is for the queen's room.
The king's ceiling is the one with the pointy star and the queen with the smooth edges. The queen also had a bigger room than the king's because she had to house the children as well.
We stopped in a room known as the "Whisper Room" because of the way that the walls and ceilings are shaped, you can talk into the wall and hear it on the other end. It was pretty fascinating!
This is an original aqueduct that was used. Under it is the area for the moat that was also used way back when.
Our last stop was Generalife, the summer palace and country estate. This was used when the kings wanted to get away from it all. Generalife is also one of the oldest surving Moorish gardens. This location is a famous location and is known as the Court of la Acequia.
That's the Alhambra in a nutshell! I'm hoping to return with my parents when they come and visit and be able to spend more time at the points of interest because I did feel very rushed today. If not, it was a great experience and I am glad that I got to do it!
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