Welcome - Read on and/or Keep in Touch!

-- Purpose --
We want this blog to document some of our favorite moments and experiences as we travel around the world over the years. This is partially for our benefit - so we make sure not to miss anything! But, it's also so we can keep in touch with our friends and family. We love to hear from you so let us know what you think!

- Simon & Erika

Pages

Search This Blog

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Sevilla.Day.3...Granada.and.Alhambra

Our.last.day.in.Sevilla.was,instead,spend.in.Granada.visiting.the.Alhambra.castles.and.estate.
We.took.a.wretchedly.early.train.out.of.Sevilla.at.7am.which.mean.that.we.had.to.wake.up.at.six.and.get.a.cab.at.six.fifteen.
This.was.very.unsettling.for.us.as.we.stayed.up.late.last.night.talking.to.really.interesting.students.in.our.hostel.from.Italy,England,France.and.South.Korea.
Nevertheless,we.rolled.out.of.bed,down.the.stairs,and.into.the.cab.by.6:15.and.made.our.train.on.time.
We.got.to.Granada.at.10am.and.took.on.the.challenge.of.navigating.our.way.toAlhambra.by.ourselves.without.a.legitimate,scale-possessing.map.or.any.taxis.or.busses.
The.gentleman.working.at.the.information.desk.at.the.Granada.train.station.flat.out.refused.to.provide.any.information.about.anything.other.than.the.train.station.(He.literally.refused.to.tell.us.where.the.station.was.on.our.awful.map).May.a.computer.virus.ravage.his.computer.with.childlike.enthusiasm!
Still,relying.on.the.help.of.a.very.kind.old.couple.who.rescued.us.from.going.in.the.complete.opposite.direction,we.finally.made.it.to.the.entrance.of.the.park.and.then.climbed.up.to.the.estate.entrance.
We.picked.up.the.tickets.that.Paul.reserved.for.us.and.then.began.touring.the.grounds.around.Charles.V´s.famous.Nazarine.Palace.before.entering.the.palace.at.our.scheduled.1:30.time.
The.whole.Alhambra.Estate.was.a.defensive.set.of.palaces.and.castles.that.were.built.by.the.Muslims.in.Spain.in.the.1300s.
The.palaces.were.reclaimed.by.the.Spanish.recquisition.in.the.1400s....Because.of.this.dual.ownership,there.is.an.amazing.mixing.of.two.very.different.styles.of.architecture.that.is.unlike.anything.else.in.the.world.
The.entire.complex.is.also.absolutely.massive.and.contains.3.full.palaces,a.defensive.castle.and.various.gardens.and.courts...It.also.offers.one.of.a.kind,truly.breathtaking.views.of.Granada.and.the.Southern.Spanish.countryside...as.well.as.a.close.up.view.of.the.Sierra.Nevada.snowcapped.mountains.in.Spain.
There.is.nothing.more.puzzling.to.the.senses.than.being.outside.in.over.40.Celsius.(104.Fahrenheit).heat.and.seeing.snow.on.mountains.with.your.bare.eyes.
After.touring.the.main.palace,we.checked.out.the.defensive.castle.and.the.gardens.before.heading.back.around.6pm...We.stopped.at.a.grocery.store.on.our.way.home.and.got.sandwich.making.materials.(spanish.ham.is.fantastic!).and.drinks.
We.finally.caught.our.train.back.to.Sevilla.at.8:40.and.spent.the.train.ride.telling.Uncle.Nicky.stories,playing.ghost.and.sudoku...We.got.to.the.Sevilla.station.around.midnight.and.then.took.a.cab.back.to.our.hostel...
We.check.out.of.Sevilla.tomorrow.and.board.our.train.to.Madrid.at.12:45.where.we.have.a.´superior.private.triple.room´.at.a.hostel.which.promises.wifi.which.means.i´ll.have.a.spacebar!

check.back.tomorrow.for.photos!

-Simon.and.co.

No comments:

Post a Comment