Granada

4 November, 13

Granada is amazing. I had forgotten how beautiful and majestic La Alhambra was. The food is magnificent, and the Spanish is even easier to understand.

About a month ago, we decided to take a family trip somewhere in Europe over this past weekend, since the girls would have a four day weekend break from school. As it turned out, Elizabeth was on a school field trip, so we chose to stay in-country. Somehow we landed on Granada, and I am so glad we did.

Granada is the birthplace of our time here in Spain. Susan lived there for three months in the summer of 1994 with Alicia. Antonio lived on the floor above. We actually drove to the house where they all lived. I was there last in 1998. So much has changed since then, yet so much of Granada is the same.

The new parts of Granada are very modern, even futuristic. They have a fantastic science museum with loads of interactive displays. Katherine is a very tactile person, so she regaled in this environment, touching every display, playing every little game, trying to understand all the puzzling things about the universe and everything in it.  The only part she wasn't too keen on were the reproduction displays. She was not too interested in touching or learning about any of that stuff. They actually had a video of a woman giving birth, from the doctor's perspective.

We learned about chromosomes and starfish, planets and the nervous system, minerals and sound waves. I could have spent a week in that museum. They even had an interactive water system, where you could change the course of water and make water travel up a large augur.

The old sections of Granada are locked in time. The Albayzin, or Gypsy Quarter, is as old as the city. Our first night in Granada, we ate at Casa Juanillo, which is in the heart of Albayzin. Homes and businesses are dug into the mountainside. The businesses have an edifice on the street, and then they either go back into the mountain, or up alongside it. Casa Juanillo is the same restaurant we visited way back in 1998. Susan and I have a wine bottle from C.J. with a candle melted into the top of it. It has been on display in our third bedroom/office ever since. The restaurant has a stunning view of La Alhambra, which is lit up at night.

Katherine had "THE BEST MEAL OF MY LIFE" at C.J.'s. It was a pretty darn good piece of pork that was slow-cooked over a fire and basted in a fig salsa, almost along the lines of a sweet barbecue sauce. We got the basic ingredients for it, so I am adding it to my research for some good Spanish barbecue.

On Saturday we visited the City Center, which is basically a big glob of shops and restaurants. You can go to an H&M department store or to the back alley Moroccan markets, which sell everything, from scarves and leather wallets to tourist trinkets. Susan, being the indecisive one, elected to visit every shop, both modern and ancient. Granada is where she fell in love with Spanish pottery. If you have visited our home in Pinehurst, you have seen examples displayed in our kitchen. Thankfully we came away from those markets relatively unscathed. Driving in Granada was expensive enough, as it turns out.

There are some big signs that tell you NOT to drive along a couple of streets in City Center, unless you are a taxi or bus or you are going to your hotel. Well, quite naturally, I was going to my hotel, which just happened to be about five miles away. I have since come to realize that this section is controlled by the Ticket Witches via camera. They will be sending us a sweet remembrance of our trip to Granada in the form of a multa, costing €200. Actually, our friend Remedio, who loaned us the car, will be receiving this little Grenadine gift. It seems I will never be free of my avowed enemies, the ticket witches. They are everywhere...

After our trip through town, we headed up the Sierra Nevadas to get some mountain views. We drove up and up and up, until we reached a ski village, then up and up and up some more. The vistas were magnificent. I also encountered about 30 cabras de montaña, which I pursued for half an hour, bagging big daddy in my mind. You can see him at the end one of the videos I am posting. I caught him on the rock ledge, with the sun shining through his horns. He is King of the Hill. The whole scene made me think of my friend George Atherholt, who shot a world record ram. He would stalk the animals for days on end, waiting patiently for the perfect shot.



On Sunday, we finally made it to La Alhambra. This palace has an incredible history. It has changed hands several times over the past 700 years, between the Moor and Christian kings. Granada has a very unique history of peace between Jews, Christians and Muslims, which lasted several centuries. I will write a separate blog about La Alhambra.There is just too much to tell.