Granada is our stopping off point to visit the Alhambra but when we arrive, our Airbnb host points out a number of other sites worth visiting, as well as places to eat. It’s clear he wishes visitors to experience more than just the Moorish architecture.
But first, of course, we have to visit the palace of Granada. We are on a tour with Book Your Tour, as all the simple entry tickets to the palace had sold out when we tried to book about three weeks previously. We are initially apprehensive about this as we’re not keen on being shepherded around places but the tour uses headsets tuned to a dedicated radio channel which means we can roam with relative freedom whilst still listening to our guide’s excellent commentary. It’s actually a really great way to visit – it means we can relax, knowing that we are taking in all the highlights, rather than trying to figure out the best way around the extensive site, potentially getting lost and missing bits out. But first we have to find the group. We had both read that we should meet at the Pomegranate Gate at 11am, and that the tour would only wait 10 minutes for latecomers. So at 10.50am we arrive at said gate, only there is no sign of a tour group forming. We re-read the tickets and see that we are meant to meet at the ticket office, a good 13 minute, uphill yomp from the Pomegranate Gate. How did we both get it wrong?!? Slightly sweaty but not too late, we arrive at the ticket office and join the group. Our guide is highly knowledgeable and interesting which is good as we have a couple of Americans who insist on constantly questioning her, asking completely off the wall questions, which often seem to be designed to demonstrate their own knowledge rather than fulfil a genuine query. At one particularly strange question about the number of tiles in a mosaic she responds with a brilliant put down about maybe trying Google. As expected, the palace is impressive; built over a huge area and full of colourful flowers which are in full bloom at this time of year.
At the end of the tour we head off to one of the restaurant recommendations given by our Airbnb host. By now it’s 3.30pm and most of the dishes we want have already run out but the waiter decides to wait until we’ve re-chosen each time to tell us that the next dish is off the menu! It is worth the hassle though and avocado and apple salad is a highlight. It’s also a good call as while we are eating a huge downpour passes through but we shelter inside the restaurant, watching people coming in dripping wet through.
For day two in Granada Beck has booked a trip to the Hammam. In retribution Ben takes her on an early morning hike to a viewpoint over the city to take photos. We arrive at the Hammam slightly sticky from the walking, but this is all soon washed away and we spend an enjoyable few hours relaxing in scented waters of varying temperatures, including steam room, sipping sweet mint tea and, for Beck, a wonderful massage with pomegranate oil. For lunch we take in the second of the Airbnb food recommendations, Taberna La Tana. It’s a busy wine bar with tapas which gets so crowded that we marvel at how the bar tender keeps track of orders as you pay, in full, at the end of your visit, rather than paying for each item as you order. We like it so much we return at night before our Alhambra night tour. The night tour is an opportunity to see the gardens again, but this time lit up. It’s another good experience. In fact, wandering the streets of Granada at 8am (pre-Hammam) and at 11pm after our night tour, we start to appreciate the positives of the city. It’s definitely dirtier than Barcelona, with more graffiti and rubbish, and with a bohemian streak which is not always positive. But it also has some gems of architecture and decoration, as well as stunning views back to the Sierra Nevada. It’s also surprising how close the city is to the mountains, creating a boundary which stops the city from growing. We probably wouldn’t come back, but it’s certainly been worth making the trip.
At 7am the next morning we start the mad dash of getting stuff to the car a few blocks away, getting the car out of the tight underground parking garage, taking the key back to the apartment and pulling the door closed behind us before returning to the car. We’ve had to do this shuffle a few times with Airbnb’s, thankfully never getting it in the wrong order and locking ourselves out of the apartment, or our car inside a parking garage. I’m sure it will happen one day. But from here on in, apart from Algondonales, we are in Paradores all the way!