Granada

Yesterday (Thursday, June 11), we walked around Granada, including the old Moorish neighborhood of Albayzin, and then climbed the hill to visit the Alhambra and Generalife.  Throughout Granada, the history of the area is evoked by the buildings, the winding streets and the monuments.  This is the last holdout of the rule of the Muslim Moors in Spain, whose rule ended in 1492 with the final conquest by Catholic Spanish monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella.  Renaissance and Baroque Spanish architecture is prevalent, but in places like the Albayzin and the monuments of the Alhambra and Genalife, the legacy of the Moors stands out, and it is still seen in the geometric designs in Andalusian pottery, woodwork and other handcrafts.

Street in the Albayzin neighborhood of Granada

Our hotel is just above the ravine of the Darro River, and we headed upstream along the Paseo del Padre Manjon to enjoy the views of the old edifices on this side of the river and the towering walls of the Alhambra above the wooded, steep cliffs on the opposite side.  The streets in the morning are less crowded than in the late evening.  People are walking with purpose along the streets and alleys in order to get places such as work or school rather than strolling as a social activity.  Nuns were sweeping the steps of their convent and waiters were setting up tables and chairs on the plazas for later in the day.

Heading back to the center of town, we went to the Catedral de Granada, an enormous building facing a plaza but otherwise hemmed in on all sides by surrounding shops, restaurants and apartments.  Although it is obvious from the outside that this church is really big, the vastness of the interior still awed us as we entered.  White columns soar to the vaulted ceilings, dividing the santuary into five naves, just one of which would make a large church on its own.  The alcoves with altars along the walls are spacious and richly decorated with intricate stuccowork, statues, paintings of scenes from the life of Christ and the saints, and an abundance of gold and silver.  The enormous, beautiful organs are placed between columns on either side of the main nave.  In the center of the apse is a stunning piece of brilliant silver.  The entire interior is a testament to the central role of and the riches lavished on the Catholic Church throughout the centuries.

Catedral de Granada 

Central dome, Catedral de Granada

Catedral de Granada

We stopped in shops displaying woodwork, jewelry, brilliant textiles, bowls and tiles as we made our way to the foot of the steep hill atop which we would explore the monuments of the Alhambra and Generlife.  Past the shops and through an arched stone gate, we entered into the leafy green woods and began our ascent along the wide, unpaved path bordered on either side by cobbled gutters burbling with fresh streams of clear water making a pleasant sound in the otherwise quiet forest.

The warm earth tones of the smooth, well-trodden road through the woods ends at wide steps leading to the Fountain of Charles V, a long, elegantly decorated trough against the fortress walls, where royalty and their retinues would pause to allow their horses to drink.  After we briefly rested there, we continued along the outside of the walls, past the main water channel for the fortress, to the main entrance at the far end, where we redeemed our reserved tickets.  Walking back down toward the Charles V Fountain, we entered the grounds just above the fountain through one of the many gates, the Cart Gate.

Inside the gate and directly in front of us lie the Palacio de Carlos V on our left and the Church of Santa Maria de la Alhambra on our right.  We entered the church, which, after the Catedral de Granada, seemed small.  The church was built by the Spanish on the site of the Moorish mosque of the Alhambra.  Behind the church are the ruins of the baths of the mosque, a warren of small rooms with traces of the decorative patterns on the walls and the arched doorways.

Church of Santa Maria de la Alhambra with deteriorated frescos

Passing through the Puerta del Vino, we stopped in the Plaza de los Aljibes in front of the walls of Alcazaba, one of the oldest parts of the Alhambra that was a military area.  Enjoying the views of Granada, we ate sandwiches for lunch, and Katya, always on the alert for animal life, chased down a skittish cat she wanted to pet.

Puerta del Vino

Next we visited the courtyard of the massive Palacio de Carlos V.  Among the graceful keyhole archways and smooth walls of the architecture of the Moors, the three-story palace is a hulking square structure built with red, roughly chiseled, massive blocks of stone.  Upon passing through the doorways, however, one encounters a perfectly circular, large courtyard with smooth, light-colored stone walls and columns and graceful, curving stairways leading to a wide balcony.

Palacio de Carlos V, inner courtyard staircase

Among the palaces and public structures of the Alhambra, just as in the fortresses in Prague and Budapest, there are smaller, ordinary buildings housing shops, restaurants and homes.  We passed through these to reach the large Convent of San Francisco, which the Spanish monarchs established after taking the Alhambra.  The convent is now a parador, a luxury hotel in a historic building.  However, the grounds are open, and we were able to visit the mauseleum that Queen Isabella, who died at the convent, chose for herself.  (According to her wishes, her remains were removed to lie with her husband Ferdinand after he died.)  The formal garden running the length of the convent building is a lovely, quiet place with flowers and fruit trees.  The paths are typical of Granada cobblestone designs, using a combination of white and black stones to make geometric patterns.

Convent garden

The Nashid Palaces--the 14th century palaces of Moorish rulers--can only be entered at the time designated on tickets.  We were able to visit them at 2 p.m.  Even though they are empty and much of the decorative detail is gone or in need of restoration, they are a visual delight with their delicate carvings, brilliant glazed tiles, series of arches, peaceful gardens, carved wooden ceilings and doors and elegant balconies.  The soft sounds of flowing water in the fountains in the courtyards can be heard throughout the rooms; even with all of us tourists passing through, the area seemed peaceful.

Palace room overlooking a courtyard

Courtyard in the Nashid Palaces

Arches and columns, Nashid Palaces

Arches, Nashid Palaces

Architectural detail, Nashid Palaces

Ornately decorated walls and windows, Nashid Palaces

Decorated wooden ceiling and stone archway

Three arches leading in from a courtyard

In one courtyard, we noticed that birds were using the openings in the intricately carved ornamentation of the walls surrounding a courtyard to build nests.

Birds nesting

*****

(I am stopping my writing now so that Katya and I can spend a bit more time in Granada before catching a bus and then a train for our next destination.  To be continued. . . .)