Arabian Nights...In Granada

Hello All!
This weekend, our entire program traveled to Granada, which is about a three and a half hour bus ride from Seville.  If there is one word I can use to describe this city is would be: BEAUTIFUL.  The mountainous setting combined with the Arabic influence makes this town extremely unique.  We departed Seville around 9AM, and since the bus departed from a hotel that was about a half an hour walk from most of our houses, it was a bit of a rough morning.  For the next three hours on the bus, everyone did their own thing: some were fighting their hangovers, some listened to music, some read Fifty Shades of Grey (on kindles of course), and others read the Granada section of Rick Steves' Spain guidebook, and by others I mean me.
(Sidenote: Later on during this trip, I did find another student, my new bff Jacob, who is a Rick Steves enthusiast too, so I am not entirely alone!)
Once we reached Granada, we checked into our super-nice hotel and then were given four hours of free time before we were to meet back at the hotel to go to the chapel and cathedral of Granada.  Our hotel had a pool, so while some people spent the afternoon soaking up the Spanish sun, some friends and I decided to use this time to explore Granada.  One girl had read about an Arab market in the downtown area, so we all decided to go check that out.  "El Mercado de la Artesania" is located in several narrow alleyways right off the main plaza (don't worry mom and dad, it is not as sketchy as it sounds).  When I walked through those alleyways, I felt as though it was right out of the movie Aladdin.  There were carpets, pillowcases, and various other trinkets with Arabic patterns and roots.  I didn't buy anything, but several of my friends went a little crazy.

 our hotel (apparently it was four stars)

 A photo of one of the shops in the Arabian market

 I was not elaborating, the alleyways really were narrow

After walking around the market for a few hours, we went back to the hotel to meet as a group and walk to the Royal Chapel of Granada, or the "Capilla Real."  This chapel serves as a mausoleum because it houses the remains of famous monarchs Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand, as well as those of their daughter Queen Juana I and her husband Felipe I.  As we walked around the chapel, we were told of the history, but nothing prepared us for when we got to the room where the monarchs are buried.  We saw the monuments that covered their tombs, and of course we all assumed that they were buried under the statues, but we didn't realize that there was a small staircase that you could walk down to actually look at what was buried below.  As I walked down those stairs, I had no idea what I was going to see.  For all I knew, I was going to see the skeletal remains.  What I actually saw was their coffins, so while it isn't as bad as their skeletons, it was still rather eery.

 The outside of the Capilla Real

After the Capilla, we walked to the Cathedral.  Ok, while cathedrals are SUPER cool and all... this was not exactly the first one I had seen on this trip, so it became harder to pay attention as we walked around.  It was also late in the day, so all of us were basically running on fumes.  That aside, I was still able to learn a great deal about this cathedral.  Unlike most of the cathedrals in Spain, this one had to await the acquisition of the Nasrid Kingdom of Granada from its Muslim rulers.  Therefore, the church was constructed during a time when Spanish Renaissance designs were succeeding those of Gothic architecture that had been prominent throughout Spain in prior centuries.
After we toured the cathedral, we went back to our hotel and had a few hours of free time before dinner.  We decided to stop at the ice cream shop called "Los Italianos" that is apparently "the best in the city," and I must say that is a fairly accurate statement.

After a delicious dinner provided by the hotel, we were given the opportunity to take a night walk up to the top of the city where we would have a spectacular view of Alhambra , a palace and fortress complex that was constructed in the 14th century.  The Moorish palace was created by the last Muslims in Spain, the Nasrid Dynasty. After the reconquista by the Catholic monarchs, some portions were then used by Christian rulers (Charles V built a palace within the Alhambra).  Today, it stands as one of the best examples of the country's Islamic architecture.  We were not disappointed because despite the hike up to the vista point, the view was so amazing that I don't know if I can describe it.  A few of my friends and I decided to get a drink at the outdoor cafe by the vista point.  As we sat in the lounge area the restaurant had and sipped our glasses of wine while looking at the magnificent palace, fireworks were shot off from one of the interior courtyards (talk about being in the right place at the right time!)  That moment was probably my favorite moment of this entire trip.

This doesn't really do it justice, but it will have to do.

The next day, we actually visited the Alhambra; it was even more spectacular from the inside.  This would be our last destination in Granada before we hopped back on the bus to travel back to Seville.

A group of us on top of the guard tower at Alhambra

Max and I strike a pose while climbing some stairs at Alhambra

 This is part of Charles V's palace

Here is an example of the Islamic architecture that is rampant throughout the palace

Tomorrow is a holiday in Seville, which means that we don't have class.  A bunch of us are taking a day trip to Ronda, so I am looking forward to that. 

Until next time, chao!

L, sworonoff