http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Europe , Spain , Andalusia , Granada en-us Sun, 03 Jan 2010 19:17:20 +0000 Sun, 03 Jan 2010 19:17:20 +0000 Granada 200km. Not a long drive and an easy and enjoyable one. The plan is to spend 2 days et 3 nights in Grenada. We arrived in the afternoon so we stayed in the van. As usual Linda tackled some washingdrying etc.. I spent the afternoon setting up Sat TV repairing bikes and reorganising the garage. The next morning we took the bus to visit Alhambra palace built by the moors some 1100 years ago http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/blog-461076.html Granada has to be one of my favorite cities in Spain. The mixture of Catholic Christian Jewish and Muslim cultures that have ruled it over the past 1500 years give it one of the most diverse mixtures of architecture within a single city. Travel in the city is easy you seem to be able to get anywhere for one euro.It is also very easy to travel out to the villages and see real Spain. From the s http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/blog-460245.html So this is very very overdew. I went to Granada probably over a month ago now It was so amazing. My parents were there for that weekend of their trip here in Spain so I went with my housemate Jennifer to meet with them. The coolest thing by far was the Alhambra. It was so amazing We also went to the cathedral and chapel which contains the tombs of Ferdinand and Isabella but they d http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/blog-451432.html So we didnrsquot spend much time on the south coast around Almeria which disappointingly was basically a tomato plantation the whole of the coast for miles from Capa de Gata to Malaga is covered in plastic tunnels to protect the crop it is basically a huge commercial agricultural plantation.We started our journey to from Cabo de Gata to Granada by visiting one of the sets left from the Spa http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/blog-449654.html Granada...A beautiful city perched in the skirts of the Sierra Nevadas...The Alhambra standing gloriously in the midst of it...This is the deal...You can not just walk to the Alhambra and buy entry tickets...It requires reservation and the only way for that is either at the Caixa Bank Automatic Machine or through the internet...The tickets sold are limited...They recommend two weeks advance reser http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/blog-447601.html I haven't seen any of the other wonders of the world so it was with great anticipation that I headed off with Gaynor to The Alhambra in Granada.We started our day in the gardens of the Ayuntamiento de Granada 'Granada Town Hall'. Which apparently is only open when the council isn't in session so we were lucky to see it. Very early on we discovered quite a large group of peacocks. There were at l http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/blog-445169.html Longish travel day. Started in Madrid with breakfast as usual but left early for trip to Granada and our visit to the fabled La Alhambra in Granada. On the way south we drove through what seemed like endless groves of olive trees. The area from Madrid to the foothills of the Sierra Nevada is a sere plain. Although lack of experience precludes my making any definitive observations on all plains i http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/blog-440565.html A soak and scrub Took a break from sightseeing today and went to the local spa for a soak and scrub. The spa was modeled on the Moorish baths at the Alhambra. It was beautiful and I feel wonderfully rejuvenated.Tomorrow I will head to Nerja. It was not on my original itinerary but I have a few extra days as I have been traveling at breakneck speed and a beach resort sounds lovely. However I http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/blog-439713.html Alhambra Visited the Alhambra today. Entrance is strictly controlled to protect the site. My ticket was for the afternoon so I first walked up a hill which faces the site to take some preview pictures in the morning. The way up was steep but fairly easy to find a good viewpoint. On the way down I decided to take a different route and got completely lost in the Albayzin Arabic neighborhood. I http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/blog-439451.html Granada surreal moment Successfully arrived in Granada. It is much more grity than Cordoba but then it is about 6 times larger. The hotel has wifi so I was able to update the blog with all my saved entries. After a snack to tide me over I went for a walk. Ended up on the river just below the Alhambra so hiked up the hill on the other side to see the view. Gorgeous I can hardly wait to explore http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/blog-439187.html Motorhome News from Europe 11. Spain November 2004 Cordoba Granada Sierra Nevada and Almeria Where have we been this week Cordoba Granada and the Sierra Nevada. Superlatives all the wayCordoba wasnrsquot originally on our route but wersquod heard from several people that it was not to be missed. We made a detour of a hundred miles back north again Although the weather was clear and sun http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/blog-432085.html HelloAfter Seville we took our first long distance trip by bus to Granada few hours. Granada has a gigantic old Muslim stronghold called Alhambra which is the main reason to come here. We arrived in the afternoon and just in time to hike up and check it out. Honestly not much to say about Granada. It was very touristy and a bit seedy. We did not like the feel of the town much but the attr http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/blog-430565.html Yipppppppeeeee We've booked the flights. Leaving date is the 13th September Leeds Bradford to Malaga Malaga to Granada and finally Granada to Lajaron Countdown starts now http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/blog-428946.html Granada day 1011 July 20 July 21Another pleasant train trip on Spanish railrsquos comfortable and smooth trains with olive groves most of the way and craggy hills in the background. Granada is a bigger city with the famous Alhambra being the main attraction. We had a late afternoon orientation walk past some interesting graffiti art and of course up and down stairs and narrow cobbled str http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/blog-428429.html Keep great memories of AndalusiaStudying at the Escuela Montalban in Granada has for me been a great experience from both a cultural and linguistic point of view. The classes always organised in small numbers are interesting and dynamic and the teachers always make sure to create a fun and relaxed atmosphere so that it becomes a pleasure to learn Spanish You also study in a truly internationa http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/blog-427406.html After spending 14 years of my life at sea let me tell you why.Firstly I am not a travel agent I am just bored of the heat in Spain so to shelter I though I would write a bit.The price what do you get for your bucks once you purchased a cruise on a larger cruise vessel and by that I mean 1000 guests on board or more. Ive seen cruises as low as 350 dollars a week on some cruises 50 a day http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/blog-427296.html Its time to dust off our Backpacks I'm so excited. Nothings concrete as usual with us but it looks like we are heading of to volunteer in the Sierra Nevada foothills for around 6 weeks in September. We will be staying on an Organic Farm just outside of a village called Lanjaron. The farm has 4 wonderful casita's and the pictures look simply amazing. Our host has some great reviews from previous http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/blog-427006.html Un viajecito a Granada ltima tierra en ser reconquistada en 1492 por los Reyes Catlicos. Gente estupenda buen clima tierra una candidata a maravilla del mundo..Se puede pedir ms A little of history....ABOUT CATHOLIC MONARCHSFerdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile whose marriage 1469 led to the unification of Spain of which they were the first monarchs. Although employed earlie http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/blog-424994.html And No.... I Didn't Shave My Goatie OffBut before I get to that.... I arrived in Madrid thinking it's the capital they'll have lots to see and do and was disappointed almost immediately. On the up side though it is a great city for just walking around as everything is all in the centre of town.Meeting a fellow Aussie in the metro station they're bloody everywhere I tell you that was staying http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/blog-424446.html Just a few more days...Well I have been playing it easy the past few days. There isnt going to be too much cultural stuff to this blog. I more or less just wanted to catch you up on what has been going on. You are about to get 2 weeks of almost daily blogs so bewareI decided to give you a little bit of a taste of what my life has been like here. I am staying in Residence Carlos V through the U http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/Andalusia/Granada/blog-423528.html