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Published: April 8th 2008
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Not much head room...
let alone leg room on ClickAir Saturday 26 January 2008 Today we were to experiment with our first European budget airline, ClickAir, based in Barcelona. Our flight was only quite short - thankfully so as there wasn’t much room to move (photo). Apart from that it was a very enjoyable fight, especially when we flew over the Sierra Nevada mountain range just before arriving in Granada (photo).
The airport at Granada isn’t actually anywhere near Granada so a lengthy bus ride took us to town. The bus first drove through the ‘new town’ which was quite dull and commercial and full of new luxury apartments. However when we arrived in the ‘old town’ we were very pleased. It was quite beautiful with lots of ‘old world charm’. The bus dropped us off in the centre of the old town in front of the large cathedral and we wandered around the tiny cobbled streets searching for our hostel. This was quite a challenge as our Lonely Planet map was up to the usual standard.
In a tiny lane at the top of a hill which resembled not much more than a staircase we finally found Funky Backpackers Hostel where we had made a booking -
or we thought we had. When we arrived it turned out that reception had only booked one bed for two nights, not two beds for two nights. We were offered a ‘spare bed’ for a lesser price - only 10 Euros - so we accepted. The spare bed consisted of a loft of sorts - a small platform in the roof cavity with a mattress, a ladder and a lamp (photo). It was quite comfortable but a little dusty and you have to make sure you don’t roll out of bed or you have a 10 foot drop to look forward to. But for a 10 Euro bed, Barbara was willing to give it a go. The hostel was quite clean and interestingly decorated. Satisfied, we dropped our luggage and headed out to see the town.
Granada is a beautiful charming city! - did we mention that already? We strolled around gazing at the beautiful buildings, tiny laneways and passages, bridges of quaint streams....ah.... a lovely evening stroll! (photos) Granada has had quite a turbulent past and this is reflected in its architecture and commerce. Once a Moorish kingdom, then taken by the Spanish, the city portrays a beautiful
Funky Backpacker Hostel
complete with funky murals on the outside walls fusion of cultures. It would also offer an easy ‘northern African experience’ to anyone not actually wanting to go to northern Africa - i.e. goldfish tourists. The streets are lined with kebab shops and stores selling Moroccan wares (photo). It is actually difficult to find any ‘Spanish’ food around anywhere unless you go to a fancy restaurant, so we ate kebabs - in preference to the seafood paella that was on offer at the hostel (due to Michael’s shellfish allergy)! But not just any kebabs. We were lucky enough to be the first customers of a fantastic new kebab shop which sells delicious affordable kebabs with fresh salads, interesting sauces, delicious marinades and tasty sweets for afters, Kebab King (photo) at Plaza Nueva. We happily devoured our curried chicken doner kebabs and were treated to some delicious sweets after. The staff were also very friendly and cheerful - a very enjoyable dinner!
We wandered around town for a little longer, admiring the pretty yet humorous street signs as we went (photo) and then snuggled into our beds which were very cosy - especially Barbara’s!
Sunday 27 January 2008 We emerged from our cosy hidey-holes early to be
up at the Alhambra ticket office as soon as it opened. The reception at our hostel had advised us that it wasn’t necessary to book in advance over the web so we followed this advice and tried our luck at the gate. A tiny ‘Alhambra Bus’ (many of which depart from all over the city) drove us up through the winding streets of the old town and up the hill to the Alhambra. We arrived at the ticket office to find two queues, one short - for pre-booked tickets - and one long - for ticket sales. We hopped on the long queue and waited about half an hour to buy a ticket. We think we would pre-book in future! While waiting and shivering in the cold (-2oC) we admired the lovely sunrise over the village (photo).
Once admitted, we strolled past excavated ruins of ancient palaces and fortifications (photo) which had been destroyed in conflict or out of disuse, along winding paths lined with neatly trimmed gardens and hedges (photo) and found ourselves faced with a huge complex of beautifully ornate palaces which were built by the various ruling parties over time since the 11th century AD. Apparently
each successive ruler wanted their own palace in their own style so they just kept building wherever they could find a space and adapting existing buildings. The result is a magnificent fusion of architecture developed gradually over almost a millennium! (photos)
The beauty of the complex is three-fold.
Firstly in its size, its grand presence on the hills over the town, magnificent gardens and the spectacular views from its tall towers and forts.
Secondly, even though the complex was built gradually, a great amount of intelligence, planning and engineering went into its design including effective lighting, complex drainage systems, and use of specific materials.
Lastly - and most significantly - it is beautiful in its detail. The entire complex is covered from top to bottom in intricate carvings, hand painted tiles and gold leafing that have been perfectly restored to their former beauty.
After wandering around the complex in awe for over FOUR HOURS, we caught a handy ‘Alhambra Bus’ back down into town in search of lunch. Following our trusty Lonely Planet, we headed to Plaza Bib-Rambla (photo), a lovely little plaza at the back of the Cathedral and at the heart of the
local cafe district.
We didn’t find lunch straight away. What we found was very satisfying, though maybe not so nutritious. Cafeteria Alhambra was where we discovered churros and chocolate! (photo) Churros are a sort of deep fried donut stick which is a little salty but you cover them in sugar to fix that. Then you dunk them in your ‘hot chocolate’. Spanish hot chocolate isn’t like Australian hot chocolate. It is thick and rich and sweet and THICK! It is basically a cup of melted chocolate! We indulged ourselves for a short time with our new found treasure and then moved on to find something nutritious.
Planning to head south the next day, we headed to the train station to book a ticket as we were unable to book over the telephone. According to our reliable reception attendant we just had to catch a specific bus from outside the cathedral and it would drop us at the train station... not quite! We caught the specified bus and waited until we saw the train station to get off. The bus went on and on and we still couldn’t see a train station. So we asked the driver. The driver
said we were already in the next town and we had to get off and catch a bus the other way back to town. We did so and immediately upon boarding the next bus we asked it to drop us at the train station. Well, none of the buses actually go close enough to the train station for it to be visible from the bus so we hopped off the bus where advised and asked a passerby for directions. A couple of blocks away from the main road we finally found the train station. In the end, it was actually in easy walking distance from the hostel. We bought our tickets to Algeciras and walked back to the hostel slightly less than gruntled.
Back at the hostel Barbara cooked a delicious chorizo risotto which was drooled over by some scabs at the hostel. They were no match for Michael’s appetite!
Monday 28 January 2008 Before dawn we woke and caught a taxi to the train station - quicker than walking with luggage at 7am in the dark.
The Renfe train was fast, comfortable and quite affordable. The scenery going south was quite breathtaking (photo), which is
more than what could be said for the destination...
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