Granada

The weather has not improved and it is still raining. We set off along the coast and the road winds thru the Cabo de Gata-Nijar National Park for Granada in 301 km.

The Cabo de Gata-Nijar is a wild and isolated coastal preserve, which is a volcanic area with sharp peaks that fall into the Mediterranean. From the Coast you head inland and then we made a detour to check out Las Negras. It is a hip and trendy spot usually, but was pretty deserted on this cold stormy day.

We then made for the freeway to expedite the rest of the trip to Granada.

All along the sea here you see signs in Arabic for the Ports to get the ferries Africa. So exciting!!

We got a great deal on a hotel in the center with a view of the Monastery of San Jeronimo with its patio covered in orange trees. We had free parking out front which was cool too.

We did a bit of a walking tour to see some of the action.

Daniel’s dream vehicle….?

Hey Bryan this one is for you! Gluten free and NOT!

We had not been in a Cathedral for a while so we made a visit here.

There are a lot of tourists here, who are mostly here to see the Alhambra monument. This is a palace and fortress complex originally constructed in 889, it was renovated and rebuilt to its current form in the mid-11 th century by a Moorish Emir, and converted into a royal Palace in 1333 by the Sultan of Granada.

Walking up to the site you stroll thru the palace gardens.

It was allowed to fall into ruins in the 1500’s and restored in the 19 Th century. A fortified wall with 13 towers encloses the palace complex. The portion on the cliffside is the citadel or alcazaba.

This area is entered thru the “wine gate”.

From here you climb up onto the walls and ramparts for a panoramic view of the city and the fortress.

The Nazaries or Moorish Palace is entered thru a small door from the myrtle courtyard.

You enter into a reception room covered in Islamic script.

From here you enter the hall of the ambassadors where the Emir would here petition from a seat on the top of the stairs. The façade was designed to be an imposing and intimidating show of power.

From here you pass into a central courtyard on your way to the hall of lions. This is named for the 12 alabaster lions of the fountain. The ceilings, walls, and floors are highly decorated.

The walls of the throne room are covered in decoration.

It was a bitter cold day and now it began to rain so we took refuge in the museum inside the Palace of Charles V.

We finished off the day with a pint at the Irish pub!!