I Went to Granada and Fell in Love...

Granada, a city in the region of Andalusia, Spain, is often called “The Moorish Jewel.” It is one of Spain’s most popular tourist destinations and I didn’t exactly understand why until I arrived there on Friday…

I went to Granada with the two Fulbrighters in Alicante; although one arrived Saturday because she had to work on Friday. The bus trip to Granada from Alicante was about 5 ½ hours. I traveled to Alicante the previous night (2 ½ hour bus ride) and stayed the night so that I could leave that morning with one of the girls. Anyway, when we finally got to Granada, I could already tell that the city was going to be so beautiful. The ride to Granada from Alicante had the most breathtaking views of the forest and the mountains. I also noticed when we arrived at the bus station that there was so much diversity in the city.



Granada



When we arrived, we hopped on a bus, got off near the center of the city, and attempted to find the hostel that we were staying at. In case anyone doesn’t know, a hostel is basically a place where travelers, usually of a younger age, stay at while they are travelling throughout different European cities. Instead of a hotel room where a person has his/her individual room and bathroom, Hostels have shared spaces. Most of them have rooms that can range from having one bed to up to 14 or 16 beds (bunk beds) in one room. The great thing about them is that they are cheap, especially considering that European hotels are extremely expensive, and they are an excellent way to meet other people who are travelling. I had my first hostel experience upon coming to Spain when I stayed in Madrid for a couple days. So this was my second experience.



Lunch



Anyway, we had a hard time finding a hostel, partly because no one that we questioned could tell us where the street of the hostel was, and also because the hostel was very much in the middle of nowhere. We finally found it thanks to the GPS on my Spanish phone, even though it only works half of the time. The receptionists were very friendly and the hostel was nice. Although it was raining very hard that day we could see that there were several hammocks outside to lie on, a kitchen area, and there was even a tree-house where people could chill, socialize, and eat. I’m not really into hostels, I love the fact that you can meet many people and that they are cheap but I just don’t like sharing living quarters with people I don’t know. It’s pretty gross to me.

After we checked in and dropped our stuff off at the hostel, we went out for lunch. We walked around a little and decided to eat at this authentic Arabic restaurant. I love the way that the restaurants were decorated: so beautiful and serene and also very private, dark and intimate. The two of us decided to eat at a table that was slightly hidden; we called it the couples table because it was very secluded, a perfect place for a man and women having an affair. The food was great, I had a delicious soup for my first plate, a baked chicken dish for my main plate, and chocolate cake for dessert. Afterwards, we walked around the city to explore. Both of us were looking to buy some boots for winter so we went inside several shoe stores. We took pictures of the city, went in several shops and I found an herb/spice store and bought some authentic spices to take home to my dad.



Paella



As we were heading back to the hostel, we stopped at this tea house. In Granada, there are so many tea houses where people stop to drink tea and chat and they have a wide selection of teas to choose from. The tea house that we were at also had hookah machines. While at the tea house, we noticed that we were the only two people there that weren’t a couple. Not only was everyone paired up with their significant other, but they were kissing each other fiercely for minutes at a time. In Spain, PDA is very popular. At the table across from us, there were a group of 6 lesbian girls, all kissing their partners as well. We both concluded that everyone must have ordered the aphrodisiac tea.

After the tea, which was a vital part of warming our bodies up (It was super cold), we went back to the hostel and prepared to have dinner there. The receptionist told us earlier that Paella was on the menu that night for dinner. Dinner was about 8 Euros and included sangria. As we waited, we went up to the tree house where we met several other people staying at the hostel. There were 2 girls from Australia, one girl from Japan, 1 Brazilian girl, An Irish girl, several girls from France, and a guy from Finland. We talked a while about each of our plans and experiences in Europe and then the Paella was ready. It was prepared by one of the workers at the hostel. The Paella was full of chorizo (Spanish sausage), chicken, and rabbit. I’ve realized that most Paella that you eat in Spain will contain rabbit. I mostly try to eat around the rabbit on my plate and enjoy the rice mixture and It was good. Everyone liked it. We all ate around a small table in the tree house and talked a lot while we ate. I really liked the environment. It reminded me of a family dinner.



Dinner with New Friends



After dinner, a few of us ordered drinks at the bar in the hostel. Mojitos are very popular here, so everyone besides me ordered one. There’s actually something about a Mojito that I really can’t stand. I don’t really like the sweet/minty/alcoholic mixture in a drink. I ordered a Margarita, which honestly I don’t know why I did because Margaritas are not very popular here and they don’t really taste the same at all. I watched the guy as he made my Margarita and he made it exactly the same way as he made the Mojito, except he didn’t add mint and he used tequila instead of rum.  To make a long story short, I could not drink the Margarita because it tasted just like a Mojito and made my stomach turn.  I now believe that it is my duty to show Spaniards how to make a real Margarita.

The next morning, we woke up early and headed to see the Alhambra. The Alhambra is an ancient palace and fortress that has existed since the 9^th century. It has so much history in that has been conquered, modified and restored by so many different religious and ethnic groups of people over time. Today, the Alhambra is a national monument and it is one of the main tourist attractions in Spain. The other American’s bus got in that morning right after 8 so we decided to meet her at the Alhambra. The Brazilian girl that we met the night before went with us.

I didn’t do much research on the Alhambra before I went to Granada, so I didn’t know what to expect. But I was absolutely amazed at what I saw. Keeping in mind that the Alhambra is a palace, it should be easy to imagine how big and beautiful it must be. When we first walked inside the Alhambra’s gates, we were surrounded by many gardens and so much greenery.

The Alhambra is divided into different palaces; each one belonged to a member of royalty. And each palace was just as gorgeous as the last. Writing about the Alhambra really doesn’t do it much justice; it’s too beautiful for words to describe. I would strongly suggest anyone coming to Spain to see it.

The Alhambra

After leaving the Alhambra, we were all pretty hungry so we decided to eat something. We ended up going to another Arabic restaurant. This restaurant was really big and had a larger selection of food; however, it was still very dark and private, as all of the Arabic places were. We each ordered from the menu del dia. The menu del dia or “menu of the day” is a lunch/dinner special that most restaurants in Spain have. It usually consists of a first plate (something like an appetizer), a second plate (which is usually the main plate) and a dessert, which varies depending on the day and the restaurant. You also usually get bread and a beverage: water, soda, wine or beer. The price of the menu varies, but typically it’s about 8-12 Euros. I ordered soup for my first dish and curry chicken and rice for my second. I also traded in my dessert for a much needed café con leche. It was very delicious.

We made it back to the hostel just in time for the tour of Granada that we had all signed up for. Several people had signed up for the tour, but because it was so cold outside, they had all backed out; so the four of us were the only participants on the tour. The tour guide took us around some of the city. We went to a few places where you could get a good view of everything. The Alhambra sits on a hill in the middle of the city so it’s very easy to see from most places, and despite the number of times that you see it, it appears more beautiful each time. The guide also took us up a very steep path towards the top of a hill to get a magnificent view of the city. The climb took about 10 minutes but it was difficult because not only were we walking uphill and I had to stop several times to catch my breath, but also because I had to try very hard not to slip considering the kind of shoes that I was wearing. Lastly, the tour guide took us to a section of the city that had really amazing graffiti. The graffiti wasn’t typical rebellious graffiti, it was more like conveyed messages through art. We talked a little about the graffiti and realized that the graffiti gave a voice to the people who aren’t really heard.



Flamenco Show

 After the tour, we got ready to go to a Flamenco show.  Flamenco actually originated in Andulacia, Spain, the providence of Granada, so I was really excited to see some authentic Flamenco music and dance. After searching for the place for a while, we finally arrived to the show and luckily, the hostel was able to reserve seats for us. Overall, the flamenco show was good, especially for it being my first show. It started off with an old man singing while another man was playing the guitar. The song was probably my favorite part of the show because the old man did a great job conveying passion and pain through song. Much later in the show, the flamenco dancer appeared. She was good, but I felt like the dance was missing something. At the show we had a couple glasses of tinto de verano and shared some tapas. I am very excited to attend some other flamenco shows in Spain.

The next morning was my time of departure. My bus to Jávea was scheduled to leave at 10:00 am. The other girls were able to leave Granada later that day because they live in Alicante, which is closer. My bus ride, however, was nine and a half hours, so I had to leave earlier. I was so upset that I would be missing the Arabic baths; but maybe next time. That morning before I left we went out for some churros and chocolate. After having it for the first time in Alicante, I was eager to have it again. This time I had a café con leche with it also, what a perfect combination!

I wish I can say that my bus ride back to Jávea was great, but, it was over 8 hours, how great can that be? I had a layover in Benidorm and when I got on the next bus there was a drunk man speaking very loudly on the bus. From what I could hear (and understand) he was quoting scriptures from some religious book. He was also drinking a box of wine and bothering people. Many people asked him to be quite but he never listened. Later, he started to smoke on the bus, which is prohibited (finally, something in Spain that is prohibited!). One of the bus workers eventually told him that he had to stop. I arrived in Jávea a little while later and tried my best to prepare for the workweek.