With a 6.30
am pickup from a nearby hotel lobby, we just knew this was going to be a long
day.
We began
with a quick dash by taxi over the escarpment above Almerimar to our waiting bus in El Roquetas
del Mar, the next resort town along. On the way we couldn’t help but notice extensive
plastic greenhouses enclosing fertile Murcian gardens. They’re probably visible from space! This area produces a good deal of Europe’s
vegetables although you could be forgiven for suspecting something more
sinister. We hardly saw a soul working
in them as we whizzed by.
Dang, it's cowboy country! |
Our final stop was at a super
café near Guadix to (thankfully) load up with strong coffee before hitting
Granada. Guadix proved interesting due to the large number of
“cave dwellings” in the area. Houses
(and a few swimming pools too) were built back into rocky outcrops. Some were obvious; others could only be
noticed if an antenna or chimney sprouted from a hilly slope.
Cave Houses in Guadix |
Watching over Royal Bones |
We had sufficient time to explore Granada’s Cathedral, a vast and soaring interior that would have scared peasants witless had they been allowed in. We were treated to a small museum with vestments and crowns perhaps once worn by Isabel & Fernando. (Were these the ones she hocked to finance Columbus’s voyage to the New World perhaps?) Certainly any one of the stunning old master paintings would have financed the Motleys world cruising (QE 2 for sure!) for a long time to come.
Exploring Albayzin |
Then it was
off to explore narrow Carrera del Darro which wound its way through the old
Muslim district, Albayzin. We had
impressive views of the Alhambra sitting loftily above us as we meandered along. At last the narrow street opened out to a
wide, sunny terrace where the Crew sat sipping coffee beside a small river,
taking in the ambience and preparing for our allotted hour, for the tour, at last, of the famous
Alhambra.
Uno Americano & three café con leichte, por favor.... |
The Alhambra
is worthy of a separate post (with lots & lots of photos), so read on….
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