Last weekend we went to Granada, Spain.  We’ve been looking forward to going back to Spain, if only for a short while.  The weather was warmer than Basel yet cooler than expected.

We planned to do a little bit of clothes shopping in Spain.  Fortunately for us, there were black friday sales, even here!  Both Jenn and I needed to get a few things, which turned into a few more things.

We arrived in the evening, so we were lazy and took a taxi to our rented apartment.  The apartment had a great view of the Alhambra and the host, Antonio was very helpful.  I would definitely stay here again.

The next morning we had a guided tour of the Alhambra.  The Alhambra is an Islamic Palace that began as a small fortress in the 9th century (roman ruins on the site date further back).  The palace and gardens are beautiful.  There is still quite a bit of the original decoration including geometric designs and script, though it was taken by King Ferdinand and redecorated in places with Christian elements.  In many areas you can see the foundations of houses for those citizens allowed to live inside the walls.  There is even a functional aqueduct still bringing water to the palace.

We hiked around town a bit and did some shopping.  In little markets all over town and in the larger stores in the center.  We tried a Pionono (a small, sweet pastry) and Pastela (similar to a pasty or a large empanada).  Definitely try them, though I favor the Pastela.  We tried a vegetarian and a chicken Pastela- the vegetarian was better (both from Panaderia Maria).

We also visited the Cathedral of Granada and the San Jeronimo Monastery.  These massive renaissance style buildings were opened in the 1500s.

We’d planned to take hike in the mountains but buses didn’t run on the day we had free to do so.  Though it was a short trip, we all enjoyed Granada.