The Beautiful City of Granada

Before arriving in Granada, we saw snow on the Sierra Nevada mountains that rise up behind the city. People can ski here from November to June! And Grenada is only one hour away from sandy beaches. Amazing!

There is way too much history in Granada for me to read and to try to put its history in a nutshell. Basically, it was once a Muslim kingdom. The Catholic monarchs captured the city in 1492 and ended the Islamic presence on the Iberian Peninsula after 800 years. From then on, a lot happened. Too much to write about but super interesting.

The monarchs were ones that we know - Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand. Also this was the place where the Catholic Kings signed an agreement in April 1492 and accepted Christopher Columbus’ terms to undertake his famous trip. The document granted Columbus the titles of Admiral, Viceroy and Governor-General of all the lands he would discover and set the condition that he would keep a tenth of all future profits.

Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand chose to be buried here, in Granada’s Cathedral.

In Spanish, Granada means pomegranate. According to the stories, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella chose the fruit as a symbol of their final victory over the Moors, and that fruit became the city’s symbol.

Granada is a lovely university city full of young people, (over 50000 students), parks, fountains, restaurants, flat walking streets and historical buildings. Streets are narrow and wind through the city. It is a pleasure to stroll on its streets and try to take in all of its beautiful sights. On top of that, it is a safe and friendly place to be with a laid back vibe.

When I was researching what places to visit or things we could do here, one website mentioned 183 places! What to choose? We are here for only 3 nights, 2 full days. Yikes! Of course, we had to see the Alhambra so that was easy, but what else? Cave houses? A Flamenco show, The Mystery Man exhibition? Churches? Monasteries? Arab market? Free tapa bars? Wow. Where to start?

Our comfortable and quiet hotel, Casa de Reyes, is in a perfect spot for seeing whatever we can fit in to see. And it is decorated with beautiful stained glass fixtures and traditional decorated plates.

Anyways, we do have a bit of a plan. The Alhambra had to be pre-booked, so that was done a couple of weeks ago, and the rest will fall in place.Read more