Tue 15.May.2012
Granada, Spain
The last Moorish royal compound in Spain was a walled city
of 2000 or more, perched on two connected ridgetops above Granada. Its walls glowed
reddish in the setting sun, hence the name Al-hambra, The Red. (Hambra
is related to "amber".)
After the conquest, a Spanish king added his own palace to
the complex, alongside the palaces of the Moorish Nasrid dynasty,
the vast palace gardens, the original fort on the ridge tip, and the complex of
gardens and summer palace on the second ridge.
You could kill yourself by exhaustion and frustration if you tried to see all
of the Alhambra in one visit.
I focused on the Nasrid palaces - the only part
you need a reservation for - and the gardens. The rest is still there for a future
visit.
This Patio of the Lions is normally the most popular photo-op
in the palace complex. Thanks to major reconstruction / restoration, it is
mostly torn up and inaccessible now. C'est la vie!
I haven't a clue what these domes with portholes are for. I didn't see anything
that looked like them from the inside. If any history scholars - or more canny
tourists - know, by all means tell me.
(If you don't know, I'll consider a sufficiently inspired bit of
concoction instead.)
Contents Copyright 2012 Jeff Bulf