Another Day In Paradise

Mark Eveleigh a photo journalist described Granada as "an African paradise set under the Sierras like a rose preserved in snow’ and maybe it was the African in me that made me warm to this Moorish City within minutes of being there . Since this, our first trip, we have been back a number of times but never felt as mesmerised as we were on this virgin visit. As with Pitres we had not booked a hotel in advance, so our first challenge was to find somewhere cosy and economical to stay. Again with lady luck on our side, we found a quaint little pension in a side street behind the famous La Alhambra palace. The pension was tucked away and almost hidden like a precious jewel amongst restaurants and coffee shops. Our room was traditionally but pleasantly furnished and very spacious and the best feature was a tiny terrace garden which we had all to ourselves and we could access from our bedroom. It was full of brightly painted ceramic pots which had scarlet red geraniums, orange hibiscus and other pretty potted plants . In the evening a most seductive aroma would waft into the bedroom bewitching, hypnotic and alluringly aphrodisiacal... it was the essence of Jasmine. I could see now why this was one of Spain´s most romantic cities. If you need to revive your love life, I strongly recommend a trip to Granada or failing that place a potted Jasmine plant strategically next to your bedside... it will work wonders!

Our pensión was a stone's throw away from La Alhambra, the 13th century muslim medina majestically overlooking the city and its people. A visit to Granada is simply incomplete without a visit to this iconic, islamic palace: like a visit to Agra without seeing the Taj Mahal! However little did we know, on our first visit that getting into it would more difficult than penetrating the Bank of España! We casually wandered up through the palatial gardens, thinking of the wonders that we were about to witness only to find ourselves joining a long and winding queue. Obediently we joined this and waited and waited and waited and after a couple of hours, having moved a few inches, a guard came out and told us that no more people could enter the palace today and we would have to return tomorrow. Disappointed and drained in the heat of the August sun, we returned to the city. Totally by default, whilst standing in yet another queue in the bank, we found out that we could buy tickets for the Alhambra from here hence reducing our wait in the queue so we bought the tickets and the next morning, we were almost fast tracked into the Palace! All the waiting and frustration had paid off: the Andalusian architecture, the Islamic scriptures on the walls: solamente Alá vence - only Allah wins, the flowing fountains and carefully cultivated gardens were enchanting. We felt like we were being transported back to the days of Mohammed Ben Nazar, the Muslim conqueror. La Alhambra was magical and with its wondrous vistas of the Sierra Nevada, I felt I was in paradise.

After our regal experience, we drifted into the Arabic quarter with row upon row of Moorish malls selling ethnic and oriental jewelry, eastern influenced lanterns and delicately designed rugs minus the jamon! Totally enveloped with a spiritual fragrance of incense sticks and decorated with the brightly coloured Asian artifacts, and I could have aimlessly meandered forever. Was there no end to what this city had to offer?

No!

Everyone knows Spain for its Flamenco and before leaving Granada we had the amazing opportunity to watch authentic flamenco by real gypsy (Gitana) queens in the old caves of the Sierra Nevada. The dark moreno skin, the large almond shaped eyes, the buxom women in their brightly bosom accentuated frilly frocks... bewitched us and not only was Ketan drooling but so was I. We never wanted this night to end and when it did, we dreamed of paradise, we dreamed of Granada.