Upon arrival, we knew we had landed in a unique spot. Granada is a very intriguing place with a different vibe than what we have seen so far. It's a mix of Muslim and Christian cultures made apparent by the contrast of architecture, cuisine and trinkets sold on its narrow medieval streets.
Our abode is nestled in the ancient Arab and Moorish quarter, Alcaiceria. In the Islamic days, this was home to Granada's Great Bazaar, where merchants would sell their silks and spices. We happen to be on Elvira Street; how fitting for Halloween!
Every time we open the door to our next Airbnb, we cross our fingers, hoping it looks like what we signed up for. Most of the time, we are quite pleased but every once and a while, we feel a little miffed by a lingering sewage smell in the hallway or by the dark, cramped rooms that were advertised as bright and spacious with their host's photo filter and wide-angle lens. This Airbnb was love at first sight by the whole family. The open living area burst with sunshine through a wall of windows that looked out to the snow-capped Sierra Nevada mountain range and the town's jewel, the Alhambra. The apartment's decor and sun porch were a bonus.
Our first morning here, we messaged our host to ask him if we could extend our stay a few more nights in addition to our originally-planned five nights. We figured, "what's the rush?" That afternoon, we found out Granada had just imposed a 10-day lockdown in which no one can enter or leave the city. It looks like we might be staying a little longer than we anticipated! The only other restrictions currently imposed are an 11 pm curfew, but we are always home by 8 or 9 pm anyway. Everything remains open. We are just fine; things could be way worse. We have a comfortable place to stay, beautiful views and a town where we have good food and the kids can practice their Spanish. We wanted to spend most of our trip in Spanish-speaking countries, so it looks like we might be getting our wish!
And... we happened to land in the home of free tapas!! Granada is one of the only cities left in Spain to serve a complimentary tapa with every drink purchased. You can imagine what a pleasant surprise that was to us when we got off the train and stopped for our first beverage!
The train ride winding through the countryside here was gorgeous. It reminded me of the rolling hills of Napa and Tuscany with a mountainous backdrop. A handful of passengers boarded our train in Seville, but there was not a soul in our train car or in the ones on either side of us. We exited the Granada train station without a hitch. This completely puzzled the staff at Alhambra, our first tourist attraction.
We had booked a guided tour to learn more about this 700-year old Moorish palace and fortress. The Alhambra is one of Spain's top three tourist sites because it houses some of the best-preserved examples of Islamic architecture in the world. Tickets usually sell out months in advance, but we pretty much had the place to ourselves. The staff was so confused by how we got here and we were confused by their confusion until we realized they were telling us Granada was in a lockdown. We figured it must have gone into a place that day, but it was imposed the day before we arrived. I had just looked up Spanish COVID restrictions two days prior in Seville and didn't see anything except the new curfew. This is just another example of how much the rules are continually changing with COVID. Our Airbnb host had only heard of it the same day we did and he gladly extended our stay.
We had just spent the past week researching our next couple weeks of travels, looking into different options—Mallorca, Nerja, the Canary Islands, to name a few. That is on hold now until further notice.
MOOR FACTS: Granada was the last Muslim territory in Spain to fall to the Christians. In 1492, Queen Isabella of Castile and her husband, Ferdinand of Aragon took control over the city. Queen Isabella also financed the expedition of Christopher Columbus that same year.
