Porto Barcelona Day 17 - A Day at Alhambra Granada

Good morning and hello Alhambra, we were making our way through streets and steep alleys looking for you.

Plaza Isabel La Catolica is a common place where most will pass by it many times whenever you are in the neigbourhood. It is a square with a bronze monument of the Queen Isabel I of Castille. GPS : 37.175667, -3.597387

Somewhere along Gran Vía de Colón Street we made enquiry as how to get around in Granada. First we decided to visit a view point at Plaza St. Nicolas before spending the whole day at Alhambra.

We took an Alhambra mini bus numbered C32 to Plaza St. Nicolas, known for its viewing platform.

Mirador San Nicolas located at GPS : 37.181114, -3.592670, the sun was coming against us, a prefect view of Alhambra would be in the evening when the sun is setting. Anyway there were still many people gathering at the viewing platform and taking pictures.

We then jumped back into the Alhambra mini bus for the next stop at Alhambra using the same tickets without any further fee as long as the ticket is being used within the allowable time frame. By the way the bus ticket price was 1.4 euro per head.

Finally we reached Alhambra at the main entrance. Jo have has purchased the tickets online prior to our visit. It was the Alhambra General Daytime ticket amounting 14.85€ per head.

The place is huge and we decided to take on Generalife Gardens first. Generalife occupied the slopes of the Hill of the Sun (Cerro del Sol), from which there is a complete view over the city and the valleys of the rivers Genil and Darro. The Generalife became a leisure place for the kings of Granada when they wanted to get away from their official affairs of the palace.

It was built in the 13th century and it was redecorated by the King Abu I-Walid Isma'il (1313-1324). Generalife is basically divided by two groups of buildings connected by the Patio of the Irrigation Ditch (Patio de la Acequia). 

It is difficult to know what exactly Generalife looks like when it was in its original condition, as it has went through many alteration and re-construction throughout the Christian period. These changes were necessary due to its dilapidated state left neglected during the Muslim period.

The view from Generalife towards Alhambra and its community at the lower ground. 

Covering the gardens and trying not to miss out any of the interesting elements of Generalife.

The Garden of the Irrigation is one of the main features connecting the 2 group of buildings.

Nasrid Palace and Alcazaba as seen from Palacio del Generalife, Alhambra

Time to re-fuel and rest the leg before proceeding to the next spot. Obviously we were prepared as far as food and drink are concerned in the park.

A chance to observe how these big hedges of plant were being manicured.

A ruin where we passed by while moving towards the Palace of Charles V, a potential site to be improved and make it exciting for tourists.

The Palace of Charles V is a Renaissance building inside the Nasrid fortification of the Alhambra. The building has never been a home to a monarch and stood roofless until 1957. The exterior of the building uses a typically Renaissance combination of rustication on the lower level and ashlar on the upper.

I thought it was a bull fighting ring the moment I came into the building as the has an inner circular patio. No it was no a bull fighting ring but a two storey palace.

Another image captured of the circular patio. The palace that was not completed initially and remained roofless until the late twentieth century.

We took another break at the Square of the Cisterns (Plaza de los Aljibes) which was built by Count of Tendilla in 1494 in the gully between the Alcazaba and the palaces. Another beautiful view from the square where there is a kiosk selling coffee, snacks and ice cream. 

 A panoramic view of the city from the square. An esplanade between the towers and the defence of the Alhambra on one side and the Wine Gate (Puerta del Vino), the Arabic palaces and the Charles V Palace (Palacio de Carlos V) on the other side.

Alcazaba was next on our visit list for the day.
Alcazaba is a fortress and one of the oldest parts of Alhambra just like the Vermilion Towers (Torres Bermejas). It is believed that it was built before the Muslims arrived at Granada where there were already several constructions in the same area. 

The first historical reference to the existence of the Alcazaba dated back from the 9th century and it is believed that it was then built by Sawwar ben Hamdun during the fights between Muslims and muwalladins (Christians who converted to the Islam and lived among the Muslims). 

The current complex was built by Mohammed I, who constructed the ramparts around the previous castle, defence and three new towers: The Broken Tower (Torre Quebrada), the Keep (Torre del Homenaje) and the Watch Tower (Torre de la Vela). As a consequence, the Alcazaba became a real fortress, where the king established the royal residence. His son Mohammed II also had his residence in the Alcazaba, until the palaces were finished. From then on, the Alcazaba was only used as a fortress for military purposes. 

When the Christians took the city, they carried out many works to repair the Alcazaba. At certain part of the history it was used as a State prison, even during the French occupation. 

Like the Alhambra, the Alcazaba was abandoned and not cared for a long time and it was not until the late 19th century and beginning of the 20th century that the restoration began.

Our last place to visit with a scheduled time to enter the Palace of Nazri. We had to queued for the entrance and security was observed when entering.

The Palaces were the residence of the kings of Granada. Alhambar, the founder of the dynasty began to build in the 13th century. These palaces enclose within their walls the refinement and delicacy of the last Hispanic-Arab governors of Al Andalus and the Nasrid.

The intimate concept of the royal palace, closed in the eyes of the curious, harmonizes the robustness of the outer panels with the fragility of the interior, where the architectural elements become purely ornamental. 

One of the amazing pieces of the Alhambra, a brilliant Islamic building in Europe, with perfectly proportioned rooms and courtyards, intricately moulded stucco walls, beautiful tiling, fine carved wooden ceilings and elaborate stalactite-like muqarnas vaulting, all worked in mesmerising, symbolic, geometrical patterns. Arabic inscriptions proliferate in the stucco work.

The courtyards, continuous allusions to the garden, with elements of Persian and Muslim inspiration. 

A peep into the court yard as we were flowing through with the stream of tourists in the palaces.

The water, element that forms the palace, combining the garden with the architecture, represents the purity; Crystalline water that flows between the marbles of the fountains; Water of life that gives richness and freshness to the garden, aesthetic beauty, generosity of the Sultan ... a whole world of symbols and stimuli.

That's was it we finally visited Alhambra and had a good knowledge of the Muslim influence in this part of Europe.