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Sunday, December 27, 2009
Granada, Spain, Is A Place of Beauty and Spiritual Significance, A Feast for All of the Senses
By Carolyn Flynn
Of the Journal
GRANADA, Spain — In Granada, the heart of quintessential Spain, the surprise might not be that the Alhambra, the palace of the Moorish kings, is exquisitely stunning.
Stunning is expected. The authentic test may be this: You know you are really there, alive to witness the enchanting palace, because you are inhaling the sweet, intoxicating, near-heaven scent of blue jasmine in the Alhambra gardens.
Or, sitting on a rooftop terrace in the Albayzin district, watching the full moon rise over the Alhambra, the strains of a midnight performance of Tchaikovsky's "Swan Lake" carry through the balmy night air from that jasmine garden to your ears.
Granada is full of authentic sensations that bring you more alive, from Moroccan tearooms to flamenco, from Moorish bath spas to tapas, the little appetizer dishes that originated in Andalusia and make for great socializing.
And in Granada, if you are from Albuquerque, N.M., there is much of the familiar: stucco, red tile roofs, painted ceramic tile, sun-splashed courtyards. Even one of Spain's many Santa Fes is on the outskirts of Granada near the airport.
Granada is situated in Andalusia, southern Spain, the origin of the passionate, haunting poetry of Federico Garcia Lorca, the center of flamenco, gypsy caves and duende.
Duende is a Spanish word that takes about one hundred thousand words to explain in English. It's deeply part of Spanish culture. It means the soul, the animating force that brings emotion and authenticity to art — to poetry, painting or flamenco. But it's more than that. The word captures the sense that we are most alive when we are closest to death. Think of the grand, colorful pageantry of bullfights. Think the love-and-death passion of flamenco. Duende tinges every winding street of this city tucked into the hills of the Sierra Nevadas.
Magic of the night
Duende was in the air as we took a nocturnal tour of the Alhambra. In the hush of night, the 13th-century palace, with its network of pools and canals and its emerald gardens of myrtle and lime trees, comes alive with its past.
The Moorish poets called the Alhambra "a pearl set in emeralds." Floodlights spotlighted the ivory arabesque carvings of foliage and Arabic inscriptions. Shadows filled the vaulted dome of the Hall of the Abencerrajes, where by day we had seen the blue and green beneath the intricately carved white stone.
Both this hall and the Hall of the Two Sisters open to the Court of Lions, which has inspired sculptures in the architecture of Antoni Gaudi in Barcelona, Spain, and the Irvine Spectrum Center in Irvine, Calif. Indeed, there is much of the familiar here, because Alhambra's influence has been felt in many ways, such as the tessellations that inspired M.C. Escher's work.
In the Court of the Myrtles, there is a long green pool, and next to it the Hall of the Ambassadors, where the sultan received visitors. Later, when the Spanish had conquered the Moors, Christopher Columbus received Isabel and Ferdinand's support here to sail to the New World. The ceiling of this room depicts the seven heavens of the Muslim paradise and from here, there is a magnificent view of the city.
A tour of Alhambra includes the Nasrid Palace, the citadel of red stone known as the Alcazaba, the palace of King Carlos V and the Moorish gardens with fountains, pools and trimmed hedges.
Throughout the moonlight walk, it felt like touring a poem, a painting or perhaps a story by Washington Irving, who stayed at Alhambra when he wrote "Nights at the Alhambra."
The soul of the city
Duende was in the city of Granada, too. We stayed in an apartment in the Albayzin district, the ancient — and I do mean ancient — Arabic city with streets so narrow that our taxi driver, with "espejo" and a gesture, indicated we would need to fold down the side mirrors if he was to thread the street in his compact car.
The Albayzin district is carved into a steep hill adjacent to Sacromonte, the gypsy district that Lorca captured in his poetry, and the cafes in this district were lively at night.
Our apartment was in a gypsy cave. From the street, we climbed red tile stairs leading to a well-equipped kitchen and a sunny courtyard. As we moved farther back into the apartment, the walls became cavelike, whitewashed and irregular with arches between rooms. The bedrooms and Moorish tile bath stayed cool all through the day, but with views to the courtyard did not feel claustrophobic or isolating.
The clever design captured livability for all segments of a Granada day — sunny, serene mornings, cool respite from the sweltering afternoon heat, perfect warm desert nights with clear skies that carried the sounds of the symphony from the Alhambra.
Duende was there as we walked early mornings through the narrow, winding cobblestoned streets of the Albayzin in search of churros and chocolate, a traditional Spanish breakfast that's essentially fried doughnuts and thick drinking chocolate — sort of a sweet death by decadence. At a newsstand off a small cobblestoned plaza, I asked, "Donde esta la panderia?" and the woman said she knew of no bakery. I turned the corner and found the most fabulous bakery. I turned another corner and found chocolate and churros at a café.
Such are the winding streets of a medieval city, still much to discover.
If you go
A few places not to miss in Granada:
ALHAMBRA
Tickets go fast, and admission is limited to a certain number of visitors each day, so buying tickets in advance online is strongly recommended. Go to alhambra.org/eng and click on ticket sales. Tickets can be purchased for a day visit (includes Nasrid Palace, Alzacaba, all other buildings and the gardens), a garden visit only or a nocturnal visit (includes palace only). Discounts are available for pensioners, students, disabled. Children under 12 are free.
restaurants
LOS ITALIANOS GELATERIA. It's to-die-for gelato, right at the intersection of Calle Gran Via de Colon and Avenida de Reyes de los Catolicos, an area with many cafes, shops and people-watching at the base of hills of Alhambra and Albayzin. Inexpensive. Calle Gran Vía de Colón, 4, 18010 Granada, Spain, +34 958 22 40 34.
RESTAURANTE SEVILLA. A favorite haunt of poet Federico Garcia Lorca, tucked into a tiny plaza behind the cathedral where a guitarist plays flamenco. Highlights include grilled tuna with fried spaghetti and white fish escabeche, poached fish in a spicy cold marinade. Calle Oficios, +34 958 22 12 23.
JARDIN DE LOS ADARVES, also called Jardin de los Poetas. At the entrance to the Alhambra, one highlight is the remojon salad, with cod, oranges and onions. It doesn't sound good, but the combination of Valencia oranges and sweet Spanish onions with cod is exquisite.
ACCOMMODATIONS
The House at Mirador Cruz de la Rauda. Options include a three-bedroom house or one-bedroom loft, with rooftop views of the Alhambra. Situated in the Albayzin district. Rates vary by season and availability. Go to alhambravistas.com.
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