The Alhambra in Granada Granada

Alhambra, Alcazaba and Nasrid Palaces

Little more can be said about Granada, with all its legends and famous phrases, like the one that the mother of the last moorish King, Boabdil told him when he was going to give the place to the Catholic Kings: “don’t cry like a woman what you didn’t know how to defend like a man”.

The story of Isabella I of Castile is also famous, who said that she wouldn’t change her shirt until she conquered Granada. I can only imagine the “royal stench”.

The Alhambra was named World Heritage and it includes the Generalife and the neighborhood of Albaicín, they undoubtedly treasure the most important Arab legacy in the city.

The Alhambra is not a building; it was a city in itself, with 4 different blocks, the Alcazaba or fortress, the Medina, or market city, the palaces and the buildings for recreation, like the Generalife and other palaces that have disappeared. Everything is located on the hill that dominates the current city of Granada.

Afterwards, the imperial palace of Charles the 5th was added, in renaissance style and with a great circular patio with 2 dwellings, the emperor’s and its wife’s.

Today it houses the museum; the visiting hours are fixed and there are only two visits, morning and afternoon.

In autumn, the afternoon hours are even shorter, from 2-6 pm and there is barely time to see everything, in the summer they close at 8 pm. So I recommend visiting the Alhambra early in the morning and then to leave in the afternoon to see the sunset from the San Nicolás viewpoint in Albaicín and then continue to the Sacromonte, the neighborhood with cave-houses and the art of the zambra, the music and dance of Arab origin that is typical from Sacromonte.

When you buy the ticket it marks the visiting hour to the Nasrid Palaces. This is necessary because the Alhambra is always full of people, both in winter and summer, there is always a line to get in, and no matter at which time you arrive there. Every day, the 8,000 entrance tickets are sold out.

There are famous places such as the Court of the Lions, Court of the Myrtles, Hall of the Two Sisters and the Kings and the Hall of the Ambassadors form a unique complex due to its harmony and spirituality, with the phrase “there is no victor but God”, repeated everywhere in the decoration (one must remember that in Islam it is prohibited to represent human beings).

I have been several times in the Alhambra and the place I like the most is the Generalife, where the water treatment became art.

The One

Nestled on the Cerro de la Sarika (Sarika Hill) lays a fairy-tale fortress, of Arabian nights, of battles and lost kingdoms, of great beauty... This is perhaps how most stories about one of the most famous Muslim engineering monuments in the world start.

But saying only this is too little to honour what the Alhambra represents: a song to power, to human achievement, to the sublime. A place where mathematics become beauty, where the whisper of water elevates us to the beyond, where legends are surpassed by reality... The legacy of our ancestors which fills us with art, wisdom and culture.

The Alhambra is, to me, the representation of paradise on earth. Those Nasrid Kings were wise, they knew exactly how to live on earth with all pleasures that were forbidden to the "unfaithful" ;)

What can be said about a place I left with tears falling down my face (like that Moor King who had to hand it over and could only cry), a place you know you belong to forever...

Note: In conclusion I would like to mention that the audio guide service is great. Being able to walk around at your own pace, listening to the stories, legends, with a background music related to each building, each period, is priceless.

A real pleasure

It is one of my favourite spots in Spain. I visited the Alhambra many times and I spent hours and hours looking, taking pictures and feeling the smooth breeze that lashes with subtleness the leaves of every single tree, listening to the sumptuous way in which the water falls from every single fountain; That last thing is, without any doubt, my favourite thing...Only the Alhambra has the power to let me relax, to let me travel in time until it takes me to another world, another dimension. A dimension in which women would hide behind the small windows, in which strong men would walk enjoying the landscape and breathe the air feeling great, and even greater.

For everyone planning to visit the Alhambra I recommend sitting next to one of the many fountains, closing your eyes and simply listening to the running water, leave your mind blank and travel with the water to another time, listen to the whisper of the trees, smell the many flowers that give colour to the landscape, the story each stones whispers, each one strongly sustaining the walls... It is, without a doubt, a real pleasure.

The One

Nestled on the Cerro de la Sarika (Sarika Hill) lays a fairy-tale fortress, of Arabian nights, of battles and lost kingdoms, of great beauty... This is perhaps how most stories about one of the most famous Muslim engineering monuments in the world start.

But saying only this is too little to honour what the Alhambra represents: a song to power, to human achievement, to the sublime. A place where mathematics become beauty, where the whisper of water elevates us to the beyond, where legends are surpassed by reality... The legacy of our ancestors which fills us with art, wisdom and culture.

The Alhambra is, to me, the representation of paradise on earth. Those Nasrid Kings were wise, they knew exactly how to live on earth with all pleasures that were forbidden to the "unfaithful" ;)

What can be said about a place I left with tears falling down my face (like that Moor King who had to hand it over and could only cry), a place you know you belong to forever...

Note: In conclusion I would like to mention that the audio guide service is great. Being able to walk around at your own pace, listening to the stories, legends, with a background music related to each building, each period, is priceless.

A veil of melancholy

It may be because the soul of Boabdil, the last Nasrid king of Granada, seems to live there that the reddish monument of la Alhambra and the Generalife, apart from being romantic, has a veil of melancholy. Standing on the foothills of Granada, the walls and towers of the main symbol of Hispanic-Muslim culture hide impressive buildings, palaces and gardens.

Like the secret "cármenes" (typical houses) of the neighbourhood of Albaicín, the intimate Muslim nature hides the most refined beauty behind austere walls. Doors inside the Alhambra, the Comares and Leones palaces and the Hall of Ambassadors, show beautiful walls covered with ceramics or plasterwork, perfectly carved wooden roofs, suggestive courtyards decorated with columns and glazed tiles, where water, a constant protagonist, always pours from a fountain.

The lost Nasrid paradise can be relived in a number of books. Of all of them, Washington Irving's "The Alhambra" is essential. The stories, the picturesque characters and the experiences of Irving, who in 1829 lived in the very same Alhambra (then inhabited by humble people, disabled soldiers and beggars), do nothing else but enhance its charm.

Due to the high demand and the limited number of visitors, I recommend booking your entrance tickets a week in advance at least. The tickets are only valid for the indicated day. Phone 902 888 001; Internet http://www.alhambra-tickets.es

A veil of melancholy

It may be because the soul of Boabdil, the last Nasrid king of Granada, seems to live there that the reddish monument of la Alhambra and the Generalife, apart from being romantic, has a veil of melancholy. Standing on the foothills of Granada, the walls and towers of the main symbol of Hispanic-Muslim culture hide impressive buildings, palaces and gardens.

Like the secret "cármenes" (typical houses) of the neighbourhood of Albaicín, the intimate Muslim nature hides the most refined beauty behind austere walls. Doors inside the Alhambra, the Comares and Leones palaces and the Hall of Ambassadors, show beautiful walls covered with ceramics or plasterwork, perfectly carved wooden roofs, suggestive courtyards decorated with columns and glazed tiles, where water, a constant protagonist, always pours from a fountain.

The lost Nasrid paradise can be relived in a number of books. Of all of them, Washington Irving's "The Alhambra" is essential. The stories, the picturesque characters and the experiences of Irving, who in 1829 lived in the very same Alhambra (then inhabited by humble people, disabled soldiers and beggars), do nothing else but enhance its charm.

Due to the high demand and the limited number of visitors, I recommend booking your entrance tickets a week in advance at least. The tickets are only valid for the indicated day. Phone 902 888 001; Internet http://www.alhambra-tickets.es

It's magical!

What else am I going to say? It was one of the trips I'd dreamed of, especially because I love Arab culture and architecture, maybe because living in Alicante I got curious about the number of things we have that were created by them...

The Alhambra is... I don't know, I can't put it into words. It's magical! Every single area, corner, garden, even the souvenir shops... Incredible! Unfortunately I can't say one part I liked more than the other, because I just loved all of it together. The Nasrid Palaces are wonderful, just to think that someone used to live there makes me jealous, in a good way, ha-ha. Carlos V's Palace, beautiful, so round... It's as if you were peeking into an old Roman arena from the upper floor... The Gardens of the Generalife... Amazing!

Anyway, I don't know, I could recommend taking a picture in the souvenir shop in the "public area" of the Alhambra. It costs about 16€ depending on the size and the number of copies you order, but they lend you some Arab clothing, with typical "cachibaches" and a very typical background of Arabic architecture. Of all the pictures and souvenirs you will get, I personally think this is the best memory I will keep. So I don't really need to tell you that I will go again, I was left wanting more as we didn't have time to see the whole city of Granada.

Definitely one of the most amazing places in Spain!

It's magical!

What else am I going to say? It was one of the trips I'd dreamed of, especially because I love Arab culture and architecture, maybe because living in Alicante I got curious about the number of things we have that were created by them...

The Alhambra is... I don't know, I can't put it into words. It's magical! Every single area, corner, garden, even the souvenir shops... Incredible! Unfortunately I can't say one part I liked more than the other, because I just loved all of it together. The Nasrid Palaces are wonderful, just to think that someone used to live there makes me jealous, in a good way, ha-ha. Carlos V's Palace, beautiful, so round... It's as if you were peeking into an old Roman arena from the upper floor... The Gardens of the Generalife... Amazing!

Anyway, I don't know, I could recommend taking a picture in the souvenir shop in the "public area" of the Alhambra. It costs about 16€ depending on the size and the number of copies you order, but they lend you some Arab clothing, with typical "cachibaches" and a very typical background of Arabic architecture. Of all the pictures and souvenirs you will get, I personally think this is the best memory I will keep. So I don't really need to tell you that I will go again, I was left wanting more as we didn't have time to see the whole city of Granada.

Definitely one of the most amazing places in Spain!

It is worth seeing

When I visited the Alhambra of Granada, I did it twice, once during the day and another at night. Apart from the day ticket there is a night ticket which lets you visit the Nasrid Palaces from 9 pm (I should stress that with this ticket you can only visit the palaces, not the Generalife and the gardens).

The walls are strategically illuminated to appreciate the relief, In addition to the colours that by day are more difficult to distinguish (like the blue shades).

The Patio de los Leones takes on a phantasmagorical feel and is well worth seeing. I think it is a good alternative for those who have a free night in Granada.

When we went, as the weather was nice, we ate sandwiches in the outside gardens while we waited for our visiting hours.

Maybe the most famous outside Spain

Almost everything has been said about this beautiful monument, maybe the most famous outside Spain... A visit to our country isn't complete without going to the magnificent Patio de los Leones (where you'll see one of the few representations of living beings in Muslim art). You also have the sweet smell of the myrtles, in the courtyard named after them. Walk, enjoy the sound of the fountains and pray that the Alhambra is not packed with tourists on that day.

One is grateful for the control at the entrance, although it means you need to book a ticket in advance in order to be sure to get in what is considered one of the five best constructions of Muslim art in the world.

Don’t miss out on the views of Granada that can be seen from the wall. A place to lose yourself, enjoy the art or seduce.

Maybe the most famous outside Spain

Almost everything has been said about this beautiful monument, maybe the most famous outside Spain... A visit to our country isn't complete without going to the magnificent Patio de los Leones (where you'll see one of the few representations of living beings in Muslim art). You also have the sweet smell of the myrtles, in the courtyard named after them. Walk, enjoy the sound of the fountains and pray that the Alhambra is not packed with tourists on that day.

One is grateful for the control at the entrance, although it means you need to book a ticket in advance in order to be sure to get in what is considered one of the five best constructions of Muslim art in the world.

Don’t miss out on the views of Granada that can be seen from the wall. A place to lose yourself, enjoy the art or seduce.

Wonder of the World

The Alhambra in Granada, Spain is truly on of the Wonders of the World. The mixture of Andalusian and Moorish architecture and the orante, sprawling gardens will leave you overwhelmed. Originally built during the Moorish occupation of Spain, the Alhambra is composed of serveral palaces connected by quiet, enchanting courtyards and extravagant gardens of wildflowers and fountains. The views of the Sierra Nevada mountain range and of Granada's historic Albayzín district are unbeatable. The Alhambra in Granada is truly one of Europe's greatest sights.

Room with a view