Granada

I have a confession to make about Granada. I’ve been unfairly holding a small grudge against the city for some time now. It started when one of my college classmates who had studied there openly declared Granada the most beautiful city in the world. At the time, I had just gotten back from South Africa and had been quite taken with Cape Town. High off my own recent experience, I wasn’t open to such bold assertions.

Since arriving here, I’ve heard numerous Spaniards tell the story about the time Bill Clinton visited Granada and called the sunset from the Mirador de San Nicolás in the famous Albaicín neighborhood the most beautiful he had ever seen. The first few times I heard this I responded by reminding the person that Bill Clinton was not only a politician and therefore skilled in the art of dancing around the truth but that he was especially talented even by his occupational standard. However, I later admitted to myself that my response was clouded by my own contempt, however small it was. Furthermore, I had no real way of proving whether he was being genuine or not. I mean I’m fairly certain he did inhale that Marijuana cigarette and he did have sexual relations with that women but who knows, maybe it really was the most beautiful view he had ever seen.  

So that brings me to my trip. I went with a group of about five teachers from both Spain and the U.S. who all live in a nearby town. It was a good combination of people seeing the city for the first time and people who knew the landscape well enough to help those who hadn’t seen it get the most out of the trip. Having Spaniards there also prevented me from speaking English the entire weekend, which is always a good thing. Saturday we headed out to Albaicín, the historic neighborhood that holds the famous view that Clinton raved about. The hike up to the vista was done mostly on narrow cobblestone streets like this one below. 

We finally arrived to the Mirador de San Nicolás. Breathtaking, spectacular, and awesome were all inadequate to describe this view. It was the most beautiful combination of a human construction and natural backdrop I had ever seen. This photo doesn’t do it justice but it still may give you some idea of what I was looking at. La Alhambra is the main centerpiece seen here.

A little background on Granada: It was the last Muslim stronghold in Spain. Fernando and Isabel completed the reconquista here in 1492 and forced the last of the Muslims out of the country after 700 years of reign. La Alhambra (aside from being a great Spanish beer) was a palace and fortress built by the Moorish rulers of the Emirate of Granada in the 14^th century and was thus done in Islamic architecture. It was amazing to be in Europe and at the same time get to see such an incredible monument representing another civilization’s culture. Because we toured at night and my camera takes horrible night photos, I don’t have a lot of good ones. However, I will be back at some point to do a day tour. Here are some examples of the kind decorative display on the walls and ceilings throughout the complex. I often associate this kind of detail on such a large scale with renaissance Europe but La Alhambra was every bit of that, just in a different way.

After the trip to La Alhambra, we wanted to go out and experience the nightlife of Granada. However, it was still quite early to be going out by Spanish standards (it was only 10:30 or 11:00 if my memory serves me correctly). So we went out and had a few drinks and tapas before experiencing the real nightlife. In the process we ran into these people (seen below). I heard a few different takes on what exactly they were all about. The first person told me they were students who liked the university life (partying, going out, etc.) and never wanted to leave so they supported this existence by playing music for money. I then talked to another person from our group and was surprised to find out he was a former member of this group as he seemed very ambitious and driven. He told me that they play for events or upon private requests (say you had a girl you were in love with and you wanted to impress her). The second conversation doesn’t necessarily negate the first, but it did change my perception of them a little bit. Either way, they made for a great time.

Granada lived up. It was a great weekend with great people. And although I'm still partial to Cape Town, Granada is a close number two. Lastly, it wouldn't be a blog about Spain without a cathedral picture. Granada's cathedral was the grandest I have seen in Spain to date. 

Castilla y León (part 2)

Have you ever been to an old war battlefield? Actually being there is about the closest you can reasonably get to understanding that particular battle and time period on a personal level. But in reality, there’s only so much you do there. You can only hope for an interesting and informative museum to help you experience it more fully.

When I read the short history about Valladolid in my Lonely Planet Travel pdf that I purchased online (I forgot the actual book back home – grrr), I was intrigued. It was the place where Fernando of Aragón and Isabel of Castilla formed the super-marriage that would later unite Spain under internal rule following 700 or so years of Muslim conquest and domination. Valladolid was also expected to be Spain’s capital but was moved to Madrid in the mid 16^th century. Fray Tomás de Torquemada, Spain’s most famous inquisitor who symbolically put Jesus himself on trial was from here. Cervantes wrote part of Don Quijote while living here. Columbus died here…Ok, bored yet? Well not me. I felt like this was in many ways where Spain’s golden century started, and I wanted to experience part of that history firsthand.

But when I started to look for things to do there, there weren’t many museums or historical sites that reflected the things I was interested in. There was nothing to see involving the inquisition. It’s understandable I guess. It wasn’t exactly the brightest moment in Spanish history. There was a museum dedicated to the history of Valladolid but it was unfortunately closed the day I was there. I wasn't all that interested in seeing Cervantes's house...So for me, on this particular day, Valladolid was starting to resemble an old battlefield. I knew the history was there, I just didn't have a tangible way to really experience it. Finally, after doing some research, I came across a highly recommended Christopher Columbus museum that I hoped would satisfy at least part of my intellectual thirst for this city.

However, I still had a whole day to burn. Fortunately, when you travel you almost always run into cool things you weren't expecting. One of these was an art museum that I was told was the most important museum in the city. I can do art museums for a short time but I find that I end up spending around 75% of the time reading and contemplating the descriptions of the art as it relates to its particular historical period and only the remaining quarter actually looking at the art itself. I can only image what many of these artists would think of this. “Hey, it’s not like I spent years of my life on this sculpture or anything. Go ahead and spend all your time pondering that description someone copied from Wikipedia.”

Another surprise was the city’s Plaza Mayor. The Plaza Mayor in Valladolid at night stood in stark contrast to that of Salamanca’s arresting golden glow. The dimly lit shades of orange were warm and welcoming yet cool and laid back. It was a no-pressure date. I spent an hour just sitting and enjoying the pleasant tone of the night.

The Columbus Museum was both informative and visually appealing. I was pleased to see that a lot of effort had been put into making it above average. Unfortunately no pictures were permitted in the museum. However, I did snap a few good shots of the city throughout the day.

  La Plaza Mayor at night

Same location during the day

 

 One of the many cathedrals in the city

La Plaza de Zorrilla - best shot of the day

Castilla y León (part 1)

 I awoke in the darkness of the night once again. This stop, however, felt different. A sense of purity arose from the dimly lit, well-kept streets and buildings. The conversations around me now seemed a bit more mellow and clear. Minutes after we left the station a familiar yet breathtaking sight emerged: the city wall of Ávila. I was struck by the grandness of it all. I had seen the wall before on my last trip to Spain, but in an instant, I was reminded that places like this do exist in the world. Of course, most Spaniards don’t live behind massive city walls or in castles, but still, they DO exist, and they are jaw-dropping when you see them in person. I didn’t think to flash a picture, but I have this shot from my first visit here.

 I was glad to have woken up when I did, but I hadn’t come for this. I was going to Salamanca, the city in which I studied for a short time a few years ago. I got there around 11:30 p.m. friday night and had left La Puerta de Segura at 6:00 that morning. It’s not normally that long of a trip, but visa appointments and waiting for buses made it so. By the time I got there, tiredness and hunger were had fully set in. I checked into my hostel and quickly headed towards the central city. After a day like this, I needed something that was certain to satisfy. I love trying new food, but occasionally, new food lets you down. Not tonight. There was one place in town that would for sure end this exhausting day the right way: Burger King. A double bacon cheeseburger, fries, and a beer later, I felt like refreshed and ready to experience Salamanca once again. The city at night of course was stunning. I still haven’t seen much of Spain, but Salamanca’s Plaza Mayor (seen below) has to be one of its most impressive sights.

The next morning I decided to be a tourist. A felt a little silly going to the tourist center of a place I had previously lived for a month, but it was the only way to be sure of seeing some things I hadn’t the last time. First, I decided to see el Convento de San Esteban, a former convent of Dominicans. This particular group, while created in the 13^th century, dealt extensively with the issues involving what Spain considered the new world during the time of Columbus and later the expansion of Spain’s empire (late 15^th and after). Columbus spent time here (although this exact building had not been constructed yet) with Diego de Doza, a famous religious figure who helped introduce Columbus to Ferdinand and Isabella. The messages on the walls portrayed a commitment to democracy, eradication of poverty, and ethical treatment of indigenous peoples among other things. However, I couldn’t help but wrestle with the knowledge that Spain’s colonies, starting with Columbus, were not exactly centers for democracy and have struggled with it through their births as nation-states. Furthermore, Doza later became one of Spain’s more famous inquisitors in the effort to push all Jews, Muslims, and other non-christians from the country. I guess the fundamental question I was trying to figure out was whether this convent was providing religious justification for the expansion of an empire or  challenging the various unethical dimensions of the expansion based on religious principles. I still don't quite know that answer. I imagine there was some of both. There were references to genuine voices from this convent challenging human rights abuses in the Americas.

                                                    From the inside of San Esteban

Next, I went to meet up with my host family that I stayed with a few years ago. Out of all the host families that other students had that summer I can safely say I had one of the best, if not the best. I heard stories from some other students about families that did the bare minimum of their requirements. But Mari (seen below in our recent visit) did everything within her power to make my experience great. It was nice this time to actually be able to have a conversation with her. My spanish was far from conversational in 2008.

  

After our visit I strolled around a bit more. An art museum, a civil war museum, and this; the picture I never got the last time I was here. The old Roman bridge over el Río Tormes that runs along the southern edge of the city. Originally constructed in 89 A.D., 15 of the original arches remain today.