Today we are going to the Alhambra! I had tried to buy what I thought were tickets on the real Alhambra website however I could not figure out how to do it – I know that I could get a discounted ticket but it was not appearing anywhere! So we decided to just go there and purchase a ticket at the ticket office which is where I needed to go anywhere to validate my discounted ticket. I asked the hotel what was the best route to take to walk there (it looked simple enough) and the front desk agent was so polite to me and was trying to suggest we take a taxi, however make it sound like it was my idea! Beating around the bush instead of being direct! Sometimes that frustrates me! Once we got into a taxi we saw why – the switchbacks and hill we had to go up – we would have been exhausted before we even started! So now about getting the tickets – the Nasrid palace which is the main attraction was sold out! So instead we bought tickets to the gardens, and as suggested in the Lonely Planet book, we had brought a picnic to have while we were there. The whole area is beautiful – so well laid out! A lot of the upper gardens are not accessible however Andrew was able to run up the stairs and check things out for me and let me know what he saw – basically great views! We had a bit of a run in with a security guard (mainly myself and another lady in a wheelchair), as he interpreted the “rules” for the Generalife palace to be no one with wheels could go into the palace area. When really the rules state not Baby Strollers can go into the palace area. VERY different from walkers and wheelchairs! So we had to sit in the Stroller parking area and watch the people enjoy the palace area (despite there being a ramp down)! Here are the pictures from the Generalife area.
Then we proceeded to walk down the slope from Generalife (J) along path that runs on outside by I and D which is throught the Medina towards the main attractions (A) on the map which are the Church, Palace of Carlos V (Museum of Fine Arts), Nasrid Palace and the Alcazaba. The Medina is an area where there used to be houses and is now more of a archeological site.
Now down in area A, we were able to walk around and get acquainted with the rest of the Alhambra. We decided at that time to buy tickets for the next day (which the ticket office was sold out of) through Viator (tour company) for a self guided tour of the Alhambra. This is also the day we leave Granada so we are coming back at 10am – luckily we had already arranged a late check out from the hotel! So then we walked back to the hotel down the hill = much better than going up! That took us about 45 minutes of walking down roads that are not usually used within the park area which was quite nice – no sun beating down on us!
Now back at hour hotel RESTING, not that we had not walked enough today, I had the BRILLIANT idea, as it was such a nice day and there were very few clouds, meaning it would be a clear night, unlike yesterday with the rain, that why do we not buy the Alhambra (Nasrid Palace) at Night tickets from the official website? So we made a quick decision at 7pm to do so – which meant we had to be there at 9:30pm and we still needed dinner! We were lucky as we got some of the last tickets as when I went back onto the website to look up accessibility information it was sold out! So off we flew in a Spanish world where they do not eat until 8pm and eat very SLOW dinners! We had already had a picnic today so we were looking for something a bit more substantial after all our walking. The hotel restaurant did not meet our dining tastes so we went to find a restaurant I had seen on our walk back from the Alhambra and much to my normal directional sense, I could not figure out where I had seen it. However we happened on another restaurant that would suit us just fine and they did gluten free too! By now it was 8:45pm so we explained to the waiter we needed a fast dinner and he complied – I had caprese salad and Andrew had pasta – both very fast meals. We were right next to a taxi stand and got a taxi very fast up to the lower part of the Alhambra and got to the check-in post at 9:45pm – phew! Only one problem – all the staff where quite excitedly talking to me in Spanish and I did not understand! Ah, I get it – there are stairs down to where I need to be. They will help me and I will go first – so basically that LONG line of about 100 people that have waited for an hour to get in? They can wait until I go down the stairs! I was very thankful that we did have someone interpret this to us – the lady was very nice and helpful! So down the HIGH stairs we went – I was dreading going back up them at the end of the night as my body was tired! Oh wow – it was worth it though – what a beautiful building! Here are our pictures of the Nasrid Palace at night. Oh and one thing to add – after the first 4 pictures below, they whisked us away around the back of the pool area and where it was ramped into the courtyard where the spitting dogs were. We were the only people there plus a security guard. That is why there is no one else in the pictures. We thought this very strange – we were alone for about 30 minutes – we later found out from a different security guard who spoke English that the other 98 people would be joining us – they went on a tour of the back that is not accessible – so take lots of pictures now! We then tried to find a taxi to take us down the hill and could not find one so we started walking! Luckily the Alhambra bus came by instantly, rumbling along so we got on – it was a very rough ride down into the main square of the town through little streets and around corners (it was now 11pm) however we made it in one piece! We then walked the 4 blocks to the hotel with one urgent stop along the way…
And for those paying attention – to get out of the Nasrid Palace there was a ramp at the exit which I took up to the courtyard where the entrance is during the day. So now I know where to go tomorrow for our tickets to see the Palace during the day! Good night!