The Alhambra

[Susan Umberger]

We purchased tickets online for the Alhambra, although we could easily have purchased them on our prior day in Granada www.alhambradegranada.org/en/ ;.  But we wanted to arrive early and chose that time block and we had an early palace tour.  What gardens!  What beauty!  What views!  We drove there, parked in the main parking lot adjacent to the ticket office and walked in.  We had a guidebook, and managed to find our way around the most popular viewpoints, and some that were maybe not so popular.  Built in the 9th century, added to in the 12th, and thereafter, it is a stunning fort, garden, and palace.  We used the red minibus to ride down to the city of Granada and back up to the St. Nicholas viewpoint so we could admire the fort from another angle.  This was a truly lovely day--we had snacks with us, and water, and really enjoyed imagining the lives of the men and women who lived there...