🇪🇸 Seville & Granada

SEVILLE

On New Years Day we bid farewell to Portugal. We were pleasantly surprised at how nice the 2.5 hour drive from the Algarve to Seville was. A nice straight highway clear of cars. I think we may have seen around 20 cars of the road. It was a nice scenic drive as it is a high agricultural area.

The city of Seville is a tropical oasis of lavish green gardens . The prettiest city we have been to. The streets are lined with orange trees. The oranges are harvested in February to be used for marmalade. It is full of the most jaw dropping parks which contain well maintained gardens, statues, monuments, ponds and fountains.

It doesn’t drain you of energy like Madrid did. There are no tall sky scrapers or over bearing buildings. The warm winter sun spills onto the wind paved streets. The streets are very clean and life moves at a relaxed pace. We loved the soothing sound of clip clopping hooves that rings from the streets. Horse and carriages prance through the  parks and streets carrying tourists adding a blissful air to this magical city.

There is so much to see in the historic centre of the city. It houses the third biggest cathedral in the world. Many tourists come to visit which is why we had to line up for at least 50 minutes to get in. Just next to the cathedral there is a stone castle. Whilst waiting in line I watched two gypsy woman try to pass off a sprig of good new year holly to unsuspecting tourists but be warned if you take it they will expect you to pay and then ask for more money. There are many things to watch out for here in Seville. It is a high area for pick pockets (which we think we saw) and parking is very hard to find. Some guides say you could drive around for 2 days before finding a park in summer. On our arrival into Seville we circled the city for an hour looking for a park. We were a little alarmed when men and women walked out of no where trying to usher us into small parking areas. Rob had read about this and then they ask for money. On our second day we realised its all perspective  what you are used to and prior knowledge. These homeless people are just trying to make a living. They have found a gap in the market. Parking is tough to find so they willingly help you and in return you give them a few euro better then begging but at the same time a little confronting at first.

Seville is definitely the most beautiful garden city in Spain, before coming here we personally didn’t think too much of Spain. The plaza in Seville is just magnificent. It has mosaic tiles of each province surrounded by a canal with paddle boats, a courtyard lined with horses and carriages and an exquisite fountain. We believe winter is the best time to visit as it is extremely hot here in summer.  We sampled some great gelati – fresh basil and lime and some amazing apple and cinnamon  scones. Seville is also the most expensive city in Spain to stay in. Our accommodation had a very vintage Spanish feel to it. It had a cute outdoor courtyard in the middle of it but very expensive compared to our last place in the Algarve with jaw dropping views.

GRANADA

Once again our road trip from Seville to Granada was very scenic and thank goodness a nice drive. We drove along the mountain range not over or through it just beside it. I kept a close eye on the mountain range the whole way. Rob now has realised if the road trip is going to work he has to slow down to 90 kilometres at the slightest sign of a curve in the road. I think I heard him say “I have precious cargo on board so big fellow go round”. Nice to think that he still see me as precious after 10 years of marriage or maybe it is just his motto of “Happy wife, Happy Life”! Anyway I am now feeling more comfortable with travelling on the roads here. ( We are even planning our next big trip away hopefully in 3 years time) The hills were lined with olive trees and the warm winter sun shone through our car window as we sang our way to Granada. As we got closer we noted the Sierra Nevada mountain range had snow capped peaks. Crossing our fingers for warm weather as our car didn’t come with snow tyres.

Our AirBnB host in Granada once again didn’t speak any English so once again it was a game of charades. This accommodation is perfect and nicely decorated. Our window over looks the mountains. Outside our apartment is the Fun School for kids Happy English and opposite it is the the CoFamily Cowork Office where you can work and take your child to work with you. (what a great idea for young working parents – you can watch your child play and from the comfort of your desk)

We came to Granada to visit Alhambra which is a fortified hilltop Moorish castle but we were unable to get tickets as it is very popular. We thought during the winter months it would be easy to visit without booking but we were wrong. It was kind of a blessing as instead we did the hilltop walk to view Alhambra from a distance this was such a beautiful experience in the early morning walking up steep thin winding streets to the top of a village. The view took our breath away just like the walk. It was so peaceful and scenic. The hilltop walk felt like heaven. We passed a small morning market. There was so much to admire, old doors, stone paths, old stair ways, drinking fountains and vines that spilled over old broken walks. No wonder exercise seems too easy. On our way back we walked along the old creek, looked in the old silk market and explored the historical street where we found the old hospital with again beautiful mosaic tiles on the walls.