Alhambra

Even if you only manage to get tickets for the night through the www.alhambratickets.com site, do not worry. It is magic to see the Alhambra rooms lit with very focused lights … the atmosphere is better than in the morning and there is much less folks, at least in May. I do not know whether this is true for all months …

Important to know: You cannot go to the other parts like Generalife, etc. at night.

I’ve dreamed about going here since I was little.

Alhambra remains one of the most extraordinary and rewarding collections of buildings and gardens on the continent. The Alhambra complex started life in the 11th century as a basic structure of bush coloured walls and fortified towers. Its strategic location on the inaccessible hill of al-Sabikah attracted Mohammed I, the founder of the Nasrid dynasty, who set-up a hydraulic system of aqueducts and cisterns to support an independent township. The most spectacular period of Nasrid architecture came in the 14th century and introduced the Palacio de los Leones and the Palacio de Comares. The Palacio de Carlos V and the Convento de San Francisco are undeniably beautiful in their own right and heighten the Alhambra’s sense of history. After Carlos V left in the mid 16th century the whole site gradually fell into ruin and went on to suffer terrible abuse at the hands of Napoleon’s troops, who were stationed in Granada in 1812. After the release of Washington Irving’s book ‘Tales of the Alhambra’, put Granada firmly on the tourist map and the Spanish government finally allotted funds for the restoration of the site (this project remains on-going).

There is an on-going world-wide vote for the next 7 Wonders of the World, since only one of the original is still standing (the Pyramids of Egypt).

Alhambra is one of the 21 finalists, so go vote for it, and for your other 6 picks! Voting ends July 7, 2007.

http://www.new7wonders.com/index.php

You have to see a world wonder right :D

beware the scamming gypsy types
if they say the car park is full/ closed, stil go and check

You feel like a moorish princess in these gorgeously designed halls…

Make sure you get a day ticket and buy early. This place sells out almost every day of the year!!

It’s facinating – great architecture, gardens, and stories. So not miss it! Enjoy Granada, what a truly amazing place!!!

The highlight of a tour of Granada (and arguably Spain) – I’d schedule almost a day here to drink in all of the detail.

Flamenco music and dancing…obnoxious men who throw rocks at innocent girls….lots of Spanish…long tlks about Mortar Board and the Chorale.