Let's see, where was I? Oh yes, we had just spent less than 24 jam-packed hours in Valencia, when we hit the road for Granada. The five-hour drive between the two cities was one of the highlights of our trip! The scenery was out-of-this-world amazing. We snaked through tunnels, twisted around craggy mountains, and passed charming villages and towering castles. At one point, we got a little lost while looking for a gas station, turned down a deserted road, and then hopped a fence to a sketchy-looking property… and were rewarded with an insane view of the golden countryside. It was hard to tell where the blue sky met the ocean.
Around dusk, we entered Granada, a charming town nestled at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains and immediately fell in love. The city is full of winding stairs, cobblestone streets, music, and crisp mountain air. We checked into our hotel, the centrally located NH Collection, which was our favorite of the trip! We were upgraded to a corner room with giant windows that we could throw open; sometimes it felt like were lounging right on top of the city. After a tapas dinner of beer and fried seafood, we explored the city by moonlight.
The next day, we had tickets to the Alhambra, the magnificent Moorish castle and major tourist site in town. (Tip: If you go, buy your tickets far in advance! They limit the amount of visitors per day, and it generally sells out weeks beforehand.) This place is a must-see, and there's so much to take in. We spent the entire day there, from around 1 until 8 p.m. or so.
We wandered around the fortress and into the main castle, which was breathtaking. Every room was filled with intricate tile work and carvings; Erik was in design heaven. In the late afternoon, we started getting hungry and happened across the Palador restaurant. What an amazing meal! We felt so lucky, feasting on almond gazpacho, wine, and jamon croquettes in the middle of the Alhambra's spectacular gardens.
After a full day of exploring and climbing hills, our muscles ached! We made a spur-of-the-minute decision to check out a nearby hammam, where we soaked in Moorish hot and cold pools. By far one of the best days of my life! We were loving Granada so much that we decided to stay one more day, which was Erik's birthday! We celebrated by sleeping in, eating delicious food, checking out the city, and seeing a passionate flamenco show in a cave. I don't know if I've ever seen Erik so happy.
The next morning, we packed up our stuff and hit the road again for the 2.5-hour drive to Seville. We got into the center city around 1 and had to drop off the car at 3, so we followed the tourists and parked in a random lot. It was hilarious: We sprinted past landmarks and booked it into the Plaza de Espana, laughing all the way. I felt like we were in the Amazing Race.
We rushed back to the car, got a little lost, and made it to the airport just in time. Phew. That concluded the Spanish leg of our trip, which was beyond amazing. We were off to Portugal!
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