Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

On August 15, 2018September 24, 2018 By treesatravelsLeave a comment

August 13, 2018

So the end of Summer was coming to a close. It had been over two months that I got to spend in Spain with Caoliang and it was time to go back to Texas. My flight was booked out of Barcelona and luckily we planned it where Caoliang would also have a couple days off before my departure. With this time off and departure flight from Barcelona, we saw it as a chance to see the city together, since I didn’t get the chance to when Caoliang was working there. So on August 13, we boarded a 9 am train from Alicante to Barcelona.

With not so many days there, we tried to fit in as much as we could in those two nights. Arriving at 2pm, we got ourselves to our hotel to put our things down. We stayed at the Principal B&B which was very cute and cozy! Being that it was a bed and breakfast, there were only 9 rooms in those whole place. I loved it that it was quiet and very comfortable. One of the things I loved the most was the big bed! (In Alicante, Caoliang and I were sleeping on two single sized beds that weren’t on the same level. Trying to have a cozy night’s sleep in Alicante was nearly impossible!) After resting a bit and freshening up, we headed out to see some of the city. Again, I was so thankful the sun didn’t go down until late in Spain!

Barcelona is known for its art and famous architecture. One of the famous people in Barcelona, is Antoni Gaudi. He is an architect from Catalonia and one of the best known practitioners of Catalan Modernism. Most of his pieces are in Barcelona. We first headed to Casa Vicens Gaudi, the first house he ever designed.

“A UNESCO World Heritage side, this first home by the genius behind Modernisme is the embryo of a universal style. However, before it came experimentation, and that is why Casa Vicens is sundry and modern: In it, Catalan, Islamic, Japanese and English inspirations and techniques come together.”

Stockbroker Manuel Vicens i Montaner hired a 31-year-old Gaudi to design his summer home. Like the excerpt mentioned, in this home, there were many different influences to Gaudi’s designs. To me, the house was so colorful and whimsical. It was almost like a house you would see in a fictional story book. I couldn’t believe this was something that was designed in the late 1800s! The current structure is actually half of the original house and half of an extension. The extension part is painted all white and represented more like a museum while Gaudi’s designed half is left in its original form. I could only imagine what it was like to live in such a fun looking house! The cost to get in was 8 euros a person and we stayed for about an hour.

Afterwards, we walked over to Casa Mila. This is the last private residence Gaudi designed in the early 1900s. Going into all of these cool places is more expensive than you may think. So at Casa Mila we just enjoyed the architecture from the outside. It was really different than any building you would see on the streets of Barcelona, or anywhere! The edges were rounded and curved and there weren’t many hard edges.

Another building we visited after that, was Casa Batllo. This one was also designed by Gaudi and his assistants in the early 1900s. This was has a few local nicknames like “dragon back” or “house of bones.” I really wanted to go into this one but with such a long queue and an entrance fee of 28 euros, we had to pass. But even from the outside, you could see how unique it was from its neighboring buildings.

Just walking around Barcelona was rather nice. It was so different from the two smaller, beach cities we were at all summer. Our walk then led us to Mercado de la Boqueria. Unfortunately, most of the market shops were closed but we at least got a snack of some fresh juice, for one euro, and a small basket of mixed sausage slices for three euro.

Anyone that has been to Barcelona has been to La Rambla. La Rambla is a very busy street filled with shops, tourists, and pick-pocketers! Again, I think I have said this before, when a place is known for thievery, I don’t like to stay in it very long. With my eyes turned on even more than usual, we check out La Rambla just for the sake of seeing what it looks and feels like. Not very unique, to me, just a place with a bunch of shops and trees covering the street. Good to see, but definitely not sticking around.

Once we walked south on La Rambla, it put us in the Gothic Quarter. Here was a ramen shop Caoliang really wanted to revisit. When we first got there it was still closed so it gave us a chance to walk around the neighborhood. I definitely liked the Gothic Quarter just because of the small streets and more unique shops.

It is kind of funny we don’t eat Spanish food for every meal when in Spain, but I guess we just miss other foods, mostly Japanese, so much! The ramen was good and the shop was really cute. Half day in Barcelona, check! With full tummies and tired feet, we headed back to the B&B to get some rest for our full day the next morning.

August 14, 2018

With this being our only full day, we had to be a little selective about what we saw. I originally wanted to go to the Park Guell. After reading so many reviews and things about having to purchase a ticket for the “main” interests of the park, we figured it might be better to spend our time elsewhere being that we didn’t have a ticket and the ones available weren’t at convenient times for us. So instead, we started our day by visiting the infamous Sagrada Familia. The Sagrada Familia is a large, unfinished Roman Catholic church designed by Gaudi.

This structure is iconic to Barcelona, drawing in thousands of visitors every season. For this very reason, the day we arrived, the tickets were sold out. Darnit. Oh well. We walked around the church from the outside trying to take all of its greatness in. I thought it was so whimsical, like Gaudi’s first house, with its curved edges and even colorful peaks!

With all this sightseeing and being in Spain, we had to make a stop for paella lunch! A friend had recommended a spot near the church that turned out to be pretty good even though near a very touristy attraction. After a delicious lunch, we then headed to the Arco de Triunfo. The walk over was pretty scenic. Caoliang even felt familiar in some spots. Our time at the arche was, unique to say the least.

So remember how I said theivery is a big this in Barcelona? Well the park in front of the arche has many tourists and locals. But because this is such a huge tourist attraction, many thieves take the chance to get you when you are distracted by taking a photo. While we were hanging out here, we too took some photos. Once we decided to leave, a man in regular clothes approached us, flashed his police badge and told us (in very broken English) that he is a cop and that he saw someone try to get into our bag! What?! At first I was hesitant to believe this man was a real cop. What if this was a set up in itself! After thirty minutes, we got everything sorted out. The man was a cop undercover and him and his partner were catching thieves in the area. Luckily, nothing was stolen but the officer told us that in Spain, even the attempt to steal is still a crime. So after some papers were signed, we were on our way. Yikes! That was unexpected! Thank goodness we still had all our belongings.

The afternoon took a little detour with that incident but luckily, nothing was taken and we were still in good spirits. We then took a stroll through El Born neighborhood and found ourselves enjoying a nice cup of coffee at Nomad. I’m sure you could guess by now that Caoliang and I enjoy our coffee. We aren’t coffee snobs by any means, but a good cup of joe is definitely needed now and then.

The rest of the day was pretty relaxed. We liked the neighborhood El Born so much we spent most of our afternoon there. We walked around to different boutiques, enjoying the small alley ways and beautiful architecture of this neighborhood. Our wanderings also took us into the Cathedral of Barcelona. Anytime I am in a European church, I am amazed at how big they are and how old they are! Could you imagine when these were being built?!

Barcelona is also a coastal city with a city beach that is often crowded with locals and tourists. We headed down there just to check it out but no swimming for us. Something else I really loved about Barcelona was all the cool street art! There were awesome stickers, paintings, and graffiti scattered through out the neighborhoods. Too cool.

August 15, 2018

I really enjoyed the time we got to have in such a unique city. All the special things about Barcelona, like its architecture and deep history, really makes me understand why so many people fall in love with this city. The next day was primarily for traveling. Caoliang and I went separate ways as I headed to the airport and him to the train station.

One more city to add to our list!! I’m so thankful that we got the chance to spend this time together. Now only a couple more days and then off to Canada!

xx.
t

The Vatican City, Italy

On July 4, 2018July 18, 2018 By treesatravelsLeave a comment

July 4, 2018

Besides the Colosseum and all of the Ancient Roman ruins, what else do people tend to go to Rome to see? The Vatican City! The Vatican City is an independent state that is located within Rome. With only 110 acres of land and 1,000 people living there, it is considered the smallest state in the world! But that wasn’t what I was really interested in. Being raised Roman Catholic, it is a huge thing to be able to see the Vatican City. Here, the pope lives and carries out many important duties for the Roman Catholics.

First on the list, St. Peter’s Square! St. Peter’s Square is located right in front of St. Peter’s Basilica. St. Peter is one of Jesus’ twelve disciples and plays a very important role in the beginning of the Church. St. Peter was also the very first Bishop of Rome and pope. St. Peter’s Square was very big and mostly empty, besides the tourists. It offered a great view of the Basilica but besides that, there was not much else. The importance of the square, I suppose, lies in its purpose. I believe here, the pope sometimes holds large masses for special celebrations.

One of the things we had to see in the Vatican City was the Sistine Chapel. This place was something I only read about. With research, I found out that the chapel is located within the Vatican Museum. So, you guessed it, we had to get a ticket for that. We booked the night we arrived in Rome and luckily got a ticket via TicketsRome. Two tickets to enter the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel cost us 59 euros. Our entry time was about 1pm. After we had met the group and the guide, he walked us in as a large group, had us wait a couple minutes, then came back and gave us each entry tickets and set us free. It seemed like a sketchy procedure but it was legit.

The museum was SO crowded. I love museums and I go to them as often as I can, but when a place is this crowded I get agitated and flustered. Even though we purchased informational audio guides (8 euros a person), the inability to relax or even look at artwork in peace was so uncomfortable.

The Vatican Museum had many artifacts, sculptures and artworks. These were more than just Roman history. There was a whole section on Egyptian history as well. The museum and overcrowding was so overwhelming. I think Coaliang and I were so frustrated, we kind of just tried to find our way to the chapel and get out! The museum was set up in a way where there was no direct path to the chapel. You had to walk through at least half the museum to find the entrance to the chapel.

The Sistine Chapel was not what I expected. I’ve gone in my fair share of chapels and this one didn’t have anything I was used to seeing. It was a huge room with very colorful paintings everywhere you looked. There were no chairs, no clear alter, and tons of people. (There were no photos allowed and many museum staff so sorry for no pictures!) I did like seeing the iconic paintings of stories in the Bible I grew up with. It was even good to point out things to Caoliang since he knew of the stories and history from our marriage prep. We didn’t spend too long in there, again, the crowds, but it was interesting to learn that this is where the cardinals gather to vote for the new pope. I also learned The Sistine Chapel is considered the pope’s chapel. The fame that this chapel gets from most of the world, is probably the painting of the ceiling, The Last Judgement by Michelangelo.

I think after we saw the chapel, Caoliang and I were done with the museum. It felt a bit suffocating to be in there and we just wanted to get some air. Museums and learning history is great but when you’ve seen hours and hours of artwork and read so much information, it starts to get a bit much.

Before our next big item to see, St. Peter’s Basilica, we wanted to get a late lunch. Like I said before, picking the right place to eat on a trip is tricky. This meal, we didn’t do so well either. We ordered two quick pizzas from a place I didn’t even care to remember and they were terrible. I’ve had frozen pizzas better than this! The pizza was hard to cut (or even tear), the cheese was almost nonexistent and the best thing I had at this place was my bottled iced tea! Again, choosing a place near a tourist attraction, not the smartest idea. I think after this situation we will learn to be a little more picky about our restaurant selection.

After the massive crowds at the Vatican Museum, a part of me wanted to skip the Basilica and just get away from the crowds. Luckily that part of me was a tiny part! After getting over myself, we headed over to the Basilica. The entrance to the cathedral is free but you have to be in the right dress. Thankfully, Coaliang had mentioned before about the dress code so we were sure to wear the appropriate clothes this day. In the summer, it is often men and women wear shorter shorts and smaller tops, but at the Basilica you have to be sure you are covered up! To enter, you must have your shoulders covered, no low cut tops and you have to have your knees covered (or at least wear shorts long enough to hover over your knees). When we were entering, we saw a man got turned away because his shorts were too short. They also sold these paper panchos if you needed more coverage. Thankfully for us, we were good (but sweaty).

When entering the Basilica you just immediately go into a state of awe. The ceilings are so high and so decorated. Everything was so ornate and detailed. It was amazing to be in THE church of all Catholic churches. One of the reasons this church was named after St. Peter is that his body is buried here. I read it is under the main altar. There was a mass going on at the time we entered so we couldn’t see the whole church, but just being in the space is breathtaking enough.

Being in there I reflected and thought about why Catholic churches are so big and grand. I then came to the conclusion, maybe it’s because man was trying to capture the beauty and grandeur of what Heaven would be like. I could be wrong, but in my mind it was a pretty good fit. St. Peter’s Basilica was purely magnificent. I’m happy we didn’t pass this up. After a few prayers and purchased items from the shop, we headed out to see parts of Rome we missed.

Back to Rome…

The ticket we had to enter the Colosseum the day before, was also good to enter the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill. We didn’t have time to make it the day before by closing time so we really wanted to be sure we take advantage of the entry ticket this day (it was our last day in Rome)! We didn’t think we would spend so much time in the Vatican as well but by the time we got out of there it was already 5pm! The only way to get to Palatine Hill in time was by taxi. So I fired up the app MyTaxi and we were off!

With a little bit of traffic, we made it just before 6pm (they stop letting people in around this time since it closes at 7pm). While we were there, we overheard a tour guide saying the Palatine Hill was like the Beverly Hills of its time. The rich people would live on the hill with the “clean air” and everyone else below in the city with the “unclean air.”. The hill now looked like a bunch of broken brick walls. It was interesting to see but without a guide, pamphlet or much knowledge, it was hard to get a complete feel for where we were. The hill then led to the Roman Forum, again, cool to see but hard to know everything about it. Also I think the view from above was better than being actually in the Roman Forum. After this, we walked to the Trevi Fountain.

The fountain was so crowded, as you could probably guess. It was very large with clean water and nice to look at, but the crowd that surrounded it made it impossible to get up close. I really didn’t want to get that close just because the amount of people (can you tell I don’t like crowds). To give you some history on the fountain; it was designed by the Italian architect Nicola Salvi and is 86 feet high by 161 feet wide. Also it is the largest Baroque fountain in the city. After some pictures and videos we headed out of there.

Going back to the issue of finding good food while traveling…after the crap pizza in the Vatican, we were determined to eat something good! We reached out to our AirBnB host to see if he had any local suggestions. He told us about this place called Sora Margherita located in an area called the ghetto of Rome. Thankfully we were right in the neighborhood and walked the short distance over. When we arrived, the lady told us the next available table wouldn’t be free until 9:30 pm, it was 8:45 pm at the time. A 45 minute wait? This better be worth it. So to kill time, we walked around the corner and found a street bench with decent people watching. Once we returned, we saw the place was still packed and still busy. It had looked like only two servers were working and the place was small!

When we got seated, it was in a tiny table that was cornered in by other tables. This place was really local. There was nothing glitzy about it. Just harsh bright light, tight tables, lots of Italian chatter and yummy looking platters. With Antonello’s recommendation of the fried artichoke, we ordered that to start followed by fried codfish (a popular dish) and a pasta with red meat sauce. The food was much better than food we’ve had on the trip so far! Thank goodness! Since the tight space was becoming a bit much, we enjoyed our meal and then headed out. We were glad to end our Rome trip with at least a belly full of good food at a place with a lot of local charm!

Wow what a city! After the two full days in Rome, our backs were sweaty and feet were sore, but it was just the beginning of our trip! Rome, you made us feel like we were walking through history but now onto a smaller, quieter city for some different feels. Next stop, Florence!

xx
t.

Malaga, Spain

On July 3, 2018July 3, 2018 By treesatravels1 Comment

June 16- July 1, 2018

The time has come! Finally I get to spend time with my new husband! As many of you may, or may not know, Caoliang had to leave back to work a couple days after we got married. It was tough to say good-bye, again, but with this situation happening so many times now, I kind of got used to it. It also helped that I was going to see him a short two weeks after though.

I’ve been asked before if I was excited to go to Spain to see him. The answer is a mixture of yes and no. Yes of course it was nice to go see my husband but a little bit of no because I feel like this chase across oceans have just become part of our normal life as a long distance couple.

Anyways, mixed feelings aside, I would be able to spend a good chunk of the summer with my husband and that would be great! The first leg of the summer would be spent in Malaga, Spain. Malaga is a coastal city on the southern coast of Spain. I was excited it would be a beach city because we all know how much I love the beach! We would spend two weeks there before have a two week break and then move to another city.

Don’t worry, I don’t plan to write a day-by-day post about each day in Malaga! Instead, in this post I will tell you about some of the things I’ve been able to enjoy while in the first city of Malaga.

CASTILLO GIBRALFARO

According to Google, Castillo Gibralfaro contains ruins of a Moorish castle fortress high atop Mount Gibralfaro which offers walkable walls and views of the city. Well said Google! This was exactly what it was. Caoliang had gone here before me so I figured I’d go check it out while he had left for work. From our apartment, I took a ten minute bus ride headed near the castle. Once at the base, it took me about a twenty minute uphill walk to get to the castle. Luckily I had read reviews about the walk and wore comfortable shoes! The views along the way were rather beautiful though. From midway, you could already see the harbor, park below, and even a bullfighting ring. Once to the top, it costed 3.5 euros to enter the castle grounds. I made it all that way so I figured I had to go inside then! Other than the castle walls, there was a small bar, bathroom, and small room that had artifacts, historical clothing, and a paper model of the castle and surrounding lands. I probably spent around 30 minutes to an hour here. Really it was just stone walls and views, little vegetation or anything beautiful inside. The views of the city were pretty cool though. The only thing I wish I brought was a hat! The sun was so strong on my forehead!! It was really that, that made my trip there a bit exhausting. The thought of having a too tanned forehead made me not stay at the castle’s edge very long. After a quick restroom break (which was pretty clean) I headed back down to ground level. Would I recommend this castle to other travelers? Hm for 3.5 euros why not. But, if you only wanted to see the view, I think that midpoint view was pretty good already. Also something I really enjoyed was walking through Jardines de Pedro Luis Alonso on the way down. The flowers and greenery were really beautiful this time of year.

PLAYA LA MALAGUETA
Malaga beach was the first beach I got the pleasure of visiting. It seemed like the most popular beach because it was the closest to the city. It was very crowded with sunbathers. The odd thing I noticed was that not many people actually got into the ocean! You would think with so much sun you would need to cool off in the water but nope! I did hear the water was very cold but it was still so unusual for me to see the ocean so empty. I suppose the Spanish only like to soak up the sun. Another new thing to me that I noticed was the freedom to be topless. I had never been on a beach where people were so free! Aside from the crowd, I did like it how Malaga Beach was pretty clean and also had shower facilities for beach goers.

CAC MALAGA, MALAGA’S CONTEMPORARY ARTS MUSEUM
It is very typical of me to visit museums when going to a new city. One, they are a good way to spend the day indoors, and two, it makes you see the new city/culture from a different, artistic perspective. Luckily for me, the CAC was free! So after a short bus ride, I found myself in a large, white building with rooms divided by free standing walls. Contemporary art is one of my favorite types of art to enjoy. I feel it is more relatable than traditional art and the chances of seeing something completely new are pretty high. A couple pieces I enjoyed at this museum were a hanging structure of deflated, silver balloons, a neon sign that said “Naughty but Nice” and a sparkly, 3-D ball that hung from the ceiling. All of these pieces were very modern and were something I could imagine in a high class hotel or something. The museum wasn’t too big. I only spent about thirty minutes here before heading out. Biggest perk of this place, FREE ART!

MALAGA POLE & AERIAL STUDIO
So everyone knows doing aerial fabric has become part of my everyday life. One of the things about leaving Houston that is a bit sad is that I wouldn’t be near my aerial studio! But before leaving, Caoliang had found an aerial studio that wasn’t too far from his apartment. I quickly sent them a message to see if it would be possible to train there. To my surprise, one of the instructors, Lai messaged me straight back, despite it being 4am Malaga time!! Awesome!! I was so excited to have the A-ok to train here for a small fee. This really put my mind at ease for the time I would be away from my Houston studio. Trust me, when you train each week and then out of it for more than a month, your body truly feels the weight! At least this way, I would have a place to remind my muscles what it felt like to be on fabric. Since my time in Malaga, I have been able to come here a few times to train. The ceiling is much lower than what I am used to at Hunter Dance Center so it has been a lot of adjusting my usual practice. Lai, though, has been super sweet and a nice friend to have in a new city. She is Filipino and had moved to Malaga six years ago. She is the pole instructor here and even let me join in on one of her beginner classes. It was so difficult but also really fun! I could see how one could get addicted to pole. After getting used to the bruising first though! I was really happy to find this studio and have them be so kind to share their space with me during my time in Malaga.

With my two weeks spent in Malaga, the people from this studio really made this city special for me. Not only did they want to train with me, they also let me join their circle of friends in going to the beach, having meals, and celebrating local celebrations. Special thanks to Lai, Dora, Javi and Ursula (and all their friends) for being so welcoming!!

NOCHE DE SAN JUAN (June 23)
This night is the even of the birth of St. John the Baptist. It is a big celebration here in Malaga and I was lucky enough to be invited by Lai to join her and her friends for a night on the beach. When reading about it online, I saw that traditionally on this night, people celebrate with BBQs and bonfires. They also step over the embers or burn paper to symbolize “out with the old” and to have a new fresh start to a new season. We arrived at the beach about 9pm and left about 1 am. During this time, we watched the sun disappear and the moon come to life, bonfires and fireworks light up the night sky, tons of snacks and food to share, and light hearted conversations to bring in this local celebration.

So my time here in Malaga is coming to an end. Today is Sunday the first of July and tomorrow we are leaving for our Italian honeymoon! I’ve really enjoyed being close to a beach and having such sunny weather everyday. Also it has been amazing to be able to wake up with Caoliang and go to bed with him every night the past two weeks. The apartment we are staying in is so spacious and has everything we need. It really makes me see how life could be for us some day when we have our own place to call home and not have to leave it every few weeks! Like I mentioned before, my new friends I met through the aerial studio have really made this city for me. As a new person to the city, and only staying in the city for a few weeks, it is hard to make a routine – usual hang out, familiar faces, things to do each day – things many may not even think about, but when you switch around to new “homes” every few months, it is one of the challenges. With Lai and her group of friends, they have really made this city special for me. So I want to end my Malaga post with a massive thank you to them. Thank you so much for welcoming me with open arms and spending time with me as if you guys have known me much longer than just two weeks!!

Well Malaga it’s been fun but it’s time for us to leave soon. Thank you for keeping us safe, happy, fed, and surrounded by sun and love.

xx
t

Granada, Spain

On June 25, 2018July 1, 2018 By treesatravelsLeave a comment

June 25, 2018

Granda is a city in Spain’s southern region of Andalusia and only about 1 hour and 45 minutes (by bus) away from Malaga. On this day, Caoliang had a day off so we decided to go a little outside the city to see something different. Luckily for us, it was also our wedding anniversary! Happy one month of marriage to us! Only forever more to go! Anyways, with so many good things said about Granada, we had to go and see for ourselves. The bus ride wasn’t too bad there. Once we arrived, we saw some friends from Caoliang’s work that were also spending the day off in Granada. The four of us shared a taxi from the bus station to the city center.

For lunch, we went with one of Caoliang’s colleague’s recommendation for food (thanks Tyler). The place was called Bodegas Castaneda. It is a tapas bar with mostly standing space at the bar and huge pieces of ham that were hanging from the ceiling (typically seen in tapas bars). Caoliang and I love eating tapas! They are so small and perfect for sharing and trying new things at such an affordable price. We ordered about five plates and received one of the house as well. Some of the plates we had were the spanish omelette, homemade croquettes that was served with peppers, roasted pork with cheese on a piece of baguette, and ham. I usually don’t drink during the day but after Caoliang ordered a glass of sangria, I guess I had to get one too. The food was very satisfying! The food is so simple and straightforward but really nice and filling. Also everything costing us only 16 euros felt good too!

Once we finished lunch, we headed to the Alhambra since our entrance time was 2:30 pm. We had heard that they only sell a certain amount of tickets per day so we were lucky that purchasing our tickets online was so simple. One thing that was not very simple was getting to the Alhambra! I put in the destination into my Google Maps but, of course, Google showed me where it was but we didn’t know where the entrance was! Luckily we left with ample amount of time. After following the wind, some tourists, and signs – we found our way to the entrance but another confusion came up! Our ticket said our entrance time was 2:30pm. I had thought that meant our entrance to the whole Alhambra grounds, but no, it meant to the palace! Luckily I had asked the ticket lady (with 15 minutes before our entrance time) where to enter and she had told me to go ahead and go in and go straight to the palace. So even though we sped walked in the direction she had said, it still wasn’t super clear where the palace was! The place was so big! It was like walking into a little town. Thankfully, after all the confusion, we found the proper line and had made it in time. Phew!

So according to Wiki, “The Alhambra is a Nasrid “palace city”. It was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1984. It is certainly Granada’s most emblematic monument and one of the most visited in Spain. It consists of a defensive zone, the Alcazaba, together with others of a residential and formal state character, the Nasrid Palaces and, lastly, the palace, gardens and orchards of El Generalife.”

We started off in one of the palaces. The palace was very crowded. I personally don’t enjoy such cramped spaces. I feel like you can’t even enjoy where you are when you are continuously dodging other people. The palace walls, floors, archways and entrances reflected the Islamic history of the Alhambra. The place was so huge it was like a maze. We had no idea which route we were suppose to walk. We were just trying to enjoy the space, following different crowds, looking for interesting views, and then suddenly we found ourselves in the exit! One of the palace’s pathways led out to an outdoor garden. We had thought it was part of the palace grounds but when we realized the way we came out was the only way to go back in, we turned back to see a sign that said “do not enter”! Oh no! When we tried to explain to the lady sitting at that doorway what had happened, she was not having it. Even with the help of a Spanish speaker, this employee had no mercy for our accident. Seeing no point in arguing with her, we just threw up our hands and left. So a palace that usually people spend and hour to two hours in, we saw in about thirty minutes. Hmph! Oh well, there were a few other places in the Alhambra that was included in our ticket that we headed to instead.

The day was so hot. I mean SO HOT! Being that everything we saw this day was outside, we spent literally the whole day sweating. I have no idea why I even spend time to do my hair in the morning. Hah!

Like mentioned above, the Alhambra also has a defensive zone called the Alcazaba. This was like an empty castle with pathways that led up to the edges where you could have a nice view of the city, but with no protection from the sun. The views were nice but man was the sun strong! Needless to say, we didn’t spend too much time there. Afterwards, we found ourselves in the General Life. The name is really confusing for us. I kept thinking, what is this General Life?

According to Wikipedia, “The Generalife is a garden area attached to the Alhambra which became a place of recreation and rest for the Granadan Muslim kings when they wanted to flee the tedium of official life in the Palace.” This was very beautiful. The flowers were all in bloom. Really lovely roses and leafy archways decorated the Generalife.

I feel like Granada probably has more to offer than just the Alhambra but with only a day to spend there, it really took up all of our time. With our bus to return to Malaga at 8 pm, we headed back to the city center to find a small bite to eat before heading back. Like I had said, Granada would be nice to stay for another day to see more of the city, but with our short visit, even with the small hiccup, was a really pleasant way to spend a day off together.

Tips for Alhambra: purchase tickets beforehand, make sure you have enough time to get there, and don’t accidentally walk out of the exit!!

treesa travels

Tag: summer2018

Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

The Vatican City, Italy

Malaga, Spain

Granada, Spain