First day in Granada

My first day in Granada, Spain

I slept in on Tuesday, February 22, 2011, and got up at 9:00 am. I checked e-mail, showered, changed, packed, and watched the news (earthquake in New Zealand). After paying the bill in cash, I left the hotel at 10:45 am and walked a different way to the train station. I took the three-hour MD (Media Distancia) train from Seville to Granada. Price was 24.80 euros ($34).


Here I am outside the tiny Granada train station. (Very French!) I bought my ticket to Madrid before I left the station to save time.		My hotel in Granada was the NH Inglaterra, one block from a main drag (Gran Via). It was very easy to find/reach from the train station!

I had booked a single room online, but when I arrived, they didn't have any. As a replacement, I was given room 307, a very roomy double. The price was the same: 49.20 euros ($67.85) per night (including tax and 30 minutes of wifi per day). The room had large windows/mini-balconies, comfy beds, a large closet, a minibar/minifridge, and a great TV (with lots of channels, including several in English!). Only negative: the room had a VERY STRONG SMELL. Even with "airing" (leaving the windows open), the smell didn't go away completely.
		I also really liked room 307's bathroom: roomy, clean, and with the most amenities I've ever seen (including shampoo, a shower cap, sponge, orange soap, a toothbrush, and toothpaste).
My first sight in Granada after storing my bag at the hotel was the Royal Chapel, where King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella are buried. Entrance was 3.50 euros ($4.80), and there were no pictures allowed. It was interesting to see the plain, ordinary caskets of these monarchs we learn about in school.

After the Royal Chapel, I toured the Granada Cathedral.. (Entrance was again 3.50 euros, $4.80). It was another large church. My favorite part: the priests' cloak/wardrobe room. Nifty to see all the priests' "lockers" and think of them changing for services :)

After the Royal Chapel and Cathedral, I followed the Rick Steves self-guided walk of Granada's old town. First stop was the Corral de Carbon, an old caravanserai. So nifty to imagine traders going through the keyhole gate and spending the night!

Next stop was the Alcaceria, a recreation of the old silk market.

Once inside the Alcaceria, it was just another tourist market. Ann Arborites, it's just like Nickels Arcade!
		In Plaza Nueva/Plaza Santa Ana, I found this plaque. Of course, Granada is a UNESCO World Heritage Site! (And as you know, if it's UNESCO, I'm there!)

I walked down the tiny Calle del Darro (left photo), along the Darro River, to the Paseo de los Tristes, a nice public patio/park below the Alhambra. I couldn't get over feeling like I was in France. It reminded me of a combination of Avignon and Eze!

I walked in the other direction, toward the newer town, and found El Corte Ingles, Burger King, Telepizza, and a great paseo scene. Since my hotel room had a mini-fridge, I bought orange juice, cans of pop, strawberry yogurt, bananas, donuts, and chocolate bars (including the very strange strawberry-flavored chocolate) at El Corte Ingles for 8.02 euros ($11), which I would eat over the next couple of days. For dinner, I went to my favorite Spanish restaurant, Fresc Co, only a couple of blocks from my hotel, where for 10.95 euros ($15), you get an unlimited salad bar buffet, pizza, fries, bread, au gratin potatoes, one drink (I had orange Fanta), chocolate ice milk (delish!), fruit, and strange desserts (kiwi tart and fruit pudding, neither of which I enjoyed).