devarae
100+ Posts
DAY TWELVE: GRANADA
This was one of our mostly unscheduled days. Aside from our reservations for an Alhambra Night visit (which weren’t until 10PM) we had decided to plan for everyone to be free to do what they felt like. Mom, Dad, Dave and I went out for a family breakfast (while Bob slept in) at Wild Food, a vegan cafe that is situated in a larger hotel (there is also a bar). The decor is all very modern and the food was quite good. Interestingly it looked like hotel guests had a different non-vegan menu as we saw several folks eating poached eggs!
But I was quite happy with my porridge, with banana, homemade peanut butter, and raisins. Mom had some really good vegan yogurt and a croissant, and Dave and Dad both tried toasts (one with hummus and avocado, one with vegan Nutella and berries) as well as porridge and a dramatic breakfast smoothie bowl served in a hollowed out pineapple!
After eating, I headed off solo on a hike. I wanted to try to follow the route outlined here.
https://slowtravelitalyspain.blogspot.com/2019/03/granada-day-5-silla-del-moro-llano-del.html which I sort of managed? It seemed as if my google maps and location tracker were not entirely accurate up in the hills! I still had a lovely time though, hiking up past the Alhambra, searching out the right road, watching the occasional local walking their dog or heading out for a bike ride.
It was refreshing to get up into a more natural setting (though not entirely wild, as I was usually within site of large fields of cultivated olive trees). I loved the views of the mountains, in particular! I just wished I’d had the energy and the time to go further-- especially because I never actually got to Llano del Perdiz.
But I had to turn back if I wanted to get home in time to meet Bob for lunch, so I headed back down, stopping briefly to poke my head in at the Carmin de los Martires gardens, which looked like a place I would have loved if I had time.
Back at the apartment I met Bob and we headed out to another Indian meal at Muglia2. We weren’t entirely sure what to do with the rest of the day, so we figured that a good meal would give us the stamina to decide. The meal was very good, and afterwards we decided that we wanted to go to the Science Museum after having heard about it from my Dad (who visited it on the day Mom, Bob and I went to the Hammam). There was a tropical butterfly house, which is something I’d always wanted to visit, but never had the chance to. I think there is probably a way to get there via bus, but we hadn’t done the research and were right near a taxi area, so we decided just to take a taxi, and then walk back. I think the taxi was about 6 euros? It was worth it for our peace of mind.
The Science Museum was very good, and everyone who worked there was SO NICE. This one docent came and met us right when we entered the giant complex and told us all about the different exhibits (in English) and helped us find everything we wanted to see. All the signs were in English, which was a nice surprise. It was also not at all crowded. Lots of local kids on school trips, and a number of other tourists, but a nice break from some of the more crowded sites!
As soon as we had our tickets we headed straight outside, through the park area, to the Butterfly House. This was a magical experience-- the building is fairly large and full of greenery and ponds with brightly colored carp and turtles. Every so often a fall of mist comes down from the ceiling. They had dishes of orange segments scattered around that the butterflies clearly enjoyed feeding at. And there were so many butterflies! I was particularly excited to see a bunch of Blue Morphos, which are stunningly bright. I think we must have wandered around in there for a good 45 minutes, and I could have stayed longer. There were probably about six other people in there during that time, not counting the museum staffperson.
We continued on, wandering through the park, checking out various mechanical displays demonstrating various types of waterworks, solar power, etc. There were a lot of very cool interactive exhibits that both kids and adults were enjoying! Eventually we headed back into the main building to check out some special exhibits, including one on science and music that I particularly enjoyed (I got to play a theremin!).
Finally, we headed over for the timed entry to the BioDome, which had cost extra but came highly recommended. We were very glad about that choice! It’s a very cool complex where you walk through a series of aquariums full of tropical fish, jellyfish, small sharks, rays, turtles and more. Then up into a wetlands section with beautiful toucans and parrots and other birds (free to fly around the large room above you) as well as some small primates. The habitats seemed quite extensive and well-equipped. There were also a number of smaller tanks with bright green and blue frogs, scorpions, lizards and snakes.
After that we decided it was time to start heading back to the apartment so we’d have time to rest and eat before our evening Alhambra trip. Our plan was to walk, and I think it took us about 30 minutes. It wasn’t necessarily the most attractive walk, but it was interesting to see another side of Granada-- the giant apartment complexes and somewhat grungier business sections.
Closer to the apartment, we spotted an amazing looking bakery and were lured inside where we picked up a small meringue-filled cake and an enormous Bomba de Nata. I think the name of the bakery is Dulce Angel. Both the cake and bomba were excellent and I kind of wished I had bought a couple more treats from there!
We rested up, had some leftovers for dinner, and at around 9PM we all headed up to catch a bus to the Alhambra. We’d planned to get off at the Justice Gate stop, but the driver encouraged us to get off at the one right before that (I think) that leads up to the corner of the Carlos V palace structure. That worked out fine. We were early, and no one else was in line yet, so we spent some time wandering the complex enjoying seeing things in a different light. I particularly enjoyed going into the large open center of the Carlos V palace, which was completely empty of any other visitors at that time. Looking up at the bright moon from the center of the open plaza was wonderful.
Eventually more folks seemed to be arriving so we got into line (in the same place we’d waited for our daytime entry). We were probably about 15 or 20 people from the start of the line. It looked as if there were some tour groups just leaving. I believe this 10PM entry is the only timeslot for individuals to visit at night. You can also visit the gardens at night, but it’s at the same time, so if you want to do both you’d need to go on two different days.
Finally at 10 we were allowed in! I was actually VERY thankful we’d gone during the day FIRST, because that way I knew the layout and where the different rooms were. Which was helpful, because I was able to walk briskly ahead of the other guests and reached the Court of Lions before ANYONE ELSE. Though I did panic at first because I’d read that you didn’t get to see the entire complex on the night visit, and the door we’d used during the daytime to reach the Court of Lions was closed off! But then I realized there was another door that was now open, from inside the Salon de Embajadores (I think) that led around through the Washington Irving room and then out to the Court of Lions. There are ropes dividing off sections of both the Court of Lions and the Court of the Myrtles, so that guests have to follow a specific route that ends up taking you back out through the Court of Myrtles to exit. But there was no issue with retracing your steps-- at least not until right before the end of the visit time (we were allowed to stay until 11:30).
Anyways, I thoroughly enjoyed my good fortune to be virtually alone in the Court of Lions. I wasn’t trying to take a lot of photos as my phone camera isn’t anything great. I just loved being able to be there, absorbing the atmosphere. Eventually I did run (well, walk briskly) back to find my family and see if they wanted to join me (they did). We enjoyed probably about 10-15 minutes of peaceful time just standing/sitting quietly in the big court, admiring the lions, the waterworks, the moon.
Eventually the crowds did begin to catch up, and I moved on to some of the other impressive rooms that surround the Court of Lions. And then, when it seemed most of the crowds were now centered there, I headed back to the beginning, and found the first few rooms almost completely empty!
Oh! And another fun thing: there was a cat wandering around the site! We first saw him, fittingly, in the Court of Lions. Then later stalking around the Court of the Myrtles.
Overall I am SO GLAD that we did the evening visit. For me, it was definitely much more of an “experience” than my daytime visit. The daytime visit was gorgeous and beautiful, but a bit more hectic and I was also nervous because I didn’t know what to expect. The night visit was much more serene and I was able to just be there and enjoy the experience, and it was also less crowded. If you go to the Alhambra, I would recommend doing both!
We lingered pretty much as long as we could, before finally heading out via the Court of the Myrtles. Outside, we made our way back to the bus stop only to realize that, oops, the busses stop running at 11! I had failed to do my research on this and thought they ran until midnight!
Fortunately there happened to be a taxi coming down the road just then-- thank goodness!-- and I hailed it to take my parents and Dave home. My Mom was bravely offering to walk all the way but given how much she had already done today I really didn’t want to make her do that on her injured leg!
Bob and I, on the other hand, did walk home, but it was pleasant and not too hard, as it was all downhill. And it meant I hit an all-time high for daily stepcount on my FitBit (over 35K steps!). We arrived home shortly after midnight and I basically just collapsed into bed. Another tiring but marvelous day!
View from my morning hike:
A dream fulfilled:
Medusas!:
Bomba de Nata:
Alhambra at night! The plasterwork definitely had a different look in the shadows:
When I hustled back to the beginning, and found the first few sections deserted:
Nighttime in the Court of Lions!
This was one of our mostly unscheduled days. Aside from our reservations for an Alhambra Night visit (which weren’t until 10PM) we had decided to plan for everyone to be free to do what they felt like. Mom, Dad, Dave and I went out for a family breakfast (while Bob slept in) at Wild Food, a vegan cafe that is situated in a larger hotel (there is also a bar). The decor is all very modern and the food was quite good. Interestingly it looked like hotel guests had a different non-vegan menu as we saw several folks eating poached eggs!
But I was quite happy with my porridge, with banana, homemade peanut butter, and raisins. Mom had some really good vegan yogurt and a croissant, and Dave and Dad both tried toasts (one with hummus and avocado, one with vegan Nutella and berries) as well as porridge and a dramatic breakfast smoothie bowl served in a hollowed out pineapple!
After eating, I headed off solo on a hike. I wanted to try to follow the route outlined here.
https://slowtravelitalyspain.blogspot.com/2019/03/granada-day-5-silla-del-moro-llano-del.html which I sort of managed? It seemed as if my google maps and location tracker were not entirely accurate up in the hills! I still had a lovely time though, hiking up past the Alhambra, searching out the right road, watching the occasional local walking their dog or heading out for a bike ride.
It was refreshing to get up into a more natural setting (though not entirely wild, as I was usually within site of large fields of cultivated olive trees). I loved the views of the mountains, in particular! I just wished I’d had the energy and the time to go further-- especially because I never actually got to Llano del Perdiz.
But I had to turn back if I wanted to get home in time to meet Bob for lunch, so I headed back down, stopping briefly to poke my head in at the Carmin de los Martires gardens, which looked like a place I would have loved if I had time.
Back at the apartment I met Bob and we headed out to another Indian meal at Muglia2. We weren’t entirely sure what to do with the rest of the day, so we figured that a good meal would give us the stamina to decide. The meal was very good, and afterwards we decided that we wanted to go to the Science Museum after having heard about it from my Dad (who visited it on the day Mom, Bob and I went to the Hammam). There was a tropical butterfly house, which is something I’d always wanted to visit, but never had the chance to. I think there is probably a way to get there via bus, but we hadn’t done the research and were right near a taxi area, so we decided just to take a taxi, and then walk back. I think the taxi was about 6 euros? It was worth it for our peace of mind.
The Science Museum was very good, and everyone who worked there was SO NICE. This one docent came and met us right when we entered the giant complex and told us all about the different exhibits (in English) and helped us find everything we wanted to see. All the signs were in English, which was a nice surprise. It was also not at all crowded. Lots of local kids on school trips, and a number of other tourists, but a nice break from some of the more crowded sites!
As soon as we had our tickets we headed straight outside, through the park area, to the Butterfly House. This was a magical experience-- the building is fairly large and full of greenery and ponds with brightly colored carp and turtles. Every so often a fall of mist comes down from the ceiling. They had dishes of orange segments scattered around that the butterflies clearly enjoyed feeding at. And there were so many butterflies! I was particularly excited to see a bunch of Blue Morphos, which are stunningly bright. I think we must have wandered around in there for a good 45 minutes, and I could have stayed longer. There were probably about six other people in there during that time, not counting the museum staffperson.
We continued on, wandering through the park, checking out various mechanical displays demonstrating various types of waterworks, solar power, etc. There were a lot of very cool interactive exhibits that both kids and adults were enjoying! Eventually we headed back into the main building to check out some special exhibits, including one on science and music that I particularly enjoyed (I got to play a theremin!).
Finally, we headed over for the timed entry to the BioDome, which had cost extra but came highly recommended. We were very glad about that choice! It’s a very cool complex where you walk through a series of aquariums full of tropical fish, jellyfish, small sharks, rays, turtles and more. Then up into a wetlands section with beautiful toucans and parrots and other birds (free to fly around the large room above you) as well as some small primates. The habitats seemed quite extensive and well-equipped. There were also a number of smaller tanks with bright green and blue frogs, scorpions, lizards and snakes.
After that we decided it was time to start heading back to the apartment so we’d have time to rest and eat before our evening Alhambra trip. Our plan was to walk, and I think it took us about 30 minutes. It wasn’t necessarily the most attractive walk, but it was interesting to see another side of Granada-- the giant apartment complexes and somewhat grungier business sections.
Closer to the apartment, we spotted an amazing looking bakery and were lured inside where we picked up a small meringue-filled cake and an enormous Bomba de Nata. I think the name of the bakery is Dulce Angel. Both the cake and bomba were excellent and I kind of wished I had bought a couple more treats from there!
We rested up, had some leftovers for dinner, and at around 9PM we all headed up to catch a bus to the Alhambra. We’d planned to get off at the Justice Gate stop, but the driver encouraged us to get off at the one right before that (I think) that leads up to the corner of the Carlos V palace structure. That worked out fine. We were early, and no one else was in line yet, so we spent some time wandering the complex enjoying seeing things in a different light. I particularly enjoyed going into the large open center of the Carlos V palace, which was completely empty of any other visitors at that time. Looking up at the bright moon from the center of the open plaza was wonderful.
Eventually more folks seemed to be arriving so we got into line (in the same place we’d waited for our daytime entry). We were probably about 15 or 20 people from the start of the line. It looked as if there were some tour groups just leaving. I believe this 10PM entry is the only timeslot for individuals to visit at night. You can also visit the gardens at night, but it’s at the same time, so if you want to do both you’d need to go on two different days.
Finally at 10 we were allowed in! I was actually VERY thankful we’d gone during the day FIRST, because that way I knew the layout and where the different rooms were. Which was helpful, because I was able to walk briskly ahead of the other guests and reached the Court of Lions before ANYONE ELSE. Though I did panic at first because I’d read that you didn’t get to see the entire complex on the night visit, and the door we’d used during the daytime to reach the Court of Lions was closed off! But then I realized there was another door that was now open, from inside the Salon de Embajadores (I think) that led around through the Washington Irving room and then out to the Court of Lions. There are ropes dividing off sections of both the Court of Lions and the Court of the Myrtles, so that guests have to follow a specific route that ends up taking you back out through the Court of Myrtles to exit. But there was no issue with retracing your steps-- at least not until right before the end of the visit time (we were allowed to stay until 11:30).
Anyways, I thoroughly enjoyed my good fortune to be virtually alone in the Court of Lions. I wasn’t trying to take a lot of photos as my phone camera isn’t anything great. I just loved being able to be there, absorbing the atmosphere. Eventually I did run (well, walk briskly) back to find my family and see if they wanted to join me (they did). We enjoyed probably about 10-15 minutes of peaceful time just standing/sitting quietly in the big court, admiring the lions, the waterworks, the moon.
Eventually the crowds did begin to catch up, and I moved on to some of the other impressive rooms that surround the Court of Lions. And then, when it seemed most of the crowds were now centered there, I headed back to the beginning, and found the first few rooms almost completely empty!
Oh! And another fun thing: there was a cat wandering around the site! We first saw him, fittingly, in the Court of Lions. Then later stalking around the Court of the Myrtles.
Overall I am SO GLAD that we did the evening visit. For me, it was definitely much more of an “experience” than my daytime visit. The daytime visit was gorgeous and beautiful, but a bit more hectic and I was also nervous because I didn’t know what to expect. The night visit was much more serene and I was able to just be there and enjoy the experience, and it was also less crowded. If you go to the Alhambra, I would recommend doing both!
We lingered pretty much as long as we could, before finally heading out via the Court of the Myrtles. Outside, we made our way back to the bus stop only to realize that, oops, the busses stop running at 11! I had failed to do my research on this and thought they ran until midnight!
Fortunately there happened to be a taxi coming down the road just then-- thank goodness!-- and I hailed it to take my parents and Dave home. My Mom was bravely offering to walk all the way but given how much she had already done today I really didn’t want to make her do that on her injured leg!
Bob and I, on the other hand, did walk home, but it was pleasant and not too hard, as it was all downhill. And it meant I hit an all-time high for daily stepcount on my FitBit (over 35K steps!). We arrived home shortly after midnight and I basically just collapsed into bed. Another tiring but marvelous day!
View from my morning hike:
A dream fulfilled:
Medusas!:
Bomba de Nata:
Alhambra at night! The plasterwork definitely had a different look in the shadows:
When I hustled back to the beginning, and found the first few sections deserted:
Nighttime in the Court of Lions!
Last edited:
But just for my own reference, I like to analyze these sorts of things to better understand my own travel style and refine it to make future travels even more fun. 
