a weekend consisting of 3 incredible mini-excursions in Granada’s Albaicín neighborhood…

This weekend we decided to chill here in Granada. To get out there and explore the place we are actually living in these four months. Our own backyard, in a way, although I highly doubt it will ever feel that ordinary. And I sincerely hope it doesn’t, because there are so many magical, un-pin-pointable things about the pace of life and the unwritten rules and the landscape here that I would never want them to somehow get demoted to “ordinary” status in my brain. They simply aren’t.

Perhaps the most extraordinary little slice of heaven we have encountered here in Granada thus far is the Albaicín, which was historically the location of the muslim and jewish quarters, is one of the oldest centers of Muslim culture in the city, and not to mention a UNESCO world heritage site. The streets are even windier and more charming than those that you can easily find all throughout Granada, supplemented with amazing views of the greater city below and of the Alhambra. These streets are lined with uniform architectural style, all in white — many buildings are carmens, which are the traditional type of Islamic house, which all have a similar outward appearance regardless of the relative luxury or humility that one may find inside. This is in alignment with an important value in the Islamic faith – that we are all equal in the eyes of God. This part of the city feels completely different — definitely a bit like a time machine, and also a tranquil escape from the city center without having to go far at all. According to our program director, who lives in the Albaicín, many of its residence feel this sense of distinctness too, often saying “I’m going to Granada” when they head into town, as if their neighborhood is a whole different city or entity in itself.

Needless to say, for all these reasons and more, mis amigas and I decided our weekend would be well-spent by returning to the Albaicín for further exploration. We ended up walking up there (despite the relatively steep journey for a bunch of Wisconsinites) EVERY day that weekend (and our “weekends” here include Friday, since we are incredibly blessed and don’t have class). And every time, it just got better.

Friday

This afternoon we were truly straight up wandering, with no particular plan in mind. We walked through the center of the city, through the always grand-looking Plaza Nueva, and up the steep hill to the Albaicín. From here, we visited many of the spots pointed out to us by our directors on one of the very first tours given to us upon our arrival. The main feature of this was a stop at the Mirador de San Nicolas, which has a nice open space filled with happy people on the weekends and almost always a guitarist or dancer or both. This time, we were lucky enough to have both a guitarist and a salsa-dancing duo for our entertainment. And then, of course, as the spanish word “mirador” suggests, it offers an amazing view of the city and lots of great photo opps. Definitely a great place to watch the sun set, which is precisely what we did. We also made sure to walk across the way to a similar lookout on the other side which is right next to the institution for Arabic-Islamic studies. All these buildings kind of converge to create this central area where there is a christian cathedral, and educational institution, and a modern day mosque or “mezquita” all in what seems like an arms length, and while there are still tons of problems with islamophobia in this city and all over the world, it feels very uplifting to see.

It does get surprisingly chilly in that mountain air, however. Which lead us to seek out a tetería – a very common establishment in this area. For a tea-lover like myself, they are such a dream. Teterías are easy to find in Granada, especially in the Albaicín and other areas that have been able to retain pieces of the Islamic culture, like the Moroccan-inspired markets near Plaza Bib-Rambla. We were seeking out a specific one called “El Bañuelo”, which had gotten rave reviews from preview students of our program. Situated right between the “threshold” of the Albaicín and Plaza Nueva, it was the perfect spot to stop and warm up on our walk back home. It was peaceful, and dimly lit while somehow still feeling so warm and inviting. I was elated to see a looooong tea menu, and they also have an entire case of amazing “dulces árabes”, as well as a few non-traditional goodies like carrot cake and a thick cookie cake that my friends ordered. I opted for a cinnamon-orange tea and a flor de pistachio and both were amazing. The teas are delivered in your own unique, gorgeously-decorated ceramic teapot and little clear glass tea glasses to pour it into. As a result, even the way they serve it forces you to slow down and take your time sip by sip. Eating in Spanish culture is all about relaxing and enjoying good company, and in my mind there is no better way to do that with tea. I will definitely be back to El Bañuelo and on the lookout for other inviting teterías.

Saturday

Saturday evening we set out for another spot that has been highly recommended to us by past students, our directors, the internet — pretty much everyone that has ever familiarized themselves in any way with this city. It’s called Mirador de San Miguel Alto, and when we arrived it immediately became our new favorite thing in this city. This adventure involved two very simple things – another fun, longer walk through the Albaicín and then an amazing view of the sunset. Well, really the start of a sunset, as the narrow path and nearly 200 steps to get there are unlit and probably would not be super fun to navigate in the dark. We ascended through the Albaicín until we found ourselves in the Sacromonte, which is another historic area knows for its gitano, or gypsy, community and caves – which here serve both as people’s homes and as flamenco dancing restaurants and/or clubs. Even before we got very far up into the hills, the views were already spectacular. After that came the climb up those many stairs, which are decorated in all sorts of creative messages – both Spanish and English, silly and serious, which brought us to the actual Mirador, which is positioned right in front of a little church. And then we just sat in awe for many minutes, feeling very tiny against a panoramic backdrop of the Sierra Nevadas, the Alhambra, and the whole city of Granada. It was stunningly beautiful as the sun went down, and I will also be getting back here for a sunrise if it’s the last thing I do.

Sunday

Sunday was a special day in Granada celebrating San Cecilio, who is the patron saint of Granada. This gave us the chance to explore a local, traditional celebration/festival for the first time since arriving here. The day involved a romeria, which is essentially a religious procession. We never really saw the start of this procession, which I presume features a figure of the saint, like many of the other processions we have learned about in our Spanish cultures class. However, by the time we reached the city center, it was easy to detect a general flow of tons of people toward the Albaicín/Sacromonte, which is were the route of the procession was. We all really went into this knowing very little about the detials of the event, other than that our host moms had packed us each a bocadillo (sack lunch of a big, artisan bread sandwich and some fruit, etc.) and told us that everyone walked up to a certain area where something that sounded like a giant picnic would eventually take place. Despite our confusion, this was surprisingly and excitingly accurate.

We walked higher up into the hills than we ever had before, alongside many Spaniards easily in their seventies or older (constantly is so cool and interesting to see how many older people here keep moving everyday largely because of the cultural differences of going out to socialize, not having cars, etc.). Then we came upon a big open field, where a giant line of people had formed waiting for food, and with a big stage on one end where a flamenco performance was taking place. We all got some food to share (completely free, by the way), which consisted of 3 foods apparently very typical to both Granada and this day in particular – a saladilla (salted round flatbread), bacalao (cod, dried and salted), and raw habas (similar to broad beans or lima beans and served still in their big, green pods).

All around people were dancing and sitting in the grass. We found a killer spot on the hillside in the sun to enjoy our food and the music. Afterwards, we made our way up a little bit higher still to see the abbey, which is of course beautiful and also has some catacombs beneath that we got to check out. This is supposedly where San Cecilio was martyred. Our best find of the day was another smaller open clearing in the fields behind the abbey – it was quiet and was at a similar altitude to the Mirador de San Miguel Alto, as we could see that spot we had been the previous night in the distance. It was breezy with mountain air, but so sunny this day that it felt so pleasant. And so we plopped down in this field and had ourselves a little power nap and it was glorious. Waking up and having that initial “where am I?” confusion was actually for once the best thing in the world because I got to open my eyes to a view that I still just couldn’t comprehend. It was such a relaxed day, but in the best way possible. Full of nature and music learning new things and sweet new friends.

As I’m writing this, my family arrives tomorrow (ahhhhh!!!!!), and I am so excited to show them some of these spots. Really, I’m so excited just in general to HUG them and talk with them. So much so that two hours ago I was literally falling asleep on the couch in the living room, and now I am wide awake responding to my sister’s snapchats of them on the plane and can’t stop smiling. I’m so pumped!! Signing off from my cozy little purple room in Granada, catch ya back here for a recap of my next weekend adventure.