When we were in Segovia a few weeks ago, one of my coworkers raved about her time in Granada, urging all of us to visit. At first, I thought that she was talking about the island of Grenada in the Caribbean, but I quickly realized that she was talking about a location in Spain that I’d never heard of — Granada.

Within a few days, six of us had booked bus tickets for Granada. We did some quick research and discovered that we should visit the Alhambra, a Muslim fortress from the 1300s.

As an English teacher, I was happy to learn that Washington Irving published a book called Tales from the Alhambra, describing his time here. In the book, he writes that Granada is “a most picturesque and beautiful city, situated in one of the loveliest landscapes that I have ever seen.” After spending a few days roaming the narrow cobblestone streets, I agree with Irving. In his words, “There is something, too, in the sternly simple features of the Spanish landscape, that impresses on the soul a feeling of sublimity.” 

I will post more pictures of Granada soon, but the Alhambra deserves a post to itself.