Granada

About 2,200 ft. above sea level in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, Granada sprawls over two main hills, the Alhambra and the Albaicín, and is crossed by two rivers, the Genil and the Darro. This former stronghold of Moorish Spain is full of romance and folklore.

Granada's Alhambra, the hilltop fortress palace of the Nasrid kings, the last Muslim rulers of Spain, is one of the world's fabled landmarks. This monumental edifice is arguably Spain's greatest attraction. (Castilians claim that the Prado in Madrid is número uno.)

Washington Irving (Tales of the Alhambra) used the symbol of this city, the pomegranate (granada), to conjure a spirit of romance. In fact, the name probably derives from the Moorish word karnattah. Some historians have suggested that it comes from Garnatha Alyehud, the name of an old Jewish ghetto.

Washington Irving may have helped publicize the glories of Granada to the English-speaking world, but in Spain the city is known for its ties to another writer: Federico García Lorca. Born in 1898, this Spanish poet/dramatist was shot by soldiers in 1936 in the first months of the Spanish Civil War. During Franco's rule, García Lorca's works were banned in Spain, but today he's once again honored in Granada, where he grew up.

Granada came to prominence in the 1200s at the peak of Muslim power. Even after Seville and Córdoba had fallen to the Catholic monarchs, Granada stood as the last surviving Islamic capital in Spain. It's where the sultans took their last stand against the Catholic invaders.

Fleeing Seville and Córdoba to the west, thousands of Moors flocked to this last stronghold. Many of them were artisans, and the Alhambra and other buildings testify to their skills.

On January 2, 1492, Granada fell to the Catholics when Boabdil, the last of the Moorish kings, turned his beloved city over to Ferdinand and Isabella. Isabella immediately began to "Christianize" Granada, ordering the construction of a cathedral and its adjoining royal chapel. She also ordered that Muslim mosques be repurposed as churches or for other Christian use. Although some great architectural monuments were destroyed in the process, the Moorish district of the Albaicín fortunately remains more or less intact, allowing a peek at the architectural glory that existed during the Middle Ages. Under subsequent Catholic monarchs, Granada prospered until the 1500s when it fell into a decline that lasted many years.
Today Granada is back, with an economy fueled not only by tourism but by light industry. The University of Granada is one of the finest in Spain, and there is a young, vibrant population.

Highlights of this city:

The Alhambra
One of Europe's greatest attractions, the stunningly beautiful and celebrated Calat Alhambra (Red Castle) is perhaps the most remarkable fortress ever constructed. Muslim architecture in Spain reached its apogee at this pleasure palace once occupied by Nasrid princes and their harems. Although later Moorish occupants turned the Alhambra into a lavish palace, it was originally constructed for defensive purposes on a rocky hilltop outcropping above the Darro River. The modern city of Granada was built across the river from the Alhambra, about 1/2 mile from its western foundations.

When you first see the Alhambra, its somewhat somber exterior may surprise you. The true delights of this Moorish palace lie within. Tickets are sold in the office at the Entrada del Generalife y de la Alhambra. Enter through the incongruous 14th-century Puerta de la Justicia (Gateway of Justice). Most visitors don't need an expensive guide but will be content to stroll through the richly ornamented open-air rooms, with their lacelike walls and courtyards with fountains. Many of the Arabic inscriptions translate to "Only Allah is conqueror."

The Court of the Myrtles contains a narrow reflecting pool banked by myrtle trees. Note the decorative and rather rare tiles, which are arguably the finest in the Alhambra. Behind it is the Salón de Embajadores (Hall of the Ambassadors), with an elaborately carved throne room that was built between 1334 and 1354. The crowning cedar wood dome of this salon evokes the seven heavens of the Muslim cosmos. Here bay windows open onto panoramic vistas of the enveloping countryside. An opening off the Court of the Myrtles leads to the greatest architectural achievement of the Alhambra, the Patio de los Leonares (Court of Lions), constructed by Muhammad V. At its center is Andalusia's finest fountain, which rests on 12 marble lions. These marble lions represent the hours of the day, the months of the year, and the signs of the zodiac. Legend claims that water flowed from the mouth of a different lion each hour of the day. This courtyard is lined with arcades supported by 124 (count them) slender marble columns. This was the heart of the palace, the most private section where the sultan enjoyed his harem, which included both male and female beauties.

At the back of the Leones courtyard is the Sala de los Abencerrajes, named for a noble family who were rivals of the last emir, Boabdil. This hall has a richly adorned honeycombed ceiling. To get rid of his rivals, Boabdil invited them to a banquet. In the middle of the banquet, his guards entered and massacred his guests.

Opening onto the Court of Lions are other salons of intrigue, notably the Hall of the Two Sisters, Sala de las Dos Hermanas, where the sultan kept his "favorite" of the moment. The Hall of the Two Sisters takes its name from the two large identical white marble slabs in the pavement. Boabdil's stern, unforgiving mother, Ayesha, once inhabited the Hall of the Two Sisters. This salon has a honeycomb dome and is celebrated as the finest example of Spanish Islamic architecture in the world.

The nearby Sala de los Reyes (Hall of Kings) was the great banqueting hall of the Alhambra, site of parties, orgies, and feasts. Its ceiling paintings are on leather and date from the 1300s. Eunuchs guarded the harem but not always well. According to legend, one sultan beheaded 36 Moorish princes here because one of them was suspected of being intimate with his favorite.

A gallery leads to the Patio de la Reja (Court of the Window Grille). This is where Washington Irving lived in furnished rooms and where he began to write his famous book Tales of the Alhambra. The best-known tale is the legend of Zayda, Zorayda, and Zorahayda, the three beautiful princesses who fell in love with three captured Spanish soldiers outside the Torre de las Infantas. Irving credits the French with saving the Alhambra for posterity, but in fact they were responsible for blowing up seven of the towers in 1812, and it was a Spanish soldier who cut the fuse before more damage could be done. When the duke of Wellington arrived a few years later, he chased out the chickens, the gypsies, and the transient beggars who were using the Alhambra as a tenement and set up housekeeping here himself.

Visit Emperor Charles V's Palace (Palacio de Carlos V), where the Holy Roman emperor lived. Charles may have been horrified when he saw a cathedral placed in the middle of the great mosque at Córdoba, but he's also responsible for some architectural confusion in Granada. He literally built a Renaissance palace in the middle of this Moorish stronghold. It's quite beautiful, but terribly out of place in such a setting -- Charles V did not consider the Nasrid palaces grand enough. In 1526 he ordered Pedro Machuca, a student of Michelangelo, to design him a fitting royal residence. He financed the palace by levying a tax on the Muslims. In spite of its incongruous location, the final result is one of the purest examples of classical Renaissance in Spain.

Before leaving the Alhambra precincts, try to see the Alcazaba, which dates from the 9th century and is the oldest part of the complex. This rugged Middle Ages fortress was built for defensive purposes. For a spectacular view, climb the Torre de la Vela (Watchtower). You look into the lower town onto Plaza Nueva, and you can also see the snowcapped Sierra Nevada in the distance. From the tower you can also view the Generalife , the "gypsy hill" of Sacromonte.

Generalife
Exit from the Alhambra via the Puerta de la Justicia and then circumnavigate the Alhambra's southern foundations until you reach the gardens of the summer palace, where Paseo de los Cipreses quickly leads you to the main building of the Generalife, built in the 13th century to overlook the Alhambra and set on 30 lush hectares (75 acres). The sultans used to spend their summers in this palace (pronounced "heh-neh-rah-lee-feh"), safely locked away with their harems. Don't expect an Alhambra in miniature: The Generalife was always meant to be a retreat, even from the splendors of the Alhambra. Lying north of the Alhambra, this country estate of the Nasrid emirs was begun in the 13th century, but the palace and gardens have been much altered over the years. The palace is mainly noted for its beautiful courtyards, including Patio de Polo, where the visitors of yore would arrive on horseback.

The highlight of the Generalife is its gardens, begun in the 13th century but much modified over the years. Originally, they contained orchards and pastures for domestic animals. Highlights include Escalera del Agua (The Water Staircase) with water flowing gently down. An enclosed Oriental garden, Patio de la Acequía, was constructed around a long pool, with rows of water jets making graceful arches above it. The Patio de la Sultana (also called the Patio de los Cipreses) was the secret rendezvous point for Zoraxda, wife of Sultan Abu Hasan, and her lover, the chief of the Abencarrajes.