Blogger, Ari Smith
By the time the class arrived in Granada, we’d already visited various cities and spots around Spain. As we’re all still acclimating to being abroad, the day has been spent rejuvenating, catching up on work, and visiting sites and spaces of Granada that were of interest. In contrast to our usual days, the group did not spend today altogether, meaning each person’s day looked a little different. So, follow along as I talk a little about what everybody did during our free day in Granada!
Our Morning: Breakfast, Lunch, and Historical Sites around the City
As we’ve all learned, breakfast is the most important meal of the day and the way to fuel our day of activities. Most of us trickled down to for breakfast provided by the hotel; croissants (of course!), yoghurt, fruit, an assortment of coffee and tea.
As coffee connoisseurs, Ana and I decided to check-out a cafe near the hotel as a second breakfast. Fun fact: the owner of the cafe, Amazonica Coffee and Breakfast, is Brazilian and the cafe serves some outstanding Brazilian cheese bread. Ana was ecstatic, giving it her double-thumbs up.
Photo by Ari Smith
As it turns out, we weren’t the only ones to come across this spot. Sydney, Kacie, Paulina, Jemma and Carson grabbed lunch at Amazonica, as did Grace. Google Maps was correct; this cafe was a hit for our group!
Sydney, Kacie, Paulina, Jemma and Carson's Lunch at Amazonica Coffee and Breakfast
Across the city, Sophie and Gabby took a walking tour of Granada in the morning, learning about its rich history. Here are some notable places that they had the chance to visit. They visited the statue of Queen Isabella I of Castile, who alongside her husband, Ferdinand II of Aragon, fought to capture the city of Granada from the Nasrid Dynasty in 1492. Queen Isabella I passed away in 1504 and is buried at the Royal Chapel of Granada (whose construction was her final royal decree) which Sophie and Gabby also got to see!
Sophie and Gabby also visited the old silk market and bazaar, Alcaicería, which is located directly next to the Cathedral of Granada. The original market was built in the 15th century, during the rule of the Nasrid Dynasty, and is one of the only remaining Moorish traditions to survive the Christian conquest of the city in 1492. The original market was home to greater than 200 shops, squeezed into a few streets and alleyways. It was even protected by iron gates and guards, to safeguard the products and keep the space for pedestrians only. During this time period, Alcaicería, sat in the heart of Granada making it a key site for economics, cultures, and politics. However, in the 19th century, the original bazaar burned down by a fire. It was re-built; however, due to the expanding size of the city, Alcaicería was no longer the heart of the activity, and its space was reduced in size. Today it is still one of the largest functioning markets in Spain, and there are goods of all variety to be found! Whether you’re looking for something to bring back home as a souvenir, some tea to refill what you’re almost out of, or new decoration for your living space, Alcaicería is the place to look! And like anyone stopping to admire Granada, some from our group followed Gabby’s advice and found some amazing things to bring home to family and friends.
Rejuvenation, Sunsets, and Dinner
Later in the day Ana and I spent some time walking around and window shopping. Wen Ting took a much-deserved break from doing work and got some seafood from a great tapas bar, Los Diamantes, near the hotel. At first, I thought Los Diamantes was unique in the way tapas ordering works there, until Ana and I got dinner at another tapas bar that worked the same way. How, might you ask? In Granada, you order a beverage and get a tapa for free. By this point the group has been in Spain for over a week and the first thing we realized is how affordable tapas (literally meaning “snacks” but can also mean “to share”) prices are.
Looking for a change of pace, Sydney, Paulina, and Carson decided it was the right night to watch the sunset above the city. The three of them packed up a picnic-style dinner and took a hike up to this scenic spot. This was a great way to end the day in Granada.
Photo by Sydney Lyons
For me, rejuvenation meant taking a break from all the walking (minus some shopping, of course) and checking out one of the ancient bath spas in the city. During our time in Spain, Dr. Pitamber had taken us to a few bath sites, Caliphal Baths in Cordoba and El Bañuelo in Granada, and taught us about the significance of these baths during the ancient and medieval period. These baths, often referred to as hammams, played a central role in promoting hygiene and public health, while also serving as meeting places to relax and socialize. They generally feature a reception/changing room followed by a hot/steam room (caldarium), a warm room (tepidarium), and a cold room (frigidarium). Visitors would cycle through the rooms, typically starting with the hot/steam room, as it helps open pores, relax muscles, and stimulate blood flow. Some baths also included some form of massage which helped, again, with tension and relaxing the body. It was interesting to learn about the significance of bath culture and how it represented much more than the act of cleaning oneself. When I learned that Granada had multiple baths within the city, I knew it was something I wanted to experience for myself.
After a little research, I decided to reach out to Baños de Elvira for availability for me and Sophie. We were in luck! They had some availability that night for both of us. When we arrived, we were shown to the changing room, given lockers and keys for our stuff, a towel and disposable flip-flops. We then changed into our bathing suits and met one of the workers who showed us where the hot, warm, and cold baths were. She gave us recommended times in each bath, then showed us where the mint tea, chocolate, and fruit were. We spent the next hour moving from the sauna to the cold and then warm bath. With our experience there wasn’t a specific way to move through the baths, other than to begin with the sauna. As part of the experience, we kept our talking to a minimum and at times the lack of my own voice was unnerving. I’ll admit that the silence had made me uncomfortable at the beginning but by the end, I felt a little bit at peace listening to the ambience of water slushing and the background music. Once the hour was up; Sophie and I finished with massages leaving my feet and neck relaxed and rejuvenated. And when we walked out, Sophie told me that the experience had healed her. I think it healed me a little too, and I’m so glad that I left with a better understanding of ancient bath culture.
To conclude the day, Ana and I, indulged in some tapas and then washed it down with some gelato. Our eagerness to dig in means we forgot to take pictures (sorry!) but not even those would do the gelato justice. While I got chocolate, Ana went for the pomegranate flavor in honor of being in Granada. Fun fact: pomegranates show up everywhere here! Amalfi Coast has their lemons, Granada has pomegranates. Ana gave her gelato a big thumbs up!
So, if you’re ever in Granada, make sure to try some pomegranate gelato too. Today was a much-needed day to rest and explore –and there’s so much in Granada to explore!