My first taste of solo travel, Granada City, Spain

In 2015, I embarked on my first solo trip to Granada city, Spain. Initially I was a little anxious being on my own and not having anyone to do the fun things with, well how wrong was I! This was the holiday that I realised just how much fun it is to travel solo.

I was completing a Spanish language course for two weeks, and decided to stay in the centre of Granada city, in a gorgeous flat, with the old balcony looking out on to the cobbled streets full of restaurants and facing my Spanish neighbour who sat every morning with his brew and newspaper! I would shout out ¡Hola! and he would just nod and smile! I felt like singing the ice cream Cornetto song, don't ask me why but these old buildings felt very classical to me lol.

I met so many people, especially on my course that I was never alone and even when I was alone, I would sit down and people would just join me and chat, it is unbelievable how many other like minded people travel alone. One evening, I sat in a taverna in town with my chorizo tapas, and the next thing I know this Spanish family sits with me, chatting to me, inviting me to eat their food and drink, and listen to their son playing the guitar! What a night! I was then invited to their home the next day for a meal, what can I say, I pull the right people lol It was also a good way to practice my Spanish!

So what can I say about this stunning historical city? Well firstly, the beaches are not exactly close by! Granada is surrounded by the Tropical Coast and you would need to take the local bus to nearby towns like Motril or Almuñecar. The beaches are ok, dark sand or stones and the restaurants I found to be quite expensive so I only went for the day. What I did find is the famous Al Andalus Hammam Baths, situated at the start of the River Darro and below the Alhambra Palace in Granada city centre. I can't explain how stunning the inside was, it is very Moorish in decoration and the pools are either cold or hot depending which one you want. I just remember being in heaven and the tea was great too! Highly recommend, the experience is surreal! This place has a very large wooden Moorish built door with the name of the Hammam Baths, and is situated within the right side of the River Darro, you can actually miss it, so make sure you look to the right. You also have to book a time slot as you cannot just go in as I found out, it is very popular.

So, I thought Granada city was all Spanish, but it seems that the city is split into Gypsy(Roma), Jewish, Arab and Spanish communities, and it is evident by the architecture of the buildings and the people. I loved the Arab bustling market in a very very narrow cobbled street where hundreds of rugs were hanging from everywhere (could easily get lost!) the sounds of a thousand chimes, and finally the smell of spices, wow honestly I could have happily smelt cinnamon all day! The Arab side of Granada is called Albayzin and they obviously speak Arabic there.

Next is the 50,000 strong Gypsy (Roma) community, in Sacromento, where you can identify this town by the bright white stone caves where the Roma community live in. And even more amazing as I walked to it, I passed the amazing Alhambra Palace, and oh my word the views, the views were to die for! I sat in a local cafe in one of the white caves and tried my best to speak to the owners in Spanish, it seemed to work as they gave me free tapas for trying! Did you know that in Granada when you order an alcoholic drink you also receive a plate of tapas for free! Good if you are on a budget bad if you do not drink alcohol lol needless to say I had a few vinos.

So, I decided to go to the famous Roma flamenco dance evenings which are based in the caves in Sacromento. You all sit around the cave, drink and tapas supplied and then bang, the guitar strings, the amazing singing and the flamenco dance begins! I kid you not, you get goosebumps, because the dancing is also converted into a storyline, of passion and love! And the dancers, well...hot! Anyway, if you cannot afford these flamenco evenings, in Granada city centre, every evening a group of local flamenco dancers put on a street show, where you can sit on the street or plaza and watch for free, although they do come around with a hat and ask for donations. They are amazing! I really wish I could move my feet that fast, no chance, not unless I am tabbing! You really must visit Sacromento and walk the streets to it, the buildings and views are spectacular and there is an actual palace view point there where you can take a photo of the Alhambra Palace as a whole.

Next place I visited was the Jewish community, in Realejo and it has lots of gorgeous cobbled streets, very narrow, full of tavernas, bars and restaurants. I went there during the day, and you can pretty much people watch, it is such a lovely place where you feel like you are immersed in history and enjoy the local food and drink.

Some information for you when you visit the main Alhambra Palace:

You get 4 choices: (long queues - go early early!)

One ticket for Alhambra Palace - day or night (day one is best)

One ticket for The Courtyard - day or night (night one is best)

One ticket for the Botanical Gardens (day pass)

All 3 tickets combined.

I went to the Alhambra Palace which means 'The red one' in Arabic, which was built in 889 CE by the Roman empire and then rebuilt in the 13th century by the Arab Nasridemir Mohammed ben Al-Ahmar (Arab - emirate of Granada). It has undergone loads of rebuilds, but it is simply one of the most amazing Palaces I have ever visited, it has a very mosaic structure inside and lots of Arabic touches everywhere. I visited here in the day because the views are just breathtaking and I wanted to take photos of the whole city. It also adds a nice breeze to the air as Granada city is so hot!

I then visited the Botanical Gardens in the day time, you can literally get lost in this place, it is so grand and spectacular! I am not a flower person but all of the colours just made the whole place look amazing. They do concerts there in the summer so if you are into outdoor concerts, highly recommend.

And finally I visited The courtyard of the Lions at night time as this is the famous part of the Palace and because the pool and the Lion fountain have been featured in many films like Star Wars - the attack of the clones.. the best time to visit the Courtyard in the Alhambra Palace is in the evening 100% as the pool lights up so well, and you can take a picture of Granada city at night time, it is a picture moment!

Granada Cathedral, is where I gate crashed a Roma wedding and well, yes, I went inside and witnessed them exchanging vows and yes, I did get invited to the after party, I cannot remember it as much as I want to as I had too many sherries! But I recalled speaking Spanglish at one point and being introduced to my future Roma husband, at that moment I swiftly made my exit and sobered up lol (they were joking of course)

I also decided to hike up the Sierra Nevada desert, where skiing is done in the winter and horse riding in the summer. It had breathtaking views of Andalucia! They have horse riding there, I did try but fell off the horse and well it put me off! I much prefer to hike instead!

Granada has loads of mini plazas (main squares), surrounded by restaurants, shops, bars, famous Churro and chocolate melt cafes - they have this for breakfast. Churro is basically fried dough, (like a long doughnut) and is dipped in thick creamy chocolate. It is delicious, but after 4, I felt sick and I really needed to walk a few miles to burn the calories off! There is entertainment everywhere and so much to do, to see and to experience. The night life is so so so so good!

One thing that did upset me, was the amount of beggars in the streets, and it is so sad to see. But I found out that the local churches provide food and drink for those who need it, and this was comforting at least.

You could easily get lost in Granada, and two weeks was not enough but what I did learn about visiting this stunning city, is how Jewish, Muslims and Christians can actually live together, respectfully with no issues, so why on earth can't others do the same. This city is beautiful, vibrant, full of life, history and is a must visit! I will always treasure Granada city in my heart and I cannot wait to go again!

Hope you enjoyed this small insight of my first solo travel adventure! Short but so meaningful!