Right Place, Right Time

 We recently returned from our "escape the June gloom at the shore" trip.  Not surprisingly, we returned to the same gloomy conditions we left and are wondering why we didn't take a longer trip!  I could complain but then I look at the extreme heat wave back in Houston and think maybe another week of cool, wet weather isn't so bad after all!  But one more week in southern Spain would have been even better!  Aside from that first day when the rain in Spain fell mainly on us, things could not have been better!

Not the sunny escape we were expecting.

Maybe they are smiling because
they get to wear those fantastic hot pink vestments!

Ever since our oldest daughter did her semester abroad in the fall of 2000 and took a trip to Seville, it has been on my radar.  She told me she just knew it was a place I would love and as I did my research, I was convinced it indeed was a place we should visit.  So, when we planned our "escape the gloom" trip, Seville fit all of our requirements.  It was warm, traditionally sunny, relatively inexpensive and offered a great mix of history, amazing architecture, great food and wine and did I mention sunshine?!  Aside from day one, the weather was just what we were hoping for!  The trip was even more than we hoped for, if you ask me!

We experienced a few "coincidences", or God winks, along our way.  We took a tapas and history tour one evening in Seville, and all had to share private nods to each other, as our first stop was the very restaurant, we ate lunch earlier in the day.  A place famous for its orange wine in Seville.  On the same tour, our final stop was next door to the place we ate breakfast in and also had a nightcap the night before.  We were so surprised that the choices we had made, randomly, in a city with hundreds of interesting and delicious places to eat were so close to those featured in the tour.  The tapas tour was really great, our guide was one of the best I've ever had on a tour.  Well done!  Add to the interesting, witty and educational narrative delicious food and drinks and all of us were stuffed by the end of the tour.

Lunch and orange wine

Tapas, a tour and orange wine.

In Seville, we heard many times about the huge processions during Holy Week where they carry large platforms or floats with various ornate sculptures mounted on them.  It seems there are many of these processions during Holy Week and the men who carry these large, heavy platforms train for weeks before the processions.  We had been told that the city would be celebrating First Communion that week and that was the reason the city was decorated with banners and flowers, plus, the Cathedral would be closed to the public for that time. We did try, several times, to tour the Cathedral but never got inside! One of our few wrong place, wrong time experiences on the trip. 

We walked past this earlier in the day and it was empty.
After dinner, it was hosting a free concert!

The artist Serafin Zubiri was performing with the National Orchestra.  The music was lovely, and the place was packed!  A summer evening experience we don't get back home.  

From Seville we drove down to Malaga which is on the coast.  It seemed much more modern and cosmopolitan compared to Seville.  I was really looking forward to seeing the blue water and the beach.  I was not disappointed!  The beach was calling our name as soon as we arrived.  Yes, I even went in the water, and it was beautiful.  Especially after the many miles we walked in Seville and the drive down to Malaga.  Nothing like bobbing in the waves for a while to make you really feel like you are on vacation.

Plenty of pedestrian streets with tons of shopping!

We opted for the beach!

Along with a few other people!

 The next morning we woke up early...for me...so we could hike to the top of the Alcazaba, an ancient palatial fortress that stands over the entire city.  It was a steep hike but the view at the top, as usual, was worth it!  It was Sunday morning, and I was having a bit of Catholic guilt because we were out hiking instead of going to Mass in the Cathedral next to our hotel.  We hiked back down the mountain and our path took us near the Cathedral where I stopped to look at a couple of birds on the fountain and TJ went to see why there was a uniformed band near the church.  It looked like a crowd was gathering and we went closer to check it out.  There were police gathering and the crowd was growing, so we stood there waiting to see what the commotion was all about.  We figured the band was going to play eventually.

Malaga from above.

The bullfighting ring.

This is what caught our attention.

As we waited for the band to play, the church doors opened, and people began to walk out.  I figured Mass was over but then the candle holders and cross bearer walked out, and the church bells began to clang and we waited.   We soon realized that today was the feast of Corpus Christi, and this was a huge procession celebrating the First Communion of all the children of the church.  The band played, the church bells clanged, and all the precious children dressed in white processed out of the church.  It was beautiful!  As a Catholic, it was so moving to see how celebrated these children were on this special day of initiation in the Catholic church.  There was a procession for over 30 minutes with the children first, then their families carrying banners and staffs, followed by one band and then the clergy and then the monstrance carrying the Blessed Sacrament on a huge platform of silver followed by yet another band.  I was brought to tears.  To witness such a beautiful tradition and see so many people celebrating these children was truly a blessing.  There was a level of pageantry we never get to see and while that alone does not indicate any level of faith, the mere fact that so many people came together to celebrate these children and their First Communion made my heart swell.  I felt the spirit in my heart.  If we had not gone for that hike so early in the morning and not taken that path back to our hotel, we would not have seen this celebration.  We were meant to be right where we were when we were.  We watched the entire thing.  

Some of the banners carried by the families.

They have got to be brother and sister...right?!

                                         This was the moment I teared up.  Turn your sound on.

The morning left me both physically and emotionally invigorated!  Mind, body and soul taken care of all in a matter of hours.  I had no expectations of Malaga other than the blue water and found myself wishing we were spending more time there.  It was the one place I made no plans for on our trip, no tours, no dinner reservations ahead of time, not much research on what to do or see, we just went because it was supposed to be beachy and beautiful.  It was so much more.  

Next stop on the agenda was Granada.  Granada, full of history, interesting neighborhoods, the Alhambra and free tapas!  A few words about tapas.  Every city treats it differently.  Who knew?  In Seville, you pay for tapas.  Many items on the menu can be ordered as a meal or as tapas, which means a smaller portion of the same food.  We wanted to try a lot of different foods, so we chose to order 2 or 3 meal size portions at dinner and shared them all and if there was something someone wanted in particular, we ordered the tapas size in Seville.  Tapas did not seem to be a thing in Malaga.  In Granada, which claims to be where tapas all began, if you order a drink, they bring you tapas for free.  Order another drink, they bring more food and on and on.  We embraced the tapas!  

Our own little patio at
our favorite tapas stop in Granada.

If you go to Granada, go here!

The life in Granada is easy.  I really liked Granada.  Several different neighborhoods and vibes from upscale and busy, to easy and relaxed to traditional with flamenco and cave restaurants.  The Alhambra stands on a mountain above the city and beyond it are the Sierra Nevada mountains.  It is a beautiful city!  Our hotel was across the street from the Cathedral, seems we have a thing for Cathedrals.  It was a great location!  Our first day was spend just wandering, exploring and testing the tapas theory.  We also enjoyed paella!  Yes, maybe we ate and drank a lot on this trip...but we did do a lot of walking every day too.  One highlight from our first day was finding the Mirador San Nicholas.  The perfect spot to soak in a little local culture and see the Alhambra in all of its glory.

That is what I call a nice view!

They all endured my daily "team photos"!

When in Spain...try the paella!

The next day was ABC... Another Bloody Church, and the Alhambra.  The Alhambra was amazing!  After seeing two palatial fortresses, I wondered how special could a place be?  I wondered if we'd seen one...or two...have we seen them all?  Nope!  The Alhambra is special!  It is such a masterful mix of Islamic intricacy and detail merged with Christian influences.  Luckily, the Christians kept much of the unbelievable details from the original Moorish designs.  My mouth was agape.  No picture will show just how inspiring this place actually is in person.  The views from the fortress are expansive and the gardens are meticulous.  When everything I read said expect to spend 3 hours here, I thought to myself, no way!  We spent almost 3 hours and could have spent longer.  Go figure!  It was the perfect exclamation point at the end of our travels together.  

One of the views from the top.

I loved the tile work and colors inside! 

And the details!!!

Peaceful and beautiful

One ceiling...photos cannot do it justice.

For the outdoorsy types.

Needless to say, southern Spain was exactly the right place to go to escape June gloom.  There was nothing gloomy about Andalusia.  I am so glad we were able to see these beautiful and amazing places.  Every day was a feast for the senses.  It would have been hard to not fall in love with Spain...again!