We’ve always said that our ownership and adventures on Cassini weren’t just about making great voyages and exploring the coastlines, which we have done, but spending time seeking out the history and beauty of some of the places we’ve visited a little more inland.  

During our stay in Motril, we took a hire car up to Granada, deep in the Sierra Nevada mountains. It’s a city rich in heritage, with everything from ancient streets and markets to a fabulous cathedral and of course, the splendid Alhambra palaces. 

We spent two days in Granada, just enough to enjoy the city on the first day and explore the Alhambra on day two. After a 45-minute drive from Motril we arrived in Grenada, and searched out somewhere for breakfast. The top-rated ‘I need coffee’ emporium was shut for August! We diverted to an alternative venue close by and enjoyed various toasts, toppings and filled croissants with great coffee and fresh orange juice (Full English was not on the menu!).

We did a walking tour of the city in the morning of day one to get our bearings, during which we got our first view of Alhambra from across a river valley that separates the palace from the city.  After our ‘tour’, we stopped in one of the old riverside tapas bars at lunchtime and enjoyed a drink with a ‘free’ tapas or two (they come with every beer or glass of wine you buy here – it’s a local tradition) before we could access our apartment and get the car parked in its reserved ‘garage’.  

After a little afternoon siesta, we set off to explore the Cathedral and local markets.  Building work on the cathedral started in 1523 and continued in some form for two centuries. If you want all the details of this fabulous cathedral, there’s a great summary from the Lonely planet at: https://www.lonelyplanet.com/spain/granada/attractions/catedral-de-granada/a/poi-sig/1206543/360733

But there are a few things that particularly struck me. Either side of the nave are two organs. Their scale, reaching perhaps 70m high, and their opulent gold decoration around the pipes is amazing. The organ on the right side of the altar is original from the 18th century, including all its machinery and 4000 pipes and still works today.

The scale and beauty, intricacy and detail in the carvings, paintings and the building itself are quite awe inspiring, including an enormous tabernacle chiselled in silver that positively gleams.  Behind the tabernacle is a great lectern, solid enough to carry the books that the clergy and choir might sing from; it had to be large enough to be viewed from some distance as the books, made of leather and the words printed in beautiful script on velum, measure nearly a meter in height and similarly across. Before the days of the printing press, it was probably easier to write, paint one book of this scale than make hymn books for everyone.

The treasures of the church that are on display are spectacular; all manner of plate and chalice, but the most impressive I thought were the clergy robes for the different ceremonies, which are all covered in silver and gold filigree and other colourful threads in really intricate designs.

Back outside the Cathedral, we wandered through the myriad markets in the old city. There’s a lot of souvenirs, clothes, trinkets etc; the general atmosphere of the place was redolent of the Arab souks which have prospered here since the time of the Moors.  In the evening we thought we’d enjoy a little more tapas. As it turned out, we found a lovely restaurant where we enjoyed some tapas, followed by some lovely seafood, cheese and vegetable dishes with a sweet truffle to finish. A delicious end to the day. 

Simon