Touring Granada

Today began bright and early with a tour of Spain's most visited tourist attraction, the Alhambra. This exquisite palace/fortress represents the height of Moorish architecture during their occupation of Granada centuries ago. The palaces sport materials from red stone to marble to alabaster to mahogany and everything else that implies power and fortune. Our tour also brought us around the grounds of the palace, the "generalife", where the architecture and decor from inside spilled into the well manicured gardens.

With the afternoon to ourselves and the weather getting warmer by the hour, many of us decided to explore Granada. On a recommendation from yours truly, several groups set out in search of the Monastery de la Cartuja on the outskirts of town. Although I haven't spoken to anyone who saw it today about his or her visit, I can assure you that if their experiences were anything like the one I had there yesterday, then it is an unexpected highlight of the tour.

I spent my afternoon wandering through the art district and the Moorish neighborhood in the center of the city. Tea shops and artistic graffiti are the norm in this part of Granada. After the very early start we had this morning at the Alhambra, I was ready to partake in a Spanish tradition--the siesta.

Fast forward to our final concert of the tour, which took place tonight at the University of Granada chapel. Our performance began just after evening Mass and we were shocked to have a full house! The space did incredible things for our music, resounding it around the chapel in an angelic echo. The audience is also partly responsible for the success of our concert; there were positive reactions to every piece, and a few "muy bueno's" from the more vocal attendants. A few people were even singing along to our Spanish repertoire! The response merited not one but TWO encore pieces and a standing ovation. I don't think we could have asked for a better final concert, and I'm sure everyone feels that our upcoming days on the beach are very well deserved.



Kendall