Alhambra to Gibraltar

My stomach cramping continued through the night and fever and some nausea further complicated my sleeping. When the alarm rang at 8:00 I didn’t really feel like going anywhere. But, since staying in bed was not an option I rolled out and begin to get ready for another day.

We met at 9:00 AM for departure from the hotel and to make our way out to Alhambra, the ancient fortress city just outside of Granada. It was the last holdout by the Moors when the Spaniards retook the country in the past (I purchased the visitors guide and will worry about the facts of history later). Missionary Sones entertained our van with a mixed monologue of fact and fiction of his own version of the historical events of this area. He adopted a somewhat British/Stoneking accent adding to the effect.

For 10 euros per person we were granted access to the final fortress holdout of the Moors. We toured the royal palace which was absolutely phenomenal in the intricate carvings and décor that the Muslims left on it. White marble flooring covered most of the palace interiors. Arches, columns, and windows provided a photographers dream throughout the place. Courtyards and water pools were seen inside the palace grounds. Though the whole idea of a “palace’ sounds wonderfully romantic, the truth is they were probably cold, drafty, and have a sordid history of war, attacks, and bloodshed to the royal family when there was an overthrow of power.

After the palace we toured another area where we had access to a lookout area higher on the walls. It seemed the stories of medieval times, even biblical times, came alive while gazing up at stark walls and massive doors that secured the ancient cities. The location of some of the areas also provided natural defenses by their position on a hill and surrounded by ravines and streams. Some distance away the snow topped peaks of the Sierra Nevada Mountains were within sight. These are the mountains for which the California mountain range was named. I have seen several names and references here that the Spanish explorers bequeathed to us in America.

We left Alhambra about 2:00 and planned to drive to Malaga on the Mediterranean coast for lunch. By this time I was feeling much better and began to think I might be able to eat today. The trip was enhanced by Abigail O’Keefe who ran a constant commentary on the beach ministry on the Mediterranean seacoast. Fortunately, we are early enough in the year that it’s a bit cold to worry about the clothing situation on the coast! We also passed the time by singing some of the old songs as off-key as possible. We started with some of the ancient classics of the hymnbooks and ended up with some Lanny Wolfe favorites and classic worship choruses. At least it kept Brother Sones awake as he drove us further south and toward the sea.

We came through some more hills and miles of Olive orchards. Spain is a major producer of olives and olive oil as evidenced by the agricultural bounty. As we got closer to the coastal areas even the residential structures begin to change. The appearance seemed more like some of the coastal areas of California. Coming into Malaga it also seemed more like California because we got in our first major traffic jam – home, sweet home!

By the time we got to Brother Markham’s favorite buffet we were ready to eat anything and call it good! The restaurant was just across the street from the beach and offered some traditional Spanish foods (not to be confused with Mexican food), some Chinese, and some traditional buffet items. I started out with the wok selection. I picked out the raw makings of a stir-fry and took it to the chef who boiled it for a couple of minutes before frying it all in a wok to perfection. On my second round I sampled some of the other offerings. Though I felt 100% better, I tried to refrain from eating too much because I sure didn’t want to be sick the rest of the day!

Leaving the buffet we walked across the street and down to the beach where we picked up a few shells and took some pictures to prove we were really here. Some of the shells were similar to those we find in California while others were of unique designs and colors that were new to us. We made our way up the beach for a block or so and then back to the vans for the final hour or so of our journey today.

The final leg of our journey brought us to Gibraltar, named for the rock along the straits to the Mediterranean Sea (or was the rock named for the town). This is another very beautiful area. These coastal areas are very popular with the Europeans for vacation spots during the warm summer months. We are staying in a beautiful old hotel, the Reina Cristina, that reminds me some of the Coronado Hotel in San Diego. It is very old but a beautiful facility that has earned a four star rating.

We met our group in the spacious lobby about 8:00 PM. We visited a bit then decided that salad or soup and bread would be a sufficient dinner tonight since we had eaten so well in the mid afternoon. They have a beautiful restaurant in the hotel so we had our soups and salads on linen tablecloths and drank our bottled water in wine glasses. We sat with the Ron and Deena Krantz and visited over dinner.

About 10:30 we came to the room and I purposed to catch up on my blogging before retiring. Internet service is available; I’m just not sure what the cost will be here. I guess I’ll either get up early enough in the morning to find out or post these ramblings later when I get access again.