February 2024: Snow Moon

Granada (Mark)

There exist in this world - blessedly - a handful of fairy tale cities. These places give the impression that they are some sort of real life Disneyland, as if all the landscapes and businesses and residents conspired together in pursuit of some communal quaintness. They are, importantly, not caught up in themselves or their own self importance - this isn’t Sedona, after all. There are usually lots of chocolate shops and people outside and sometimes, mountains nearby. Real people really live there.

I have been to three fairy tale cities in my life — Victoria, in British Columbia; Bariloche, in Argentina; and Granada.

I recognized Granada as a fairy tale city the first morning we were there. We went into a bustling cafe, and everyone had the same drink in front of them. It was served to everyone in the same glass. No matter what the people were eating, who they were, how they dressed, they’d all ordered this same drink. Practicing my Spanish, I asked the waiter what it was. “Cafe con leche” he replied, a gentle and wise gripping my shoulder. Coffee with milk. Not that revolutionary of a drink, and one we’d soon learn is consumed throughout Spain, but one that in Granada is drank literally everywhere, at every time of day, by everyone.

Or, take a more widespread one - Tapas. Spain is famous for tapas, and Granada is the tapas capital. You expect to come to the ‘Tapas Capital’ and get some touristy spots and a few magnets with Tapas puns on them. But no. The tapas culture in Granada is more ubiquitous than even Lonely Planet would have you believe. They do tapas for lunch, tapas for dinner. You order anything, from a Rioja to a sparkling water, and a little plate of food arrives with it. Locals had not just their favorite tapas spots, but their favorite tapa at the tapas spot… “the third at Los Marianos,” they’d say. “You must stay for the third.”

Where else can you find every damn restaurant giving you free jamon and cheese with a 2.50€ vino tinto? Pure fairly tale, I tell you.

There are other things, too. You’re at the base of an 11,410 foot peak, a fluffy white mirage that contrasts beautifully with the pure blue skies. There is a rich history of Muslims and Jews living peacefully together in the place before the Christians came along and bungled everything. People drink beer out of wine glasses at all hours of the day but somehow never get drunk. Locals are generous of spirit - from my tennis buddy Josè who showed me all the courts to the woman who fixed Abby’s sunglasses for free. Siestas are serious business and nothing much is happening between 2 and 5, besides perhaps people chowing down on churros dipped in chocolate. There are statues of pomegranates everywhere. There is a carless neighborhood of windy cobblestoned streets and steep hills called Albaicín that feels more like a paradisiacal white splashed village than a central neighborhood in a city of 200,000 people. People still live in caves. The traditional Flamenco is often performed in said caves, and the women dancing Flamenco all wear the same pained, puckering expression that I’m sure their mothers and grandmothers wore before them. And, of course, there is the Alhambra, that hill castle of all hill castles, so grand and intricate that even the Crusaders spared it from destruction. Today, it stands as that rare tourist draw that actually merits the hoards that flock to it - the Nasrid Palaces in particular are like something out of Moorish dream. 

We lived a month in this fairy tale. In many ways, I think our experience in Granada will exist like the place itself - a time set apart from reality, where something in the mountain air or the medieval structures made our modern lives slow down a bit, sip our cafe con leche, enjoy our tapas, and understand just what it may be that really makes us smile.

Slowing down in Granada (Abby)

Yesterday while walking along the river right outside of the city center, Mark said that he has never had a month like the one we just had. It was the first time he has ever spent multiple weeks living in one place (in this case, an airbnb apartment) in a new city without working. I have never had this experience either, and Granada was a fantastic city for the occasion.

After a month of traveling all over India, we were excited to slow down for a few weeks. We rented an apartment close to the city center of Granada. Our apartment turned out to be in a wonderful area- close to several peaceful plazas but on a quieter side street, and just steps to the riverwalk that ran for miles. There were several delicious tapas restaurants and multiple bakeries nearby, and we quickly found out that Granada loves its pomegranates- from actual trees that were sadly not in season, to fountains and street bollards, you can find them everywhere.

One evening while on an evening stroll, we stumbled upon a choir. A group of 30 or so individuals bundled in coats, swayed as they sang. It was the Granada Rock Choir practicing and advertising for their upcoming concert scheduled in March. I didn't recognize the first song we heard, but later looked it up. It's called Ven a Granada (Come to Granada) by Los Angeles. The song was catchy and the chorus was easy for the surrounding crowd to join in on. The lyrics are about slowing down, enjoying the mountain air, smelling the snow and the sea, making the water sing. Mark and I joined in, smiling, swaying, singing Ven a Granada to each other soaking up the spontaneity of the moment. The choir then switched to singing, Rock and Roll All Nite, by Kiss causing the crowd to go wild. I loved every minute of it.

After that evening, Ven a Granada lyrics stayed with me, even though my Spanish isn't great and I didn't know the true lyrics. I started making up own. Walking slow down the cobblestones, eat tapas every night, take a siesta before dinner, Come to Granada!

I think this song is the perfect background music for our month in Granada. For us, traveling slow meant that we didn't get to all the places on our list. We didn't go find small coastal towns or get to Portugal or even Madrid.

Traveling slow after a few months now of being on the road was lovely. We went grocery shopping and I got to cook, Mark found a tennis racket and joined a WhatsApp group to find partners, and I bought a pool pass to swim laps at a community center. Our friends came to visit and explore the city with us. We rented a car a few times to explore other towns in the South of Spain. We took beautiful hikes overlooking the Sierra Nevada mountainside. More of our adventures and photos are captured here!

I got to go to my first ever football (soccer) game - Go Go Granada FC!- and then quickly went to my second in Sevilla to see Dinamo Zagreb beat Real Betis! We figured out how to siesta and use our Sundays wisely (most places close - except the bakeries and half of the tapas bars). We became familiar navigating the city streets, visiting plazas we love multiple times and getting to know the twists and turns. We even got to celebrate a holiday, eating green beans and focaccia-like bread called salaillas while watching flamenco dancers.

We truly got to be mindful and present in Granada for a few weeks. Slowing down was exactly what we needed. If you haven't yet experienced Granada, I urge you to add it to your list of places to visit. And if you have, I hope this post brings back fond memories, and use it as a reminder of the importance to take things slower, to make space for fiestas but also siestas.

Highlights from this full moon:

• We got to see our wonderful friends Mike, Camille, Ben and Erin who were gracious enough to come visit us! It was so great to see them :)

• The best thing Mark ate was all the jamon and the large homemade chocolate Ferrero Rocher from the bakery around the corner from our airbnb.

• The best thing Abby ate was fried artichokes from Los Diamantés, zucchini salad from a restaurant in Cordoba and roscas (meringue cookies).

• We went on several hikes all around the outskirts of Granada, enjoying the epic foothills and Sierra Nevada mountains in the background.

• We didn't swim in any oceans, but Abby did some great laps in a community pool.

• Learning all about Granada time :)

• Abby read Pride and Prejudice and The Master and Margarita.