May 24th, 2010
The Winning Team
As we made our way back towards our bus stop after dinner we could hear the sound of a huge crowd singing the Granada football team’s fight song. When we got to the Gran Via we were in the thick of a throng of screaming and cheering soccer fans there to welcome home the winning team. The previous night they had won their game and ascended to the next round of the finals.
We just happened to be perfectly positioned so that when the bus carrying the winning team rolled into the plaza, it stopped right in front of us. It was pretty exciting to be in the midst of that many jubilent people.
When the bus dropped us off near our hotel we could still here the crowd singing in the city below. And just now, fireworks.
We spent the morning in Cordoba at the Mezquita, a once Muslum mosque converted into a catholic church in the 16th century. It was interesting to see the ornate, over the top decoration of the church overlaid on the understated geometric simplicity of the mosque.
The drive from Cordoba to Granada went incredibly smoothly and made up for all the trouble we had yesterday. The Spanish countryside is mile after mile of neatly planted rows of olive trees. There is nary an inch of uncultivated land to be seen. As we approached Granada we could see the peaks of the Siera Nevada mountains looming over the valley.
Our car friendly hotel is right next to the Alhambra which is good because we have tickets for a 9 o’clock entry, for which it is recommended we show up an hour early. And so I must end here as it is all ready late.
Tomorrow I will tell of the fantastic dinner we had and the ridiculously friendly waiter.
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