Spain: Granada and the town

With less than 2.5 hours away from Malaga, Granada is the last Moorish stronghold city in the Iberian Peninsula. It is a city defined by its artistic grandeur embracing Moorish palaces and Christian Renaissance treasures.

Checking in at the hotel was a breeze. We hurriedly went out to begin our exploration of Granada. A walking tour, visit to the cathedral and Alhambra were already planned for the next day so we all decided to see other parts of Granada.

We walked passed a park located close to a university. There were a lot of students lounging in the park, enjoying the sunny, but mild winter weather.

 After a few photos around the fountain, we continued on walking. Orange trees lined the sidewalks, a landmark on all of the Moorish influenced towns we've visited thus far in the Andalucian region of Spain. We found ourselves behind the cathedral were several stores sold handmade products. My sister and I immediately started browsing through the store, eager to find presents for family and friends back in NYC and NJ. They have lovely pieces great for souvenirs but a little to pricey for my taste. I did buy some small, jewel boxes with single colored-glass patterns. I bought a green, red, and blue ones.

Just around the corner is the Cathedral. Although we were scheduled to visit there the next day, we knew that we will have limited time and it will be on the different part of the cathedral. With a full day behind us, we were tired and hungry but dinner was a few more hours away.

As we walked back to the hotel, we found a place to eat that everyone could agree on: it was inexpensive, light, and they have beer. I don't recall what I had but everyone liked Matt’s order - a crepe on fire! LoL. That woke up everyone. The walk back to the hotel became a leisure time for us. We took our time walking and chatted with some of the people we didn't get to spend much time with on the tour. Matt - the ortho resident MD - was telling us about New Zealand and the other places he went to before this tour. When we reached the hotel, we spent an hour resting our feet before heading for dinner.

Dinner was okay but with a nice surprise. Peggy bought 2 bottles of wine - one white, one red - at each table for everyone! Lost and confused, I was curious for the treat.

Then she made a toast. It was because she was away from home during a special occasion in her culture and would like to spend it with us and greeted everyone "A happy Chinese/Lunar New Year!" Although I am Filipino, we do not celebrate the Lunar New Year in my family as we observe a more Catholic/Spanish culture/tradition. But everyone became an honorary Asian that night as we joined in with the toast! It was sweet of Peggy - who only had a sip of the wine she bought everyone since she can't tolerate alcohol well.

After dinner, we went to a restaurant/bar located underneath the bullring. We had sangrias by the pitchers and when that was consumed, Mike bought 6 more pitchers for everyone! Fantastic! More to drink! Some came home buzzed, a few drunk - all were happy for such a wonderful day.