We didn’t really have any hard plans today as the main thing to do in Granada was to go see the Alhambra. Our Airbnb was just 2 blocks away from the Cathedral in Granada. In the mornings we’ve walked past it, streams of tour groups would be seen walking in and out of it so we figured we should probably go check it out.
First, we needed to get breakfast. Maria recommended that we check out a local specialty called a pionono. I saw posters for them in bakery windows and decided we should try it on our last full day in Granada. I incorrectly thought it was the size of a cupcake based on the pictures but it’s smaller than a macaron. Less than a bite size.
It tasted like combination of flan and bread pudding with a brulee topping. Pretty good for $1 but not enough for breakfast so we got sandwiches instead.
Entry into the cathedral was €5. The sign said €3.5 with student IDs. I still carry my U of M id but it’s probably best not to defraud a church over €1.5 euros. Upon walking in, it’s apparent how huge the cathedral was. I downloaded the free app which said that this is actually one of the largest cathedrals in Europe which is crazy. It was built on top of the city’s main mosque after the reconquest of Granada. Construction started in 1521 and completed in only 35 years.
There are 2 organs with all original parts. One of them was currently being in the process of being restored. Just like the Alhambra, crazy to see what humans are capable of building without modern technology.
I don’t really understand the attraction? for lack of better words in gothic Roman art to depict the suffering of Jesus and his followers but there was a wooden statue of John the Baptist’s head on a silver platter as written in Matthew 14.
Honestly the rest of the day was spent just stuffing our faces. After the cathedral, we decided to take a break and get some tinto de verano. I may have mentioned this in a previous post but in Granada, you get a free plate of food with each round of drinks. We got a round of tinto de verano and a round of radlers. The dishes they served us were seafood paella, fried fish and calamari, and grilled shishito peppers. We only had to pay $3 per drink per person. Best.Happy.Hour.Ever.
Joanna and I wanted to check out Spanish churros as a dessert. They’re similar to the churros we have at home except they’re not dusted with cinnamon and sugar. They’re just fried dough you dip into a cup of dark chocolate. The dough is very similar to chinese you tiao (油條) that you eat with congee. I thought they came with 1 or 2 with a full order so when the waiter asked if i wanted a half order, I said no, I’ll do the full one. Whoops, got a bit more than I expected. These were delicious but a bit too much for just 2 people.
We went back to take a nap and to wait for the peak temps of the day to cool down a bit before we were hungry enough to venture out to eat again. Got an “early” dinner at 9pm at a pizza place where we started with another round of tinto de verano and an amazingly delicious caprese salad. I’ve never had it with buffalo mozzarella before but this is one of the top things I’ve had on the trip so far. The cheese was so fresh and soft, tomatoes very sweet tasting, and the sun tried tomato on top was smoky. What a great dish to have. We ordered a pizza with bresaola (like ham but beef), cane honey, walnuts, arugula, parmesan cheese, mozzarella, tornato tomatoes, and extra virgin olive oil.
The meal was excellent and we had to walk it off before we could go to bed. We found a nice town square with benches where we just hung out for an hour and people watched. Really nice date night to close out Granada as we’re heading out tomorrow for Seville.
The cathedral is superb! Can’t believe they skipped ham on mozzarella with tomatoes. 😀