Granada

SO! We took a little weekend trip to Granada back in mid-March. I have to agree with my mom and say, there is just something about this city! There is a word, ambiente, that roughly translates to mean atmosphere (and also something like character and identity, I think). Well, Granada's got it. The famous Alhambra (big royal Muslim castle/grounds) sits on a hill and can be seen from all over. It seems to cast a shadow of mystique unto this curiosity of a city, which is burgeoning with students and young people yet frozen in the past (you love my fictional prose). The castle rooms boast intricate wall-to-ceiling-to-wall script and a whole lot of juicy prince and princess stories. Talk about dramaaa!





How do you like this storytelling mode? I'm into it. Let's continue.

Now, something I was not so aware of until I got there: Granada is full of hippies (or at least people with many hippie-like qualities). Comfortably & colorfully clad, long haired, pot smoking, guitar sing-alonging, grungy dogs for companions owning hippies. Below, observe a crowd of local Granadians *chilling* at El Mirador, a high up hangout spot with a view of the city. They certainly were high up. ^^



Jokes, jokes! For real, though, the vibe of this place - que ouais! You pick it up from the get-go. It's in the streets, the air, that castle, and it's with the people. Late one Saturday night, hanging around the city center (still lots of people out & about -- this is Spain, babez!), we met this guy who was really... out of the ordinary. In a good way. He spoke English very well and he liked to talk, so we got to chatting, and it was that immediate click you feel with people whose perception of the world lines up with yours. We talked in the spirit of appreciation of people, time and place, and of our chance meeting that night (for a reason?). He told us how he had traveled around the world, had a child, worked in opium fields - how he studied psychology in university for a short time but couldn't stay in such a heartless environment (knowledge for wisdom?). We talked about religion, and he said his idea of "God" or some sort of higher power beyond us was in a group of people at a concert (Durkheim's definition of religion/collective effervescence?). He was selling pot and other stuff. Hahaha, can you see how I would be super into this encounter?

It was that kind of night, and Granada is that kind of city. All in all, a successful & meaningful weekend trip with new friends. You definitely get to know people on a deeper level when you travel with them. Non-stop fun & fascination for this moi. :)



xoxo jbahz