Alhambra Spain

It is magic visiting the Alhambra in Granada, in southern Spain at the base of the Sierra Nevada mountains, which remains impressed in the mind of the visitor as a play of light and cut stone and water. You reach the hill of Sabika, and the palace stands above us with the strength of a fortress and the beauty of a garden which is suspended. It is entering the world where centuries of history, art and experience between various cultures can be read in every detail. After having gone through the monumental enclosure, the Alhambra seems to be a fortified city, the so-called red fortress because of the warm hue of its walls which on sunrise and sunset appear to be on fire in the sun. The walks wander along with cypresses, oleanders and pomegranate trees, and as you go you are accompanied by the song of birds and the low murmur of fountains. Nature here is not so much a setting, but a part of the whole, a symbolic feature that brings to mind the Islamic concept of paradise comprised of gardens and running water.

The Palacios Nazaries is the heart of the Alhambra where the rulers of the last Muslim kingdom on the Iberian Peninsula lived. As you enter the Mexuar, the first reception hall, you are at once struck with the lightness of Nasrid art: finely carved stucco, geometrical designs, which appear to touch the heavens, inscriptions that seem to be calligraphic, reminding us of a poem or an ode to God. All the surfaces are full of complicated designs, as though the artist had rubbed stone into cloth. Thence into the Sala de la Barca, and into the wonderful Sala de los Embajadores, whence ambassadors and great persons were formerly entertained. The wooden dome, which is a masterpiece of Islamic art, resembles a wood carved and painted sky with stars. The panorama of Granada, that extends like a natural stage facing the world beyond, is seen through the windows. The sultans, who sat on their divans, upholstered with expensive fabrics, and looked upon their guests with a certain degree of pride, are easy to imagine.

Passing along courtyards and corridors, you arrive at one of the most recognizable spaces of the Alhambra the Patio de los Arrayanes (Court of the Myrtles), with its long pool of water bordered by white marble paving and hedges of myrtle. The palace is perfectly reflected in the still water, a perfect game of symmetry is created, and the breeze creates slight ripples, transforming the scene into almost the unreal, as a painting moving. As you pass under the arcades you are enjoying the closeness of the place, a suspended silence which appears to seal up time. As you walk through these porticoes, you take in all this feeling of silence; what would appear initially as a beautiful thing turns very profound.

The path then takes one to the renowned Patio de los Leones (Court of the Lions), which is, maybe, the most famous of all the complex. The main fountain is supported by twelve marble lions, out of which thinner streams of water run through an incredible hydraulic system of the era. The proportions are ideal, the arches light, the stucco work so delicate, it seems to be lace cut out of stone. The whole courtyard is full of grace and resourcefulness, as though the whole place was planned as one architectural gem.

Exiting the palaces, you proceed to the Alcazaba castle which is the oldest in the Alhambra. This citadel with its high towers and bastions provides splendid panoramic views of the city and the Albaicin quarter that covers the other hillside. To go up to the Torre de la Vela is to quit the civilized world of the royal palaces and enter the defensive aspect of the citadel, where each stone is a reminder of battles and sieges.

The Palace of Charles V, square outside, and with a magnificent circular court inside, is next to the Alcazaba. This Renaissance construction is in contrast to the gentle Moorish curves of the Nasrid palaces, but it also reveals their historical continuity: the transition to the Islamic to the Christian rule, and the fact that the Alhambra became the source of imperial authority.

The sightseeing usually finishes in the Gardens of the Generalife, the old summer palace of the sultans, located on an adjacent hill. The rate is less: glittering fountains, shaded pergolas, perfumed flowers, water-run stairs falling down the steps, in a murmur. The garden colours are altered according to the seasons but the effect is always the same, a place of complete tranquility, between contemplation and beauty.

You walk out of the Alhambra with much more than the recollection of a wonderful work of architecture. It seems as though you have traversed a world where cultures have come together and mingled together forming a masterpiece of its own. A journey in time, in art and to the heart of a place which speaks to this day in its stone, its light and its tales whispered by the wind.