Alhambra by Day

so me and dad took the necessary trip to the alhambra on wednesday. i was very happy to finally go since ive been here. its really the most magnificent and special part of granada, in fact its what makes granada special. that towering palace looking down on the city, with the nightime lighting only enhancing its mystery. it is a work of art on the most massive scale. and the beautiful exterior doesnt hold a match to the exquisite mysteries hidden within.
now i dont really know how to go about this whole literary word game. i feel like im standing in the middle of the desert trying to talk about sand. or whatever thats supposed to mean. point is, i dont know how to do justice to something so unspeakably magical as the alhambra. there will be pictures at the end for when the thousand words come frustratingly short.
the extertior. it is the royal city on a hill. there is a wall running all the way around it, which in fact extended throughout the major neighborhoods of granada at the time of Al-Andaluz, as the time period is known, and from where Andalucia derives its name. there are some thirty odd towers that run along this wall, complete with all kinds of doorways, and tunnels, and such. there are several doors into the fortress all of which seemed pretty impenetrable to me when they were meant to be. fact has it that there are hidden tunnels that run all along the albayzin. legend has it that there are tunnels that run from the alhambra to the albayzin. now, my own judgement would lead me to beleive that it is quite likely that there are tunnels in the albayzin. it also seems likely that there are tunnels in the alhambra. now since there is a river that runs between the alhambra and the albayzin i sort of doubt that these crazy arabs would have been able to build such a diesel tunnel. now what i think was the case is that there were secret tunnels running to the edge of the river on either bank but that a stealthy individual would have to exit to cross the water. i guess its not that bad in the end. so basically the outside of this jump off is big and powerful but it is not as imposing as some of the behemoths left over from the christian era.
the inside. three words: palaces, pimping, palaces. the muslum palaces are so subtle from the outside, and when you get inside they are beyond exquisite. everything from the arquitecture to the detailed plasterwork on EVERY SINGLE inch of the palaces speaks of a sense of quality that no longer exists. imagine being the artist responsible for making the carvings that you will see below, and having to replicate it thousands of times, each identical to the original. the thought of it all painted is the stuff out of fantasy and halucination. the interior in its full splendor would be an acid junky's wet dream. every inch is covered in a beautiful geometric design, or in ornate caligraphy which repeats 'wa la galiba illa ala' Allah is the only victorious won. the most spectacular aspect of the alhambra however is the masterful control of the water. on top of a hill, the water was piped in acueducts from the mountain above. from there it flows through hundreds of little canals, fountains, gardens, pools, baths. the water never stops running. nowadays the old antique system has been refurbished with pumpes and gauges, but in the past the entirety of the water works were designed in, they could not be added later, it had to all be fitted into the master plan. and what a stunning master plan it is. there is nothing i can say, and no picture i can show you, that will bring you even close to understanding what i am talking about. in truth i hope to see you all in granada to visit what will hopefully soon be a wonder of the modern world (it seems its being voted on at the moment, i dont really know who votes on this kinds thing, they must have some sort of electoral college of scholars and other such wusses).
the gardens. the gardens are my favorite part of the alhambra. me and dad basically stopped and sat in most of the gardens we passed. this is the best way to see the alhambra, with like 6-8 hours to spare, just sort of waltzing around, chillin out in all the gardens. taking time to smell the roses if you know what i mean. but yea the gardens are fucking insane. it makes the new york botanical garden look like the parking lot at giants stadium. i mean its crazy. dad says that there are things that simply cannot be done in NY because of the winter, but they surely can be done here. huge walls covered in purple morning glories, huge sort of tunnel style hedges, pools lined wiht all kinds or rose bushes emmiting such a seductive aroma. each garden is accented by the gentle sound of running water soothing and lulling you into sitting down in each and every one.
finally the view. it is really the best view of the city, the albayzin, and the surrounding provinces. it sort of makes you feel like that prince(ss) from that time long long ago sitting in one of the gardens, orlooking out a window, or standing atop a mighty tower, and just looking out on the beaurtiful sights.
bla bla bla

love emi
"wa la galiba illa ala"
the alhambra from the albayzin
the albayzin from the alhambra

the view of Granada from the highest tower
the roof of a room. a star coming out of a square.
El Palacio de los Leones. supposedly the water came out of a different lions mouth every hour. twice a day. 12 lions. no machines. damn
the inside of the tallest room. completely covered in plasterwork.
some more caligraphy. i study arabic, and i dont really make out any letters, and certainly ccany read it
the inside of the palace. PIMP
some elaborate plasterwork
The wall of Morning Glories
some more pimp shit
and a little ol garden. not bad eh?
until next time my friends

as a side note. if the anonymous comentator from a while back would like to introduce himself pemiliano@gmail.com is where to find me. if not there is no problem. it was a pleasure.