A Trip Back in Time

I'm back at the keyboard and it feels good (like I knew that it would,,,now (you can sing along if you like.) I'm working on the fifth in the Anna Sweet novellas for Grass Roots Press, an adult literacy press out of Edmonton. It's taken me a while to come up with the crime that the mystery centres around and I'm still working out details, but chapter one is well under way.

I've been invited to participate on a book show on Cable 22 with filming the weekend of November 28. I've done a lot more radio than tv so this will be a good experience. I'll let you know how it goes!

Back to our travels in Europe in September. After four nights in Montpellier, France, we took the train back to Barcelona where we caught a plane to Granada in south central Spain, which is a small city in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, an hour from the Mediterranian. We'd had a few days of cool, stormer weather in France but were right back into the sun and heat.

After a half hour bus ride from the airport, we arrived in the business district at the entryway to the Albaycin district, the oldest part of the city and a UNESCO World Heritage site. It is also the Moorish quarter with bazaars, markets, restaurants and bars. We read that our VRBO was a five minute walk down to the Plaza Neuva - cars cannot travel through the narrow, cobblestone streets - but the walk up to our apartment dragging suitcases took more like twenty minutes. The route was a series of steps, making the dragging of suitcases even more difficult.

Ted and Paul had gone ahead to make sure we were on the right path.

A hookah lounge down the hill from our apartment.

The cobblestones are pebbles and take a bit of getting used to walking on. 

Around the corner from our apartment...

And down the hill.  We found this resto owned by an Algerian and ate there both night of our stay. We sat in this little central courtyard with the ceiling open to the night sky. I still have fond memories of the chicken with plums and almonds. 

Again, not far from where we were staying. The Monastary of Santa Isabel de Real, dating back to 1504, a women's religious convent still operating today.

Fabulous views from Albaycin lookout.

We spent the next day touring the Alhambra on a guided tour. The Alhambra is a fort and series of Medieval palaces, still fed by the original aqueduct system. There are also spectacular gardens to walk through. We walked up a steep hill a short distance from our apartment and slept well after our climb through Alhambra.  

The ancient ruins, dating back to 889. The castle was built in the 11th century and the Moors arrived in the 13th century, adding palaces for the sultans and families.

Kathy:-)

Inside the palace.

The ornate ceiling inside one of the palaces.

A view of the Sierra Nevada in the distance.

The original fortress. 

And next week, we travel to the beautiful city of Seville!