Granada, The Alhambra and Arabic shops

The Alhambra in Granada, Spain 

The Alhambra in Granada is a palace that used to be a Muslim fortress during the Muslim rule in Spain from 711-1492.  This former fortress symbolizes the major influence of Arabic-Muslim architecture in Spain.  Granada was the last stronghold of Muslim rule during the christian reconquista.  The Christians believed that the Alhambra was to beautiful to destroy when they conquered the city, therefore it still stands today.  I have never seen anything like the Alhambra before and was memorized by the magnitude of it.  The Sierra Nevada mountains set off in the background were breathtaking.  In order to have the perfect view of the Alhambra you have to visit the look out point "St.Nicholas" about 10 minutes outside of the city center.  We visited the look out point on the first day in Granada then went inside the palace the next day.  Everything about the Alhambra was perfect, except for the horrible weather....freezing rain and ice cold temperatures was definitely something I could have done without during this trip but I still had an amazing time at the Alhambra and Granada.  

View from the top of the Alhambra

Inside the Palace 

 The Arabic Shops

The Muslim influence in Andalusia, especially Granada is extremely predominant in shops, restaurants, and boutiques.  The shops were really beautiful, and one of the restaurants we visited had Arabic tea and pastries where you can smoke shisha out of a hookah while enjoying some tea and a pastry.      

   

Roman Holiday

Italy

I cant even begin to explain my trip to Rome because so much  happened. Hmmmm...where to start?  Well we arrived in Rome on a Thursday night, looking forward to three full days in the city.  After arriving in Italy we had to have Italian pasta and pizza, so we headed to the first restaurant that happened to be open.  I had a plate of Gnocchi and my friends ordered pizza with pumpkin sauce, which was actually amazing.  Dinner the first night was a success.  The hostel we stayed in was much much nicer than Madrid, it actually had hot showers, making this hostel a luxury hostel!  Early start the next day to visit the Colosseum, Roman forum, Trevi fountain, and the Spanish steps. Ate more pasta and pizza then on saturday we went to Vatican City to see the Sistine Chapel, St. Peters Basilica, and the Vatican Museum.  After a busy day of sight-seeing we had an amazing dinner experience at a 5-star restaurant in downtown Rome.  Last day, shopping at the market and tasting the best cannoli's I've ever had.  I know it's so cliche to eat cannoli's in Italy but, "When in Rome"

The Colosseum

The arch of Titus 

 The Roman Forum

breathtaking view of the Roman Forum

Visiting Rome only made me want to travel through all of Italy.  It is so beautiful here!!

The Trevi fountain 

Legend has it that if you toss a coin into the fountain it means a return to Rome, a second coin leads to a new romance, and a third coin leads to marriage! 

Vatican City

While in Italy we actually visited another country, The Vatican City, gotta love the catholic church!

The Vatican City Museum.  This was one of the many sculptures in the museum of Roman gods.

The Sistine Chapel

At the Sistine Chapel there were no cameras or talking allowed, but how can you travel all the way to the Vatican and not take pictures of the Sistine Chapel? It was too much of an amazing sight not too! 

St. Peter's Basilica, one of the largest catholic churches in the world and considered the Pope's principal church.  Two days after visiting St. Peter's Basilica the pope announced his resignation...crazy right?

Bottega Restaurant

Stumbling upon this little restaurant was probably the best decision we made in Rome.  The food was absolutely amazing, our chef was the nicest Italian I've ever met.  Andres, the chef originally from Columbia who moved to Rome to pursue a career in culinary, opened his restaurant to us and served us the best authentic Italian dishes; including prosciutto with fresh mozzarella, eggplant parmesan, tortellini, and this picture of homemade chips with ketchup, which wasn't real ketchup but a delicious, sweet dipping sauce which I loved, not to mention the (free) champagne, and wine.  

Tortellini with a cream sauce and red wine reduction....so good!

Latte with a prosciutto sandwich, did i mention how amazing the prosciutto was in Rome? They eat it with everything!

Ahhhh the cannoli's were to die for.  So fresh and delicious, I can honestly say those were the best cannoli's I've had in my entire life

Oh-Uh, shit happens and I missed my flight back to Sevilla, Spain and ended up stuck at the Rome airport.  But luckily I met people who were in the same boat as me and made some new friends at the airport.  So happy I had people to spend the night there with.   Might want to think twice before you plan a trip with Ryanair, it's not exactly the best airline service in Europe.   

What a way to end a perfect trip: sleeping on the floor at the airport. Anyways.....

You live and you learn! 

            

Madrid, Madrid, Madrid

This city was probably my favorite city to visit in Spain so far, besides Seville, where I live and love because it is my home city, anyways the city of Madrid is amazingly fun and full of fantastic restaurants  bars, clubs, and shopping.  I visited famous art museums, stunning monuments and beautiful parks.  Mostly, the reason I fell in love with Madrid when I visited was the familiarity with my other favorite city Chicago!  The city was more modern and diverse than other cities in Spain.  Here are some highlights of Madrid.

The city:

Museo de jamon, in Madrid you can find these little shops everywhere! Jamon Iberico is very popular in Spain and most Spaniards eat jamon everyday.  It's basically cured ham and perseved with salt then the salt is washed off and the hams are hung to dry for about six months. Finally, the hams are hung in a cool, dry place for six to eighteen months, depending on the climate, as well as the size and type of ham being cured.  Then sliced very thin and can be eaten in a sandwich, on toast, or plain!

Plaza Mayor is located in the city center of Madrid and is a beautiful monument surrounded by residential buildings and the statute of Phillip III in the center.

Panoramic view of Plaza Mayor!

beautiful bridge in Madrid, that reminded me so much of home :)

I think the city was even more beautiful at night.  Another amazing plaza in the downtown area.

The Food:

When you travel to Madrid, visiting the famous El Tigre restaurant is a must!  When you order a drink, either a glass of red wine or a large mojito, they give you free plates of tapas along with your drink order! Not to mention the tapas was amazingly delicious.  For about only 4 euro you receive croquet's & ham on toast with fantastic paella (see below)!  

Paella

Paella originated in the southern coast of Spain and consists of rice, a combination of seafood, and occasionally meat.  This is truly a Spanish dish, however it is very similar to Cajun food (mainly jambalaya).  I love paella and once you try it you will love it too! 

Tapas in the famous La Latina neighborhood.

Churros con chocolate

Everybody loves churros and why not eat them for breakfast everyday?  Probably not the best food to have for breakfast but  the Spaniards eat them anyway!  

Churros are dipped in hot chocolate, but not the same hot chocolate we are used to having during the winter.  It is more of like a thick, fudge type of hot chocolate only used with the churros for dipping.

Great food with great friends! 

Mueso del Prado:

While in Madrid I visited the famous Mueso del Pardo Art museum with the world famous Picasso paintings.  This is Picasso's guernica. 

Also another Picasso painting that I found interesting.

Also, the famous Adam & Eve painting, here at the Mueso del Prado

La Latina:

 

La Latina is a famous neighborhood located about twenty minutes from the city center.  La Latina had fantastic food, people, and gorgeous parks.  La Latina was definitely my favorite part of Madrid. 

We also had the chance to visit the oldest restaurant in the world! However, we didn't get a chance to eat there, because it was the oldest restaurant in the world there was a long line of tourists.