Yesterday we had an amazing tour of the Cathedral and Royal Chapel of Granada led by our two instructors. Sadly, I knew near to nothing about the history of Granada prior to going, and therefore found this experience to be incredibly enriching. Both of these buildings were constructed under the direction of los Reyes Católicos, Queen Isabel and King Ferdinand, who conquered the city and forcibly Christianized the Moors. These buildings contain primarily Gothic art and architecture, which in my opinion is quite dark. Quite interestingly, the art and architecture present combines both religion and politics, as religion was a sign of power during this time. I was astounded by the violence that was depicted in these supposedly religious sanctuaries. In the Royal Chapel, we saw the actual tombs of Queen Isabel, King Ferdinand, their children Juana la Loca and Felipe el Hermoso, and their grandchild Prince Miguel, who died at a young age. They were located underneath these grandiose sculptures of the royal family; the whole thing was interesting yet fairly creepy. There was a small museum in the sacristy that harbored Queen Isabel's large collection of Flemish paintings. This type of art is so interesting to me, as characters in these paints have such a unique look to them. The cathedral was equally fascinating, particularly the fact that the cathedral was so well lit by natural light, unlike most cathedrals I have been to which have been quite dark.
Unfortunately, photographs were not permitted inside the buildings, but I got some wonderful photos during out break.
The facade of the cathedral: completely symmetrical except for the tower off to the left (because of this the cathedral cannot be considered complete). In its entirety, the cathedral took 200 years to complete.
Friends in front of the cathedral
View facing the cathedral
The plaza in front of the cathedral: a man serenading me with Spanish guitar
Last night I went with some friends to explore the city a bit and try out new tapas bars.
Our meeting place, los correos (the post office) that I mistook as the name of a bar... oops?
The actual bar we meant to go to!
Hannigans, and Irish pub, in which, unfortunately, everyone spoke English
We came across this interesting, Middle Eastern-inspired tapas bar which had the most amazing free tapas! We received plates full of hummus, falafel, and so much more. ¡Que delicioso!
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