Granada - The lions are back: The Alhambra - The Fruchters day 9

After a pleasantly relaxing evening of tapas (and a stop at the yogurt shop on the way back) the previous night, we all awoke ready to hit the highlight of Granada: The Alhambra. Our guide met us at the hotel and we took a cab ride up to the greatest remaining monument to 700 years of Moorish reign in Spain. The new models that they've set up outside the newly renovated offices are a ncie touch, giving a better, 3D idea of what we are about to see than the old map (which is still there).

Our original entrance time for the palaces was at 12:30, so it seemed that getting there at 10:20 gave us plenty of time. However, Rosa being the generous person that she is, ended up swapping our tickets with another guide whose group was having difficulties, and we discovered that our entrance time was from 10:30-11:00. No time for dilly-dallying, so we went off immediately, Rosa offering a rushed apology and brief explanations as we walked, with promises of more information on the way back. We made it with time to spare, and what a treat we got: The famous Lions, 12 marble statues which habitually inhabit the Plaza de Leones, are back on display! After being one of the feature attractions for years, the lions underwent a 3 year restoration process. They are still not back at the Plaza, but they are on display. For all those who saw them before, I highly recommend coming back to see them again: the details and colors are remarkable!!!

The rest of the visit was, as always, wonderful. Rosa was very accommodating, and we took lots of pictures. Rosa left us for the day (looking forward to the tour tomorrow!) and we went back to the Plaza Nueva for lunch at the Pilar de Oro, where we enjoyed some wonderful sopa de ajo and I got a pollito - I admit I was expecting a smaller piece of a bigger chicken, rather than the full piece of a very small chicken, but it was delectable all the same. In the evening we hit the tapas bar again, and once again we had a great selection provided by our waiter. We had to do it early though, as Dennis and Holly headed up to see a flamenco show at the Chumbera theater.

Only one more full day to enjoy the sun, history, food and people of Spain. But we are looking forward to visiting the city center, and having some churros.