 Durant
& Cheryl Imboden'sEurope for Visitors europeforvisitors.com |
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The AlhambraGranada, Andalucia, Spain
ABOVE: A twilight view of the Alhambra, with the Palace of Charles V behind the Moorish fortress. INSET BELOW: Another view, showing the snowcapped Sierra Madre mountains.
The Alhambra, which gets its name from the red clay walls surrounding it, was built to house the Muslim ruler Mohammed ibn Nasr in the 13th Century during the time of the Moorish occupation of Spain. Instead of being wholly defensive, the fortress actually is more of a small town and collection of palaces. While perhaps impractical in the long run--Christian armies captured the Alhambra in the late 15th Century--the fortress and its gardens survive as a world-famous monument and tourist attraction, drawing thousands of appreciative visitors every day. Next page: Inside the Alhambra and the Generalife
Anders Imboden is a frequent visitor to Madrid; he researched this article between a semester of political studies at the University of Edinburgh and an IES European Union program in Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany. He has written other articles for Europeforvisitors.com, including a story about Madrid's Retiro Park, tips for a Dublin Weekend, articles about Stirling and North Berwick in Scotland, and a report on attending a football match at Sunderland's Stadium of Light as a London Arsenal fan.
Top photo copyright © Christina Hanck. |
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Sitting atop a hill
overlooking the gorgeous southern Spanish city of Granada, the Alhambra
is one of Europe's most stunning and unique landmarks. The ancient Moorish
fortress, along with the immediately neighboring Generalife estate and Albayzín
neighborhood, make up a UNESCO World Heritage Site that is one of the world's
greatest examples of Arab architecture outside of the Middle East.
