Friday 5 October 2012

Alhambra

So far the week has been quite productive, with almost all of the jobs that were planned being on target. A slight hiccup yesterday meant that a hedgecutting job for an elderly couple on Saturday morning must be postponed until next week, to make way for some turfing that couldn't happen. After the wonderful weather in Granada that we had, it's so typical of this country to now be seeing constant deluges of pouring rain, and last night yet more gale force winds, and so I expect today we will find lot's of rubbish down after the storm. Four places to do today, firstly a medium sized property will have the two of us weilding leaf blowers for an hour or so, the second, which is on the Sandbanks peninsula and under numerous pine trees, will no doubt need much of the same, but with the addition of a twenty feet long drain clearance that will be blocked with pine needles and sludge....lovely! Third will be somewhere that will require a large amount of hedgecutting and blowing, before finally returning to the modern house in Sandbanks, where we recently had some very large and futuristic pots delivered and will be planted and set in place.
 
And so now I return for the final visit to Granada, and that place of gardeners dreams, The Alhambra. t was incredibly hard to select just a few photos to put on here, as there is so, so much to see. The images of the gardens show just a fraction of what there is to see, and I have left out just about all of the building, The Alcazaba, Nasrid Palaces, Generalife and so on. But here is a taster, the rest you must all simply see for yourself one day! 
 
 
We had bought our tickets online, and after a steep walk entered by way of the Justice Gate, wondering what treasures lay within.
 

 
What became apparant almost immediately was the use of water everywhere. Not raging torrents and waterfalls, but gentle flows and soft fountains around every turn.


 

 
The views towards The Alhambra from The Generalife were breathtaking. Planting appeared to mimic the buildings.

 
An area of fruit trees was being created, where probably ten gardeners were working.

 
The Alcazaba, the oldest part of The Alhambra, and built with the purpose of defence in mind. A fortified giant with virtually no planting within.
 
 
As opposed to the visual tranquility of the rest of the place.
There appeared to be mainly just four types of plant used to create the backbone of the landscaping. Cupressus, Myrtus, Buxus and Euonymus. All trimmed to create a soft formality.
 

 
 
Amongst these, colour was obtained with the clever use of just a few main flowers. Celosia, Marigolds, Salvias, Canna's and Roses. There were of course many more plants to be seen, but the overall structure used these stalwarts that were able to survive the best.
 


 
Tiling in the first Nasrid Palace.
 

 
Parts of The Generalife.
 



 
A gigantic wall of Ipomoea



 
When visiting the Suleymaniye Mosque in Istanbul, I helped with the bedding schemes there, and I was going to ask if I could help with this hedgecutting when we returned for our second visit the following day, but alas they had moved somewhere else behind the scenes...another day.

 


 
 Eventually though, it was time to leave. Two whole days spent at this extraordinary place.
 
Thanks for visiting with me.


13 comments:

  1. Beautiful gardens! what a wonderful vacation.

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    1. They really were amazing Gina. You must go sometime.

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  2. Great photo's they brought back so many memories. I was there back in 1963, such an amazing historical gem.

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    1. Hi Doc, nice to meet you. They are stunning aren't they. There is lot's of renovation work going on now.

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  3. Treasures indeed. What a beautiful place. I can almost hear all the gentle water fountains. Thank you for sharing such a special spot.

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    1. Hi Sherlock,
      In the heat, the water brought about a real calmness to the place, both inside and outside.

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  4. Oh my gosh.....Gary, this is incredible. I had no idea that there were such gardens there. Thanks for sharing these pics of this gorgeous garden....very inspirational.

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    1. Hi Chris,
      Although we knew that the gardens were famous, we never imagined the sheer size and quality of the place. If you can, pay it a visit.

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  5. Oh, amazing! I don't know enough about gardening history to trace the origin of the long runs of water, but are they Moorish? They are also similar to gardens my son visited in northern India this summer.

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  6. Hi Linda,
    They are indeed Moorish, and beautiful, and cooling, and spellbinding, and....and....

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  7. Just lovely Gary. Some day I will visit there. I'd love to visit the gardens in Spain and Morocco. Some day... Thanks for taking me along.

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  8. Hi Jean,
    Nice to see you. I must admit that I was very surorised by the high standard of the gardens at Alhambra. You must go some day.

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  9. I am backtracking through your blog and oh my gosh, this one has tears streaming. Mark was in the US NAVY '69-'73 and was stationed in Rota, Spain from Dec 69-Mar 73. I joined him in January '70. It was like a long honeymoon (except for the Navy), one we talked about and remembered with love and joy in our hearts for our living and travels there. Granada was wonderful. The Alhambra and Generalife beautiful. There was so much to see there and in Spain as a whole, and we were grateful for that opportunity that we were blessed with to live there in Spain.

    Thanks for the trip back down memory lane.

    FlowerLady

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