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Gay Granada, Durcal and Lecrin Valley |
The First Civial Union in Andalucia took place in Durcal, just South of Granada, Andalucia, just a couple of years ago.
Not that this in itself is reason to visit the place but it does mark out the area as one of tolerance and progressive thinking. When people think of Spain they tend to think of the dire costas. Beer fuelled yobbishness in a cultural desert.
Well think again. In Granada, the city that inspired Boabdil to famously 'weep like a woman, for what he could not defend like a man' you will of course find the Alhambra Palace, and so much more. I have been visiting for 20 years or so, before the invasion of motorways and hypermarkets this place had an authentically 'foreign' feel. It still does, but it just takes less time to get around.
You can ski on the Sierra Nevada in the morning and swim in the mediterranean in the afternoon. You can bathe in the Bano Arabe (Turkish baths) in the centre of Granada where the incense filled atmosphere is so relaxing and the massage is excellent, as the mint tea. I also like al fresco spas and there is one that is free in Alhama de Granada. Small but beautiful, under a canopy of tall trees.
Walking is probably my favourite activity as I have a cottage in the foot hills of the Sierra. You can walk for miles through orange and olive groves, up and down hills well away from the madding crowd! The last friend I introduced to the place said it was like being in the garden of Eden.
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Europe