Granada

The city of Granada from the Alhambra fortress walls

                So I left Fez, thinking that a charming train ride to the ferry to a bus to Granada all in one day would not only be possible, but possibly fun. I caught the train from the beautiful station in Fez to the slightly less beautifuil station in Tangiers. There I skillfully avoided beign charged 20 Dirham for a taxi ride that cost 7 Dirham once I wrangled a taxi driver who would actually use his meter... Of course he was mad that I made him use it. Damned honesty. I made it to the ferry with about 20 inutes to spare, and grew increasingly frustrated with a guy who kept offering to be my guide to one of the two places to buy tickets right in front of me, and when that failed, to allow him to fill out my exit forms (fat chance in hell I'm gonna hand you my passport buddy). After repeatedly telling him that Im fine and to please go away, he followed me out of the store and across the tarmac to the port offering (and being politely declined) the entire way. Once we reached it, he stuck out his hand and demanded I pay for his services as guide and porter. I responded that if he asked me for money again I would likely punch him in the face (I was still a bit miffed from the attempt by the taxis to rip me off).

                          I ended up making it across the Strait of Gibralter with the sun setting into the Atlantic and then realized that it wsa two hours ahead in Spain, making it nearly 10pm. I rushed to the tiny bus terminal in Tarifa to find that it was closed, so I spent the night on a local beach with some English hippies and an old Gibralterian lady. After being kicked awake by the local police at 5am (Bienvenidos a España) I made my way to catch a bus to Grenada. This beautiful city was a great place to recharge my batteries for a couple of days, enjoying the tapas and going to the famous Alhombra palace (Granada was the last Moorish city in Spain, and a capital famous for its sophistication. In the movie Lawrence of Arabia, a shiek reminds Lawrence that Granada had plumbing and lighted street while London was still a bunch of huts on a river). It was a brief but wonderful stay before I was on to my last Spanish city, the capital of Madrid!

The Alhambras courtyard reflection pool... beautiful architecture and attention to detail

The sunset flooding the cabin of the ferry to Tarifa with beautiful golden light

The harming train station of Fez

Where I ate in Granada every time I got the chance.

The intrixcately carved ceilings of the Alhombra

The lion fountains of the Alhombra:

"...Such a translucent basin, sculpted pearl!

Argentic ripples are added on it by the quiet dew

And its liquid silver goes over the daisies, melted, and even purer.

Hard and soft are so close, that it would be hard to distinguish

liquid and solid, marble and water. Which one is running?

Don't you see how water overflows the borders

and the warned drains are here against it?

They are like the lover who in vain

tries to hide his tears from his beloved..."

                       

My last view of Tangier, Morocco on my way back to Spain

A man sweeping up after a wedding at sunset in Granada