Paris Dakar rest day #5 – Granada

Our 5th rest day was Sept 28, 2023. It sure is luxurious having a rest day at a hotel, particularly a nice 4-star one like the Allegro Granada. When I woke up, it seemed pretty dark outside, definitely pre-sunrise. So I thought I had a long time to relax and catch up on reading. But no, it was 8:15 already. We went down for breakfast and it seemed like everyone was there. I met Joan from the US who I last saw in Ushuaia in 2020. It was a nice breakfast like you would expect for a place like this and of course I went pretty big.

At 9:30, I left on foot with Wytze and Andrew for the Alhambra. We had bought tickets a few days earlier. All the cheap ones were gone so we bought a guided tour. We walked almost half an hour then checked in for the tour. The guide was pretty good and had audio so he could speak quietly but all 24 people could hear him. He was a linguist with many interesting side points and explanations.

We walked up to the Alhambra which is way more extensive than I envisioned. There are tons of gardens, with water flowing nicely in small streams. The palaces and fortress itself are almost 800 years old, built originally with Islamic architecture, but in places modified after the Spanish Royal family took over in 1492. Our three hour tour walked all around and gave us access to all the parts open to the public.

After the tour was over we didn’t take the guide’s advice and visit the museum. Sometimes enough is enough. Instead we walked downtown and had a pre-lunch cheese-platter with other snacks and beer and wine.

We looked around a bit more but it was starting to get pretty hot. So we bailed to the Italian restaurant where we had a 3:30 lunch reservation. We were early but no problem. Ype and Daniel joined us and we had a delicious lunch with lots of appetizers, then various amazing Italian dishes. Plus a couple of bottles of wine and several desserts to share.

We did some shopping, then Wytze and I walked home to the hotel. I immediately went to the rooftop infinity pool and had a nice swim. It was hot out and the water was perfect. I did a little more laundry then had a short nap. I ended up skipping dinner since lunch and pre-lunch were pretty big. All in all it was a good rest day. My body feels fine for riding tomorrow, my mind, …?