Part 2 - Mystic Journey to the Land of Moors...and Knights of the Templar!

As mentioned in my earlier blog this week....Lady Traci and I had the great fortune during our visit to Spain to be taken by her daughter Lady Brittany and her gallant Spanish knight Sir Roberto of Murcia to the beautiful and medieval city of Granada. Granada is set in the southern highlands of Spain, nestled against the foot of the Sierra Mountains.

Sitting high about the city is a fabulous fortress called The Alhambra (in the background behind Lady Traci and myself ). The Alhambra is the lasting symbol of the Nasrid kingdom which ruled over Granada and the last symbol of of Muslim power in the Iberian Peninsula we now call Spain today. The Alhambra was built and rebuilt as a series of castles and fortresses by the Moors from the 700-800 AD period until 1232 AD when Muhammad ibn Yusf ibn Nasr took power as the Sultan and made the Alhambra into his private palace and source of power. The Moors ruled Granada (23 sultans in all) for over 254 years until the Christian armies drove them out.

The Christians retook the Alhambra (without a fight I might add!) in 1492 and continued to add structures on the mountain top. Today...the site hosts over 6 million visitors a year....and Lady Brittany informed us you have to make reservations for your visit weeks in advance if you hope to gain access to the site on the day you desire!!




We loved walking through all the courtyards.....castles.....and gorgeous artwork that adorned the walls all around the Alhambra. There are acres of beautiful, well-kept gardens and fountains and pools throughout the site. It also helped that the day we visited was a beautiful sunny 22 deg C!

At days end.....Sir Roberto wanted to take us for a real treat: to a tavern that had a Knights of the Templar theme (as the Knights flourished in this area of Spain during the 12th and 13th centuries. We soon found ourselves in the El Antiquidor....and also available to a vast array of brews from around the world. Sir Richard thought...."Surely this must be a view of heaven!"

Lady Traci also took control of the camera....and made her way around the tavern to get THIS view of the Knights of the Round Table of Granada.....Legend has it that the Knights would draw lots....for who had to go out and bring in the last keg of the night.....and who also picked up the check....

Sir Roberto and I had a duel of tapas plates that night at El Antiquidor...and I was finally able to get Sir Roberto to yield to that 6th plate of fancy toasted tuna sandwiches. Sir Richard lost track of how many Alhambra Negrils (remember...Alhambra beer is brewed in Granada!) and Guinness he had that night. Good thing we had our lovely Ladys with us to guide us back to the Hotel Carmen that evening.

Sir Richard, Lady Traci, Sir Roberto and Lady Brittany had a wonderful two and half days visiting Granada during our visit to Spain. This Knight would HIGHLY advise you plan a visit to Granada if you are planning a future visit to southern Spain....and the ancient land once roamed by Moorish warriors and gallant Knights of the Templar.

Its quite interesting to note....that history of this area shows.....that the Moors pre-1200AD were fairly tolerant of other religions and nationalities in this region. It was the Christians in the late 1400s who decided it was time to put all of Spain under Christian rule....and they took control of southern Spain and drove the Moors back across the straits of Gibraltor. There are still many remnants of the Moors influence in southern Spain...and none more so than in Granada.

Lady Traci and I do hope to make another visit to Spain in the future.....and we also hope to visit some other cities (ie; Seville, Cordoba) we did not get to this trip. Adios!!!

Sir Richard Lionheart.....who left his heart in Granada!

Mystic Journey to Land of El Cid

Lady Traci of Pong and I had discussed for sometime the notion to make a journey across the Great Pond to visit the Ancient Land of Andalusia and the southern coast of Spain. Lady Traci's eldest daughter....Lady Brittany of New Harmony currently teaches English to young Spanish elementary school children in the city of Murcia. Murcia is about 3 hours+ southeast of Madrid.

Last week....we returned from Spain with some awesome memories of some great people and great surroundings. We definitely hope to return.....

This first account is literally an international tennis exchange....between this worthy and older Knight....Sir Richard....and some strapping young studly Spaniards named Pedro Luis Sandoval and Paco Francisco. Lady Brittany's wonderful boyfriend Roberto had made arrangements for this Knight to have a tennis exchange on the slow, legendary red clay of Europe at a nice tennis club in Molina, ESP outside of Murcia. Sir Richard is a fairly decent player in his own right...and the sometimes scourge of Wesselman Park known for frustrating younger and stronger players with his crafty game...and wingspan! He wears his Columbia fishing hat to keep his dermotologist happy....and to also make his competition NOT take him seriously.

Watching Pedro and Paco warm-up before Sir Richard joined them on the red caly court....he got a lump in his throat watching these two strapping pros pound their beautifully trained ground strokes back and forth across the dusty clay court. Now we know why Spain wins the Davis Cup world team competition every year these days!......

Both Pedro (in the red hat) and Paco are tennis pros who were products of the Spanish National Junior Tennis program and played satellite tournaments all over Europe....Paco in particular was a VERY strong player and teaching pro that Sir Richard was only able to muster a few points from in a few tiebreakers. I was then informed Paco had trained with years prior and played fairly even with David Ferrer - current top 30 in world Spanish player on ATP tour...so Sir Richard did not feel so unworthy as when he lost that last tiebreak 7-0. I was able to save some face and surprise the very strong Pedro in a thrilling 10 point supertiebreaker 10-6. Pedro had overpowering topspin ground strokes....but Sir Richard's Vegamatic-like slice backhand was able to frustrate the younger and stronger Pedro. Sir Richard does NOT want a re-match as he believes payback would be.....hell!

Afterwards....Pedro immediately insisted we partake on the club grounds...the art of tapas and drinking local favorite beer Alhambra. This Knight was overwhelmed with the hospitality...and in fact....we were all communicating incredibly well after that 5th round of Alhambra ales and 6th plate of tapas....beer IS the international language understood by all Knights. This Knight was also introduced to a favorite local delicacy of the Murcia region....Pu Puo....otherwise known as "grilled octopus". Lady Traci of Pong did all she could not to hurl....but Sir Richard made the proclamation : "Tastes like swordfish!". Pu Puo went on to become a favorite tapas of Sir Richard the rest of our 10 days in Spain....much to the chagrin of Lady Traci!

Pedro and Paco would like to become Spanish Knights of the Moleskine...in fact.....this Knight was informed that the famous movie from the 1960s El Cid was filmed in southern Spain....and the Knights of the Templar were residents of the historic city of Granada. This Knight will also give an account of our visit to this beautiful city and the world famous Alhambra (Moorish castle on mountain top overlooking Granada).

Sir Richard remembered the far-fetched accounts of his late father Sir Richard Sr....that we were in fact descendants of King Richard the Lion-Hearted of England who fought in the Holy Wars against the Moors in this region....but this Knight also remembered that the Courtney family actually came from County Cork in the southern-most point of Ireland. He smiled and appreciated his late father's gift for embellishment.

You must get to Spain someday.....its a beautiful mix of the modern....with well preserved ancient cities and architecture. Sir Richard also proclaimed that "the Spanish have the best toilets in the world!!" There is also a bakery on every corner of Spain....wow do they love their sweets and fresh baked breads!

I also want you to see how a traditional Spanish family....the Sandovals.....celebrate a normal Sunday lunch.....wow. Lady Traci and I were overwhelmed with their hospitality.

Greetings.......

Sir Richard Lionheart....of Evansville