Granada 2009
On Sunday 29th March 2009, a group of seventeen L5th and four L6th girls set off along with three adventurous teachers to Granada, a city in the region of Andalusia in southern Spain. After an early morning flight, we arrived at Malaga airport at around midday and began our two hour coach journey to Granada. On arrival, we were greeted by a crowd of non-English speaking, traditional, Spanish families – this really put our Spanish to the test! We were then split up into little groups and taken by our families to their houses where we spent the rest of the day relaxing.
The following morning, all the students met at the Don Quijote Language school for Foreign Students at 9 a.m. to be put into classes and begin intensive Spanish lessons. They were very useful and great practice in areas such as speaking and grammar. In the afternoon, after lunch and some free time, we met with our (very attractive!) tour guide, San, who took us on a walking tour of the old Arabian district in Granada, the Albaicín. The steep cobbled stone streets, white washed houses, narrow roads, Arab bath complexes, remains of Moorish mosques, churches and Arabian sooqs were beautiful and very well preserved with enchanting stories and history behind them. With a sudden change of plan due to some ticket mix up, we found out that actually, we were going to have to cram in the Alhambra tour today rather than the planned one the next day, so we had to run up a steep hill in order to make it in time before the palaces close! However, San saved the day by managing to somehow secure us tickets for Thursday. So as not to make us feel that our long hike in the heat up the hill was for nothing, we managed to do the tour of the Generalife palace (the summer palace and country estate of the sultans in Granada), gardens and courtyards. The unusual stairways, cascading waterfalls, dancing water fountains, legends and tales were incredible and it was a wonderful first day in Granada. Definitely worth that long walk before!
After our Spanish classes on the second day, our teachers had organised a “town trail” challenge in order to put our Spanish to the challenge! It was very enjoyable with the sixth form winning (obviously!). We met up with San again to complete our tour of the Albaicín and the Mirador de San Nicolas. The views over the Alhambra and the Generalife Gardens with the Sierra Nevada mountains in the background were unforgettable and absolutely stunning. By the end of the Albaicín tour, San made sure that no one could ever forget what an Aljibe is (Arab baths) and how to spot one!
On Wednesday, after our Spanish lessons, we had some free time to do some shopping then at 6 o’clock, we met up at the school for a sensational Rumba dance master class. Everyone took part, including our brave teachers bringing some of their best dance moves to the dance floor. Well done everyone!
The following day, we managed to finally see the Alhambra palaces and military fortress, Alcazaba. The tours were in fast Spanish and this proved challenging for us to follow and absorb all the information, so I stepped in as a translator which perhaps was more challenging, but nevertheless, extremely rewarding and enjoyable! The Royal palaces consist of a number of brilliantly designed and decorated function rooms and courtyards that were used by the Muslim rulers for different purposes and the words “Allah is the only winner” delicately carved with stone repeated 70,000 times over the Alhambra walls. The palaces were magnificent and phenomenal with their marble floors and detailed wall décor. It was a fascinating and unforgettable experience for all of us. Definitely the highlight of the trip! In the evening, we went to the cinema to watch Confessions of a Shopaholic (all in Spanish without any English subtitles!) which was very enjoyable.
Finally, after lessons on Friday followed by the usual free time, the L6th headed to the Park of García Lorca where Lorca used to spend his summers writing poetry and plays. It proved to be a very educational visit as we will be studying one of his texts for our A2 literature next year. The teachers took the L6th students out to a typical, Spanish tapas bar where they tasted a variety of different meats, seafood and cheeses. In the evening, we met with our guide to take us on a tour of the Albaicín at night. The views of the Alhambra were fantastic and it looked like a golden fairytale castle in the sea of darkness. The last activity was a Flamenco show performed by real gypsies in the Sacramonte. It was so exciting that even Mrs Atkins and Mrs Birchall got up and joined in!
Apart from the rain on the first couple of days, a few interesting experiences with the families and the long walks to get to the Alhambra, the trip was an amazing success and thoroughly enjoyed by everyone. It was highly educational and enriching, not only in language, but in history of Islamic Spain, art and culture too. Thanks go to Mrs Atkins, Mrs Birchall and Mrs Thompson for all their planning, time and support; we greatly appreciated and enjoyed every minute and we are already looking forward to the next trip!
Dima Mobarak, L6R
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