Where to start - Spain

Well, it's been a while and I've been real busy.

Spent a fantastic week in Spain, at a tiny little 6 bedroomed hotel called Casa Olea just outside Priego de Cordoba in Andalucia. Beautiful weather, actually a bit too hot on a couple of days. Flew into Malaga, and then hired a car to take us inland firstly to Granada where we spent the first night, then up with lark to go to the Alhambra Palace, which is one of the most beautiful

places I have ever been. An almost religious moment early in the morning standing in one of the cool Moorish courtyards watching swallows swoop over the pools - just incredible.

Above - me in the gardens.

One of the state room ceilings

Another

A photo of the Nasrid Palaces

Where we had our supper in Granada - the morning after

Then further inland to the hotel, unintentionally via the Sierra Nevada mountains, which were completely the wrong direction. But we eventually found it - surrounded by mountains and olive groves. A lovely english couple, Tim and Claire, opened it in November '09, and the place is perfect, way out of the way and with birds everywhere, including nightingales all night!! Nice swimming pool and really good food including suppers made by Claire's Mum (turkish delight cheesecake - fantastic!!) and eventually by Claire herself who had been held up by the ash cloud.

Took trips into Cordoba, which was hot and rather frantic - went to the Mesquita which is a huge mosque/cathedral - a very curious mix of religions.

And then stopped in Malaga on the way home to see the Picasso museum and to have something to eat on the way to the airpost. Altogether very lovely.