Moustache - HIDING A STIFF UPPER LIP FOR OVER 37 YEARS.

June 29, 2022. Lisbon, Portugal to Granada, Spain. 

We arrived into Granada late in the day and got settled into our apartment.

Then we all went out for dinner with the family.

It was great to get everyone together, especially our two young granddaughters.

The plan was to get the cousins, Aida and Brianna, together, before the wedding in Rome, so they could get to know each other.

June 30, 2022. Granada, Spain. 

We were in another Airbnb, which was yet another example of how poor the system has become. 

I believe that these places are never tested, by real people, to see if they are usable. 

There was one huge pot to boil water, no dishwasher and no tea towels, a washing machine but no pegs.

Also there was nowhere to hang bath towels to dry and there was a bathroom door that couldn’t be shut, let alone locked.

And this was a three bedroomed apartment, so more than likely the facilities would need to be shared.

After breakfast and discovering all the foibles of our Airbnb, we went off in search of a playground.

An essential activity when there are kids travelling with you.

It was then was back to our rooms to tend to washing and a bit of ‘housekeeping’ like onward bookings and reconciling the last week’s family expenses in Portugal with Ev and Steph.

That night it was another dinner with the family.

This time it was at Capitán Amargo (Captain Bitter) a craft brewery. This wasn’t Hayden and Andrea’s first choice, as that was booked out.

It certainly would have been mine. 

The local craft beer was excellent, as was the food. 

Capitán Amargo (Captain Bitter) Craft Brewery

July 1, 2022. Granada, Spain. 

As the big event on the upcoming calendar was the wedding in Rome the ‘girls’ needed haircuts.

Granada is Andrea’s home town, so it was left to her to select and book the salon.

That night it was another dinner with the family. We were sitting outside the restaurant and looking up at the Alhambra.

What a unique Granada experience to have while eating.

After dinner we all had an ice cream at a Heladeria los Italianos. This Italian gelateria has become an institution in Granada.

It certainly pays to have local knowledge.

Everything operates on a different time zone in this part of Spain. 

At 2pm, sharp, the city shuts down for lunch and then siesta. Dinner doesn’t really get going until at least 9pm, however 10pm seems to be a very popular time to start.

At 11:30 the streets are still full of people.

Alhambra in the background

July 2, 2022. Granada, Spain.

Another consequence of the upcoming wedding was that we needed to get congratulatory cards for Cam and Fran.

It wasn’t that easy, however, as usual, El Corte Inglés came to the rescue.

In Spain we have always found this department store to have ‘whatever’ we needed.

We then found more playgrounds, to entertain the little girls, and afterwards spent more time just wandering the streets of Granada.

That night it was Brianna’s early third birthday celebrations at Sonia and Toni’s. It was a warm night and the little girls and their dads all went for a dip in the pool.

Brianna’s birthday celebration was about a week early as she was going to be in Rome for the wedding on her actual birthday.

July 3, 2022. Granada, Spain.

This was our last day in Granada, as we were headed to Barcelona tomorrow.

Our flight was at midday, so there wouldn’t be much time to do anything more than pack and get the to airport.

I have always enjoyed Spanish coffee but after the last few weeks I feel that it isn’t as good as what we had in Portugal.

It was the size of serve and the strength that made the Portuguese coffee more enjoyable.